Sugar Babe [Completed]

Chapter Thirteen: Summer Love

I almost didn't recognize the girl in the mirror.

There were two things that were trademark for my normal appearance. They were my minimal use of makeup and my forever lasting bun. I didn't even remember the last time I had my hair down during this entire trip.

I had worn my hair up for so long that even I didn't know how long my hair had gotten. Shit was mothereffing long.

The girl that stared back at me wasn't plain anymore. Hell no, far from it. Her eyes popped with the perfect amount of mascara and even symmetrical eyeliner that accentuated her small cat-like eyes. The woman, who introduced herself as Roxanna, had expertly applied the makeup. I could only dream of making myself look like this on my own.

I tried not to be vain about it, but my hair was definitely the best part. It had grown almost to my hips and the long dark brown strands looked alive and healthy. I never did anything with it, so it made sense.

Roxanna had ordered the hair stylists to straighten it all. My hair was usually naturally straight, so I had never straightened it before.

I stood in front of the mirror in a vintage red polka-dot swimsuit. My hair covered most of my back and my made-up eyes stared back at me vividly.

Something was making me feel weird.

I recognized the feeling, but I didn't want to admit it.

I knew what it was.

Confidence.

Knowing that I looked better than the girl standing next to me, that my hair, make-up, and clothing all came together to make me look my best. Strangest feeling, ever.

"Ready?" Roxanna asked me proudly. I could tell that she was feeling pretty smug about being responsible for my transformation. I was about to nod yes, but my confidence level dropped at that moment.

What would Johnny and Amanda say? Johnny being the asshole he was would probably laugh at me the minute I stepped out. Worst of all, what would Joshua do? I knew deep inside that it shouldn't be important what any of them thought. Especially, Joshua, but I couldn't help it. Suddenly I didn't feel good about any of this. This wasn't me. I was only playing a part. I was going to go out there and act like someone I was not, a beautiful confident girl, and everyone would know that it wasn't true.

In reality I was just some nerdy manager who had no idea what the first rule of modeling was. This wasn't a normal "say cheese!" picture.

"Honey, is everything alright?" Roxanna questioned from behind me. I knew she was standing there, because I could see her reflection through the mirror.

Roxanna's motherly tone almost undid me. As much as my mom annoyed the life out of me, she could definitely tell me what to do in this situation.

I was having trouble breathing when I said, "I don't think this is such a good idea. I don't know how to model. Heck, I don't even know how to do my real job!"

I yelled the last part exasperatedly.

Roxanna smiled, but it was a sad smile.

"Look, I know this is no time for story time, but I'm going to go at it anyway," Roxanna speaks, while she makes her way to my side.

"I was just like you at one time. I didn't know anything about how the people around me worked. Believe me; I've been stabbed in the back more times than I can count by these people. That didn't mean that I couldn't get past it all, including the mean conniving people in this industry. You can too. I see a spark, and don't think I tell this to any girl. You belong in the fashion industry, call it my sixth sense." Roxanna finishes her speech with a warm smile.