Sunlight streamed though the open blinds, landing on her face. All of a sudden an alarm sounded, signaling the time's change to 7am. Lily rose from the silent position she'd taken on her bed 37 minutes earlier when she had awaken. She walked to her vanity, tripping over the stray articles of clothing and accessories her roommate liked to leave. Said roommate, Shani, was currently at her boyfriends, therefore making her incapable of cleaning up after herself.
When Lily had turned down her mother's suggestion of private housing in favor of experiencing the "full college experience", picking up after her roommate hadn't exactly been what she'd been imagining.
Lily heaved a sigh, already dreading the day she'd been ignoring so well that morning. Winter break was in a few days and it couldn't come sooner. She had been hoping Bruce would invite her to spend the holiday with him but after her failed attempts at connecting, she wasn't expecting much.
The young adult hoped she would find some semblance of enjoyment over the break, if not with her father than with her friends. Emmy had asked her to join their band at a concert in New Haven, something that had seemed so daunting, now inviting in comparison to her holiday plans.
After cleaning up her dorm and pulling on her own neatly folded clothes, Lily left her room in search of breakfast. Arriving in the dining room she was bombarded by a torrent of pink hair and expensive perfume.
Bianca Wiley's, or Bia as she was more commonly known, was a rising rockstar and nepotism baby, as were most of the people in Lily's friend group. Her mother was the c.e.o. of a famed fashion magazine. There was Emmy and Gus (Emmeline and Augustus Dawson) who were the children of tech-titan Audrey Dawson. Then there was Jax- or Jaxon- Ellis, whose father co-founded the law firm Ellis & Ferrell.
Lily and Bia walked to the table she and Jax had designating their's in the beginning of the year. Sheet music littered a portion of the table, showcasing how the other's had spent the better part of their morning. Memories of similar mornings filled her mind. Soon they would be separated, with the others going to New Haven, where they would be performing. As much as Lily wanted to go with them, she was still clinging to the hope that her father would reach out.
As she relayed this to her friends for the tenth time, their protests rang out. "Why don't you just talk to him?", questioned Emmy.
"I can't be the one to reach out. He's the parent, it's his job to act like it", Lily defended.
"Right, like he's been doing for long", drawled Jax. There was a sharp intake of air, they all new better than anyone what it was like to have an absent parent. It was an unspoken rule that it would never be brought up. Although if she was being honest, Jax never was the best at reading the room.
Lily swallowed the lump that had appeared in her throat before speaking. "Look I realize this is your way of protecting me, but really guys. He's going to reach out, I know it."
She did not know it. Lily was just to stubborn to say so.
"Alright, let's talk about something else," Bia said. Thank you, Lily thought. The discussion quickly shifted to the internship Emmy had landed with the American Ballet Company.
Lily let her mind drift to more trivial things, such as the exam she would be returning to after break. God sometimes she wanted nothing more than to drop out. She would have to make a schedule so she had some basis of a plan to study. Her roommate had just gotten this new set of colorful pens and markers. Lily doubted Amelia would notice if she used them, she was to busy with her boyfriend, Marcus. Or was is Luca? No, that was the last one. Mark? Max? Manny? Mike?
Suddenly a high ringing broke her train of thought. It was probably Bia's, her mother's assistant was always trying to get her to come to a gala or some event. Wait. Everyone was looking at her.
Oh.
Oh shit.
Lily scrambled to get her phone out of her pocket, quickly pressing accept call. "Hello?"
"Liliana? Is that you?"
If it was possible for your heart to physically drop and return, only to lodge itself in your throat, it has just happened.
"Dad."
