𝘚𝘵𝘺𝘨𝘪𝘢𝘯

01

I woke up to the sound of my alarm blaring, signaling the start of another day at college. Groggily, I got out of bed, brushed my teeth, and threw on some clothes. I grabbed my backpack and headed out the door, hopping onto my bike for the ride to campus. The morning air was crisp and cool, a refreshing start to what I hoped would be a good day.

As I arrived at college, I locked up my bike and made my way to class. I found my best friend, Violet, already sitting down, and I plopped into the seat next to her. We chatted about our plans for the weekend, laughing and joking as we waited for the lecture to start. Violet always had a way of making me forget about the stress of school and life, at least for a little while.

Lunchtime rolled around, and we headed to the cafeteria together. Just as we were about to sit down with our trays, Sarah, my relentless bully, appeared out of nowhere. She shoved me hard, causing me to stumble and almost drop my food. "Watch where you're going, bitch," she sneered. I felt my face flush with embarrassment and anger, but I couldn't bring myself to stand up to her. Violet gave me a sympathetic look, but there wasn't much she could do either.

After classes ended for the day, I decided to walk home instead of riding my bike. I needed some time to clear my head. As I walked, I passed by my favorite bookstore. The sight of it brought a small smile to my face, and I decided to stop in for a bit. Just as I was about to cross the street, I collided with a tall figure.

"Watch it," he snapped, glaring down at me. He was intimidating, with a harsh look in his eyes and an air of arrogance.

"I'm sorry," I stammered, trying to gather my thoughts. "I didn't see you there. What's your name?"

"None of your business," he replied curtly.

I was taken aback by his rudeness, but something about him intrigued me. "Come on, you can tell me. I'm Aurelia."

"Deimos," he said finally, though he didn't seem any friendlier.

"Nice to meet you, Deimos," I said, attempting to keep the conversation going despite his attitude. "Do you come here often?"

"What's it to you?" he retorted, clearly annoyed.

I continued to ask him questions, trying to learn more about this mysterious and rude stranger, but he remained cold and distant. Eventually, I decided it was best to leave him be and headed home.

When I finally walked through the door, I was met with my father's furious expression. "Where have you been? You were supposed to be home an hour ago!"

"I'm sorry, Dad," I said, feeling the weight of the day pressing down on me. "I just lost track of time."

"That's not good enough," he snapped. "You need to be more responsible."

I nodded, not wanting to argue, and headed to my room. As I lay in bed that night, I couldn't help but think about the day's events—the encounter with Sarah, the strange meeting with Deimos, and my father's anger. It had been a long and exhausting day, and I hoped that tomorrow would be better.