NERD is on the LOOSE

01

“A-KI-RA!" Mom’s voice echoed like thunder with a running total of a thousand decibels as she forcefully opened my room.

"Ma! Don't you know the definition of 'privacy'? I'm a teenager. I need that." I turned my back and covered myself especially my ears with the thick bed sheets.

"Don’t you do that to me, Akira! Stop acting like your father by using his wits against me! Wake up now!” She ranted while pulling the bed covers.

I hesitantly got up. "Mom… Don’t you know how many hours per day is the sleeping requirement of a growing teenager like me? Please let me sleep some more," I pleaded with knees bent and eyes half-closed.

"Twenty minutes. If you’re not at the dining table by then, I’ll surely go up here and you’ll have milk as your bath," she said and left without waiting for me to reason out.

What can you do within twenty minutes? Yeah, right. I better change up. I'm just a daughter. She’s the parent. I still have no power like hers. And knowing my Mom, she’ll do it, literally.

I hurriedly took a bath and tidy up. She only said that I should be in the dining table. So, I better go down and just sleep there.

"My, my child. Your hair is already wet but your eyes are still closed,” Nanny Marie commented as she guided me to my chair.

"Never mind me Nana,” I answered back as I slouched and look around. “Where’s Mom? Shouldn’t we be eating by now?”

"She ate and left right away without telling me anything. Here, drink your milk.” Nana handed my daily dosage of milk in my favorite Mickey Mouse mug.

Milk is my day booster. I can’t go on without drinking one. It’s good for the bones especially because I'm sprouting into early adulthood. Since I still have years for my epiphyseal growth plates to mature, getting additional calcium might be necessary. I want to be as tall as Dad, not Mom.

I leaned forward and rested my upper body on the table. Mom called me to be here but she didn’t even show up. If she’ll come, at least she will find me complying with her orders.

"Nana, I’ll get some more sleep. Don’t bother waking me up,” I said with heads down.

She did not answer back. I guess she continued doing her chores. Well then, I should go back to dreamland as well.

Luffy was able to find Doflamingo. Zoro sliced up the Toy Factory that keeps the SMILE production. Caesar is dead. And here I am, dancing with Sanji. He made sure I wouldn’t be harmed as I betrayed the Doflamingo Family.

He held me closer as we joined with the crowd. This way, we can easily lost the bonkers that had been chasing us all day. But they spotted us. He ran the fastest while clutching my hand and pulling me to run as fast as him.

I felt my heart going to burst out of my chest. I can't run anymore. We stopped, more like I stopped and got separated from Sanji. I'm panicking already. Until…

I felt a soft pair of lady-like hands tugging my shoulder and violently shaking it nonstop.

"Keira! Keira! Wake up!"

I could have ignored her and redo my dream but, "Mickey Mouse! Ouch! Sugar!" She suddenly pulled the placemat where my head is resting causing my healthy brain to joggle as my skull banged against the table.

"What is it?!" I roared like a dragon, oblivious of who dared to snatch me away from dreamland.

"You’re over-reacting. Don’t get mad," Jean answered sweetly while showing her most radiant smile. Many fell for this look. Don’t count me in.