Gifted

Part 2: Ordinary

       

I woke up to the annoying sound of the alarm on my phone. I rolled over, turned it off and grumbled. It felt like I didn't get any sleep at all. The same nightmare haunted me every night. Though it wasn't a particularly scary dream, it was a sad one, because it was a dream that gave me hope then faded away before I could seize the opportunity it presented me. Each and every night, I dreamt that I could change myself, and finally fit in, but I always woke up to the same me that I hated so much.

    I rolled out of bed, got dressed, packed my backpack, and went downstairs to find my mother in the kitchen sipping freshly brewed coffee. I grabbed a granola bar from the cabinet and shoved it in my backpack.

    "Good morning!" my mother said.

    "Morning." I said.

    My mother, Emma, was only a little shorter than me. She had long grey-blond hair and blue-green eyes. She looked young for her age, and always dressed very well. Even though it was early in the morning, my mother was already dressed up with a face full of make-up, ready for the day.

    I walked into the bathroom to find my dad brushing his teeth. I brushed mine next to him, then put my own make-up on. I always dressed nicely for school because I figured it would distract everyone from everything that was wrong with me.

    "Do I look ok?" I asked my dad. "Did I put too much on?" I asked referring to my make-up. I looked in the mirror, and saw my dad smiling behind me, even though I wasn't smiling.

    "You look fine. I can barely tell that you have anything on your face." he said. I smiled, but I didn't believe him. He put his hand on my shoulder.

    "So, I don't look like I'm trying too hard?" I asked. I always needed a lot of reassurance before I went to school. Luckily, my dad was used to it by now.

    "You're beautiful. You look like one of those popular girls." he said. That made me laugh.

    "Yeah right, dad. Don't say things like that!" I said.

    My dad, Gordon, was a head taller than I was. He had a completely bald head and the bluest eyes I had ever seen. Though he was already in his sixties he was still a hard worker. If I ever live to be that old, I hope I'm just as alive as my parents are at that age.

    I heard my mom calling from the kitchen. "Nora Evans! I won't allow you to go off to school with just one granola bar! Take something else with you! How about a banana?" she called. I sighed.

    "I'm serious. You look fine, and you have nothing to worry about." my dad said. I smiled at him gratefully before I went downstairs to receive the banana from my mom that both she and I knew I wasn't going to end up eating. My sister and brother were sitting at the kitchen table, both on their phones.

    My sister, Chloe, had long flowing black hair and blue eyes that matched my dad's. She was one of those gorgeous girls that every boy at school had a crush on. She was the complete opposite of me.

    My brother, Michael, was very tall, even taller than my dad. He had brown hair, and my mother's eyes. He was incredibly thin like a toothpick. Like my sister, he was popular as well, and on top of that, got excellent grades. I, on the other hand, was lucky if I passed all my classes.

    "Wow. You're going to school looking like that?" Chloe asked, smirking. Michael gave me a judgmental look but didn't say anything. Chloe was four years younger than me, twice as beautiful and about a hundred times as popular than I was. She was only in eighth grade, but more people knew her in the high school than they knew me.

    I ignored their criticisms. I already didn't like me, but when I was around my siblings, I didn't like me even more because I hated being compared to them. They were both younger than me, but far ahead of me in many ways. They both had something that I didn't, and that something went far deeper than merely good looks, grades, and popularity.

    "Are you guys ready to go yet?" I asked my siblings. They both shrugged. "Ok, fine. I'll be waiting for you guys in the car." I said.

    It was already time to leave, and traffic was usually rough in the morning, but I always ended up waiting for my siblings. Even though they were completely ready to leave on time, and they wouldn't be the ones driving to school, they somehow always had the desire to get in the car late so I would have to rush to school. I was always late for my first class because of it. I bet my siblings blamed it on me to their teachers. People always blame the driver.

    "Goodbye, mom. Love you!" I said as I hugged her.

    "Goodbye, sweetie! Love you too!" she said.

    I went to the car and waited for my siblings. I watched my dad leave the house. He waved at me, and I waved back. He didn't have a car. He didn't need one. With his suitcase in hand, my dad took off. His feet lifted off the ground, and he floated towards the sky. My dad could fly. I watched him soar, and then disappear behind the clouds.

    After he was gone, I looked at the clock. I had five minutes to get to school and it usually took me twenty. I sighed. I was about to go back inside when my sister appeared in front of the car. I jumped, startled. She laughed and got in the back seat.

    "God! You have such an annoying power!" I said.

    "You're just jealous!" She said. "Invisibility is the coolest ability." she said as she took her earbuds out of her backpack and shoved them in her ears.

    "Where is Michael?" I asked but Chloe had already blocked me out with her music.

    Suddenly, I felt a rumble. The entire car lifted. I screamed. Chloe laughed, but her eyes remained glued to her phone. Then the car reconnected with the ground and I saw on the passenger's side that my brother, Michael had been the one to lift it up in the first place. He got in the back seat too. No one wanted to sit in the front with me. I was their chauffeur.

    "Will you guys stop fooling around? Now we're definitely going to be late! Again!" I yelled. Michael grinned.

    "Whatever." he said. I groaned as I started the car.

    "And don't do that again! If you dropped the car, you could have really damaged it! And, it could be dangerous for Chloe and me!" I shouted.

    When Michael didn't answer, I looked back to see that he already put on his noise cancellation headphones and blocked me out. There was no point in trying to get through to them. I drove to school as quickly and safely as possible, and only ended up ten minutes late for my first class.