Perception

I

The phone's alarm blared and her eyes shot open.
What? The alarm clock woke her? This was new, she was almost always awake before it had a chance to go off. Anna loved the freshness of the morning, she loved the feeling of waking up before the rest of the world did and taking a moment to make a cup of green tea with honey and standing then, looking out of the window at the well kept garden underneath, the tea warming her hands as she mused about the day to come.
There was something different, today, something just at the periphery of her consciousness; close enough for her to feel it was there, but too far away to reach. An image? A dream, maybe?
Either way, she had to get going, and soon. The first day back at college after summer break; it would be a seriously bad idea to be late.
She shot into the clothes she had laid out the night before - thank God for her natural meticulousness - and grabbed her book bag, checking its contents one more time as she went. She'd just about have time for a quick bowl of yogurt and granola. Even though she wasn't a big fan of having breakfast, she would need to have something before a full morning of classes.
No time for tea today, unfortunately.
She ran downstairs, her bag slung over her right shoulder.
¨Morning, Anna!¨
¨Good morning, mrs. Peterson!¨
She smiled fondly at her landlady. Mrs. Peterson had become like a family member over the last two years. She was a sweet lady, always cooking or cleaning something, or spending long hours tending to her garden. Anna would help, sometimes, or she'd curl up on the faded white hanging bench with a book, swaying softly in the wind. Anna had seriously lucked out with her little second story apartment and the person who rented it to her.
¨I have to head out, mrs. Peterson, I shouldn't be late!¨ she said as she bent down to put her shoes on. She thought she saw a slight smile on mrs. Peterson's face, just before she turned around to go back into her kitchen.

Even though her house was a little oasis of calm it wasn't long before she came to the ferry that would take her right to the bustle of the city centre. Even after two years of making this trip most days, she still got a slight thrill, walking over the gangway onto the boat over the river. She was really here! She'd really left everything she knew behind and gone to a different country, a wonderful, vibrant country with kind people, and she was making her own way in the world. She loved it here.
Still, today, she felt a little strange. She tried to reach the feeling, to understand it, but it was elusive, always just out of her reach. It felt like something was off, but she couldn't get to what. She shook her head, letting her long hair flap in the mild late summer breeze, shaking the feeling with it.
Head in the game, Anna.

She walked through the crowds of Central Station to the Metro station. She didn't like the underground system much, with its griminess and its shady characters, but she knew it was only a couple of stops until Sarah would join her. So she set herself down on one of the seats, trying not to think too much about who else had sat on it, and sat back, letting the Dutch all around her flow over her. The Dutch, which might as well have been Japanese that first while for all the sense it made - even if is was also a Germanic language - but she was really starting to get it now. She was actually starting to understand sentences without trying to.

¨Hey, dude!¨ Sarah's happy voice came from behind.
¨Hey!¨ Anna smiled widely, getting up to hug her.
Sarah was, just quite clearly, her favourite person in the universe. She was outgoing, loud and confident; all the attributes that Anna didn't possess. She was the yang to her yin, and when they were together she felt like they could take on the world.
¨So, you up for it all again?¨
¨Sort of. Can you believe it, I actually got woken up by the alarm clock!¨
Sarah gaped at her. ¨What, you? Little miss Daybreak?¨
Anna grinned. ¨I know, right? I was surprised, myself.¨
¨Like, did you even get to drink your tea?¨ Sarah's eyebrow was raised in irony and Anna elbowed her in the side.
¨Hey! Enough of the mocking already, it's early.¨

See? The Metro wasn't so bad if you got to share it with good people.