The Lies We Tell

Chapter 6: Interest

"Laurel! Time to go!" Laurel groaned. Piano lessons had recently lost all their charm. This year they were late at night and now that it was winter it got dark fast. It didn't help that all the girl ever wanted to do anymore was sleep. Not to mention, she never practiced any more, so she wouldn't have made any progress. She'd been stuck on the same three songs for weeks and weeks.

"Coming!" she called back to her mother. She lay for a moment more on her bed before flinging her legs over the side and onto the floor and forcing herself into a standing position. She groaned again, louder this time, and tossed her book onto the bed before changing her mind and snatching it up again for the ride.

Books were the once place she could lose herself and not have to think about reality. They had happy endings and brave characters who always won their battles. Life was not so fortunate. It wasn't just piano that had lost its appeal, but every activity, including school itself. Typically people don't like schools, but Laurel was different. She had always loved school, it was the only place she could absorb so much information, but lately it had become a bit of a bore. Classes were too easy and then there was the world's biggest problem: people.

She trudged lazily down the stairs, trying, though she would never admit it, to delay her arrival at piano so as to shorten her lesson. Her teacher, however, was vexatiously good about extending lessons over time if need be to insure that they were exactly the length they were meant to be. Oh well. Duty calls.

After piano lesson finished, Laurel trudged back up the stairs and collapsed on her bed. Nose buried in her book, she rested in silence for a good hour before turning off her lights and allowing sleep to take over. The cool night air embraced her as she fell into a dark, dreamless, blissful sleep.