Clashing Souls

01| last first day

 "I want to wear his initial on a chain 'round my neck 

not because he owns me, 

but 'cause he really knows me."

- Taylor Swift

I HAVE LEARNED to treasure the most precious moments. Waking up to sunshine. The silence yet brightness that calmly greets the early hours of morning. The light sounds of my mother padding around the kitchen. My younger sister's peaceful sleeping face. All of these amount to a precious moment that I am savouring in right now.

Life truly is a cycle of these moments, and most of the time, they pass you by in a blink, and reality sets in, taking over what could have been a breath of fresh air for some. I live for these moments and pity those who let them pass by. It's like how you never know how great you have things until they're gone.

I try my best to still the moment, to take a mental picture. I am painfully aware of how few mornings like this could come along. My last first day of school.

I creep across the creaky old floorboards in my sister and I's room, being careful to step in the pattern that I have memorised to downplay the sounds emitted. I can hear faint hums down the hallway and I follow the sound, finding my mother humming and twirling around the kitchen, mixing bowl and spatula in hand.

"Morning sweetie! Happy last first day!" Her eyes crinkle as she smiles at me and I can tell she's reminiscing on all my past first days of school.

"Thanks, Mom." I stand in front of the stove and begin pouring pancake batter in circles and adding fruits and chocolate chips to them in fun shapes.

"How do you feel, Callie? First day of senior year!" She comments as I watch the pancakes.

"Nothing, really. Its all just the same people, same teachers and same old homework waiting for me."

"Come on, Cal, is there nothing you're excited about?"

"Well...." I bite my lower lip as I smile.

She sighs. "How could I forget? The big lovebirds reunion is today."

That really is the one thing I am looking forward to today. Seeing my boyfriend after two months apart over the summer break. I stayed in Greenview to work at the local music store to try to save up more money for university and also to begin studying. My boyfriend, however, is like a child who can't sit still. He lives for summer and I love that about him. He loves travelling to new places and learning new thing, which is one of my dreams, but a back burner dream for now while I save up. This summer, he went down to a rugby training camp in Nevada to get a good start on the season ahead.

"Send him a message and tell him to come over early for pancakes with us!" She brightens at the thought of seeing him.

"I will." I say, already slipping my phone out of my hoodie pocket and typing off a message stating that he better come early for my mom.

"You know, on second thought, I am excited for the extracurricular's as well. It'll be good to get back into the flow of things, and busy myself up with yearbook and swimming again."

"Good!" My mother beams. "And what about Delilah? She hasn't been around much this summer."

"Ugh I know! That girl has worked herself too hard at that camp." I say, referencing my best friend, Delilah.

I flip the pancakes and stack them on a plate and drench them in syrup. " I bet these will wake up Clara if we put it right outside the door so she can smell them better."