Death's Contest Entries

The Right Size - 4 (StopBodyShaming)

•ANGIE•

It dawned on her as soon as she got home that Angie hadn't bought any presents for her mother. She had too focused on herself.

She picked up the skirt and looked at it, sitting on the bed.

Will she look good in it tonight?

Maybe that would make her mother happy as well to see her daughter looking fashionable for once.

She silently vowed to get a present for her mother later. Right now, she should start getting dressed. Alex had told her a few days ago that both their aunt and their grandmother were coming to see them. It was a surprise for mom but Angie was miserable after hearing that news.

It was obvious that her grandmother didn't approve of the way Angie looked. She hadn't really said anything to her which was a surprise since the old woman never held back. But it was clear in her ways. The way she would look at Angie with that disapproving stare made her even more self conscious about herself.

But maybe this time, her grandmother would be able to see that she had been trying. She just hoped she looked good enough for her.

After about an hour, Angie stood in front of the mirror examining herself. She had put on a simple black top that went quite well with the white skirt. She was wearing her black high heels that she had only worn once and was a bit wobbly on her feet.

"I'll manage," she mumbled to herself.

She also looked over her face to make sure that the makeup had covered all of her freckles. She had applied three coats of red lipstick to make her lips pop out more. Mascara was also a necessity and made her eyelashes more visible.

After a minute or two of her studying herself, there was a knock on her bedroom door and Alex came in.

"Get ready. Aunt an- whoa!"

Alex stopped short when she saw her sister, causing Angie to grin in satisfaction.

"Looks nice, right?" Angie asked, looking down at her skirt and running her hands over it.

"Yeah... Um, when did you get that?" Alex asked her, stuffing her hands into her jeans pocket and Angie noticed that Alex wasn't wearing anything fancy.

Classic Alex. Always wearing jeans and T-shirts.

"I bought it today!" Angie squealed happily.

"Oh," Alex nodded. "So, that was in the bag?"

"Uh huh."

She frowned. "But...I thought that you'd gotten a present for mom."

"Yeah," she smiled sheepishly. "I'll get one for her later. I just really had to get this skirt."

Before Alex could say anything, her phone starting ringing and she answered it quickly. "Hello?"

There was a pause before Alex said, "Got it, got it. Okay. Bye."

She hung up and turned to Angie. "Aunt Melissa's here. They're gonna ring the doorbell any minute now. Come on."

Angie followed Alex out of her room, suddenly nervous again. Just thinking about meeting her aunt and her grandmother again made her clench her fists. She hoped that they would approve of her, that they wouldn't look at her with disappointment or with pity. Was that too much to ask?

They entered the living room and found their mother watching television. When she heard them come in, she turned around and beamed at her daughters, her dimples visible. Their mother's, Cassy's dark eyes resembled Angie's but they were bigger and more mature.

"Where have you guys been all day?"

Alex shrugged, sitting down next to her on the sofa. "Just out with friends."

Cassy raised her eyebrows at her. "Really? Are you sure that you weren't planning to surprise me or something?"

"Why would we surprise you?" Alex chuckled. "You're an old person with a weak heart. It could kill ya."

"I'm not that old," Cassy said defensively, hitting Alex's leg. She turned to Angie who was sitting across from the two of them.

Even though Angie loved her mother, she still couldn't connect with her as easily as Alex seemed to. There seemed to be this barrier around them and Angie knew that her mother had tried to cross it several times over the years now but Angie was persistent and would put up more walls around her.

It was because she felt that no one would understand how she felt. She was self conscious almost all the time and didn't want to talk to anyone about it. It was an uncomfortable subject for her, one that she couldn't even bring up with her own mother. So she felt left out sometimes. Like she couldn't belong even if she wanted to.

"Angie, you look beautiful!" Her mother exclaimed, interrupting her thoughts. "Is that a new skirt?"

Angie looked up and after a second, a huge smile made its way to her face. She knew she'd look good in that skirt.

She nodded at her mother who smiled back at her.

The doorbell rang just then and Alex said, "Mom, get it."

Cassy hit her daughter lightly again, this time on her shoulder, as she stood up. "I should be the one saying that."

She made her way towards the front door and Alex looked over at Angie and winked. "This is it!" She whispered excitedly. "Get ready to yell Happy Birthday."

They both looked as Cassy opened the front door and after a while, saw her gasp and take a step back in surprise. They saw their aunt Melissa walk in through the door and take her sister in her arms. Cassy hugged her back and then another figure walked in.

It was the figure of an old woman who was hunched over slightly. She had silver hair that was tied back in a neat bun and wrinkled skin. But her grey eyes were as sharp as ever and Angie realized that her grandmother hadn't changed a bit since the last time she saw her. She was still the same as ever and when her eyes met her grandmother's for a second, she froze.

She was suddenly afraid because she knew that she was being judged.