Shelter // H.S.

Chapter 3

"Gotta get right, tryna free my mind before the end of the world

I don't miss no ex, I don't miss no text

I just choose not to respondI don't regret, just pretend shit never happened

Half of us layin' waste to our youth, is in the present

Half of us chasin' fountains of youth and it's in the present now"

Dallas

"Dallas, sing louder why don't you?" I hear Carson yell with annoyance from outside the bathroom.

"You got it! Good day in my mind, safe to take a step out. Get some air now, let your edge out." I continue to sing along with SZA over the speaker as I take a step out of the shower, grabbing my towel off of the rack on the wall.

I move to the mirror while I wrap the towel around my body, my wet hair swinging down my back. I grab a nearby hand towel and use it to wipe away the steam on the mirror so I can properly see myself.

I have another gig to get ready for tonight at Neumos. I'm excited to see Wallows play. I was stoked when I landed them for this weekend, and my boss was ecstatic as well because we ended up selling out. Originally, they were only supposed to play one show, but there was such a high demand for tickets we asked Wallows' manager if they would play a double this weekend: Saturday and Sunday night. They agreed and the second night sold out within minutes.

I never thought that as just a junior in college I'd already be working and booking my favorite bands for sold out shows.

The music continues to blare through the bathroom as I rummage through the drawers of the vanity for my hairbrush. I cut my own bangs not too long ago and I'm still trying to figure out how to style them. I unfortunately can no longer just get out of bed, brush my hair, and walk out the door. They actually require some attention. Bummer. But, they are really cute and back in style.

I run my brush through my hair before getting my blow dryer ready. It's one of those salon quality round brushes that doubles as a blow dryer that Carson managed to convince me to invest in when I first cut my hair. I will admit, it was a great investment. All I have to do is roll it underneath the hair and it does everything for me, blowing my hair out.

I tried to convince Carson to cut her hair with me but I guess she only has commitment issues when it comes to hair. I tried telling her she would only have them for a couple of months before they grew out but I must not have been convincing enough.

Once my hair is dry and styled I start on my makeup. I don't need much, and I personally don't like the way it feels on my skin.

Instead of going for a full face, I simply put on some cream blush, mascara, a little brown eyeliner for a small, fanned out wing, and then fill in my eyebrows. Simple, but just enough to make me look alive and feel good about myself. I finish everything off with a setting mist, securing the cap back on and placing it back on the counter.

Still wrapped in a towel I make eye contact with myself, "Yeah, you're hot. You are a badass woman who put this weekend together. You're going to show up tonight and your boss is going to praise you. The crowd will be ecstatic and loud and you're going to know that you are the reason it all happened. You landed Wallows. You can do even more. You'll have your own venue one day. One day you'll be the boss—"

"Dallas, are you talking to yourself again?" Carson interrupts me.

"Yes, I am! And maybe you should try it sometime. It's called manifesting!" I yell back emphasizing the word manifesting. I don't know if this shit works but it doesn't hurt to try.