Kit bounced down the stairs as she heard her stepmother; Nicole calling her name. She walked through the front living room, passing her dad who had his attention only on the Yankees game, like always, and entered the kitchen.
"You have mail." Nicole handed her an issue of Seventeen, which Kit threw on the counter, and a small envelope. She flipped it over and read the return address.
"It's from Juilliard…" she said quietly. She saw her dad mute the television as she took a seat at the table and tore it open. Taking a few deep breaths, she unfolded the paper.
"Dear Stella Phoeler…" She read aloud. She looked at Nicole, who nodded her head, silently telling her to go on.
"We are pleased to tell you that you have been accepted to the Juilliard School of Performing Arts!" She let out a small scream and pushed the chair away from the table, standing up so she could dance around the kitchen.
Nicole grabbed the letter from her and continued reading, smiling. "You start in one week!" She announced.
Mostly everyone else's story was the same. Once they read the acceptance letter, they'd get congratulated by their parents, go out to dinner to celebrate, and start packing right away.
Except for one girl…
Ariel reached into the mailbox and pulled out the few letters that it contained, then started walking back toward the house.
Once inside, she heard footsteps coming down the stairs and instantly froze. Her father came into the room, and she knew the drill. She quickly handed him the mail-which he grabbed away from her with great force-and backed away. As he looked through it, his expression changed from boredom to amusement. Giving Ariel a hard look, he set the letters onto the table, still holding one.
"Look who's got mail today…" He snickered, opening it. She took a step forward, knowing what it was.
"Dear Ariel Hutchinson," He read in a mocking voice. "We are pleased to tell you that you have been accepted to the Juilliard School of Performing Arts…" Ariel tried not to smile at the news, and with the look on her father's face, she didn't have to try very hard. He took a step toward her and waved the letter in the air.
"What is this?!" He yelled.
"I auditioned for Juilliard." She answered.
He took a hold of her arms, and squeezed them tightly. "Did I ever give you permission to do that?!"
She winced in pain. "You never told me I couldn't! I just wanted to try it; I never thought I'd actually get accepted." She argued, knowing the last part was a lie.
He pushed her back against the wall. "I don't know why they'd ever want to accept a piece of crap like you!"
Ariel tried to stop the tears from coming. "At least I'll finally be out of your life, and you'll be out of mine." She looked him in the eyes. "I hate you!"
The next thing she knew, her father's hard hand was slapping her across the face.
