Hey guys! This one's a little longer than my other stories, mostly because it flowed a lot easier. BTW it's mostly fluff, but hey, it's juicy fluff! Hint: Alice's fashionable instincts really come into play. Here's a disclaimer: I do not own any of the wonderful characters portrayed in the following stories (though I wish I did) - they all came from the genius brain of Stephenie Meyer.
I sighed heavily, expressing my extreme irritation and weariness as Alice forcefully pushed me and a mountain of clothes into a nearby dressing room. I staggered and nearly fell over as the mountain swayed dangerously in my arms.
"Alice!" I complained, a frown stretching across my face. "I never would have agreed to our little play date if I'd known it would entail seven hours of hard-core shopping!" I dumped the clothes on the floor and pouted childishly, my arms crossed.
"Which is why I kept that bit a secret," Alice teased as she gracefully danced her way over to the massive heap of garments, quickly plucking a shell-pink cardigan and floral-patterned knee-length dress from the mess. She tossed the selection my way and being the incredibly clumsy person that I am, I reached and missed. Cheeks blushing in embarrassment, I stooped over to grab the clothes and tugged them on. I halfheartedly gave a little spin as Alice studied the outfit with great concentration; finally she dismissed the choice with a small shake of her pixie-haired head.
"It's cute, but it doesn't exactly scream 'sexy', you know?" she said. "Edward said this date he was planning for you guys was going to be very special, which means your outfit needs to be top-of-the-line." Alice smirked.
I started to undress, throwing the rejected outfit on top of the 'discards' pile in the corner of the dressing room. "Edward doesn't care about my fashion choices," I argued back. "He only cares about me."
Alice raised a carefully-plucked eyebrow. "So you're telling me that you won't even try to please the man who painfully stifles his most basic urges and temptations just to be with you?"
I knew instantly that she was only using this line of reasoning in order to talk me into another few hours of shopping, but I instinctively surrendered anyway. I already felt that I didn't deserve Edward as a boyfriend…the least I could do was attempt to look nice for our date tonight.
Edward had been rambling on about our date for at least two weeks now, which was scheduled in celebration of our one-year anniversary. I had made him promise that he would not spend too much money on the aforementioned date; he had done so reluctantly, shifty-eyed and unconvincingly notwithstanding. He seemed really excited about tonight's plans, and I silently vowed to myself that I would do everything in my power to make this night one for the ages.
I looked at my watch anxiously and noted the time, which was 6:24. Edward said that he would pick me up at 7:00 for our date…which gave me only thirty-six minutes to decide on an outfit, get ready, and get to my house! I began to panic and voiced my worries to Alice. She reassured me that we would have enough time, but we would have to pick up the shopping pace.
"Next!" Alice trilled in a sing-song voice, this time handing me another outfit to try on. Although I did not particularly care for high fashion or doggedly follow the current style trends like most teenagers, the clothes that lay in my hands were so beautiful and skillfully detailed that even my mouth fell open upon close examination. Alice beamed at my unexpected reaction. She explained the outfit before me in a pretend-snooty voice.
"The dress you're holding is Vera Wang. It is made of white eyelet lace and its high ribbon-detailed neckline is very reminiscent of the early 1900s. The demureness of the neckline and delicate capped sleeves is offset by the short and sexy hemline. Its empire waist is outlined by a sophisticated strand of cream-colored ribbon." Alice finished, sheer excitement evidently bubbling beneath her cool and unruffled façade.
I gazed at the elegant dress in wonder. I had never seen something so pretty, so refined, so charming. Reminiscent of the early 1900s? I thought, remembering part of Alice's knowledgeable speech. That would certainly suit Edward, I chuckled softly to myself. Unable to wait any longer, I slipped on the gossamer, gauzy dress, reveling in its exceptionally soft feel. A long strand of off-white pearls doubled twice around my neck and a pair of black patent-leather peep-toe heels were tugged onto my feet by Alice, who was clearly impatient when it came to my human sluggishness. I felt a gentle yank on my scalp as Alice pulled out my ponytail; brown wavy tresses fell across my shoulders and to the middle of my back. I spun around to see my reflection in the mirror and gasped.
The dress hugged my next-to-nothing curves and displayed my slim shape in a way I wouldn't think was possible. The hemline of the dress hit the middle of my thigh, and suddenly my legs looked longer and leaner than ever. The high, lacy neckline gave only a peek of my long and thin neck, which I knew would drive Edward crazy with desire. The adorable satin-trimmed capped sleeves flaunted my pale, slender arms and hands. I smiled at the image in the mirror, noticing how the midnight black of the shoes and the pure white of the dress contrasted beautifully.
"Wow!" Alice squealed, unable to keep quiet any longer, "you look amazing, Bella!" She clapped her hands together in delight and bounced up and down.
"Thanks, Alice," I said. I reached over and hugged her petite body. "I know I complain a lot when it comes to this shopping thing…but I really owe you. I think Edward is really going to love this on me." I blushed.
"Duh, silly!" Alice rolled her eyes. "He's going to die when he sees you…oops – poor choice of words." I laughed, turning back to the mirror and confidently placing a hand on my hip. But before I could further admire the outfit that Alice had expertly created, she pulled me to the floor with more force than I thought her waiflike stature could manage.
"Makeup-slash-hair time!" the little pixie sang, her musical voice resonating throughout the four walls of the dressing room that contained us. In a blur, Alice whipped out a bulky pink-leather chest that apparently held every makeup item from Sephora to Ulta. "Hold still and be quiet, 'kay?" she ordered me, the statement obviously more of a command than a polite request. Being the good-girl rule-follower that I was – and still grateful for her skilled fashion expertise – I held still as Alice poked and prodded my face with various sharp tools and beautifying instruments despite the clear discomfort of the experience. Minutes passed and I started to grow anxious again.
"Um, Alice, isn't my date starting really, really soon?" I asked nervously, skittish of the torture tools she held menacingly in her tiny hands.
"Almost…done…" the 4'10 vampire that worked on my makeup responded distractedly, her hands a blur as she squinted in concentration. Ten seconds ticked by. "There!" she said, her pointed face glowing in triumph, "I'm done!" Alice passed me a hand mirror and I lifted it to my face.
I gasped in surprise for the second time in fifteen minutes. I looked, well, beautiful! Rosy pink blush enhanced my cheekbones and made them more angular, while black mascara and peach-colored eyeshadow opened my brown eyes and lengthened my eyelashes considerably. I might practice that 'fluttering eyelashes' technique on Edward tonight, I thought mischievously. Who knows? I might actually get my way when it came to our quarrels over the…erm…physical aspects of our complicated relationship. A sharp nudge from Alice brought my attention back to the mirror in front of me. My lips pouted in a seductive way thanks to the shimmering red gloss that Alice had painted on. My eyebrows looked full and groomed, and my normally boring brown hair was parted to the side and waved down my shoulders. All in all, I was more than pleased with my appearance and thanked Alice profusely for all that she had done. I'm quite sure she was even more thrilled than me by the end result; a sunny smile alighted on her graceful features as she delightedly accepted my gratitude.
I checked the time and saw to my horror that we only had five minutes until Edward showed up at the house. I knew from experience that he was never tardy.
"What's wrong, Bells?" Alice asked upon seeing my distraught demeanor. I told her. Walking purposefully to the front of the store to pay for my outfit, shiny black Visa in hand, Alice smirked, a hint of condescension playing along the corners of her lips. As she flashed her driver's license at me I realized with dread that her sickeningly fast driving skills were no different from Edward's.
I smoothed my dress and hair with slightly trembling hands, trying my best to quell the butterflies in my stomach; their presence was partly due to nerves about the upcoming evening and partly owing to Alice's outrageously fast driving. I studied my reflection in the mirror for the last time as the doorbell rang. My heart accelerated and my palms grew even sweatier as I thought about the gorgeous man that was waiting for me. I inhaled deeply once and swung open the door.
There he was. My boyfriend. My Edward. Quite literally the most beautiful man in the entire world. He smiled crookedly at me, glancing up through his insanely long eyelashes that fringed the golden eyes that weakened my knees upon sight. Edward held one perfect, glistening red rose between his long pale fingers which he offered to me now. I shyly accepted the beautiful flower, powerless to contain the blissful grin that was quickly spreading across my face.
"Hello." Edward's charming voice practically hummed with anticipation. "You look…" He hesitated, his ocher eyes almost troubled. Edward took a deep breath and continued. "There are not words in the English language that can accurately describe how you look. You are always beautiful to me – you already know that – but tonight…" His words were cut short once again as his voice faltered. My brain worked overtime as I struggled to read the expression on my boyfriend's exquisite face. Was Edward…speechless?
I laughed with pleasure and understanding. Alice really did know how to put an outfit together. I made a mental note to thank her again for all her help. "So do you," I replied to Edward's stunned features as I threw my arms around his neck. He held me tight and into his ear I repeated the phrase in a murmur: "So do you."
How did you guys like that? It's a little different from my other stories, a little less serious...but I had so much fun writing it! I'm a girly-girl myself - I love dressing up and giving my friends makeovers - so I really connect with the fashion side of Alice! Drop me a review, purty please, I'd really appreciate it.