While the two siblings are still laughing at me, I take a shy glance at the piece of clothing once again. It’s a night blue ensemble with a bit of embroidery, laces, and ribbons. I do have to admit that it’s beautiful, but I can’t picture myself wearing it. I push the box aside, for now, trying to regain my composure.
Bobo holds in his laugh and gives me another big box.
“This one’s from me.”
I really hope his present his less embarrassing than his sister’s... I open it, and to my surprise, it’s a brand-new pair of boxing gloves! I can’t believe it! I turn to Bobo, and he is smiling.
“I knew you would like it. Next time you need to throw some punches with me, too, okay?”
I nod, delighted with it. I love those new gloves! I try them on, and they are the right size, too! I play with it for a while and put them back after thanking Bobo. Aside from the lingerie, Tonia also found the time to buy me a stunning winter dress for tonight’s date. I wonder when she got it. I like it a lot. It looks warm and pretty, too. I’ll definitely put it on tonight. Tonia also booked me an appointment at some famous salon after work so I can have my hair and makeup done by a professional. She always complains about how I’m never putting any makeup on, so I guess this was her way of cornering me into this...
Nathaniel’s present is a very expensive-looking pair of pretty shoes from a French brand, which I think is supposed to go with my new dress. I am a bit worried about the high heels, but they do make me gorgeous once I try it... It seems like a have another fairy godmother.
Liam, on the other hand, offered me a selection of movies and CD albums of his own choosing. He was a bit surprised about my lack of knowledge in pop-culture last time we talked about it, so I guess it gave him ideas. I really like it, though, since I do feel like I’ve missed a lot all these years. He even put sticky notes on some of them, stating which ones we should watch together or his personal favorites. I really like that he actually took the time to write these down.
Once I’m done opening all of these, I turn around to thank Bobo and Tonia once again. “This is definitely the best birthday ever!” I say, ecstatic.
Tonia laughs and gives me a wink while pushing me into the kitchen. “Save that for your date, baby girl! Now let’s get to breakfast before you get late on your first day of work.”
Bobo agrees with her, and I happily start preparing breakfast. I’m in the best mood today and even put one of Liam’s CDs on the music station to play while I’m cooking and dancing around in the kitchen. Bobo happily joins me in my dancing, trying to teach me a few steps of Latino dancing and making me laugh. At the same time, his sister takes pictures of us with her smartphone. I really love my Bobo in his human form. He is not a big talker, as expected, but I find that he does express himself with his gestures and smiles. It’s like having a big brother, but a caring one. We get along incredibly well, as we keep chatting over breakfast.
Once we are done eating, I get ready for my first day. I’m quite nervous, actually, but I do want to make a good impression, so I pick an ivory shirt with black pants. It’s good that I can choose to wear pants... Robert always made me wear short skirts whenever I was working at the bar, and I hated it. Tonia helps me put on a bit of mascara and lip gloss and styles my hair into a pretty bun. While she goes out of mybedroom to go get her own makeup done, Bobo swiftly enters, while I’m still anxiously examining myself in the mirror.
“Hey, pretty girl.”
“It’s not too much, is it? I don’t want to make a bad impression...”
He shakes his head and walks up to me. “Don’t worry, it’s great. And it will be perfect with this.”
He takes out a small box from his jean pocket and gives it to me. What is this? There’s only a tiny ribbon on it. Another present? I look at him, confused. Bobo smiles. “It’s another present for your birthday. I didn’t want to show it to my sis, she can be naggy about this kind of stuff... Open it.”
I take it and open it. It’s a pair of earrings! And they are so cute and pretty, too! They are blue and tear-shaped, and about the size of my pinky-nail.
“It’s blue topaz, your birthstone. I noticed your ears were pierced.”
That’s true, my dad had them pierced when I was young because I wanted to wear pretty earrings like mom...
“Oh, Moon Goddess, Bobo, I love it...”
I really do. The earrings are delicate and not too garish, perfectly suitable to wear anytime. I immediately put it on. He smiles and nods, visibly satisfied. “They match your eye color. Really pretty.”
“Thanks, Bobo, I love them lots.”
I hug him quickly as thanks before looking once more in the mirror. Bobo is right, they do look like my own iris color, a deep London blue. My eyes are the one thing I’ve always liked about myself. Their dark blue color is uncommon, but somehow, I still loved it anyway. If only it wasn’t for my scar... I look in the mirror again. As always, the red line running across my face is hard to miss. Bobo seems to follow my trainof thought, and lifts my chin up gently, giving me a reassuring smile.
“Hey. Don’t worry about details, baby girl. Okay?”
I nod obediently. Bobo’s right. No matter what, my scar is there and won’t go away, so I might as well cope with it. It’s my first day at this job, so I can’t start with a negative mindset. I need this change.
About an hour later, I’m in the car, nervous but quite excited at the same time. I keep playing with my phone between my hands, and Bobo is observing me with an amused smile but says nothing. While Tonia is looking for a parking spot, my phone suddenly vibrates. It’s Damian! I blush before I even get to answer.
“Hi...”
“Happy Birthday, Nora.”
“Thank you. Are you at work?”
“I am. Trying to get it all done so I can have a date with my princess tonight.”
