Emulsion

first chapter

I opened my eyes once again to the dark. Getting up, I shivered as the cold morning air ran down my spine.

Slowly and carefully, I walked quietly down the dark hallway to the only washroom in this one bedroom apartment. The door creaked behind me, as I closed and locked it.

Turning on the switch, the light flickered a couple of times before completely turning on. I turned to face the mirror, and looked at myself. I looked away very quickly, not wanting to be reminded of my ghosts so early in the morning.

Turning the tap on, I splashed my face with cold water, in hopes of waking myself up. No point in taking a shower now, the water would be freezing. Turning to the pile of clothes I had laid out the night before, I silently got dressed, mentally preparing myself for the day.

After carelessly putting my hair up and brushing my teeth, I walked out of the bathroom and into the small kitchen. Turning on the stove, I began preparing breakfast and packing lunch for my eight year old brother and me.

As I stood there in the dimly lit kitchen, cooking absentmindedly, I wondered what I had done to deserve this. A 20 year old working 2 crappy jobs, trying to finish college while struggling to raise an eight year old child.

Leaning against the counter, my mind wandered back to how things would have been different if they were still here. If only- stop. Shaking my head and sighing, I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind. Checking the clock, I realised it was 6:30 am.

Time to wake up Adam.

I pushed myself off of the counter, and walked back to my room. In the far back, I could make out a small body covered in blankets, trying to keep the cold out.

Oh Adam, how I wish I could offer you more.

"Adam," I quietly said. "Wake up, it's time to get ready Adam."

He let out a sound of protest. It was too early for the child to be up, for even the sun wasn't up.

"Adam, you have to wake up. I have to get to college Adam."

Rolling over, he turned to look at me, his eyes still drowsy with sleep.

"How much longer will we have to live like this?"

My heart clenched. I don't know Adam. I don't know.

"Just for a little longer, just until I finish college."

"And then you're going to get a job and we can live in a house with heating and hot water right?"

Gulping, I nodded and smiled. If only it were that simple.

"Yes, Adam. But for that to happen, I actually need to go to college, and so I need you to get up and get ready."

Reluctantly, he nodded and got out of bed. I heard his light footsteps padding down the hallway, as I quickly made the bed.

Walking out to the small table, I set out some milk and sandwiches for the both of us. While Adam got ready, I sorted through the bills and money I owed. Electricity bills, water bills, rent, and a reminder that my scholarship was ending this term. No no no no. This can't be happening. Where was I going to get money for the next term?

Without college, there would be no future for me. For Adam. I took deep breaths in an effort to calm myself down and to prevent the tears from falling.

The sound of a chair scraping pulled me out of my mental misery, and I turned to look at Adam's concerned face.

"Are you okay Jovanna? You look very sad," he stated while frowning.

Sending him the best smile that I could muster, I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just quickly eat breakfast so that I can drop you off to school.

Adam did as he was told, and soon we were on our way to the local public school. Thank god for free schooling.

Walking down the sidewalk, hand in hand, Adam and I kept to ourselves, lost in our own thoughts.

"Jovanna," he quietly asked.

"Yeah buddy?"

"Could you, maybe, pick me up early tomorrow?"

Raising my eyebrows, "Why is that?", I asked.

"Well, there's this new kid, David, in my class and he invited me to his house for his birthday party. I wanted to go."

"I don't know buddy. I don't really know him, especially because he is new. I can't just let you go to his house like that," I explained to him.

But taking one look at him, I wanted to change my mind.

As we arrived in the school yard, I let out a sigh.

"Maybe. We'll see."

Instantly his face lit up. "Really?"

"I said maybe."

He nodded his head and smiled, gave me a quick hug, and ran off.

"Be good!", I called after him.

He just looked back and gave me a cheeky smile.

Shaking my head and trying to suppress a smile of my own, I walked away and started making my way to the public transit bus stop.

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After changing three buses, I finally reached my destination.

Looking at all the people driving in with their cars, fooling around with their friends, looking like they didn't have a care or worry in the world, my breath started to quicken. I clasped my hands tightly together to stop them from shaking.

It's just college. It's just a couple of hours. I can do this.

Repeating those words like a mantra in my head, I made my way to the entrance.

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We hope you enjoyed the first chapter. It was really just a brief introduction to the book. Longer and better chapters to come. Thank you for giving our book a chance, and we are very excited to begin this journey!

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Bhavya and Paridhi<3