Finding Fates Way

Chapter Two

As the sun rose and chased the darkness in my room away, I awoke to find May sitting in the kitchen with a creased envelope encased carefully in her hands. "Morning May! Did you sleep well?" She gave me a small smile and nodded her head.

"What's that your holding?" I asked gesturing towards the envelope. She shrugged her shoulders and placed it down on the table in front of us. "I think it's from mum." She said with a worried expression on her face. Trying to postpone the news of whatever was inside the envelope, I decided to change the topic of discussion. "Guess what I got for you?" I asked as I retrieved the half of the bread roll I had saved for her last night. "What?!" May asked anxiously.

"This!" I exclaimed as I placed the roll on a plate in front if her. "Now, eat up!" I ordered.

"Thank you so much!" May nearly screamed. A smile found its way across her face from ear to ear and without any hesitation, she began to eat the roll savoring every bite. I left the room to change and just as May finished her roll, I picked up the letter again. "So May, did you want to open it now or wait until you come back from school?" She sat there for a moment contemplating her decision. "We'll wait till after school. Just don't open it without me!" She stated getting off her chair and changing into neater clothes for school.

In Zealk, it is mandatory for all children to attend school from ages six to twelve. After that, they believe you should have learnt enough to survive on your own. May, being ten, has only two more years left until she finishes school. "Ready? Let's go!" She grabbed her books from the counter in the kitchen and grabbed onto my right hand so I could walk her to school. Putting on my coat and boots from last night, I left the house with May following just behind me.

I closed our large, worn down, wooden door and locked it, placing the key inside my pocket. May, up ahead, was skipping and smiling as she passed our neighbors who all offered her a small wave or smile in return. May was an easy person to get along with.

She was completely flawless and it was nearly impossible to not like her. She stopped skipping and waited for me to catch up with her before she continued. After a twenty minute walk we finally reached her old school gate with a green panels and a wooden sign displaying a hardly visible title that read 'Zealk Mandatory School'.

It was a school run by the government that consisted of a total of five separate classes each with approximately 30 students per class. "Have a good day May! I'll be here after school then we can go home and read the letter, okay?" I asked.

"Okay!" She smiled giving me a hug and leaving to find her friends. I watched her as her hair which I braided last night swung from side to side, matching her royal blue skirt she was wearing. She turned around before entering her classroom and waved goodbye as I did the same. Once she was inside, I left the school grounds and made my way to work. As I arrived at the local pharmacy, my boss Jason greeted me. "Good morning Hazel! Would you mind watching the front counter whilst I go restock the shelves?" I smiled and nodded my head.

As I went behind the front counter, I took off my coat and replaced it with our pale blue, pharmacy apron. As there were no customers in the store, I decided to tidy up behind the counter, rearranging the occasional item. Once my redecorating was complete, I sat on a stool by the cash register and waited for a customer to come.

"Excuse me dear, can I just get this item please?" An old lady with gold rimmed glasses and a purple sweater asked handing me a bottle of tablets. I smiled and scanned the bottle before placing it into a paper bag. "Will that be all?" I asked as I always had.
"No thank you dear, that's it."
"That's three dollars fifty, please." The lady handed me the cash in exchange for her tablets.