CHAPTER 4
Prom night finally arrived. Alyssa stood in the small white plastic bathroom of her home, in her red dress and the black heels she wore to choir concerts. She had her makeup on and it looked pretty, but her hair refused to coalesce into the mature, sophisticated style she wanted.
“Is anything wrong, Alyssa?” her mother asked from the doorway.
“Not really, Mom. I'm just not having much success with this rat's nest.” She tugged on a strawberry blond strand.
“What are you trying to do?” Beth asked.
“I don't know,” Alyssa whined. “Something elegant. It's my senior prom. I want to look nice.”
“You do look nice, darling,” Beth informed her, regarding her dress with a wistful smile. “If you don't know what you want your hair to do, how can you do it?”
“A good question,” Alyssa co
