Me and My Tardiness

Elena.

The air was sweet, filled with the scent of sweet food. I closed my eyes, inhaling the vanilla scent as I pulled my head out of the blanket. My mom's pancakes were the only thing that could wake me up from a deep sleep. Yep, that is why I am hungry right now. On my bedside table, my phone sounded the alarm, which was BTS's Mic Drop, for the umpteenth time, but it only sounded like noise.

Even with the music blaring, the smell of my mom's delicious pancakes, and my slightly hungry stomach, sleep still always wins. I drifted back into unconsciousness, my limbs becoming heavier as I reached my dreamland.

"El, turn off that horrible music!"

My eyes widened, and I was blinded by a bright light. I closed my eyes and turned my head, shielding my face from the light coming in through the vertical window of my bed. Then I quickly pulled the blanket over my head, while stifling a groan.

I reached out from under the blanket, waving it around for a few moments until I tapped my phone and turned off the noise. The alarm cut off with a strangled moan, and then I was greeted with silence. By the time I pulled my hand away and clutched it to my chest, a piercing cold had crept into the crevices of my warm blanket.

Realizing that the damage was already done, I pulled the blanket away from my body and let the polar air bite into my body. Then I stretched, arching my back, before letting my arms fall to my sides. I sat there for a while, rubbing my eyes, and trying to refresh myself.

As I exhaled, I looked down at my phone and then bent down to pick it up. The screen lit up, and when I saw the notification, I almost choked. Damn, I only had a few minutes to get ready and get out the door.

In my house, it's a habit that I often wake up late, and for now, it's unnatural for me to wake up at a normal time. As I often tell the picket line at my school, my family is my support. Not only did they not wake me up at the right time, because they knew full well that I wouldn't do it on my own, but they also forced me to stay awake and do menial chores like, and not least, washing the dishes. This sounds trivial, but in reality, it was.

Obviously, the attendance officer was never happy with any excuse I gave.

Without thinking, I put my cell phone on the nightstand and jumped out of bed, carefully avoiding stepping on the objects scattered on the bedroom floor.

As I struggled to reach the bathroom, which was connected to my room through a narrow door, it was at times like this that I cursed myself for forgetting to clean my room, even though it had been months since I had done so, and I would most likely do so in the near future.

I opened my bathroom door while turning on the light. The granite countertop of my bathroom was filled with various products. On the other side of the bathroom, just across the door was the door to another room that led to my brother's room. We shared a bathroom, and since he was just as messy as me, it just made the shared space a disaster.

Then I did my usual routine, washing my face at high speed and brushing my teeth. After that, I put on my contact lenses, and as I took one step out of the bathroom door, I noticed my hair.

I was shocked as I grabbed my tangled, brown hair. The hair that used to curl, was now messy and tangled. Usually, my hair is dark brown and curly, but today it looks very messy.

"You look like a fucking beehive," Lexi teases, the wolf within me. She laughs inside my head as I examine my hair, deciding on the best course of action. Lexi is just like me, and that is not a good thing.

"Oh thanks, Lexi, I will keep that in mind when I turn into a wolf. I'm thinking a mud bath for two people?" I replied threateningly, opening the drawer so I could grab a bristle brush. Maybe brushing my hair with a dry brush was a cardinal sin, but I happened to be unlucky in the hair department.

I pulled the brush through my hair, wincing occasionally as it got caught in my hair tie. Deciding that I could not back out now, I ruffled my hair. I repeatedly brushed my tangled hair. It took a few minutes, taking up my time, but the end result was quite usable. Then I put some product in it, rubbing it around with my hands, before finally stopping. The product felt soft and fuzzy, but it had to be done.

Finally getting out of the shower, I looked at my phone once more and groaned. Six minutes left. Six minutes to get dressed, gather my things, and get out the door.

Stumbling to my closet, I opened my closet, sighing in annoyance. My clothes were piled up on the floor of my closet, overflowing from the basket. I sorted through my clothes, pulling out a simple white shirt and jeans. Then I grabbed a soft pink jacket from the top of the pile and stepped out of the closet.

I struggled to get the clothes on, but in the end, they were nicely arranged. I grabbed my cell phone and put on my boots. Trudging towards the door, I glanced at my room one last time before slipping into the hallway.

I hurried down the stairs, my steps echoing along the stairs. Once on the ground floor, I paused nervously. My mom was standing in the kitchen, arms crossed, looking at me sharply. Her anger radiated throughout the room, and I could see her eyes darting from me towards the stack of pancakes that were nicely placed in my place at the table.

"Mom, I don't have time!" I called out, pointing at the clock we had mounted on the wall. Her eyebrows raised, and she repositioned herself, ignoring any form of sympathy. I stared at her for a few moments, before realizing that there was no way I could skip breakfast. Rushing to my seat, I plopped down on the chair and picked up a fork.

Within three minutes I had devoured the entire stack of pancakes, and although I almost choked a few times, I was still happy. I still had time to go to school, and my mom had mellowed out a bit.

"Bye Mom, thanks for breakfast!" I called out to my mom as I stood up from the dining table, almost knocking over my chair. I ran to the door, grabbing my bag, which I had placed near the coat rack the night before. Slamming the door shut, I jumped down the front steps of the house, almost stepping on my mom's daisies as I landed. I breathed a sigh of relief that I didn't step on them and continued down the path that connected to my driveway.