The Beauty Queen

The Beauty Queen - Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I stared at the mentor. I felt a frown fight its way onto my face.

The other girls around me, however, sounded like a flock of birds, chirping excitedly about our mentor. I looked around, resisting the urge to roll my eyes. If Linda were here, she'd be dragging me to a corner.

I returned my attention to the mentor.

She was tall and slender, and of course, she was pretty. But it wasn't a natural pretty. Anyone with eyes could clearly tell that she's had plenty of work done to her face, along with other parts of her body that will go unmentioned. She had this deep tan that looked so unnatural, it was laughable. Obviously, I didn't laugh.

I was still trying to figure out how old this woman really was.

Once the crowd of contestants quieted down, the mentor clasped her hands together and pursed her lips at us. It obviously posed some kind of obstacle for her, since her plumped lips could barely move. When she was sure she had everyone's undivided attention, she clasped her hands together and forced her lips into a tight smile.

"Welcome, ladies!" she cried, throwing her hands into the air excitingly. She struck a pose, and the girls around me burst into cheering... again. I clapped.

"Well, I am just delighted to get the chance to be your mentor," she started. I groaned mentally. It was probably the beginning of another sappy speech. I sighed and stared at the ceiling.

"But I'm sure that none of you will like me," she finished. That made my head snap back to the front.

Umm, can you repeat that?

All of us eyed the woman carefully. She still had that tight, toothy smile on her face, but I could tell she was scrutinizing us. A daring girl in the back of the room raised her hand uncertainly.

"Miss?" she said shakily, obviously timid. The mentor's head snapped in the direction of the voice. Her eyes landed on the small, mouse-like girl as the crowd split. The girl's eyes widened.

"Speak up, girly. No one will be able to hear you," the mentor snapped, her forced smile vanishing. Her change of attitude was so sudden that a few of us jumped. The shy girl's eyes were still wide in fright.

"W-Well, I j-just thought that m-mentors were supposed to be..." the girl swallowed. The mentor narrowed her eyes at the girl. I felt a pang of sympathy for the small, timid girl. I honestly thought she would bolt out the door right there.

"...nice," the girl finished with a squeak.

The mentor's eyes widened for a second, but they narrowed just as quickly.

"Well hun, that's only in the movies. This is the real deal," she spat. "And I know for a fact your mousey ass won't make it," she added nastily.

Ouch.

I should be a pro psychic. The girl dashed out the door, crying her eyes out.

Oh crap.

~~~

"We're going to have a practice," Penelope, the mentor, announced. She was standing on a wooden crate, towering above all of us. She didn't need to stand on it, though. Her six-inch heels made her tall enough by themselves. "I want to see how much work needs to be done on you girls."

We were standing on the pageant stage itself.

I scowled, and there a was collective groan from the group of contestants. We all shuffled around, but Penelope quickly quieted us down. She held up a pair of high heels, even a little taller than her own. My eyes widened.

"You'll be practicing in these," Penelope snapped. She pointed to a shelf backstage. "You each have your own pair. You should be excited, considering some of you came from the poorest of the poor."

I raised an eyebrow. I examined the other contestants. They were all dressed in designer clothes, complete with expensive handbags and salon-styled hair. None of them looked poor to me. I looked down at my own pair of cheap denim shorts and my sister's old dance t-shirt. I grimaced and looked up at Penelope, who was clearly glaring at me. I flushed, feeling my hands tighten into fists. I moved to the back of the crowd and looked away.

The other contestants were noticing me for the first time, staring at me and my clothes. My face was still red. I've never been more embarassed in my life.

I shuffled a little further away from the crowd so that I was on the edge of the stage. I could still hear Penelope's obnoxious voice telling us what to do. I sat down, letting my feet dangle off the side of the stage. I frowned, putting my chin in my hands.

"Even though it's the last segment of the competition, we'll be practicing it first. It's the most important, and usually makes a lasting impression on the judges," Penelope's voice said. I desperately wanted to block her out, but her voice was so annoying that I could. I sighed loudly.

"Now move," Penelope ordered. I jumped off my butt and hurried to the shelves where our practice heels were waiting. She's pretty scary, if you asked me. Actually, if you asked anybody.

I grabbed a pair of heels of the shelf, noticing all the pairs were identical. After putting one on, I realized it was the wrong size.

"I know you usually steal whatever you can, but that's the wrong size."

I grimaced and spun around, coming face-to-face with a miniature version of Penelope. This must be the devil's spawn.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Are these yours?" I said, raising an eyebrow. The devil's spawn rolled her eyes and gave me a flat look. She held out her hand expectantly. I looked down at the giant heels on my feet. They had to be, like, size twelve or something. No exaggeration there, I swear.

"I originally thought these were meant for clowns," I said, pulling off the heel I put on, "and I guess I was right." I shoved the shoe into the shocked girl's hands, and I realized I didn't feel like doing a practice round. I could wing it at the next one.

I stormed off the stage, ignoring Penelope's protesting. After yelling at me for a while, she realized I wasn't going back until later, so she shut up.

I walked out into the main hall, where we first met Penelope. That was about fifteen minutes ago.

I groaned in frustration and slid down the wall, squeezing my eyes shut.

I'm not angry. Okay, maybe a little, but that's not the main reason I left. I'm so extremely frustrated right now.

It feels like reality came rushing to me all of a sudden, like I had just realized what's going on. I feel like I really just noticed my family's desperate situation. How poor we really are, how much we don't fit in quite yet. It seems like New York is just a giant puzzle, with way too many pieces already. It feels like my family's situation is so inevitably hopeless. I can't believe I didn't realize until now. I've been so incredibly selfish, not wanting to be here.

I immediately felt sorry for every foul thing I've ever said to my family, and every single hardship I put Linda through. In spite of it all, she was still able to drag me here.

My vision started becoming blurred by tears, and I buried my face in my hands. I was glad I was alone. I don't want anyone to see me bawling my eyes out.

"Are you... okay?" an uncertain voice said, startling me. I squeaked.

Of course, it's just my luck some guy would see me crying.

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Ya like it? ;P

I felt a little off on this chapter... I had a nap today, lol. Usually I feel pretty woozy after naps, so... yeah.