A Feminine Look

Chapter Two: The Mystery Brunette

I'll be honest. I was a little too freaked out by the whole thing to mention it to either Annie or Chris. But it was so strange! I've definitely been mistaken for a girl before from behind because of my long hair, but this was almost like...an attraction. Did he really think that I was a girl?

The assembly was during the 8th grade lunch period, so we were told to have a quick lunch and then get to our next class. I finished the school day not being able to get that moment out of my head – and with the exciting event of graduation coming up, that's saying something.

I returned home to find that my parents were out of the house. They traveled a lot and would often go on trips for a whole weekend. Being Friday, they must've both left.

My parents trust me a lot though. Being an only child, I've grown quite independent. With no bad track record, they'll give me the house for the weekend without batting an eye.

I ended up inviting Annie and Chris over to hang out. Graduation was next Friday, so I realized this was my last Friday as a middle schooler.

Annie arrived first, and we decided to sit on the couch and talk until Chris came. However, as expected, she would not shut up about the Toned performance.

"And then when they mashed up that One Direction song with the Billie Eilish one? Ahhh!"

Times like these I really wished Chris was here. I needed some to roll my eyes with.

She continued. "I swear, I'm going to all their concerts from now on. Imagine, when we get to high school, we'll be in the same school as them. I could run into them every day!"

"I think you're a little too giddy about this guy group," I replied, a bit annoyed. "You can't get too excited just because they waved at you."

"Hey, I didn't say they all waved at me, but the freshman boy was totally checking me out."

Her last few words caused my stomach to drop again. It only reminded me further how that boy looked at me.

Just as she said that, the doorbell rang. I jogged to the door. It was Chris.

"Yo yo," he said, overly casual as always.

The group decided to play Cards against Humanity, which we play a lot. Always gets a bunch of laughs.

"So I got a text from Juan," Chris said, matter of factly, "My cousin."

At the sound of "cousin", Annie dropped her cards. "OOOOH WHAT DID HE SAY?"

"Woah calm down. You'll actually be happy to hear this." Chris said.

Annie was squealing with excitement. Chris continued, "So apparently, that freshman singer told him that a really cute girl in the audience caught his attention."

My heart stopped. But wait – maybe this wasn't me that Chris is talking about. Maybe it's Annie! Or heck, anyone else. There were 50-plus girls in the audience during that show, so it easily could've been them. Maybe he looked at me in addition to the many other girls.

"Eeeep! That had to be me! When I stood up and waved, he totally looked in my direction. There's literally no doubt!" Annie said, yelling. She then began to stand up and dance around, celebrating her believed victory.

Chris stood up to calm her down. "Jesus, chill. We don't know if it was you." Chris started pacing the room. "I'm actually going to a family party on Sunday. Juan will be there. I could ask him who the mystery girl is."

"Oooooh this is just like Cinderella!" Annie was beyond giddy.

"Yeah, but in this case you might be the ugly stepsister left holding the bag." Chris said condescendingly.