Aurora Book 1: Soitera

6. Go To Bed

I wear my BlackRock student shirt to school on Monday. I'm proud of myself, and I'm proud of my shirt too. Even if it is just a shirt. I'm happy wearing it. I give Mr. Nelson and Mrs. Young their shirts. Mr. Nelson wears it over his button-down shirt. I can't help but giggle. He has a tie and everything under it.

Mrs. Young shakes her head. "I'm not doing that with a dress. I'll wear mine tomorrow."

"You don't have to wear them. I wanted to give you each one because you helped me so much. Without you two, I doubt if I would have made it."

"Of course you would have." She hands me a box. "I made too many cookies again. You can have those."

"Thank you. I love your cookies."

"You're not the only one." Mr. Nelson steals one. "I should probably work now." He runs out of the study hall.

"That man forgets what he's doing half the time." Mrs. Young goes to her desk.

I read my science book and eat a cookie. I'm so lucky I found those two. They bring so much joy to me.

"Sweetie, I was reading my book and forgot you were here. You're late to class. Come here and I'll give you a pass."

Mr. Walker watches me walk in.

"Sorry, I have a pass." I sit my books on my desk.

He stares at my shirt. "You got accepted to BlackRock? What department?"

"Astrophysics."

"You don't need this class. I'll give you an A. Focus on your science classes." He waves me back to my seat without taking the pass.

I stumble and catch myself. Then I turn to go back.

Holly jumps into the seat beside mine. "I'm going shopping tonight. You're coming too. You need new shoes."

By some miracle, my ass lands on my seat. "I can't. I don't have any money."

Brock cracks up laughing so loud. "HER FACE."

Everett laughs and winks at me.

"Ignore the idiots." Holly rolls her eyes. "We don't need money. I have daddy's credit card. We'll be fine. You're coming with me."

My mouth completely stops working. I don't agree or disagree. I sit in shock.

Alice moves to the seat in front of mine. "I'm coming too. We'll make it a girl's trip. I love shoe shopping."

Holly starts talking to someone on the phone. Mr. Walker has apparently given up on the class.

I stare at my book. Why did BlackRock change things so much? Why are they nice to me? They've never been nice to me. The boys just ignored me. They were never mean. But the girls were horrible and nasty. They're just doing this because of BlackRock. They're not any different. They're pretending to be nice now. They're not my friends. I don't have those.

Holly and Alice sit by me in every class. Then they give me pizza for lunch. I've eaten nothing but peanut butter sandwiches and apples for the last 12 years. This isn't right.

After school, I get pulled into a convertible and pushed into the front seat. Holly gets in the driver's seat and opens the roof. I never even allowed myself to dream about being in a car like this.

"Buckle up."

Alice jumps in the back. "Where we going?"

"Auburn. Nice shops."

Alice fixes her lipstick as we take off. "Not too far either. I was worried about having time to go to the city."

"Yea, that's not for a Monday."

It turns out that Holly is a good driver. It surprises me more than anything. But she stays focused on the road.

Auburn is over a 30-minute drive away. We end up in a place the girls call an outdoor mall. It's rows of shops. I spot a huge bookstore, but they shove me into the underwear store beside it. Then they roam off to look at stuff.

I take a deep breath. It's nice to be away from them for a minute. A black lacy bra catches my eye. I check the price and it's $165. The matching underwear are $84. This is ridiculous.

"Can I help you find anything, Miss?"

"No. Thank you. I'm with them."

"YES." Holly runs over. "We need her size, so she can shop."

"No. I really..."

Alice cuts me off and pushes me to the sales lady. "Just enjoy it and try on some stuff. It's not going to hurt anything."

The worker pulls me to a back room and stands me on a pedestal. Then she starts measuring.

I guess Alice is right. Knowing my size and trying on a few things will be fun. I don't have to buy anything. I can enjoy the night and check out all the different clothes. Might as well make the most of this trip and stop complaining.

"All done. I'll get a printout for you."

"Thank you."

I barely get out of the measuring room and Holly shoves a bunch of clothes in my hands. "Try these on." She pushes me into another room.

The nightgown fits me like a glove. It's black and might be real silk. I don't even peek at the price tag. The back is open, and it has spaghetti straps.

The girls run into the room with a bunch more stuff and slam the door behind them.

"That is what I'm talking about. You have the body for that." Holly tosses me a pink nightgown. "This one next."

"What are these?"

"They're called babydolls or lingerie dresses. They're just something sexy to sleep in."

"I'm not sure why anyone would want to be sexy to sleep." I step behind a fake wall and change.

Alice checks her nails. "So, who do you have your eye on?"

"Eye on?"

"Which boy? I like Brock, but I think he likes someone else."

Everett and I haven't discussed anything. I don't want to bring him into this. "I'm not with anyone."

Holly smiles. "Better that way. Go to BlackRock single and pick yourself a college man."

I step out. They cheer and tell me how good I look. This is so confusing. I do feel good in this stuff, and it feels like it fits right. But I feel like they would tell me I look good in dog s**t. They were more honest when they were being cruel. Now they tell me what they think I want to hear.

I rub my face and block out the thoughts. Tonight is about trying on some clothes and having fun. I need to stop overthinking.

It goes without saying, but everything I try on, they tell me it's amazing.

After an hour, Holly buys three lingerie dresses. Then we go to a shoe store. I've never owned heels. I can barely walk in them, but they decide to make me try on 14 pairs. I can't walk in any of them. Anyone who wears these are crazy.

Next, we get our hair done. This is actually amazing. The most I do is brush my hair or put it in a ponytail. They put makeup on me and put big curls in my hair. I look in the mirror, and it's like I'm looking at a different person. I've never had makeup either.

Holly buys stuff everywhere we go. If she keeps buying stuff, we won't have room for us in the car. I ignore them spending money. It's my only option.

Then I see the cutest pink and white dress in a window. It's fitted and short. It has a square neck with a jacket that goes over it. It's somehow sexy and sophisticated at the same time.

Alice shoves me in. "You have time to try it on."

"It would look good with the white shoes. I'll be right back." Holly takes off.

I try it on and spin for the worker and Alice. "It's a little short."

"Nonsense. You have good legs. You need to show those off. Did you want me to bag it?"

"Yea, she'll need something for tomorrow." Alice points at the dressing room. "Change back. They're closing in 3 minutes. I'll find Holly, then we can go."

"Ok."

Not sure what 'bag it' meant. But I don't think I care either. I love this dress. It makes me wish I had money. I peek at the price tag. Somehow, I'm not surprised it says $220. Someday I'll be able to afford it. I change back quickly and meet the girls at the door.

We're all carrying Holly's bags when we get to her car. She bought a lot of s**t.

Next, we go to Holly's house. Presumably so we can help her unload it all.

To my surprise, help comes out and gets the bags. Her parents must make a lot of money.

I'm floored when I walk in. Everything is fancy and looks like it costs a million dollars.

"Welcome home. How was your shopping?"

Once again, I am shocked. The woman smiling at us is fake as hell. Everything about her is fake. Her lips. Her face. Her boobs. Everything has been surgically improved. Her body is just past the limit of being possible on its own.

"We had fun, mom. We'll be in my room."

"Let me know if you need anything, girls."

Holly's room reminds me of Everetts. She has the same stuff but hers seems fancier. She opens her closet, and I nearly fall over. It's bigger than my bedroom. Shelves and hanging clothes are everywhere.

"Here they are." She hands Alice and I each one of the nightgowns from the shop. "We're having a sleep-over tonight. I got one for each of us. Go put them on."

I want to complain, but this is actually very sweet. And as much money as her dad has, I'm positive he won't notice a sleep dress. It's pink and lacy. I've never owned anything like this. I put it on in her private bathroom. Then sit on the couches with them.

"Thank you for inviting me tonight. I never get to do stuff like this. It means more than you know."

She laughs. "It was only some shopping. It's not a big deal. And are you sure you're single? Everett has texted me three times asking me if you're still with me."

"Yea, I'm still single. We've been talking. I don't know how it's going to go. He does seem kind though."

"Everett has always been a nice boy. Quiet but kind." Alice checks her phone. "Really?"

Holly laughs. "She said it. I'm just putting it out there."

Alice shows me her phone. "Holly put that you're single in the group chat and asked if any boys want to argue."

Holly cracks up laughing. "BROCK."

"What did the i***t do now?" Alice scrolls down. "He said, -ANYONE AT ALL? I'LL CLAIM HER IF NOBODY ELSE DOES.- He must know something."

"SHHH" Holly sits up. "Everett is typing."

I jump to Alice's couch and stare at her phone with her. "That means he's typing." Alice points at 3 dots beside his name. We watch them for at least two minutes. Then they go away.

"What?"

Holly rolls her eyes. "He deleted it."

Alice nearly throws her phone when it makes noise. I grab it with her, and we read it together. Brock again. -That was an awful lot of dots and time to be deleted, Everett. Anything you want to say to us?-

Holly sends a message. -You weren't the only one waiting for that message.- A picture shows up of me and Alice clinging to her phone.

Alice rolls her eyes. "You could have at least..." She looks down at us. "Never mind. We're covered enough and cute. It's fine."

Holly nods. "Yea, I made sure the nighties weren't see-through. You're fine."

The phone dings. It says Mateo. -STOP MAKING MY PHONE DING. IT'S AFTER 1 IN THE MORNING. GO TO BED.-

"He's right. We need to get up in the morning." Alice tosses her phone to the side.

Holly stands up. "My guest rooms are this way."