A Poppy In The Stars

Chapter 01

Sunlight swept into the room as I opened the tinted windows in my room. I yawned and stretched before walking towards the bathroom to wash my face.

"Hope!!! Honey!!! Are you up?!" A familiar woman's voice called from downstairs as I came out from the bathroom, my face dripping wet.

"Yes, mom!!" My voice came out muffled as I dried my face with a towel.

"Hope??!!" She called again, clearly not hearing what I've just said.

"Mom, I'm up!!" I announced, walking out of my room and down the stairs towards the kitchen.

"Ah, good morning!" A grinning middle aged lady with blonde hair and bright green eyes greeted me as I walked into the kitchen and sat beside the counter. Her plump figure came striding towards me.

"How did you sleep, hon?" She asked, giving me an empty glass bowl and a milk carton.

"Um, great, I guess." I said, pouring milk into the bowl and some cereal afterwards. "You?"

"Oh, I think I snored a lot last night. Robby walked out of the room in the middle of the night!" She chuckled, putting a sizzling pan of bacon and sausages on the table.

I looked at the golden retriever who was eyeing the bacon and sausages. I smiled and gave him a pat on the head, making him smile. "I don't think you snored that bad, mom. Or Robby won't be able to smile this brightly."

"Oh, stop it now, will you?" She said rolling her eyes at me. I chuckled.

"So, what are we going to do today?"

"Today.....I thought maybe we can have a bit of a free time." She said and sat beside me. "You haven't seen Eva all week, so maybe you two can catch up."

"Are you serious?" I asked, feeling utterly speechless.

"Yeah...I mean, why not? You two girls can have some fun today, and tomorrow, we can catch up on that poem we have to discuss." She said and loaded her plate with bacon, tossing a small piece down to Robby.

"Thanks, mom. But...can Jacob come over as well?" I asked, hoping that she'd say yes.

She sighed. "Oh, he's nice. But his use of words doesn't get along with me."

"But he is one of my best friends, and really, he makes me feel calm and rested. Please mom?"

"Okay fine. Now, finish that cereal, will you? Nowadays we can't waste food, no we cannot!"

"Oh Mom!!" I stood up and hugged her. "Thank you so much!"

"Anything for you, my dear." She said, smiling gladly, and patted my arm.
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I went upstairs after helping Mom to clean up the breakfast, and texted my best friends, Eva and Jacob, asking them to come over. They both replied yes. I went to the bathroom to take a bath.

"Yo, hey, what's up??" Jacob greeted as I opened the front door to let him in. I hugged him, grinning. He was immediately followed by a fair, red headed girl with tiny brown eyes. She was wearing her usual thick eyeliner, making her actual personality hide.

"Hey, Eva!!" I hugged her as she hugged me back. "So good to see you!!"

She took my hand and grinned. "I've got loads to tell you." She whispered and winked. I nodded, feeling excited.

"Come on now, both of you. Let's go upstairs to my room."

Jacob immediately sat by the foot of the bed and took out his phone. Eva and I hopped onto the bed.

"What is it that you've got to tell?" I asked, curiosity rushing inside me.

"Oh, it's about this boy who came to our class this week. He's super cute!!"

I chuckled. "Did you talk to him?"

"Um, not exactly." She picked on a spot on the bed and started twirling the thread in her fingers. "Jac went to talk to him. For me."

"Pretty embarrassing scenario." Jacob said, pocketing his phone. "Even Harry suspected me. He asked me whether I have a crush on the guy!"

"I'm so sorry, Jac." Eva blushed. "I know what I did was wrong, but I was nervous to talk to him."

"Dude, you got to have some courage. I thought it would be impossible for me to talk to someone like Harry, but I never gave up, now did I?" Jacob sat beside me and ran a hand through his dirty blonde hair. His blue eyes twinkled as he mentioned his boyfriend's name.

"I'm not you, Jac. I'm not...I mean...I already have a crush!!"

"Well, then go and talk to him, for heaven's sake!" Jacob stood up and walked over to the window, adjusting his leather jacket. "Charlie's not going to bite your head off. He's pretty darn nice"

Eva scowled. "There's no point in talking to you!"

"Okay, now both of you calm down!" I said. Eva and Jacob always bicker, and I always knew the reason.
When Eva was in the middle school with Jacob, Eva didn't know that Jacob's gay. She had a very strong crush on him, yet he didn't know it. When Jacob came out to everyone, it broke Eva's heart, and she spilled the beans to Jacob even though it's too late.
"Tell me about this boy again." I said.

"Oh," she cleared her throat. "His name is Jasper Alby and he takes Arts subjects."

"What does he look like?" I asked, concentrating on imagining the boy.

"Umm, he has dark brown, messy hair with electric blue eyes. He has olive skin and..um...tall. Has a tattoo on his wrist and....yeah, he has perfect teeth." She finished with a dreamy look in her eyes. "He is fine."

"Good for you." I muttered.

Eva rested a hand on my palm. I looked up to see her sad eyes. "Why would you say that?"

"I'll never talk to a boy who looks that good, no offense Jacob."

"None taken." He muttered as he sat back beside me. "You'll meet someone someday."

I scoffed. "As if."

"Don't say that, Hope." Eva begged.

"I wish I could be more....normal." I sighed.

"Well, I don't see a pair of horns stuck up in your skull!! You look pretty normal to me.!" Jacob said, making Eva nod and laugh.

"Oh, no you didn't say that!!" I gave an evil smile to Jacob and took a pillow into my hands.

"Here she comes...!!" Jacob stood up and covered his head with his hands as I hit him with the pillow repeatedly. Our laughs echoed across the room, filling the house with joy. This is why I love my friends. They know exactly how to cheer me up.