Chapter 1
˚ʚ♡ɞ˚
Running late to school while wearing heels should never be game plan. Which is why it's not. Aldira sitting on a rollout couch is. Aldira had her legs brought to her chest, scrolling mindlessly on her phone.
“Ali! Get yourself out of that room!”
“Dad I’m not in my room I'm in my living room!” Aldira shouted back hoarsely, her eyes weighted with exhaustion. She rolled over exaggeratedly trying to get her father's attention before falling and harshly landing on her right hip.
“GAHH”
“Wha-what happened? Don't get hurt so close to your competition!” Aldira’s father asked with a shout.
“Nothing… Nothing Dad! And please, my competition isn't for another 2 months.” Aldira said as she wobbled to her kitchen holding her hip.
“So any other reason you came to visit?”
“Not necessarily, I wanted to see you... Is that too much to ask of my only child?”
Aldira rolled her eyes at her father's small smirk. She looked over at him once again. It had been a while since she saw him last. One year certainly didn't do much to sever the relationship they shared. The multiple vacations didn’t treat her father badly either. They both shared hazel green eyes, along with a crooked smile. His hair was much more faded from when she last saw him. Perhaps he stopped colouring it… Aldira thought to herself and she examined her father. His hair was straight except for the slight curl at the top of his hair, which differed harshly from her frizzy red curls.
“When do you have your first class again?”
“Soon, it starts in 10 minutes” Aldira glanced at the small clock on a table behind her father that clearly showed that she was 40 minutes late before smiling blankly at her back at his face.
“Shouldn’t you be ready… by now?” Her father said while gesturing to her in her pink pajamas and fluffed slippers. The only part of her that was ready was her hair, which was clipped up half up and half down, with some of the curls along the front of her head.
“I am in the process, my dear father,” Aldira said snarkily as she moved to get her 2nd cup of coffee.
“I love that you are getting enough sleep nowadays, but I would also like you to arrive on time”
“Dad cmon’ I'm always on time. When have I ever been late?”
“You were in fact late for your 4th competition last year. You remember, the one where you almost cost your 1st gold medal.” He stated with a huff.
“Please, that arial competition was a breeze!” She replied laughing, while also hiding her cup behind her arm so her father wouldn't see the concerning amount of sugar she was adding into the coffee.
“And just imagine, your poor father's pride almost whisked away because of… what was it? Traffic?” Her father chuckled as he dramatically placed the back of his hand on his forehead.
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Aldira laughed loudly, before moving past her father and waving him away.
“I'm gonna get ready now. Are you happy with that?”
“I've never been prouder”
Her eyes had a bright glint as she walked into her room, A mix of yellows and purple greeted her. Her bed was laid in the middle against the wall, and on the opposite side were the windows which had faded small flowers painted onto the sides. Aldira opened her yellow cupboard and pulled out a green turtleneck that matched her black cargo pants. As she changed she walked toward her classic vanity-styled dresser, which was one of the most expensive things her father had bought for her. It was also one of her least favorite items in the house. Not because of the dresser itself, she had always thought it was beautiful. One of the bulbs flickered constantly, no matter what either of them did to fix it. The flashing in her eye made it her heart feel heavy, but no matter how much she searched her mind, she couldn't find why she felt this weight. She fixed her hair once again, making sure it was aligned down the middle just how she liked it. She glanced at the clock again, seeing that by now she would be 55 minutes late to her first class of the day. Why, being on time is overrated she thought. It's not like it’s an important class today, its only Tuesday, so I have… travel and tourism. I should probably have my schedule down by now. Aldira thought to herself as she groaned and grabbed her phone.
Hm
It's Wednesday
Wait
It's Wednesday. Today.
Right now.
Wednesday.
You could practically see the blank look in her eyes as she processed the information.
Frick frick FRICK
And some other words were included in her thoughts as she scrambled for her bag and threw some books in, most likely bending some quite important papers that she would need later. Aldira sprinted down the hallway running past her dad who had just taken a peak inside her coffee cup, but before he could say anything she grabbed her sneakers, keys, and half shouted a “GOODBY-” before slamming the door behind her. As she ran towards a bus stop that would drop her near her university, she went through her phone and her notes for an exceptionally important presentation that she had today. What it was about didn't make it stand out, however, it was the people present, that made it crucial. Today, the Olympic gymnasts and acrobatic judges would be shown the presentations on the history and art of ancient gymnastics. Her university somehow got the judges to agree to visit, and she had been ecstatic for months, and now she was so close to missing it. She checked the time again. She was an hour late and had 30 minutes to make up for her lost time. That is if her professor would even let her present so late after the others. She ran past the opening to the subway, a small shiver climbed up her back. She hadn’t used a train in 4 years, she had nothing against buses though. She ran faster as she saw a bus pull up at the bus stop. As she scrambled onto it and found her seat, uncaring of how much she was heaving or who saw, she opened her phone again, looking over her notes as the bus started to drive. Her eyes darted to the time every few seconds. She always wanted to meet professional judges and gymnasts, and to have this opportunity was a dream come to her.
How late did I have to sleep to be this late she thought as she flopped her bag to the empty seat next to her to hold her phone with both hands.
If I am actually gonna miss this, I will roll myself down a flight of stairs.
Alright, alright, deep breaths. She told herself as the bus slowed down right next to her university. You have 24 minutes. Show them all you’ve got. They aren’t going anyway. Breathe. The cycle of thoughts ran over and over in her mind to the point where she had to remind herself to not hyperventilate from the deep breaths. Either way, she was here, pacing towards her lecture hall with her face high and shoulders tall. Before she could touch the door handle, she heard an ear-graining alarm, before an automated voice rang out.
“A fire has been detected, please evacuate this wing immediately. This is not a drill".
Aldira wished there was a flight of stairs she could make herself roll down.