After my initial shock wore off, Mina pushed me into a chair and began to give out orders.
"Lita, I want you on the hair. Amy, you've got make-up and eyebrow duty!" She turned around and smiled at Raye. "Can you help me pick out an outfit?"
Raye grinned and nodded. "I'd love to!"
For a long time, I couldn't speak, and I simply occupied myself with watching everyone prepare to get me ready. I glanced at the clock and noticed it was eight in the morning. Darien expected Serena to arrive at eleven, just three hours from now. With the hair extensions, the girls would be cutting it close.
"Serena!" Mina suddenly popped into my line of vision and I visibly jumped. "We've got a lot of stuff to do here, and we have a lot to catch up on. Why don't you tell us what you've been doing here so we don't get bored?"
So, that's what I did. For the next three hours I filled the girls in with my adventures here at Madison. I told them about the football game, I filled them in about my rivalry with Jarod for Raye's heart, and I recounted the now hilarious tale of how I managed to get the two together. I explained to them my growing affection for Darien, and even though Raye and Jarod had proved to be great friends, Darien was the person I was closest to here at the school. I told them about our cookie and ice-cream escapade, our many conversations together, and I finally told them about our spot on the roof.
"Darien takes you up there?" Raye suddenly broke in, her eyes wide.
"Yeah," I answered warily. "Why?"
She smiled softly. "He never takes anyone up there. He's told me about it, but he specifically explained that it was his place to think." She winked. "Guess he's found someone he wants to think with!"
I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, too bad it's Ren."
The girls laughed, but I sat back and pondered that. Was I really the only person Darien had invited up there? Did that mean something special? I mean, I knew Darien and I had a special friendship, but he was equally close to Mal and the other guys… right?
"Serena!" Amy's voice interrupted my thoughts, and I snapped out of it. She stood in front of me, mascara wand ready. "I need you to look up! Focus!"
I grinned and shook my head. My make-over was almost complete, and I was glad! If Lita pulled my hair too hard one more time, I was going to scream! Still, they were going through a lot of trouble, and I knew they were praying the results would be as wonderful as I hoped. I could feel Lita brushing my hair and I sighed with satisfaction. I had hair! Real hair! Lita had refused to get me the fake Barbie stuff, and had paid extra for the real thing. I knew she was working extremely hard to make sure it looked as real as it felt, and I silently thanked myself for deciding not to get a haircut. In the past six weeks my hair had grown a few inches, and I was beginning to look like a California surfer boy. Jarod had even joked that my hair looked like the lead singer's from Switchfoot. Right now, however, that was the last thing from my mind. I was just glad it was longer. It blended much better!
A half hour later, I was ready to scream. I had never stayed for so long in one spot, and I was supposed to meet Darien in twenty minutes! The fear was beginning to grip me, and I was once again having trouble focusing. Just when I thought I couldn't take anymore, however, I noticed the girls were standing in front of me, staring at their handiwork with a satisfied smile on their faces.
"So, that's what she looks like," Raye mused. "You didn't tell me you were beautiful!"
My eyes widened. "We're done?" I asked, my voice shaking a little.
"Welcome back, Serena!" Mina cried happily.
I slowly rose to my feet and turned towards the mirror. The brush in my hand fell to my feet, but I barely noticed. I was looking at me! The real me! My eyebrows were tweezed, I was wearing a bit of make-up, and my hair! I had hair! It was soft, and the same golden blonde I remembered, but best of all, it was long! I squealed with delight, and jumped up and down, hugging my arms to myself. Then, I turned around and threw my arms around my friends.
"Thank you," I whispered, and I could feel my eyes welling up. It was so stupid, but it felt so good to see me in the mirror.
"Oh don't cry, Serena!" Lita moaned, and that's when I did start to cry.
"Good thing I used waterproof," Amy said factually, and my sobs turned to giggles.
"Thank you so much!" I blubbered. "I can't tell you how happy I am!" I laughed. "It's better than sex!"
"How would you know?" Mina joked, and we all laughed.
"We're not quite done yet," Raye reminded us, and I looked down to see I was still clad in sweatpants and a sweatshirt. She grinned. "I hope you shaved your legs!"
I had shaved my legs, and I was glad I'd done it. The girls had set me up with a pretty, light gray fifties-style skirt that reached just past my knees, and a beautiful pink cashmere v-neck sweater that was wonderfully soft to the touch. I laughed as my eyes fell upon the bra and underwear laid out on top of the outfit, but I was glad to see my feminine friends. It had been a while since I had worn such things. I smiled, knowing this outfit was perfect for the Indian summer we were having this year. The warmth hadn't left yet, but the leaves were beginning to turn. I was going to feel very Audrey Hepburn today, but I had no problem with that! Lita handed me a pair of simple black strap-on heels, and I took them.
"You've got five minutes, honey…" She informed me, winking. "I suggest you get changed!"
I smiled and began to walk away, when Mina stopped me. "Don't forget this!" She whispered, and pressed something into my hand.
I uncurled my fingers only to reveal a flash of diamond and silver in the shape of a crescent moon. I smiled, and shook my head in quiet disbelief.
"My necklace…"
Mina grinned mischievously. "Go get him girl!"
Five minutes later I emerged from the bedroom feeling like a girl. My feet were in not-so-comfortable heels, I was painfully aware of my hips and butt thanks to the clinging of my skirt, and my bra-straps dug slightly into the tops of my shoulders. Yep, I was feeling pretty good!
"Well, what do you think?" I asked, twirling around slowly so they could get a good look.
Mina whistled. "I told you I was going to turn you into a girl that would knock Darien's socks off!"
I blushed and shook my head. "Are you guys ready?" I asked.
They glanced down at their clothes, and nodded.
"Looks that way," Lita affirmed.
"Well, let's go then!" Raye said, heading towards the door.
The girls filed out one by one, but I remained where I stood. I realized then that I was terrified, and not even the warm smile Raye shot me from the door could quiet my pounding heart.
"I don't think I can do this!" I moaned softly.
"I think you can," she murmured.
I closed my eyes and willed my feet to move. For once, my body followed orders, and in seconds I was striding past Raye, who shut the door behind us. The clock read 11:03.
Walking back to the entrance of the boys' school took an amazing amount of concentration. We were taking the long way round, and the extra distance was certainly taking its toll. I not only struggled to get used to the extra three inches added to my height, but I was also having trouble breathing. Why was I being so weird? I knew this school like the back of my hand, and Darien was one of my closest friends… Still, I had been out of the feminine realm for so long, and being a girl felt very foreign to me-a scary thought for a seventeen year-old girl.
I felt someone grip my hand, and I turned to see Raye smiling at me.
"I'm going to leave you here," she said gently, giving my fingers a comforting squeeze. "Darien will think it's weird if I show up with you, but I'll only be ten minutes behind. Be brave, okay?"
I took in a shuddering breath, and nodded. "Okay."
Raye left then, and Lita and Amy filled her place at my side. Silently, we continued on, until the front of the school finally came into view. I stopped as I caught sight of Darien in the front entryway, pacing back and forth. I smiled for the first time since we left Raye's room. He looked as nervous as I felt!
"Are you ready?" Mina asked.
I hesitated for a moment, but then nodded. "Yeah, let's go."
Mina led the way, followed by Raye and Amy, and I took up the rear. My sister was confident, walking across the front lawn like she owned the place, and when Darien caught sight of her, he stopped short. He stared at us as we made our way over, and I could tell he was trying to figure out if Mina was me, or someone else.
"Are you Darien?" Mina suddenly called, and I saw his face relax with relief.
"Yeah!" He cried, stepping out into lawn to meet us halfway.
"I'm Mina," she said, extending her hand. He took it, and shook gently. "It's nice to meet you!" She glanced back at me and grinned. "I've heard a lot about you."
Darien, however, wasn't really paying attention to her. His impossibly blue eyes were focused on me, and a deep, warm feeling began to spread from the pit of my stomach out into my fingers and toes. He sees me, I realized, and I resisted the urge to explode with happiness right there. He really sees me!
"Serena," he suddenly murmured, and Mina stopped mid-sentence, and smiled wider.
For a moment I couldn't speak. I felt my cheeks warm, but all I could think of was how wonderful it felt to hear him say my name! I felt like a character in a corny romance novel, every word and look meant something from him-especially because he could finally see and know the real me!
As wonderful as these realizations were, however, I was still staring at him stupidly and not saying a word.
"H-Hi, Darien," I finally managed.
"Well," Mina suddenly spoke up, clapping her hands together. "I see you two know each other! That will make things a lot less awkward!" She winked at me from over Darien's shoulder.
"Hey Darien!" Someone suddenly called from behind us, and we turned to see Nathan coming towards our group with Zach, Mal, and Jarod in tow. "Where'd all the babes come from?" Nathan asked casually, and the girls and I laughed nervously.
Nathan's casual joke broke Darien out of his stupor, and he finally noticed that I wasn't the only one there. I admit I took a lot of pleasure from his obvious embarrassment!
"Oh! These are Ren's, uh, visitors," he explained. "They came here to see him, but he's got detention with Ms. Haruna. He wanted me to show them around," he said weakly.
"And you wanted to keep them all to yourself?" Nathan chided, clucking his tongue. "For shame!"
"No! It's not like that!" Darien protested, but Nathan cut him off.
"Are you going to introduce us or what?" he asked, then took notice of me, and his grin widened. "Well, you won't have to introduce all of us." Darien blushed, and looked away.
"You guys, this is Ren's sister, Mina-" he explained, gesturing towards my sister, who waved. "And these two are…" he suddenly trailed off, and I nearly laughed outright. "I'm sorry," Darien apologized, "I didn't get your names…"
"I'm Lita," Lita broke in. "And this is Amy," she said, bringing my dark-haired friend forward.
Amy smiled at the boys, but a blush crept into her cheeks when she met Zach's gentle blue eyes. I raised my eyebrows when Zach blushed too, and suddenly I had a very evil idea. For the first time I realized there were as many girls present as boys, and if I played my cards right, I wouldn't be the only one walking away with a boyfriend when this was all over.
"And I know you all remember-" Darien began.
"Of course we remember Serena!" Nathan interrupted, flashing me his best smile. "Though I must admit, you look a lot cuter without your uniform!"
I laughed and shook my head, but also took note of the sad look on Lita's face. So… Lita already had a thing for Nathan! I wonder what she would say if she knew he thought she was cute!
"Cool it Nathan," Mal broke in, and walked right up to Mina, whose gaze widened a bit. "I'm Malcolm," he said softly, and extended a tanned hand. She shook it, and stepped back a little.
"Nice to meet you," she said easily.
Jarod suddenly cleared his throat, and I grinned. "Well, rather than introducing us all individually, I'll just do it all at once!" He said with a smile. "I'm Jarod," he pointed to himself, "and that's Nathan, Zach, and of course you all now know Malcolm and Darien…"
"Hi," we all said together, and laughed.
"Well," Nathan said, clasping his hands together. "Are we going to stand around here all day, or do you ladies want to see the sights. I know Darien is your designated tour guide, but would you mind it much if we showed you around?"
"Not at all," Lita answered, and Nathan suddenly looked shy for the first time that day. However, he noticed her bright smile, and relaxed a bit. "Well, let's go then," he said, gallantly offering his arm.
Lita took it, and glanced back at the other girls. "You guys coming?"
"Yeah," Amy and Mina answered, and Zach and Mal weren't far behind with their responses.
They all headed toward the lake, and were not surprisingly paired off. From where I stood I could hear Amy asking Zach about the architecture of the buildings, and Mina flirting with a stuttering Malcolm. Lita and Nathan were just out of earshot, but somehow I knew conversation was flowing easier than either of them expected. Only Jarod, Darien, and I remained behind.
"Should we head after them?" Darien asked finally, and I hesitated, glancing back at Jarod.
"You guys go on ahead!" he assured me, running a hand through his blonde hair. "I have to wait for Raye."
"My sister," Darien explained, and I nodded in mock understanding.
"Okay," I answered.
Darien and I started after the group, leaving Jarod behind to wait for Raye, who I knew wouldn't be long. We didn't say anything for a long time, but finally, Darien broke the silence with a nervous cough.
"So," he began, "how have you been?"
I smiled. "Busy," I answered, and looked away at his questioning look. "You know, school, work… You?"
"Same," he replied.
Another long silence ensued, much to my dismay. When I was Ren, I could say anything to Darien. We had history now, things we could talk about… As Serena, I had nothing to go on! I couldn't even ask him about photography, because I wasn't supposed to know!
"I see a lot of Ren," He said suddenly, and I glanced up at him. "We've become really close."
I felt a little bit of the tension fall away. "Yeah, Ren's a great guy," I agreed, giving myself a mental pat-on-the-back.
"Isn't it crazy how I met him here?" Darien asked suddenly. "I mean, I met you at the café, and then just a couple of weeks later, he showed up!" He laughed, and I gulped. "Pretty wild huh?"
"Yeah. Fate's an interesting thing," I muttered.
"I'm glad he came," Darien said suddenly.
"You are?"
"Yeah, I am. He's gotten me through a lot of stuff this year, made me see things I couldn't before," He paused, and stared at me, and that warm feeling coursed through my body again. "I owe him a lot."
"Me too," I answered, before I could stop myself.
Darien smiled at that, and we continued on, catching sight of the group sometimes in the distance.
"Are you two very close?" Darien asked.
I grinned. "You could say that," I quipped, and struggled to hide the humor in my voice. "Mina, Ren, and I, uh, grew up together. There's not much we don't know about each other."
"Guess I should have pressed Ren a little harder about you then, huh?" Darien's eyes took on a new sort of glow, and my heart skipped a beat.
I must have had a surprised look on my face, because Darien suddenly looked quite contrite.
"I'm sorry," he apologized. "I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."
"You didn't," I said quickly, catching his arm before he could walk away. "Just surprised me, that's all."
Relief dawned over his face, and he smiled at me gently. "Come on," he urged softly, "we better catch up before we lose them."
I nodded and reached for his hand, gasping as an unexpected surge of electricity traveled up my arm. I looked up to see that Darien had felt it too, and immediately remembered the day I'd come to Madison. This is weird, I thought to myself. But I didn't let go.