Entry tags:

background, biographical, canon [original], childhood, kevin, otherside, prompts: quotable muse [lj], william

[QM] 83: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Saturday morning, Athena woke up early and couldn't fall back asleep. After an hour of staring at her ceiling, she quietly crawled out of bed to throw on a pair of shorts and a sweatshirt. It wasn't quite six o'clock; outside, the sky was still gray tinged pink by the rising sun. Holding her shoes in her hand, she crept downstairs and out the kitchen door, putting them on outside. After a quick stretch, she set off at a light jog down the driveway and out to the main road. It didn't take long for her leg to start aching, it never was right after she broke it, but she kept going. Pain was nothing new to her.

She arrived back at the entrance to the driveway a few hours later, just as the mailman was arriving. They exchanged nods and she was almost past him when he called out to her.

"Oh, Miss Herald! I've got something here I think you'll want."

From the stack of mail in his hand he pulled out a large envelope and handed to her. Her heart felt like it would explode when she looked down to see the return address: Undergraduate Admissions, Tisch School of the Arts at NYU.

"Looks like good news," the mailman said casually, handing the rest of the stack over to her. She could only nod as she turned away and walked slowly back up to the house, going around back to slip in the way she'd left. It was almost ten; everyone would be up, except for Kevin, the help would already be bustling around the house...

Ducking out of sight for a moment, she slipped the envelope under her sweatshirt and under her waistband to keep it in place against her back. Clutching the rest of the mail, she walked into the kitchen; her mother was arranging some fresh-cut roses to be put out in the dining room. Her step-father was drinking coffee and reading the paper, until he saw her. She tried not to let her anxiety show as she set the mail down on the table beside his plate.

"I went out for a run," she explained timidly, although the fact that she was covered in a sheen of sweat clearly gave that away. "I ran into the mailman on my way back."

For a moment, William just stared at her, and she began to worry that he knew she was hiding something. But then he turned back to the paper and dismissed her. "Go take a shower. You look terrible."

With the smallest sigh of relief, she excused herself up to her room, quickly closing the door behind her. She pulled the envelope out and stared at it, turning it over again and again as she sat on the edge of her bed. It took everything she had not to rip it open and examine its contents; before she could, the sound of the doorknob turning made her hide it under her pillow. Kevin, her step-brother, stuck his head in to announce that breakfast was ready.

"I'm not hungry," she replied.

"You just went on a four hour run," he shot back. "You're starving, don't lie. Besides, mom thinks you're too skinny already. She'll drag you downstairs if you don't come by yourself."

With a heavy sigh, she gave in. Closing the door behind her as she entered the hallway, she decided to wait until later to open the envelope. But after breakfast, Marina wanted to discuss plans for Athena's upcoming graduation party, which included a trip into the city to look at locations, followed by a shopping trip for the prom dress Athena insisted she didn't need. By the time they arrived back at home, the sun had set, the help was gone for the day, and Marina insisted that her daughter help make dinner. Reluctantly, Athena agreed, but the envelope was never far from her mind. Once dinner was over, and she'd cleaned up, she went back up to her room and pulled the envelope from its hiding place. She decided to wait until after everyone had gone to sleep before she would open it, to prevent anyone from sneaking up on her.

It was past midnight when the last light in the house went out. Silently, Athena slipped out of her room with the envelope and out to the garden in the back. She slipped her finger underneath the flap and tore it open as carefully as possible, delicately pulling out the papers inside. The moon was out, but not quite full, and she had to squint to make out what the first letter said, but she swelled with pride at what she saw.

Dear Athena,

Thank you very much for your application to the Photography and Imaging program at the Tisch School of the Arts. After a careful review of your portfolio, we are thrilled to say that your work was of an exceptional level, and we wold like to offer you a place here.

She pressed the letter to her chest, looking up at the night sky. The smile on her face grew wider and wider as she thought about her future in New York, about everything she would learn there. Her heart was beating hard enough that she could feel it through the paper, the blood rushing in her ears loud enough that she didn't hear the footsteps behind her. It wasn't until her step-father's shadow fell over her that she realized she wasn't alone, celebrating with the stars. He grabbed the letter as she turned to face him, scanning it over with a smug, sadistic grin that she knew too well.

"I guess congratulations are in order," he said, still looking at the letter. "You did it, you got into your little picture program."

She wanted to take the letter back, but she couldn't move. He looked up at her finally, chuckling.

"I don't know why you thought you had to hide this," he continued. "It's good news! We should be celebrating - or were you afraid you didn't get in? I guess I can understand not wanting anyone else to know you're a failure."

"I knew I got in," she said quietly. "They only send you the big envelope if you got accepted."

"Of course, because you're so smart," he replied. "Too smart for this place."

With one swift move, the letter and all the other papers were ripped in half. Athena tried not to sob as she fell to her knees, scrambling to pick up all the pieces before they blew away. She knew then that she should have waited longer, gone further away. When his hand tangled in her hair and yanked her up, she couldn't help but cry out, not because it hurt but because she'd been stupid enough to think she could get away from him.

"You'll go where I tell you to go," he growled quietly into her ear. "It's my money. I'm not wasting it on some useless art school."

He shoved her back down to the ground, and she knew from the look in his eye that she could expect him later. She cried silently and clutched the pieces of paper as she watched him walk away, wishing she could kill him then and there. Her only comfort came from the tiny whisper in the back of her mind telling her patience.

His time would come.

"You coward! Are you bragging to the stars?"
1223 words