HBIC: Head Barbie in Charge

15 - Connect the Dots

"WOW, YOU LOOK SO...DIFFERENT!" Tammy was trying to be as honest as possible and she wasn't quite sure how well it was being received, but Ally fluffed her curls with a grin on her face just the same.

"You guys like it?"

"It's hot, Ally." Tammy turned to Kim who gave her a wink that made her want to burst out laughing. It was awful. The curls were so artificial looking that it appeared to be a bad wig. The three of them walked through the central quad looking like Charlie's Angels, only one of them was about to be in hell and had no idea what was coming to her.

"I just thought I would try something new," she said as she led the pack. Tammy thanked the good Lord above that Ally wasn't walking around crediting her for the idea. Besides, it was all Bunny's slick plan and when she saw Ally trying to be a carbon copy of her, Tammy feared she would laugh until she cried. Ally stepped slightly in front of them, proudly receiving her audience with a flirty sway of her hips, mistakenly receiving their stunned faces for something other than pure amusement.

"This is going to be good," Kim said underneath her breath. She surely hoped it would be enough because she felt bad enough being the one whom Bunny had assigned the devious task. Tammy didn't know if she had it in her to do something so mistrustful again. Ally had no one to blame but herself. Had she not tried to completely remake the girls over before even getting to know them, they would have not so willingly joined Bunny in a plot to take her down.

"Wow, I didn't get this much attention when I first became a Barbie," she gushed as they found their table amid a crowd of lingering faces.

"A new look will definitely do that for you," Kim said and snickered.

Ally was feeling herself so much that she shamelessly took a few selfies, celebrating her horrid new makeover. Out of the corner of her eye, Tammy saw Bunny marching their way and braced herself for what was to come. "Hey, ladies," she said as she dropped her books on the table and took a seat. Ally tugged on one of her rock hard curls to alert Bunny that she was supposed to be the center of attention today. Bunny pressed a thoughtful finger to her lips as she studied Ally, putting on her best act. "Is there something different about you, Ally?"

Ally responded with an annoyed laugh as she continued her own little photo shoot. "Oh, Bunny, you can't be happy for me just this once? Admit it, I'm working it."

"Oh, you're definitely working something," she said, then leaned into Tammy and Kim and whispered, "A nerve."

Not even Bob the Builder could fix this mess, and not even Dr. Phil could fix whatever was going on inside of that head to make her think that a head full of starch stiff curls could make a man fall in love with her. If she were a truer friend, Tammy would have said something, but as long as the girl had confidence in herself, why not? She had always believed that beauty was in the eye of the beholder, but it was no secret to at least three of the girls at that table whether or not Maxwell would behold beauty in this Shirley Temple reject.

Ally couldn't have lifted her butt from her seat fast enough when she spotted him with Devin and Skeeter from across the quad. "I'll be right back," she said with haste, eager to track him down before he got away.

Bunny clamped her hand over her mouth. It was the only thing keeping her from howling like a guest at The Comedy Union. "I feel incredibly bad about this," Tammy couldn't help but say. The three of them looked on as the boys studied Ally's head with looks of confusion.

"Don't be," she replied. "Maxwell always looks at her that way. It wouldn't matter if she was rocking a wig sculpted from my likeness. Maxwell wouldn't be checking for it because she still wouldn't be me."