Water trickled down the mint-colored shower tiles and collected in a pink puddle. Nicole took a long shower, reflecting on what had recently been happening. She re-dyed her hair, exfoliated, shaved, and cried. She and her father got in a fight and when Rose picked her up to spend the night, Joseph and Raven were leaving the driveway. Rose knew Nicole had feelings for her brother but knew she could not interfere with what was already happening. She didn't say much the whole evening and wanted it to stay that way. The water slowly went down the drain and soap bubbles collected by the plug. She grabbed the soft towel, staining it with makeup. She wiped her body carefully and glanced at herself in the full-body mirror. She softly tranced her skin looking at her petite frame. She wondered why she was never approached by boys at school. She kept comparing herself to how Rachel was. Everyone thought she was cool being this mysterious girl with a secret soft side. She kept thinking about whatshe was missing that Rachel had. Nicole slowly brushed her hair as she took deep breaths. There was lots to do instead of being concerned over a boy who didn't have a clue of what was going on. She put on a white tank top with little cherries and tiny white bows sewn into the straps. Her orange-crusted velvet sweatpants slid against her smooth legs and kept her warm. The temperature began to drop as October began and stores began to decorate their interiors with fall items. Joseph's family always kept the house cool, so Nicole didn't feel too warm. She took her phone out and looked at her messages. Antonia had called her during her long shower and sent her four messages. She knew that if she explained what happened she would break down again, but Nicole already felt tears forming in her eyes. She sat on the edge of Rose's bed and looked at the wall. Nothing is going how she wants. She thought about how much she missed her mom. Why did she have to walk out on her and her dad? She wanted to scream and fly into space. She just wanted to disappear into nothing. Rose walked into her room grabbing a mesh bag. She went back out to talk to other girls. Nicole quickly got up wiping her tears away to get a good look at the them. She saw it was a girl with blue hair from her history class and Angelita. They went out of the house and Nicole followed behind them. She didn't leave the door but instead peered through the blinds from the living room. There was a red Ford car in the driveway, but Nicole couldn't tell who was driving it. The girl gave Rose a handful of cash and the girls walked back to the car. Rose began walking to the front door and Nicole ran to her room. She took out her notebook pretending to write. There was a clattering noise coming from the kitchen, including Rose's humming. Twenty minutes later, Rose walked in with two large bowls of ramen. She had turned the regular noodle cups into cute meals where the eggs had little nori faces and sausage octopus. Nicole quietly ate her meal, and Rose was on the phone with some guy named Eddie. She looked at her little sausage floating in the broth and got her phone out. She grabbed her empty water bottle and walked to the kitchen. She spent ten minutes writing a long paragraph to Antonia. Her head felt like it was about to explode, her chest was getting tight, and her ears were hot. Tears streamed down her face as she tried to make as little noise as possible. The door handle began to jingle, Nicole panicked and sprinted to the bathroom. She heard Rose leave her room and greet her mom, to which she asked where Joesph was. She had said that he was on a date, and she squealed. She was hoping this would happen soon, giving an explanation of how much she loved Rachel. Nicole slammed her on the granite top and began crying again.