Stranger

Chapter 17: Jane

When Jane reached the entrance to Ignis Hall, she was glad to see Brielle already there, a bag in her hand—probably makeup—wearing a chic trench coat. Even so, Jane could still see the hem of the dress Brielle wore peek out underneath the hem of the coat.

Hmm.

Perhaps she could talk Brielle into wearing something of Ellie's.

Not that Jane would ever tell someone they didn't look good in whatever they were wearing—especially Brielle, who was stunning in that 1950s classic way, and looked good in anything, even those old-fashioned glasses she normally wore—but Ultra had a pretty strict clothing policy. Ellie managed to push that policy to its limits by wearing her typical sundresses and gladiator sandals. Somehow, she had never gotten thrown out due to her questionable fashion choices, but Jane liked to think of her as the exception. Since Brielle was a new face, she'd have to make a good impression and that meant wearing something decidedly shorter, especially since she was wearing her signature bottle-cap glasses.

"Hey," Jane greeted with a smile. "I'm so glad you came. Are you ready to head up?"

Brielle smiled shyly and nodded.

Jane led Brielle into the Hall and signed her in as Mark, one of Ignis's security guards, scanned Brielle's student ID card. If Mark was surprised at an Ignis signing in an Aqua, he kept it to himself. After the two got the okay, they headed down the hall to Jane's room.

"Oh my God," Jane said, taking in the sight of Sophie wearing the dress she picked out for her.

"Doesn't she look great?" Ellie asked, materializing in the room from the closet. She was wearing a rust-colored dress that reached the middle of her thighs. The top was square-shaped, the sleeves loose, much like a T-shirt, and a black-knit belt wrapped around her waist, revealing just how narrow it was. On her feet was her favorite pair of black gladiator sandals.

"So do you, hot stuff," Jane said with a wink. She looked back at Brielle. "Sophie, this is Brie. Brie, Sophie."

"It's really nice to meet you," Brielle said as she and Sophie shook hands.

"Likewise," Sophie replied.

"Okay, Brie, take off your jacket so we can see what you have on underneath it," Jane instructed as she crossed her arms over her chest.

She watched as Brielle turned pink, but did as Jane asked. Jane's eyes narrowed as she took in the sight of her friend. Brielle looked very pretty ... if she was going to a job interview. She was wearing a deep violet collared shirt tucked into a tight, gray high-waisted skirt. On her feet was a pair of black pumps.

No, this would not do. Not at all.

"You look great, Brie, really you do," Jane said, her eyes still on the outfit, "but we're going dancing, you know? Ellie, do you think you could show Brie some of your dresses?"

"Oh, I don't know," Brie replied in slight discomfort. "Ellie's taller and smaller than I am. I don't know if they would fit."

"Trust me," Ellie said, wrapping her fingers around Brie's wrist and tugging her gently in the direction of the closet.

Jane turned back to Sophie. "So," she began. "Do you know how you're going to do your hair?"

"I was thinking I could leave it down," Sophie said, following Jane into the bathroom. "Something simple, but do really smoky eyes and red lips."

"I love it," Jane agreed.

"The only problem," the redhead continued, "is that I never really learned about the whole makeup thing. You know, picking the right colors for my skin tone, putting it on correctly."

Jane waved her hand, dismissing Sophie's doubts. "Don't even worry about that," she said. "Ellie knows everything there is to know about makeup. Besides putting on eyeliner and mascara, I'm just as clueless as you are." She opened her mirror cabinet and pulled out her straightener. After resting it safely on the sink, she plugged it in. "I'm going to get dressed. I'll be right back to straighten my bangs."

As Jane walked to the closet, Brielle and Ellie were walking out with three or four potential dresses for the brunette. Jane closed the closet door behind her in order to give herself more privacy while changing. She already knew exactly what she was going to wear tonight, as she normally did when planning something in advance. Tight, hot pink—not one of Jane's favorite colors but one that flattered her skin tone nonetheless—and dangerously short, with a sweetheart cut that showed a classy amount of cleavage and held up by black straps, the dress was one of her favorites and fit her like a dream.

When she emerged from the closet dressed up, a long, low whistle broke her out of her thoughts of how she would do her hair.

"Short enough, Cabot?" Ellie teased, a mischievous sparkle in her blue eyes.

"Hey, I work my ass off for these legs," Jane said, "or do I have to remind you that I played six years of soccer before coming here?"

"Of course not. Everyone knows you were the youngest player ever to make the team."

"Wow." Sophie looked at Jane with awe in her eyes. "That's amazing."

"She's the youngest sweeper Ignis has had in a century," Ellie pointed out. "Also the best."

Jane shook her head, feeling her face heat up. "How's Brie doing?" she asked.

"Just fine."

"She's trying on different dresses in the bathroom," Sophie explained.

It was another twenty minutes before Brielle finally came out. She decided on a brown dress that wasn't too tight but revealed that, yes, she did indeed have curves. There were three thin black straps per shoulder, and black polka dots throughout the dress itself. It wasn't too short either, reaching just past the middle of her thighs. She looked retro-cute, even with the glasses.

"Brie," Jane breathed with a smile. "You look great!"

"I feel so ... beautiful," she said, her face turning pink.

It was then that Jane realized that Brielle might not get compliments all that often, or if she did, didn't believe them. Jane promised herself that she would make sure to change that and that her flattery didn't sound like pity. Luckily, Jane had a sincere reputation, so hopefully Brielle wouldn't think twice about believing her.

"You are," Jane told her.

"And the cute heels you brought with you totally match the dress," Ellie added. "Guys, I am so excited. I really, really need tonight; you have no idea."

"I think we all need tonight," Sophie said.

***

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