Poppies in the snow

Chapter One.

Alida jolted awake from her deep sleep in a panic. She’d had that dream again, where she could see a fragile looking blonde woman crying with her arms extended out toward her. Alida saw herself as a young child standing behind tall iron gates as she watched the woman fall to her knees in the snow in complete distress. The fear and sadness in the dream was so vivid and real, Alida breathed a sigh of relief that it was only a dream.

“Argh! I hate when this happens” she grumbled to herself, sitting up and stretching. She knew why this dream kept coming to her and wondered if she’s ever know why she had been left at that horrible orphanage. She pushed the thought away, but lately it was creeping up into her mind more and more often.

 She had promised her father a long time ago not to look into her past, but the longing to track her roots was becoming stronger. Recalling his words she resigned herself to the fact that he was probably right.
“Learning about your past would only open up hurtful truths that would prevent you from moving forward and leading a fulfilling life” he’d said time and time again. “You’re my daughter now, and I’ve given you an opportunity to enjoy all the riches life has to offer, don't tarnish that with unnecessary pain.”

Just then, the phone rang. It was Celine.
“Alida, are you still in bed?” she shrilled “Hurry up girl! We have some serious shopping to do!"
Alida smiled and yawned.
“I’ll be there at 11.” She replied softly glancing over at her bedroom wall plastered with photos of herself and Celine. They’d shared everything from their first ear piercings and learning to rollerblade, to buying their first pair of high heeled shoes. She loved no one more than this girl on other side of the phone, considering her more of a sister than a friend.
“Well get moving, we have lots to do and I want to find a nice jacket for tonight - see you soon” Celine said cheerily before hanging up.

Heading down the stairs for some breakfast, Alida laughed quietly to herself thinking of her dear friend Celine, always happy and such a vibrant personality – much unlike herself. She’d met Celine on her first day of primary school when she’d tripped over walking to her desk. All the kids had burst into laughter but Celine had extended her hand and helped her up. They’d been inseparable ever since.  

She’d always enjoyed being surrounded by Celine’s family too, who were the complete opposites of her own. It was such a united family who did everything together.  Alida couldn’t even remember one time that her mother had cooked or her father had joined them at the dinner table. Unless they had been out at one of numerous charity functions, posing as trophies of his successful life. She sighed.

She loved her father, he was always kind and loving towards her but he had barely been around all through her childhood. He was the internationally renowned Gastrointestinal specialist Dr David Collins, who had developed a ground breaking treatment for life threatening illnesses in third world countries. He had spent ten years working with Romanian children to study, develop and implement his treatment and had won numerous medical awards as a result. That is how he had found Alida when she was only three years old.

 She was a skinny, pale little girl, living in a harsh, run down Bucharest orphanage.  Quiet and reserved, David had been captivated by her incredibly green eyes, that seemed to look right through him with such sadness. He knew his wife Caroline wouldn’t be enthusiastic about the idea of adopting a child, but he felt a compelling bond to Alida from the very first glance and couldn’t leave her behind in that God forsaken place.

 Alida poured herself a hot coffee and the sun shone in through the kitchen window onto her sleepy face. She was still very fair skinned but her long dark hair framed her delicate features and piercing green eyes. She was very tall and slender, and was forever turning heads wherever she went - which annoyed her older step-sister tremendously.

“What’s with those pyjamas?” Sara snarled as she walked into the kitchen, fresh from her morning tennis match. “Do 22 year olds really wear onesies?”
Alida ignored her and gulped down her coffee.
“I’ve already been at the Tennis Club for over two hours and you’re still having breakfast. No wonder you never have boyfriends Alida, you spend way too much time hanging around at home playing that annoying violin of yours. Ever heard of pop music? And FYI, coffee is so bad for your skin, you’ll totally pay for that one day…”
Alida stood up and made her way back up the stairs to get dressed while Sara continued rambling on behind her.
“So there’s this hot guy at the Club and he totally gave me his number this morning, Jessie was so jealous, I could see him on the other court looking over at us…”
“Great” Alida smiled, shutting her bedroom door mid sentence.

 Ah, Sara. Over the years Alida had tried so hard to win her affection but it was a battle she knew she’d never win. Sara had the unconditional love of Caroline, her mother who made no attempts to hide her favouritism. Alida had even overheard Caroline once telling someone that she’d never forgive David for bringing a stranger into ‘her’ family. “…And from such low breeding, it’s disgusting” she had whispered - words she could never forget.

Sara’s upbringing had been a very different experience to Alida’s, even though they’d grown up in the same house. With the love and support of her mother, always encouraging her ever-growing wants and needs, Sara had grown into a spoiled socialite whose priorities in life couldn’t be more different to her younger step-sister’s. Pursuing a 'career' in her mother’s publishing company, Alida doubted that Sara had ever even set foot in an office. She had enjoyed all the rewards of her aristocratic parents’ family wealth without any awareness of what went on in the world outside her bubble.

Alida grabbed her bag and headed out the door.
“I’ll be back at 5” she called.
“No one cares” she heard Sara call back. And she closed the door with a grin.