Late Bloomer

Chapter 1 Rose in Bloom

"Looking good, Thea," Julie Burke, my best friend said to me as she surveyed me from head to toe. She was flopped out on my bed, already creasing her fresh, crisply ironed uniform while I stood in front of the floor-length mirror in my room. I was wearing the same uniform consisting of a beige blazer and navy pleated skirt. Inside I wore a white blouse and for shoes, I settled for some glossy, navy Mary-Janes.

"So glad Bellfort decided to relax their outfit rules," Julie said, stretching out on the bed. "Last year I got detention like six times just for wearing nail polish!"

"Yeah, they wouldn't even let me wear a watch. Thank God they changed the principal. Miss Mortimer is way more fun and upbeat," I said adjusting my headband.

"Totally. We're going to have more freedom this year, whoohoo! Junior year is going to be great!" Julie said, throwing her arms up in enthusiasm. I laughed.

"As long as we keep out of detention this year. It's such a relief my uniform came on time. I definitely didn't want to be the center of attention wearing colored clothes on the first day back again." Julie snorted.

"And here I'd do anything to wear ripped jeans and hoodies. But honestly Thea, you look kinda different in your new uniform," Julie said.

"What do you mean?" I asked, looking at my reflection.

"I don't know. It feels like—you finally grew into your sleeves. Or... you filled in your uniform," she said.

"You mean I grew up," I admitted. It was true, in a way. Julie noticed it. My mom noticed it. That's why she ordered a new uniform for me.

I had been wearing the same uniform for three years. It felt like when I hit puberty, my body didn't get the message. While the other girls shot up to five feet and started looking like young, curvy women, I remained diminutively petite. Even at fifteen, I could pass for ten. And boy, after a while of basking in the perk of looking unusually young, I hated it.

Looking younger than your age meant not being taken seriously. It also meant people talked down to you like you were a little kid. Being short usually has no perks. And looking baby-faced meant getting way too much unwanted attention from old people and none at all from people my own age. Yes, being eternally childish-looking was awful.

Until this summer.

Something happened to me in the last three months. I read all about puberty and adolescence in science class and have been waiting for them to hit since I was twelve. I had a long wait. But at the end of last semester, after I turned sixteen, I finally reached a ladylike five feet. Eureka. Now I had to go through everybody else's impression of me as a five-foot young woman who no longer looked like a kid.

"Girls! You're going to be late if you don't get going!" My mom hollered from downstairs.

"And by extension, make me late!" My little sister Amber shouted out.

"Come on Jules. You're driving," I said, grabbing my satchel. Jules was my nickname for her as Thea was mine, short for Dorathea (named after my great grandma but everyone knew me as Thea). Jules sighed and rolled off the bed.

"Can't wait for the weekend already," she mumbled.

We ran down, hurriedly munched some of my mom's gourmet French toast, wasted a couple of extra minutes as my mom took first-day photos, and finally made it to the car.

"So adorable!" Mom said, admiring the pictures of me and Amber. She groaned.

"Let's go before Mom decides to make an album!" Amber said and shot out the door. I giggled with Jules and headed out after hugging Mom.