Imogen Moreno awoke with a start and instantaneously regretted this decision. It meant that she had to face yet another day, walk another mile, and all of that other cliché bullshit. Maybe if she pulled the covers back over her head…
"SISSY!" Olivia Moreno tugged on one of her long braids. Her younger sister's wide eyes blinked at Imogen. Liv's bottom lip began to pout as she emitted a series of whimpers.
She groaned, knowing what was coming next.
"Jenny! Come make breakfast for your sister!"
Imogen threw herself out of her bed, grabbing Liv and settling her on her hip. She walked down the stairs with much care, trying desperately not to drop the squirming three year old. Her mother dashed frantically around the kitchen, tossing apples into lunch boxes while heating up the milk for Baby Delulah. Imogen had once grabbed Baby Delulah's daycare bag instead of her backpack. It had been interesting trying to explain to Ms. Dawes why she had a bunch of diapers instead of her copy of Macbeth.
"Mom, I've told you, it's Imogen," she insisted, "not Jenny." Imogen grimaced at the name. Jenny was an ordinary name, and certainly didn't suit her like Imogen did.
Her mother stopped briefly to wipe peanut butter off of one of the twins' faces. "I don't care of you call yourself Jesus. I need your help."
Imogen knew it was useless to argue. They argued this issue in circles. Imogen wanted to be unique—one in a million, something that didn't happen as the middle child in a family of eight.
She fastened Liv down into her high chair and set a bowl of Cheerios in front of the screaming child. Imogen was certain that in about five seconds they'd come crashing to the ground.
"So, Mom, you know I auditioned for that play? You know the one that my friend Eli was writing?"
Her mother made a noncommittal grunt in reply. "Kaitlin has class at nine. So she can drop the twins off at kindergarten. But Tyler has baseball tonight so…"
"Mom?"
"Oh yes dear. Sounds fascinating." Her mother continued to mutter underneath her breath. "When can I pick up the twins?" She turned to face Imogen. "Can you pick up the twins after school?"
Imogen took a deep breath and counted to ten. It wasn't worth it to lose her cool over something like this. Her mother cares about her; she just has a…funny way of showing it.
CRASH!
"GODDAMNIT Jenny! I told you not to give your sister cereal for breakfast!" Her mother continued to grumble at Imogen as she cleaned up the offending cereal.
Imogen sighed and scribbled a note to her mother that she had play practice after school. She quickly changed into her uniform and fastened her long hair with zebra ribbons. Making sure to grab the right bag, Imogen hollered a quick goodbye and started down the two mile walk to Degrassi.
The walk used to bother Imogen, but now she thought it as relaxing, cathartic even. It was one of the few moments in her life that was centered on her, and not what her mother or anyone else demanded of her.
She knew that she shouldn't complain; most people would kill for the family life that she had. But there were times that she truly felt like a Jenny in a sea of a million other Jennys.
She took a deep breath. One more year. It was a constant drive in the back of her mind, pushing her not to accept the life that she had been born into. And Imogen was going to be damned if she did. One more year until her escape.
Then freedom.
"Hey, Imo," Eli Goldsworthy greeted, snapping the book he was reading shut. Imogen felt her stomach explode into a million butterflies as she watched Eli sip the hot tea. The way his plush lips curled along mouth, the hot liquid slipping out the corner of his mouth. Eli chuckled and wiped his mouth on his sleeve.
Of course, not everything in her life was ordinary. Eli was the only person who made her abnormalities seem normal. Between the two of them, they could take on a sea of the normal people. With him by her side, Imogen knew that she could accomplish anything and that she wasn't quite as alone as she always thought.
But then she watched as Eli's eyes followed Clare Edwards and Jake Martin as they walked in, hand in hand. His hand clutched his mug tighter, until his knuckles turned white. He turned to face Imogen, but those green eyes never left Clare. "How was your morning?"
It was a dream, a schoolgirl's fantasy, that Eli needed her like she needed him. He didn't crave her companionship. He'd rather settle on someone else's. So here she was: Imogen, the peacock in a sea of sparrows. She thought that Eli was a fellow peacock, but like so many others in her life, he'd soon leave her behind and forget about her. And then there she would be, walking alone down the road once again.
"It was the same as every other morning, Eli Goldsworthy."
And every other morning would be the same until she finally spread her wings and flew far from this place.
But until then, she'd be content feigning companionship with Eli.