"Revenge is like a plume of smoke. It seems tangible, but when you reach for it, you're grasping at nothing but air." - K. Lynn Smith

"Nothing but air, huh?" I whisper.

I can't believe she's gone. They took her, and others. When is it going to stop? Why is everyone so afraid of becoming pretty? Being beautiful is the best part of our lives!

My room pings at me. "You have a visitor, Hadley."

"Thank you, let them in." I say. Most Uglies were mean to their rooms. I was always nice to it. After all, it never does anything to me but wake me up for breakfast and remind me when my classes are. It's like a parent, except nicer. Plus, it never makes fun of my red hair and buck teeth.

"Hey Rabbit." my friend Jaslene says to my back. I sigh. I hate when people call me that.

"Hi Bug-Eyes." Jaslene doesn't have doe eyes like Pretties do. She has black, bulgy eyes that look really scary at nighttime. I twist my interface ring to brighten the room up.

"Still scared of my eyes, I see." she says bitterly. I shake my head and open my morphos software. I stared at Tiara's Pretty face. She would have been beautiful. All of us, finally pretty!

Now it's just me and Jaslene. At the end of this week, I'd be moving to New Pretty Town, and in two more weeks, Jaslene would be joining me. Tiara would have completed the circle at the end of the month. We'd all be pretty in December. We all loved winter, and it was perfect for us to be beautiful snow angels, me with brown hair in loose waves, Jaslene with doe eyes and a short blonde bob and Tiara, no longer thin and tiny, a tall, healthy Pretty with straight, light brown hair. It would have been the time of our lives.

I close the morphos software and collapse onto my bed, curling up into a ball and sobbing. The Smoke had taken my best friend, and for all I know, she could be dying without her medication. She didn't take her meds with her, just left them in a pile on her bed. We're all devastated, but I haven't gone a day without crying. I trusted her so much, and I thought she trusted me! Why wouldn't she tell me she was unhappy? We could have found her a good doctor that maybe would have at least operated on her enough to fix her immune system. I just can't believe she's gone.

I feel Jaslene wrap her arms around me and kiss the back of my head. "I know it's hard, but we still have each other."

I hug my pillow and nod. "I'll always have you. Please don't leave me too." I whisper, squeezing my eyes shut.

"Why would I do that?" she asks me. I shrug and sigh. Why would she leave me?

The next day feels long and boring. I get stuck with cleaning duty and almost miss lunch. Meatloaf. I think I wouldn't mind missing meatloaf once in a while, but an Ugly's gotta eat.

I finally reach my room and lay on the bed.

"Welcome back, Hadley." the room says to me.

"Thank you." I mumble. I close my eyes and wrap myself up in my comforter. I know Jaslene's coming over, but I tried to sleep anyways. I know she'd just cuddle with me till I woke up. That's how it's always been with us.

These last few days, I needed Jaslene more than ever. Soon I'd be waiting another two weeks to see her again, and it would be hell. I've heard that some Pretties forget their friends because they're just so happy to finally be pretty. For me, that's a really scary thought! I don't want to forget Jaslene, I just... I love her too much to break that bond over being pretty.

"You have a visitor, Hadley."

"Let her in." I mumble, my eyes still closed. I hear the door open, and Jaslene's footsteps. The bed sinks under her weight, and her arms wrap around me.

"I'm gonna miss you a lot." she says softly.

"I'll miss you too. I hope we get to live in the same mansion."
"Me too."

We laid there like that for hours. I don't sleep all night. When I look at my clock, it says 3:00 AM. It's Thursday. Saturday is my birthday. I turn around to look at Jaslene. She's sound asleep, the moonlight illuminating her light hair. I'll admit, I'm superficial, and I always thought she looked adorable...with her eyes closed. Just the way her eyes bulge always creeps me out.

I still love her though. Her looks were never a biggie in our relationship, because she's so sweet and she always makes me laugh.

I wonder...when we become pretty, will we still be the same on the inside?

We skip class Thursday and Friday and go boarding in the woods. For the most part, we hold hands, but we have to separate sometimes to avoid getting our arms ripped off. It's funny. In this past week, we've become closer than I ever was with Tiara.

We still have to find her so the doctors can fix her. I just hope we aren't too late.