June Burns.

Chapter I. Betrayal Tastes Sour

CHAPTER ONE  ╱  Betrayal Tastes Sour

            The scent of lavender consumes the air. A faint beeping, followed by the sloshing of hands, and antibacterial soap clouds my senses. My lashes flutter against the floral-printed blindfold I'd been bestowed by a crew member. I didn't necessarily know why they had to blindfold me considering I was well aware of the segment. Of what was to come.

            I figured it was just for ratings. A shocked guest treated to a mommy makeover unbeknownst to the audience. It is all about the shock factor, especially nowadays. (My subconscious warns me, screaming, no pleading: Everything's about to change! And it's going to be televised across the world!)

            I was urged to follow Reena's lead by a red-haired woman with a mic grazing her rose-dusted cheeks. Was her name Lisa? Linda? I hate myself for not committing it to my memory. It's just so rude. I could make out freckles beneath her thick sheet of foundation.

            I pinch my cheeks, hoping to add a bit of color to my sunkissed skin. Behind the eye mask, my brain pumps apprehension throughout my veins. Suddenly, I was picking myself apart.

Should I have gotten my lashes extended before agreeing to this? Applied that new lip gloss Mama had sent me that she insisted would make my lips thank me? Maybe gotten my hair done? I missed those blonde strips that accentuated my chestnut hair, that framed my cheekbones, brought out the golden specks in my eyes. Summer was around the corner. I'd make an appointment for next Tuesday with Val.

My fingertips scrape beneath the hem of my sundress. I could already feel the white marks emerging along the skin of my thigh, reddening with each scratch. Clawing my way beneath my skin, I wished I could just reside there.

God, why did I agree to this?

"You deserve this, June!" Rosalind had encouraged. Her blue eyes pierced right through me, omitting a message my mind couldn't gather.