Dear Diary,

It has been months since I have written to you. The past few days have been a wild ride — and to add salt to the already bleeding wound, it didn't have any kind of opt-out button either. Apparently, after losing consciousness, they brought me to the hospital. A course of action that was certainly not appreciated. There were a lot of places that my peasant being cannot afford to be in; one of those being the hospital.

Upon my wake, the doctor told me that my condition was brought about by both stress and fatigue. My consistent sleep deprivation didn't help either. Molly, who was present at that moment, surely did not admire my life choices. In fact, she went as far as forcing me to surrender most of my obligations and leave the rest of our shared academic work to her. In her eyes, I might have been a friend. To me though, she was never more than an acquaintance.

For a very strange reason life had, Molly had been especially fond of me ever since our first encounter. It was baffling since usually, the most famous bad girl on the campus wouldn't even bat the nerd an eye. Or if they would, they'd torture her for the rest of the school year.

At least, that's what the media led me to believe.

Thanks to her existence, the tragedies of my elementary days weren't reenacted. Something that I'm truly grateful for from the bottom of my heart.

On the other hand, the brother — err, Ken — was also there in my wake. On behalf of his sister, he continuously expressed his apologies. However, I knew that there were victims of her far more deserving of that.

Just as Diane's brother didn't approve of her behavior, neither did the head of their family. Therefore, the matters with the infamous bully of Celestial North Academy were quickly dealt with, and she was pulled out instantly; way before the doctors even allowed me to take my leave. Although it caused a dent in their reputation, the family did not hide anything. As a matter of fact, they publicly acknowledged all of her wrongdoings.

There were rumors that only her father's wealth and fame kept her where she stood. And considering that the paparazzi constantly flocked to their side, these rumors would be credible enough to acknowledge. Besides, it would not be the first time in history that lineage induced discrimination nor would it be the last.

In that respect, perhaps the principal overlooked all her transgressions in hopes of having Mr. Andrada fund more of their beloved institution's activities. Just goes to show how rotten the system already is.

In an attempt to further extend their sincerest apologies to one of their kin's victims, the Andrada family decided to shoulder all my medical expenses. It would have been discourteous to decline; so naturally, accepting was the viable option.

A few days were only necessary for me to get back on my feet. Molly insisted on prolonging my break. Needless to say, it would be suspicious if academic work would wait until I was fully ready. Upon my return, a massive pile greeted me. Although it took a while to catch up with everyone else, three days were more than sufficient for me to do so. Had it been longer, the difficulty would only increase going forward.

Now, what stands before our long-awaited vacation is every student's worst nightmare. Exams.

Still, my concerns are far different from most students. After all, these examinations would be the last chance to surpass the Highest Celestial of this Academy. A name awarded to the highest achiever of our institution — with the owner being none other than person Cassandra Verlice herself. Over the course of my stay here, never once have I been able to present greater marks than her. It has even come to the point that my presence had been dubbed as her shadow. How aggravating.

Imagine living two years of your life trying to convince people otherwise with only you failing each and every time.

However, this time would be different.

After all, the most efficient study techniques ever known to man have been skillfully gathered together in my hands. For an extensive time was I painfully aware that things would come to this; that the last examinations would become my last chance to pass her. Thankfully, my preparations will not bring me further humiliation.

It's now or never.

Forgive me, but I must excuse myself as of now so as to put my knowledge into use. Due to the amount of time this upcoming vacation will bring, it won't be that long until my next entry.

Goodbye for now,

Eliza

With all the necessary resources assembled before me, failure isn't an option. There are still three weeks before the destination event. Therefore, time for preparation is not scarce. The only thing left is to actually put in the effort. A quality that had always been present within me.

Cramming had never been a fond idea for me. Hence, measures were taken to prevent them; making the wonderful world of active recall my refuge. To this day, I can attest that it was one of the wisest choices I've ever made in my life — if not the wisest. A technique that allows you to transform a short-term memory into a long-term one.

With that in mind, I dedicated myself extensively to the textbooks with the sole hope of bringing triumph home with me.

***

"You seem very happy today, Ma'am," the seller remarked with a curious expression as she handed me the flowers. "Did something wonderful happen?"

Surely, if a customer of yours has been smiling without any obvious reason for an extended period of time, you'd find it unusual.

"Yes." I paused, still drowning in delight. "There was someone I've been butting heads with for two straight years. But today, for the first time ever, I was victorious!"

Opening up to someone was extremely out of character. Yet, the joy was just too much for me to contain. I just had to share it.

We've all had those moments. Don't look at me like I'm the imposter.

The florist grinned as wide as she could, "Wow, that's awesome! Congratulations!"

I nodded, smiling back. Certainly, it is. And only God knows how much time was invested in a single achievement.

Whoever said that hard work and effort would not fail you have undoubtedly invented one of the most accurate statements out there. Today stands as another proof of it.

While celebrating was technically the best available option at the moment, there was still something left for me to do. It would probably only occur once in my lifetime, so I'll let it slide that my supposed peaceful Saturday was being spent on a hospital visit.

"Good morning!" I greeted with a not-so-nice smile. "Great weather we're having today, right?"

Their eyebrows creased as confusion etched itself into their minds. Yet none dared to oppose the statement masked as a question. All except for one guy.

"But..." Lucas trailed off. "... it's raining."

Just as those words left his mouth, thunder struck the ground. The sky roared shortly after, accompanied by the rain that began to intensify with every passing second.

"Yup, nothing wrong with that." Rain is the best weather. Even better than sunshine. End of the story.

Diane sat up from her very white bed. "What are you doing here?" She could barely get a few words out before a cough infiltrated her speech. Deserved; especially since she doesn't even know how to shut up.

Her brother quickly rushed to her aid as his friends' worries were written all over their faces. A single glance around the room told me that the bad girl's lackeys were nowhere to be found. Well, that shouldn't be surprising. They were never her friends, to begin with. She only used them for her own gain. And vice versa.

"Nothing much," I casually replied. "Just fulfilling a promise."

"After all, I did promise to visit you in the hospital when you get lung cancer."

Q: Do you think the diary part at the beginning is okay as it is or should it be incorporated into the narrative?

Author's Notes commented inline here ➵