Tired of high school boy nonsense, Star and Paulina find that they much prefer each other's company.
When Paulina heard her phone ring at ten o'clock that night, she knew immediately who it would be. What she didn't know was how horribly wrong her best friend's date had gone.
She told Star to come over for ice cream and a movie, making popcorn in her pj's for the two of them. When the doorbell rang and Paulina saw Star, she couldn't help but feel her own gut twist at her friend's pain.
She had mascara running down her cheeks, a pillow in one arm and a teddy bear in the other.
"Come on, chica. We need to get that makeup off first." she decided.
Star gave her a weak smile but threw herself into Paulina's arms. She sobbed briefly on the other girl's shoulder, knowing she was teasing to get her mind off of how she felt.
The two went inside, and Paulina took Star's things, setting them on her king-sized canopy bed before pulling Star gently toward her bathroom. She set her in front of the vanity, sitting in the overstuffed, velvet chair.
Paulina stood behind her, huffed, and set to work. She said nothing, knowing Star would either start to bawl her eyes out again or rant about it unintelligibly, and that wasn't a help to anyone. She started to pull back her best friend's long, blonde hair, brushing it as she went.
"He isn't worth it, you know," Paulina said. She continued to focus on Star's hair.
Star looked up from her hands in her lap to look at Paulina in the mirror.
Paulina noticed the movement but didn't raise her head as her hands began to weave a braid. "No guy is worth you crying over. I mean, honestly Star. Do you really think any guy would kill to get a piece of you?"
Star chuckled but it was half-hearted. "Yeah, like I have pretty great hair, I guess."
"You guess? Your hair, your body, your face…. You're a knockout!" she said as she finished the braid. She put her hands on the other's shoulders. Star turned to face Paulina. Paulina waved a hand over Star's body. "Any guy would actually die to get any of this."
Star put a hand to her mouth as she giggled. "Stop it, seriously! After what happened tonight-!"
"Like I said, he isn't worth your time."
Star poured about being cut off and folded her arms, but Paulina merely pretended not to notice; although, she was glad Star was starting to act a little more like herself. Paulina reached behind Star for some makeup wipes and kneeled in front of her as she started to gently rub her face clean.
Paulina was careful to get under her friend's eyes specifically but also made sure to get the remaining mascara off of her lashes so as not to irritate her eyes in her sleep. The crying wouldn't do them any favors in the morning anyway.
She continued to work, playfully poking Star's cheeks a little too hard at times just to get another sing-song giggle out of her. When Paulina reached Star's lips to clear them of lipstick, she paused. She carefully rubbed at the top, her mouth moving a little with the push from the wipe. Paulina's thumb ran over Star's bottom lip through the wipe, and its softness made her a little uneasy.
"Your lips are a little puffy," Paulina said when she realized Star was watching her intently. "Did he kiss you?"
"Eww, gross!" she said. "I mean, he's hot but like, not kissing kind of hot. His lips are like, super flaky and dry."
Paulina scoffed. "Yeah, not like mine!" She put a hand proudly over her chest to punctuate her point.
Then Star leaned forward over Paulina and pressed her lips to hers.
Paulina made a yelp of surprise when they connected, but Star seemed to think nothing of it as she felt her way around her best friend's lips. Paulina felt the soft tenderness she was sure existed in Star's kiss from cleaning those lips merely moments before.
And as quickly as it started, it was over.
Star pulled back and dared to lick her bottom lip. She smacked her lips together. "Yours are definitely better than everyone else's I've kissed."
Dumbfounded - and still a little lightheaded - Paulina nodded. "I'll take what I can get apparently."