Draft 1 of Lyras odyssey/worlds apart/lost V2/IDFK

Chapter 3 (Lyras POV)

We have all gotten our food. The layout of the restaurant is reminiscent of the ones in Canada. I mean I guess that's to be expected since it's a multibillion dollar transnational corporation.  I take a bite out of my burger. I was surprised and happy when I found out that they sold plant based burgers here. I thought that was just a Canadian thing. I've been vegetarian since I was around twelve. My dad was super into animal rights activism at the time and I think after a few months everyone kinda fell off the whole vegetarian thing but I never did. I actually prefer the taste of fake chicken. Now cheese and hot chocolate are things I could never ever give up.
Vivian pauses from eating for a moment and opens her mouth to say something.
"So what's Canada like?" Koa asks.
A broad question really. I'm not exactly sure how to answer that. But I'll make something up on the spot I guess.
"Well I've never left Alberta so I can't really speak for all of Canada. But alberts got down to minus forty in the winter and it gets up to plus forty in the summer. I enjoy it though. The snow is a lot of fun to play in and summer is nice for... well... going to outdoor pools I guess and seeing all of the chalk art on the sidewalks that little kids have drawn."
"That's wild! I can't believe that I thought Canada was a snowy wasteland all year." Koa says.
"Nope, super common misconception." I say.
Vivian chimes in, "You know I've always wanted to visit Canada seems so culturally diverse. What do you do in your free time back home?"
"Well I used to play viola and I'm learning Hungarian I guess."
"Hungarian, that's so random.." James scoffs.
"Be nice." Koa says under her breath.
Khan lightly elbows him.
"Well I think that's very cool Lyra." Koa says.
"How come you don't play viola anymore?" Vivian asks.
"I used to have a viola but it got broken."
Well not exactly broken, it burned with the rest of my stuff. I miss it a lot. It belonged to my great grandfather. He taught my dad to play it who then taught me. I certainly used it a lot more than him. The viola had definitely seen its fair share of the inside of repair shops and there were dents nobody could get out. But that didn't make it any less special to me. I remember it was made out of darker black wood. It was worth a pretty penny despite its age. I really hope one day I can get a new viola and possibly rediscover my passion.
"Maybe we can find a way to rent you a new one." Khan suggests.
"Dad, I think the music program in school might have a viola." Vivian says.
"Well if not we can always figure something else out." Khan says.
"You guys don't have to do that." I smile and let out a small nervous laugh.
"We want to." Koa says.
I see Hana lean over towards Vivian and whisper something in her ear.
"Hana is wondering what a viola is." Vivian says
I lean forward in my chair excitedly.
"A viola is basically a violin but bigger."
I respond while trying to keep my excitement hidden. Hana smiles at me and so does Vivian. I reciprocate the smile and continue eating.  I finish eating and ball up the paper wrapper and walk to go throw it out. I walk back to the bright orange plastic table. I pull the chair out and sit in it. It makes a very unpleasant scratchy sound as it moves across the floor. I sit awkwardly twiddling my thumbs and avoiding eye contact as I wait for everyone to finish their meals. I look at the other tables; a young couple sits at one. They exchange compliments with one another. Both are very bashful. They're elbows in the tables and there's fingers intertwined. It's cute. Another table is filled with a group of friends. All completely engrossed in a lively conversation filled with jokes and laughter. It struck me how familiar yet different this place is to home.
Koa is the first to finish her meal. "Lyra, how was your burger?" Koa says as she stands up to throw away her trash.
"Uhh... yes. Wait no! It was good. Sorry I swear I'm not usually like that , I'm just super jet lagged. Haha I'm stupid when I'm sleepy." I stumble over my words. Everyone erupts with laughter at my failed attempt to respond to a simple question.
"It's alright we've all been there." Koa says once she's contained herself.
Koa takes her trash to the trash can and eventually everyone follows suit. We all load up into the car. To the mild dismay of khan I get the front seat again.
"I haven't had fast food in such a long time!" Koa says.
"Me either. Fast food is the best." Vivian says.
"RRRude! I thought my food was the best!" Koa replies in a jokingly offended tone.
"Well..." Vivian hesitates.
Koa gasps jokingly.
"I can't believe you!" She says.
Vivian laughs and reaches her hand forward and playfully nudges koas arm. The atmosphere in the car is light and vivacious. It's nice. A contrast from the dull and sullen ambience of the train. It's refreshing to be amongst a group of people who clearly care very much about each other. Khan reaches his hand forward from the backseat and attempts to turn the radio on. Koa slaps his hand.
"Nu uh. You don't get to play music. Only the people in the front seats get to choose the music. And I don't feel like choosing so Lyra you can play anything you'd like." She plugs her phone into the aux cord and unlocks it and puts it onto her music app.
Then she passes it to me. I'm a little shy when it comes to showing people music I like, especially when I have no idea what kind of music they listen to. Anxiety grows inside of me. I've always really liked indie music. Crap I don't know if they'd like it though. I hate listening to music I dislike. Screw it, I'll be brave. I take the phone from koas hand and type in the name of a lesser known indie artist and press play on one of their more popular albums. The sound comes through the speakers. I nervously glance around at everyone in the car. I can't tell if they like it or not. This makes me feel even more anxious. Why am I like this? It's silly that I feel this way just from playing music that I like infront of people. I think my tiredness is making my anxiety slightly worse. I glance at Hana. She's bobbing her head to the song. Well I mean at least someone likes it. But it's probably just her right? A few moments pass. Vivian starts humming to the song. Khan seems lost in thought but the gentle rhythmic tapping on his lower thigh suggests he's enjoying it. Koa has a slight smile painted across her lips. It Seems as though she's enjoying it too. The only person who looks unimpressed is James. He's silently glaring out the window. Four out of five not bad I guess could be much worse right?
I look out my window. The sun is just hitting the horizon casting a warm glow across the sky. It's beautiful. Like something you'd see in a dream. The sun paints yellow and orange lines across the mysterious dark blue sea. The trees alongside the road cast abstract shadows on the asphalt.
On the opposite side of the road are some modern looking houses. They have to be worth quite a bit. Houses in Canada that are across the street from lakes are worth an unfathomable amount of money. I can't imagine what a house in a big city across the road from the ocean is worth. The houses are mainly shades of white grey and beige. Some are dotted with greenery in their yards. Not the wild unkempt kind of naturally occurring plants you'd find in forests. The kind that's perfectly shaped into spheres and various other shapes. None look even remotely natural though. This style of house isn't as common in Calgary but it does exist. Not so much flat roofs though they're super impractical with the shit load of snow we get every year. Don't get me wrong I do appreciate this kind of architecture but it's not my favourite. I like flowey organic shapes a lot more than cubes. Eventually the houses fade into more traditional suburban style houses. The car slows and pulls off to the side of the road.
"Well this is it, our humble abode. Koa says.
I look out the window. Greeting me is a two story house with dark blue plastic siding. The roof is at a steep slope and the grass is patchy. The windows have neat white siding. On either side of the white front door are large potted plants. There's a little pathway that leads to the front door. It's a cute little house. Though modest it exudes a sense of warmth. The house seems inviting. The gentle breeze ruffles the pointy leaves of the palm trees which are dotted around the neighbourhood. In fact there's a small one in the front yard. I step out of the car. The air is cooler than when I first left the airport but not as cold as it is in Calgary. The orange yellow sky creates a nice backdrop to the stark dark blue house.  I follow everyone to the front door. Khan passes me my suitcase and I sling my backpack over one shoulder. Khan types in the code and the door unlocks with a high pitched beep. He pushes the door and it slides open with a squeak. My nose is greeted with a subtle scent of vanilla and caramel with a hint of teakwood. I step through the doorway. There's a shoe rack and coat rack. I'm relieved to see that they're taking off their shoes. Apparently in some places people don't take their shoes off in the house. I always thought that was so gross.
Past the entrance is a living room. There's two windows on either side of the back wall and the colour scheme is a mix of whites, greys and some forest green accents. There's a big carpet on the floor that has green zigzag patterns on it. There's one L shaped cool brown toned fabric couch. A flat scene tv is across from it. The coffee table is a cool grey colour. I'm assuming it's made of wood with some sort of stain over top. There's also quite a few potted plants dotted throughout the living room. There's a shelf in the back. It's filled with framed photos, some look really old and some look more recent. Most of them capture celebrations and laughter. There's a bookshelf in the corner filled with neatly organised books. They're all in rainbow order. I like it. It's nice to look at. It appears as though the bookshelf has any genre, ranging from highschool biology textbooks to fantasy. The living room is very clean. Not a speck of dust in sight. It's cosy, I like it.
I yawn. God, I'm tired. Koa notices my yawn and smiles sympathetically. "You must be so tired, let me show you to your room." I silently follow her up the wooden stairs. Well actually not so silently since, my suitcase is awkwardly banging the stairs as I drag it up the stairs. The steps softly creak underneath our weight. She leads me down a tall hallway with clean white walls and black trim. The rustic greyish wood flooring is cold on the bottom of my feet. The hallway is lined with several doors each the same shade of grey. Normally I would be curious as to what's behind those doors but I'm too tired to care right now. Finally koa leads me to a door at the end of the hallway. She gently opens the door. The rooms walls are painted with a light muted purple. There's a large window on one wall of the room. It has a window sill which looks big enough to store things on. The bed has a fluffy blueish grey comforter on it. The bed has drawers underneath the mattress. There's also a closet in the corner. What I find the most striking though is that the room has one potted plant in it. It's a small flower plant with one bloom on it. It's a bright yellow one. I'm pretty sure it's a yellow orchid. It's so tiny and cute. It has a little light blue pot placed on a small white table next to the bed.  "Thanks for your hospitality, koa." I say. She stands in the doorway and gives me a warm smile.
"Of course! Welcome to New Zealand kiddo." She gently closes the door.
I park my suitcase at the foot of my bed and place my backpack next to it. I slump into the bed. The comforter is a little cold. The mattress feels soft under my body weight. I walk over to the door and flick the light off. There's a dark bluish tint to the room from the sun having just set. I walk over to the bed and slip into the sheets. I lay there just staring at the smooth white ceiling. I am so tired but I don't feel like falling asleep. I feel restless. I squirm under the unfamiliar sheets. Everything here is new. Not necessarily bad, just different. This room is too foreign. Shadows dance across the walls, playing tricks on my exhausted mind. There's a branch that's rhythmically tapping on my window. I'm not used to this. My room back home was what I was accustomed to. Right now I crave that familiarity. As broken as my family is I still miss it. It was what I was used to. I toss and turn in the bed. I'm tormented by feelings of longing and anxiety. I wonder if anyone back home is awake. Or if my apartment is consumed by eerie silence. Home seams light years away right now.  Like a distant star like one I saw on the plane.