“Hmm, that’s too bad. You know, Duke sings a little. I’ve heard him sing a few times and he’s pretty good. Last year, he won the school’s talent show, Lehman Idol. He also plays the guitar and he tried to teach me once, but I didn’t have the patience for it.”
“Duke? Is there anything he can’t do?”
Melanie laughs while she holds the door open for us and we are immediately bombarded by the onslaught of last minute shoppers looking for costumes. Damn, this is going to be harder than I thought. How are we supposed to find a decent costume?
I turn toward Melanie and concede defeat. She shakes her head, “No. We are not leaving. Come on.” She grabs my hand and pulls me to the back of the store and into the mob of customers. After about thirty minutes of searching available costumes and finding the appropriate size, I decide on the perfect one. I absolutely love it and I hope I can pull it off. Melanie searches for the matching accessories to complete the costume.
“So, do you want to come over and I can do your hair and makeup?” We make our way to the checkout line and she grabs her cell phone out of her purse and texts someone.
“Actually, I’m going to do that myself if that’s alright. I should be ready by eight. I’m so excited!” After she finishes typing her text, she looks up and gives a genuine smile. “Me, too! We still have about thirty minutes before you have to get to work. Do you want to grab a quick bite?”
Realization hits me that I didn’t even get a chance to eat breakfast and my stomach grumbles at the thought of food. “Hell yes. I’m starving.” I pay for my items and we head out to her car and drive over to Starbucks. As we sit at our table I give her a warm smile, “Thanks for helping me today. I know you didn’t have to.”
She reaches over and squeezes my hand. “Nonsense. You know you’re one of us now. We are going to have so much fun tonight! It’s gonna be epic!”
I cannot hide my beaming face of joy. I’ve made a new friend, and so far it’s been a damn good day. I can’t wait for tonight.
Work cannot be over any faster. Usually, I’m not so bored and annoyed with being stuck here but today’s different. Between assisting customers, stacking the shelves, cleaning out the restrooms, and cashiering, I’m exhausted. After several hours of nonstop work, the store traffic has finally slowed down. I grab a quick coffee from the store’s café and take a seat to try to relax during my last break of the day.
Pulling my cell phone out of my pocket, I check the time. Five o’clock. Only two more hours until I get out of here. Okay, I need a game plan when I get home so I’m not rushing. Alright, shower first, then blow dry and straighten hair, then makeup, and costume comes last. Mom can help if I need it. I think about seeing Duke and let out a little squeal. A few of the nearby customers glance at me and I sink lower in my chair. Cool your shit, Raya. He has a girlfriend, and she’s also your friend, so don’t fuck this up.
“Raya, can you help me out with the new releases?” I look up to see the assistant manager, Oliver, staring at me and I can’t help but smile. He’s fucking gorgeous. Standing at six-foot-two, with a lean yet muscular body, short wavy blond hair, a green polo, and glasses, he’s just my type, but he’s not Duke. I quickly clean up my table and throw out my trash.
“Sure, Ollie. What do you need?”
“I’m unpacking the recent shipment of Sylvia Day’s latest. Can you help with shelving and then you can cut out early? Not much action going on here tonight.”
I set out to get everything unpacked and shelved as quickly as possible. By the time we are done, it’s about six PM. I call my mom so she can pick me up and I only have to wait about fifteen minutes for her to arrive. My nerves are starting to creep up on me during the drive home.
“So, are you excited for tonight?”
I can feel the nausea building but I force it down. There’s no way I’m getting sick tonight. “Yeah, Mom. I’m kinda freaking out right now.”
My mom grabs my hand as she continues the drive home. “Raya, you don’t have anything to worry about. Trust me.” She gives me a reassuring smile and I can’t help but feel better. I squeeze her hand in response and breathe a sigh of relief. A few minutes later, she parks the car in our driveway and I race upstairs to get ready and set my plan in motion.
Just as I finish putting on my costume and applying the last coat of mascara, the doorbell rings. Shit. My fucking nerves are back. I look at myself in the mirror and hardly recognize the girl in front of me. I see a beautiful young woman with long, dark straight hair and sparkling blue eyes with a dash of smoky eye shadow and heavy black eye liner. Examining my white, one-shoulder dress with the matching gold bangles on my wrists and my gold hairpiece, I quickly grab the makeup kit and dab a little gold shimmer on my cheeks and upper eyelids and apply a red lip gloss.
“Raya, honey! Duke’s here!”
Shit, shit, shit! Ok. Breathe, Raya, breathe. I quickly open my bedroom door, “I’ll be right down!” Grabbing my gold sandals, I strap them up along my legs. Taking one last look in the mirror, I pray this is good enough. Oh fuck it. Just have fun.
As I head downstairs, I hear Duke and my mom talking about the details of the party. “Just make sure she’s home by one.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ll take good care of her.”
I step into the living room and find them sitting on the sofa. Duke turns his attention to me, stands up, and walks over to me. We stare at each other in a comfortable silence as all of my nerves melt away. Duke reaches down to grab my hand, lifts it up to his lips, and applies a gentle kiss. His big brown eyes gaze deep into mine, causing a soft gasp to escape from my lips. I swear my heart skipped several beats and my stomach dropped.
“You are absolutely breathtaking, Cleopatra.”
“Umm, thank you.” I’m certainly not used to this much attention from him, and frankly, I never want it to stop.
“Raya, you are gorgeous. You did such a great job with your costume.” My mom gives me a quick hug and wipes a tear from her eye. She’s always so sentimental about these things; that’s why I love her.
I look at Duke, trying to decipher his costume. His hair is a slight mess with a hint of gel to form the spiked look in the front, matched with a pair of straight cut denim jeans, and a long sleeve, solid grey button-up dress shirt. “So, what’s your costume?”
He lets out a small chuckle and steps away from me to show off his attire. He glances at us with such confidence and sex appeal, “I’m Edward Cullen.” My mom and I immediately erupt into laughter and Duke joins in.
“Let me guess, Melanie is Bella. Wow! I can’t believe you did this for her.”