My Freshman year of high school. Cue waking up, looking perfect, and having the most extravagant outfit ready to be absolutely slayed in.  Cue the most amazing yogurt parfait, perfectly topped with a smooth layer of whipped cream and perfectly dropped strawberry slices. Cue the smell of fresh vanilla on my radiating, glowy, caramel skin lathered with an excellent Vaseline base, fresh out of the shower. Cue the bus ride as I listen to my perfect music and get off the bus, only to have all 5,000 kids staring back at me, wondering who I am, where I’m from, and just dying to get to know more about me.

Now cue the actual first day of school. For 8 years beforehand, I had tried to go to sleep as soon as possible to stay away from the first-day jitters. I would start to get them right as the sun had begun to set around 8:30 PM, so I knew my bedtime was soon approaching. Funny enough, something about high school didn’t bring jitters, but quite the opposite. It brought dread because having older siblings meant having insight. And my insight is that Disney is a bunch of fraudulents that need to be fired and sentenced to life in prison as soon as possible. No, there was no opening music, and no, there was no motivational monologue interrupted by you meeting up with your best friends and going into the high school hallways feeling like a boss. What there was, however, will not- in the slightest- surprise you. 

So, the night before, where was I? Ah yes.

We were in my relatively new house. My mom had got it to rent out for another family, even though she knew she would one day move into that house and depart from where we had lived for the past 8 years or so. And one night in November, she finally snapped from my dad’s behavior and packed her stuff into her grey Toyota Sienna and hasn’t looked back since. 

Anyways, where was I the night before?

Easy.

In the most beautiful place of my house- the place that’s made with love, care, and compassion. It is also where the most beautiful and fantastic cook I’ve ever met sleeps.

My grandma’s room.

My grandma’s room has a little TV in there that I like to use whenever she’s not home because her room is cleaner than mine, it smells nicer, and is simply just better for a nice night of-

Oh, you thought I was going to say sleep?

Wrong.

It is simply better for a nice night of Netflix surfing.

And that’s precisely what I did.

I got into her warm, crinkly, thick sheets and got my water bottle and essentials ready for the night. I had made sure my outfit was ready and out to put on right away.

The night was spent with me, my purified Walmart water, and the arrow buttons of the TV remote. As a kid, I would always sneak my electronics into bed with me so I could play with them and not go to sleep. But now, it was quite the opposite, where I watched TV to try and fall asleep and distract my thoughts as I stayed up scrolling through genre and genre of shows I could possibly pick. Finally, I settled on a movie that seemed awfully appropriate for my transition into my new age and maturity.

Men In Black.

Or at least I tried to watch it. I had my glasses off at this point, and I can’t really see without them, so it was a bit difficult to make out much of anything. It was more of blobs of light smothering my face as I attempted to understand the plot. Soon after, words and audio blended in together as I tried to keep my head up and watch.

Yes! This was it. This is when I’d finally go to bed and wake up at 6 AM the next morning.

I check the time; it's only 1:00 AM. I have a couple of hours to go to sleep, and then I will be okay.

I did not fall asleep. As a matter of fact, I stood even more awake than before. My mind was quickly bored of Men In Black, and I reached for the remote to start surfing Netflix once again.

At some point, I did fall asleep. This time, I think it was to a Bratz movie, though, because I remember the classic high school setting with the five popular girls walking into school at the same time.

OH FINALLY!

I was actually awake, meaning it was go time.

I turned on my speaker, pushed my Afrobeat playlist, and got a quick shower. I made sure to extra lather in my body wash and lotion afterward. I spent extra time paying attention to the Vaseline I slathered on my face. And to my outfit, we went.

I was extra careful about the way I placed everything on. Underwear, Pants, then Shirt. And then accessories.

I got my hoop earrings ready for demolition of the day and applied my mascara gently but rushed.

At this point, I was being rushed. There would be no time for a delicious parfait, but it was okay because at least I looked and smelled super bomb. 

And just like that, I was on the bus sitting with my Onn headphones in, blasting my feel-good music. I knew today was going to be a good day. Even if I wouldn’t have any camera close-ups.