When (he)arts Prevail

2

In a good mood, Kaylee arrived home through the garage so she could drop her surf board and wet suit there. When she went in through the back door, her parents' voices met her ears. They were probably in the kitchen as their normal routine usually went - Dad preparing for work, Mom preparing Dad for work.

She was about to make herself notice and tell them she was home, when she caught part of their conversation and immediately paused.

"I'm just worried about her," Kaylee's mother was saying. "Going to New York, without any sort of degree, with dreams we're not even sure will go anywhere—"

"Well," her father cut in, "that's kind of the point of dreams, uh?"

Kaylee's mother grunted and ruffled something angrily.

"Besides," her father added, "she did take that design course last year."

When her mother didn't reply, Kaylee heard her father sigh, the tone on his voice soft as he said, "Look, she'll be fine."

"You always say that," her mother exposed, sounding aggravated, "but you can't be sure. She's always had a mind of her own, doing whatever she liked. But she's not a kid anymore, she's turning twenty-three, still living with mom and dad." There was a pause. Kaylee couldn't see, but her father was probably giving her mother some sort of look, because she continued. "What? Do you seriously think being a photographer at weddings and events, or giving surf lessons to kids will provide an income to live on her own? I can't see a future for her, that's all."

To listen to those last words stung Kaylee, knowing that's how her mother saw her. Her father this time did not respond. He usually got her back, but the deafening silence that remained after her mother's outburst hurt more than she imagined.

Kaylee's stomach was turned into knots and she felt too hurt to go in now. Closing the back door slowly and carefully not to make any noise, Kaylee went straight to her bedroom and skipped the kitchen.

She dropped her beach bag on the floor and threw Brian's gift on the bed. Ambling over to her dresser, she rummaged through the top until she found the letter. Opening the envelope and taking the letter out, she read it again.

Congratulations, Kaylee Anderson Brooks! You were admitted into Artsy academy. We are looking forward to work with you and share the love for art.

This was it. Her whole life had depended on this letter and she finally got it.

From very young ages, Kaylee started showing her skills for arts. In the school, when teachers ordered them to paint about their weekends, or about their families, about the perfect day, Kaylee was the one who always impressed everyone. How could someone so little do such detailed drawings?

And as she grew older, she continued to paint, evolving to graphic design after a friend introduced her to it. Kaylee also took interest in photographing and later started to merge her two passions. She took photographs and then edited them and gave them a twist with her design skills. She honestly felt like she was creating something unique.

When Kaylee heard about Artsy, she knew she wanted to be a part of it. Their artists were one of a kind and had their works done on buildings all over the world and at the most renown art galleries. She wanted that. She wanted her work out there, too.

She had worked hard for the chance to get a scholarship at Artsy. After being refused for three years straight, they finally accepted her.

Kaylee sat down at the foot of the bed, the letter still in her hands. Despite feeling a bit defeated at her parents conversation, doubts playing in her mind for the first time, she still felt excited when she thought about New York.

Was it the right decision to go? She would never know for sure, but she was willing to try.

A knock on the door pulled her out of her thoughts. She hid the letter behind her on the bed before answering,

"Yeah?"

Her father's head poked in, gray hair already lining his temples. "Didn't hear you coming in. Everything good?", he asked.

"Yup."

He narrowed his eyes at her for a moment. Kaylee was never able to hide anything from her father, yet now was not the time to have that sort of talk with him.

Tonight she was going to celebrate the news with her friends and she didn't want to ruin her mood.

As Kaylee's father left her to her doings, Kaylee went to grab her phone from the bag, seeing she had a text from Alyssa.

A million of laughing emojis greeted Kaylee's eyes as she clicked on the text, followed by:

'Brian is surely giving his all! So funny but so cute as well!!"

Kaylee let out another chuckle as she glanced over at the plushie of the Statue of Liberty toppled on the bed.