A Girl Like Her

12• Our school days

It was a sunny, Sunday morning when the sound of cars disturbed my sleep. My eyes slowly opened after I turned around in my white duvet. Suddenly, the alarm I had set on the previous night rang. I flinched, then yawned upon recalling that I had to prepare breakfast. Without hesitation, I quickly rushed out of bed to the restroom, then back with my pyjamas on.

Seconds later, my phone rang — excitedly, I smiled upon noticing the voicemail was from Noel. "Wake up, sleepy head. I promised to wake you up earlier, but we slept so late last night." He yawned, "Have a lovely day."

I giggled at the sound of his sleepy tone. We spent the whole night talking about random experiences — I had no idea that Noel was chatty until the camp. My eyes closed as the scent of pancakes suddenly made me hurriedly place the phone on the study desk. "Oh, no, I'm late." Without hesitation, I ran downstairs with a smile on my face.

"Dad! I said that I'll make breakfast." My lips pouted at the view of my father who placed the tray full of pancakes and honey on the medium-sized, marble, dinning table.

"Look at you, after waking up?" He teased. I noticed the bright smile on his face before he embraced me. "You were so tired yesterday." I nodded, then sat opposite his chair.

"Yes, I had a stressful week." Evangeline really made me work twice as much for that bonus money. My slender fingers quickly held on to the folk, then I frowned when my tummy growled. "I'm so hungry."

Father picked up on my behaviour, and hence, another pancake was placed on my plate. My lips stretched into a short-lived smile before I focused on the meal. For several minutes, we quietly ate and made pep talk about random news. Moreover, his sudden appearance at home shocked me on Saturday.

Last week on Friday, I had decided to avoid night travels; hence, I slept at the nearest lodging site. But, when I arrived home yesterday in the afternoon, I found Dad asleep on the couch. It came as a shook because I thought the house had been sold off or invaded whilst I was away. Alas, it was my healthy father who had been dismissed from the hospital and promoted by Linyu's father as a senior laboratory researcher in the health sector.

I forcefully poked the strawberry on my plate — imagining it as Linyu's godforsaken face. I had relaxed for a while because I believed that he might've pranked me or joked about the deal. Maybe, he wished to see my reaction. Yet, that made my heart ache worsen. I closed my eyes, then sighed. My father had been happy since I saw him, and I would be a terrible daughter if I took that joy away from him.

"Papa, when is your first day at work? I want to make you some herbal tea." Although my eyebrows pressed and my teeth clenched, I forced a smile.

"Hm?" He swallowed the food, then responded. "On Monday."

"Really?" I faked the brightest eyes, then clapped my hands. "I'm so excited." A sudden pain in my chest made me guilty of the facade that I displayed to my family.

"That reminds me." He took a card and a small box, then gently pushed it through the table. My head titled at the action before my eyes widened. "It's a present for you."

"For me?" I stared at the bank card and brown box, which made me genuinely smile. Without hesitation, I opened the box, then covered my mouth. "Oh, my. This is the latest brand smartphone!"

"I thought you would like it, and I paid for your annual bus fares. You can stop riding the bike now." He laughed. Subsequently, I felt the tears that almost rolled down my heated cheeks. "Come on, don't cry. I know, I haven't supported you as a father should — I'll try my best to make you worry less."

"Don't say that, you've tried your best." I sniffed in the cries that tried to escape. Even as I felt happy that he was more relaxed, I couldn't get the guilt out of my mind.