Flower and First Dates

Her hair was perfect. Of course, after reading through magazine after magazine for tips to tame her wild and curly mop, she had become a one young woman hair straightening machine, even if she still needed her Mom's help on occasion to get it braided perfectly.

And today, even if she didn't need anything to be perfect, she had seen how a little extra time spent in front of the mirror had knocked Goh for a loop before, and so she was taking extra care to perfect her appearance.

She used only a little mascara on her eyelashes and only a touch of blush on her cheeks. They were going to a theme park today, so if it ended up being overly warm, she might sweat it all off. Better to be a bit conservative today.

Chloe did, however, giggle as she applied the fruit flavored lip gloss to her lips. Her mind wandered back to that morning in Azalea Town where they had shared their first kiss after she and Goh confessed their growing romantic feelings for each other. It was, so far, the only kiss the two of them had managed to share. Not for lack of trying on Chloe's part, she was sure, but between everything else that had been going on, Goh and Ash were simply out more often, and when they had alone time, they weren't ever truly alone.

Chloe still hadn't told either of her parents that she and Goh were a couple. It still felt premature, not to mention awkward. She and Goh had known each other for years - he was practically her best friend. Admitting that they were in love and fully accepting of each other's feelings was almost an embarrassment too far. Not to mention how Goh's employment by Professor Cerise might be affected by the fact that he was in love with his boss's daughter.

All the secrecy gave Chloe a bit of a thrill as she thought about it. It was as though her meetings with Goh were clandestine and forbidden, and there was something alluring about flaunting the rules to spend time with your boyfriend.

She broke into giggles at the word. Part of her couldn't believe it.

She turned her attention to the rest of her outfit today. She had decided on a black blouse with a white collar that went well with her pink Bewear overalls. Unlike her yellow overalls, these ended just above the knee, leaving her knees bare until her floral print socks started, leading down to her ruby red flats.

It was the kind of outfit that a teenage girl could be seen wearing either to a get together with some friends, or on a date with that special someone.

A date. Chloe giggled again. Her first date with Goh.

As she began wondering about what handsome outfit Goh would show up in, there was a knock at the door to the bathroom, and the door cracked slightly.

"Chloe?" her mother asked. "Are you finished getting ready?"

Chloe looked up at the mirror and saw that her hair was still down and wild. "Not quite yet," she said. "Can you help me with my hair?"

Giggling herself, Chloe's mother slipped in and closed the door behind her. She swiftly took the hairbrush from her daughter and began brushing Chloe's hair straight.

"So...!" her mother asked. "Where are you two headed today?"

Chloe bristled. "We're headed to Cosmic World. And it's not two. It's a few of us. Some friends from school."

It was a bold lie for a girl to tell her mother, but given how her mother could be, she felt it was a necessary precaution. Besides, her mother had a way of using Chloe for her illustration work, and if the girls at school - especially Mika - caught sight of her mother's "fictional character" gaining a blue-eyed, black-and-red haired boyfriend, she would just die from embarrassment.