Finding Fiore

Chap. 1: Crocus, Or Was It Dublin?

She massaged her temples, trying to get the pounding ache of a migraine to leave. Was it just Colleen Murshite, or did Mr. Wade's 8th Grade World History give people headaches? Anyway, for some reason, today's Daily Migraine was especially...pessimistic. Mr. Wade's voice was like the one from Charlie Brown- monotonous, and "Wa wa wa wa." She stared at the white, tacky paint on the blank concrete walls of the small classroom, still rubbing her head.

"Colleen? Do I need to repeat myself a third time?" She jumped at the raised tone of Mr. Wade, and could muster only a "Huh?"

"What is the capital of Ireland?"

Colleen scooched forward in her chair, placing her elbows on the desk, and brushed a thin strand of her shoulder length hair behind her ear. Her "Moma" called it a "hazelish red fading to a dark chocolate." Like hell it was, she would always reply sarcastically. Colleen nervously wrapped a string from her striped shirt around her pointer finger. 

  "Crocus? Er, Dub-" she was cut off by a shrill ringing. The bell. Her teacher stood up, and pushed the crowd out the door, towards their lockers. I'm just glad to go home, she thought with relief. She jogged to her locker, and pulled out binders, books, and folders, then shoved her stuff in her cheap book bag. She glanced around, and her remnants of conversations.

"Look, a manga. Ugh, why do people read those?"

 "So I was gonna go over there when she said-"

        "- And can you believe it?! He wouldn't even answer me on Snapchat!"

Colleen snorted, and slung her book bag over her shoulder and headed out the side door. There was a line of buses, and cars, and she got in the black minivan, her father's car, sticking in her earbuds. She slammed the door shut, and waved to her dad, throwing her bag on the seat.

       A few minutes later, she felt a tap on her shoulder, and her earbud being pulled out. She snapped her head around, towards the driver's seat. 

   "How was school, hon?"

"Good, " she replied, nodding. He smiled, and poked her forehead.

"You can go back to your Nightmare."

"Nightcore."

     "Whatever it's called, " He muttered, and adjusted his mirror. She put her music on, and changed the song to Beethoven Virus. Her father, on the other hand, just stayed quiet.

    Once the arrived at her house, Colleen did what any good Otaku did. She flopped onto the most comfortable  thing she could find, their couch, and pulled her iPod out of her pocket, and opened Youtube. She grinned stupidly at the small device, since it had been a while since she had watched, or read, Fairy Tail.

Colleen made a strange whale moaning, and incoherently babbled, wildly flapping her hands in the air- typical.

     "Na...Lu..."

She looked up a split second, and gasped in surprise. Moma stood over her, and she wiped her hands on her flour covered apron, and redid her black ponytail, scowling accidently. Her mother had those same brown-green eyes, but hers were harder, and...tired? Colleen's mother was easily stressed, so she focused on random things to relieve it. This week's thing...flour! Colleen bit her lip apologetically.

      

"Sorry, Moma...." Her mother only chuckled, awkwardly patted Colleen's head, then walked into the kitchen, to prepare supper.

  Later that evening, her father smoothed the hair on her forehead down, and left her bedroom a moment later. Colleen jumped out of bed, and grabbed her iPod, then pulled up Crossing, a Fanfiction, and began to read. After a while, her eyes grew heavy, and she yawned deeply, then, before she knew it, Colleen had fallen asleep in the climax of the One- Shot.

        But, she awoke, and shifted in her bed, her stomache grumbling. Why am I hungry at 2:34 AM...., she wondered sleepliy. She brushed her dark hair to the side, and groaned. It stuck to her chest, and shoulders, damp from sweat. It felt like 2000°F in her room, and the fans were on full blast! Suddenly her thoughts were interrupted- she heard a clatter from the darkened corner of her room. It sounded as if something had fallen over, and she dismissed it quickly, then flopped back on her bed.

      "Don't drop her stuff," a voice snapped, then paused, and went silent.

             "Oops."