"The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed." Carl Jung (1875 – 1961)
Exile: Day 4Scarlett was sore, very sore. She wasn't sure how long the actual fight had lasted; but from the way she felt this morning, it had lasted entirely too long. Scarlett hadn't started it (had she?), but she damn well tried to finish it. Rolling over on the bed, she felt the steak she had placed on her swelling eye slip across her face. Gross. Damn, but Lady Jaye had one helluva right hook. If Scarlett hadn't delivered a well-aimed punch to the gut that knocked the wind out of her, Lady Jaye would probably still be tearing out plugs of her hair. As a matter of fact, she distinctly remembered seeing a chunk of her hair in Lady Jaye's fist.
She raised her hand to feel if there were any serious bald spots, and gave a sigh of relief when she could not detect any. Lady Jaye was, physically, no match for her; however, what she lacked in skill she made up for like a Chihuahua on crack. Not that Scarlett hadn't landed a few good ones of her own.
Scarlett winced as she raised her left arm to see what time it was. Aw hell. Wasn't this lovely? Her watch was broken. Removing the watch, she tossed it into the nearby trashcan. The movement caused the steak to slide on the floor with a resounding splat. As she reached over to grab the offending piece of meat, she caught a whiff of herself. OK, most definitely time for a bath. She pulled herself up off the bed and trudged into the bathroom to take a hot shower.
A short time later, Scarlett stepped under the piping hot water. It felt good to let the water sear her bruised and battered flesh. If only it were this easy to take care of her bruised and battered ego.
The running water woke Lady Jaye out of a deep sleep. She felt as if she had been hit by a tank. It took her a minute or two to realize what had happened the previous evening. She had slightly underestimated Scarlett, but it wouldn't happen again. If she ever decided to fight the redhead again, and that was a mighty big if. Next time she would just pull out a gun and shoot the crazy bitch. Where in the world had they dug that woman up? Scarlett was a first-class menace.
Lady Jaye winced as she forced herself into a sitting position. As she raised her hand to push her hair from her eyes, she noticed she was still holding several strands of long red hair. She would have smiled if her jaw had not been rife with pain.
Once she thought about it, the whole situation was rather funny. Jaye smiled and wondered if this is what it was like to have a sister. Whoa! Backup! Did she just take a sharp left in her thinking, or what? Sister?! That bad tempered shrew? That hormonal wolverine? A sister, or anything like one? Not in this lifetime, or any other for that matter. Lady Jaye shook her head as if to clear the irritating thought, but immediately regretted the action. She was going to have some serious bruises in a couple of days. Hearing the water stop running, she figured she would give Scarlett a few minutes to vacate the bathroom they shared, and then she would go soak in a tub of hot water. She would just lie there and pray the room stopped spinning by the time Scarlett went back to her room
Scarlett felt a little better, and she smelled better too. She didn't feel as stiff as she had minutes ago, but she was still rather sore. She stepped over to the mirror above the sink and groaned at her reflection. No way was she going to let Lady Jaye see the large purple bruise that was beginning to make itself the dominant feature on her face.
She pulled out one of the drawers and dumped the contents on the counter-top. There had to be some cosmetic foundation in here somewhere. She distinctly remembered buying some a few years back. She found the little bottle and unscrewed the top. Was it supposed to smell like that? Maybe it should be shaken up first. She replaced the cap and gave it a vigorous shake.
After pouring the liquid on the applicator sponge, she raised it to her face. She began dab the sponge on the offending purple mark. It was not turning out as she had planned. The purple mark was fading under the thick coat of makeup, but the rest of her face was pale in contrast. So, she applied more. After applying several coats of the goop, she was fast becoming frustrated. So frustrated, in fact, that she didn't hear the door to the bathroom open.
Lady Jaye watched the scene in front of her with horror. What in the world was Scarlett attempting to do to herself? Any more makeup and Elizabeth Arden herself would slap the taste out of her mouth! Didn't she know the more foundation you put on the darker it got?
This was a crime of fashion that no self-respecting woman in the know would allow to happen. Without giving herself time to think, Lady Jaye walked over to the mirror and snatched the applicator from Scarlett.
"You're doing it wrong," was all she said.
Ignoring Scarlett's look of disdain, Lady Jaye rummaged in another drawer and came up with some makeup remover.
After handing the bottle to Scarlett, she said, "Here, use this to take that mess off your face."
Scarlett folded her arms across her chest and replied, "I don't recall asking for or needing any help from you."
"No, you didn't ask for my help, but you sure as hell need it!" As Scarlett's hackles visibly rose, Lady Jaye continued, "Take an honest look at that pathetic creature in the mirror and tell me she doesn't need some help."
Scarlett turned to look at herself in the mirror. What she saw made her want to cry, vomit, and laugh all at the same time. Funny how things look alright until someone comes along and points out a fatal flaw in the design. She really was a dismal sight. After trying valiantly to keep from laughing, Scarlett couldn't help herself. It started as a chuckle, and then turned into a full-bellied laugh. Lady Jaye soon joined her. They laughed together until neither could breathe, and both had tears streaming down their faces.
When they had calmed down, Scarlett took the bottle of makeup remover and proceeded to eliminate all traces of the offending foundation. By the time she had rinsed the last of it off, Lady Jaye had taken a seat on the vanity top.
"OK Red, now we give you some makeup lessons. Oh, and incidentally, I think these belong to you," Lady Jaye held out her hand to Scarlett.
As Scarlett approached her, she saw Lady Jaye held a lock of long red hair.
TBC