“Messy buns are super cute, but I want you to know how good it can look if you spend a little time on it.”
She shows me how to use the different brushes to get the same results on my own. My hair feels so soft, but I still have no idea how it looks because the girls haven’t done the big reveal yet.
We’re about to order some Chinese when Paige gets a text from her new boyfriend. “Marcus and his two friends want to know if we’d like to join them for drinks in half an hour. I told them we’re starving, and they can get us dinner.” She points at me. “You have to come and show off your new look.”
“But I never know what to say when I first meet someone, and I come off as a bumbling nerd.” Or, as my friends back home would say, adorkable.
“You’re a beautiful nerd. Just own that. Besides, it’ll be a good chance to mingle.”
“Mingle?”
“Yes, it’s what you do when you’re playing the field.”
“Do I want to play the field?” I ask, hesitantly.
“Definitely.” Paige texts her boyfriend, then sets down her phone. “This is going to be so fun!”
Baylee nods. “I’m in.”
When Baylee’s done with my hair, Paige hands me another thrift-store outfit I haven’t worn yet. This one is a halter-top dress. “Put this on, and don’t you dare look in the mirror yet. I want to do a whole aesthetic so you can see that you’re a beautiful little butterfly.”
I choke on a laugh. “Okay, fairy godmother. Your wish is my command.”
After I change in my bedroom, Paige gets out her needle and thread and makes a few quick adjustments to my dress.
Once she finishes, I run my hand over the smooth material that now sits snug to my body instead of bulging out. “You have secret powers, Paige. This is amazing.”
“I love sewing, which was handy when I was growing up because we were poor, and I had to adjust my clothes from the donation box at church.” She pats the barstool. “Let me do your makeup. I was thinking we should go with a smoky eye.”
I slide onto the chair. “I tried that once and ended up looking like a raccoon.” If raccoon eyes were in like curtain bangs and highlights, I’d be golden.
Fortunately, I got my contacts in before our girls’ night started, so I don’t have to fuss with them, but it’s still unnerving to try something new.
Paige places her hand on my shoulder. “Trust me. Close your eyes.”
Here goes nothing.
14
ABIGAIL
I shiver and tighten the thin shawl around my shoulders. “If we don’t get inside before it rains, my hair is going to frizz up.”
Baylee gasps. “Over my dead body. Get your ass in there.”
Laughing, I jog alongside her and Paige.
Despite the sudden dark clouds that blot out the moon tonight, the Buck ’Em Brewhouse is packed. It’s a popular spot near campus. Part bar, part restaurant, part dance hall, it’s one of those places where peanut shells litter the floor, and it smells like comfort food and beer.
I’ve been at Lone Star State going on my fourth semester, and this is really the first night I’ve gone out with friends. I don’t count anything I did with Ezra because he tainted those memories.
Even though I’m nervous, I feel like I’m finally taking control of my life.
Paige hooks her arm through mine. “Troy seems really nice. I think you’re going to like him.”
She waves at three guys at the bar, and my stomach twists into a knot. They’re handsome. Dressed in dark jeans and polos, they look like models in a cologne commercial. I still don’t know what I’m going to talk about. I doubt they’d be interested in the travel Scrabble game I got on Etsy the other day.
I’m just glad I have Paige and Baylee to lean on. We’ve had so much fun today with my makeover, so I’m not going to let self-consciousness get the best of me.
