Please Stand By

Cbapter 10

Jade looked in the mirror. She wore her black tank top and her long hair pulled back. She also wore long ripped jeans and a flannel tied around her waist, only a little bit of foundation to be more presentable. Alana walked into their dorm.

"You're not going like that!" The latter said.
"Why? You said be presentable." Jade said.
"Yes I know but you need a little more than that!"
"No. I don't want to look like a doll."
"You won't!"

Alana grabbed Jade's hand and took her to the bathroom in their dorm. She sat Jade down on the edge of the bathtub and got out her makeup bag. "Close your eyes." Alana said. She walked over to Jade and applied pressure to her eyes. Jade felt uncomfortable because she never wore makeup, especially around boys. She was never one to dress to impress like Alana did.

A few minutes later, Jade was ready. She looked in the mirror. Alana had added black wings to Jade's eyes, gentle blush, and a subtle red lipstick.

"Thoughts?" Alana asked.
"Not bad! You did makeup that didn't make me look like one of the porcelain dolls." Jade smiled.
"I told you! Let's head out."

The girls came to the park, Alana looking excited and Jade simply smiling along. Jade looked on at the two men. One of them, Jade observed, had a slight tan with bleach blond hair and a leather jacket on. The other, his skin was the color of warm hot chocolate. He had longer, curly dark brown hair with a black band t-shirt on. Jade noticed that it was one of her favorite bands and her smiled seemed just a little wider. They approached the two men.
"Jade, this is Rex! Rex this is my friend Jade." The two exchanged a smile and a hand shake, both saying it was nice to meet the other."
"Jade," Rex began "this is Cain."

Cain gave Jade a warm smile. His eyes were the color of dark chocolate. Everything about him seemed warm and welcoming.

"Nice to meet you!" Both of them said and giggled.
"Hey... we're gonna take off! We'll see you around!"Alana said. Soon after, the two were alone, heading back to Rex's dorm.

"I like your shirt!" Jade said, not knowing how to make good conversation.
"Oh! Thanks! Have you listened to their latest album?" Cain replied.
"Yeah. I just finished it last night."
"Nice! I have a few of their records in the car if you wanna go listen to them while we... find somewhere to go!"
"Sure! You wanna go to The Café? It's a few minutes from here!"
"That sounds really good! I don't think I've been there before."
"Oh their really good!"
They walked to Cain's car. It was a nice dark blue. He opened the door for Jade before getting in on his side.
"The records are in the glove compartment if you wanna choose one." Cain said.
"Quite the gentleman you are."
Cain smiled. "Well, I was raised right I guess."
Jade chose an album. The cover looked like abstract art mixed with obscure psychedelic rock. She slid it into the disk player and let the mix of guitar and heavy drums hit the two of them all at once.
"This is probably my favorite album!" Cain said.
"Yeah, I really related to this album when it first dropped." Jade said.
She directed Cain to The Café as they rocked out in the car, smiling and laughing the rest of the way.

They soon entered The Café, observing the brightly colored decor. They sat down at a small table close to the window. A young lady came over and took their order. Since it was still morning, Jade ordered a latte with a double chocolate muffin. Cain ordered a hot cocoa with a blueberry bagel and cream cheese. The waitress walked away after writing down their orders.
"So... what department are you in?" Cain asked.
"I'm gonna be in the theater department next semester." Jade responded.
"Ah! Just getting your basic classes out of the way?"
"Yeah."
"You wanna be an actress?"
"I'll be in any department I can get in. Mostly set and costume design but I'll act if I have to."
"That's awesome. I'd be happy to see what you can do."
Jade smiled. "Alright Prince Charming, what department are you in?"
"Astronomy."
"Ooh!" Jade put her head in her hands.
"Interested?"
"I like the stars and space and things like that but I'm not sure I'd have the patience to learn about them in classes."
"I get that."
The waitress brought out their orders and was thanked by both of them.
"So... what does a theater girl like to do when she's not studying?" Cain smiled.

Jade walked into her dorm late that afternoon and plopped onto her bed.
"So," Alana said. "How did it go?"
Jade turned to her with a smile. "I hate you."
"Does that mean it went well?"
"He's so kind! And he's such a gentleman and likes all the same stuff as me!"
"Sounds like you have a new friend!"
"He said he wants to come to all of my theater performances."
"That's so sweet!"

Cain opened his dorm room.
"Have fun?" Rex asked.
"Gosh she's wonderful." Cain started. "She's into my same music and she's so... relaxed. She's like a person you can talk to without being judged."
"Sounds like you two hit it off pretty well."
"We did. I really want to see her again."

Jade and Cain did see each other again. They saw each other whenever they weren't in classes. Both helped each other study and be prepared for the others classes.
"Next semester can we have a class together?" Cain asked.
"I think that should be possible! I'll be taking two theatrical classes and we should be performing plays in that class. You could also see me then." The two smiled as Cain lay on Jade's bed, looking up at the ceiling as Jade tossed out fill in the blank flash card questions that Cain had wrote, hoping it would help him be prepared for finals. Cain did the same, cracking jokes with Jade and helping her learn tricks to remember. When it finally came time for finals. Both of them smiled upon leaving their classes.