"On your marks, get set, GO!"

The girls sprinted down the race track. The race was intense, and it was a very close call. But at the end of everything, there could only be one winner - Hailey Richards. As she crossed the finish line, the crowd went wild. Everyone was cheering for her. Her friends circled her, and her boyfriend hoisted her up on his shoulders, all the while chanting her name, "Hailey, Hailey -"

"Hailey Richards!" Ms Turnbull scolded, snapping Hailey out of her trance. "If you want to get a good grade in this class, I suggest you pay a bit more attention in class."

"Sorry, miss," Hailey mumbled, slumping lower into her seat. She hated it when teachers called her out, especially when in class. Come to think of it, Hailey disliked any attention, mainly because most of the attention she got was negative. Ever since her mom's addiction had gotten out of hand and she'd moved out to live with her sister (Hailey's aunt), her dad had become extremely bitter, and he hardly ever had a kind word for her. School was no better. Throughout elementary school, she had been bullied, and by the time she'd gotten to middle school, her self-esteem was so low that she purposely isolated herself from everyone. She had no-one there for her. After a while, in 8th Grade, she decided to stop living in the real world. She created an imaginary world where everything was perfect for her, and threw herself into it. She figured that she might as well live in a world that was worth it - even if nothing in that world was real.

Over the years, her dream world began to take on the shape of the reality. Regarding school, she had the same classes. At home, nothing was much different; her dad hardly paid attention to her. After all, she could take care of herself. The main thing that Mark (her father) really cared about concerning Hailey was her report card - and one was coming home soon. Unfortunately for Hailey, that was one thing that she didn't have in the bag. Her grades had started out average, but due to the constant daydreaming, they had steadily gotten worse. What she didn't know was how bad they had gotten.

After school the next day, the report cards came home. Hailey sat at the dining table and opened hers up. Her jaw dropped as she scanned the page. She'd gotten three D-'s and an F. Her dad was going to hit the roof.

"Hailey, is that your report card?" a voice asked behind her, startling her.

"Y-yes it is," she said in a small voice, not daring to turn around.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Bring it, let me take a look," Mark demanded, stretching forth his hand. Hailey placed it in his hand gingerly, still with her head down. A few moments of silence passed.

"Hailey Carmen Richards, just what do you think you're doing with yourself? Is your education such a joke to you?" he yelled angrily. "Look at me when I'm talking to you!"

Hailey forced her head up, but she couldn't bring herself to look in his eyes; she stared at his forehead instead. Mark hadn't finished, though.

"I don't know why you're terrible at everything, Hailey. It's as if you don't have any zeal to succeed. You're just as terrible as your mother!"

"But Dad, that's -" she stopped mid-sentence as a slap landed on her.

"Don't you EVER talk back to me. Get out of my house!"

Hailey didn't need to be told twice. She bolted out of the chair and out the door. At times like this, her dream world failed to comfort her, so she grabbed her bike and headed to her favourite place - the beach. There was something about the way the sea moved that always seemed to calm her crazy thoughts. On the way, however, all she could do was remember how happy she had been with her parents before her mom started drinking. The memories kept on coming, taking her deeper and deeper in thought. She almost didn't feel it when a car smacked into her, knocking her off her bike. All she could think of was how everything had fallen apart.

•••

Back at the house, Mark was just about getting ready for bed when the phone rang. "What now?" he complained aloud as he picked the call. On hearing the message, his face drained of all colour. He almost tripped as he ran to the car. He fired up the engine and drove as fast as he could to the hospital.

The accident was a serious one. A drunk driver had hit Hailey. Luckily, she survived - but not unscathed. Mark sat in the lobby of the hospital, anxiously waiting for the verdict. He'd considered texting his wife but decided against it- she was going through rehabilitation, and he didn't want to freak her out. After what seemed like a century, a doctor came into the room.

"Mark Richards?"

Mark almost fell out of his chair as he scrambled to his feet. "Yes, that's me. Is she okay?" He asked, his voice breaking slightly.

"She's still unconscious, but her heartbeat is back to normal. She has a few broken bones, but other than that, she's just fine. Your daughter was very lucky, sir," the doctor disclosed, pushing her glasses up her nose.

"Thanks, I, uh... Thank you," Mark stuttered, moving back to his seat. The woman looked at him and smiled faintly before getting back to work.

It wasn't until the next afternoon before Mark was allowed to see Hailey. He walked into the room, more nervous than he had been in a long time. Hailey was laying on her back, her chest rising and falling with each breath. Her eyes were closed. As he watched her, he suddenly saw Hailey for who she had become - a girl who was scared of the world. Somehow, he suddenly understood why Hailey had become so distant and reserved - and it was partially his fault. Mark realized that because of his wife's addiction, he had abandoned Hailey in the dark and didn't even know it.

"Oh, Hailey," he whispered, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Mark's voice cracked as he forced himself not to cry. He walked over to the bed and softly kissed her forehead. Then he turned to leave.

"Dad?"

Mark turned back with a start. "Hailey! Oh, thank goodness you're alright. Do you need anything? Are your pillows comfortable? Is your bed high enough? Would you like a drink? I'm sure you'd like a drink. Let me -"

"Dad! It's alright. I'm all right," Hailey insisted, smiling at her dad's concern. "What happened, though?"

Mark told her as much as he knew. He also apologised repeatedly for not being there for her when she needed it. Hailey wasn't sure if his apology was genuine at first, but after the fourth one, she was convinced. But there was another thing she needed to be sure of.

"Where's Mom?" she asked, looking up at her dad. "Does she know about this?"

After a short pause, Mark responded, "No. I didn't want to tell her - not until I was sure you were okay."

"But she's still at Aunt Martha's, right? Can we go see her soon?"

"She's not there anymore, sweetie."

Hailey's brows furrowed in confusion. "Then where is she?"

"She's going through rehab," her dad said slowly. "I didn't want to tell you before because... well, because I was scared of how you'd react."

Hailey snorted. Him? Scared? Not likely. Nevertheless, she kept her comments to herself.

"When did she start?"

"About two weeks ago," he answered, his voice sounding distant. "She's making good progress."

"That's good to know," Hailey remarked. "Wait - does that mean she's gonna come home soon?"

"Let's hope so, Hailey. Let's hope so."

"Pardon me sir, but we will need you to leave the room. We still have a few more tests to run," the doctor said.

"Oh, that's alright. I'll see you later, Hailey."

"Bye, Dad."

Mark left the room, and the doctor closed the door after him.

•••

Two weeks later, Hailey was discharged from the hospital. For the first week out, she had to stay in a wheelchair because her right arm and left leg had been broken. Hailey was nervous about going back to school because she knew that her state would catch everyone's attention. What she wasn't expecting was positive attention.During the day, she had gotten help from three very friendly girls, who all seemed more than ready to befriend her. And for the first time in years, Hailey was ready to let go of the dream world she had so desperately clung to, and try the real world.

A month later, Hailey was walking back from school with Paige. They'd become surprisingly close in just three weeks. Hailey's mom had moved back in with Mark and the change in her was evident. Hailey had completely left her fantasy life behind and was having a great time living in reality. It wasn't as perfect as her dream world, but all she'd wanted was to be happy.

And now, she was.

  •••  

A/N: Guess who's back?

It's been forever, yes, I know. But I really wanna get back to writing because it's honestly one of my fave things to do.

Even though nowadays I barely have time to write a novel, at least I can whip up a short story every now and then. I hope.

P.S. Don't forget to comment what you think! I absolutely adore comments :)

And vote, if you like ;)

Fun Fact: This story was inspired by Paramore's song, Brick By Boring Brick :D