Senseless

party girl

Amber surprised me by picking me up the morning after Nash and I finished the project. I looked in the mirror to see that I had bags under my eyes and couldn't quit yawning. I got ready, quickly fashioning my hair into a French braid. Since it was so thick and long, the braid was huge and hung messily over my shoulder. Amber had always been jealous of the way my hair looked in a messy French braid.

I wore a black T-shirt with the word "champions" scrawled across the front, then a red and black flannel tied around my waist. Call me late on fashion, but I liked this look and it was comfortable.

Pulling on some jeans and black combat boots, I quickly brushed my teeth and left without bothering on makeup. It was too late and Amber was honking outside my window. Sighing, I grabbed my bags and phone and left the house. The polaroid pictures were in a safe pocket in my camera pocket. It had a special safe place in my backpack.

She was grinning when I got into her car. "My project looks so good," she said. "I went to that tunnel, but some of the stuff was 'too inappropriate' for school. I changed my project and painted the sidewalks outside important places with words that made a statement or whatever. She did the painting and I took the pictures."

It was so similar to mine, I was a little surprised. "Can I see?" I asked. "I'll show you ours."

"How was working with Nash?" she asked with a grin.

My eyes widened and I blew out a breath. "Tiring. He called me late last night and told me I needed to do something else, so we wound up going to a deserted alley to get our last pictures at freaking one in the morning."

"Two nights in a row," she commented with a smirk. "I can see why you have huge bags under your eyes."

"Tell me about it. I put some cream on them to make them go away, but they won't."

"So, did anything happen on this secret little outing last night?"

"By something, do you mean did he kiss me?"

"Sure, we'll go with that." She winked and I groaned. "Well?"

"No. It's not like that. He's annoying and secretive and too many girls think he's hot. I'd rather go with a guy I know I don't have to worry about."

"Like Lane," she finished dryly.

"Yes." I paused for a moment before adding, "Only maybe a little less clingy."

"You have to admit that Lane is one of the hotter guys in the school," she pointed out.

I sighed, leaning my head back against the headrest. "I don't see looks that much." I felt like I was diving straight back into the conversation I'd had with Elena the day before. "I see their soul. Like, if they have a dark soul or if they are kind and compassionate."

"Lane is compassionate," she tried.

"Exactly."

"And you're sick of compassionate," she finished.

"No." I refused to admit that I didn't like Lane. I mean, I knew my interest was fading, but I hadn't resorted to a full on disinterest.

"Yes," she retorted. I glared at her and she smiled. "Maybe you should switch to dark souls for a little while. See how they suit you."

"Or maybe I should just lose Lane and be single for a while. You know, focus on school and art. I can actually do something with my life instead of withering away while trying to decide what color soul suits me best."

"What?" she asked in mock astonishment. "Did Misses Gold Soul herself just say she would quit focusing on the color of souls? Wow."

"I will never quit conveying the message of my soul's color. I am a sparkling, gold princess and will be treated that way," I said, snapping my finger in exaggerated sass. She laughed as we passed the same alley I'd been in the previous night. "Look. There's the piece I did for our project," I said as she pulled to a stop at the light. She craned her neck to see and her eyes flew wide.