Chapter Eight
"What's the verdict on this one?" Lola stepped out of her dressing room in a bright red strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline and rhinestone belt at the waist. The eye-catching focal point of this dress, though, was its long, tiered red lace skirt, which just brushed the ground, even with the high heels she'd brought expressly for trying on dresses. ("Buying an evening dress is so hard, and that's without having to worry about whether you'll spend half the night tripping over your skirt or hoisting it up every time you want to take a step," she'd insisted, when Mel asked if it was really necessary for her to bring heels with her.)
I looked up from the rack I'd been skimming through halfheartedly and gave her a quick once-over. "Gorgeous, Lo, just like the last five you've tried on. Honestly, you'd think that this was your party, not mine. Any chance you want to help me out here instead of preening like a peacock?"
Her glossy lips slid into a pout, but that quickly vanished. "Try on that blue one," she said, pointing to the one dress I had slung over my arm. "I bet it'll be stunning."
"Yeah, 'Liss, it's not our fault that you're being too picky," Aqua insisted, appearing from behind the curtain next to Lola in a fuchsia-pink one-shoulder silk gown with a diagonally pleated bodice. The color popped against her dark skin, and the style showed off her trim, athletic body. "They've got some really nice stuff here."
"Alright, alright, I'll go try it on." I dropped the silk skirt of the eggplant-purple halter dress I'd been halfheartedly considering and headed for a curtain of my own.
It was the last day of classes for the fall semester. Everyone's stuff was all packed up and ready to go to our respective homes for the winter break, but before we all parted ways for two weeks, Lola had suggested a shopping trip in Magix.
The others had taken to it easily, without question – who would say no to a chance to shop? – but I knew in my heart that it was, in her own way, Lola's extending of an olive branch. Since our fight, we had been walking on eggshells around each other, never addressing the problem as if by not talking about it, it would simply go away. Now, enough time had passed for me to not be so mad at her anymore, but I knew that something had changed in our relationship – quite possibly for good.
"Come on, Alyssa! I want to see it already!" Lola's voice startled me from my thoughts, and I quickly pulled up the side zip the last inch or so, watching the full skirt swirl around my legs as I moved.
"Did I call it or what?" my blond friend cooed, pouncing on me the second I pulled the curtain back. "You look all kinds of fabulous in that thing, girl."
"Lola's right," Ivy said, looking up from the magazine she was leafing through, sprawled across the pink velvet ottoman in the back by the dressing rooms. "That color is beautiful with your hair and skin tone."
"Where're my props?" Lola laughed, coming around behind me and grabbing sections of my hair. "With your hair pulled up like this, something sparkly from the Sparx Royal Treasure Vault… can't you see it, 'Liss?"
I stared at myself in the mirror, trying to see why my friends were so awestruck. It was a pretty dress, no doubt – full-length bright blue satin, strapless with a pleated bodice, sparkling rhinestone pin at the waist, and a faux-wrap layer skirt. Still… call it a superstition, maybe, but I felt like when I had found the right dress, I would just know.
"I don't know, you guys," I said, stepping away from the mirror. "I don't think this is the one."
A collective groan rang out among my friends, clustered in the back of the store. "You're worse than a bride, 'Liss," Mel said, emerging from deeper within the store, armfuls of fabric draped over her arms. "What are you looking for anyways?"
"I'll know it when I see it," I insisted, turning back towards the dressing room.
"Oh my God, Alyssa! Fancy running into you here!" My blood turned to ice water at the sound of that voice, familiar but definitely not friendly.
What the hell is she doing here?
"Alexa!" I turned around to face her, plastering on a smile that was faker than Lola's nails. "What are you doing here?"
"Dress shopping; what else, silly?" She leaned in and squeezed me in a tight hug, filling my nostrils with the spicy scent of her perfume. My eyes watered slightly, and I resisted the urge to gag. When she released me, I saw two other girls hovering behind her, looking slightly put out that Alexa hadn't introduced them.
As if she could sense their annoyance, she turned around and pulled them forward. "Where are my manners! Alyssa, this is Kyra and Lucy, my roommates. Girls, this is Alyssa, the girl I was telling you about."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Alyssa," the first girl – Kyra – said, outstretching a hand with fingers manicured in chipping purple nail polish for me to shake. She was petite, with shoulder-length brown hair streaked with honey-blond, and bright green eyes shaded by a pair of stylish purple-framed glasses that she somehow managed to make look cute and not remotely dorky. She wore a pair of dark jeans and a purple V-neck cashmere sweater, the only makeup on her face a trace amount of lip gloss. I decided I liked her already (in spite of the company she kept).
"So you're Alyssa," the other girl – Lucy – remarked coolly, studying her French-manicured nails. Unlike Kyra, she didn't give me her hand to shake, nor did she offer any variation on "nice to meet you". She was tall, with long blond hair, blue eyes dramatically lined in black eyeliner, and plump Cupid's-bow lips slicked with coral gloss. Her clothes were stylish and trendy, if maybe a little weather-inappropriate: a tiny denim miniskirt with a frayed hem, and a long blue-and-white-striped cardigan over a tight black tank top (that showed off her… ahem, considerable assets).
Having eyeballed her two appendages, I turned my gaze back to Alexa. She wore a dark blue sleeveless mini-dress that clung to her slender frame like it was painted on, with only a small black half-sleeve sweater as a nod to the weather. Her makeup was flawless, and her hair fell down her back in a long glossy curtain, as always. That silver A pendant necklace hung around her neck, and for a moment I thought she'd worn it deliberately to remind me of her shared history with Ryan. Don't be stupid, Alyssa, I reminded myself. Not everything is always about you.
"You look so cute!" Alexa squealed, fingering part of the skirt of my dress. "What are you guys shopping for, anyways?"
"Oh, um, my birthday," I admitted shyly, playing with the rhinestone pin at the waistline.
Her eyes lit up. "Oh, happy birthday!"
I giggled. "It's not for another month or so. We're just dress-shopping early. Can't hurt, right?"
"No, it cannot," she laughed. "Well, good luck. I hope you find your perfect dress. Come on, girls, let's go see that personal shopper." The three of them disappeared into the racks of dresses, the strong, sweet smell of her perfume lingering in the air.
Lola was the first to speak. "Ugh," she said, waving her hand through the cloud of lingering perfume. "That girl makes me sick."
"Shh! Lola!" Ivy snapped. "She could hear you."
"So?" Ivy rolled her eyes.
"I don't trust her either," Aqua declared. "Anyone with half a brain can tell that she's only acting nice, and it doesn't even take that much smarts to see that she wants Ryan back. She's up to something, I'm sure of it, and that means our Alyssa is likely to get caught in the crossfire."
I laughed. "It's sweet that you guys are so worried about me, but I'm a big girl, remember? I think I can take care of myself. And right now, I just want to find the perfect dress." I swiveled my body, examining the dress from every angle in the mirror. "Which is definitely not this one." I headed back into the dressing room.
As I changed back into my regular clothes, a tiny part of me wondered if maybe they had a point. It certainly wasn't outside of the realm of possibility for Alexa to be setting me up. She wanted Ryan back, and who knew how far she'd go to get him? I shuddered, and made a mental note to call Ryan later tonight to schedule a date for while we were off from school.
When I came back out, I saw Lola and Dee posing in front of the mirror. "This is it," Lola declared. "This is the one."
"Very nice," I agreed, collapsing into a chair next to Ivy. The dress was pure Lola-style – hot pink silk chiffon and sleeveless, with a daringly low-cut V-neck, tight-fitting ruched bodice, and open back. Bands of rhinestone design encircled the bust and waist, with more rhinestones studded on the slim shoulder straps, and a long flowy skirt fell almost to the floor. Flashy, sexy, and stylish, and pink to boot; it was a perfect match for my most fashionista friend.
"I know, right?" She did a little twirl. "Are we almost all done here? I'm suddenly starving."
"I think so," Aqua said, coming out of her dressing room empty-handed. "D, you good? Mel, are you almost done in there?"
"Aw, A, you're not getting that pink dress? That was really pretty on you."
"Nah." She wrinkled her nose. "I guess when it comes down to it, I'm just not a pink girl."
"Well your loss is my incredible gain," Lola exclaimed, twirling around the tiny space again.
Aqua sized her up. "Very pretty, Lo. Now why don't you stop doing your best ballerina impression and get changed so we can go eat?" Lola sighed, but headed back into the dressing room. "Dee, what's your verdict?"
"I really like this," Dee said, twisting her body to examine herself from all angles. "What do you guys think?" She wore a full-length dark purple satin strapless gown with a fully pleated bodice and cinched empire waist trimmed with intricate crystal beading. The fabric was gathered below the bead trim, but then fell in a long, straight column towards her feet.
"Stunning," Miriam said.
"Ah-greed," Lola added. "Okay, great, Dee and I both have dresses. Let's go get lunch!"
"Not so fast, Lo," I reminded her. "Mel's still in there, remember?" She pouted, and I laughed.
"Hurry up, Mel," Aqua called. "Lola's starving, and we all know how she gets when she's in one of her moods."
Mel's laugh rang out over the curtain. "I'll be out in a minute." There was a sound like the rustle of fabric, and then she yanked back the curtain and stepped out into the center. "Well? What do you think?"
"…Wow…" Lola seemed to be at a loss for words.
"That dress looks like it was made for you," Aqua said.
I had to agree with her. It was an elegant black-and-white mermaid-fit strapless number with a multi-layered white fringe-detailed bodice and a royal blue satin sash tied at the empire waist. The skirt was long, black, and slinky, hugging the curve of her hips and falling all the way to the floor, ending in a slight flare.
Mel stood in front of the mirror, twisting from side to side. "I don't know… It feels so…"
"Glamorous?" Ivy tried.
"Sexy?" Aqua supplied.
"Not me," Mel finished. "It's so long and slinky… it feels a little stuffy, honestly. And how am I going to dance with this long skirt?"
"But it's so perfect! You have to get it," I insisted. "You could always get it hemmed, if you're really that concerned about not being able to dance."
"Get it or don't get it, I don't really care," Lola remarked, flopping backwards onto a couch, all excitement at Mel's incredible find having vanished into thin air. "Can we just go already?"
"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day when Lola is complaining about too much shopping," I laughed. "Why don't you and Dee go pay for your dresses? That'll save us some time, which means we can get out of here faster." Her eyes brightened; dresses in hand, the two of them headed for the cash register.
Mel pursed her lips, studying herself intently in the mirror. "I just don't know if I could feel comfortable in something like this."
"Mel, you're a knockout," Aqua said. "If you don't get that dress, it will be a crime against fashion."
She giggled. "I don't know… Hey Alyssa, help me unzip?" She gestured towards the dressing room.
I stood up and followed her, a little confused; obviously, she'd managed to get the dress on by herself without help, so why would she need me to help her get it off?
The reason became immediately clear as soon as she yanked the curtain door shut. "I need to talk to you about Miriam," she said, turning to face me, arms crossed over her chest.
"Not you too," I groaned. "What did Aqua tell you?"
She didn't even try to deny it. "I know it's hard for you to hear this, after what happened with Taylor and all, but it's because of that that you really should be more careful. And did you notice how weird she acts sometimes? Like how she'll only go somewhere if you're going there too? And you rarely ever see her with any other girls? I mean, I know the six of us are kind of a little circle, but at least we have some friends outside the dorm. Miriam doesn't. It's like she's, I don't know, got a specific purpose for being at Alfea – and not just to learn how to control her magic. And whatever that is, it has to do with you."
"Mel, you've officially been watching too many old crime dramas," I said, shaking my head. "Did you ever think that maybe it's because Miriam's my roommate, so we're naturally more close than she is to anyone else? And that because she was home-schooled, she doesn't really know how to act in an environment with so many new people? Cut her some slack, for God's sake! Just because she's blond and comes from Isis doesn't mean she's Taylor's clone or something."
Mel sighed. "Whatever. If you don't want to listen, it's not my fault. Unzip me?" She twisted her body so the zipper was facing me.
I yanked it down without saying a word, then parted the curtain just enough to slip through, still shaking my head, deep in thought. First Lola, then Aqua, now Mel. What is it with all my friends and hating on Miriam?
"Is everything okay, Alyssa?" Miriam asked, looking up from her magazine. Speak of the devil…
"Of course," I replied quickly, banishing those bad thoughts from my mind.
Mel emerged from her dressing room a couple minutes later, the black and white dress slung over her arm. "So? What's the verdict?" Aqua asked.
She inhaled. "I think I'm gonna get it."
Aqua grinned. "You're going to be the hit of the party."
"Don't I know it!" She laughed, and I saw the familiar fun-loving, mischievous light in her eyes. "You better step up your game, 'Liss, or else I'm going to outdo you at your own party!"
"Not a chance!" I retorted, laughing along with them.
Lola flounced back over to us, a giant tissue-paper-stuffed bag in hand. "Well? Is Mel getting that dress or not?"
"I am," she said, already heading in the direction of the cash register.
"Well then hurry up," Lola declared, throwing herself down onto the nearest chair. "I'm starving."
"Where should we go for lunch?" Ivy asked.
"There's a great pizza place not far from here," Dee supplied, already looking it up on her portable laptop (it was so tiny it folded up – somehow – into a bracelet).
The other girls started chattering away, all mentioning their favorite kinds of food or well-known restaurants in downtown Magix, but I found my eyes drifting over to Miriam. She was still sitting slightly off to the side, reading her magazine, as if the conversation wasn't even happening.
She's barely been to Magix before. Of course she wouldn't have anything to add to the conversation, I rationalized. But Mel's words had stirred up something in a corner of my brain. I couldn't help it – I stole another glance at her. If a random onlooker passed by, I doubted they would know she was with us.
Could she really feel that out of place with the rest of my friends? I wondered. And worse: is there any way that Mel – and Aqua, and Lola – aren't crazy?
Author's Note: I am holding a contest. Yes, that's right - a contest. You see, as good as I am with coming up with dresses, I'm not that great with fairy transformation outfits. And while I'm not spilling any spoilers, I do need those in the later parts of this book and certainly in the third book (which I am going to write!). So I am opening it up to all of you. Send me a PM with a detailed description of someone's (can be any one of the six, or Miriam too) outfit - can look like anything you want - and if I like it, not only will I give you major credit in my story, there are also some fabulous prizes to be won. Yes, prizes - everything from spoilers to the right to create an original character to go in one of my new stories. Even if you're not one of the ones chosen, I will still give an honorable mention (and perhaps something more...) to anyone who's brave enough to give it a try. So what've you got to lose? (And remember, the longer it takes me to get an outfit I like, the longer it will take me to write the last chapters. And y'all don't want that, do you?)
One more thing: Alyssa's is most critical, so whoever gets hers will get a bigger prize, hint hint.
Toodles!
- Authoress