Chapter Text
As the afternoon sun was setting outside the window at the Oceanside Library, Hailey Alohilani Banks was seated at a desk, chipping away at her summer assignments. A task that was difficult to manage, paired with both how she didn't want to bother with homework, and how it was still June. She knew it would’ve been better had she "just focused" on her work, but it was easier said than done for someone like her. Hailey probably had ADHD, but since her parents never got around to getting a diagnosis it was unlikely she’d get medicated for it. She looked around the library, and thankfully saw nobody that she could recognize. If anyone saw her there alone, she’d be done for. She knew about what they whispered behind her back. The Library was peaceful and quiet, but the atmosphere ended up highlighting her loneliness.
At the library, Hailey had been spending her time there mainly doing homework, not doing homework and looking at her phone more than she should’ve. It was a lot like a typical day of summer vacation for her, except spent at the library instead of at the comfort of her own home. Her mom had started making her study at the Library on Tuesdays during the summer vacation, probably to either try to get her to actually work on stuff “without distractions”, or to diversify her otherwise mundane schedule. Hailey’s typical schedule in the summer consisted of her getting up at noon, having lunch, trying to do her homework (but ending up slacking off), showering, having dinner, brushing her teeth, more homework, playing video games and watching YouTube, and heading to bed. Yet, it all just felt dull to her, like she was just numbing her own feelings in order to make it through each day.
As the sky outside darkened, Hailey started to realize it wasn’t that much different that how it would've been back home for her. So much for a change of pace, if all she’d do was toil away at homework half-heartedly. Finally, Hailey checked the time and started packing up her things. Shouldering her backpack and heading out the library, she felt like she hadn't managed to accomplish anything at all. Heading out the main entrance of the Oceanside Library, Hailey plugged in her earphones and turned up the music. She'd decided to walk home on her own, since she had gone there alone anyway. Through city streets and quiet suburbs, she finally arrived in front of her own home.
The Banks Residence’s two-story structure loomed over her, and Hailey could make out her birdhouses on the old oak tree in the evening light. Looking at them with a sense of deep longing, Hailey remembered the days she spent making them. Crafting each one with passion, putting her all into each one in hopes that an avian resident would one day call them home. She’d stopped making them a while ago, with life seemingly thinking intricate projects were not worth it. Walking up the driveway towards the front door, Hailey rustled through her backpack until she found her keys. Unlocking the front door, Hailey stepped into the comfort of her own home and dropped her backpack down in the living room. She quickly made her way to the bathroom to wash her hands, and then hurried towards the dining room to join the rest of her family at dinner.
Seated at the dinner table were Kai and Patricia Banks, Hailey’s parents. They were tending to her twin younger brothers Dwayne and Johnson (her parents were never really good at names), but when they saw Hailey, they turned their attention towards her instead. “Hailey! How was your day?” asked her dad, his words simply oozing with warmth and enthusiasm. “Yeah… it was fine,” said Hailey as she sat down at the table. As she grabbed a fork and knife and started to eat, her mom tried to start a conversation.
“So, Hailey, how was your day at the library?” asked Hailey’s mother. “Well, it was fine, I managed to get work done at least,” replied Hailey. “Good. Your father can testify to you not being at home at the very least, but there was no telling if you’d gone off somewhere else,” said her mom. Hailey decided she was feeling a bit confrontative and said, “Yeah thanks, mom. I’m really flattered by how trustworthy you think I am.”
Evidently, Hailey’s mother was not at all impressed by her daughter’s attempt at sassing her. “Well, since you’re so certain you’ve shown yourself to be capable enough, answer this question: what do you have in mind for your future?” asked her mom. This type of question from her had become a common occurrence at that point. So Hailey replied, “Well, I’m not exactly sure, but…” Her mom quickly interjected, “Well, you should really start thinking about it. And with how your grades are right now, you have a lot to work on?” It was true, flunking one of her two electives was definitely not going to look good on her report card, even if she did basically ace computer science. It was just that…
“Look, I know you’re gonna say that I haven’t put in my all, but I’m not sure if I’m even capable of that in the first place. I’ve never really been able to swallow whole textbooks worth of information, and then neatly regurgitate them onto test papers,” Hailey took a deep breath, before continuing. “I know that it’s what I’m supposed to do, but I'm just not ready for that. Not right now." Seeing what seemed like a conflict brewing, Hailey’s dad came to his daughter's defense. “Honey, you know that Hailey’s trying her best, and maybe this isn’t what she needs right now,” he interjected. He then continued, “I know you want the best for our daughter, but I think she just needs some space right now.”
His words managed to settle an unspoken truce between mother and daughter, and Hailey felt like it was best to concede, at least for her dad’s sake. Her mom sighed and said, “Well, you’re seventeen. You better start thinking about it fast, or else you’ll end up regretting it in the future. Be honest with yourself.” After their discussion had ended, the table had fallen into an awkward silence. Even Dwayne and Johnson had stopped chattering, sensing the tension between their mother and older sister. Hailey herself was already feeling emotionally drained from the conversation, and elected to just focus on her meal.
Even Hailey herself thought it was hard to believe at times, but she was already 17 years old. After her 14th birthday or so, each subsequent one she had was starting to blur together. The same could be said for the years themselves, as through a combination of social distancing rules and growing distant from others, Hailey felt like time had managed to fly by. It was hard to keep track of each passing day when each one was just as mundane as the next. Sooner than she knew it, Hailey wound up celebrating her 17th birthday with her family a week or so ago, a modest affair that not even her friends were invited to. Not that she really had any at this point…
Trying to break the silence, her dad spoke up again. “Besides, it's summer vacation, and tomorrow’s a big day for her. She has that class trip to that company’s city ahead of her!” It was enough to do the trick and grab Hailey’s attention. “Yeah, we’re going to be heading to the city of Highkeep,” said Hailey. “They talked about it in the orientation presentation at school, we’re going there by train and visiting two museums there,” continued Hailey. “Something about a president… and movie-making?” asked her dad. Hailey nodded and replied, “They’re supposed to educate us on important aspects of American heritage and culture. But honestly, it's probably just the corporate propaganda that Trifectus just loves so much.”
Oceanside High School's Study Tour to Highkeep was sponsored and arranged by the Trifectus Corporation, in a campaign spanning hundreds of schools in a joint venture with the United States Public Education System. The Trifectus Corporation was no normal evil megacorporation. It was powerful enough that it resided in its own alternate reality, where it owned and controlled just about everything. It ran the governments from the shadows, had a corrupt team of superheroes under their watch and touted practically every right-wing and conservative value under the sun. They even would hire people to try and pollute the environment in multiple different realities out of sheer spite. Her history with it was long and painful, culminating with her losing her heart. And of course, Highkeep was one of the many cities in Trifectus’ Realm. Hailey could guess that their trip was meant to garner approval among students for them. And to seal the deal, there was no way her or any of her classmates could back out because it took up a chunk of their social studies grade.
"I'm worried about everything. Will she even be safe, after everything that happened last time?" reasoned her dad. "I'll be fine, dad. I can… protect myself this time," replied Hailey. She had training from the Organization and a Keyblade now, there was no way anything could happen to her. Hailey’s dad looked away for a moment, before abruptly changing the subject. "Anyway, will you have enough to eat tomorrow? You won’t have enough time for breakfast, and I don’t know about lunch,” asked her dad. “I bought her something from the bakery that she could eat tomorrow, and lunch will be handled by the organizers,” said Hailey’s mom. “They put a weird emphasis on it not being some kind of big fancy hotel buffet during the presentation,” Hailey added. It was then her mother remarked, “That sounds like a good thing to emphasize. After all, you’re already exceedingly healthy for your age, aren’t you?”
Hailey was initially confused by the comment, but its meaning slowly dawned on her. Suddenly, the difference in the amount of food her mother was eating compared to her own seemed much more obvious. Hailey’s only response was only to glare at her, unwilling to give her the satisfaction. “Well, you’ve been looking a bit plump lately. Have you been putting on weight?” her mom continued, still unprompted. That backhanded jab was the last straw for her, and Hailey felt all the repressed negative emotions from their earlier argument break free from their chains. Ignoring her dad’s pleas, Hailey abandoned her half-eaten meal, got up and stormed off to the bathroom.
Slamming the door shut behind her, Hailey locked the door and fiddled with the handle to make sure it really was. Having not brought her phone with her, all she could really do was sulk and let her emotions simmer. She sat down on the floor with her back against the door, and crossed her arms, staring at the wall facing her. She heard a knock on the door, and decided to ignore it. She could hear her dad’s voice across the door now, muffled by the door between them. Sighing, Hailey decided to get up and unlock the door. As she opened it, she was greeted with the sight of her dad standing there, concern written all over his face. He seemed especially weary, having to balance taking care of his two sons and serving as the mediator between his wife and daughter. Despite this, he tried forcing a smile, just for her. “Hailey, you know she doesn’t really mean that. You know how your mom can be, always insecure about her own weight.”
While she was reassured by her dad’s words, Hailey was still unsure. “I don’t know, what if she’s right? What if I am really putting on weight? Maybe I should start skipping meals,” asked Hailey. But her dad was having none of that. “Hailey, that’s nonsense. You’re perfectly healthy for your age, and your worth isn’t determined by your weight either way,” insisted her dad. “Yeah… you’re right. Maybe I just latch onto these thoughts because I want some way to spite myself, but it’s not like I have the persistence to try and starve myself for multiple days,” conceded Hailey. “It’s a good thing that you can’t bring yourself to do that in this case. That would be really bad for you,” assured her dad.
“Yeah, but if I can’t even bring myself to do that, what does that even say about me? I really am useless, aren’t I?” Hailey’s voice wavered as she finished her sentence. “Don’t say that! I know you’re able to do all kinds of great things if you just try,” insisted her dad. Then he continued, “But even if you can’t do everything, even if you think you’re not worth it… you were always enough for me.”
Hailey wasn’t sure what she was expecting out of their conversation, but she definitely did not expect all this. She wasn’t sure what to say, after everything her dad said just to comfort her. He was always there to support her, every step of the way. How could she possibly repay all that? Deciding she would think about that at a later date, Hailey decided to just settle for something simpler for now. “Thanks, dad. I… really needed that,” said Hailey. Her dad smiled, and stepped out of the way. Walking back into the hallway, she heard her dad say something. “Too cool to give your old man a hug?” In a flash, she was right by his side and wrapped her arms around him. As she felt her dad’s arms embrace her, she heard him utter the words, “That’s my daughter.” As she headed back down the stairs to the living room, Hailey was starting to feel as if that day was more than just another day. Maybe it wasn’t so bad after all…