Chapter Text
You groan, blindly feeling around your night stand trying to find your phone to stop the loud beeping of your alarm. Finally touching the plastic case, you turn it off and pull back the light, thin sheets, looking up at the large tree branches swaying gently, not far from your window.
Focusing, the sound of your family scurrying around downstairs makes its way to your ears.
Mom must have an early shift at the shop again.
Getting up and grabbing the clothes you left out on your desk chair the night before, you’re able to get dressed before a knock comes from the other side of the door.
“y/n I’m heading out for work now, could you drive your sister to school before you leave for classes? Your father went to go to a doctors appointment so he probably won’t be back until lunch”
Looking at the time on your phone you groan inwardly.
Guess I’m not getting any breakfast today either.
“No problem, just make sure she has everything this time, please. I really don’t wanna drive all the way back just to save her from her trig teacher again.”
Your mom laughs at that, opening the door to shoot you a grin. “Don’t worry, she already knows she’ll have to do dishes for a week if she forgets her homework again.”
You smirk at her comment, and with that she was off. Taking everything on top of your desk, you head downstairs from your lone upstairs bedroom. It’s a small attack converted into a bedroom, but you weren’t going to complain if it meant having your own room. Grabbing a granola bar out of the sad excuse of a pantry in your kitchen, you make your way through the living room, grabbing your sister's bag and heading out the door, with her right behind.
Warming up the car, you plug in your phone to the aux cord and start playing your go to playlist, filled to the brim with David Bowie.
Scrunching her nose, your sister gives you an incredulous look from the passenger seat. “Again?”
Lifting your nose high, smugly side eyeing her, you reply “You can pick your own music when you start driving.”
At that she just huffs and lays back in the chair.
Not much is said during the car ride, but that was normal when the two of you were left alone. Your sister and you got along well enough, but since there was an eight year age difference, you never really knew how to relate to your seventeen year old sister. Clearly you didn’t share the same taste in music. And your taste in everything else was, well it was a bit off from the norm of your peers. Nerdy was probably the best way to describe it.
Pulling up to her school, she gets out with a wave and quick thanks before she disappears in the maze of highschoolers scurrying around the entrance.
Now you have the rest of the drive to yourself. Pulling out of the school, you turn up the volume and put on your go to album for when you’re feeling anything but happy, the soundtrack for the Labyrinth movie. You found the movie back when you were in high school, and ever since then its been something that you held dear. It introduced you to David Bowie's discography, and from there you fell in deep. You even managed to find an original movie poster that you have proudly displayed on your room wall. After all, it took you awhile to save up for it.
More than that it was a getaway, a desperate form of escapism, from what you guessed. What could be better than leaving all the stress and the pressure of life behind to live in a kingdom with a gorgeous king that loved you? There were several instances over the years you had quietly wished yourself to be taken away by the goblin king, but of course that would never happen. Reality never does work like you want it too, that was something you felt like you knew all too well. And there was the guilt that washed over you before you would even say the words, thinking about how your parents would have to fend for themselves with you gone.
You turned on another playlist for the rest of the ride, feeling a bitter squeeze in your stomach at the thought, before pulling in and going to your first class of the day at your local community college. Just one more year and you’d get the degree that you were working for.
After getting done with your class and taking two hours in the library to get a head start on your new essay, you head out back on the trail that leads up to the school cafeteria. Your one and only good friend, Sarah, had texted you earlier letting you know she would be there in a few minutes so you could meet up.
The matching name to your favorite movie heroine was not lost on you when the two of you first met. The name introduction was what actually started the friendship. Looking back, the memory of you gushing about the movie the second you heard her name made you wince, but it all led to your current friendship. How could you get mad at your past self when it led to meeting someone who loved to geek out on random stuff too?
You were almost at the cafeteria, being only a few yards away, as your eyes wandered up to your side. Looking off into the trees that lined the edge of the school grounds, you squint, looking up after seeing movement at the top of one of the trees. What was that?
“...a...is that an...owl?”
It was hard to see from here, but the shape and colors looked like a barn owl to you. Or maybe it was a small hawk? Before you could step closer to try and get a better look, with one blink it had completely disappeared.
“Hm, weird. I thought owls mostly stayed out at night.”
“Y/N! Hey come on I got us some food!”
Looking back toward the upcoming cafeteria, you saw your friend had not only managed to get you both food during the busy lunch hour but also managed to grab a table for you both outside.
She really is something.
You can’t help the grin that spreads across your face as you run up to her, sitting down on the other side of the table.
“You’re a lifesaver, you know that? I was starving.”
She winks at you “Oh I know, but do continue the praises~”
The break was nice, being spent complaining about professors and talking about the latest show you had both started watching the other week. It wasn’t often you got to spend time with her like this anymore, but these moments were something you cherished. Unlike you, she was only taking courses here to help save money for a four year college. The only reason she was here so late was because she took a few years to travel and “live my life to the fullest before I get too old” as she put it.
Sarah was always more outgoing than you, with lots of friends and the brains and beauty to boot. At first you didn’t know what she saw in you to make her interested in being your friend at all, but after years of late night talking and show binging, you felt less insecure about the relationship and just grateful to have her. After all, without her you wouldn’t even be able to function socially anyway, since there wasn’t one social bone in your body.
“I can’t believe you only have one year left, you’re almost there!”
“I can’t really believe it either, I’m terrified.”
The wrinkles forming on Sarah’s forehead, as she hears your response, let you know to elaborate.
“I just-I don’t really know what I wanna do, I guess. Even with this degree, it's vague enough that I still have to really pick my career path for the future and nothing really feels right. Like I just can’t see myself doing any of this. I write my papers and do my projects but it just doesn’t translate to future work that I’d understand and want. Does that make any sense?”
“Yeah, I guess I get that.”
So she said, but you can tell by the slow nod and pull of her lip that she really didn’t get what you were trying to explain. Neither did you, to be fair.
Sadly, the conversation had to end as your next class was starting too soon for comfort, at this point you’d have to make a good run for it. With a hug and another thanks for the food, you were off, spending the rest of your day at class and then work. You didn’t end up making it back before 11, thanks to your manager needing an extra hand closing. Dinner would probably be cold by now.
Getting in the house, the heavy, quiet atmosphere that laid thick in the air was choking. It was too quiet for your normally loud family, especially when you knew they were home. Passing through the empty living room full of outdated furniture that your parents had bought when they had gotten married, you find your mother in the kitchen, washing the dishes with her head hung. She didn’t even seem to notice you had come in until you called out for her.
With a jump she turns around, holding a wet hand to her chest. “Oh, Y/N, I’m sorry I didn’t even hear you come in.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. But um, it's kinda quiet tonight. Where's dad and Aaron?”
She winces at the mention of your dad, turning off the water and moving to the table where there’s a plate of food waiting for you. She avoids eye contact the entire time and you suddenly remember what she mentioned about him this morning. It feels like your stomach drops out of your body at that moment.
“...Mom?”
“Come on and sit over here with me, okay? I need to-we need to talk.”
You hesitate, not wanting to hear whatever needs to be said after such a long day, but needing to know that your father is alright. You sit down, slowly, meeting your mothers worried expression.
“Honey”
Oh no, whatever this is can’t be good. Your mother always referred to you by the dozens of nicknames she's made for you over the years, but she never used sugary terms like “honey” or “sweetheart” unless she felt like she really needed to pad the landing of some bad news, really bad news. The last time she had talked to you like this, your grandad had passed.
“We, that is your father...well you remember how I had said earlier that your dad had gone to the doctors this morning?”
You nod.
“He had gone for the swelling in his leg, the one that was acting up a few days ago. Well we thought it had just been because of him being so active at work but-”
She was trying to look composed, but you could tell she was unsure of what to say next. You weren’t sure if you were ready to hear it either.
“He’s doing alright now, they sent him to the emergency room right away. But he had a blood clot, if they didn’t catch it he could have had a heart attack but the clot was bad enough that he’s going to have to have further surgery done.”
Your brain felt fuzzy as you just stared at the table. A million ideas came flooding through your mind, so many that you couldn’t focus on any for more than a second each. Will he be okay? What kind of surgeries will he have to go through? How much will they cost? How long will he be out of work? Will he ever even be able to go back to work? You already lived paycheck to paycheck, what is gonna happen now?
Looking up at your mom, you try and suppress the panic on your face when you see her eyes tearing up. Your mother wasn’t one to cry, but it's no wonder with the love of her life sitting in the hospital all alone and probably worried himself. Taking her hand, you give it a squeeze and try to clear your throat to get rid of any fear that might come through.
“Is he going to be alright? Do you think they caught it soon enough?”
She takes in a deep breath, nodding slowly. “They did, but he won’t be able to work until they fix his leg and check to see that nothing got to any arteries. It may take a year to recover and get the ok to work again.”
You force a smile, giving her hand another squeeze.
“It’s alright mom, we’ll get through it. I’ll do whatever I can to help, and before you know it, dad will be up to trouble like normal.”
She gives a weak laugh at that, leaning in to give you a hug. You pat her back, making sure to talk slow so the emotion didn’t crack your voice
“Why don’t you go and ask Aaron if she needs help with her homework? I’ll eat and finish up these dishes. I’ll take Aaron to school again so you can go visit dad in the morning as soon as visiting hours start, okay?”
Smiling, she pats your back and heads over to the hallway in the direction of your sister’s room. “I don’t know what I’d do without you y/n.”
The rest of your night was spent eating, washing dishes and getting a shower, all the while your mind was filled with everything that you’d have to do these next few weeks.
There was no getting around it, you’d need to get another job. But how would you manage to balance school and two jobs and helping your mom take care of the house? And even with another job there was no way you’d make as much as your father does in a month. Is your mom going to be able to pay for rent this month?
Drying your hair, you walk into your room, crouching down to one of your desk drawers, ruffling through it before pulling out your bank book triumphantly. You’d been saving any money you didn’t use to pay for college and your self given allowance for groceries, nights out, and car insurance, in the bank in hopes of saving up for your own apartment in the future. The idea didn’t seem too far off before, but that dream is going to have to go to the mortgage for the next few months, you suppose.
Looking up at your cherished poster, the words almost threaten to spill out, but are swallowed along with the regret of the thought of your mother being left alone right now.
No, real life really wasn’t anything like it was in the movies...