SERENDIPITY | bxb.

one.

Term break is over. Two weeks had passed on to a dreadful Monday. Which, in turn, means school.

With a groan, I wake to the cold air seeping through my body. Dazed and confused, I look around, trying to find the source of the cool, only to find my mother holding the very blanket I was sleeping with. It takes a moment for it to click with me that she decided to wake me up by pulling the blanket off of me. Typical.

"Get your ass up!" she hisses. "I am not gonna let you be late on the first day!" With that being said, she leaves.

I am not a morning person.

After a good moment to myself, I set myself up on the bed and rub the sleep out of my dark brown eyes. Running a hand through my rough, curly hair, I bask in the small rays of sunlight that shine through my window, warming up my dark complexion momentarily, before it disappears among a cloud. Mumbling something along the lines of "two weeks ain't enough," I stand up and walk over to my closet groggily, pulling out the clothes I wore for school and changing into them reluctantly. A gray, oversized hoodie with a pair of jeans, that weren't too loose, or too tight.

Comfortable clothes. My style.

"Isaiah! Hurry up!" Mama hisses as she walks past my room, to which I groan in response, irritated. I leave the room and shuffle over to the bathroom meekly. Turning the faucet on, I rinse my eyes out with water in an attempt to wake myself up completely. After my eyes felt sharp, I grab the toothbrush in the cup next to the sink and wash it with water, before applying the toothpaste and beginning to brush.

After I was done with the bathroom, I go to put on my shoes. Mama is hurrying about, looking for her purse. She has an early start for work it seemed. At least she knows how I feel, to some extent.

She finds her keys and gestures for me to go out the door first. Even though the sky is blue with little clouds, and the sun is out, the temperature feels below zero. Despite freezing me to a snowman, this is truly my favorite weather; it feels comforting to see the sunny blue skies among a refreshing mist in the air. The sun shining in the midst of the winter; a sign of strength in a moment of weakness. I rush over to where our car was parked, shivering from the cold. Though everything else in me desiring otherwise, I couldn't wait to get in that car.

Powering on the car, she turns on the air conditioner, causing the fans to= whir as they begin to blow in warm air. I sigh in relief, basking in the warmth the car provided. Mama tunes into the radio as we drive off, causing me to groan. The morning radio show is run by a group of exasperating white people babbling about the most unnecessary subjects. I will never understand her interest in it.

Then again, perhaps I only find them irritating because one of them referred to Janet Jackson as "Michael Jackson's sister".

I stay in a heavy daze for a good moment, until the radio shuts off, and the silence wakes me. To my luck, she only tuned in to listen to the forecast and traffic reports. She seems pleased with the conditions (thankfully; I wasn't prepared to see her mad at this hour of the morning, and traffic tends to be a pain in our city) and decides to play the CD that was inside.

Baduizm. Erykah Badu. A favorite of mine. This time, I didn't complain.

Living in Long Island was better than any other place I've been, despite how lonely I was. The world around me was a blend of calm and chaos; urban streets and a beautiful beach. Even as bustling as it was, I can still feel so lonely. Most of New York makes me feel that way, though, yet I'm at comfort with the sensation. I stare out the window, apartments, and condos passing by one by one, trying not to think of school and instead absorbing every second that I'm inside the car. Unfortunately for me, however, hell is just around the corner, and the car slows to a stop.