How Far We've Come

Chapter One

Alice (two years earlier)

I would like to say that the rosy color of the sunrise woke me up, but that would be a lie. I woke up to the sound of my little siblings, screaming like it’s not 6 am.

My sister, Hallie who is 5 years younger than me, and my brother Kai who is 2 years younger than her. They’re sweet, but they are too young and irresponsible to do any chores.

Chores, I have to do chores.
Make breakfast, water the garden, weed the garden, clean the house, watch Hallie and Kai. Same thing I’ve been doing each morning, all summer.
I have to, mom goes into the city early each morning for work. Dad’s still on a business trip, although, if I’m being honest, I didn’t think dad actually had a job. Sure he said he had a job with some super important, obscure company, but he never actually went anywhere, never did anything. 

Until he packed up a suitcase for that trip.

I walked in on him frantically stuffing clothes in the bag. I was worried, so I called for mom. She stood in the doorway, and I didn’t quite know if she was worried or amused. I suppose it was a little bit of both. 

He didn’t notice us until mom cleared her throat. He looked up for a second, but only for a second. Looking back down at the mess that was his minuscule home office he picked up everything else.

“You can slow down, it’s not like it’s the end of the world,”  she said, letting out a small chuckle.

They said more, I know they did, I could hear their faint murmurs, but mom sent me away. Told me to “play outside with your siblings for once,”.

So I did.

It’s been over a month and a half since he left for that trip. Mom has had to work more hours. Instead of her usual 8:00-4:00, she leaves at 4:30 and works until 5:00. So, as the oldest, I have to take care of everything. Not that I mind of course, in fact, I actually enjoy doing this kind of stuff.

I finally make my way to the kitchen, turn on the griddle. Pancakes sound good and easy, and we have blueberries. I whip them up quickly. I call the two inside.

Their shoes are muddy, somehow. Their hair is sticking up all over the place, and frizzy from the humid July air. Hallie even got a leaf stuck in her hair. Or maybe it was deliberately placed there, you never know with those two.

The rest of my day passes smoothly. Why wouldn’t it? It’s the same exact routine I follow every other day. I do chores and have some downtime in the afternoon so I read, or watch tv, or sometimes the three of us play games together.

I finished cooking dinner when I heard the sound of a door opening, heels clicking, keys jangling. She was probably tired, anyone would be after working for twelve hours. I do my best not to disturb her, but Hallie and Kai - being the kids that they are - kept talking to her about their days. She gave them a weak smile, it seems that was all she could muster. Today must have been especially tough.

Mom fell asleep about an hour ago. It was probably the time I should put Kai to bed. Afterward, Hallie came in dragging her feet in drowsiness and got into bed. I turned off the light and headed to my room.

Waking up that morning felt… off, somehow. I wiped the sleep from my eyes and checked the clock. I was so confused I had to check again. I got up in a panic.
“How did I sleep until nine, I usually wake up at six, and if I don’t, my alarm’s set for 6:30? I don’t sleep through alarms. What do I do? Are Kai and Halley okay?”
I sprinted out my door and into the living room.

Hi there! I was planning on making people wait but I felt like the prologue was a bit short. I'll probably be updating once a week or so.

Now drink some water and go to sleep, it's nighttime and there's school tomorrow.
-Nyxx