I loved how she had stereotyped me so quickly. It was just like El Paso all over again. Certain people there quickly got it into their heads the kind of girl I was. My unusual personality led to label me as different from everyone else. I blamed such people for turning me into the troubled, dark being I was now. Still, New Age shops were often filled with mysterious magic ingredients, and I found that to be kind of cool.
“You really have this day all planned out, don’t you?” I said.
“By the time this day is over, you’ll feel like a new woman.” She giggled.
So, I was nothing more than a Barbie doll to her. I sighed and looked back out the window. I had been dreading this day before I left, and now, I fancied my fears were about to be realized.
“Tell me something, Nadine,” I said, rubbing my forehead. “Do you wake up this perky or do you have to snort something to get there?”
She looked at me, appalled. So that answered that. This was a natural perk, not synthetic. I really needed to take the time to think before I spoke. I was getting better, but I still tended to blurt things out and then feel like a dumbass afterward.
“I have never done drugs in my life!” Nadine huffed, turning on her blinker. Then she shot me an apologetic look. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t take things that way. I’ve always been a naturally happy person. Maybe that’s not something you’re used to.”
Well, she was right about that. It certainly wasn’t something that I was used to. However, I enjoyed Nadine’s company. It was nice having a girlfriend to go around with, even one this perky.
She parked the car, and we got out. Looping her arm with mine, Nadine bounced along beside me, telling me stories of proms past. All I could do was look at her and shake my head. This was going to be a long day.
Chapter 2
Dresses & Secrets
“You look stunning!” Nadine gasped as she gaped at me in a red prom dress she had picked out.
It was the fifth dress I had tried in the last twenty minutes. Each one had got more and more colorful and more closely plastered to my body. I was already tired and wanted to call it a day. I didn’t see any issue in just purchasing this last one and going home. Nadine had other ideas though. We weren’t leaving the mall until I had found the perfect dress.
Standing in the dressing room of Dillard’s, looking at myself in the mirror, I was not happy with what stared back at me. Two big black eyes, pale features, and this strapless red dress that made me look like a drag queen. I turned from side to side, examining myself in the mirror. The way the dress pulled my ribcage in and perked my breasts to a new height was amazing. It was unfortunate that I could hardly breathe!
Wasn’t that the custom for prom though? Girls commonly purchased dresses that were incredibly uncomfortable and wore heels so high they were impossible to walk far in. Not to mention spending ridiculous amounts of money on hair, makeup, and nails. All of this just to make some boy swoon over them for one night.
“I’m not sure,” I told Nadine as I continued my inspection of the dress. I thought it was a bit too full in the skirt and that it made my hips look wider.
“Aaron’s going to love it!” Nadine argued, straightening out the skirt. There was so much enthusiasm in her voice; it made my stomach turn.
Yes, she had to bring up Aaron, my accidental claim. In fact, I had grown quite fond of my blond-haired, blue-eyed skater boy. He did have a certain something that made him attractive to me. However, he wasn’t Wesley.
Even though I had pretty much convinced myself that anything and everything that had to do with Wesley was over, I still couldn’t stop comparing Aaron with him. Now, don’t get me wrong, I was enjoying spending time with Aaron, but sooner or later he would break the contract. Amazingly he hadn’t done it yet, somewhat to my surprise.
“I showed Adam my dress last week, and he looked at it all confused like I was asking him to wear it.” Nadine sighed. “Sometimes I just want to know what is going on inside that boy’s head.” There was a rare moment of silence before she carried on. “Why doesn’t he love me?”
“What?” I asked, startled. I took her hands and made her sit down. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Dawn to the rescue.
“I tell him I love him all the time and all he does is smile and change the subject,” she complained, her green eyes glistening with tears.
“Adam is a rare breed of male,” I assured her, hoping that what I was about to say was not going to come out wrong. “He’s scared of love. He turns green at the idea of it.” I took a deep breath. “He watched his mom and dad fall apart, so I really don’t blame him. He cares so deeply for you. You have been his first everything.”
She looked at me in surprise. “Are you telling me you don’t know?”
Now it was my turn to be stunned.
“I’m not his first girlfriend. Adam used to have a wild side, a few years back. Got himself in some pretty big trouble, if I remember correctly.” She sighed. “Anyway, he told me about this girl that brought him back from the dead. He said he was lost, doing all the wrong things. She gave him back his faith, and that is where he has stayed ever since. He won’t budge on anything."
I blinked. “Okay… so is this some huge secret?”
“Well, they didn’t do anything taboo, but he went further with her than he’s ever tried to do with
