I look again in the mirror. She isn’t wrong. I look... pretty.
She pulled my blonde hair into a slicked-back, high ponytail. The makeup is dewy, with a subtle brown winged liner that makes my blue eyes pop even more. It is a simple look, but I never wear things like this. I stumble to grab my phone from the nightstand. Heels are also never on my list of things I wear, but Lianne insisted.
“They are gonna make me change the minute they see this.” I gesture my hands down my body.
“He said dress nice. You are dressed nicely.” She applies another layer of gloss on her lips. “You aren’t showing any more skin than you do at school every day.”
She wasn’t wrong, but it is different. The way I look is... different.
“I don’t know, Lianne. What if he gets mad and changes his mind?”
“Nonsense. Now, let’s go.” She brushes her hands down her tight pencil skirt to smooth any wrinkles. Her golden top looks like it is made of metal, and her high heels look too painful to walk in.
“Where did you even get these clothes?”
“Mr. Wellingburg. He and I go shopping outside of town all the time.”
My head snaps to her. “What? He takes you out of Everton?”
“Yes?” She chuckles. “You know a lot of us are allowed to go out of town. It’s just you who isn’t given that privilege.”She gives me a half smile. “Anyway, let’s go before Samuel really does change his mind.” Her eyes soften as she gives me a shrug.
We walk down the steps, seeing Samuel and Joshua talking by the front door and putting on his coat, when he turns around to see Lianne and I come down.
The look in his eyes makes my heart pound. He is going to tell me we aren’t going. With every step I take down the staircase, he inspects me. Something in his eyes shows more than his face will tell me.
I reach the entryway. “I can change if it’s all too much. You told her to dress me nice—”
“No. I did, and she delivered.” He grabs my hand, raising it above my head and making me give him a twirl. “A little too well if you ask me.”
“Ahem.” Lianne clears her throat next to me. “I did do good, huh?” She smiles at me while she fidgets with her nails.
Joshua looks me up and down, making all my nerves panic.
“And look at you...” Samuel steps away from me to Lianne, who blushes. “You both look beautiful.” He looks back at me on his last word.
“So, where are we going?” Lianne hops, her clacking heels echoing through the room.
“You’ll see.” He smirks and takes our hands, escorting us to his car with Joshua in tow.
11
Eden
Age 18
The last house in Everton zooms by outside.
I haven’t been out of town since I was adopted. The long drive here from my foster home is the last time I ever saw the outside world.
I take a deep breath, letting it out slowly.
Why am I so nervous and on edge?
“So, where do you think? Fancy Restaurant? Bar?” she whispers next to me in the back seat.
“Bar? I’m eighteen, not twenty-one.”
“Yeah, but Samuel and Joshua are twenty-three.” She eyes them.
