To Fly Away

Chapter One

 I always wonder why

birds stay

in the same place

when they can fly

anywhere on the earth.

Then I ask myself

the same question.

-Harun Yahya

They call me Leah. It's strange, really, because my name isn’t Leah.

I don’t know where it came from, or how it became associated with me. I don’t know why I don’t correct people when they say it - why I never have corrected people. Maybe it's what I wanted. Maybe on some subconscious level I knew I wasn't the same person I had been, before, and I didn't want to fool myself. It's not that I lied about my name. It's just that thinking back on it now, I don't think anyone ever asked for it.

I am Alice. 

And this is my story.

***

“I’m calling bull,” I say.

“No, really!  It was just like they said it would be.”  

It’s December. The cool, dry air bites at my skin as I walk. I missed the bus for an extra twenty minutes of sleep - not that that’s uncommon for me -  and now I’m paying the price.  

“Oh yeah? And how’s that?”  

“Um,  amazing, that’s how.”

Fortunately I’m not alone. Charlot strides beside me, apparently unaffected by the cold, or just too giddy to notice it. She’s my best friend. My only friend, at this point, and she claims to have found her soul mate.  

“Seriously,” she says around a mouthful of bran muffin, “Lee, It was perfect. You know how he works at that little ice cream place on Fifth?”

“Uh huh.”

“Well I was totally craving soft serve, and so I went. And I wasn’t expecting to see him there or anything, you know, I wasn’t really thinking about it but there he was. And I just kinda looked at him, and he looked at me, and I knew! Like how they say you’re supposed to know when you see your wedding dress. And I could tell he knew it too, ‘cause his mouth was hanging open and he was making this noise a little like a choked frog. Oh, my God. Perfect."

“Sounds like it,” I say, shooting her a sceptical look.

Char pouts at me. “Common, Leah, love at first sight! You'll find your mate someday too, you know," she singsongs, giving me a sideways grin.

“Ha,” I scoff as we round the corner. “No thanks, I have a feeling I’d let the poor guy down. I’m quite content with being alone.”

And I am.  Absolutely. No doubt about it.

“Oh, right. Quite content with ogling Sebastian Mckeon from across the parking lot every morning, you mean.” Char giggles, sending a meaningful look at the boy who - if I’m being honest with myself - I had been staring at.  

For a few years now.

And what was there not to stare at? At nearly sixteen years old, the boy was beautiful. I’m talking tall, lean muscle and soft blonde hair that shimmers in the sunlight. Not to mention his absolutely gorgeous face. Chiseled jawline, high cheekbones, icey green eyes.