And If You Ask Me, I Will Stay.

Chapter Nine.

I felt as if I were in a dream.

Everything was so surreal, almost as if I actually were dreaming. Yiruma had been on repeat all morning; Moonlight, my favorite piece, was playing again. With each note that was struck, the picture that this song always painted in my mind continued to develop. My fingers itched for a pencil; I longed to have a journal in front of me. The picture Moonlight created was so beautiful it deserved to be put into words.

A light tug on my hair returned my attention to the matter at hand.

I glanced up at Nicole. Her toffee eyes were narrowed in concentration, completely focused on manipulating my hair into a suitable fashion. It amused me to see how much focus she put into dressing someone up -- especially someone who was as opposed to the idea as I was. But I had to admit, she was good at it.

The door to the dressing room opened. December entered; behind her was one of my favorite people.

I gasped in delight as my sister-in-law, Cicely, came into the room, shutting the door behind her.

"Cici!" I cried.

Cicely grinned brightly. She rushed forward and bent down to hug me lightly, careful to avoid Nicole as she styled my hair.

"I'm so glad you're here!" I said with a bright smile. "Where's Nova? And the twins?"

"Please," She scoffed, "I married you and Declan when you two eloped. Did you really think we would miss the second one? They're all three with Declan."

I nodded, my smile still in place.

Cicely took a step back. Her expresso orbs examined me with avid interest.

My mouth stretched into a tight line under her scrutiny. Finally, her eyes left me and found Nicole.

"You're good," She complimented with a nod.

Nicole flashed a smile. "I'm also done. You may look now, love."

My chair had been turned away from the mirror so I wouldn't be able to peek. It had driven me insane, but no amount of complaining would break Nicole.

I rose from my chair slowly and turned around. I had been sitting down for so long that my legs had fallen asleep; that painful pins and needles sensation was waking them now. Nervously, I looked into the mirror.

Cicely was right; Nicole was good.

I stepped closer to observe my make over. Never had I seen myself look so... Girly. I looked like a princess, though my dress was a bit more subtle than something an actual princess would wear.

Hesitantly, I touched a lock of hair, admiring the perfectly spiraled curls. I turned my head to the left to find my hair swept up and pinned back with a star-shaped jewel clip studded with white rhinestones. The veil was pinned beneath it, with the help of bobby pins holding it up on both sides; the gossamer material was edged with gold filigree and fell to my waist, hovering around my shoulders.

My fingertips left my hair and hovered over my cheek, afraid to touch it and disrupt the foundation that obscured any blemishes and scars on my face. A light pink was already tinting my cheekbones, just as I knew it would. My lips were darker and shinier than my cheeks; the corners of my mouth continuously twitched, as if they were fighting back a smile.

But it was my eyes that fascinated me the most.

I'd come to learn that silver eye shadow complimented the unusual amethyst color the best. That, paired with a small smudge of black eyeliner, accompanied by a coating of black mascara for my lashes, really made the color pop. I peered closer. The amethyst orbs gazing back at me had never been so bright; they sparkled beautifully, just like the crystal itself.