“Fine, but I still think my choice is better,” she says, with a bit of a frown. “Oh, and I think we should do a reading before we go, just to get a feel for what the night is going to be like,” she tells me with hope in her eyes. She knows that I hate participating, but I have learned that going along with Noli’s plans is way easier than objecting.
“If you insist, O’ Magical Mystic!” I sing to her, in my best circus ringleader voice. She answers by throwing a shoe at me, which I artfully dodge.
I chuckle to myself as I walk into the bathroom. It’s a small room with just a shower, sink, and toilet. We don’t have a bathtub, which is disappointing, but at least the water pressure is good enough to get clean. I quickly wash up and towel dry my wavy black hair. It is not as humid out tonight, so I can get away with just a little curl cream and don’t have to blow-dry it. I walk out of the bathroom into the bedroom finding Noli dressed to the nines in a tight black dress with the same cherry heels she tried to convince me to wear. I laugh to myself, knowing that I will have to catch her at some point tonight.
“You look great. Is that dress new?” I ask, while turning toward my outfit to get changed. She nods with a devilish smile and goes back to applying her makeup. She’s finishing up a smokey eye, which looks fantastic against her green emeralds. I’m a bit of a makeup whore. It’s like a mini Sephora store in my bedroom. To say that we spend a lot of money on makeup is an understatement. That store is Disneyland for women like us, and makeup is the first thing that Noli and I bonded over.
“Move over, mirror hog,” I say, as I push her with my hip to get in front of the mirror. If I don’t start now, I’ll never be ready in time. A full face takes a while to get just right. I might as well feel as pretty and as put together as possible since I haven’t had a night out in a long while. Makeup helps me to transform from a lonely looking caterpillar into a confident, colorful butterfly.
“When you're done, meet me in the kitchen. I’m going to start my reading while I’m waiting for you,” she tells me, then sashays herself out of the door. I shake my head and return to making myself look fabulous.
I finish up the last coat of red lipstick and turn to look at myself in the mirror. I look perfectly put together in my black skinny jeans and Noli’s top. My boots make me just the right height, and I will be able to dance all night comfortably in them. I love my body and how strong it is. I may not have a small frame or be tall enough to be a model, but I’m comfortable in who I am. Giving myself one more admiring glance, I turn and go to find Noli.
She’s sitting at the kitchen table with her left elbow on the table and her hand supporting her head, while the right hand is arranging cards. “So, what do they say? Are you meeting Mr. Rich, Famous, and Perfect tonight?” I ask her.
“Not quite. They say that I’ll be meeting someone, or rather two someones, but that I won’t be able to choose from either of them. It’s also not my choice. It’s like they are being put in my path for someone else’s benefit,” she says, while looking at the cards like they’re broken. “I’ve never seen a reading like this before.” She mumbles to herself.
“That’s confusing and not at all helpful,” I tell her. “Want to read mine now, so that we can go? I don’t want to be out too late because someone promised me yummy brunch in the morning, and I don’t want to miss it,” I say, trying to lift her spirits back up. She looks a little defeated right now.
“Yeah, sorry…I just…never mind. Let me cleanse the area so we can start with new energy.” She gets up from the table and grabs a smudge stick that was burning in a dish by the stove. She swirls the smoke around her hands and chants in a language I don’t know. She walks across the room and surrounds me with smoke. By now, I’m used to all the Noli weirdness, so I go with the flow and wait until she is seated in front of me again.
“Place your hand on the deck, and speak your intention,” she states.
I place my hand on the deck she has in front of her. The cards are well worn and look like they are a treasured possession. They remind me of my favorite book that I’ve read hundreds of times. They’re black on one side with detailed hand painted pictures on the other. Noli said she got them from a great-aunt. They were passed down through her family. The original owner had them commissioned by a fairy princess, or something equally laughable.
“I, Azra, wish to know if my night at the grand watering hole, Pete’s Bar and Grill, will end in laughter, or frustration?” I question, with laughter in my voice the whole time. It took all of me to get it out.
“I see what you’re doing here, Azra, but let me tell you something. The cards know! They always know!” She says with a huge smile on her face, and her index finger pointed to the sky.
We both chuckle as she begins to lay out the spread. She is doing just a three-card spread for past, present, and future. At least this one will be quick. She flips over the
