♪ Time turns flames to embers, you'll have new Septembers ♪
The songs played in her mind. The one way she wouldn't lose her head was to remind herself why she was here, why she wasn't driving all the way back to Sugar Valley and getting the reunion all the heroines got in the movies.
Given the chance, it wouldn't exactly be hard to go back to him.
Music kept playing in her mind, as if all of her favourite artists had found her story and published her heart to the world.
♪In another life, I would make you stay, so I don't have to say you were the one that got away, the one that got away♪
How wonderful for her Cinder to be getting married, expecting his best friend in all her entirety to be there. How tragic that she moved away without a word. How smug his bride Mocha's smile was.
♪ Come back, come back, come back to me like you would, you would if this was a movie ♪
Unfortunately, he would never come to her and stand outside her door until morning just waiting for her to awaken to his kisses. She would never go back either, not to a place where she finally knew his heart could never be hers for safekeeping.
Even the memories like simply fighting back the tears and walking away flooded her mind.
♪ I'm not your princess, this ain't a fairytale, I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet, lead her up the stairwell, this ain't Hollywood, this is a small town, I was a dreamer before you went and let me down. Now it's too late for you and your white horse to come around..♪
Snapping back to the present, she looked around at her 'home' and groaned. As if her poor pitiful life wasn't bad enough.
"Well thanks for helping me out, Mom and Dad..."
When they said they'd start her off with the bare mininum, she expected a little bit more than this, and she wasn't one to complain about things if she was truly honest.
Yet she couldn't help but let her spirits sink low as she looked around her shelter.
They hadn't even helped her get her kitchen, she'd bought all she could see whilst expecting her parents to at least pitch in to help their only daughter. Surely they'd known after the constant Cooking With Cinnamon Sourbet on TV, and going to Cooking College that all she really wanted was to be a chef and bring her artistic skills to a plate?
Indeed, the only thing they had helped with was moving her furniture from home over, although she was looking forward to a new mattress at least.
At least her bathroom was nicer than most, as she had spent almost all of her money on it. She could count the money she had left on her fingertips.
However, one thing she really did like was the wallpaper, something that reminded her of her old home's warmth.
The emptiness of the box she lived in, however, gave her a clear message from her parents.
"You're on your own, now, Aliz!"
To make matters worse, she owned no windows at all as her $27 left in her account would simply not cover the bill.
She felt the fitters were being quite mean when they decided to fill up the gaps where the windows were supposed to be, just because she couldn't pay them at that second.
She hoped she'd get a promotion from Senior Executive of Dish Washing soon enough, or it might really send her over the edge.
"Man, have I got a lot of work to do..."
One thing was for sure: Applekiss was nothing like Sugar Valley.
Filled with greenery, foliage, mountains and also plenty of ranches and creatures made it come alive. Alizarin wasn't sure if she was open to owning an animal at the moment due to her complete and utter lack of cash.
Aliz soon found the beauty after searching online for a place far away from the shores of Sugar Valley.
She was very much an artistic one, whether it was painting on a canvas or serving art in the form of food which was both a treat for the eyes and the tastebuds. Applekiss had drawn her eye as it had inspiration all around, and bright colours everywhere in a more subtle way, unlike the blaring sights of Peppermint Pier.
It didn't take her long to become claustrophobic inside her own house, and go straight into her back garden and the nature trail.
It looked pretty daunting, but she knew that she needed to reach the summit of the ridge which was where her back yard stopped. Even though her parents dropped her off in the car and sped off as fast as they could, her breath caught when she took a look at the scenery. She imagined what it would have been like to fly into Applekiss, and she just knew she needed to see the best view possible.
Slowly escalating, she kept taking in the beautiful place that was now going to be her town. Even when she caught sight of her little box, everything surrounding it gave her hope that with a promotion and maybe a side career, she could reflect Applekiss' beauty in her home.
And when she arrived at the summit around 2 hours later...her worries were gone with the wind.
Nothing could weigh her down as the sun shone down and filtered through the leaves, creating natural patterns with shadows. Her life literally lit up after breathing in the pure air.
Who cared if she had no money? She'd earn it back in a town full of possibilities.
Who cared if she could lose a few pounds? It wasn't as if she had to try for anyone, she was hers and hers alone.
Who cared if her best friend was marrying a girl? That's what's supposed to happen in life, and by moving away she'd meet more people.
Filled with new ambition and inspiration, she couldn't help but squeal with joy as she let her spirit fly down the mountainside with her.
The view she had reflected her new view on life:
Beautiful, ever-changing, wonderful, anything is possible in a land like this.
The shadows continued to dance as she kept up her pace. She nearly stumbled a few times thanks to her god-awful heels, but she was too content to notice. She still missed her Cinder deeply, but now she was feeling much more carefree. Aliz simply kept her optimism at an all-time high, she figured that if he wanted to, he would follow her and if not, she'd find someone better.
Back inside her home, Aliz was more appreciative than the morning gone by. However, her stomach grumbled as she set to work on her salad. Unfortunately, a stove was out of the question, but at least at work it was her turn to cook lunch for the staff tomorrow, so she could really get her hands on some proper equipment the next day.
She did have to admit that keeping positive made her feel better. However, doubt did creep into her mind at times. Alizarin figured it was probably just her paranoia acting up.
Still, she was in bliss when she secretly imagined she was cooking for Cinder the month before their wedding.
Even when she'd moved halfway across the continent, her heart still leapt at the thought of him. She supposed that if she just waited a while, things would turn out okay.
"Oh, Berry, I miss that boy..." she sighed, keeping away the tears.
♪He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar, the only one that's got enough of me to break my heart, he's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do. He's the time taken up, but there's never enough and he's all that I need to fall into..♪
