Knock, Knock, Knock

Knock, knock, knock.

Hazel eyes flew open at the disruption of what once was silence. Blinking away the sleep from her eyes, Corra Connors shot up in bed. Yawning, she threw back the covers and turned her body to set her bare feet onto the cool wooden floor. She stood and stretched her arms towards the sky, yet even then she did not reach incredible heights. The young girl stood at 4'7", weighed a whopping 87 lbs, and wore a size 5 shoe. The only thing that was even remotely long about the girl was the light brown hair cascading down her shoulders to her lower thighs. The inspiration had come from the old childhood storybook Rapunzel. In fact, the entire room looked like it had come from a storybook. The walls were coated with purple, pink, and turquoise. The ceiling fan had vines of flowers wrapping around each blade. The window had glass figurines upon the sill so that when the light hit them just right, rainbows danced about the room. It was to this window that Corra slowly tiptoed to. For only a second, she gazed at the sun, then busied herself with preparations. Today was going to be a big day.

Within minutes she was standing out on the curb with her mother and her father on either side, holding her hands. Before them laid a small bag with what little belonging Corra had inside of it. The middle-aged mother and father looked stressed and worried. Dark circles had taken root underneath their eyes as sleep had become more and more rare for them. The young girl, however, looked almost eager to get the ball rolling. Continuously she looked left and right, up and down the street, looking for the said bus that was told to house the rest of her life. It was kind of exciting to know that her future was already set out for her in black and white. Now, there would be no difficult decisions or hours of head-scratching over what could be done next. Life would be smooth sailing from there on out. At least, that was the way Corra viewed it. Classic Corra. The glass was always half full, newly polished, and full of the sweetest beverage in the world.

The family of three heard the bus before they saw it. There was the rattle of the engine, a puff of exhaust, and suddenly the clonking hunk of metal was just before them. The doors opened with a squeaking sound and the bus driver stared them down from his seat on high. Corra was first to break the ice by waving and flashing the man a kindly smile. Before she could see his reaction, she was spun around to face her parents and was pulled into both of their torsos with gusto. Silent sobbing escaped the both of them and Corra found herself to be the one comforting them for a change. It was strange. "I'll be fine. Promise," she said, squeezing them both tightly. "Plus, I'll try and come back for the holidays." At this, her mother became a wreck and vanished back into the house. The girl made a

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