Prologue: Once Upon a Time

or

The Beginning

in which

The Protagonist and her problems are introduced.

Sometimes, I look at my life, and I wonder how I got where I am.

I wonder how I went from the innocent little girl on the playground, the fiery one who ran and laughed and tried not to care about the thoughts of others, to the sad, pining woman who wants so badly to do something, anything, but just can't.

I long for the carefree days of my youth. I miss the girl who played until she was so tired she could hardly stand, and begged to be read fairytales every night. I miss believing in the possibility of them. When I was very young, I was absolutely certain that my life was a fairy tale. Life was just so whimsical then.

Now, it seems as if all the colors in the world have dimmed. The sun doesn't shine quite as brightly as it used to. Everything in the world is wrong, and I am absolutely terrified. It shouldn't be this way.

It's trivial to think that one person's choices can change the fate of the world. Every decision that we make is, after all, connected to everybody else's. A girl decides to time her day perfectly to run into this guy she doesn't really know. He decides to hit snooze and runs late all day because of it. She misses her opportunity, and he is better rested. Even if he hadn't it snooze it wouldn't matter anyway because he's stealing cars for a living and is bound to be arrested eventually.

Obviously it's silly to think, because he can't be vital to his "cause" and those above him would have made the same choices that lead them to their place, and the world would be the same. But, I can't help thinking; maybe if he had chosen me, the world would be a little brighter. Maybe I would just see it that way because he was with me.

Maybe if I had followed him, made his decisions, maybe I wouldn't see the world so darkly. I would hate myself, but at least I wouldn't have a hole in my heart where my best friend used to be.

Sometimes, I look at my life and I wonder how I got where I am.

The answer, of course, is simple. I made choices. I went away to school. I formed new relationships, and I ended old ones. I fell in love, and then fell out of it. I suffered loses, but gained some things too. I dealt with things that no one should have to, but everyone does. In short, I grew up.

It was sooner than it should have been. Much sooner than most people my age, but when compared to my peers the people like me, I really held on to my youth much, much longer. It is, not simply, but not unexpectedly, a product of our times.

The world, my world, anyway, is at war. The school tries to protect us, but for all of its charms and enchantments, it cannot do everything. It affects us, all of us, even, nay, especially the children. It saddens me beyond belief to know that they are being robbed of their childhood. That they'll never know the beauty of "Once upon a time…"

I'm grateful to have that. I will never, ever forget it. I can't.

Once upon a time, I was happy.

AN: So this, is a possiblity for my next story. If you're a fan of Kiss and Tell, don't worry, I WILL finish that before this takes off, but I was inspired, so I thought I'd write it. This story will basically be a comparison of people and events in Lily's life to traditional fairytale elements. Please leave a review and tell me what you think! Also, if you have any ideas for fairytale elements, or a better summary, fell free to let me know! I have a list of the most basic ones, but I think that sometimes the unexpected are fun too! :)

Love,

Sunny