By fields of grass with a breeze that made the tree’s leaves dance, the two walked side by side on a paved path of Central Park. They passed the overgrowth contained to the park. Baron looked around at the mundane population’s lives, and watched as mundane joggers exercised for the day, and Non-Cognizant families took their children to the park. They continued on by couples that held hands on what some might call a date. At least I hope that Rose considered this a date.

  “I’m surprised we managed to make the train.” She broke the short silence. Her hand grazed his own as they walked, with a passing of her fingers that felt gravitated toward his own. Baron felt a heat that rushed up his body and to his face. He really, really wanted to hold her hand again like the night they met, but he just couldn’t seem to muster the courage to try.

  “Same. I’m usually a lot less lucky with their timing.” As they walked, he hid the light limp. A tender bruise began to form over his foot. Thankfully, it wasn’t that bad. Uncomfortable, yes. But it wasn’t enough to make him give up the time Rose gave him.

  “Me either.” She looked to him with the charming smile, which Baron was increasingly infatuated by. “Maybe our luck’s better together.” Rose grazed his arm again. To Baron, it almost seemed like she flirtatiously leaned into him for just a second. It made Baron go rigid at the idea.

  “Hopefully.” Baron awkwardly chuckled. His laugh was embarrassingly high-pitched, and squeaky for someone his age. It was one of his least favorite attributes of himself.

  “You’ve got a cute little laugh,” Rose said, while she giggled with him. It made Baron smile bashfully, and at that moment for the first time in his life, he thought maybe it really wasn't as hideous as he’d believed. Rose liked it, and honestly, Baron didn't think that anyone else’s approval mattered in this moment - even his own.

  “Oh. Uh. Thank you!” Baron couldn't hide the joy in his tone or the rosy red tint of his cheeks. “How was class today?” he asked in an attempt to change the subject. Not wanting to linger on her complement, he felt like he’d be completely engulfed by this feeling of elation if he did.

  “It was a nice day, just the normal lectures.” They walked up an incline, which normally wouldn’t be any sort of issue. Currently though, he strained against his fatigued muscles. His legs were heavy with each step. Maybe I overdid it a little today. “How about yours? Don't they start, like, super early?” Rose asked him as he struggled to keep pace, though he doubted that she noticed.

  “Yeah.” He managed to overcome the challenge of this tiny hill. “My first one’s at 7:30, and then my last one gets out at 12. But I really like my professors, so I wouldn’t complain.”

  “Sounds rough still. I’m so grateful that mine don't start until later,” Rose said as they passed by an old married couple, who sat together and threw seeds for the pigeons.

  “Not much of a morning person?” Baron asked, looking at the elderly husband and wife, who held their wrinkled hands close. The two seemingly enjoyed the time they spent in their remaining years of happiness together, and the sight left him hoping that they’d end up as an old married couple just like them one day.

  “Not especially, never been a big fan of waking up,” she responded, His gaze met with her gorgeous blue eyes that shimmered with the reflection of the sun.

  He couldn’t help but get lost in them through her rounded glasses that sat on her flat nose of adorable proportion. All he wanted to do was take hold of her hand, embrace her, and most importantly, kiss her soft-looking lips emphasized by a pink lip-oil. A layer of sweat formed over his brow and armpits as these thoughts made his blood run hot.

  What if I’ve misread this? What if I try something and she says no. Or even worse, she thinks I'm a creep, who was just trying to get ‘laid’. He stopped for a moment, due to the twinge of unsavory guilt. I mean, yes, that would be nice if it happened eventually. But it's not all I want. Unfortunately, this overthinking kept Baron from finding the audacity to take the lead.

  The silence grew longer and more intimate as their gazes remained intertwined, before Baron forced himself to say something. “I, uh, I can't relate myself, I’ve always loved a nice morning.”

  “I feel like I could have guessed that. You’re a weenie after all.” She teased him with a giggle and playful smirk as she leaned into his arm. Again, he was tempted by her touch.

  “What?” Baron laughed with her, amused by her reference to their first night. “What does that have to do with this? Besides, we already established we’re a pair of weenies.” Into her he leaned as well. He decided to take a minor chance, and allow their arms to hold contact for an even longer moment than before.

  “You got me,” Rose said, as she looked away to a nearby pond to hide her blushing face from Baron. “Guess some weenies might be night people too.”

  Further down the path until they made it to a crosswalk, where the two patiently waited with a young dog-walker and a bicyclist who used their leg as a kickstand. Baron stood with Rose close, but sadly it was without further contact as the cars passed. It took little time to turn green, and both sides crossed at their own respective paces.

  They made it to the other side of the street, where Baron’s lethargy caught up to him. Each step pulled on the micro-tears in his muscles and made his tender bruise flare up. Even if it was a pretty easy and overall successful day as Spriggan, it still left him feeling exhausted. However it couldn’t compete with the satisfaction of helping someone in need.

  “Hey…” Baron started speaking, before pointing toward an open seat in a line of benches. “I hope you don't mind me asking, but could we sit for a little?” Asking made him feel like a bother, but his legs needed a break.

  She gave him a reassuring smile. “You’re so silly, of course we can sit down. You’ve had a long day.” Rose made him blush. I’m silly to her... The lightness in his voice made his stomach turn with an anticipation for things unknown to him. On the bench, she took a seat before him, which made him feel more comfortable about resting. “Just take some time here beside me.”

  He sat down and began to relax. Into the metal bench, he comfortably felt his body sink into itself beside Rose. Tired, yet filled with joy, he gave her a smile while lost in her features; each one more beautiful to him than the last.

  “I’m sorry. You should have told me you were tired before,” she said. Sympathetically, she frowned as her eyes flickered between the bags under his eyes and the exhaustion his body visibly carried.

  “No, it’s alright, I’ve been having a lot of fun. My legs just got a little tired from school.” A sense of guilt made Baron shift in his seat, unable to look up from the floor. Even if it wasn’t a lie, and more so a half-truth, it felt dishonest not telling her the real reason. It filled his mouth with the unsavory taste of his falsehoods. When did I become such a dishonest person…

  “Are you sure? We can go find something more relaxing if you’d like?” She appeared to pick up on the uncertainties in his body language and tone, and seemed to incorrectly assume its’ source.

  “No really, please don't worry. I’ve been really enjoying my time with you. I don't think I’d want to be anywhere else. I mean, Central Park is so nice. And really, everything we’ve done together has been a lot of fun.” His head snapped toward her with a reassuring look, which appeared to break through her own anxious expression.

  “That’s really sweet Baron.” Rose bit on the tip of her tongue with a wide grin. The rest of her body mirrored that joyful excitement she barely contained. “I’ve really been enjoying going out with you too,” she said, as his face grew red and hot with hers.

  Unable to handle the hot anxiety, Baron pulled his sight to the ground, where he uncontrollably grinned like an idiot. Although he wasn’t sure what it was, Rose was all he could think about recently. Those thoughts of her distracted him through his day at school in New York as Baron, while he swung around The Haven as Spriggan, and it wasn't much different when they hung out. He couldn’t focus on anything but her and the feelings she gave him.

  That warmness inside of him stirred and made his mind pleasantly tingle, but most of all, it felt like he could do anything with her support. He felt stronger, faster, and most importantly revitalized around her. Unsure why, or if it everyone felt this way around the person they liked, but Baron truly felt capable of taking on impossible odds by her side.

  Toward her, Baron looked as a colorful monarch butterfly of orange and black that fluttered on the tip of Rose’s ring finger. She moved slowly to not disturb it, and admired its beauty in their quiet stillness.

  “Do you think Dawn’ll be alright?” Before Rose asked him, she lowered her voice to a gentle whisper. The delicate butterfly crept down her hand as she gently rotated her arm with it, so that it remained where she could still see it without disturbing it.

  “I don't know.” Baron kept his voice low to not frighten it. “I’ve seen her frustrated before, but I’ve never seen her like that.” He frowned.

  “I hope she’s alright.” There was a brief moment of silence, something weighing on her mind briefly. “Even if Jen and Dawn don’t get along, I really like her.”

  “Me too, she’s a really good friend,” Baron responded sentimentally, before he met her eye-contact. “Me and Abel will do something for her tomorrow.” Although Abel didn’t know about what happened yet, he'd absolutely join him in cheering her up once he heard how gloomy she’d been. At least Baron couldn’t imagine him doing anything else.

  “That’s good to hear. Just let me know if there’s anything I can do to help,” She offered her assistance with a reassuring look as the butterfly flew away with soft flaps of its paper-like wings.

  “Thank you, I think Dawn would really appreciate the thought,” he replied. All Baron wanted was to lean in and kiss her as they talked. She was so thoughtful, intelligent, pretty, and the idea of his lips against hers was all he could think of. Still, he was much too nervous to even truly consider it.

  Instead he decided to bounce up from the bench with a blood-red face. He felt much more rested than before, and that sharp soreness dulled into a forgettable discomfort. “I’m feeling better, wanna continue?” He offered his hand out to help her stand - really he’d take any excuse to hold or touch her hand again.

  “I’d love to,” Rose responded, and accepted his help with an adorable smile. With his assistance, she stood to her feet, but she didn’t let go of his hand. Her fingers interlocked with his own. It was a snug fit, despite his wet palms of nervousness. Is she holding my hand?

  With a confused look, Baron glanced between their grasped hands and Rose, who bit down on a shy smirk. He couldn’t hide the enchanted look in his eyes, and an ear-to-ear grin formed over his sweaty face as they walked again; each seemingly too happy to verbalize the depth of these emotions.

  …

  Alone, Dawn leaned on the elevator wall, and rubbed her temples and eyes. Unsure what to do from here, neither Abel nor Baron were available. Which really fucking sucks. But she didn't blame them for being busy. After all, she really was happy to see Baron get all romantic with Rose, and she was equally as excited for Abel’s band. Sunder, who had their first big gig coming up. That left Dawn all on her own to explore the big city, which wasn’t nearly as fun alone.

  It’ll be fine. Dawn reassured herself, as she looked up to a mirror that covered the top half of the wall furthest from her. It reflected her freckled, porcelain skin and tall, slender build ideal for ballet, which left Dawn with a frown at her own image. At her own image, she stared. A meekness reemerged from a deep part of Dawn’s psyche, that momentarily filled her with a nostalgic gloom.

  Her eye twitched slightly as Dawn suppressed that melancholy to its place in the unseen part of her mind, unwilling to let her self-image ruin her day that had already been bad enough, just as she had so many times before.

  Ding. The elevator chimed as it opened. Finally. She looked away from her mirrored image as she stepped out to the base floor. Illuminated by lifeless fluorescent lighting, she made her way through the rowdy hall.

  Dawn walked down the foyer lined with doors on each side, which unfortunately had numerous thirsty frat-boys hanging out in their doorways. They talked with other college guys while they stood together in the hall.

  Fuck. She noticed Baron and Abel’s neighbor approach from further on. This was the worst-case scenario in her opinion. Xavier was different from their other dorm mates that ogled and checked her out from a distance. Xavier, for some odd reason, had an unshakable confidence that tragically pushed him into attempts at getting with her.

  Under her breath, Dawn sighed as her eye twitch worsened. To confirm his intentions, he waved to her with a cocky smirk. Dawn decided to not acknowledge him. Instead, she hoped to walk past him unbothered.

  “How you doin’?” he asked. Ugh. He tried too hard to imitate an NYC accent that made Dawn internally cringe.

  “Fine.” Plainly, she responded and tried to walk past him without breaking the cold and annoyed look on her face. Unfortunately Xavier didn’t take the hint, while he followed by her side with a cocky smirk.

  “Good, personally doin’ a lot betta’ now that I’m talkin’ to you,” he said with his slicked back hair. Really, he wasn’t ugly by any means, but that didn’t matter to her when he annoyed her, and always came off so shallow. Douchiebag. That's the word I’m looking for. Maybe, Frat-trash is better?

  “...” Unsure how to respond, Dawn tried to ignore him, but she really just wanted to turn on him and punch his face in. As much as she thought about it, she knew it wasn’t wise to beat-up on a Noncognizant. She could only look at him with a blank expression. However, she was unamused by his unfunny and uncharismatic attempts at flirting

  “No Baron or Abel?” Finally he dropped that shitty accent that irrationally irritated Dawn. “That’s good. Means the two of us can go spend some time together,” Xavier said. His words turned her annoyance into an overwhelming flash of rage. This was the last thing she wanted to hear about.

  She bit her tongue, and tried her best to ignore him. But he continued to walk by her side like a stray dog begging for scraps.

  “My homeboy can get us into the Red-Door Club, dude can get us whatever we want.” As always, Xavier tried too hard to sound nonchalant for someone that desperately hounded her day after day.

  Noticeably twitching worse than before, it became visible to others that saw her left eye. Luckily, Xavier was on her other side and couldn’t see it, nor did she think he was considerate enough to notice. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could ignore him. Her patience ran thin today, and Xavier truly tested it.

  “Come on! I’m way more fun than those two lame bozo’s-”

  Losing control of herself, Dawn cut him off before he could finish. She shoved him with enough force to send him stumbling into the wall on his right.

  The crash made a loud thud as he caught himself from falling. Her squared shoulders, that traditionally sat relaxed, tensed up defensively as she balled up her fists. She stepped forward to get into his face, where only inches of space between him remained. There, she met him with glare that challenged his pride.

  “Shut the fuck up.” Loud enough for everyone to hear, Dawn snapped at him. She shouted at him with a fiery disdain, before she nearly threw a hook to his body. She really wanted to commit and swing on him. After all, he’d been hitting on me for a while and won't seem to take no for an answer. But even with this burning hot anger, Dawn couldn’t let herself hurt him over this.

  Unresponsive, Dawn turned from him with a tight jaw, before she speed-walked through the corridor. Finally, she left him behind. She kept moving through the corridor of spectators that watched with looks mixed between shock and amusement. Letting out a long frustrated breath, Dawn pushed through the exit. She escaped to the outside courtyard-area, where there were picnic tables, and covered areas to study outside. Most importantly, no one that saw what just happened was nearby anymore.

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  With a slowed pace over the paved-stone pathway, Dawn couldn’t help but angrily glare at the gatherings of students and friends as she walked by. She tended to have a more welcoming and charming smile with her thin lips. Currently though, she had too much fire in her veins from the incident before.

  After turning the corner toward and walking down the stairs of the subway, Dawn relaxed her jaw, and took in slow breaths through her nose. She’d then release it through her mouth. She shook her head, as she rubbed her temples again and her shoulder began to relax again. And while Dawn couldn’t manage her charming thin-lipped smile, she at least stopped scowling at innocent passersbies.

  As she made it down the concrete stairs, Dawn followed the flow of people through the gate, where she scanned the MetroCard she pulled from the wallet, which was built into her pastel green phone-case. If only the rest of the day was that easy. Dawn thought to herself as she waited for the train. In her mind, she remembered back to the beginning of her day.

  To start, Dawn accidentally slept in this morning. It caused her to miss her Ballet practice, which could happen to anyone, but what really upset her about the situation was her roommate, Jen. She made it on time without bothering to wake her up when she saw Dawn obviously sleeping in late. It was made even worse by Jen’s rude comments, and the snickers from the other girls that followed at Dawn’s expense.

  What did I ever do to her? Dawn tried to be respectful, and she did what she could to get along. But it didn’t seem to matter. Nothing Dawn did got Jen to like her, or even be nice most days.

  It got to the point where she didn’t feel welcome in their dorm, nor did she think of it as home. That's one of the reasons she spent so much time with Baron and Abel. But they weren’t there to fall back on today, leaving her all on her own for this shitty day.

  The ground rumbled as brakes screeched, and a strong gust came from the dark tunnel that swept strands of her ginger hair across her face.

  Damn it. She rubbed her temples harder than before. To herself, she thought while the train came to a complete stop and the doors opened in sync. Noisy people pushed past her as she stared into the steel box that quickly filled. No part of her wanted to go back to her dorm just to feel bad about her existence for the night.

  Once she snapped out of her haze, Dawn stepped onto the crammed train where she stood against the bodies of others. In stressful times like this, Dawn often thought back to her dad, and the things they’d do together; like how they’d get cheap burgers after her saddest and most lonely days.

  That’s a good idea. A nostalgic smile cracked through the bitter look that soured her face. She didn't pay much mind to her hunger throughout the day, but now that she thought about it, she was starving. That cheap, comfort food sounded like a great way to finally cheer up; even if her dad couldn’t be there to share it with her.

  That decided it for her - she’d get off next stop and hit a local joint, which she found with Abel and Baron a few months ago while exploring. Luckily, it wasn’t far from the station, and it was cheap for the quality. That was good for Dawn’s tight budget.

  The relaxed smile on her face grew as she thought about it. Maybe she could even take it a few streets over for a nice dinner at the park. Not only did it feel like a good chance to relax, it also gave her a little more time away from her dorm.

  Loud brakes screeched through the tunnels again as it came to a halt, and the inertia pulled her against her grip on the rail. While the same process of doors opening began, Dawn slipped through before they finished to beat the rush of people.

  She tried to distract herself with the excitement of food. Hopefully that’ll be enough to keep her from thinking about how much she embarrassed herself by missing practice and nearly beating up Xavier. Yeah, he definitely could be pushy and annoying, but he wasn't any threat to me. Not that he could be one even if he wanted or tried.

  After shaking her head, Dawn strode up the stairs, and skipped past multiple steps at a time, until she made it out to the breezy spring air of the city, which she took a deep breath of. Stop thinking about these stupid ass things. She tried to resolve herself as she walked with the crowd over a crosswalk.

  Not much further, Dawn just had to go down one more street, and then all she had to do was get into the lengthy line that tended to pour out of the building. At least, she hoped that this time, maybe, just maybe, her luck would turn around and it wouldn’t be too long a wait. Last time they sat in line for thirty-ish minutes, and I’d really preferred not to be here for that long. Because in their previous visit, she at least had those two to entertain her. Not this time. Now she was on her own.

  As she crossed her fingers, she cut through the last street between her and the burger place, where she could finally see that line that wrapped around the building.

  She slowly blinked, and dragged on her face with a long sigh; it was nearly twice the length as last time. Maybe even more.

  Although it made her doubt her desire for that cheesy burger with extra lettuce, she already had her mind set on it, and Dawn wasn’t someone to easily back down from anything or anyone including herself.

  As she dragged her hands down her long face, she groaned loudly as she took a spot in line, even if it meant being here for hours. At least on the bright side it’ll keep me away from the dorm.

  From the snug pocket of her dark-green yoga pants that contrasted well with her hair, Dawn pulled out her cracked phone. She opened it and checked its battery - 68% - which she assumed would be plenty to last. Dawn began to swipe through short videos, and double-tapped the ones that she thought were funny.

  The line moved forward. Dawn stepped forward with them, and slowly got closer to passing the corner, which she made the halfway point in her head. While Dawn mindlessly scrolled, she made sure to pointlessly check her phone’s digital clock every few minutes. At this point, she’d committed twenty-ish minutes and 14% of her phone’s battery. Still, she remained unyielding.

  She scrolled through her feed with fingers that bent awkwardly from years of boxing with her dad. On days like this, she wished that he could have left Idaho and followed her to college, but that wasn’t possible. Both of them knew that they needed the little income her dad’s gym brought in, but she still missed her dad’s presence. Most of all, she could use one of his blanket-like hugs.

  After she took in a set of slow breaths. Damn, I miss that old man. Dawn decided to distract herself further with those short videos while she waited.

  Thirty-ish more minutes of swiping, tapping, and sending the funniest ones to the group chat she had with Baron and Abel, left her phone on 41%. Luckily, the row of people continued to inch forward until Dawn finally made it around the corner. There, she could see the popular Mom-and-Pop-owned burger joint. Finally she smelt the savory aromas of sizzling beef.

  Dawn let out an impatient groan as she rubbed her eyes. They had begun to burn from the hour and a half of draining her dopamine receptors. She shifted between each foot and looked up from it. Only a few more people stood between her and the line inside the building, where there would still be a wait. At least I'll be in the door though.

  Her stomach growled as she watched others outside bite into their wrapped burgers. Only a little more! She resolved herself. After all, she’d be stupid to give up now after she drained her phone to 25%, and spent over two full hours in line. It kind of made her feel ridiculous when she thought about it.

  Two people ahead of her entered, where it put her only three spots away from entering.

  It didn’t take long for the next one to enter. So, so close.

  Nice. The next one went in.

  Only one more person stood between her and that entryway, which ended up not taking long for them to enter as the rest.

  Finally, it just took a few hours. She finally pushed through the glass door, where there could only be another 15 minutes left to wait. Not more than twenty people could probably fit in here, making this the home stretch.

  She pulled out her phone again. Might as well use it for what it’s worth. She played on it again; although this time, she preoccupied herself with a mindless mobile game that made her sit through an ad every round.

  Slowly but surely, Dawn continued to creep forward.

  Another person got their food, which allowed her to get closer and closer to her own order. She had more than enough time to figure it out; actually Dawn already knew what she wanted before she made it off the subway.

  The next few people cycled through, before her phone went black as expected. It had fully died on her. She let out a long sigh with the twitch of her eye again, before she returned it to her pocket.

  It’s alright, just a little more. There were only two more people ahead of her. Then I can finally have this nice meal to turn this shitty day around.

  The first one ordered something small and quick, which didn’t take the workers long to finish.

  This only left the next person, who took his time with his order, for what sounded like a larger family. Like before, it didn’t take long until they finally got out of her way.

  Finally, Dawn stepped to the register, where a teenage boy, who couldn’t be out of high school, gave her a fake and tired smile.

  “What can we get you today?” Talking quickly, he spoke with a happy tone as he tried to speed up the process.

  “Yeah, I’d like the bacon cheeseburger meal with no pickles and extra lettuce.” She ordered, before she took her debit card, which her dad gave her for college, out of her phone case. Thankfully, her dad would put funds in it every other Friday, and while it wasn’t a lot to most people, Dawn knew that he probably sent her every penny possible; so she did her best to avoid frugal spending. Importantly, no matter the amount he gave her, she always made sure to appreciate it.

  But it’s been such a shitty day. Dawn convinced herself to spend an extra dollar or two. “Oh, excuse me. Could I actually add two ranches?” Before she asked, Dawn gave the boy a drained smile that complemented her nose that subtly crooked left.

  “That’ll be 10.52,” he said as she passed over the card. She made sure to fairly tip him, and she jotted down her signature on a receipt.

  Only a few minutes passed before the worker returned with her order in a paper bag and a water bottle. “Thank you.” She expressed her gratitude with a simple nod.

  She began the short journey to a small park, and that only required her to cross over a few roads with the sidewalks that were still busy. Most likely, it would be past midnight, which still amazed Dawn. She was much more used to small towns, where everything was closed before 10, and everyone tended to be in bed shortly after. Such a miserable way to live. Truly she hated it, and it was one of the reasons she was so excited to move to New York City with her Juilliard Dance Scholarship.

  A short walk later, she was able to see the illuminated park with a set of wooden picnic tables. Unable to wait any longer, the greasy aromas of food tempted her. Dawn reached into the brown paper bag to unwrap her burger.

  Before she crossed the final street, Dawn took a big, messy bite as she went. The taste of it was almost heavenly. The way the lettuce crunched with gooey melted cheese over salty bacon slices on a deliciously greasy beef-patty. Her eyes closed to savor the moment before a second bite.

  Unfortunately for her in the midst of her next bite, Dawn’s foot caught the edge of the curb. Suddenly she tripped face-first toward the hard concrete below. Reacting quickly with her natural instincts, she stuck out her full hands. Although Dawn managed to catch herself, her food was destroyed against the ground and the weight of her fall. The bag of fries and burger in her other hand imploded. Their guts painted the concrete.

  She silently blinked from her position on the ground.

  She blinked again.

  And she blinked again.

  And again.

  And again, before Dawn erupted to her feet with an enraged growl. In her fury, she threw the torn up and ranch-covered bag against the ground.

  “God fucking dammit!” She yelled through gritted teeth. It was nearly a snarl. “You stupid, dumbass bitch!” Filled with a violent rage, Dawn stomped on the remains of her patty. “Fucking bullshit!” Dawn shouted. She turned to unleash her wrath on a car window with her fist - something Dawn could do easily. But she chose to stop herself from unleashing her powerful right hand.

  Stood before the reflective glass of the window, Dawn met the reflection of herself in the silence of her loneliness. “Fuck…” Nearly a whimper, she took a seat on the curb with her face planted into her hands. Her body sank into itself to hide from her shame.

  Unfortunately for Dawn, this haunting sense of alienation she’d suppressed all day finally became too much to bear. Tears formed, but she fought them back by pressing her hands into her sealed eyelids. Lock the fuck in you goddamn crybaby. Dawn antagonized herself as she often did.

  After minutes of slow breaths, she suppressed the breakdown, and looked up from her hands. No longer was she on the verge of tears. Damn it. But it didn't mean she escaped this cloud of melancholy, which finally managed to shatter Dawn’s well-crafted facade of carefree confidence.

  She remained seated as she looked up to the setting sun with a visage of misery. Guess it's best to get used to being on my own. After all, Dawn knew she'd always end up isolated with the person she loathed most. Herself. And could it really get worse than that? Too disillusioned, she didn't allow herself to cry.

  When Dawn looked up toward the blank, starless night. It only seemed to remind her of how unusual and lonely she was here in New York. Who was I kidding? It's like this everywhere I go, Dawn reminded herself as she lazily rose with her shoulders hung in defeat.

  Some time had passed before she finally began her short journey back to the subway. Sluggishly, she dragged her feet behind her as she slowly walked back.

  It was a silent trip back to the same station, where she absent mindedly boarded the train again. In comparison to before it was emptier, which gave Dawn the chance to sit for the commute.

  During the ride, Dawn kept her head down. She just hoped that the few others on the subway would leave her alone. Not that Dawn was scared of them. She just didn’t have the energy to deal with anything or anyone currently.

  Luckily for Dawn, it ended up as an uneventful trip just like she’d wanted, and it took only a few more stops until she eventually arrived at her destination.

  The brakes brought it to a halt. Dawn stood after it stopped, and slunk her way to the opened door, where she silently waited to exit. She began her slow trek back, where she started with the stairs to the city above. After was the short walk back to Juilliard’s dorm.

  Dawn made it through the fancy Juilliard campus, and managed to keep to herself until she made it to their dorms. Not that anyone here ever wanted to talk. In the prestigious common room, some of the other girls hung out. Fortunately, there weren’t many people here tonight, and more importantly there didn’t seem to be any of her fellow dancers.

  A sense of relief came over her, once she knew no one would get to see her in such a vulnerable state. Still, it was nothing compared to the debilitating emptiness Dawn felt. She had dealt with it her whole life, but it really started to become a problem in these last six months of college - just like when she was a child.

  The room they shared sat before her, and she went to reach for the key in her pocket. But she couldn't seem to find them.

  “You can’t be fucking serious,” she whisper to herself in disbelief. Unwilling to accept reality, she hopelessly searched for them again. She rummaged through her stuff again, but they weren’t there. It made Dawn drop her forehead against the door with a long and exhausted sigh that escaped her.

  She raised her hand to lightly knock on the door. Not very hopeful that Jen was actually there, she knocked again. Would she even care enough to let me in? Dawn questioned herself, while she waited minutes without a response.

  Lifting her head, Dawn tried to knock again. Harder this time as she hopelessly waited for a response that never came.

  Damn it. Dawn’s head lifted, before it fell into the door with another thud.

  Finally, she picked her head up, before Dawn took a step back from the inconvenient obstacle that blocked her path. After she glanced back and forth from each side, she pulled out her dead, yet reflective phone.

  Not seeing anyone, Dawn crouched down to slide her phone half-way beneath the crack of their door. She stood again and left her phone below, where half of it mirrored her from a glass screen on the floor.

  She blinked, while activating her Manifest, which completely replaced her white and emerald eyes with a set of pristinely reflective glass orbs. Thankfully, it still allowed her to see the same as before, except now Dawn’s sight highlighted her reflection.

  With her mirrored eyes, she looked down toward the phone, where the cracked and refracted version of herself took up the surface of the black screen. Her reflection glowed for only her Manifest to see. Pushing her mana through her eyes, Dawn allowed herself to take grip of that reflection with the distant, mana-fueled, will in her glassy sight.

  Independently from Dawn’s own body, she directed her mirrored image to take a big step forward across the screen. It left her direct sight as it walked to the other side of the door on the phone’s black screen.

  The image on the phone wanted to rubberband back to where it should logically be. But she forcefully held it in place, instead of allowing it to return to its place on the screen. Dawn took hold of her mana, and drove it through the veins and nerves of her body. At the same time, a similar surge of energy bounced off of her mirrored self.

  The intertwined mana that connected to her reflection was triggered. It allowed her to drive herself forward through space and teleported her past the door, where she would have needed to be for her mirrored echo to exist.

  Easy enough… A sigh escaped her as Dawn leaned down to pick up her phone before she deactivated her Manifest, Tour Jete; her eyes going back to their normal hue. Rising back up with her phone, Dawn turned toward the small, unwelcoming room, where there was a bed on each wall that was paired with a desk that faced their respective walls.

  Unfortunately, neither of them decorated. The room was left soulless and hollow, which constantly reminded Dawn that this wasn’t home. She walked further into the room, where Jen diligently studied at her desk. On her head, she had her expensive sound proof headphones like she tended to do.

  Dawn stared at the back of her head, and questioned if Jen actually heard her and just chose to ignore the knocks. But there was no way to tell, and would it even matter if there was. She thought as she silently shook her head, as she took two steps toward her own nightstand to plug in her phone.

  After she plugged in her phone, she found her missing set of keys on that same table. At the moment, Dawn didn't feel a sense of relief over finding them. Instead, it fed into the bitter agitation she felt for herself.

  It made her let out a slow and beaten breath, before she walked across the room to their shared bathroom to clean up for the night. Where she began her nightly routine, Dawn used the restroom’s mirror to clean herself up as she grimaced at the sight of her skinny and asymmetrical face. At least that's what others saw.

  Even though it had been many years since her Thaumic Mutation developed, Dawn still couldn't recognize this pretty, smooth-skinned facade as her own. No matter how hard she tried to bury it, she always saw through that flimsy mask of self-assured strength that attempted to hide the monster that hid beneath the surface

  A tear ran down her cheek as the troubles of childhood burdens returned to haunt the present.