Dream I Almost Missed

Chapter Three

~ Alice ~

Fio and Ian were good at many things, and cheering me up was definitely one of them. The situation with my parents had affected me more than I cared to admit. Knowing I wouldn’t have to deal with them anymore made it a bit easier, but it didn’t mean I was ok, and both of them knew it.

I hadn’t been able to go to the kitchen and take some of my snacks with me, since I was allergic to normal cow’s milk, it wasn’t as easy to find snacks, like cookies, crackers, chocolates, things like that, and the ones I could find were much more expensive than the normal products, and about a week earlier I had allowed myself to buy some chocolate chip cookies, I was saving them to take them with me on the plane and I left them at my parent’s house.

Following Fiorella’s orders, Ian and I went to a supermarket so we could get some vegan cheese, which was the only thing we needed for me, but I had told Ian about my cookies, and he refused to leave without getting a package for me. I didn’t love that he was spending his hard-earned money on me, but having those cookies made me stupidly happy.

The whole vibe of the day shifted as soon as I walked into Fiorella’s place. It felt weird using her keys to get in, and it was even weirder to be there by myself, but I felt better. I almost felt peace, and when Ian and I had finished putting my things in Fio’s room, her mom and her little brother got home and welcomed me as if I were their family.

I was unsure how much they knew about the whole thing, but I figured I owed them honesty, so I told them what happened, and after a few ‘So sorry,’ her mom let me know we could have the kitchen, showed me everything we might need, and then left to take her son to a friend’s house, were he would spend the night. At least it was Friday, so not sleeping was a non-issue.

Ian and I decided to head to a nearby park to kill some time while we waited for Fio to get home, and I told him every single thing I had not told him yet. I also decided to film part of the conversation and take some pictures to use in the video of the day. Said conversation ended up being the least serious one I had ever had. I couldn’t stop laughing at the impressions of the British accent Ian kept doing every time I mentioned Dominic or England, and before I knew it, I had forgotten why we were there in the first place.

“You like getting genuine reactions in your videos, right? Asked Ian suddenly.

“When possible,” I responded, confused.

“Start recording again,” he instructed me.

I did what he told me and sat back down on the ground waiting for him.

“There’s no way you got that!” I screamed out before he had even gotten back next to me, “Ian, this is crazy expensive, why?” I asked once he handed me the container of ice cream.

“Is a little treat, we have no idea if you’ll be able to get ice cream in England, and you deserve it, enjoy!” he explained, smiling.

I jumped at him, hugging him and thanking him over and over again. A while later, Fio texted that she was on her way, and told us to go buy some Coke, so Ian had the brilliant idea to also get some vanilla ice cream to make an ice cream float.

As soon as Fio got home, we went crazy in the kitchen; it was as if we had become children again and were just playing around. In a matter of minutes, the whole place was covered in stuff; there was flour flying around, the tomato sauce had reached the floor and a wall, the meat for the pizzas was everywhere, and the cheese had somehow reached Ian’s hair.

The three of us were laughing, Fio´s dog was going crazy over the spilled things he could eat, and even though I felt bad for the mess we were making, it had been so long since I had the chance to just enjoy myself, relax, stop overthinking, and just be happy.

“Oh, we needed this,” announced Fio, opening a bottle of wine once the pizzas were cooked.

“Do I want to know where you got that from?” Asked Ian, laughing.

“It was a gift for my birthday, and I intended to open it in celebration of your final audition,” explained Fio, smiling sweetly. “Given everything, I wish it were under better circumstances, but I am happy we can be here for you, to celebrate, and make you feel better.”

Fio gave us each a glass of wine, we cheered, and got into those pizzas.

The energy of that night we spent together held me over for the next four days; it was exactly what I needed to survive four days of questions, calls, texts, critiques, and attacks from almost every member of my family. I knew my parents would do something about my horrible decision, and to a certain degree, I expected them to go to the rest of our family, but turning them against me was a dirty move.

Back then, I was unsure what they had said, but later on, I would learn they twisted the truth, turning me into an irresponsible, disrespectful, terrible daughter. My parents and my sister told them I yelled at them, called them abusive, trashed my room so they couldn’t sell anything, stole money from them, and left without saying goodbye. Since I had never been close with most of my family, it was rather easy for them to believe my parents.

But it didn’t mean it didn’t hurt to hear my grandma calling me an ungrateful, spoiled brat. I tried to defend myself, which ended badly. The only people who were truly on my side were my aunt, her husband, and their son; they were the only ones who knew exactly when I was leaving, and they had said they would go to say their goodbyes at the airport.

“Don’t get yourself stressed out, you’re good on time,” mentioned Ian, standing in front of me.

“I know, but I can’t allow anything to delay me even a second. There is nothing that will stop me from getting on that plane.”

“María said they were on their way, they will be here soon,” said Fio, grabbing my shoulders, “please stop pacing.”

I agreed and started playing with my hair.

“Sorry! It’s my fault,” apologized my cousin Erik, running towards me and hugging me.

“He hadn’t finished his homework,” added María, joining the hug.

“But we made it, hey, you,” intervened Jorge.

“Thanks, it would kill me to leave without saying goodbye properly.”

“You already know it, but I need you to listen again,” said María, grabbing my hands, “I am so proud of you, we all are so proud of you, no matter what happens.”

I tried my best not to cry, but I seemed to have been holding it in forever. There I was, saying goodbye – potentially forever – to the few people who truly cared for me and loved me, over a possibility for a better life for myself. Was I being selfish, or was I simply making the best of it, and for once, allowing myself to be the most important person for me?

“I’m going to miss you, Ali,” said Erik, hugging me again and crying, which broke me.

“I’m going to miss you too, so much.”

“Can I go visit you?”

“Let her become a successful actress first, all right?” intervened Jorge. “I hope to see you in the movie theater soon,” he added, making us laugh.

“I know I already said everything I needed to say, but I’ll miss you so much, and I can’t wait to hear what you get yourself into.” Said Ian, hugging me.

“I love you, Alice,” said Fio, hugging me. “You’ll be great, I know you will, and I feel sorry for whoever decides to get in the way of you and your acting career, even if it is Michael Davies.” She added, laughing.

“Isn’t that Michael, the guy you like?” Erik questioned, confused. “Since his dad helped you, is he going to be your boyfriend?”

Erik’s question made me blush uncontrollably, and we all laughed.

After another round of hugs, I walked into the airport, leaving them behind. The sadness, my fear, and doubts almost made me turn around, but a silly, stupid thought brought me out of it: maybe I could actually become Michael’s girlfriend.