She never imagined escaping her reality.
Why would she, anyway?
She has everything she wishes to have.
Wealth? Intelligence? Family? Talents?
Yes. She has them all.
Unlike those people in novels, she was born lucky without any ounce of misfortune. Therefore, she does not have any reason to leave those things when she has every reason to stay.
"Annie!!"
Annie lifted her head from being buried on her study table, revealing her tired and sleepy hazel brown eyes, while using her left hand to search for her glasses. When she finally found them, she lazily put them on, and the face of her loud and cheery best friend greeted her with a smile.
"Oh, it's just you," she said, running her fingers through her messy brown hair.
"How mean! I was gone for three months, you know?" her friend, Lucy, pouted like a child and sat on the chair adjacent to her. It had been three months since they last saw each other, but the brunette did not change a bit. She was still as messy as ever.
Annie looked at her watch and answered. "Look at the time. So early for you to sprout nonsense in my house." It was rude, but Lucy narrowed her eyes at her. They had known each other since they were six, and she could say that it was Annie's habit to speak that way. Of course. What do you expect from the daughter of two wealthy people?
"Anyways. Did you read the novel that I told you to read before I left last time?" Lucy asked, putting her chin on top of her palm while staring straight at Annie, who did not look like she wanted to listen because her eyes were focused on the laptop screen in front of her.
"I finished it two months ago. Now, I don't remember even the protagonist's name," she answered flatly.
"Then how was it? Did you like it?" Lucy's eyes shone in excitement, wanting to hear the comments about the novel. Because if it is Annie, her judgment will always be blunt and honest, and it will not be surprising if her reaction is a bit harsh.
"Crap."
And now she did not expect it to be so straight to the point.
"Why? I thought it'd be good; that's why I recommended it to you!" she whined and laid her face on the table hopelessly.
"The plot is not bad, actually--"
"Really?!" she said, raising her head again all of a sudden.
"The protagonist is too stupid and dense; she cries all the time. I hate her. The prince is dumb because he chose a commoner over a powerful Duke's daughter, who is also dumb because she was so obsessed with useless things like the male lead, who I also hate because he thinks of the protagonist as an angel when she only knows how to throw herself in danger. Why did you even bother to recommend a romance novel when you know that I never liked helpless girls like that one?" Annie said, finally taking her eyes off the screen.
"But Demi's magic is divine! Of course, her personality would be gentle! And the prince prioritized a good heart over the antagonist's wealth!" she protested, defending the characters with all her might. She just remembered that Annie is so zero romantic that she reached the age of nineteen without having a boyfriend or even crushing on someone. Which makes it also her fault because she was the one who recommended her first romance book, where the male lead is a trashy womanizer. The poor Annie was traumatized when she was only ten and swore not to trust good-looking boys ever again. That's why she doesn't know how romance works.
"I like how the Duke's daughter is an 'I can do anything I want' type of girl. Because that's basically true. If only she applied that to better things instead of chasing the male lead because she wanted to."
"Did you finish it?" Lucy asked.
"No. I stopped after she and the main villain died," she said, making Lucy gasp.
"You missed the most exciting part, you know?"
"Whatever you say," she replied nonchalantly.
"Ugh. I'm hungry. Can you cook for me? Please?" Lucy let her face fall on the table.
"I told you not to skip breakfast."
The long-haired girl giggled softly and said, "You act like a mom so often; can you adopt me?"
"Gross. I don't like kids; leave me alone."
"Yeah, right. Those grade school kids in my neighborhood like playing with you."
"Shut up. I'll go out to buy some ingredients. Go away." Annie closed her laptop and stood up.
"Yay! Free breakfast!" Lucy cheered and followed her friend, who didn't protest and just grabbed her phone and purse and continued to head out of her house. She has been living alone since her fifteenth birthday, and she got accustomed to Lucy visiting her every day whenever they don't have classes.
"So, what did you do during summer vacation?" Lucy asked, following along her best friend's pace.
"Nothing special. I ate, slept, and worked on the device that I was developing before you left. I finished it a month ago and started rebuilding and upgrading my uncle's old walkie-talkies. In exchange for giving me those old things, he made me come to his training center every weekend," Annie answered while yawning.
Lucy looked exasperated. As expected, she didn't go out of her cave while she was away. "Auntie Anikka didn't plan any trips?" she asked once again, referring to Annie's mother.
"She did. It only lasted for a week because she was busy; Daddy was also busy. I'm also busy; all of us are busy. How about you?" Lucy stopped in her tracks after hearing Annie's question. She looked down and was silent for a while. Annie took notice of her action and also stopped walking to wait for her answer.
Unlike her friend, Lucy has a very complicated background. She came from a male-oriented family and was abused ever since she was a child. She was always alone until she received a scholarship to study in France when she was a kid. And everything changed when she met the savior of her life. That was Annie.
Back then, Annie was also alone. Not because she was isolated but because she never liked interacting with people other than those inside her family circle. She was straightforward and blunt, and none of the other kids liked that fact; thus, they didn't approach her any further, much to the little science nerd's joy.
On the other hand, Lucy was different; she pursued making friends with her until they became closer. She even met her parents, who stood as her second family. However, no matter how much she saw Annie's family as her own, her real family was still there.
What if she won't be able to break free from them and end up leaving Annie all alone?
"It seems like you should start learning how to connect with other people, Annie."
"I don't want to. People stink. So why should I?" she told her bluntly, like she usually does.
"But you can't live alone."
"I'm not. Aren't you here?" Annie went on ahead.
Lucy sighed. She knew Annie was not going to listen to her if she didn't want to. Even though she only wants her to find someone who can stand by her side if she ever goes away, explaining will not do her any good.
Suddenly, a strong gush of wind passed by, taking the hat she was wearing along. "Come back here!" she shouted and started chasing after it. Fortunately, it stopped but landed in the middle of the road.
She went to pick it up, something that she shouldn't have done. She wasn't aware that a truck was speeding in her direction, and it looked like it didn't have the intention to stop. Before she knew it, she was already rooted on the spot.
Annie, having a quick mind, didn't hesitate and ran towards her.
She pushed her out of the way, but the product of not being able to rest for a couple of days prevented her from doing so. Her legs stopped moving, and the last thing she saw was the terrified face of her best friend.
~~~
"My lady! Please open your eyes."
A moment later, she felt someone holding her upper body, and she could feel the cold and hard ground. She was able to open her eyes, and an unfamiliar, worried face greeted her.
"Ugh… my back," she groaned in pain before the darkness consumed her again.