Reality (Short Story)

The Beginning

Do you ever feel like your life's unreal? Like everything you've ever done or experienced never really happened? I've never felt like that.

My whole life up until now has been vivid and more real than you could ever imagine yours to be. Now I know that sounds... Conceited perhaps, but it's true. The only way I'd be able to convince you that my life, no matter how cliche it may seem to you, is far more rich and real than yours, would be to tell you my life's story, and I will.

The first memory I have arose around the time I was three years old, my father was dancing with me in our living room while my mother watched from the couch with a pillow on her lap and a smile on her face.

I still remember her laugh perfectly to this day.

When I was 5 my parents enrolled me in dance classes and I quickly fell in love with the art of dance. My parents built me my own studio to practice in and hired the best dance tutors they could to teach me.

When I was 7 I realised I was rich. I knew by then if I asked my daddy for anything I'd get it, so I used it to my advantage. I told him I was bored with my toys, and he bought me new ones, I said that a girl in my class had dyed her hair purple, so he let me dye my hair. At one point I remember telling him a boy I didn't like at school was being mean to me, and the next school day that boy was gone.

When I was 10 my parents died. I was on my way to a dance recital with my parents when suddenly there was a crash, pain, and darkness. I woke up in a light blue hospital room with an old nurse looking at me sadly. She informed me that my parents had died in the crash. Strangely I felt no grief, just surprise and wonder at the fact that I'd never see them again. I never even went to their funeral.

A week later my dance teacher, Rebecca Wall, had adopted me. I remember asking her why she had chosen to adopt me, especially since I was a stuck up brat at the time.

Her exact words were, "Why not?" And I never asked again.

About a year later my life actually began. Rebecca had invited an old friend from college to have dinner at our house with her family. I was dressed in a dark purple dress and had put on Rebecca's pearl necklace. I absolutely hated it. I hated how the dress felt, and my bare arms were cold.

Once May (Rebecca's friend) had arrived I realised that she had a son. He was twelve and I was eleven, his name was Derrick, and I fell in love with him the moment he walked through the door. From his dark scraggly hair to his battered converse, all the way up to the scar just below his hair line. Now me being 11, love was a few butterfly's in the stomach and a creepy obsession.

I soon discovered Derrick loved dance as well. We began to dance together, working hard at complex routines and mastering them. We became best friends and in my freshman year, we became lovers.

"I've wanted to tell you... I love you. I have loved you, ever since I first walked into your house, I knew you were the one. Jade, would you be my girlfriend?" Derrick announced, asking me whilst grasping my hands in my bedroom.

A smile broke out on my face, "For as long as you'll have me." I whispered.

He pulled me into his arms, holding me softly. "Forever then." He whispered back. I pulled back and met his lips.

They were soft and real, more real than you could ever imagine, it wasn't like a dream. It was reality, harsh, brutal, beautiful reality. I felt the roughness of his fingertips against my cheek, the softness of his hair between my fingers. I heard the shallow breaths coming from his mouth. I felt like my senses had gone on overload, everything was electric and magnified in that moment.

He pulled back, and leaned his head against mine, breathing quick and deep, his light Hazel eyes alight and beaming down at my brown ones.

"I'll love you forever." He whispered.

I didn't know forever could be so short.

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What do you think of the beginning?

I understand it's a bit vague and introductory but we'll get into Jade's story more in the next chapter.

I apologise for any errors in grammar or spelling, I write on my phone and am too lazy to proof read 😁

Comment if you loved/hated the beginning, what do I need to work on? Do I need to make the next chapter longer, shorter, more in depth? Thank you for reading!!!