Was it delusion that convinced me she was starting to want me too? Could it be that I wasn’t insane to pursue her?
Not important, Az.
“Can’t I just imagine myself looking slightly different?” I asked, uncorking the vial. She zipped her bag, tossing it back on her shoulder as she stood. Her lip was bleeding, proof that she wasn’t unfazed and calm like she hoped I’d think.
“The reason I want you to pick someone you know is so that you don’t forget to change parts of yourself that are identifiable.”
“Nothing other than my hair is all that noticeable.”
“That’s not true, your eyes too.” Immediately after saying it, her gaze widened, her cheeks turning a deep shade of red.
Stars, I think I have a chance. A real chance.
“Sounds like you’re looking at me a lot more than I realized,” I said, chuckling softly. Taking two steps forward, I lifted the vial to my lips, keeping eye contact with her as I poured it into my mouth.
“Focus, Altair,” she ordered, reaching up and closing my eyes. Just for that, I pictured Pri. Her slightly slanted, deep brown eyes that folded at the lids. Her high cheekbones. Her almost round lips. I thought of her hair, how it was always a shining shade of pure black, as were her eyebrows. She had short eyelashes and a pointed chin, with no blemishes on her skin savethe small freckle that sat above the left corner of her mouth. Lastly, I pictured her nose, the way it sat flat against her face.
And when I opened my eyes, it was the beautiful, annoyed face of Nova that I saw first. Her upper lip was lifted in a sneer, her eyes squinted.
“You chose your fiance of all people?”
I smiled wider at her disgusted tone, daring to believe in something wonderful.
Please be jealous.
“She isn’t my fiance, but I know her face nearly as well as my own.”
“Oh, I’m sure you know lots of her really well,” she fired back, rolling her eyes and swallowing her vial’s contents. Eager to see who she’d choose, I watched her every feature, feeling oddly sad when the face I knew began to disappear.
First, her nose seemed to deflate, turning sharper and smaller. Her lips evened out, her face lengthening to an oval shape. Her black eyes with bright dots lightened to fully silver, bordering on grey. I watched in surprise as her brows became more controlled, fading until they were almost colorless. Lastly, her hair began to straighten, the silver strands falling lower down her back.
“Is this supposed to be me?” I asked.
“Yes, actually. My normal look too closely mirrors Zura.”
“Your friend from Elite Academy?” What did she even look like? I couldn’t seem to picture her anymore.
“Yes. She’s very pretty. It was an accident I looked so closely to her when I…” Nova cut herself off, clearing her throat and tucking her new hair behind her ears.
“When you what?”
“Well, remember that book I was reading on the beach?” I nodded. “You weren’t wrong when you guessed that I stole it. I used to…borrowfrom wealthy eadi in my district.”
“Wow, that’s—“
“Obviously it was wrong, but I needed the coin from what I pawned off to buy haya and food for my family. Plus, I fucked them first, so it wasn’t like they didn’t win too.” Her arms crossed, her face—my face—pinched.
Raising my hands, I said, “I’m not judging. You have to do what you have to do in life.”
I was, unfortunately, the jealous one though.
“Exactly. Now let’s get going. This conversation is wasting our time.” She began walking out of the shaded area, moving towards the distant buildings. I followed, wishing we could go home. Then, because the way she’d said it stuck with me, I pushed forward and looked at her.
“You’re pretty.”
Stopping midstep, she turned to me. “Excuse me?”
“I saidyou’repretty. When you mentioned your friend, you said she’s very pretty.”
