Tasky task.

A breeze. That’s how Dannica would describe her childhood. It was easy, she felt like she simply flew through those years. With parents like hers, it was no wonder she had such a happy young life. Her mother and father had met in Hawaii when they were teenagers, her mother having been on vacation that year. They instantly fell in love, and when she was old enough, she moved back to the island to begin her life with her soulmate. Her mother was the more stern of the two. She was a well known lawyer in the city of Honolulu, and she always wanted Dannica to focus on her studies and extracurriculars. “It’ll look great on your college applications!” Dannica remembered her mother telling her that when she was only about eight or nine years old. Her father, he was the more down-to-earth, free spirited type. He owned a restaurant right on the outskirts of the city where locals and tourists would always often visit. They loved the atmosphere, the view of the beach from their table, and the delicious food her father would serve. He taught her to always follow her heart, no matter which direction it took her.

Dannica excelled in school, always making the honor roll and getting awards. This pleased her mother, and it made Dannica happy too, knowing her mother was proud of her. The young girl could play the violin exceptionally well by the time she was merely seven, some even considered her a prodigy. She was often team captain in any sport she played, but she mostly preferred volleyball. Her father had taken her out into the ocean when she was only days old, so she quickly fell in love with the waves. She learned to surf, which was a right of passage, being half Polynesian. She would embrace that side of her as much as she possibly could. She remembered going to luaus nearly every weekend, dressing up in traditional grass skirts and dancing.

Another huge part of Dannica’s childhood was her best friend and partner in crime, Benjamin. The two met at an early age and from the very start, they were inseparable. They taught each other things, helped each other to learn and grow. They would fight often too, but that only came with the territory when you were friends with a girl like her. Over the years, their friendship blossomed into a romance. Dannica had soon fallen hopelessly in love with Ben, and she could tell that reciprocated those feelings. She had never purposefully meant to start a family at eighteen years young, but she wouldn’t ever take it back.

#moodboardmonday #marvelmonday #nyc #task #spiritweek

A task.

“Where does your first flight out go to?”

Dannica stood there at the Delta Airlines desk, shifting awkwardly. She was sure she probably seemed suspicious, but she was simply frightened. In less than two hours, she was due to marry her best friend, her boyfriend - well, now ex-boyfriend - and the father of the baby growing inside of her. It was her fault, she knew, for getting pregnant in the first place, but she was too young for marriage. She didn’t know the slightest thing about being a mother, so how on earth did her parents expect her to be a wife, too? Her boyfriend had proposed to her earlier that day at her birthday party, and her parents happily announced that they were all going to the courthouse later in the evening to make it official. Dannica was frightened, frustrated, devastated, and so much more. There were so many emotions flowing through her that she couldn’t really pick just one.

“Ma’am?” The voice pulled her from her own dark thoughts, brought her back to reality. “H-huh?” The brunette sputtered, wiping her sweaty palms on her jeans. “JFK, in New York City.” The lady on the other side of the desk beamed proudly, like she was the smartest person in the airport for being able to type in a few keys on the keyboard and see which flight was next. Dannica mentally kicked herself, there was no need to be rude. After all, the young girl probably had no idea just how cruel the world could really be. “I’ll take a ticket.” She muttered breathlessly, as if she’d just finished running a marathon, although she had literally only been standing still for the last... she checked the watch on her wrist... seven minutes. It had seemed like longer.

After Dannica went through the process of registering herself for a flight, she paid the pretty young blonde a hefty amount of money to secure her spot. She had made her way through security, and had made it to her terminal just as they began to call her section to board. She gave the same ticket she had only minutes before purchased to another overly pretty blonde, and walked down a tunnel to the plane. Butterflies swarmed in her stomach, and she knew it was partly because she was leaving behind her whole life, but also partly because she’d never been on a plane before. Sure, she’d been off the island of Oahu several times in her life, but she’d always taken a ferry. She found her seat, shoved her small bag under her feet and settled into her seat, buckling up and tightening the belt as tight as it could go.

Moments ticked by and she pulled her phone from her pocket. Tears swelled in the corners of her eyes as she typed a small, quick message to the one person she felt guilty for leaving behind - her boyfriend.

Ben, I’m so sorry.... but I can’t do this. I love you, I do and I’m so fucking sorry, but I can’t do this.