Shopping after school was me and Lily's thing; we always went once a week and never invited anyone else because we used the time to confide in each other. So, I didn't really understand why she would randomly invite someone she barely knew along—especially if that someone was a deadly vampire.
The mall was crowded for a Tuesday afternoon as Lily, Cecelia, and I made our rounds. We started at Delia's and made our way up like usual.
Lily found something as soon as we stepped into the crowded store. "Do you guys think this is cute?" She asked Cecelia and I, holding a pink flowery tank top.
"I like it." It wasn't something I'd wear personally but it suited Lily's girly style.
"It's a tad too harsh for my eyes, and it makes you appear childish." Cecelia said bluntly.
"Hmmm," she thought for a bit, "You're right, it does make me look like a kid."
"Since when do you care about being too childish? You wear polka dots and scrunchies." That's what I liked about her, she always rocked whatever she wore. She was also the only person I knew that could pull off pigtails everyday.
"Yeah, well, maybe I should dress more my age." She put the tank back and followed Cecelia to the denim area.
The white denim jackets caught Cecelia's eye and she pinched the material between her perfectly-manicured fingers.
Lily nodded in approval but quickly put it back when she saw the price, "I hate being poor."
"Are you ready to leave?" Cecelia asked abruptly then added, "All of their items are cheaply made."
"Then explain the high prices." Lily joked.
We left Delia's after ten minutes and went into Wet Seal, another one of our favorite stores.
Cecelia was surprisingly fashionable despite the fact that she'd been alive for more than a thousand years. She knew the trends of the times and even better, could pull them off without even trying. But, she was stupid to think that she could fool me. She was still dangerous and needed to be watched at all times just in case she decided to make a meal out of Lily.
"Let's go in there," Cecelia pointed to Forever 21 after we'd visited three more stores. None of us had bought anything.
"Uh, we don't usually go in there, all of their stuff is super expensive."
But Cecelia wasn't listening, as she had already abandoned us and grabbed a purple velvet dress from a table.
I whispered to Lily, "I bet that dress costs more than fifty bucks."
"I was thinking seventy."
"It's actually twenty exactly," said Cecelia.
"Really?" Lily grabbed something from another table, "This shirt's actually under twenty bucks." She held it up to her neck. "Oh wait, it's a crop top."
"You should wear more tops like those, they're cute." Cecelia suggested.
"Oooh, they're having a buy three, get three sale. Bri, you want some?"
"No, I don't need anymore tops." They weren't my style anyway. I liked to stick to simple and solid-colored v-neck t-shirts and jeans.
"I'll buy some." Cecelia offered and they soon began to make a mess. When they filled their arms with crop tops and a few other things, they headed over to the registers.
The vampire tried to grab Lily's things. "I'll pay."
She almost choked on her spit, "What? No way, this is probably like a hundred bucks."
"I insist," she took her clothes and it was the first time I saw her smile with her blindingly white teeth, "Compensation for inviting me out today."
"Yeah, but I still can't let you pay—"
"You can pay me back later."
At Cecelia's suggestion, we walked into Nordstrom next. We spent the majority of our time in the shoe section and talking about Cecelia's flawless features. Honestly, even I'd admit that she was one of the best looking—if not the best looking—in Gaia's clan.
"Did you wear braces when you were younger? Your teeth are literally so straight and perfect, I'm so jealous." Lily flooded her with compliments and she just shrugged them off. "And what do you do for your skin? How do you not have any acne?"
"I never had braces and I don't put anything on my skin."
"Impossible. . . Oh, and another thing, how is your hair so long and thick? Whenever I try to grow out my hair, I get split ends." She rambled.
"Do you want my cell phone number? You can call me and I can give you some pointers."
"Of course, that'd be so helpful," Lily nodded eagerly then grabbed my arm, "Hey Bri, you want Cecelia's number?"
Not really. "Sure."
After we traded numbers, we resumed shopping. Nothing caught my eye but I did stop to look at the sandals for a second while Cecelia lingered by the high heels. Lily was the only one who had something in her hands. She was the type of person to try things on but end up not buying them.
She grabbed her pile of clothes and headed to the fitting room, "I'm just gonna try these things on."
"Yeah, same—" I frantically searched for anything around me to try on but all I had were a pair of white flip flops. "Uh, actually, I'll be around here."
After she left, Cecelia returned and strutted back and forth in white kitten heels that everyone was wearing these days. She even got complimented by an older woman about how elegant she was.
"So you're going to high school now," I stated as she studied herself in the mirror. She met my eyes and nodded.
"I am."
"Did you decide that on your own or did Gaia make you so you could spy on us?"
"I wanted to see what was so special about modern day high schools."
"Really? That's all?" I didn't buy it.
"Why else would I enroll?"
She sat back down and took off the heels. She acted so normal, it was impossible to distinguish vampires from humans, because the only difference between the two was on a microscopic level. And the obvious fact that vampires killed humans.
"What's your deal? Why'd you pay for her clothes? Are you trying to buy her—because Lily isn't someone you can buy." Lily was my best friend and I wouldn't let her be sucked into the vampire world. She deserved better.
"This may surprise you but I don't have many friends. Most humans I come across either exclude me or ignore me completely." She told me and I felt a twinge of sympathy but then I remembered that she'd murdered many of those humans in cold blood. "Your friend didn't have to invite me but she did anyway. She was the only one that ever thought to talk to me."
That's because she didn't know the real you, I thought. She was too nice to everyone and one day, that would come back to bite her.
"I'm back! I think I'm just gonna get the four halters, five dresses, three baby tees, and a couple of low rise jeans. And these shoes and earrings." Lily said with a big smile on her face. "You guys good?" We nodded.
We paid and took the elevator to the ground floor. When we passed by a salon, Cecelia stopped us and pointed, "I want to get my hair done."
"What, why? Your hair is perfect." Lily objected but we were already being dragged inside.
Cecelia walked straight up to the receptionist and pointed to the picture of Christina Aguilera on one of their magazines, "I want to dye my hair. I'd like this color."
"Alright, it shouldn't take more than an hour. Right this way."
Lily and I sat down in the waiting area with all of our bags on the floor.
As the hair stylist wrapped Cecelia's hair in foil, Lily asked me, "So you like her, right?"
"Yeah. Do you?" Let me put it this way, she wasn't Isaiah. But it didn't make her harmless.
Cecelia glanced at us, no doubt listening to our conversation.
"She's so cool. And stylish. And mature. I bet she gets a ton of guys too. Do you think she knows a lot of single guys? Maybe she can hook us up." She elbowed me and I made a face. "Oh, I forgot, you're not into dating."
"I'm not not into dating, I'm just way too busy."
"Bri, you can be a straight-A student and still have a boyfriend, you know."
"I know that but my parents would kill me anyway."
Many people didn't know this about me but I wasn't born a genius. I had to work extremely hard to get the grades I got but for some reason, people thought everything came easy to me—even when they knew I studied all week.
Lily was probably the only one who saw how much effort I put into school. We studied together but she often tried to make my life a little more exciting by inviting me to places. Recently, she'd been trying harder than usual.
At that moment, Cecelia walked up to us donning her new hairdo. Straight platinum blond hair with red and black streaks replaced her brown ringlets. When she moved her head, the light reflected off of her hair and coated it with a luscious sheen. She also chopped off a few inches so her hair barely whispered her dainty collarbone, making her appear older.
The twenty-first century looked good on her.
"What do you think, ladies?"
"I love it. I've literally wanted to dye my hair that color ever since I saw it but I knew I could never pull it off. It looks so good." Lily gushed.
"It is really pretty," I admitted.
"I'd totally dye my hair if I had the money."
Suddenly remembering everything I had to get done tonight, I checked my phone and gasped at the time, "It's almost seven, we should go soon. I have tons of homework to catch up on."
She rolled her eyes. "When do you not have homework? It's all you ever do."
"Taking four APs isn't easy, you know."
Cecelia cleared her throat, "Well, thank you for inviting me, I had a lot of fun today. Are you two available on the weekend? We should do this again sometime."
"Of course! Just text me when and where." Lily linked arms with me and Cecelia as we walked outside. Maybe if Cecelia had stayed human and been born in our era, we would all be very good friends.