*IF ONLY UNIVERSE STORY* After the incident that happened three years ago, Marvel Kreshnik has been living the same mundane, boring life. However, one day there is a mass power outage that changes the course of her life forever, giving her the oppor...
TRIGGER WARNING: ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, BODY SHAMING, AND EATING DISORDERS MENTIONED
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Monday 20 April Year 2020
The air-raid siren went off at exactly four in the morning.
A normal person would panic at this noise, but for Marvel, this was the start to just any regular day. She picked this sound for her alarm to ensure she would wake up. Why the air-raid siren? Because when Marvel was finally able to fall asleep, she could only be awoken by tricking her brain into believing the world was ending. One would think her brain would be accustomed to the sound by now, however the funny thing about the brain is that it is unpredictable... and anxiety is a huge part of that.
Marvel's brain should know that the alarm is telling her to wake up to start the day, however, her anxiety told her that there was an emergency, get into adrenaline mode, you have to survive. Which was an awful way to start every morning, but the only way Marvel seemed to wake up. Because not only did she have anxiety, she was also severely depressed. So when she could sleep, all she wanted to do was sleep. This endless cycle had turned into a daily routine for Marvel over the past two years.
On this Monday, it was just another typical April morning in Seoul. Marvel turned off her alarm, and stretched her body while breathing in the cold spring air. She often left her window open so she could smell the fresh morning air before the industrial waste and smog filled the city.
She stood up and quickly changed into her workout clothes and started her daily aikido training. She would go through the basic routines every morning for an hour before work to help energize her and help her find her inner peace.She took up aikido after the incident that happened two years ago. She was never going to let that nightmare happen again, so everyday she trained her mind, body and soul to prepare for the worst. She did not used to be this way... but when terrible things happen to a person... they change, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse.
Marvel still had not decided if her change was good or bad... she just knew she had changed. She would remember her past self, and miss her. But then she would quickly remind herself that the old Marvel was weak and unable to defend herself. The new Marvel needed to be strong, independent, self reliant and resilient. Aikido helped her remember that.
After finishing her routine it was time for her to shower, but after her workout she would always take a moment to stare at herself in her underwear. Not to admire herself, but to remind herself of the old Marvel. She used to be morbidly obese, but after the incident she lost two-hundred and fifteen pounds [97.5kg] but the stretch marks remained on her stomach, arms, and thighs. She would stare at these marks to remind herself to never go back to the old ugly and weak Marvel. She would only allow this reminder to last a minute, because she was on a tight schedule.
Once she finished her body shaming, Marvel would promptly take a shower, and get ready for the day. Blow drying her long dark ash blonde hair always took the longest, and she had reached a point in her life where she did not find it necessary to wear a ton of makeup. She had finally gotten rid of her red skin, and was proud to show off her freckles. The only makeup she would wear was on her eyes and lips, but she would make it look as natural as possible.
