"If you believe in ever afters, in magic, in dreams come true, your life will be full of miracles. It will be anything but ordinary. All you need, is to have faith and open your eyes wider."
Often life isn't what it seems to be ....
Hazel Smith is...
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"Hazel Smith, are you with us ?" Mrs. D'Souza asked.
The girl sitting in a corner of the classroom, finally met Mrs. D'Souza's gaze.
"Umm, sorry, Mrs D'Souza, I didn't hear you."
The whole class burst into laughter.
Mrs. D'Souza stared at Hazel for a minute or two. Hazel's slow, dreamy voice seemed to sink into her senses and her mysterious eyes, those violet eyes had always given her creeps. She walked up to the her desk and asked,
"Hazel, is there any problem you are facing ? Perhaps, a family issue?"
Though she had asked it as a question, she was more than sure it was the case.
After all, they were the Smiths. Everyone knew who the Smiths were and everyone kept away from them. They were a strange and mysterious lot of social outcastes. There were even rumors that the Smiths had some black magic stuff hidden in their house.
But it was a rumor and ...a rumor is a rumor. No one knew for sure.
But still, somewhere in her heart, Mrs. D'Souza felt pity for the girl. At the age of adolescence, she had no friends. She was always alone.
She gave her a warm smile and said in a soft voice,
"Feel free to tell me anything, dear. I'm always willing to help."
She looked at Hazel, worry on her face and her hands nervously playing with the locks of her wavy , brown hair.
"Sure, Mrs. D'Souza." she said.
Mrs. D'Souza shot her a glance and putting her aside from her mind, she proceeded with her lesson.
****
Everyone wants to be liked and loved, to be a part of the popular crowd, a person who does not step out without many following them like maniacs ; to have an unfathomable influence on people, to be looked up to ...and all, and all.
But everyone does not get this wish granted. For some people, life is spent in following others, waiting for their moment to shine; some face disappointment at every turn, with the feeling of inferiority never leaving their heart. Some people keep to themselves, happily contented with their own company.
And for some, life is just ...weird.
The perfect definition of weird would be Hazel's life. She did not understand herself.
From a very young age, Hazel had started having these ...visions (commonly known as hallucinations ) which were quiet odd ; odd , in the real sense of the word. She saw bizarre things , like unicorn races, carriages amongst cars and what not !
She had made the mistake of telling this to one of her classmates in primary and you can guess what happened.
Her mind could never stay in one place. It drifted very easily, resulting in serious attention disorders, which made school life difficult.
Normally, a person like Hazel would have lost their minds long ago, but strangely, Hazel was perfectly fine.
Right now, as she saw Tony come her way, she knew what was going to happen and it would not be very pleasant. They would make fun of her, she would bear it for sometime and walk away. It happened so often, that it did not bother her anymore. It was almost a part of her daily routine.
"So, Fantasy Queen, good day, eh ? Oh sorry, forgot. How would you know, you've been too busy dreaming, right?"
The people around him started laughing.
Hazel did not respond.
"So what were you dreaming about ? Do tell us. Was it a knight in a shining armor riding on a stallion ?"
"Actually I was thinking about you , Tony." she said.
"Oh really ?" Tony said, very pleased, "Was I your knight in the shining armor ?"
Yeah. Tony , her saviour. That was all she wanted.
Before she could say anything, the classroom was filled with "Woos" and "Ahs". Tony raised his hand to calm everyone down.
"Girls can't help but fall for me." he said, giving an I'm –so – charming smile. All the stupid girls around started giggling , as they were supposed to.
Hazel rolled her eyes.
"Now wait , Mr. Dazzling White Smiles. I've got something for you." Hazel thought to herself and said,
"Actually Tony , I did not finish what I intended to say. In my dream, I saw someone dancing Odette in the Swan Lake , wearing a tutu ballet costume. Guess who Odette was ?"
Tony's cheeks flushed and his smile vanished.
Meanwhile, everyone burst into guffaws. Hazel smirked.
"Shut up you dimwits !" Tony said, gritting his teeth in frustration.
No one paid heed to him.
"I'll deal with you later , Hazy Smith." he said and stormed out of the class.
