I swipe down the remains of the grime that the children had just left on the table.

I always hate it when large groups came to eat here. It usually takes forever for each member of the party to decide and then hours to clean up after them, especially if they had young children. I wipe sweat from my forehead and take out my hair tie, redoing the ponytail in my short auburn hair.

Toddlers scamper around my legs, nearly toppling me over and almost causing me to drop the tray I currently hold in my hand.

This is supposed to be a place for classy people. Not a daycare. I think to myself.

I finally reach the family which requested the meal that I now place on their table.

"Here you go, madam. One tilapia, a bowl of caviar, two plates of stuffed ravioli and a side of garlic breadsticks. Enjoy!" I say and immediately turn to take the next table's order.

"Excuse me, miss! Sorry to be a disturbance but could you please switch out this plate of ravioli for a Fettuccine Alfredo? My son decided that he wanted to change his mind last minute. Again, I'm sorry if it will cause you any extra trouble--"

I stop her.

"Say no more. It's completely fine. I'll replace it on your final receipt as well." I say.

After all, it's my job. Even if it annoys me every now and then when the restaurant is busy, I still have to do it whether I like it or not. At least she apologized for the inconvenience.

"Oh, thank you so much! As a matter of fact, I think I'll be adding a few extra euro to the tip today." she smiles.

I really appreciate the additional money I receive for doing my job well, but today I'm exceptionally grateful because my father has been in debt quite a while and we need the money to pay off our house before we get kicked out. We are only a couple hundred euro away from having enough money to pay the bills and I'm pretty sure today will contribute to a drastic amount of it since we have a full house.

I thank the woman and gather the tip, stuffing it in my pocket. The rest of the night flies by. The collection of cash grows heavier; a detail which makes me quite ecstatic. Also, my optimism grows for the fact that we will be able to pay off the debt with every cent earned.

Once my shift ended, I tore off my apron and broke into a run for home; excited to tell my father the good news.

"Papa! You'll never believe this!"

He looks up at me, putting down his newspaper.

"What is it Elliana, dear?"

I pull out the money from my pocket and toss the crumpled euro on the coffee table. "I made enough to pay off the rest of the debt!"

His eyes seem to grow from behind his half-moon spectacles as a smile forms on his wrinkled face. He leaps from his seat, embracing me in a hug and spinning me around. "YOU DID IT, DARLING! YOU FINALLY DID IT!"

"We did it Papa! You helped too." I remind him.

"Ah, yes. But that doesn't matter, we can stay in our home for another year now!"

He finally let go of me.

"I want you to be there with me when I pay off the debt. This is our house, after all."

I give him a knowing smile. "Thanks, Papa" I say before giving him a kiss on his baby soft cheek and heading upstairs to my room.

I plop down on top of my bed, relieved. All I need to do now is bring our savings down to Town Hall and our home is saved. It feels like a huge weight has been lifted off my chest. I lay there, taking it all in.

When I rise again, I head over to my vanity. My hair fell out of it's tie, hanging in front of my face in loose strands. I brush it away, grinning at myself, until I spot the bag in the corner of the room. My mind is brought to the fact that I will begin a new chapter of my life, starting tomorrow. At Highstead Academy.

It took me years to save up enough to pay for the tuition. Many hours spent wiping down counters and balancing scalding dishes on my hands. But it all paid off. I have always wanted to pursue a career in the medical field; I wasn't destined to be a waitress my entire life. I'd always wanted to be someone who saves others whether it be from illnesses or not, but that is why I chose Highstead. They have the best medical department in town; better than any other college. Papa was so proud of me when I told him the good news after receiving my acceptance letter. I knew you would get in, he had exclaimed. You have always been the brightest star in the night sky. I had felt like I was on top of the world that day, and that nothing could have brought me down.

Tomorrow would be my first day at the academy and I know that it will fulfill all my expectations.

They unfortunately had their own uniform, much like all the other academies in our village.

Not that I am complaining, but it would be nice to stand out and express our personalities instead of dressing like everyone else. It consisted of a plaid red skirt, white button up blouse with a black suit jacket layered over it that had the academy logo sewn into it, and to top it all off, a tie. I was extremely lucky to have a friend who graduated from there, so she passed on her uniforms to me. They were a little big, since she was a few inches taller than me, but regardless of that, I would be wearing it tomorrow.

I tried them on once more, just to get familiar to the feel of them. I twirled around as I viewed myself in the mirror. My skirt was flowing and just wearing the outfit itself got me excited.

I figured that I needed to get some rest for tomorrow, so I changed into my night clothes and headed off to bed.

***

The moment that I had been waiting for finally arrived. I stood in front of Highstead academy, a dream I'd always wanted to come true.

I took a deep breath, uttering a 'bye' to my father and walked forward, entering the front office.

A lady with a high hair bun and thick rimmed glasses was busy typing on a keyboard at what seemed like 100 words per minute.

I needed to make sure I was headed in the right direction for my first class, so I was going to ask her for clarification.

"Excuse me miss, could--"

"Ah, Elliana my love. Such a pleasant surprise to see you here."

Oh no.