The Girl Who Never Stopped Smiling - A SoTam Story

Chapter 3

Sophie stared at herself in the mirror. All she could see was fat and scars. Her mind would only see herself as an unlovable piece of shit. She shook her head, as if to knock her demons around a bit, and tried to focus on the outfit. Biana had clearly inherited her mother's fashion sense. The outfit was perfect, casual but put together. She had paired black ripped jeans with a cropped grey camisole and white sneakers. After much persuasion, Biana had agreed to add a loose red flannel. Tugging her sleeves down reflexively, she threw her hair up into a quick messy bun. Biana squealed in agreement as Sophie awkwardly shuffled out of her closet. Linh grinned and rolled her eyes at Biana before herding them out the door. 

As they walked, halls went silent, then  erupted with whispers. Biana and Linh didn't seem to hear them, continuing to walk by unaffected. But Sophie heard every word. It started mundane enough, wondering how on earth she had managed to become friend with the most popular girls in town. Seemingly, everyone knew Biana from the modelling industry and Linh through music. How did this nerd, who nobody had ever heard of, end up with them? As they continued to walk, the insults grew worse and louder. Guys making bets on how long it would take to get her to sleep with them, girls accusing her of having plastic surgery. Thoughts began to roar louder and louder around her head, so she was only getting snippets of conversations now. Nerd. Slut. Whore. Car crash. Only survivor. Orphan. Adopted. Freak. How had they found out about that? Nobody could have recognised her from the papers, right? Every word felt like a knife digging into her heart. The stares of her classmates bore into her as they walked. Why didn't she bring her headphones? Could Linh and Biana hear this? Why weren't they saying anything about it? Did they think that too? Did they really- A small, pale hand waved in front of her face, dragging her out of the pure chaos that was her mind. It was quiet in the halls. The whispers had died down. All that was left were her own hideous thoughts.  "Hm-wha?" she said dumbly. "We were talking about siblings, Linh asked if you had any." Biana prompted. "Oh, uhm," her mind flashed to Amy. "I-I did. She died." "I'm so sorry." They both said in unison. Linh could obviously see her discomfort, and graciously switched the topic, beginning to talk about her brother. "He's my twin so he's a freshman here too." Sophie was vaguely aware of Biana saying something, but she had already zoned out again. As they walked out into the carpark, she dragged herself back to reality. "I'll drive!" she said, trying to mask her anxiety over driving with enthusiasm. This was going to be hard.

TIME SKIP BECAUSE I AM THE LAZIEST PERSON ON EARTH

Sophie used her foot to open the door. She was too exhausted to care about all the weird looks they were surely getting. They had left at 12.30 and it was 7pm now. That was six and a half hours of shopping and social interaction for God's sake! She had a right to be tired! Despite the highly caffeinated Starbucks she had consumed, she felt like she could sleep for years. As they stumbled into their room, the girls dumped all their bags into a huge pile on the floor. There had to be at least 10 or 12 bags, ranging from food and socks, to high heels and party dresses. They stared at their purchases, a mixture of awe and disbelief etched on their faces. "Good thing I have a job..." Sophie mumbled quietly. The girls looked up at each other and burst into laughter. As their giggles died down to a manageable level, Linh drifted off to prepare dinner at their little kitchenette and Biana claimed first use of the shower, Sophie dragged herself up and went to put her new clothes away. Quite some time later, Sophie stood back and surveyed her new wardrobe. It was actually full now! She eyed the vanity warily, Biana had promised *cough cough demanded cough cough* to do her makeup the next day so Sophie could be a 'makeup boss' by the time classes started next week. "Sophie, Biana, dinner!"  Linh called from the kitchenette. Sophie cast one last eye over her wardrobe and left.

{Woop woop 740 words! Longest chapter yet. That is actually pathetic. My brain is so sleep deprived right now. This chapter is dedicated to keeperraureliaa. Their book, Where's My Perfect Fix (EVERYBODY GO READ IT IT'S AMAZING IF YOU DON'T I WILL TURN UP AT YOUR HOUSE AND MAKE YOU) inspired me to write this book. So, thank you, you're an awesome person! Byeeeeee}