Once Upon a Time: On Broadway

I know it has been a while. Here is a new story. Happy Thanksgiving!

-Skai

Once Upon a Time: On Broadway

Once upon a time there was a little girl with a big dream. She wanted to be a Broadway singer. When she was little she would watch musicals, learn all the lines. Practice all the songs. Without a doubt in her mind when she grew up she would move to New York to become an actress.

Only as this little girl grew she lost her vision. She got distracted by school and boys. And constantly looking for her parents’ approval. They wanted her to go to college, and get married…and have a family. If not on purpose, they convinced her that only crazy people are on Broadway.

So she grew up and didn’t go to Broadway. She went to community college and then to a nearby university. After graduating from college she got a job as a news reporter.

She spent years reporting everything that everyone else accomplished. Years past without any change. She woke up each morning, went to work, came home, and went to bed. The following day she did it again. Her vacations and free time was spent with friends or family, traveling or having fun.

One day, after she had started dying her hair to cover grays and smothering her face with anti-aging cream, she was on her way to work listening to a musical she used to sing with as a little girl. All her old dreams and plans came flooding back to her. Along with regret. She couldn’t comprehend how she had let the years slip away.

Not long after that she quit her job, moved out of her apartment, and packed her car with only the possessions she would need. And she left for New York. She left the happiest she had been in a long time even though she didn’t know what challenges lay before her.

It is still unknown if she made it to New York, or ever got on a Broadway show. She left only yesterday. The rest of her story remains to be written.                

Fairy Troubled: A Girl Power Adventure (Part 9)

At 1:19, a knock on the door startled Elina. She sprung out of bed, and looked down to make sure she hadn't woken Violet. She went to answer the door. Checking through the peephole, she saw her smiling mother, holding a pizza and a soda bottle. She quickly opened the door.

            "Hey, Violet's asleep." Elina greeted.

            "That is fine. Maybe she will wake up just as I have to leave." Mrs. Ridley replied, "I got Hawaiian pizza and a cherry cola, two of your favorites."

            "Oh, good I'm starved, let’s eat." They put some paper plates on the hotel desk and Mrs. Ridley poured drinks. Because of the lack of table space they actually ate on the floor. “So, how's your speaking been?" Elina asked.

            Mrs. Ridley began, "It has been busy. I have had to work most of it out with Dad, but I brought Violet, this time because it was only a three hour drive, and I hoped you could watch her for me today." Mrs. Ridley finished but immediately asked Elina a question, "How has summer camp been?"

            "It's been good, more interesting and fun than last year’s macramé camp," Elina paused, took a sip of soda, "You're playing this game again. How's the book going?"

            "Yes, I am. It is the easiest way to get you to talk. If you feel you can gain something for telling me stuff. The book is selling well, my publisher wants a sequel. Are you learning and practicing skateboarding often?"

            "Yes, I've gotten lots of practice, although, I haven't been allowed to practice since I fell off my skateboard. What did you tell your publisher?"

            "I told her I have a teenager and a baby, I will give her something that resembles a first draft in a year. What happened to your wrist?"

            "That's what all this is about!"

            "Elina," Mrs. Ridley shushed, "your sister is sleeping."

            "Sorry," they sat in silence for a moment.

            Finally her mother broke the silence. "I think you are old enough for me to tell you, why your father and I decided to adopt you." Elina was quiet as her mother continued, "You have always known you were adopted, we never tried to hide that from you, but shortly before your father and I married I told him... Well, when I was still a teenager I ran away from home. I got involved with a bad crowd. I actually had twins, but I got in trouble with some—important—people. I had to give up my new born twins. I owned up to my mistakes, and had to face some tough consequences. When it was over I turned my life around, got involved with a better crowd. When I met your father, I knew it was meant to be. It didn't take us long to get married. But I knew once I got the chance, I wanted to give someone else's baby the chance I could not give to my twins. So I adopted you," she finished. For a moment Elina let the hurt and pain consume her, and she broke down sobbing. Her mother stretched over the pizza and drinks to give her a hug.

            "Mom, I love you, Dad and Violet, but I don't fit in."

            "Honey, family is about loving and caring for each other, not about fitting in. We are only human and cannot always understand those who are different, but your father and I love you the same. We sometimes worry about you and get annoyed with you. We are disappointed when you disobey us, but we love you just the same. Oh, by the way, you can let tell me if skate camp is too difficult for you. I am fine taking you home early if you think you are out of your depth. I am glad you have gotten an opportunity to pursue your passion, do not push yourself to the figurative or literal breaking point."

After all Elina's tears were drying up, "Okay thanks, Mom. I love you too."

            Looking at her watch, Mrs. Ridley said, "Look at the time. I have to go. Elina, give your sister a kiss for me." She kissed the top of Elina's head, grabbed her purse and the room key from the kitchen counter where Elina had set it when she came back in the room. "Can you put the extra soda and pizza in the fridge? I will be back after five tonight." With that she left. Elina quickly put the pizza and soda in the fridge. She didn't know what to do about her problem. Her mom said that she would take her home, if she thought she couldn't do it. Elina could tell Rayna she can't handle superhero life, go home with her mom, and maybe after a couple weeks with her wrist wrapped, but not getting better, her mother would take her for an x-ray. All her problems would be solved, and her secrets would stay secret. Violet's cries snapped Elina out of her self-absorbed thoughts.

            Running to Violet in the bed, she said, "Violet, what's up?" She checked her baby sister’s diaper.

She changed the baby’s diaper for the second time that day. This time keeping pressure off her left arm better; however, it was still painful.

Elina put Violet on the blanket she'd set out earlier, surrounding her with a few toys. She handed her sister a rattle. Violet gripped it tightly. Feeling that the room was a little stuffy, she walked over to the window and with some difficulty she opened it a crack. One handed she could open the window completely. Elina laid next to her sister, quickly falling asleep again.

Fairy Troubled: A Girl Power Adventure (Part 8)

Twenty minuets later Elina woke up when her sister tugged on her ponytail.

“Violet, stop it!" Elina scolded.

She didn't stop because as a baby grasping objects is little more than a reflex.

Holding her baby sister with her good hand, Elina used the broken one to carefully uncurl her sister's fingers out of her blond hair. A sharp pain shot though her left side. “You know what," She said, as she put her sister into the baby car seat. "We're going for a little trip." Elina grabbed her backpack, and slung it on one shoulder. Then she picked up the baby carrier with her good hand.

She walked down to the convenient store in the hotel. The only other person in the store was a young sales girl, who wasn't much older than Elina. She wasn't sure if she'd be allowed to buy medicine, but she had to try. She found extra strength ibuprofen on the wall opposite of the checkout counter. Under the counter she found a roll of breath mints about the same size. She set Violet in her carrier on the floor and the medicine and mints on the wooden checkout counter.

            “Ready to check out?" the brunette girl asked.

            “Yeah," Elina took her backpack off and put on the counter. She unzipped the front pocket, and produced her wallet.

            “Extra strength, that's not for the baby, is it?"  She asked.

Elina chuckled, "No, it's for me. You ever been hurt while traveling? It's all the usual yuck and pain. Plus you have the inconvenience of not being at home."

The checkout girl rung up the medicine and mints. “That'll be $7.43 total.”

            Violet began crying. “I'll be there in a minute Violet," Elina said, and with great difficulty she got out eight dollars to pay the cashier. She put her purchases in her backpack along with her wallet and change. Elina picked up her sister as the sales girl said good day.

            Once in her mother's room she swallowed the medicine. Then took Violet out of the carrier, and checked her diaper. She changed her sister's diaper. However, with her broken arm she found it to be harder and more painful than ever before. To wash her hands she unwrapped the hand. Even with the extra strength ibuprofen in her body, she immediately regretted it. After re-wrapping her hand. This time tighter than before, she set a blanket from her sister's diaper bag on the floor. On top of the blanket she placed Violet. Elina was about to look for a toy for Violet as she began to cry.

“Oh, Vi, what now?" Noticing the time on the small microwave in the kitchen area. She figured Violet was hungry. Grabbing the bottle from the counter, Elina walked back to Violet, picked her up, and sat down in the wooden chair at the only desk in the room. Cradling Violet, she fed her from the bottle.

            "Is that stuff actually any good?" She wondered out loud knowing Violet couldn't answer.  After seeing her sister contently sucking the formula, Elina threw her head back, thinking.

“What do I do? Even holding this bottle up hurts. How can I continue training like this? But I'll have to come clean to get real medical attention? Can I do that without giving my secret away? Or should I give it up to ensure my health? Mom was driving her car when she picked me up this morning; so, I could go home with them. I could come clean, go home, and get better. Or I could stay, not come clean, and hope for the best. I could tell my mom the whole story, and go home or stay. Will people notice if I have to keep this brace on for months? I think it took a couple months to heal the last time I broke my arm. How can I protect people if it hurts to simply pick up my baby sister? She doesn't even weigh very much," Before long Violet was done eating and Elina tried to burp her, the way she'd always seen her mother do.   

            Moments later her sister was asleep, so Elina laid her down again in the bed and Elina laid next to her. As she fell asleep she thought, "What should I do?"