The Nerdy Girl

I sat at her table with a floor to ceiling mirror and gazed at myself. Seeing only the ugly duckling that wanted to be more. Mom walked behind me and took off the glasses that did hide a ton of my face. “Wear your contacts tonight,” she said. “You have amazing eyes, Abby.”

I looked down. “Let me fix your hair and do your make-up.” I scowled. She laughed. “I promise not to make you look made up.”

I agreed. “Can I go out with Cal after the game?” I asked.

“You were afraid that Dad would say no?” Mom asked playing with my hair.

I nodded.

“You’re almost sixteen. I think that would be okay. Be home by one. He seems nice enough.”

“He is.” I liked Cal even if I was afraid of him.

“You’re nervous.”

“I am. I’ve never had a boyfriend.” I felt my gut flip flop. “He calls me his girl.”

She chuckled. “Get your contacts. Change clothes then we’ll do the rest.”

I sighed. She wasn’t going to let me get away with the glasses tonight, so I headed to my room. I pulled my tightest jeans off the hanger and held them up to my body. They hung low on my hips and accentuated that I had a butt. I smiled at the image in the mirror.

I slipped them up my body after removing the jeans that I was wearing. I sucked in my breathe and zipped them up. Then I found a soft pink, long sleeved t-shirt that clung to my frame and showed that I had a figure beneath the clothes that I wore to school. I skipped the boot tonight. I put on my pink Vans and grabbed my contact lenses and headed to Mom’s room.

She scowled at me. “You need that boot for two more weeks.”

“My ankle doesn’t hurt at all.” That was a lie. It hurt a little.

She sighed. “All right. Just for tonight.” She smiled at me because she liked my choice of clothes. “Sit and put your contact lenses in.”

I did as she told me. First, I held my upper eyelid up and tried putting it in that way. I dropped it on her vanity. Then I tried holding my lower lid down.

“They said to look up and it would pop right in, Abby.”

She was watching me which was making me nervous. “Go sit down until I get them in.”

She threw up her hands and marched over to the bed. She glanced through her phone while I struggled with the contacts. I finally got them in.

“I’m ready for you now.”

Mom came to me and looked at my hair. “You have such lovely hair.” She sprayed two different products on it. One to lift it and one to give it shine. Then she straightened it just a little and brushed it to the side. Teasing it a little to give it fullness. Then she sprayed it which she knew I hated it. My face was scrunched up which made her laugh.

“Don’t worry it isn’t sticky hair spray. Feel it.”

I ran my fingers through it, and it did feel nice.

Then Mom turned me around on her bench and applied make up. I frowned. “Stop it.”

“What?”

“Frowning. I’m only hiding the bruise on your forehead from playing catch with Cal. A little mascara and liner. A light mauve lipstick. Nothing that is too much.”

She was almost done. “Smile,” Mom told me.

“What?”

She rolled her eyes at me.

I smiled. She dabbed lipstick on my cheeks and rubbed it in to give my cheeks some rosiness apparently. “Turn around,” she told me stepping back so I could.