2. Rose: Royal Preparations
1736 Words
Rose: Royal Preparations
I sat there in another spacious room with purple curtains draped from one end to the other. A bookshelf stood tall filled with English literature next to a robust brown executive desk made of the richest of materials.
My eyes shifted from one end to the other.
What had I just got myself into?
It seemed like the right idea to help Prince Bryce out of his problem so that I could get out of mine, but it seemed I had made things worse for myself.
Why did he have to put me in this position?
As I thought this, Priscilla came in now having reclaimed her calm demeanor with a clipboard in hand and a larger woman next to her. The woman was red-haired, plump, and had a vibrant smile on her face.
“Right. This is Rose Swan, and she’s the one who has to be fixed up.”
“Excuse me. Fixed up?” I asked wondering what she was going on about.
“Yes. We can’t have you meet the Prince looking like this. It’s appalling,” she said letting the final two words settle in before moving towards the plump woman to whisper something into her ear.
“I think I look fine.”
“Well, yes you look lovely dear, but there is always room for improvement, and that’s where I come in,” said the red-haired woman who was still beaming from ear to ear as if the smile had been plastered onto her face never to leave again.
“What room for improvement?” I asked frustrated with the situation I was in.
She pushed me down onto a dark gray chair with an extended back. The moment my butt landed on the cushion, it folded in, letting the memory foam welcome me. It felt nice, but the lady’s hands overwhelmed me as they worked on my face, body, and anything else she could get her fingers on.
It was disturbing.
I tried to push her away, but she was already taking out her makeup from a large, maroon bag which had multiple layers inside it seemed.
The makeup utensils were endless as she took out various shades, pressed them against my cheek for assessment, and then tossed them aside in frustration.
This went on for at least an eternity before she was satisfied.
I gave up as Priscilla watched keenly.
“What’s your name again?” I asked trying to get her to ease up on the hard pushes of the bristled brush.
“Jenna. I have been working as the primary makeup artist for the royal family for a decade now. It is a job I take pride in. Don’t you think they look delightful when those photos come out every year? I think they do. It’s all me of course.”
She stopped as I sighed in relief. It was momentary as she started vigorously again putting various shades of red on my skin making me look like a clown, at least that’s what I thought.
“Can I at least speak to my friend? She’s outside and was behind me in line. She must have been the first one you saw when you opened the door,” I asked looking over at Priscilla who was now getting bored with how the makeup was being done and had started playing with her pencil, fiddling it between her fingers.
Her ears perked up.
“Wait, that crazy red-haired girl who was making a commotion outside when we told them it was time to leave?”
“Yes, she can be a tad exuberant at times.”
“You think we’ll let that psychopath into the castle? She should be thrown in jail.”
“Please, I require her to be alongside as she’s come a long way with me,” I pleaded wanting to have someone with me during a time where I was not having a lot of fun, to say the least.
“Fine,” she relented after looking at the face I was making. It must have appeared as if I was being tortured considering how quickly she conceded.
In a moment’s notice, Wanda was straddling into the door still unhappy it seemed at what had happened.
“Finally! I thought I was never going to be let in,” she said.
“Wanda!” I said getting up from the chair to Jenna’s displeasure. I hugged her.
“Wait, why are they doing makeup on your face? Yikes, that looks awful. Anyway, what is all of this?” she asked peppering me with questions as soon as she had let go of suffocating me.
“I have been chosen to meet with Prince Bryce for a date,” I said with a sluggish tone defeated by the situation in front of me.
“You what?!”
“Yeah, he chose me.”
“I knew it! Oh my, God, I am so happy for you sweetie!”
“Yay!” I said in a mocking tone now collapsing back into the seat as Jenna’s eyes looked at me intensely.
Jenna was now applying blush with a new fervor as I closed my eyes making sure powder didn’t flicker in.
“So when do you get to meet him then and how was it?” she asked.
“It was okay. We met for a few moments and then he decided I was the one he wanted to have a date with. I guess you could say it didn’t take long for him to make up his mind,” I replied now remembering once again what a mistake I had made looking after that Prince who might have been handsome, but had one-upped me at my own game.
“Wow!”
“It wasn’t as exciting as you think.”
“Who cares? You are going to have a date with Prince Bryce! Does he look as handsome as they say he is?” she whispered now moving closer to me as Jenna tried ignoring what we were talking about.
“He’s okay. Muscular and rugged. Has a beautiful smile too.”
“Oh yes! I love that smile of his. He looks so good in pictures. I wish I had the chance to see him too, but they said he had chosen someone. I didn’t realize it was you.”
“Yeah, I was the lucky one he thought was fit for the job.”
“Come on now! It isn’t a job. You could end up being the royal bride,” she said poking me with her finger to enunciate the point even thought it wasn’t working.
“We’ll see how it goes. At least, I’ll get dinner, and he’s charming enough to handle for one date I suppose,” I said while thinking about how the leather jacket hugged his body as he had leaned over. The musk was intoxicating, and I was still reveling in it from time to time when I had a chance to remember.
“Wow, you’re going to have amazing dishes to eat as well. I heard you can take whatever you want.”
“Oh God! Wanda, don’t be so cheap.”
“What? I’m just saying, it’s going to be awesome.”
Jenna stepped in as the conversation started to die out.
“Alright, Miss Swan, you are ready to go, take a look in the mirror.”
She held up the mirror for me as I peered in to see the damage she’d done to my face.
It looked surprisingly beautiful.
It had blended in nicely with a hint of pinkish blush settling on the top of my cheekbone, while the mascara lead to pronounced eyelashes that looked great from all angles. I was impressed with the matching lipstick as it felt light on the skin and had a peppermint smell to it.
“You look gorgeous,” said Wanda with both hands on her face exuding pleasure.
“Thanks,” I replied impressed with the makeup Jenna had done.
Jenna gave me a quick thumbs-up before looking at Priscilla and leaving the room.
“It is time for you to go pick out your dress,” Priscilla said standing next to me as I continued to look in the long mirror on the wall, which appeared to have an ability to slim anyone that looked into it.
“A dress too?” I asked.
“Yes, you’re not going to wear this…rubbish,” she said thinking of a word to describe my golden dress, which I had chosen in a rush after Wanda had forced me to do so. I had to agree, it was not the best option, but I wasn’t flowing in money.
“Alright, fine,” I replied giving in again.
She grabbed me by the elbow and directed me towards the next room, which had rows upon rows of gorgeous dresses.
There were colors I had never seen before in my life, and the designs were marvelous.
“Each dress is worth more than you can imagine,” said Priscilla now keeping a keen eye on Wanda who seemed to be like a kid in a candy shop moving from one dress to the other getting her hands on all of them to the tall woman’s dismay.
“Wanda, I think you should go easy on those,” I said trying to ease the tension in the room.
“Oh sorry!”
Wanda walked back towards me.
I looked over at the dresses thinking about which one was perfect for me.
It was going to be a hard choice.
The room was large adorned with multiple long mirrors, cushioned benches, and women who were working on new dresses to the side and cleaning older ones that would be sent to random parts of the country for use.
“You can select any dress you like,” said Priscilla while pointing to the racks of dresses.
“Any dress?”
“Yes.”
Wanda and I started going through the dresses. There were so many options. I could have gone with the gorgeous black slip dress, white sheath dress covered with jewels, or even a 1950s flare dress with a mixture of gray and black.
There were so many choices, and I was lost for words.
“I like this one,” said Wanda pointing towards a parrot green sheath dress that made Priscilla cover her face once again.
“That’s too much Wanda. It should look respectable for the occasion,” I said.
One dress stood out to me. It was on the last rack and had a simpler undertone to it that worked for me.
The gorgeous dark gray lace dress with frizzled cotton near the edges was perfectly in sync with its overall look.
I pointed towards it and told Priscilla the decision was made.
She nodded.
The rest of the time was spent going through accessories and what I would wear along with the lace dress.
In the end, I chose matching classic pumps, and a high-end designer bag I’d never seen in my life. It seemed like something rich people wore, so I went with it even though it seemed boisterous.
“Well, you are ready to go then,” said Priscilla who now seemed worn out by everything as her hair sat loosely across the face.
I looked into the mirror standing wearing a dress I had never imagined would be possible.
It was time to meet the Prince.
- Writer
