Hero

Part 1: A girl who loves to listen to the stars

Let's just get one thing straight: don't underestimate me.

I am a small, blond, blue gray eyed, girl. I like to think of myself in other ways. I like to think of myself as a drawing. An animation. And someone is drawing out my life as I go along with it.

It's very simple really.

I begun thinking this way when I was at the age of two. My mother would read me several picture books. I thought, what if I was living in a picture book? Who would be the author? What would happen to me on the next page? And thus, these questions were planted inside my brain. And so, I now think of life as one big book. Not just my life, everyone's.

But I put those questions aside for a while. Mostly every book, contained a handsome prince that would save the day. But he would never be mentioned near the end of the book. It would end with a "they". And by "they" the author refers to the whole kingdom.

With the stories with the absent princes, the crying late at night over the books, and the several pictures with jagged lines, so you could tell someone was cut out, Syria connected the dots. She was going to ask her mother, who her father really was.

Sadly, her mother turned her question away. "You mustn't worry about it. He was a nice lad, that... That... Just got into some trouble."
"What kind of trouble?"
"Well... He would come and go... But you should not worry! He'll come back some day."
"When?"
"When the time is right." When the time is right. That was a popular saying of hers. Syria would just sigh and mutter an "ok".

Syria sighed. She was in bed now. She checked her clock by her bed. It was 11:30 p.m. She was feeling lonely, and the air was warm and sticky.

It was summer now, and it wasn't the best time of the year in London. London was experiencing a heat wave. Syria smiled. Things like this were rare in London, so it was a nice change.

She got up and walked to the doors, that led out to a small patio. After closing the doors behind her, she closed her eyes, extending her arms, and breathed in the faint, musky, smell of the Thames river.

"Psst!" A loud whisper came from above her. She angled her head towards the sound. "Syria, you there?"
"Yeah" Loud, clanking, sounds came from above, as a boy, about her age, came climbing down a wooden ladder, that was built there, six years ago. When they were both six.

He made it down and blew long hairs out of his face. His hair was a dark caramel color, with quite a few bright blond highlights, from playing a variety of outdoor sports. His eyes were also a bright gray, with a bit of blue.

"Can't sleep?" He asked cracking the silence. Syria cleared her throat. "Yeah. It's super hot in my room! I've been sweating the whole bloody night! And... I also thought I should have paid the stars a visit." He shook his head like he understood, and collapsed in one of the cushioned chairs, while extending his legs, so his feet rested on the fence of the patio.

Syria turned her head farther up, staring at the illuminating gas in the sky. The stars were so beautiful. And she imagined that someday, just someday, she would get caught up, and would drift up to the stars, forever lost.

She also love to listen to them. I know it seems strange, but it kind of makes sense. Each of them had an instrument, that would clash with the notes, creating either a musical catastrophe, or a five star creation. It was always a five star creation.

"WOOOOHOOOO!" Andrew shouted as he pumped his fist into the air, scaring Syria out of her musical phase. "It's midnight! July 24th! You have officially twenty-four hours until you are a teenager!" Syria laughed.
"And you have officially forty-eight hours until YOU are a teenager!" She shouted back with a "woohoo" in the air. They were exactly one day apart. Seconds and all.

"You kids! Stop the rackety!" Shouted their elderly neighbor, Mr. Mansuer. They both forced themselves to laugh quietly, as they said a "Yes sir!" Back.

It was 12:10 a.m., and Syria's life couldn't be anymore perfect... But with its flaws. She was staring at the stars as she was sitting in the same position as Andrew, when she drifted off to sleep.