'Tis the Season

Fantasy | The Choice

Stacy tapped on the steering wheel, looking out of the window, waiting for something. After the diner, she was back sitting in her car again, still in the old town she grew up in. She didn't exactly plan ahead before coming here - not even booking a hotel. She was expecting to stay in her old childhood room, surrounded by her family. 

Before she was seated in the car, a stranger gave her something. A small crystal ball - she knew that magic wasn't exactly a rare thing around here, but she also knew that it was a selective thing that not many people could do. And right now, holding and looking over the object in her hold, she was the chosen one. 

She wasn't sure how but the person who offered it to her said that someone she loved was in danger and she was the only person who could fix things. So now there she was, complementing whether or not to risk it all. 

All that she had to do was close her eyes while clenching her fist shut, clutching onto the dream that's going to take her back in time. Taking a deep breath, she did just that, forcing her mind to stay focused on one thing and let magic take its course. 

For what felt like long enough, she opened her eyes gradually. No longer inside her car, but she was sitting on a bike instead, and within a mile or less she heard someone calling out her name. She narrowed her eyes at the person before her, waving their hands up in the air, with casual shirt and shorts as their hair was left undone. 

"Stace, are you ready?" The person asked as they approached her, looking over her with a grin on their face. 

"Ready for what?" Stacy asked back, not knowing what just happened. 

The person chuckled, "To tell your parents that you're not going anywhere without your best friend." 

As soon as the word parents escaped the person's lips, part of the drawer in her brain was left unlocked and brought her a flash of distant memory that only now did she remember. She was taken back to the day where she was supposed to leave the town to start a career - right after an agent discovered her during one of her surfing championship. 

"Right," She finally declared after a long pause. Little did she know that it was going to be the last day she'd ever see her father again. Or was that the point of taking her back here? 

She frowned, shrugging away the thoughts. Before she could say anything back, her friend spoke again as if noticing the frown on her face. "Why, did you change your mind?" 

Glancing up, she shook her head. "No, I mean," She paused, "Let's not talk about that. How about we head back to my house and mingle?" She suggested. Her friend's eyes lighted up, agreeing to the offer, and even took the lead and left her behind. She trailed behind right after. 

That was definitely a mistake.

She thought she'd approach her house again but now she was standing in the middle of an airport where people milling around her, looking down on the plane ticket in her hand before she looked up to see the same friend from before. Only, they were taller and polished with makeup making their facial features vibrant which ultimately made it glowing. 

"I can't believe I'm saying good bye to you," The friend pulled her in an embrace, then broke away to stare right through her. 

As if on cue, she replied, blinking multiple times to prevent the tears from falling. She knew why she decided to change her mind and leave now. "Yeah, me too, but I think that's what's best for me right now." 

Her friend nodded, scowling as if knowing her motives too well. "I'm really sorry about your father, Stace," Aria blurted, but turned a 180 right away when she saw the look on Stacy's face. "However, don't forget to write me, okay? You're still my best friend." 

Stacy stifled a laugh, "Of course. How can I possibly forget about my best friend, the one whom I had shared everything with, through thick and thin?" She stated. Oh, little did she know, she was going to get caught up with the new life and never ever looked back.

The sound of someone saying something over the loudspeakers, making her only able to read through Aria's lips but couldn't hear properly, but she knew it wasn't the speakers. It was a reminder that her time was up before she could even say anything back. For all she knew, she had said everything she needed to say. Now there she was, transformed back to reality, dazed, looking around her surroundings to notice that she was back in her car. 

Someone knocked over the car windows simultaneously, making her roll them down when she saw the sight of Jake, the ex boyfriend, appearing in her vision. "What do you want, Jake?" She retorted. 

"I know that you didn't get to find what you looked for here, but I was going to Aria's Christmas party and wondering if you'd like to come with." 

It's like the universe wanted her to fix things, even if it wasn't what she expected it to be. So, without any doubts lingering in her, she tugged a smile at her lips. "You know what, I'm in. Come, let me drive both of us there."