A/N: Sorry it took so long.heh, enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.I don't care what that dancing baby says.
Chapter 5: Growing Up Sucks
Karen and Robert were at the kitchen table drinking coffee when Sarah came in from school. She knew they had been discussing her, because as soon as she shut the door their conversation abruptly ended.
"Hey, guys, I'll be in my room. Let me know when dinner's ready, okay?" Her father nodded and she bounded up the stairs.
"You see what I mean, Robert?" Karen began again, leaning over and lowering her voice as though they were scheming. "She won't even talk to us anymore. She hasn't got any friends and I don't mean to jump to conclusions, but the girl has never had a boyfriend. She could have boys falling at her feet, but all she does is sit in her room, alone!" She was on a roll and all Robert could do was sit back and let her go. "She's got one year left of high school and then she's off to college, and she needs to learn some social skills! I know she's not my daughter, but I worry, Robert! I really think that if she were forced to interact with other teens she would be better off! You can't say I'm wrong, you know its true!"
Now it was Robert's turn. "Darling, I know you mean well, but I don't think Sarah wants to go to boarding school. And she seems happy enough, even if she is a loner. And the money, Karen! Its a lot of money that we don't need to spend right now." He sighed at the look in Karen's eyes that told him she was about to start all over again. "But I do agree, she needs to learn to live in a group setting," he added before she could begin. He looked down into his coffee cup, deep in thought. He, too, worried about his little girl, who really didn't have a female role model that she would accept. "Maybe your right, Karen, maybe she would do better with girls her own age, and after all, it's only one year. Alright, we'll tell her at dinner." Karen nodded, a satisfied grin glued to thin lips as she went to get Toby up from his nap. She wouldn't say it to Robert, but without Sarah around, it would be much easier to have a happy family atmosphere. It wasn't that she didn't like Sarah, but the girl presented an anomaly in their lives, and she was sure that getting them all some time apart would make everyone happier. And maybe Robert would allow her to rent out Sarah's room once she was gone. Still smiling, she lifted Toby from his little bed and got him ready to go out for dinner.
~~*~~
They went to Taco King for dinner. Sarah liked the place, despite the fact that there were about a million screaming kids running around the video games and around the playground. Dad had said he had big news for her. After some greasy burritos and tortilla chips Karen took Toby to play in the Kiddie King area and Robert turned to his daughter.
"Sweetie, I am not sure how well you are going to like what I am going to tell you, but you will thank Karen and I later," he began, shrinking back at the sudden look of abject terror in his daughter's eyes. "We have been thinking about this a lot lately, honey, and we worry about you not having many friends and spending all of your time alone. So," he took a deep breath, steadying himself for the ensuing argument, "we think that you might benefit from a year at West Hills School for Girls. Its one of the best in the state, and Karen knows someone on the admissions board who said that you would be a shoe in." He paused, waiting for verbal protest and yelling, but none came. He looked at Sarah, searching for her rage and offense at not being consulted, but he saw none. For a moment her eyes were just blank and then something flickered through them that he couldn't quite decipher, but that he had seen before when she was younger, and then there emerged a look of what could only be called despairing resignation. "Well," he began again, trying to work through the awkwardness, "you'll get a great education and colleges will practically be breaking down the door for you. You'll be able to go anywhere you want! And I think that this will give you a chance to make some real friends and relations before you head off to college."
Sarah tried to smile. It was a valiant effort, but it failed miserably. Her father seemed so excited for her, and she knew it probably would be for the best. "It sounds great, Dad," she said, this time managing a half-hearted smile.
Karen chose that moment to come back with a fussy Toby in tow. "We'd better get going, Toby needs to go to bed, its past his bedtime."
Sarah was quiet all the way home and went straight to her room. She sat on her bed and stared around her room. Earlier that day she would have said it looked mature, like an adult's room. Now it just looked bare, like something was missing. And she knew something was. Her past, her childhood, her dreams and fantasies, had been eradicated, swept under the rug to make way for the adulthood.
When her father had told her that she was going away to school, something in her wanted to fight it, to rage against it, but just as quickly as it rose in her, it died and she realized that this was the end. The end of her childhood, her fantasies, and ultimately, her happiness. It was over, and she knew it. Time to throw in the towel.
She didn't know when the tears came, but when she realized she was crying she lay back on her bed and sobbed until the old grandfather clock downstairs struck midnight. The sound always reminded her of her adventures in the labyrinth. And of Jareth. And his hypnotic eyes, his arrogant smile, the way he put his hands on his hips and leaned to one side.but that was over now. Though she hated to admit it, she would sometimes dream that Jareth would one day burst through her window and sweep her off her feet and they would live happily ever after. After the other night, she had actually almost expected it, had even prayed for it, but Jareth was gone now, along with Hoggle, Ludo and Didymus. They were part of her childhood, and to try and remember them would be too painful. She knew what she had to do.
Stumbling to her feet, she ran to the closet and pulled out a box. Making sure to skip the creaky stair so as not to wake anyone, she carried it down the stairs and, grabbing a box of matches, headed out the door. She didn't see the raven's eyes following her from a tree in the backyard, and she didn't notice when it took off, circling over her head as she made her way into the forest.
A/N: You know your job; read, review, repeat as desired :D well, go on, don't give me that look.you got work to do (
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.I don't care what that dancing baby says.
Chapter 5: Growing Up Sucks
Karen and Robert were at the kitchen table drinking coffee when Sarah came in from school. She knew they had been discussing her, because as soon as she shut the door their conversation abruptly ended.
"Hey, guys, I'll be in my room. Let me know when dinner's ready, okay?" Her father nodded and she bounded up the stairs.
"You see what I mean, Robert?" Karen began again, leaning over and lowering her voice as though they were scheming. "She won't even talk to us anymore. She hasn't got any friends and I don't mean to jump to conclusions, but the girl has never had a boyfriend. She could have boys falling at her feet, but all she does is sit in her room, alone!" She was on a roll and all Robert could do was sit back and let her go. "She's got one year left of high school and then she's off to college, and she needs to learn some social skills! I know she's not my daughter, but I worry, Robert! I really think that if she were forced to interact with other teens she would be better off! You can't say I'm wrong, you know its true!"
Now it was Robert's turn. "Darling, I know you mean well, but I don't think Sarah wants to go to boarding school. And she seems happy enough, even if she is a loner. And the money, Karen! Its a lot of money that we don't need to spend right now." He sighed at the look in Karen's eyes that told him she was about to start all over again. "But I do agree, she needs to learn to live in a group setting," he added before she could begin. He looked down into his coffee cup, deep in thought. He, too, worried about his little girl, who really didn't have a female role model that she would accept. "Maybe your right, Karen, maybe she would do better with girls her own age, and after all, it's only one year. Alright, we'll tell her at dinner." Karen nodded, a satisfied grin glued to thin lips as she went to get Toby up from his nap. She wouldn't say it to Robert, but without Sarah around, it would be much easier to have a happy family atmosphere. It wasn't that she didn't like Sarah, but the girl presented an anomaly in their lives, and she was sure that getting them all some time apart would make everyone happier. And maybe Robert would allow her to rent out Sarah's room once she was gone. Still smiling, she lifted Toby from his little bed and got him ready to go out for dinner.
~~*~~
They went to Taco King for dinner. Sarah liked the place, despite the fact that there were about a million screaming kids running around the video games and around the playground. Dad had said he had big news for her. After some greasy burritos and tortilla chips Karen took Toby to play in the Kiddie King area and Robert turned to his daughter.
"Sweetie, I am not sure how well you are going to like what I am going to tell you, but you will thank Karen and I later," he began, shrinking back at the sudden look of abject terror in his daughter's eyes. "We have been thinking about this a lot lately, honey, and we worry about you not having many friends and spending all of your time alone. So," he took a deep breath, steadying himself for the ensuing argument, "we think that you might benefit from a year at West Hills School for Girls. Its one of the best in the state, and Karen knows someone on the admissions board who said that you would be a shoe in." He paused, waiting for verbal protest and yelling, but none came. He looked at Sarah, searching for her rage and offense at not being consulted, but he saw none. For a moment her eyes were just blank and then something flickered through them that he couldn't quite decipher, but that he had seen before when she was younger, and then there emerged a look of what could only be called despairing resignation. "Well," he began again, trying to work through the awkwardness, "you'll get a great education and colleges will practically be breaking down the door for you. You'll be able to go anywhere you want! And I think that this will give you a chance to make some real friends and relations before you head off to college."
Sarah tried to smile. It was a valiant effort, but it failed miserably. Her father seemed so excited for her, and she knew it probably would be for the best. "It sounds great, Dad," she said, this time managing a half-hearted smile.
Karen chose that moment to come back with a fussy Toby in tow. "We'd better get going, Toby needs to go to bed, its past his bedtime."
Sarah was quiet all the way home and went straight to her room. She sat on her bed and stared around her room. Earlier that day she would have said it looked mature, like an adult's room. Now it just looked bare, like something was missing. And she knew something was. Her past, her childhood, her dreams and fantasies, had been eradicated, swept under the rug to make way for the adulthood.
When her father had told her that she was going away to school, something in her wanted to fight it, to rage against it, but just as quickly as it rose in her, it died and she realized that this was the end. The end of her childhood, her fantasies, and ultimately, her happiness. It was over, and she knew it. Time to throw in the towel.
She didn't know when the tears came, but when she realized she was crying she lay back on her bed and sobbed until the old grandfather clock downstairs struck midnight. The sound always reminded her of her adventures in the labyrinth. And of Jareth. And his hypnotic eyes, his arrogant smile, the way he put his hands on his hips and leaned to one side.but that was over now. Though she hated to admit it, she would sometimes dream that Jareth would one day burst through her window and sweep her off her feet and they would live happily ever after. After the other night, she had actually almost expected it, had even prayed for it, but Jareth was gone now, along with Hoggle, Ludo and Didymus. They were part of her childhood, and to try and remember them would be too painful. She knew what she had to do.
Stumbling to her feet, she ran to the closet and pulled out a box. Making sure to skip the creaky stair so as not to wake anyone, she carried it down the stairs and, grabbing a box of matches, headed out the door. She didn't see the raven's eyes following her from a tree in the backyard, and she didn't notice when it took off, circling over her head as she made her way into the forest.
A/N: You know your job; read, review, repeat as desired :D well, go on, don't give me that look.you got work to do (