Breathe Into Me

3.

SAPPHIRE (7:30am)

Mikael and I trample together to Inkamana Hall in silence.

That drastic and uneventful call from my mother yesterday has meshed all my clear thoughts around.

I even lost a few hours of sleep over that woman - can you believe that? I had something good going on here, trust my biological mother to disrupt that, like she does with everything else.

"Hey, you okay?" Mikael playfully nudges my shoulder - thankfully he whisks me out of my ocean of infinite problems.

"I will be. Once my mind manages to process that my evil older sister is getting married. And my mum wants her disgraceful, juvenile daughter there with her. Go figure."

Mikael eyes me with a typical, pitying and sympathetic look a stranger would give me - like I'm a broken and battered toy.

For a moment, I consider punching the look off his face until I realise he's mocking the expression.

Mikael grins at me sheepishly, "Look on the bright side Saph, at least you have your diamond shoe."

I stare at him with a mixture of confusion and uncertainty. "What on earth are you talking about?"

Mikael recuperates my puzzled face, "Don't tell me you don't know Cinderella."

Is this joker serious? "Of course I do, dumbass. I just don't get how that has any relation to my mummy issues."

His arm lazily wraps around my shoulder. "Think about it, you're Cinderella. Your mother is Cinderella's wicked step mother and Victoria is a combination of the two bitchy step sisters. And you have the diamond slipper," I continue to stare at him with a blank expression.

But then the thought instantly hits me. "Why would my mum be envious of me? I'm the one who's in prison, not her."

Mikael shrugs, "All I'm saying is, it's not black and white."

"So are you suggesting I go to my wicked sister's wedding, then?" Mikael's face cringes unsteadily. "Oh hell no. That's definitely not an option. I'd rather see you drink piss than attend the devil's wedding."

"Saph, all I'm saying, there must be a reason why you're the ugly duckling in the family. Don't get me wrong" - Mikael surrenders his hands - "it's not a bad thing. Just means you're different and unique and the wicked mother doesn't appreciate uniqueness."

Slowly, the unease disperses from my mind - for now at least.

Yeah, I will have to make a decision at some point. But the wedding is months away, so till then, I don't need her nor my old life coming back to bite me in the ass.

We filter into the main corridor with the other eager and hungry students.

Mikael's red headphones are stripped from his neck, causing him and the rest of his body to dislodge from one another.

He is propelled forward, bumping into a few unimpressed and grumpy students. He curses out in Spanish, not realising catapulting into them were the least of our worries.

"You should really take better care of your headphones, Hernandez. Who knows who might steal them."

Frustratedly enough, my eyes whip on the one guy that never fails to live his big ego down. Avery wraps the chords around his fist, chuckling amusedly.

Trust him to pull a fucking stunt like this.

Mikael goes ballistic, stringing a line of colourful, Spanish curse words. He ploughs for Avery and his goons. A crowd congregates to watch the show.