The Setup

5 - Afterburner

Chapter 5 - Afterburner

Rhonda isn't very good at doing any sort of makeup or hair. She claims she can do her two little girls' hair, and the only time I have seen them is with their hair in ponytails, pigtails, or two braids. It is fun to see her try though. Talia tells her that she should just stick to the organizing thing, making us all share a good laugh.

Talia does my hair, curling it with the straightener. She once told me it takes a lot of talent to do that. Before Talia made a big break with music, she went to beauty school. I have even seen pictures of her with bright blue hair. She was born with blond but she thought she looked balder than a featherless chicken. Once she got sick of the blue hair, she dyed it black. After that someone asked if they could produce one of her songs, and now she thinks black hair will get her anywhere.

She also applied light makeup, just because she knows it stings my eyes after a while. Tomorrow, I have two things on my agenda anyway, the Vogue shoot and my Maybelline eyelash commercial.

"There," Talia mutters under her breath, finishing the lash stroke of my matte lip stick. "This stuff lasts a lifetime."

I smile, glancing in the mirror to see my appearance. There's light mascara and eyeliner, contour and highlighter, blush, and lipstick. I'm wearing a white dress that compliments my naturally tan skin. The spaghetti straps go straight over my shoulder and two triangles on other side of my waist reveal my skin. It stops about mid-thigh, and it makes Rhonda especially excited.

"The heels will look stunning now," she claps her hands excitedly. She pulls out some nude shoes from a gray Gucci bag.

"Did you actually buy all of this today?" I ask her, astonished at her little shopping spree. Well, not little, this probably cost more than my one of my brother's car. Talia is wearing a strapless red dress that ruffles from the waist down. It wraps around her chest like a bandage. She is wearing her hair at the top of her head, the loose strands that fell curl gently as they shape her face better.

I always thought she was prettier than me.

"Dear, if shopping was a job I would work twenty-four seven," she tells me, smoothing down my dress for the millionth time.

"Right," I say sarcastically but try to hide most of the sarcasm itself. I glance over at Talia who is smiling at her phone, biting her lip.

"What are you smiling at?" I ask her as Rhonda zips up my dress. Talia blushes, her eyes widening.

"Oh, nobody," she brushed off. I narrow my eyes at her lame excuse but decide not to push it. Talia only tells you things about her personal life when she is ready.

I stare at her a moment longer before Rhonda squeals. "This is going to amazing. The press is going to love it."

~

Talia and I walk past the long line of people who are waiting to get inside the nightclub. The music pumps so loudly I could hear it the car when we were blocks away. Talia was extra jumpy this whole time, exclaiming how happy she is to do this. It confuses me because she was complaining earlier on how she did not want to be fake friends with Megan. I know something deeper is going on, and it will probably going to surface tonight.

"Why do they get to skip the whole line?" I hear someone yell. "Ow! Why did you hit me?"

"Because that's Talia Rodriguez and Celeste Gold, you retard," he whips back at his friend. Talia and I share a look, laughing quietly. The bouncer at the club sees us approach him and he fixes the color of this black button up.