The Beauty Queen

The Beauty Queen - Chapter 21

Sorry for not uploading in a few days :S And even though I'm singing along to The Lazy Song, I'll write you guys a nice chappie :3

Enjoy!

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Chapter 21

I stared at the mirror, wide-eyed. My stylist, Jill--who by the way, is a man--smiled at my reflection over my shoulder. He flipped his green-streaked bangs out of his face and put his hands on my shoulders.

"Look at you," Jill said, full-on grinning now. He was obviously proud of the work he did on me, and apparently, I needed a lot. But Jill said that it was only wardrobe and make-up issues. I was surprised when he told me that I was a perfect weight for my height, and when he also informed me that I had beautiful hair. I'm glad he didn't do anything to it--my hair, I mean--because that's the only physical feature of myself that I actually like. The rest is just... meh.

But now, standing in front of the mirror with a whole new stylish outfit, and make-up carefully smeared above my eyes, cheeks, and lips, I looked just like the other contestants. I was wearing a frilly miniskirt, just like the other girls. I was wearing a new pair of six-inch heels, just like the other girls. My top was a little too tight, but it was supposed to be some sort of fashion statement, just like the other girls. My make-up was perfect, just like the other girls.

I looked nothing like myself.

I want to tell Jill the truth, but I'm scared I might break his colorful little heart. I mean, just by looking at him the wrong way, he looks like he would start crying. The poor guy's so sensitive. I remember when I first met him, I told him his hair was an interesting color. He replied with, "What is that supposed to mean?!"

"So what do you think? You like it?" Jill asked, his face looking ready to split in half. I swear, the edges of his lips were nearly touching his ears. It was a little creepy, if you asked me. I opened my mouth to reply, but before I did, I made sure to force a pleasant smile.

"Of course I do. This skirt," I said, tugging down the hem of my skirt, "is so... uhh... frilly."

I looked at Jill's reflection next to my face, and for a second, I didn't know what he would say. But out of nowhere, he broke into an even bigger grin. "I know! I picked it out just for you! It flatters your waistline and brings out your eyes!" he exclaimed.

Although, I don't really know who'd compare my skirt to my eyes.

Before I could even respond though, Jill was pushing me out of the dressing room and into the hallway. "The pageant's about to start! Get in your place!" I tried to struggle back into the dressing rooms, but he sounded so excited that I knew it was no use trying. When your slap-happy, emotionally sensitive stylist wants you to do something, you do it.

Once the dressing room door closed behind me, I realized I was the first one out. I scowled. "Really, Jill? Do you hate me that much?" I muttered, hugging myself.

"I've kissed you twice already," a voice said behind me, "do you really think I hate you now?"

I immediately broke out into a smile, something I would've never done before when I heard Nate's voice. But now that we're... Well actually, I don't know what we are. I turned around to face him, frowning a little. Nate frowned back.

"Woah, sorry. I thought you were someone else," he said. I flushed. Right, I don't even look like myself. I opened my mouth to say something, but I stopped when Nate interrupted. His face went blank.

"Danielle?" he said quietly, taking a step closer to me. "You look..."

I rolled my eyes. "I know, I look disgusting."

"No, no, not disgusting. You could never look disgusting," Nate said. Ohh, what a flirt. I smiled to myself. "You just look... different."

"Bad different," I corrected. Nate shook his head and grabbed my hand, staring me in the eye. I suddenly felt hot under his gaze. I flushed.

"Danielle, you're freakin' beautiful. It's different, but not bad," Nate said. He kissed the top of my head. I blushed a deeper shade of red.

"But I have to say," Nate said thoughtfully. I looked up at him.

"You're prettier when you don't look like Krista."

I grinned at him.

~~~

After Nate's super amazing compliments that made me blush like a tomato, I was feeling more confident than ever. Even though I was clad in the tiniest miniskirt in the entire state of New York, and my top wasn't really letting me breathe correctly, I finally felt like I belonged here. Like I actually had a shot at winning this pageant thing.

Along with the much needed money.

"C'mon," Katy said quietly, tugging on my shirt. She hauled me backwards, making me squeak. I glared at her. "Where?"

Katy's make-up was gorgeous, like it always was. And of course, her clothes hung a little loosely on her petite body. I was a little jealous that her stylist allowed her to get away with a flowy top and a pair of fancy-looking shorts. They were fancy pants, just in short form.

"Penelope's giving us a pep talk," Katy said, making a face. I made a face, too. Penelope and pep talks just don't mesh. There's something wrong there.

"It's a sign of the apocalypse," I said, following Katy out the auditorium door. I spotted a group of all the contestants in my age group. There were the other age groups of course, but with their own, much kinder looking mentors.

I have to say, though, that Penelope couldn't have been a better mentor. Sure, she totally hates my guts and I kinda hate hers too, we have this unspoken understanding with each other. I completely get that she has to be a female dog to train us well.

I let Katy use me as a human shield to get through the crowd. It was a little crazy, but the more insane thing was that the girls actually let us through. I've been... accepted!

"Okay girls," Penelope said, clasping her hands together. Her voice was firm and confident. I straightened up a little. "This is it. Your big moment. You all have to get out there and make me look good."

Oh, she's so selfless. If I wasn't in such a good mood, I would've grimaced. But I actually smiled.

"I don't want to sound like a drill sargeant, but you can do this. I've trained you well. I'm certain that one of you will win this," Penelope said. Krista was beaming at her mom. But for some reason, instead of looking at her over-confident daughter Krista, Penelope looked right at me. Some weird understanding passed between us at that moment, and we both nodded at the same time.

I've got to win this. For my family.

"So please," Penelope said. That's probably a new word to her dictionary. She kind of winced when she said it. "Please get out there and just do your best." Then she actually smiled at us. And it looked real, not plastic. Which must've been hard, since her face was probably ninety-nine percent fake.

The crowd of girls dispersed with a single cheer, and they all started walking back to the auditorium. Katy and I were grinning at each other excitedly, wishing each other luck and saying how awesome we both looked. I was about to walk through the auditorium door when someone pulled me back. I spun around. It was Penelope.

"And remember," she said, wagging a finger at me, "remember your dignity."