This is Not my Life

Chapter 1 - Elira

Elira is pronounced as el-ay-ra.

Tomorrow's the big day, 18. I wonder if I'll feel any different after... I sure hope I do.

"Elira, honey you ready yet?" That's mum; I should go before she comes up here and sees this mess.

"Jessie, go check on your sister"

"I'm coming mum" I yell, if Jessie gets in here he'll tattle on me as usual.

I raced down the stairs and plopped down in my seat at the counter, my dad had his head buried in the paper and Jessie was on his phone as usual. His dark hair, the exact same shade as mine fell in his green eyes as he furiously typed out a reply, since he started high school this fall and joined the football team he's started getting more tanned and his scrawny frame was nowhere to be seen, instead he now seemed to have muscles, when did that happen? I grabbed a couple of pancakes just as my mum sat down. 

"So" I started "what are you guys getting me huh?" "Nothing", my brother said without even looking up from his phone. My mum though smiled at me and told me that it was a surprise. My dad didn't even look up from his paper. I finished my pancakes just as a car's horn blared outside. "Bye mum, bye dad" I yelled as I gave my mum a kiss on her cheek and sprinted out the door with Jessie hot my heels, we both knew that Marie hated waiting. I slid in the front and buckled up as Jessie clambered in.

Marie has been my best friend since we were 2 and our mothers enrolled us in the same ballet for toddlers class, we both ended up quitting when we were about 10 but I quit because ballet or dance for that matter just wasn't for me but Marie quit to try out different dance forms and she found her favorite in modern dance though she is still well versed in a number of other styles. Marie definitely looked like a dancer, she was 5'11 with a light brown complexion and glossy black hair, she had big hazel eyes that she usually hid behind cool black spectacles. Today she had her hair in a high ponytail, a green 'I heart dance t-shirt', black ripped skinny jeans and green sneakers, Marie probably had every shade of sneakers possible and since we're the same size I get to borrow them whenever I want. "So what are the plans for tomorrow Eli? You still haven't told me what you want to do"

"Oh right" I just couldn't seem to figure out what to do for my birthday, don't get me wrong I was excited about it, but I just couldn't decide on something to do.

"I'm not sure yet"

"Elira! It's tomorrow"

"Why don't we just do a dinner okay, just my family and friends?"

"Okay, if you want to, we could still throw a party at my place; my parents won't be back until next week"

"Parvati Marie Smithson" my brother started - oh did I forget to mention Marie's first name was Parvati, and she didn't like being called Parvati - "do your parents know what you're up to?"

I covered my face and waited for Marie to murder my brother, he had it coming anyway, but Marie didn't say anything instead she just parked the car and glared at Jessie who promptly ran off.

"Sorry" I muttered, "he's an idiot"

"It's not that," Marie said softly, "it's that he said, parents"

"Oh Marie I'm so sorry, Jessie really is stupid " I pulled her into a hug as I said this and held her as she composed herself. Marie's mum had died in an awful car accident 4 years ago, her dad had started working nonstop and Marie started getting mad when anyone mistakenly called her Parvati, it reminded her too much of her mum and she was already a spitting image of her, except her eyes, those were her dad's.