Empire

FOUR

After dinner, Alicia and I headed out to find a dress for my father's birthday party tomorrow. I knew the party would be hosted by my mother, meaning it would be above and beyond normal expectations. We had to look perfect. I invited Alicia instead of Dylan. There was no doubt in my mind that he'd show up anyways. My mother must've invited him and his family.

Alicia and I walked into the Valentino store. We were instantly greeted by the store workers. They greeted us with a smile.

"Anastasia, it's nice to see you again." A worker by the name of Casey greeted me. I was familiar with her. She always helped me out whenever I came around.

"I've brought my friend Alicia with me today," I hooked my arm around hers and we were connected at the elbow. "We have a party to attend tomorrow and she needs to look her best."

Casey sent me a knowing smile. "I know exactly what she needs." She lead us over to the dress section. There were racks of dresses, all different colors and lengths. She picked up a long, black velvet dress. The bust line dipped, showing off skin. The straps connected around her neck. It was her. It looked perfect for her. From the color to the material. 

"Can she try it on?" I watched Alicia's face. Her eyes remained fixated on the dress. I knew she liked it. 

"Right this way." Casey led us to the dressing rooms in the back of the store. She hung the dress up before excusing herself. 

Alicia began changing and I told her I'd be back. I wandered around the store looking at more dresses. I didn't need another one. I had an entire closet of unworn dresses, but my eyes landed on one in particular. It was a red strapless dress. It was the same length as the dress we picked out for Alicia. 

I took the dress off the rack and made my way to the back with Alicia. She called out and told me she was ready. I told her to hang on as I slipped out of my school uniform and replaced it with this beautiful dress. I looked myself over in the mirror. It hugged my body and I felt comfortable. 

"Ready?" I called out to her.

"Yup!" She called back to me and we both opened the doors to our dressing rooms. My heart swelled with happiness when I saw Alicia in her dress. It complimented her so well. She's never looked better. She was made for this life. She was made to have money. She deserved to splurge and buy herself flattering clothing. Alicia had the body for it.

"Wow Licia," I motioned for her to spin and she did. "You look amazing. Please tell me this is the one you want."

She bit her lip and nodded her head. "Only if the price is decent. I don't want you spending a shit ton of money on me. Especially when you know I can't pay you back."

I rolled my eyes. "Don't look at the price tag."

"That dress looks really good on you, Ana. They always do," I smiled at her compliment. 

"Let's get changed," We walked back into our dressing rooms and replaced our dresses with our school uniforms. "You can spend the night over. I want to help you get dressed up for tomorrow."

Alicia laughed from her dressing room. "You thought I'd pamper myself when I know I have you?" She questioned. I laughed along with her. She knew I'd be the one to help her out.

We grabbed our dresses and went to check out. Casey rung up both the dresses and I almost forgot about shoes. I dragged Alicia back to the shoe section. There were shelves of shoes and I could see the overwhelmed look in her eyes. 

"How about these?" I picked up a pair of black heels. It had a singular strap to wrap around her ankle. It was simple and it wouldn't take the attention away from her dress. 

She took the heel from me and inspected it. She nodded once she was done looking it over. "I like these. Will you get a pair and match with me?"

"Of course, sis." We grabbed two pairs in our sizes before meeting Casey at the register again. She added the shoes onto my bill. Alicia's face looked guilty when she saw how much the total was. I shook my head at her and swiped my card. 

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We laid in my bed after we showered and prepared everything for tomorrow. We watched White Chicks and found ourselves quoting the movie perfectly. We laughed at how well we knew it. 

Being around Alicia was nice. She wasn't like the other girls at school that would be my friend in hopes of me buying them expensive things and helping them make famous connections. She didn't mind not being in the spotlight. Alicia just wanted to be there for me when I needed her and she always was. The only reason she agreed to come to this party was because she knew I needed her. I needed her to distract me from Dylan and everyone around me. She knew I needed her to make me laugh so hard that expensive champagne shot out of my nose. She was a sister to me.

We dozed off after the movie ended. Alicia was spread across over me, hogging the bed. I didn't mind it though. Tomorrow I'd be bringing my best friend to her very first major event. I was nervous.