Far From Joy » Ellie Goulding [au]

Preface

My alarm woke me up and I tiredly pressed the snooze button, wanting nothing more than to sleep through today. Today was the day that I took another step in becoming an adult and shipped my belongings off to the University of Seattle. As I took another deep breath in trying to calm my nerves, I overheard small giggles and right as I went to open my eyes I felt the small weight of my younger sibling on myself, then another weight on the edge of my bed.

"It's only seven, why wake me up now, mom?" I groaned. Knowing she had brought in Connor to wake me up.

"Because everybody wants to spend as much time with you as possible. Your father even took the night shift yesterday so he could join us on your last day," I could feel her smiling even though my eyes were still shut , Connor getting underneath my sheets so he could cuddle with me on this last day until Thanksgiving. Connor knew me best honestly, he knew I wouldn't want to get out of bed, so why tug the sheets off of me when he could join me? Connor's mop of brunette curls was rubbing against my skin and I found such comfort by it.

"Do we have to get up, mummy?" Connor tiredly asked. His little hands clung onto my arms.

"Yes. You both do, especially the one going on a vacation," Mom didn't want Connor thinking I was never coming back so for now, we were just telling him I was going on a series of 'vacations.'

I had graduated a year and a bit ago, using up the time to try and find myself. In which I don't think did any good because I found myself in my bed, at home here in Seattle at least seventy-five percent of the time. Mom did need me to help out a bit though, so the other twenty-five percent, I was travelling with mom and Connor. When mom went back on tour to the United Kingdom with her third album, I got to watch over Connor whilst she performed. Since mom wanted to be fair with dad, she took a good eight months off of tour, so she could get around to writing and producing the third album. As soon as Connor turned eight months, mom was off to the United Kingdom again.

The only thing that happened whilst on tour, with dad staying in Seattle for work, was that I got accepted to the university I had dreamed of going to for as long as I could remember.

So, today was absolutely huge for me. The university of my dreams, the possibility of making friends that might actually stay, and the possibility of maybe even finally getting a long overdue, boyfriend. Mom actually has the nerve to make fun of me for not getting a boyfriend yet. I just ignore her now whenever she brings it up.

"Connor, I sent you in here to wake up Taylor, not decide to be tired as well," mom sighed, looking at the two of us with one of those looks that was full of annoyance yet she couldn't not look at us with love in her eyes.

"I gunna miss Taylor though," Connor said in his little baby voice that couldn't quite make out words as they were supposed to be, the only words he could say without trouble were mom, dad, yes, and no. I found no offence to it though because when we tried to get him to say mom's name, he looked at us and said no because he didn't want to hurt mom's feelings.

"We're all going to miss Taylor, baby," Mom cooed, I opened my eyes and I saw her placing a soft kiss on his mop of curls, then moving her upper body towards me and doing the same.

"You know what we should do mom?" I tiredly said, half awake and half asleep.

"What, love?" She asked, now playing with my hair, ironically before I asked her to give me a small sidecut.

"You should give me a sidecut, how awesome would that be?" I smiled but mom stopped playing with my hair.

"You are not getting a sidecut, Taylor," I overheard dad say as he walked into my room and lifted up my covers and took Connor from the bed to present him with breakfast because that's all I've smelt for however long now.

"We'll be downstairs in a second, Con. Right Taylor," Mom looked to me and I nodded sitting up and giving Connor a small thumbs up who gave one right back as dad left the room with him, "Sam hasn't had coffee yet and he got two hours of sleep. I'll give you a sidecut," she smiled at me, giving me a quick peck on the cheek before leaving the room and letting me get ready and get downstairs. I gave my room one last thorough look, looking at all the packed boxes around me. My room was filled with boxes, the only thing not packed was the bed I was sleeping on and the covers that had been on me seconds ago. I was actually not going to see my family for two and a half months, I couldn't hardly believe it, my whole life was ahead of me now. I got to make my own decisions as soon as I left this house and I couldn't believe that. I couldn't believe that all this hard work had finally paid off.