Wish Upon a Sparkling Candle

Chapter 1: Hi! I'm Kiarrah.

My birthday's tomorrow and guess what? I'm 16 already! Sweet... sweet 16. I'm hoping tomorrow will be the best day for me. I've been waiting for this day my whole life. Party, 16 wishes, 16 roses, it's basically a magical night. Well for other teens in our school, they don't look forward on being 16. I don't know why, but maybe they think it's just a little too mainstream. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. Hi, I'm Kiarrah Brittany Hawkins. Kiarrah, in short. Well, our family's trying to have a low profile but that's actually hard if your dad is an executive in a popular company and your mom owns her hand-down business from my grandfather.

It's summer vacation now and I can't wait to get back to school. Some of my classmates wish that their parents would just send them to Hogwarts. That's normal for Potterheads I guess? If you're wondering, I study in West Middleton High. I've been a "Middleton *Catamount" for 5 years now since my parents wanted to migrate from USA to London. So as you've read, I'm an American teenager who has a British accent since everyone you talk to here in London speaks that way. Anywho, I'm currently one of the cheerleaders in Grade 11. But I think that doesn't help anything with my love life. My all time crush, Brandon Collins doesn't even talk to me. Well I guess that's because of her irritating Grade 12 sister, Macy. That girl always gets on my nerves. She's not even the cheerleading captain but she acts like she is. Maybe that's why Clarissa, our REAL Team Captain's on my side. Clarissa Gray and I are actually on good terms.. In fact, she became my best friend after I saved her from an accident. But that's a different story. I'm quite thinking if she's just befriending me because she thinks she owes me her life or she really likes my personality. But still, she's one of the kindest cheerleading captains I've ever known.

Hmm, so I checked the time and it said 7:30. Then again I realized I haven't eaten anything yet. But I don't even feel hungry so I just went down to check if mom and dad are home now. Found no one, except my older sister Gabrielle watching her favorite TV Show, Gossip Girls. She eventually heard me going down the stairs so she called me to sit beside her.

"Hey, Kiarrah. What've you been up to all day?" Gabby said with her left eyebrow raised.

"Nothing much. Just been in front of my laptop, planning things for my birthday tomorrow."

"You're seriously, excited for tomorrow aren't you?"

"DUH." I smiled sarcastically.

"Oh, I thought you were just bluffing so that you won't disappoint mom and dad. I completely forgot you're just like Clarissa. A cheerleader who thinks happy ever after exists."

"Shut up, Gab." Then, I decided to shift the topic by asking where mom and dad is.

"So, do you know where mom and dad is?" I asked.

"I think they were out to polish up other things for your party tomorrow." She replied.

"Ohh. Hey Gab, I'm gonna go back to my room now. Gonna wash up and hit the sack. Goodnight. AND DON'T SLEEP TOO LATE." I said with a wink then headed to the kitchen to get a glass of milk and a plate of cookies.

As I entered my bedroom, I placed my snacks on the bedside table and headed to the bathroom for a bubble bath. I was relaxed for about 5 minutes when a phrase that Gabrielle said hit the cells of my brain. The line "A cheerleader who thinks happy ever after exists." Am I wrong for being so optimistic and looking at the bright side of things? Am I wrong for being so full of dreams that I believe in happy ever afters? Atleast, I don't wake up shouting "I think I saw Edward Cullen watching me while I sleep!" right? Or shouting "OMG! A unicorn! I want to ride it!" at a pony in the zoo. Sigh. Maybe I was just overreacting so I took a deep breath and relaxed myself again.. I almost fell asleep in the bathtub so I decided to rinse off and go to bed. I wore my favorite jammies. It's the most comfortable nightwear ever. I ate the cookies and drank the glass of my not-so-warm milk anymore, then slept.

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"Hey, kid! Stop playing there, you might fall down.."

I shouted to a kid who looks like he's about to fall down a swing set, when a girl who's about 10 years old tries to catch him and they both hit the ground, bum first. I tried to help them up but I can't seem to go near them. It's like something's pulling me away from them. I just sat on a bench watching them playing in the park and listened to their conversation.

"Hey, Darren. I have something to tell you." The girl said.

"What?" The boy asked the girl. I noticed they had American accents.

"We're about to leave. Our family. 3 days time. Mom and dad need to travel to another country because of their jobs." The girl said.

"You're going to leave me? But I thought we're bestfriends even if we already have ?"

"I know. But I promise, I'll keep in touch with you."

They hugged each other and I saw the tears in their eyes. Then just like that, the whole scene disappeared like mist.

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I woke up and realized it was all a dream. I thought, and thought, and thought until I realized the girl in my dream was ME. 5 years ago...

*Catamount is short for cat mountain, like a cougar or something.. But it's kind of hard to explain so just Google it.