Something Peculiar

25

I'm not sure I had slept at all when Nayeon burst into my room the next day to wake me up for the ball. My eyes were red and swollen, but she made very little comment about it. She just started in on getting me ready and talking excitedly about how much fun it was all going to be. I didn't believe her, but she didn't seem to notice.

Almost everything I did required verbal and physical prompts. She even had to remind me to rinse the shampoo from my hair, and I was just lucky that modesty had never been her strong suit. It was impossible to combine fresh heartbreak with fervor of a ball. Nayeon kept trying to get me excited or at least nervous about the whole thing, but her efforts were completely futile. The only way I managed to function was by being completely numb. I couldn't understand how this had happened. When I first met Lisa, she had seemed creepy, and then she was just irritating. Repeatedly I had rejected her and told her that I didn't need her or want to be around her. How had it turned into this? I had lived my whole stupid life without her, and now I could barely make it through an hour.

I sat on a stool, wrapped in my robe, while Nayeon did something to my hair. She had offered to style it in front of a mirror so I could see her progress, but I didn't care. holding a bottle of spray in her hand, she stopped what she was doing and just looked at me.

"Jennie." Nayeon sighed. "I know Lisa's gone, and you're obviously taking it pretty hard. But she's just a stork, and even if she's not a tracker, still she's a she and you are a Princess."

"You don't know what you're talking about," I mumbled. I had considered defending her for a moment, but I was kind of pissed that she had left without me. There was no way that I could've left her after that kiss. As it was, it had been torture to stay behind. I just lowered my eyes and tried to close the subject.

"Fine." Nayeon rolled her eyes and went back to spraying my hair. "But you're still a Princess, and this is your night." I didn't say anything as she yanked and teased. "You're still young. You don't understand how many fish there really are in the sea, especially your sea. The most eligible, attractive men are gonna be all over you, and you're not even gonna remember that stupid stork who brought you here."

"I don't like fishing," I muttered dryly, but she ignored me. "You know who is a catch? In-guk." Nayeon made a pleased sound. "I wish my dad would set me up with him." She sighed wistfully and jerked on a lock of my hair. "He's really foxy, really rich," Nayeon went on, as if I had asked her to tell me more. "He's like the highest Markis in the world, which is so weird. The Marksinna are usually the ones with all the abilities. Guys can do some things, but they pale in comparison to what women can do, yet In-guk has more ability than anybody else. I wouldn't be surprised if he could read minds."

"I thought nobody could do that," I said, amazed that I was even following her. A few weeks ago, nothing she said would have made sense.

"No. Only very, very few can. So few it's almost the stuff of the legends these days." She gently fluffed my hair. "But In-guk is the stuff of legends, so that makes sense. And if you play your cards right, you'll be pretty damn legendary yourself." She whipped me around so I was facing her and smiled at her handiwork. "Now we just need to get you into your gown."

Somehow, while getting me ready, Nayeon managed to ready herself. She had on floor-length light blue gown that swept out her hips, and she looked so beautiful. I had no hope of topping her. After she had finally gotten me into my own dress, she forced me in front of the mirror, insisting that I looked too amazing to not see myself.

"Oh, wow." Saying that to my reflection felt egotistical, but I couldn't help it. I had never looked better in my life, and I doubted that I would ever look this good again. The gown was a shimmery silver and white that flowed around me. It was strapless in an elegant way, and the diamond necklace Nayeon had chosen set it off. My dark curls fell perfectly behind me, and subtle diamond clips sparkled in my hair.