"IT WAS ABOUT TIME you took me out, son."
Aura grinned as Grandma Ruby shook her head and smacked her son's arm playfully as he drove.
"Ma!" he complained, rubbing the spot with one hand. He pouted as he gazed at his mother for a second. "And you always insisted on cooking everyday. Whenever I suggested going out to eat, you said there was food at home."
"So?" she counteracted.
Aura laughed as her father groaned. Her own mother was holding back her chuckles beside her. Grandma Ruby kept complaining, earning more huffs from her father as they drove.
Her father had told them they were going out to eat breakfast that morning, right before Grandma Ruby was getting ready to cook. He ordered her to drop what she was doing and get ready. She complained, but eventually caved and got into her nice skirt and blouse.
When Aura was done with her soft makeup look—a bit of concealer under her eyes, mascara, and lip balm—Grandma Ruby bursted into her room and asked if she could help her with her makeup. The words made Aura squeal, and she directed her grandmother to take a seat as she worked her magic.
She knew she couldn't do the heavy makeup she was used to doing on clients. Most of her clients had weddings, proms, or other formal events to attend. They were simply going out to eat, and she was secretly hoping to convince her father to take them shopping afterwards.
Aura took a look at Grandma Ruby's makeup products and almost threw them into the trash can on instinct.
She had turned to her grandmother and said, "Grandma, you need new products."
Grandma Ruby laughed, and told her to use whatever she owned on her if she pleased. So that's what she did. Knowing her kind of style, Aura knew she couldn't go overboard, so she tamed her eyebrows softly, added a deep red blush on her cheeks to make her dark skin look flush, and covered her lips with a clear gloss.
She had loved it, obsessing over the fact that she actually had blush on.
Aura, then, convinced her father to take them to a makeup store. She wanted to buy Grandma Ruby new products because whatever she had were definitely not it. When the familiar orange of the makeup store came into view, she almost jumped up and down like a child on her seat. She was in her element.
"Grandma, are you ready to get new and better products?" Aura asked, already fumbling with her seatbelt to take it off.
Grandma Ruby laughed and told her she better get her that blush among other things. Aura cheered as her father lined up at the entrance of the store.
"I'll leave you ladies here, I'm heading to the hardware store to see if I can find something to fix that leak in Aura's room," her father said.
"Alright, be careful, honey," her mother told him. They shared a meaningful look, which almost made Aura puke, before going towards the makeup store.
The smell of makeup products slapped her in the face as she entered. The bright stands offering special deals and highlighting new products entranced her, so she moved towards it, looking over at some new tropical inspired collection.
"Okay, Grandma, we are going to get you set," Aura said, motioning towards the store. "First off: let's get you that blush."
WHEN THEY GATHERED EVERYTHING they wanted, they fumbled together to the check-out line. A teenage girl stood in front of them with a lone mascara. She chewed on her cheek as she was called to pay, so Aura stepped up carrying all the items she was buying for Grandma Ruby.
Grandma Ruby kept being her sassy self, but Aura could tell she was excited. Her dark eyes glistened as Aura kept piling up the products. She was a woman who loved anything beauty, but was used to the fact that most products wouldn't work for her. Fortunately, things were starting to look up in that regard. The industry had a long way to go, but now there were some options.
When the teen paid for her item, the cashier waved them over. Aura waddled up the counter and plopped the bag between her and the cashier.
"Did you find everything good?" The cashier asked as he started ringing her items.
"Yep!" She chirped, fumbling for her wallet.
"Hey, you look familiar," he said, staring at her face for a second before going back to ringing the products. "I've seen you somewhere."
"Maybe you've seen me at the beach in Cornelius?" Aura offered. She had gone to the beach a few times with Tyson. The thought of him made her insides tangle. The day before had brought their feelings right to the forefront, where they exploded in their faces.
Her mother and grandmother, seeing her get into conversation with the cashier, walked back to the front.
"No," he trailed off, looking up at her once more. Realization dawned on his face, his green eyes almost bulging out of their sockets. "You're that makeup artist that does all those fantasy looks! I literally just found you the other day. I saw that issue on your looks this morning and was obsessed."
Aura's heart hammered in her chest as he presented her with the orange bags. "Oh, thanks!" She inserted her debit card when prompted as a deep blush tinted her cheeks. The cashier complimented her skills again as she walked away, smiling from ear to ear.
After getting home, she logged onto her socials, already antsy to find out what that cashier was referring to. Sure enough, once her account loaded, she was bombarded with notifications left and right. Her mentions were filled to the brim until her eyes caught sight of a specific tag.
She clicked on the post and almost fainted right then and there. Her makeup looks were featured on Aphrodite's Gaze, the popular online beauty magazine she adored.
A squeal escaped her eyes as she jumped in excitement. Immediately, she went to their magazine site and clicked on her feature.
Aura drank up the article, crying as the journalist who wrote it complimented and reacted wonderfully to her looks, calling it: 'a refreshing other-wordly summer adventure' on her social account.
Her mother entered her room, concern etched on her face. Aura couldn't contain herself and told her the news, and gasped for air at the end. Before her mother could say anything, she ran to the backyard, punching in Gwenn's number by memory.
"Have you seen it?" Aura squeaked when the call went through.
"Huh? What have I seen?" Gwenn asked, already on the alert.
Aura stomped her feet on the dirt, trying hard to contain her squeals. "I was featured on Aphrodite's Gaze. They loved my fantasy looks that I've been doing this summer and wrote an article on them!"
"What? No way!" Gwenn started squealing with her. "Oh my God, hold up, let me pull it up on my computer."
Aura waited a few minutes. Gwenn squealed again.
"Oh my God! Oh my God! They featured my best friend. Holy cow, my best friend is featured in a beauty magazine!"
The two continued screaming like hyenas. Aura couldn't believe it. She faintly heard the sound of the back door opening, and she turned to see her entire family, Tyson, and Mrs. Smith watching her freak out on the phone.
"Okay, holy crap..." Aura breathed into the call. "G, I'm gonna have to go and explain to my family why I'm screaming, but I'll FaceTime you tonight."
"You better," Gwenn said. "Ah! I can't believe it! I'm going to be reposting this everywhere." Aura giggled as the call disconnected.
"What is up with that yelling, baby? I thought you were getting murdered," Grandma Ruby said, placing a hand on her hip.
"Grandma, and everyone here because you thought I was getting murdered," Aura started, barely containing herself. "I just got featured on a popular beauty magazine for my fantasy makeup looks this summer. In other words, I got recognized!"
"Ari, that's great!" Tyson rushed to her and she jumped into his arms. The rest filed inside as they continued their hug. It was as if they knew they would take a while to break apart.
Aura pulled away after long minutes of being in his arms. Tears brimmed her eyes as she looked down at her phone. She went on her socials again, seeing how more notifications piled up one after the other. So many people went through her post, liking and commenting on their favorite looks. Some even demanded more.
She clicked on her profile and gasped as the number of followers increased tenfold.
"This is what I've been wanting for so long," she whispered. "This moment is what I've been looking for, and then my career could start falling into place."
"You're talented, Ari, I'm surprised this hasn't happened sooner." Tyson leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She smiled, and then went back to the article.
She stared at it in aghast. Wondering if it was all a dream resulted in her asking Tyson to look it up on his own. He rolled his eyes with a smile, and showed it to her through his phone. That garnered another squeal she had deep in her throat.
He laughed and hugged her, congratulating her over and over.
She sighed and wondered what would happen as a consequence to her recent exposure. Surely she could get more clients, or perhaps even some job offers. She could only hope and wait for the right opportunity.