"Wake up, darling," says the rude interrupter with her silvery voice. "The sun has been up for ages!"

"Five more minutes, mum!" I whine. Clutching my fluffy pillow tighter.

"You're late, Bloom!" I can practically feel the air from her mouth graze my ear, tickling me so much I force my heavy eyelids open. The brightness takes me by surprise. I thought she was kidding when she mentioned it.

My brain starts its engine when I realize I am gonna be late for school. I jump out of bed and quickly run to my wardrobe. I am throwing out excuses like my alarm did not go off, and no one woke me up. I push a light blue jean up my leg and force my head through my bright t-shirt.

I glance at mum, who is still standing next to my bed with a relaxed look on her face, which is weird considering how she feels typically when I am late for school. That is when it hit me. It is my birthday! And the alarm did not go off because I am on vacation. That would explain why she is so calm about this, but I am furious she woke me up for nothing.

"School's out mum," I frown. "Your joke isn't funny."

She tilts her head at me, "Well, you fell for it, didn't you?"

"I'm exhausted. I'm going back to bed." I yawn, laying back down.

"You should try going to bed earlier, okay?" she says, "You were up really late last night."

"I was reading," I say, flipping my pillow to the cool side.

Mum picks up the blue book on the floor beside my bed, her shoulder-length chocolate hair covering her honey skin as she does. "'Fairies - Myth or Reality'" She grunts. "Don't you ever get tired of these silly things?"

I force my head up, "They are not silly, okay?"

She gives me a judgmental look and heads toward the door. "Actually, now that you're dressed, you might as well help me in the shop."

Then she is gone. My pet rabbit, Kiko, jumps over me, nibbling on the hem of my shirt. His fur is the night sky with a little white going down his head and settling on his tummy. My parents got him for me when I turned 13. He is 3 years now and still looks so adorable; I was wrong to think he would outgrow it. I gently stroke his head and head out of my room.

Downstairs at the back side of the house is the kitchen. My mum is filling a picnic basket with all sorts of tasty treats and snacks. I spot my dad sitting at the head of the small dining table reading today's newspaper. He is already in his firefighter overalls ready to head to work.

I walk over to him, with Kiko hopping about behind me and greet him. He lowers his papers and fixates his deep blue eyes on mine. "Happy birthday, sunshine!" His lips spread into a wide smile.

I set my hands on my chest and glare at him, "I'm not gonna spend my birthday working in the shop!" he is a little taking back by my mood, but what did he expect? I have worked in the shop for the whole summer, now mum wants me to work on my birthday too. I glance at her, "You already said I could go to the park."

"When you're older," dad says, focusing his attention on his paper again, "you can do whatever you want."

"How old is older? I'm already 16, dad."

"Only 16," he signs, "you are still my little girl."

"That's not fair! People don't get to work on their birthdays, they get presents!"

"Speaking of presents," mum says from behind the counter, she moves beside dad and smiles nervously. "we've got a little surprise for you."

"Yeah, just a little something to help you get around Gardenia." He says, gesturing outside.

I do not want to get my hopes high, but all I am hoping for right now is something I can use to show off to Mitzi. She has been bothering me for the whole year, and I am unsure of what I did to make her despise me so. But I am not the only one she treats like crap, so I figured she is just a bitch and stopped being sorry a long time ago.

I no longer have anyone to back me u when she strikes. My ex-boyfriend and I got in lots of fights and eventually broke it off. We both did not want to, but it was inevitable. My lifelong best friend and only friend, for that matter, practically disappeared from school right after exams last year and no one ever saw or heard from her again. It has only been three months since then, so the pain has numbed, but she is a part of my past, I will never forget her.

I hug both my mum and dad then go out the door. The bright light pierces my eyes, so I shade them with my palms. I cannot spot anything exciting except a bicycle in front of the car park with a big red bow that screams 'HAPPY SWEET 16TH BIRTHDAY!!'