Enchanted n.h. au

Chapter Two

As I stood in front of the mirror, I was in shock. The girl staring back at me, couldn't be me. I lifted my left hand and found the girl in the mirror did the same. I shut my right eye, and the girl in the mirror did as well. She was me.

I was never that pretty. I'd never been called pretty, it just didn't happen here. Maggie always had believed that insults built character. If that were true, then I must have too much character.

I could never please her. Nothing I ever did was right. Late at night, as I would lay in the tiny space devoted to me, I'd wonder what I did to have her hate me? I never insulted her, nor disobeyed her. The only logical thing I could figure was either she knew my parents, or I'd thrown up on her when I was younger.

I had locked myself in the twin's bathroom, as I got lost in thought. One of them knocked, while the other tried the handle. "Hold on!" I  shouted over my shoulder.

I pulled the dress higher over my chest. It fit almost perfectly, it was a little loose, but it cinched at the waist perfectly. It looked to beautiful for the twin's budget. I sent a silent prayer hoping that those two weren't back to stealing again. They loved the adrenaline rush that came with the joy of having something that was out of budget, and the excitement of not getting caught.

I unlocked the door before they could knock again. A soft whistle flew out of their mouths while a gasp left mine. They both were dressed in black slacks that were a bit long, with a white t-shirt, and a matching black jacket. They looked nice and could pass for celebrity if not for their converse. The black sneakers were worn at least.

"You clean up nice," I commented as they strutted around. "Acting a bit cocky, though, don't ya think?"

Alex stopped causing Andrew to walk into him. "You know it!" they smirked. Heat rushed to my cheeks at their comment. I shook my head at them.

"Stop," I warned. Returing to the mirror. "How'd you guys get this?" I asked, coyly.

"A friend at the Addison Lee." Alex shrugged, running a hand through his hair.

"The one who looks like Stan from Harry Potter?"

That was true. The one time he had driven us on one of our outings, I stared at him the entire time. He had the same greasy hair, pimply skin, and had a habit of saying, 'choo'.

"Yup, that's the one. That belonged to his sister. He lent us these two." They pulled at the collars of their jackets. Andrew grabbed my hand, and pulled me close. He spun me around like I was a ballerina. "You look beautiful," he mumbled, his eyes widening in the slightest. My cheeks flushed again.

I stared at his converse, he still had the heart I'd drawn on it long ago. "Guys," I sighed twirling around, "this is fun and all, but--"

"But what?" they asked with their hands settled on their hips.

"We won't be able to leave." I felt the tightening of tears rise in my throat. "Maggie won't let us, you know that."

"We have a chance," they continued, hope deflating in their eyes.

"I know but," before I could finish, Maggie's shrill voice called out.

"Gypsy! Where are you?" I could picture her dragging her plastic body up the stairs, her gigantic hips swinging. I imagine her surgery pinched face, twisted in a frown like she smelt something bad.

The twins and I froze, there was no point in trying to cover up what we're doing. Her hooker high heels clicked into the twins room.

"What are you wearing?" she asked the muscles near her mouth unmoving. I struggled for an answer, but came up short. My eyes flickered to my feet, my head hanging in shame. Though I was far from sorry. "It doesn't matter, I'm going out and won't be back until midnight. You're in charge. You know what to do. Make sure the snotty little things are taken care of-that seems to be your calling." Before she clicked away, she called out one last demand,"while I'm thinking about it, take that hideous dress off."

Deep inside a monster roared. My fists clenched, my nails dug into my palm. A metallic taste filled my mouth, and I loosed the bite on my cheek. "Yes'm," I grunted as she turned away once again.

Alex and Andrew let a few moments passed before taking the stairs down, shouting to me. "We're going to make sure she's gone."

A small balloon of hope blew up inside me.  Someone was helping me, and I was thankful. Skipping across the hall, I entered my room. A small girl, she was 15, named Katie sat on her bed. "Hey, " I greeted smiling. She cocked an eyebrow at me. So, she was still scared of me.

On her first day, one of the boys spilled his milk--- like he did every day---, and I snapped. I picked him up, and stage whispered that I had friends in low, low places who knew the boogeyman. Katie was 10 at the time. But we were friends, I'd help her with my homework and she'd babysit when needed.

"Listen, I know we don't talk much."

"Yeah, we don't. But you have a lot going on."

I smiled to myself, she was compassionate.

"Well, I've been asked out on a date, and I would leave the twins in charge, but they're my chaperons. So, could you?"

She nodded quite enthusiastically. Enough that the little white lie I made didn't ache. "Just don't tell Maggie, or we're all in the box."

"I won't," I promised. She held out her pinky and I shook it.

I rushed out of the house with my hands clutching the expensive material. I didn't want to ruin a borrowed dress, especially since this is a rare occasion for me.

 "The cab's here. Let's go," they suggested.

We all hopped in, and I stared out the window until I saw the house vanish in the distance.