The Runaway Princess

9. It's PERFECT

That little faker.....

I stand there, frozen. My mouth hanging so wide open I wonder if it might hit the floor. "Annabeth can you please explain what's going on?" Julie asks, her hand gently patting my shoulder. I try to speak but my voice seems to have vanished. All I can do is stand there. Julie stops patting my shoulder with a sigh. "Go into the back Annie" she orders. It takes a second but eventually I comprehend her words and head towards the back. As I walk I can hear Julie apologizing to Stephanie and offering her a discount.
'She can't really believe I did it....can she?' I wonder as I sit on a stool in the back room.

After about five minutes, Julie walks in, a deep frown on her olive skinned face. "I'm going to ask you this once, and once only. And I expect the truth, got it?" She says, sternly. I nod and tell her about how Stephanie's seemingly endless hate for me since elementary school and Stephanie's attempt to frame me. I, do however, leave out the part about Stephanie threatening me and ripping up my picture of my dad. I didn't want the pity.
When I'm done, Julie gives a brief nod before grabbing my shoulders tightly. "You listen here and you listen good," she says her light green eyes boring holes into my soul. "That girl is a brat. A fake. A liar. She's not worth your time. Got it?" I nod. "Got it?" she asks again, squeezing my shoulders. "Got it," I reply as Julie lets go of me. Just then, the bell rings, indicating that a customer has entered the store. I head back out front. Stephanie is gone, but Piper is standing with her hands planted on the counter, a determined look filling her kaleidoscope eyes. "ANNABETH -I DONT ACTUALLY KNOW YOUR MIDDLE NAME- CHASE GET YOUR BUTT OVER HERE THIS INSTANT!" She shouts. Customers stare, but Piper doesn't seem to notice. I quickly walk towards her, dreading the rant she will probably give but not wanting her to scare all the customers away with her big voice.

"What?" I ask, my arms crossed. Piper sits on the grass, playing with the end of her loose braid. We decided to continue our conversation outside, in case Piper decided to raise her voice again. "Why didn't you tell us?" Confusion and guilt fill me when she asks this. I have no idea what she talking about and yet I know know exactly what she's talking about. I simply shrug and stare at my black and white converse shoes. "Annie, we would've understood and rescheduled," she says, her voice quieter now. I nod. My voice seeming unable to work. "We'll go dress shopping after your shift, okay?" She asks. I shake my head. "No, you guys just go. By the town I'm down here all the stores will be closed," I argue, my voice suddenly strong again. "Well what time do you end?" Piper asks, her voice showing no sign of anger. "Like 7:00," I reply. Hope sparks inside me. "Well the mall doesn't close till 10, but I have to be home by 9:30 so that gives us like two hours give or take," Piper calculates. Before I can reply, Piper's already in her car. "I'll pick you up at 7:05!" She shouts as she drives away. "Okay!" I yell back but she's already out earshot. Oh well.

~
It's exactly 7:05 when the café bell rings and Piper strides in wearing a snowboarding jacket, jeans, and tall black snow boots. "Hey," I call out to her. Her eyes meet mine and a smile spreads across her face. "Go get changed!" She exclaims, I smile and hurry to go change.

When I come out Piper nods in approval at my outfit, earning a dramatic eye roll from me. I'm wearing a navy blue Hollister sweater, skinny jeans, and black converse. My blonde curls are thrown up in a loose ponytail and my phone in slipped into my back pocket.
~
"Ooooo! Let's look in Forever 21!" Piper squeals with delight. Hazel just nods and I roll my eyes. This is like the 700th store we've looked in. Or at least that's what it feels like.
Hazel got lucky and found a dress in the second store we looked in. It's a side strap deep purple dress that stops just above her ankles. Unfortunately Piper and I are still on the look out for the right dress.

Piper flips through dress after dress, but I just sort of follow her and Hazel. Nothing in this huge store really gets my attention. "It's perfect!" Piper shouts. People around the store don't even bother to stop an stare. I guess they're used to girls freaking out here.
"Piper it's gorgeous," Hazel compliments and I turn to look at the dress in Piper's hands. It's a strapless, midnight black dress that's high in the front and low in the back. It's definitely gorgeous. "Wow...." The word pops out before I can stop it. I reach out and run my hand along the silky fabric. "I'm buying it," Piper claims and marched off towards the checkout point.

"Annie I think I know the perfect place to buy your dress," Hazel says as we exit Forever 21. I simply shrug and follow Hazel.
A big smile is plastered to Piper's face, the bag containing her dress clutched in her hand. She obviously really loves her dress. I just smile and continue to follow Hazel.

Hazel stops so suddenly that I almost run straight into her. "We're here," she says and enters a small store that I've never been in before. The sign reads 'The Dress Shop' in a fancy font.
Our trio enters the store and Piper gasps as the walls are lined with an array of dresses from long evening gowns to simple summer dresses. "Wow," I say and Hazel laughs. "Go look around!" She exclaims giving my a small push. And I do. I search through racks and racks and racks of dresses but nothing really jumps out at me.
I'm just tossing aside a dark green high low dress when Piper approaches me. "Ten minutes," she says. "Okay," I reply, running a hand through my hair. "Couldn't find anything?" She asks. I'm about shake my head when I see it. About three feet behind Piper hangs a strapless, dark blue, knee high dress with a waistline made of tiny silver jewels. I want it. "Found one!" I exclaim, leap forward and grab the dress. It's made of a soft fabric that's not to thick or to thin. It's perfect.
Suddenly, Piper and Hazel are standing on either side of me fangirling over the dress. "We have 5 minutes, so go try it on!" Piper says with a smile. I nod and hurry to go try on the dress.