Tara closed her eyes and brushed her hair aside as she turowards the window. The slightly chilled breeze refreshed her jumbled mind, leaving her ihoughts.
“Unfortunately, summer is ing to an end,” she mumbled, and a sigh escaped her lips.
Trying to break out of the depressive atmosphere she found herself in, she decided it was time to stop moping about indoors
Peeking outside her bedroom door to check if the coast was clear, a rge grin suddenly appeared.
“Maybe today will be a good day after all,” Tara said victoriously as she hurriedly moved toward the empty bathroom.
However, right when she was about to take her st step of triumph, a blur suddenly squeezed past her.
“Oh no, you don’t!” Tara screeched as she reached out for the little she-devil.
“Oh yes, I do!” A mog voice sounded as the door smmed shut on her fabsp;
“Ugh! You waited until I…” Tara yelled in frustration.
“Tara, yoing to be te for college!” A voice yelled from downstairs.
“No shower, then. Again,” Tara said with a despo look on her face before hurriedly getting ready.
Soing downstairs after doing her best to get prepared, she found her Mother boung around the kit with a pan in hand.
Her mother's face lit up upon her arrival, and a gentle smile graced her lips. “I’ve made pancakes for you this m, sweetie. Your favourite.”
Tara tried her best to have a grateful smile as she sat at the table.
She knew her Mother was trying to cheer her up; however, she was not feeling it today.
Tara despised cold passionately, and today, it ositively freezing.
Shortly afterwards, her mother pced the fresh pancakes in front of her.
“Thanks, Mum,” Tara said, digging into the hot pancakes.
It was unusual for her health-focused mother to take the initiative to offer such a treat, and Tara po take full advantage.
Dousing her pancakes with a generous heaping of syrup, Tara took some spoonfuls of blueberries.
Though her Mum didn’t explicitly say what to put on her pancake, she knew missing the blueberries would be a mistake.
Judging from how her Mum’s frown turned into a smile when she went for the blueberries, she knew she had made the right call.
‘Mission aplished’. Tara thought inwardly with a big smile.
Feeling her mood improved, she greedily scoffed down her breakfast.
“Now, Tara, I might need a favour from you ter, " her mum said.
“Better not be for me to look after the little rascal again,” Tara said miserably.
“e on, Tara. She is your little sister. She will be very happy her older sister is there to look out for her, " her mother said with a smile reeking of positivity.
Scoffing at the thought of the little devil, even knowing the meaning of gratefulness, she scooped the remaining dregs of her pancake and gulped it down before standing up to leave.
“Fine, I will pick her up again. Are you happy?” Tara said with an accepting expression.
“Thank you so much, sweetie, " her mother said, ing herself around her in a bear hug.
“Jeez, Mum, let me breathe.” Tara wheezed futilely, trying to escape her mrasp.
“e on, sweetie, you will never be too old for your Mother’s hugs.” Her Mum replied.
“Alright, alright. you let me go now? I’m seriously going to be te.” Tara said.
“Fine. Now I've packed your lunch. Have a lovely day, sweetie, and thanks for looking after your sister. I know I’ve not been around tely.” Her Mum said, her voice growing unsteady.
Knowing she his, Tara embraced her mother, saying, “It will all be fine. I’m old enough to look after myself now, and Kacey is doing fantasti school. You’re an amazing Mother; trust me, I have firsthand experience.”
Her mother nodded, wiping her puffy eyes before helping her out.
Now, finding herself on the sidewalk. Tara started making her way to college, shivering slightly from the frigid air.
Cursing under her breath at the cold, she tio plod dowh.
The street was quiet si was early m, and the odd car was in sight.
She lived a fair distance from the college, and it took her a while to get there on foot.
It was likely unwise for a person who despises the cold to walk so much, yet with her mging for exercise, she was a regur walker.
After a short walk, she suddenly saw a familiar face walking across the street.
It was a friend of Kacey, her little sister, though she had no idea why she was by herself crossing the road.
The little girl, with a bright smile on her face, waved at her as she spotted her in reition.
However, this happy smile soon turo shock when she heard a loud honking.
A truck came r and heading straight towards her.
Without thinking, she rushed towards the little girl, yet knew she was agonisingly too far away to do anything.
heless, the driver, doing everything he could to avoid the collision, pulled the wheel, attempting to angle away from the girl.
In doing so, the tyres from the cold weather seemed to slip on the pavement, turning the vehicle's dire towards her.
Ironically, if she had remaiill, the vehicle would have missed both her and the girl, but her attempted intervention just had to put her in the crosshairs.
“Well, F…” Tara didn’t even mao finish her sentence before she was struck violently by the trubsp;
As the world went bck, she couldn’t help but curse the injustice of it all. She died an absurd, pointless death and wasn’t even a hero.
Though at least she say she tried. Maybe her mother would not be so disappointed in her after all.
At that moment, Tara didn’t even realise that a bizarre meical voice sounded as the flickers of her soul seemed to fade.
[Successor found, patibility high, iing...]
‘Huh… what is going on? Where am I? Why is everything bck?’ Tara said, puzzled.
[You are the designated host. You are lucky to be the one chosen to i the gift enitor of Evolution. Error, soul too weak, foundation weak. Searg suitable hosts. Humaed, removing as default option. Searg races. Iron Samander selected.]
The notifications filled her mind in a blur as she suddenly heard the words selected.
‘What the…’ Tara thought before the world went bce again.
