Bad Love Lingers (Book Three)

Chapter Two

                                                                                        Isabel

            Beep. Beep. Beep, Olivia’s alarm clock buzzed. I flipped over, still in my sleepy daze, and slammed my palm down on one of the buttons, hoping to turn it off. One thing that I loved more than anything was my sleep. The person who dares to wake me up before I was ready would face my wraith. Luckily for Olivia, this wasn’t my home. Therefore, I wouldn’t dare disrespect anyone in it, even if Olivia was wrong for setting the alarm on a Sunday morning all to go to the mall.

            “Wake up, sleepyhead!” Olivia bounced up and down on the bed, shaking my body ferociously. “You need to shower and get ready so that we can go to the mall. Ekk,” she screeched, making me cover my ears.

            How could one person have so much energy after just waking up? It was mind-boggling to me. “Alright, alright.” I sat up and groaned. 

            I took my time climbing out of bed and walking toward the bathroom to shower. Once I was in the shower, the steamy hot water woke every part of me up. I quickly washed my hair and my body, excited to get on with the day. Shopping wasn’t my favorite thing to do, but the music store was calling my name. My parents had yet to buy me a phone that played music well, which I needed for when school started back the next day. Over the entire Summer, I have been working doing off jobs to make some cash to buy a phone that wasn’t a total piece of crap. But I didn’t want just any old phone. I wanted to get a phone and some air pods that went with it. The music store could easily download everything I wanted onto my new phone, and I couldn’t wait! First things first, though, I had to get the phone.

            Olivia hopped in the shower right after me. She was surprisingly fast washing up as she usually would spend a minimum of an hour in the shower. Olivia says that it is a part of honoring your body, whatever the hell that means.

            Since it was warm outside, I decided to wear some ripped shorts with a plain black tank top shirt and some black flip-flops to match. My hair was naturally curly, so all I had to do was brush through it and pin it up in a ponytail. As far as makeup goes, I was never a fan of it. Sure, makeup was great and could turn anyone from ordinary to extraordinary, but all I wanted to do was to say invisible as long as I could. I have seemed to master that ability over the years, though it wasn’t always easy. 

            Olivia steps out of the bathroom, already fully clothed. “Is that what you are wearing to the mall today?” She questions.

            “Yeah, what’s wrong with I got on?”

            “Nothing, it is just so plain, and you are not a plain type of girl, Isabel. You should go into my walk-in closest over there and pick you out something that stands out a little more.”

            She was always seeking attention, which is why she dressed to impress anytime leaving her house. Not only that, but with her being one of the popular girls in school, you wouldn’t catch her outside the house looking anything but her best. According to her, if she were to run into someone from our school and not look like a thousand bucks, it would ruin her image. 

            I smiled at her, dug into my bag, and pulled out my headphones. After sticking my tongue out at her, I popped my headphones into my ears, plugging them up into Olivia’s phone. I didn’t particularly like her style in music, but there were a handful of decent song choices to choose from while I waited for her to finish getting ready.

            By nine, we were walking out the door. Olivia picked out her famous denim skirt to wear with a white-flowered spaghetti tube top to match. She was a beautiful girl and knew her body well, but I wished she didn’t have to feel the need to show it off all the time. The mall wasn’t too far from Olivia’s house. Aunt Emily dropped us off at the front while she went to park the car. You wouldn’t catch Olivia shopping in popular areas with her mom. I thought that Aunt Emily was pretty cool, but Olivia says that it is lame to shop with your parents. However, I didn’t see the big deal with it.

            “Okay, so there is this place that I want to go to first. It is a little expensive, but they have the best dresses of all time! My mom gave me one of her credit cards to use, so we are on our own for a few hours. So, you have to help me pick out the right dress!” She grabbed my hand and dragged me along behind her in the direction of the store.

            When she finally stopped, I read the sign above the biggest store in the entire mall. Louis Vuitton was what the sign read. Even if not a big fashion person, everyone knew about this place. It had the best designer clothes ever to exist but way too expensive for my taste. 

            We walked inside and instantly were approached by a saleswoman who looked to have one too many botox injections. “Hello ladies, is there anything that I can help you with today?” She eyed me up and down as if I couldn’t afford this place, which she was right, but I hated being judged like that. She didn’t seem to have the same reaction to Olivia. That was because she was wearing some expensive jewelry that her parents bought her over summer break, and I assumed that the saleswoman caught onto that rather quickly.

            One thing that Olivia couldn’t stand was her best friend getting bullied, no matter what form it was in. “Actually, no. I think we can manage without your judgment for today. Thank you.” She grabbed my hand, walking past the saleswoman, hitting her in the shoulder. “How can people be so inhuman sometimes? I mean, I could probably have that woman fired if I really wanted to.”

            “Just forget it, Olivia. Go pick out some dresses. I will wait for you out here,” I said while taking a seat in the luxurious dressing area. 

            Olivia nodded and skipped off to find some dresses that she liked. She brought each dress into the dressing rooms and got changed while I waited to see the after result. The first dress that she stepped out wearing was a giant monogram belted A-line denim dress. She may have loved denim, but I thought it looked so tacky, especially on a dress like this. I shook my head no, and she went back into the changing rooms again. Dress after dress that she tried on I hated. It was the seventh dress that she finally tried on that I didn’t actually mind. It was a black pleated dress with waist yoke, black podium platform high heeled boots, and small diamond earrings that popped against the black dress. 

            “This is the one.”

            “Isabel, are you sure? I mean, I like it, but it feels a little too simple for me. You know that I don’t like simple.”

            This girl was impossible to please sometimes. I stood up, bringing her over to the stand-up mirror. I stood behind her as we looked into the mirror together. “Olivia, there is nothing ever simple about you. You look hot in this dress. Look at the way that it shows your curves and makes your booty pop,” I said as I spun her around.

            “Okay! You have me sold!” She turned around and hugged me meaningfully. “Thank you for coming with me. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have my best friend beside me, cheering me on always.”

            “You would die,” I joked. The price tag was hanging off the side, bringing my curiosity forward. “How much is this thing anyway?” My mouth flew open, seeing the price of the entire ensemble. The dress alone was $5,500, the boots were nearly $2,300, and the earrings were $1,000. “Holy s**t!”

            “You get used to it,” Olivia stated. “Trust me. My parents can afford it. Daddy told me that whatever my heart desired today to get it.” She flashed me a huge smile before taking off into the dressing rooms to change out of the outfit. 

            The same saleswoman from when we walked in was the one to check us out. When the total reached a little over $10,000 after taxes, I think she halfway expected us not to be able to pay for it. Olivia just smiled at her wickedly while swiping the credit card.

            We were crying; we were laughing so hard when we walked out. Olivia may be very spoiled, but I loved her regardless. She has always had my back throughout the years, regardless of who may have picked on me because of who my dad was. She knew that I had a rough time growing up because of it and has been the one person to never look at me differently because of it. I truly loved her for just being who she is and always keeping it real with me.

            Olivia stayed with me to pick out a phone, but we split ways when I mentioned the music shop that I wanted to see. I told her I would be fine alone, though it took some convincing. Olivia knew that I never stuck up for myself, mostly because she was always there to do it before I could. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to stick up for myself, but I didn’t see a reason to. Letting people think what they wanted about me didn’t bother me as much as it did her.

            “Hey, how can I help you today, young lady,” an older gentleman asked when I entered the music shop. 

            “I just bought a phone and was looking to download some music onto it. Can you help me with that?”

            “Of course, just show me what you want to add, and I will do it free of charge.”

            I spent the next ten minutes with him picking out my playlist. While he was working on that, I walked around the music shop admiring the albums and musical instruments. I was halfway paying attention to anything but the photos covering the walls. When I turned onto the backside of the shop, I collided with someone. When I picked my head up to apologize, I saw mysterious grey eyes staring back at me.

            He was dark and muted while staring into the depths of my eyes. He never said anything as his eyes surveyed my body. The only reaction I got was a smirk on the end of his lips. I had no idea who he was, but I was instantly intrigued. That was a weird feeling for me because I have never been into taking my time to figure out a guy. After what my mom went through with my dad, I told myself that boys would be the last of my worries. Being a stupid teenager had other plans for me today. The guy walked past me, not even paying attention to me anymore, and left before I could even get his name—what a weird experience. 

            I met back up with Olivia when I got done in the music store, and we found her mom before leaving. The whole ride back to Olivia’s house, my mind went to those smokey grey eyes, wondering who he was. Even only for that second that I saw him, I wanted to know his name at least. I wanted to put a name with the eyes that I couldn’t get out of my head.