Taboo

11

From the day that I had been informed I had been dreading the party (or the "gathering", as Valentina was hell-bent on calling it),knowing that the night would most likely end with me having to deal with a very intoxicated Valentina. Again.

A week later and I still needed more time for mental preparation. It also did not help that Valentina was forcing me to accompany her while on a shopping trip, which made the reality of the upcoming event even more real. Gosh Davina, you're acting like you're preparing to attend your own funeral. Get it together.

I was pulled out of my anxiety-laden thoughts by the suddenness with which Talia entered the living room, where I had been patiently waiting for the past half hour. She had asked if she could tag along, the prospect of me being dragged unwillingly to a shopping spree giving her slight amusement.

"Do I look okay?" Talia queried.

It looked like Talia had put too much effort into her appearance for a mundane day out. I wasn't going to tell her that though. I was in a rush to leave.

"You look fine. Let' go."

"She seemed dissatisfied with my response. "I don't want to look fine, I want to look good." She whined, retreating to the door from which she entered, I'm guessing to go back into her room and scour he closet for a different outfit.

"Okay, okay." I blurted, not wanting to wait a second longer. "You look good." It wasn't a lie. She looked great. But if I were to 'accidentally' brush my finger against her face, it would look like her skin had shed onto it.

~

A whole hour was how long we spent in parked in front of Valentina's house until she came, unapologetically, strutting out of the front door.

"What the hell took you so long." I was rather snappy.

Valentina kissed her teeth. "Are you kidding me? It takes time to get my face this beat." She said as if that was common knowledge.

My only reply was to roll my eyes.

"Hey Val!" Talia chimed, finally tearing her eyes away from her phone.

"Oh, hey babe! How've you been. We haven't talked in a while."

"Yeah, we've definitely got to catch up." Talia agreed. "So how are things with you?"

I completely zoned out at the mention of Valentina's boyfriend's name, but was quickly pulled out of my daydream when I felt a poke in my arm.

"What are you doing? Drive." She ordered.

"Are you not going to put your seatbelt on?"

"Seatbelts are for pussies."

"Whatever. Don't blame me when you break your neck in car crash."

~

Another gruelling hour had been spent by me dragging my feet behind Valentina and Talia while they bounced from store to store, displaying a disturbingly over-the-top excitement that one does not normally experience when discovering a sheer lace bralette.

"You look bomb, Val." Talia gushed.

"You think so?" Val asked, sounding doubtful as she pushed her long raven curls over her shoulder. and contorted her body so that her back was to the mirror and her head was turned, enabling her to see her reflection. She knew she looked good.

"Okay. I'm getting this." She finally decided after studying her reflection contemplatively.

I let out an exaggerated exhale. "Finally. Can we go eat now? Please?" I nagged like a bratty child.