“Girl, you’re spot on with that statement,” Ruby says from the bed. Her lush auburn hair shines like a halo around her head. Some would think it was overkill that her parents named their red-haired girl Ruby, but it also fits her personality. She’s vibrant, passionate, and full of life.
“That boy definitely got the magic wand from the genetic fairy swooshed in his direction.” Bella straightens, so I risk opening one eye.
When I don’t get snapped at, I raise the other lid. “On a scale from 0 to 10, is he better looking than Dominic?”
Bella has been in love with one of my brother’s friends for years. But so far, she’s not had any better luck in getting her man than I have.
“Please.” Bella rolls her eyes. “No one is better looking than Dominic.”
“Or Xavier,” Ruby smirks as she swings her right foot up and down while waiting for her black toenail polish to dry. She’s lying prone on my white comforter with her legs crossed at the knees, scrolling through her cell phone. “See.” She shoves the phone in our direction. “How can any man look better than this one?”
She’s not lying. Xavier, another of my brother’s friends, is one of the best-looking men I’ve ever met. Of course, he knows it, and so does the entire female population in our town and the surrounding ones.
“Of course….” Bella snaps her attention back to me. “Emily wouldn’t notice anyone since Jake is in town.”
“I don’t want to talk about him.” I foolishly talked about him nonstop to my friends over the last several weeks, and now, I regret it.
“You never said.” Bella untwists the lid from the mascara bottle. “What did he say to you that’s got you upset?”
“It’s too humiliating.” I close my eyes and stretch my face so that Bella can apply the finishing touches to my makeover. Not that we’re going anywhere. Makeovers, singing, and dancing have been our sleepover routine since we were in grade school.
At eighteen, we don’t do them as frequently, but it’s still a part of our tradition, and it gives Bella the opportunity to practice her skills on us. She’s as talented as any makeup influencer on social media but thinks that she’s going to become an accountant like her parents. She’s going to be miserable.
“It’s us.” Ruby launches upright on the bed, causing the mattress springs to squeak as Bella inserts the wand back into the tube. I carefully re-open my eyes so as not to smear mascara under my lower eyelashes or on my freshly made-up eyelids.
Ruby sits with her legs crossed into a pretzel shape on the end of the bed. “We aren’t going to judge you because you’ve fallen for someone you can’t have.” She lifts one shoulder. “We’re in the same boat with you.”
“But that doesn’t mean we think it’s impossible.” Bella drops the mascara onto the vanity. It’s also white with a lit sliding mirror and multiple drawers and shelves that’re lined with beauty products to assist in my quest to become more of a girly girl.
“I think it’s time to forget the little girl’s dreams and become realistic. Jake thinks I’m a child.” I frown. “A plain child.”
Ruby’s eyes widen as her head snaps backward. And there’s that fiery passion on full display. “He said you were plain?!”
“I didn’t hear the words, but I’m sure he said it. He implied as much when he was telling me to change clothes. You saw what I wore to work out. It was fine. Spencer said Jake went on and on while they were driving here about how plain, childish, and silly I was. It’s humiliating.”
“Are you sure Jake said it? Maybe this Spencer guy was just trying to stir up trouble or get your attention off Jake.” Bella is the eternal optimist, and I love her for it. But it’s time to face facts. He doesn’t see me that way.
I stand and catch my reflection in the mirror. A skimpy, midriff-bearing top, boy shorts that barely cover my ass, and makeup that makes me look twenty-one at the youngest. I don’t see plain at all. And there’s nothing childish about how I’ve filled out over the last couple of years.
I’ve had multiple guys in my class ask me out, but I rarely took them up on their offers over a foolish crush. No more. It’s time to forget Jake Thompson.
“I’m starving.” Ruby hops off the bed. “Let’s grab something to eat.”
“Good idea.” For some reason, emotional eating sounds like a fabulous idea. “I think I saw Mom putting some leftovers into the refrigerator, which is a shock considering there are three adult men in the house. If we don’t get it soon, it’ll be gone.”
“Good point. We’ll be lucky if they haven’t raided the kitchen and eaten everything in sight.” Ruby slips one pink pig slipper onto her foot, causing her freshly painted toes and glistening silver toe ring to disappear.
“How about cake? Was there any of that left?” Bella’s eyes light up as she places a tube of lipstick and a container ofeyeshadow into a zipper tote. “I love your mom’s lasagna. But between my mom’s need to cook, and your mom’s, I’m going to get a big ass.”
“Most boys like a little junk in the trunk.” Ruby waggles her eyebrows as she shakes her butt.
“That reminds me. It’s almost time for the dance party and the opportunity to work off some of those calories.” Bella drops the makeup bag and snatches her phone off the counter. “I’ll find the perfect song.”
“No, you won’t.” Ruby grabs the phone from her. “You pick the most boring songs. We need one to shake our asses so we can post the videos.”
Bella crosses her arms over her chest and pouts. “There’s nothing wrong with my song choices.”
“I beg to differ. We’re too old to listen to ‘Wheels on the Bus’ and ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.’” She swipes the screen.
