Chapter 4: Confident Confidence
Ally's POV
It's been 2 years since I last saw Team Austin. I left when we were all freshman, and now I was coming back to Miami, as a junior. What will they think of me? Do they miss me? Wait, what am I thinking? I should be mad at them! After all they changed me. Although, I can't say that was a bad thing.
Over at my high school in California, everyone used to bully me after they found out I bailed on Austin. They would as say that Cassidy was better than me and much more words that split my heart open every time. And that hit my breaking point.
Ever since I'd move to California, I had earned a TON of money. My dad was even able to give me an actual allowance, and yes, not breadsticks.
Anyways, everything and everyone just seemed to be getting to me, so I went to California Mall. As I wandered around I passed by a store wearing the type of clothes I would wear, knee high shirt, boring vests, and sticking to only one hairstyle. It still seems cute; it's just not my style anymore.
I walked into the store that had the clothes I liked before a plump, jolly woman came bouncing over to me, immediately checking me out.
"Sweetheart, that outfit is not working for you!" She cried still looking at my clothing.
"Well, actually I came her looking for some sk—" I stopped myself thinking about what Trish had said about my style.
"She dresses like a teenage granny!"
I looked up at the plump woman, choosing whether or not what I was going to say was even smart or not.
"I'm here to buy . . . Something . . . Uh," I trailed off, not knowing what to say.
"Sexier?" The lady asked as I squinted at her nametag.
Hello, my name is
SHARON
"Yes . . . Sharon, I-I'd like that." I responded sheepishly.
Sharon beamed up at me and then started yanking me hand towards a different section. We entered a sophisticated, open room. Manikins wore slim, thigh-high dresses, ripped skinny jeans, off-the-shoulder shirts and high heels. I gapped at the sight and was surprised that Sharon and I were the only ones in this room.
Sharon seemed to catch my surprised look because she quickly began to weigh me down with clothes. She would pick up a potential piece of clothing, glance at me, and either fling it at me or place it back on the rack.
"Go on sweetheart, try them on." She pushed me gently to the fitting rooms.
I made my way in and glanced at the body-length mirror, I was going to have some fun. I modeled every single shirt, dress, and any other article of clothing she gave me.
She would reply to my outfit with a bright smile and thumbs down, or a shake of her head and thumbs down. To tell the truth I had fun! Actual fun since I'd moved!
As I made my way to the cashier desk, I made a move to pull out my wallet but Sharon stopped me by softly grabbing my wrist.
I gave her an incredulous look of confusion, I was seriously confused.
"You don't need to pay, think of this as a present," She said thoughtfully, "A present to create the new you."
My jaw must've dropped, because she gently closed my mouth.
"Wh-What do you m-mean?" I questioned, "You must be kidding!"
"No, I'm not, now go have fun!" Sharon laughed at the surprised look I was giving her.
"Can I at least give you a tip?" I asked, worry painted all over my face.
"That isn't necessary, now run along you beautiful girl!" She gently pushed me out of the store and gave me my bags.
I started to thank her profusely, until she closed the shop door and sent me a wink through the cool, crystal-like glass.
In return, I sent her a gleaming, wide smile, and with that, we both went our own separate paths.
The second time I came across the California Mall was because I needed to find Sharon.
Ever since I'd gotten the clothes, I hadn't worn them, afraid that they wouldn't look good on me.
As I looked for her store, I came across a hair salon displaying a sexy, edgy haircut being modeled by a girl about my age.
A part of me wanted to go find Sharon, the plump, kind lady that I'd grown attached to, and the other part of me wanted to see what kind of magic they could do with my hair.
I weighed down the pros and cons in my head, finally following the weird urge to go inside the salon.
A thin, perky lady greeted me, escorting me to the smooth, leather seats perched in front of a line of mirrors.
"Now, what kind of hair you want?" She asked, examining my hair.
I thought for at least a minutes, mentally thanking the woman for not rushing me.
"My hair is so . . . Boring," I said slowly, "Can you make it . . . edgier?"
Like Sharon, she beamed at me, showing her perfect row of pearl-white teeth and grabbed a black cloth to cover my clothes.
"Edgy?" She muttered to no one in particular, looking at my hair. Her eyes lit up like a light bulb and began to cut my hair, scissors snipping my hair like a rocket taking off.
Snip Snip Snip
An hour later, she stopped caressing my hair, and said, "Open your eyes, sweetie."
I opened my eyes and gasped.
I took in the view of a stunning girl on the other side of the mirror gasping back at me.
Instead of my caramel, dull mid-shoulder length hair, curls were much more defined and I now had side bangs that were curled to perfection. My hair started out dark brown at the roots and cascaded down, each section getting lighter until it came to the tips of my hair, which were a creamy, honey color.
Just like Sharon, the woman said it wasn't necessary,
"No, sweetie," She cooed, admiring her work on my hair, "I insist."
I thanked her as I walked out, glancing around at the people who looked at me? Did I look bad? I grabbed at my hair to chew away on, but instantly pulled away.
No way. Nuh uh.
I'm not going to awaken my old habits. Instead I straightened my back and began to walk confidently and walked back home, confidence overwhelming my body.
I was no longer the dull Ally. I was Ally, a confident girl who would soon realize she didn't need 'Team Austin', just confidence.
Co-Author's Note Sorry I didn't upload on time. Everything is so hetic y'know? Anyways, I was the one who ended this chapter I honestly, I don't like it. Let's play a game! Can you guess the amount of words in this chapter?