Reality Check

Mr. Creator

Blinding Lights (by The Weekend)

"I said, ooh, I'm blinded by the lights. No, I can't sleep until I feel your touch . . ."

___

Seven o'clock in the morning was never Bethany's ideal time to wake up, especially when there wasn't much waking up to begin with. Under normal circumstances, when there wasn't school, Bethany tended to oversleep. In the fictional world, that is. This was the exact opposite, because she'd been awake literally all night.

Last night, she'd been determined to talk to her mother in the morning — and to figure out if Paul was Nobody. Now, running on no sleep at all, she was less determined. But her mother usually woke up around this time, and since Bethany was already awake, she might as well follow through with her plan.

Not bothering to change out of her pajamas, Bethany drifted downstairs. The smell of coffee greeted her in the kitchen, a sign that her mother was drinking it. She always drank it before work. That was something Bethany knew Orion and her mom would have in common, if they ever actually met.

That thought was a little weird to her. If she ever brought her dad back, would Orion consider living here with them? The idea seemed ridiculous to Bethany, who was so used to being an only child that suddenly living with someone like Orion seemed insane.

But still, he was kind of like a brother to her, and he was like a son figure to Doc Twilight. Maybe if the opportunity ever arose and the offer presented itself, having Orion here wouldn't be so terrible. It wasn't like he was any less annoying when he wasn't living with her, so what would the difference be?

She found her mom in the kitchen, pouring coffee from their coffeepot into a mug. Bethany hadn't seen her mother at this time of morning since school had abruptly ended, which really had just been a week ago, now that she thought about it. It was weird to see her still living her life. After all the changes Bethany had seen last night, she'd half-expected her mother to quit her job and go live with Paul.

Okay, that was a stretch. If she hadn't been last night, Bethany was totally delusional now. It was probably the lack of sleep that was messing with her brain. Definitely that.

"Wow, you're awake early," her mom said, glancing up from her mug. Placing the coffeepot down, she sat down at the kitchen table. Bethany shivered in her pajama shirt and shorts. She'd forgotten just how cold it was in the nonfictional world right now, being February and all.

"I have to talk to you." Bethany slid into the chair across from her. "About last night, I'm—"

"Look, I don't want to argue any more about it, Beth," her mother said, and just then, Bethany noticed the dark circles under her eyes. "I just want you to be more welcoming of Paul."

Bethany hesitated. Judging from how her mother had responded last night, she'd been genuinely upset at Bethany's attitude towards Paul. She'd had this crazy belief that maybe her mother would see reason in the morning, that maybe she'd suddenly realize just how much of a jerk Paul was.

But it wasn't likely. People didn't change their opinions like that. Bethany didn't have proof that Paul was a horrible person anyway, or that he could be Nobody, so saying it again to her mother's face wouldn't go down well. The next best thing was to lie.

Bethany slowly nodded. "Yeah, I know. I was just really shocked that you had a boyfriend all of the sudden."

"It was never my or his intention to replace your father, if that's what you're thinking," Bethany's mother said gently. It was a huge contrast from last night, when the both of them had been yelling. And while Bethany was irritated at the idea of her mom dating Paul, but she was far too tired to yell at a time like this.