Reece

Six

For the entire walk home, I ambled in a daze.

I’m too precious? What does that mean? And coming from Reece, was I to take it as a compliment or an insult? And how could Dylan end up hurting me? I already knew that he didn’t like me in the same way I like him. There was no breaking news on that front.

These questions occupied my thoughts for the rest of the afternoon, even after Mel and Allie came over to help me get ready.

Allie worked as a make-up artist for a theatre company in London and brought along her box of tricks, brushing on layers of foundation before going to town on my eyes. She kept mumbling something about Natalie Portman and black swans, but I lost interest as soon as another Dylan thread started in my mind. Mel occupied herself by learning lines for the latest stage production coming to London, and she needed to get some of the songs memorised too.

My whole family were creative in one way or another. Dad and Mel found their creativity in music, while Sam and Allie were more artistic. I took after my mother who was a TV producer with the BBC. I was more visual and kinaesthetic and loved art in motion. That’s why I had applied to the University or Arts to study animation.

“So what do you think?” Allie asked, nudging me on my shoulder. I looked up at my reflection and frowned. “You don’t like it?”

I stared a little more before a huge grin broke out across my face at the sight of the smoky eye effect. “I love it, Allie,” I smile at her through the mirror. “It’s amazing.”

“Oh, thank God,” she sighs. “I thought you hated it. Now, let’s get you into this dress. It’s almost seven and your friends will be here soon.”

It was somehow decided last week that everyone was going to meet at my house before we made our way to Merton House for the Ball. I wasn’t there when the decision was made, but it sounded right that they would all meet here; whenever there was an event my house was like the bus stop or the train station where everyone converged. It was tradition. Plus, Sam took some amazing photos, which was the most important sale feature according to Erin.

Mel jumped up from my bed and made her way over to my wardrobe, where the dress was hanging in one of those special protective bags. She opened the zip slowly and smiled at the sight of the red fabric.

“I still love this dress,” Mel sighed as she brought the dress towards me. She set it on the floor and motioned for me to climb into it, pulling it up around my body before zipping me in. “After you’re done with it, can I lend it for the opening night? It’s a show stopper.”

“I don’t see why not,” I shrug, carefully moving my curled hair over one shoulder while Mel secured the top button. “I only got it because you liked it.”

“Sure,” Allie rolled her eyes. She laughed and came to guide me towards the floor length mirror my sisters had stolen from our parents’ room. “And it had nothing to do with the fact that you look absolutely gorgeous in it.”

Ok, so I did look good in the dress. It fitted me like a glove and hugged my curves in all the right places. The dress was modest at the neckline, only showing a hint of the swell of my breasts, and the capped sleeves meant that I could go out in the bitter December weather and not worry about taking a jacket with me. The dress was slightly too long, but that wasn’t anything a pair of heels couldn’t fix. The shoes boosted me by four inches and were black with crystals draped at the back of the heel, complementing the embellished clutch Allie held out for me.

“Guys,” I whispered, pulling my sisters in close to me. “You are the best sisters ever.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Mel waved me off, dramatically wiping a non-existent tear from her eyes. “You’re going to make me emotional. Now let’s go down and show you off. Plus, Sam wants to get some pictures of you.”

 My parents and Sam’s reactions at seeing me was similar to how Erin stared when she finally got to see me in my dress. She was still stood in the doorway of my house with a dumbfounded look on her face and didn’t look as if she’s snap out of it for a while. Her eyes lingered at my dress before moving onto the neckline and then the drop earrings that dangled from my ears. She whistled at the overall outfit and mouthed ‘wow’ at me before she finally came inside.

Mark, Sam and James were behind her and they all had to do a double take, just to make sure that it was me they were seeing. The Ball was the only time, apart from my birthday, that I ever made an effort. Every other day I stuck to jeans and a t-shirt, or my trusty school uniform that would make even Jourdan Dunn look ugly. Tonight was a huge departure for me.

As usual Dylan and Reece were running late. The Nicholls twins were typically late for everything so we cracked on with photos while we waited. Erin had her picture taken with each of the guys, but had a couple more with Mark than the other boys. After she posed for her final picture with Sam, Erin pulled me forwards and insisted I have pictures taken with the boys too. Sam had just snapped the last when the doorbell rang.

I ran for the door, which almost killed me in the damned heels, but I made it with all my limbs still intact. I threw the door open, expecting to be greeted by Dylan’s casual, if a little lopsided, smile but instead, all I got was the other twin.