Running From the Dark | Double Lives Series | Book 1

Chapter 13-A Valentines Birthday/Winter Formal Part 2

Kevin and Mike had a whole plan to take me shopping for a tuxedo for the dance. They had gotten permission from Mellissa a day prior. I didn't think that she would say yes since I was grounded.

I wasn't too nervous since this wasn't my first dance with Lulu. We went to homecoming together. I'm so lucky that she loved me for my personality and not just how I look. A lot of girls seemed to only like me for my eyes, my hair, and perhaps–-my charming smile that randomly made an appearance every now and then.

"You're so quiet Jay," Mike said.

"Oh I was jus' thinkin'," I replied. I scanned the shop, noticing Kevin was at the register, paying for a tuxedo. I watched him walk towards me and Mike. He was grinning from ear to ear as he held the tuxedo.

"You're all set," Kevin beamed.

"I barely looked at any others."

"You didn't need to. I got yours custom made," Kevin smirked. "I knew what you wanted so I went with the idea."

The idea he was talking about was a sketch that I made a few months prior. I was so set on having my own custom made tuxedo that I put the idea on paper. I honestly didn't think I was going to get one anytime soon, due to Mellissa telling me to wait until Junior year.

My eyes trailed the designs on the tuxedo. Dark blue and sky blue embroidery accents went down the sleeves, complimenting the black color of the tuxedo.

"Wow," I said in amazement, my eyes wide. "H-How much did it cost?"

"$500."

"Damn," Mike and I said at the same time.

"Now all you need is a haircut," Kevin said.

"Kev, I'm not cutting my hair."

"Bro, it's a bird's nest up there. Like do you see all this hair?" Mike laughed as he put both hands in my hair.

"I jus' cut it this mornin',"

"Apparently not enough," Mike said, being unconvinced.

"You're going to get your hair cut whether you like it or not," Kevin spoke in a firm voice.

'Over my dead body.'

I groaned as they both pulled me along to wherever they were taking me.

Kevin took me to a specialized barber who was friends with his parents. I basically almost fought the barber since I was getting paranoid about him cutting too much hair. I valued my hair a lot, like if I ever had my hair cut, it would only be a small amount.

The barber didn't cut too much, thankfully. My hair was still loose, but it was just curls. After that, we went to my house so they could help me get ready for the dance. They intended on helping me because they wanted everything to be perfect. I didn't mind though because–I had the best bros in the entire world!

"Now, look. We made you more handsome," Mike smiled.

I gazed into my reflection of my 48 inch tall, rectangular mirror. It was true. I looked handsome, even with loose curly hair. The tuxedo fitted nicely on my body.

"Thank you," I chuckled.

"Of course. That's what bros are for," Kevin replied.

"Your skin looks almost as white as ours," Mike said.

We all started laughing. It was a little inside joke that we had. A lot of people were convinced that I was white and not mixed. My skin is pale enough to be considered white so I understood why people would say that. People also didn't believe that Mellissa was my biological aunt. My mom and Mellissa are twin sisters, but look nothing alike. My mom seems to look like a white woman with blonde curly locks. Mellissa's skin tone is a lot darker. She's a dark skinned woman with brown curly hair who works as a nurse.