Welcome to My World (Two)
654 Words
I blinked.
The dress she held up caught the light from my window, the fabric glittering faintly as if dusted with tiny sparks of fire. It was nothing like the modest blue dress I had planned to wear.
It was bold.
The neckline dipped far lower than anything I'd ever worn before, and the fabric hugged every curve as it fell in sleek, flowing lines.
My mouth slowly opened. "Pilar…"
She grinned proudly. "Surprise."
It was beautiful. Terrifyingly so.
"I can't wear that," I said quickly.
"Why not?"
"Because I will look ridiculous!"
"You'll look amazing," she corrected.
"No. I'll look like I'm trying too hard."
"You will look like someone who deserves to be noticed for once."
I hesitated. That last part landed somewhere deep in my chest.
"Pilar…" I started again, but she was already pushing the dress into my arms.
"Nope," she said firmly. "You're wearing it."
"I don't even know where you got this."
"That," she replied smugly, "is not important."
I glanced down at the fabric again, running my fingers across it. It was soft. Expensive. Definitely far beyond anything I could ever afford.
"You're unbelievable," I muttered.
"Yet here I am, improving your fashion life."
Before I could protest again, she practically shoved me toward the mirror. "Go. Change."
A few minutes later, I stepped out of the small corner of the room I used to dress.
Pilar turned and immediately let out a long whistle.
"See?" she said. "What did I tell you?"
I glanced nervously at my reflection. The girl staring back at me barely looked like the quiet omega who usually blended into the background.
The red dress clung just enough to highlight my shape, the shimmering fabric catching the light whenever I moved.
I felt… different. Unfamiliar. Like I was in a body that wasn't mine.
"Are you sure this isn't too much?" I asked.
Pilar walked over and adjusted the strap slightly on my shoulder.
"Ophelia," she said softly, meeting my eyes in the mirror, "you spend your entire life trying not to be seen."
Her voice grew firmer. "Tonight, just once, let them look."
Something about the way she said it made it impossible to argue. So instead, I took a breath.
"Fine."
Her grin returned instantly. "That's my girl."
Pilar dressed up in a sultry white dress her aunt got for her; we did our makeup and hair and headed downstairs together almost two hours later.
Mother was waiting near the door. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw me.
"Oh," she murmured.
For a second, I panicked. "Too much?"
But instead she smiled gently. "You look beautiful, my love."
She stepped closer, placing a hand briefly against my cheek. "The Moon Goddess watches over all her children," she said softly. "But tonight… may she watch over you especially."
I nodded, unsure what to say.
The night wrapped around me like a soft cloak as we stepped outside.
In the distance, the Silver Fang territory glowed faintly with lantern light and music drifting through the forest.
The Annual Moonlight Ball. This would be my first.
Technically, I could have gone last year. Everyone above twenty-one could attend.
But I had been badly sick, and stuck in bed while the rest of the pack celebrated beneath the full moon.
Pilar had stayed with me that night instead of going. She never admitted it outright, but I knew she had wanted to.
Tonight, though, there was no escape.
The path toward the Grand Hall stretched ahead of us, lit with glowing torches and the sound of laughter echoing through the trees.
Pilar bumped my shoulder lightly as we started walking.
"Nervous?" she asked.
"Very."
She grinned widely. "Good."
I groaned. "That's not comforting."
I didn't know it then, but my quiet life in Silver Fang was about to come to an abrupt end.
And beneath the moon's gaze…
everything was about to change.
- Writer
