6:10 am. I could hear the beeping of the alarm clock by my bedside and I stirred. I gazed sleepily out the wide window and watched the sunrise. The sky was pale orange and a very light violet; there wasn't a cloud in the sky and the early birds had started to chirp. I shivered. My thin cotton nightgown rustled in the breeze. I slid out of bed and shuffled into the bathroom.
After a quick shower and a brisk brushing of my long brown hair, I emerged from the bathroom, a towel wrapped around my torso. My silky milk chocolate skin was cool and glowed from the coat of cream. "What to wear, what to wear........." I thought out loud. A short lilac dress caught my eye from the far left of the closet. Straightaway, my mind was drawn my royal purple Converse and I remembered the new lavender laces I bought earlier. As you can guess, my favourite colours are the shades of purple.
It took me no time at all to get dressed and I looked pretty, if not mediocre compared to the prettier girls at school. They all have tiny waists and really long hair and beautiful bright eyes and big bums. Then insert me. With my kinda long toffee-brown hair and my milk chocolate brown skin. I have a very little waist but it's still there. Someone once told me my light-brown hazel eyes makes them want to cry. They didn't imply whether it was because they were beautiful or because of how sad they always looked.
I wear lilac/lavender RayBan glasses that hide my eyes most of the time and my nose is small and cute. My best friend Dana (uncanny resemblance, just starting with our names) said I was a type of cute that a lot of girls would die for. I read body language and I am 94% sure that she was lying. The sun had risen while I was getting dressed and a cold light shone through the window into my room. A wind crept in and it was cold. Very cold. I grabbed a cardigan and trudged quickly down the carpeted stairs.
I strolled into the kitchen and saw Mum working away at the stove. A delicious smell wafted into my nose. Eggs. Bacon. Toast. Fruit juice. Add it all together and it equals BREAKFAST!!!! "Hi Mum," I breathed. "You've been busy." She turned to look at me. Her face bore the symptoms of fatigue: dark defined circles under her grey eyes, a pallor to her usually gleaming fair skin, the limpness of her smile. I decided not to mention these and returned her smile.
She dished up some rashes and a moderate pile of eggs on a plate, re-buttered some hot toast and poured me a glass of pomegranate juice. I thanked her, sat down and tucked in. An explosion of flavour rained down on my tongue and I hummed in delight. My mother seemed pleased. I checked the time on my watch. 7:24. I scarfed down the remnants of my food and dropped the empty plate in the sink. I planted a kiss on my mother's cheek, grabbed my school bag and left, practically slamming the door behind me.
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"Hi, Danae!" Dana called out to me from further down the corridor. My school, Globa Middle School, isn't very from my house but I still liked to get there early. It's only like ten minutes from the house when I walk slowly and I usually do. Walking alone down the pretty empty streets early in the morning clears my mind like nothing else. Today she was wearing a black hoodie and nice faded high waisted denim jeans. Her black combat boots went clip-clop on the marble floor as she sashayed towards me. Her cherry lips formed a smile as she greeted me. We turned and walked towards our lockers.
As we walked past our friends, they all said hi. Lunae boldly said hi before she went off with her boyfriend Silas (I'm pretty sure they went to find a quiet place to snog), Miane waved calmly before she headed to her homeroom with her best friend Austin. "What's our first period, Dana?" I asked, dropping my bag in the bottom compartment of my locker. "American Literature," she replied grimly. I groaned. I despise American Literature and the teacher. Dana grinned at my disgust. She linked arms with me and we headed for homeroom.
As we walked into the class, she told me "We still have about half an hour before first period." I checked my watch. 8:38. I nodded in agreement. We spend this time chatting about silly topics. We sat in the front of the class, in the first row. Dana twirled her hair around her finger. "He's just so -----------" Then I stopped listening. I know it's not very friendly of me to block her out like that, but she talks about him all the time. Christian Oscars.
He's an eighth grader with blond hair and sky blue eyes. He's always surrounded by people from his grade like he's king. Girls from lower grades drool over him and the boys all want to be him. Basically, he's the most popular boy in school. Hence, he's left a very very long string of broken hearts in his wake. He picks prey in the form of an unsuspecting, lovesick girl and tortures them in a way they don't realize until they break down, broken. He's got his eyes on my best friend and he's not going to destroy her. NOT on my watch.
"What do you think, Danae?" Dana asked me. I was snapped right out of my reverie and stared her right in the eyes. I drew blank. "Uhhhhh......" I rubbed my neck guiltily. She scowled at me. I braced myself. "I knew you weren't listening!" she yelled. "There wasn't even a preamble to answer!" I looked away ashamed. She stood up like a shot. I copied. "No!" she almost screamed. "Stay where you are! Don't you dare follow me," she said in a final tone. She stormed out of the class as the bell rang. I slumped into my chair, defeated.
I gathered my books for American Literature and I walked out of homeroom with everyone else, but I felt more alone than ever.
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Lunchtime. I sat alone meanwhile Dana went to sit with Lunae, Miane and Silas. I felt so lonely. I didn't want to go sit with them because just the sight of me would set off World War Three. I went to sit at an empty table after I got my lunch from the dinner ladies. I just ate the hot pasta from my plate, barely tasting any of it when I heard a voice. "You don't need her," it said quietly.
I looked around wondering where it came from. "So you weren't listening. Big deal. It's the first time too, right? You and I know it." I nodded and glanced around the cafeteria, gaining dirty looks and rude giggles and sniggering for my troubles. Realizing that if I answered this voice out loud everyone around would think I was demented, I answered the voice with the voice in my head: "Umm yeah..........Who are you?"
Silence. I shovelled a forkful in my mouth and swallowed when the mystery voice returned. "I am Persona," they answered matter-of-factually. The voice had taken on a feminine tone since it last spoke. Before it was neutral and cold. "Persona?" I asked. "Yes, Persona. I am a part of you. I've been here for you since you were little." I almost choked on my Very Berry Smoothie from the ice-cream bar next door.
"What do you mean 'been here for me'?" The voice became impatient. "When you were seven years old, who did you play with?" I thought about it. "Three little girls called Lucy, Phoebe and Skye." I was pleased that I remembered until the voice butted into my little celebration. "Incorrect," it said without emotion. "When you were alone, who did you talk to?" I thought harder. Click. "Three angels called Charlie, Destiny and Melodii." I could hear the distinct change in the voice when they answered: they were smiling.
"Now there," she praised, "is a correct answer." She paused. "When you were eleven, what did you want to be called?..........Oh. All three names please." I was gathering stray pieces from the edges of the plate when she asked me. The fork was halfway to my mouth when I lowered it. My eyes widened in shock. How did she know about that? "Umm.......SkyLar...........Dianne.......and Violette." I shoved the pasta in my mouth before she could disturb me and picked up my plate.
I added it to the pile of dirty dishes and walked casually out of the cafeteria. "Umm whoever you are, hold on. Let's find a more private place to talk."
END OF CHAPTER ONE
YOU ARE READING
Personal
ParanormalEveryone had an imaginary friend when they were growing up but not everyone's imaginary friends become real. And not everyone can control them. But Danae can. The world of unspoken magic unravels into her own mind, preventing her from thinking strai...
