The Art Project

Chapter 3

Zariah's POV

Gospel music blasts from the bluetooth speakers installed in Elle's room as we get dressed for Sunday church service.

When it's just me back at home my Sundays' are totally different from the Shaws.

If I'm not busy with school stuff or annoying my brother I'm basically doing nothing.

Our dad is also not around all the time to take us to church and stuff so whenever I sleep over at the Shaws I make sure to join their family traditions.

"How do I look?" Eleanor turns to me in her beautiful floral dress that enhances her beauty.

"Are you sure you don't have a church crush, cause..." I joke and she starts chuckling.

"They are definitely dead and buried six feet under." I add and she laughs.

Brown eyes, black wavy hair, 5'7 with a beautiful light skin. She can have any guy turning in her direction when she walks into a room, but to not grab their attention she always wears her hair up.

She also has our school skirt to knee length just like me. Yep, we don't like having the spotlight on us.

I move to her side with me being an inch taller then we both stare at our reflections.

We are matching in our outfits but I just can't help the way the lipgloss makes her lips shine. My bestie is a hundred out of ten.

I on the hand is hating how the upper part of the dress is hugging my body. It's so weird and different from my normal baggy clothes and I'm only wearing it because I want to pair with Elle.

"Aren't you going to do something about you hair r****h?" I snap my head in her direction.

"What about my hair?" I ask clueless.

She calls me r****h a lot. It's her nickname for me due to my red hair. Pretty obvious isn't it?

"Well it looks..." She looks at my hair and gives me her disapproving face.

Yeah I know. It's curly, huge and always in a mess, but I can't help it. I try to do something about it at times but it just won't budge, so I've pretty much given up on it.

"My hair is an untamable fire and it won't be tamed." I say with a serious expression on my face and Elle nods whilst trying to stifle her laugh.

"Girls we're running late." Aunt Monique, Eleanor's beautiful light skin mom, announces at the door.

"Sure we're coming." Elle replies then gives me a small side hug.

"My, your hair is a mess." Aunt Monique says when her eyes land on me. Elle laughs and I roll my eyes at her.

"Sit down." She instructs and I obey before she grabs a comb and painfully starts pulling at my hair.

Aunt Monique and my mom were more than coworkers. They were best friends and I guess that slipped into the genes because you now have Elle and I.

"Ouch!" I exclaim when she pulls too hard.

"My hair is an untamable fire and it won't be tamed." Elle mimics me mockingly and I glare at her through the mirror.

"Ria haven't you thought of maybe getting a hair cut?" Aunt Monique asks and I slowly shake my head.

"If I get a haircut then who's going to tie my hair beautifully like this." I compliment after she's able to tame the wild fire and tie it into a beautiful bun.

Looking at it reminds me of how my mom used to do my hair. She was all about my hair growing up so I never really went around it.

Now it's all big and messy for me to even learn how to deal with it. Trust me I sometimes think of the haircut option, but strangely my hair holds to many memories for me to let go.

I see Aunt Monique stare at me through the mirror for a while before smiling big at me.

Correction, my mom was her soul sister, just like Elle.

I stand to give her a hug as a thank you and.....

"Okay people let's get moving.The preacher isn't going to preach to empty chairs." Will, Eleanor's ten year old brother, announces whilst entering and we all laugh.

****

The weekend with the Shaws is always amazing and as such makes me sad to come back home every time. I don't want to abuse my stay even though they seem perfectly fine with me extending my stay.

I enjoy my dinner alone whilst reading my science note. I'm just being hopeful something will stick in my head before the paper tomorrow.

My brother is on his way home from his weekend stay at his friends. Gosh the way I wish he would just stay there forever. You'll see why soon enough.

"Hey freckle face." Zack announces his presence with his stupid face and bad body odor that makes me gag.

Why is he all sweaty in his basketball jersey. Argh! He went practicing again.

Also my freckles aren't that bad. It just covers some small portions of my face and maybe a huge portion on my neck going down.

He teases me with it a lot since mine are more prominent.

I roll my eyes to signal my displeasure and he chuckles.

"What are you reading?" He ruffles my hair and annoyance sets in.

I slowly glare at him through my glasses and he smiles more whilst taking a seat by me.

Dinner loses its taste and I try to hold in a vomit.

"Please get your disgusting body out of my face." I pinch my nose together and he seems to smile more at the effect his body odor is having on me.

Geez he sinks more than dirty laundry that hasn't been washed for years.

"Come on sis, how was your weekend stay at Elle's?"

Did he not hear me?

I glare at him more seeing that he's more than willing to kill me with his body odor.

"Oh I see, my male testosterone has rendered you speechless." He laughs at his stupid joke and I roll my eyes.

Oh brother.

Thankfully he gets up and turns to walk away.

"Stinking laundry." I whisper underneath my breath.

"What did you say?" He turns around so quickly I thought his head was going to fall off.

"Nothing." I smile at him sweetly hoping he won't come back and choke me to death with his body odor.

Why the hell did he even play and not shower before coming? I'll never understand boys.

I store the few leftovers in the fridge and head up to my room to continue studying there.

"Radely!" I hear Zackary scream my middle name when I reach the stairs.

By the sound of him he probably found my prank and is totally pissed.

I chuckle to myself before continuing my walk.

My annoying twin brother just brings out a whole different side of me, and that was just me giving him a taste of his own medicine.