Rin went to bed shortly after Steven did, but I stayed up and had a steaming mug of hot chocolate with Rikku and Brother, sitting by the friendly fire. We chatted for a while, but as I drained my cup I felt my eyelids tugging down, filling me with fatigue. “Uh…I think I’m gunna go to bed now,” I mumbled, dumping my empty cup into the sink and rinsing it a couple of times. Rikku pointed me towards a room loudly and I stumbled in, barely noting the mammoth size of the bed I soon collapsed into. For the first time in months, I slept all through the night and woke up the next day feeling thoroughly refreshed.
When I padded drowsily into the kitchen, everyone (barring Steven) was already there. It was strange; I felt a strange rush of affection for this dysfunctional group of people, and knew I would feel much more comfortable than before – which was weird more than anything because I was usually so shy around new people! But I figured that Steven would still feel a little uncomfortable around them; I would simply put that down to his brotherly concern and protective nature. “Where’s Steven?” I whispered, rubbing my eyes and pushing my hair back, yawning widely the whole time. Rin shook his head, shrugging, and I grinned. “I’ll get him up. Steven!” I bellowed happily, proud to be up and moving before him for once – and it wasn’t even a school day. He came scurrying out of his room, apologising profusely as he pulled on one sock, mismatched to the other he was already wearing; everyone chuckled at it, but nobody pointed it out to him. We all ate a filling breakfast together before Brother, Steven and I left to go shopping. I raced Brother to the bottom, and as Steven stepped down slowly I moaned at him, “You have no childlike zest for life!” He simply shrugged the complaint off, and climbed into the beautiful car that had picked us up last night.
The three of us went to buy Steven’s tuxedo first. We trawled through countless shops tiredly, looking at satin and silk, crimson and black, tailored and loose. Every shop we went in, Steven would hand Brother and me tonnes of suits for him to try on, and we would be left to amuse ourselves while he tried every one on – meaning we threw things at each other, span around on cute, little spinning chairs, and tried on different ties in zany and garish patterns. Finally Steven settled on a ‘perfect’ suit, as he proclaimed – but he wouldn’t let me see it – and we were able to go searching for my first dress. Again we looked in dozens of shops, but it was a lot more fun this time around. For me at any rate…But after I tried on practically hundreds of dresses, I tried on the last one and got that rush of warmth that I had read about in books that came from finding the perfect dress.
This dress was amazing; stunning. Its voluminous skirts reached the floor, bunching around my ankles. The main body of the dress was black, with red netting over the corset-style top half, a red underskirt and red ribbons adorning the capacious skirts. It had separate black sleevelets made out of a lacy fabric, and I wore a pair of fishnet tights underneath with a pair of gothic, spiky, knee-high boots with vintage Victorian buttons up one side. Teamed with some chunky, unique black and silver accessories, the overall look was very Lolita, and I wasn’t sure whether Rin would approve. But I liked it, and that was all that mattered.
I refused to show Steven my dress as a petty revenge for him doing the same earlier, and we made our way back to the flat. The three of us piled into the elevator, promising Brother that we wouldn’t tell Rin as we pleaded with him, and I went to dump my dress and things in my room. Looking around my bedroom, I was a little confused. “Rin,” I called as I returned to the living room, “Why are there a load of boxes and bags everywhere?” He looked up from the newspaper in his hands, and smiled. “Oh, yes. I must have forgotten to mention it; I hope you don’t mind, but I had Rikku pick out some clothes for you, based on what she’s seen you wearing so far.” Steven burst out of his room, asking the same question and receiving the same answer. “But there are so many! I can’t accept all that,” we both gasped, perfectly in synch. Rin laughed and insisted that it was fine.
Once Rin had finally convinced me, I sprinted back to my bedroom, desperate to see what Rikku had bought and to change out of the clothes I was wearing now. I rifled through every box and bag, squealing with delight every so often – she had chosen such perfect clothes! I would have to thank her so much later! Eventually I settled on a fluorescently acid green pair of drainpipe jeans and a blue check shirt with some blue baseball boots. Then I took every item of clothing, draped it carefully over a hanger from another box, and opened my wardrobe. Opening the mahogany wardrobe doors, I was stunned. I had my very own walk-in wardrobe, complete with a shoe rack and handbag cupboard! I ran around opening doors and drawers and shrieking happily. Once the novelty had worn down enough for me to stop yelping, I took all the clothes off my bed and hung them up gently, one at a time. It was only once I found Rikku sat at the breakfast bar and thanked her repeatedly that I realised I had been in there for four hours! It was a little past six o’clock now, and the sun was already setting. That meant we had a meeting to go to in an hour and a half! Panicking, I charged back to my room to get ready, finding tonnes of new wash things and make-up in my en-suite bathroom.
It took me just under an hour to get ready. I had layered thick, black eyeliner on with a shimmering grey eyeshadow and four coats of black mascara. I applied white powder but left out the blusher, and finished with a blood red coat of lipstick. Then I had slipped my dress on – very carefully – and meticulously curled my hair, borrowing Rikku’s professional hair tongs. Clipping on necklaces and bracelets, I sank onto my bed, wondering what to do for twenty minutes…I found a book on the bedside table, entitled ‘Twilight’, and was instantly sucked into a vampire-filled world. Steven’s shouts finally dragged my attention away from the magical words and back to my own. Checking the clock, I saw it was time to leave, and I joined the others in the hall, nervous about their reaction to the very gothic look.
I looked at the clock. Twenty minutes till Charlotte and I had to be ready, and I was still only half-dressed. I looked in the floor-length mirror, pulling on a pair of black socks with little grace. I looked down at my black trousers (Slater’s Menswear, absolutely perfect) and the rest of the tuxedo parts on the bed. I flashed my gaze back to the mirror, regarding my semi-naked self with disdain. I never did like my body… always too thin, too spidery, but lately things had been changing. My hips had become less prominent (always a good thing), my waist more feminine. My ribs were no longer visible… rather; a very small amount of muscle was building on my arms and chest. This… This was good.
I returned to the wardrobe, picking out a shirt I’d bought yesterday. Simple fabric, yet purest crimson in colour… it would go perfectly with the Tuxedo, and my hair. I pulled on the Tuxedo jacket, the silk sliding down my arms with ease, the inner lining warm and comforting. Rin knocked on the door, asking if I was ready, and I frowned slightly. “Almost… my hair is done, my Tux is on, and I just need to sort out this tie…” Rin smiled and walked in, standing behind me. “Allow me.” He stood close behind me, his warm breath against my neck, and placed his arms gently around me, looking in the mirror and fiddling with the bowtie. Once it was done he smiled again and I turned my head slightly to look at him. His piercing eyes bore into mine, though I was surprised with how much affection his eyes contained. He blushed slightly, grinning. If I didn’t know better, I would have said… Never mind. I looked at the clock. Five minutes left.
I stuttered slightly and walked towards the bed. “I…uhh… Sorry, I gotta do my makeup.” Rin smiled and walked towards the door. As he walked out, he looked back at me, a twinkle in his eyes. “Just don’t be late.” I blushed slightly, and grabbed my eyeliner. Quickly and expertly applying it, I turned back to my bed. I had just enough time; my black nail polish was quick-drying. But first… I had one thing I wanted to try. I picked it up from the bed, standing in front of the mirror, holding it before my eyes. Should I? I had wanted to for a while now… I might as well. I extended the black lipstick from its tube, and bit my lip. Now or never. I carefully, slowly applied the lipstick, looking worriedly into the mirror as I did so. Thirty seconds later, I closed my eyes, stopping and grabbing my nail polish. Looking down, I began painting my nails… Three minutes left. Two. I blew on my nails. One…and they’re done. I adjust the bowtie, and gaze into the mirror. I smile. Perfect. Now, to get Charlotte. “Hey Charlotte, are you ready yet?”
