There's a girl standing in Taylen's floor to ceiling mirror. At first glance I almost can't recognize her. She looks anything but ordinary and mundane; she's beautiful. Her face is colored in with a light dust of makeup, her hair wild hair is tamed and pinned down and she's dressed in a stunning sparkling dress.
It's only if you look closer that you will be able to spot her flaws; her round belly, her wide thighs and the contacts in her eyes, which appears to make her eyes shine extra brightly. All of these things; the things that make her imperfect, are all of the things that make her me.
"Are you ready?"
"I think so." My hands are shaking and my heart is beating a million miles per hour. My stomach is churning and I think I'm going to pass out any time now.
"You have to be, 'cause I did not just spend forever on that master piece just to ruin it again," she says, gesturing towards my appearance.
"You're sure they wont recognize me?"
"I'm positive," Taylen assures me, as she holds out my jacket for me. I slip my bare arms into each of the sleeves. "Hell I don't even recognize you and I did it myself," she laughs and it doesn't take long before I'm laughing right along with her, She's right, hell I don't even recognize myself. Except for the flaws. They're still there, but now they're just covered up in makeup and glitter. But it doesn't change how nervous I am. "Let's go, girl."
An early May breeze rips through the air and chills me to the bone as we step out into the evening air. It rustles the leaves of the nearest tree outside as it passes through. I pull my jacket closer around me, and curse the cold chill of the weather.
"Are you excited?"
"Nauseous," I correct her.
"Don't worry, no one will notice that it's you. I promise." If only it was that easy. I'm as confident in Taylen's minor miracle makeover as she is. It's what I have planned for tonight, the whole reason that I decided to go in the first place, that makes my stomach churn.
I feel bad for not letting her in on the full plan, but seeing as how she's reacted lately I figured it was best to not include her, for fear that it could possibly threaten our friendship again and that's the last thing I want to do.
* * *
I keep my head down and my eyes focused on the ground beneath me, as we approach the house. My confidence in Taylen's makeover has faded significantly since we left her house and I have an overwhelming urge to check myself in the mirror, to make sure that the girl from earlier is still there and that she hasn't magically transformed into me on the ride over.
"Relax Cass." Taylen nudges me as we walk through the front door. I can hardly hear her over the loud music blasting from somewhere in the heart of the house. "You look amazing; no one's going to recognize you, unless you give them a reason to." She's right; I need to get my head in the game and start acting the part, 'cause if I keep acting like my insecure self everyone will look straight through me.
I take a deep breath, straighten my shoulders and lift my gaze from the floor. That's when I see him; my eyes are practically drawn to him like magnets to a fridge. He's sitting leaned back in a sofa in the corner of the living room, on the opposite side of where Taylen and I are now standing. He's surrounded by a small group of students, some of which I recognize to be his friends from school. Amongst them are Chad and Ryland.
"I'm going to go dance." Taylen has to raise her voice for me to be able to hear it over the ear deafening music and even then it's only parts of the sentence that I can distinctively make out, the rest of the blanks I have to fill in myself. "Do you wanna come?" I think that's what she's saying but it's hard too hear over the dominating bass.
"Staying," I shout at her, as I shake my head no, making sure that she understands even if she can't hear what I'm saying. Then she leaves me alone to observe the group.
They're laughing at something Ryland just said. I like watching the way Justin's smile widens as he laughs. It affects me in a way I've never known before; butterflies soaring to life in the pit of my stomach and my heart rate picks up. I don't understand; I've seen him smile a million times before, secretly sneaking peaks at him in class, but it's like I'm finally noticing it for the first time. It reminds me of something Justin said yesterday; She makes me happy, you know? Yes I do know, because that was exactly how I feel in this moment, looking at him from afar.
I'm suddenly overwhelmed by the need to talk to him. It's been silent between us, online Cassidy and Justin without restrictions, for so long and I miss it.
Princess123: hey. I'm crossing my fingers that his phone isn't turned off and that he'll see the message. I don't know what I'll do if he doesn't.
I watch him from across the room as he glances down at the phone in his hands. Even from afar I can see how his body tenses as he unlocks his phone and starts typing. Not even a minute later I receive a new message.
Hero56: hey!
Princess123: are you busy? I don't want to be too blunt with him, but I need to get this over with before I change my mind.
Hero56: nah, I'm just stuck at a party - it's pretty boring. I glance at him, before I reply.
His eyes are focused on the screen of his phone, his fingers tapping impatiently on the side of it. Then a brunette, whom I've never seen before, catches his attention and he drops his phone in his lap.
Princess123: you don't look like you're bored. I hit the little send button before I can regret it. Then I move to hide behind the nearest object, which happens to be a coat hanger. Unable to contain my own curiosity, I end up sticking my head out from behind the coat hanger to pry on his reaction.
I don't like to admit it, but secretly I'm beyond pleased that my message has made him completely loose interest in the brunette and focus his attention back on our conversation.
Hero56: what do you mean? he replies. I watch him stare at his screen for a minute, until he seems to catch the meaning of my last message. Then his head snaps up from the phone and his eyes start to search the room, but they barely seem to be noticing anyone at all.
I quickly dug behind the coat rack again, making sure that he doesn't catch sight of me. Hidden behind the rack I take my time preparing myself mentally for what I'm about to do.
Princess123: do you still want to meet me? I type up and send the message before I can regret it. That's it, there's no turning back now, I think to myself as the little check mark turns blue, indicating that Justin has read the message.
I'm too afraid to peak out from behind the coat rack again, for fear that he'll catch sight of me, and I'm more than slightly disappointed that I don't get to see his facial expression, as he reads my message. I want to peak out from behind my shelter, just for a second, but I can't risk him seeing me already. I can't risk a confrontation in front of everyone, should he, God forbid it, recognize me, despite all of the work that Taylen has put into transforming me into a complete stranger.
Hero56: of course.
Princess123: no matter the consequences? I ask, because I have to know.
Hero56: what are you talking about?
Princess123: just answer the question, please. My world is spinning and I have a hard time catching my breath. I squeeze my eyes shut in a desperate attempt to get the spinning of the world under control.
Hero56: yes, no matter the consequences, he promises and that's all I need to hear.
Without another thought I push myself off the floor and start searching for somewhere secluded. The living room is obviously out of the question and so is the kitchen, seeing as it has been transformed into a bar for tonight. It doesn't take long before I find myself pushing the backdoor open and stepping out into the cool early summer night.
I'm surprised to find the garden completely deserted. It's such a nice contrast to the stuffed house.
I'm drawn to a gazebo in the back of the garden. It's small and decorated with white Christmas lights along the roof and the railing. It serves as the perfect shelter for prying eyes and the Christmas lights illuminates the gazebo just enough to expose certain features and still keep others hidden in the shadows. It's perfect. I smile satisfied with my found.
Princess123: then what are you waiting for? My whole body is tingling with excitement, my anxiety long forgotten. I'm running on pure adrenaline and I'm pretty sure that it's the only reason I'm not freezing half to death, standing in only my small dress in the middle of the garden.
Hero56: what are you talking about? I giggle. I wish I could have seen his facial expression right now.
Princess123: come find me, I tell him. It surprises me how much I like to tease him: to be the one with the power, for once.
Hero56: you're here?
Princess123: yes. I pull my bottom lip between my teeth and bite down hard. I have started to shake, but it's not from the cold. It's the adrenaline pumping through my veins at the speed of lightning and making it impossible for me to keep my limbs under control.
Hero56: where? He asks. I imagine him pushing himself off of the couch and making his way across the living room floor, his eyes searching frantically for someone in the room, searching for me.
Princess123: I'm outside.
//AN: DUH DUH DUH DUUUUUUUUH - sorry I couldn't contain it lol. Feel free to leave a vote and a comment if you liked this chapter and want to see more ;)//