‘Why?’ Holly reluctantly rose to her feet.
‘I’m going to give you a little makeover,’ Suzie said, lifting a make-up box out from under the unit.
‘Oh . . .’ Holly hesitated. ‘My mum doesn’t really like me wearing make-up.’
‘I’ve got wet wipes, so you can take it all off before you go home,’ Suzie said, pushing her down onto the stool. ‘I just want you to see what I see when I look at you.’
When Holly was seated, Suzie swivelled the stool round so her back was to the mirror and studied her face for a few moments before opening the box.
‘Right, I’m going to use smoky colours to bring out the green of your eyes,’ she said. ‘And I’ll do a bit of contouring to define your cheekbones, then finish you off with a natural glossy lip.’
‘Are you sure it’ll come off?’ Holly asked nervously when Suzie squirted a huge blob of foundation into the palm of her hand.
‘Course it will,’ Suzie assured her.
Clasping her hands together in her lap after putting her glass down, Holly closed her eyes and tried not to move when Suzie began to apply the foundation with a soft brush.
‘It won’t take long, will it?’ she asked. ‘Only I can’t be too late getting home.’
‘You said she never gets home before two, so you’ll be back way before she is,’ Suzie said. ‘Subject of your mum,’ she went on as she worked. ‘Is it just you and her over there? Doesn’t your dad live with you?’
‘No,’ Holly said, trying not to move her mouth too much as the brush tickled her cheeks. ‘He took off before I was born, so I’ve never met him.’
‘Oh, I’m sorry.’
‘It’s OK.’
‘No, it’s not. Everyone needs a dad. Haven’t you ever tried to find him?’
Holly shook her head.
‘What’s his name?’ Suzie asked. ‘I’ll google him when we’ve finished, see if he’s on Facebook or Twitter.’
‘I don’t know his name,’ Holly admitted. ‘My mum wouldn’t tell me.’
‘Why not?’
‘Dunno.’ Holly gave a tiny shrug. ‘She doesn’t really like talking about private stuff. And she gets mad if I ask too many questions, so I don’t bother any more.’
‘That’s sad,’ Suzie said. ‘But then, you can’t miss what you’ve never had, can you? And at least you’ve got your mum. Are you and her close?’
‘I suppose so,’ Holly murmured.
‘How come she’s so strict?’ Suzie asked. ‘I used to be out till all hours when I was fifteen, but you’re not allowed out after she goes to work. What’s that about?’
‘She’s just a bit protective,’ Holly said guardedly. ‘I got bullied at my last school, and the kids are a lot rougher round here, so she thinks it’s safer for me to stay in when she’s out.’
‘Ah, right. I went through something similar when I was your age, so I get where she’s coming from.’
‘You were bullied?’ Holly was surprised. Suzie was so beautiful and self-assured she couldn’t imagine anyone having a problem with her – apart from Rob, but he was a thug, so his actions said more about him than Suzie.
‘Yep,’ Suzie said, her wine-laced breath warming Holly’s cheeks as she leaned closer. ‘Two horrible bitches like those so-called friends of yours made my life a living hell in fifth year. It started when one of their boyfriends took a fancy to me. I turned him down, so he told her I’d tried it on with him. The silly cow believed him, and her and her mate started following me round school, calling me names and threatening to beat me up.’
‘What did you do?’
‘They pushed me too far one day, and I went full psycho bitch on their arses.’ Suzie chuckled. ‘They’d ambushed me in the girls’ toilets and were trying to force my head down the loo. Someone had left a big shit in it, so I grabbed it and slammed it into one of their faces.’
‘You didn’t?’ Holly’s eyes popped open.
‘Oh, I did.’ Suzie laughed. ‘It was disgusting, but they didn’t come near me again, so it worked.’
‘I wish Julie went to my school so I could do that to her,’ Holly said.
‘Stick with me, kid.’ Suzie winked. ‘I’ll show you how to deal with bitches like her. Now shut your eyes.’
Holly struggled to keep the grin off her lips as Suzie started applying eye make-up. Unlike the brandy Kelly had brought into school that time, which had hit her like a speeding train, the wine was making her feel warm and fuzzy, and she no longer cared so much about all that nonsense with Bex and Julie. They thought they were so cool, but they were just childish and spiteful, and now she had Suzie she didn’t need them.
After a while, Suzie swivelled the stool round to face the mirror and asked Holly what she thought. Holly stared at her reflection, unable to believe that it was her. Bex had done her make-up in the past, but the results had been nothing like this. The blend of grey, purple and silver eyeshadows Suzie had used, along with the jet-black fake lashes she’d applied, made her usually dull green eyes pop. And her skin looked smooth and radiant, with all the blemishes she obsessed over whenever she looked in the mirror concealed beneath the creamy foundation.
‘It’s amazing,’ she said. ‘I look like a completely different person.’
‘No, you look like you, but the best version of you,’ Suzie said. ‘And that’s the difference between you and the Julies and Bexes of this world. If you paint a pig, it’s still a pig, but paint a pretty girl and you highlight how beautiful she really is. Can you see it?’
Embarrassed to admit that she could, Holly gave a little shrug.
‘You’re too modest,’ Suzie laughed. ‘You look drop-dead gorgeous. Or, at least, you will when we’ve done something with this . . .’ She lifted Holly’s hair off her shoulders and examined the ends. ‘When was the last time you had it cut?’
‘A couple of months ago,’ Holly said, still staring
