brooklyn baby

pumpkin spiced latte

C H A P T E R   O N E

Cluttered classrooms, loud announcements, missing homework. Checking the time on his phone, Luka realized he still had to bear another dreadful period of hell. Which some people call school to try to sugar-coat it. The biology teacher started venting on about how humans exploit the planet and how everyone is going to pay for what they have done. Luka agreed but honestly, he didn't care. He had a drive in life, but he was just plain lazy.

Luka started to daydream, dosing off into his oblivious fantasy. Running away with Mulan or having a tea party with the Mad Hatter. This was his happy place, where he remained in a state of calmness. Luka would turn to this place in a time of despair or when the hardships of reality became too overwhelming for him. Especially when his past came back to haunt him. All he wanted to do right now was curl up and Netflix while drinking a steaming latte.

"Luka! Schools out. Are you that deaf that you didn't hear the dismissal bell." Exclaimed a girl standing outside Luka's classroom. Her wild blonde hair running in all different directions.

"Hey Emma." Luka replied, extending his arms for a hug. Their torsos touched, causing a shock to travel through Luka's body. Ouch. If anyone had superhuman powers, it would be Emma. She was crazy, in a good way of course. She was loud, attended every party she was invited to and crashed the ones she wasn't invited to. She had a great taste in music and was super fit. She did athletics, swimming and had a passion for dance. If I could describe her in one word, it would be ecstatic. Luka and Emma were polar opposites yet inseparable. The two had been friends for as long as they could both remember. Their mothers were best friends since college, so their friendship was kind of forced. But nonetheless they adored each other endlessly. They spent almost every holiday together and never got sick of each other. Emma and Luka completed each other. They went together like movies and popcorn. Thankfully, they did not share any classes because that would be a disaster.

"You up for coffee?" Luka asked politely as he followed Emma through the corridor.

"You know I'd love to, but I have dancing from three-thirty to five." Emma replied. "I have one more rehearsal for an event coming up. It's a Valentine's day dance but its not a Valentine's day dance, they just use it as an excuse so that people show up, and I'm really hoping you could-"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world" The two embraced in another hug, Emma's eyelashes fluttering on Luka's neck, causing him to chuckle. Emma rolled her eyes sarcastically. Then she was off, her blonde hair bouncing as she ran to catch the bus.

Emma was a piece of work. When she started talking, about some random event, she would get carried away. She would go on and on off topic until she forgot what she was talking about in the first place. But that was what Luka liked about her, even though Luka himself was a total control freak as well. They would get into heated arguments about the simplest of topics. Emma was insatiable.

Luka lived quite close to school, close enough that he could walk to and from it. As he walked home, Luka admired how the trees parted for him, how the gaps in between their leaves made them look like they were shining. Shimmering pines. Luka watched the birds as they twisted and turned, zooming through the air. He wished he could fly, fly away from all of his problems. Luka's element was most definitely air. As he turned into the street where his house was situated, he noticed half his house was cream, and the other half was a mushroom grey-brown.

Luka walked up to the driveway. "Why the sudden change?"

"It gives the house a rustic feel." His dad replied as he stepped back to admire the fresh layer of paint.

"Cool," Luka replied as he headed for the door, without making any eye contact with his dad. The smell of wet paint awakened Luka's creativity. Logging on to his laptop, Luka opened up the app that he used to do all his designs on. He designed surfboards, bookshelves, clothing. You name it, he'll design it.

Shutting his laptop closed, Luka placed his bag gently onto the floor and immediately opened his blinds. The radiant sunlight hit his skin and he could feel the sunbeams dancing on his face. He opened his drawer and took out a sketchpad, flipping through the drawings until he found a blank page, closing his eyes he started to draw. Whenever Luka used to draw, he would close his eyes and let his imagination run wild. Upon opening his eyes, he would the make out what the doodle looked like and sketch whatever came to mind. But this time, when he opened his eyes, all Luka could see was a squiggle. Luka has so many ideas in his head but for some reason, he couldn't put them to paper. He pushed his sketch pad to the side and fell onto his bed, letting the duvet take the shape of his entire body. Luka unlocked his phone out of boredom and started scrolling through Instagram, double tapping every second post. Tapping and scrolling until his eyes shut closed.