🐺Wolf Creek:Volume One🐺

Chapter Six: Cinderella Runs TO The Ball

          "I'm honestly impressed with your bartering skills. How on earth did you get your grandma to let you out of her sight after being in a coma for so long?" Em interrogated me as we walked down the sidewalk. I grinned and shrugged as I carefully folded my new dress in half so that the bag wouldn't touch the ground. I was surprised myself, but Gran had simply explained that she thought a 'fellow teenager' would have a better taste in fashion for the occasion in mind. Em playfully bumped my shoulder, hinting that she really was curious.

"No convincing needed, really. My Gran just trusts me a lot." I admitted as we finally got to Em's car. She gave me a skeptical look before taking my new dress, putting it in the back, and starting the car. "Really!" I laughed. We rode in silence for a few minutes before the next question popped into my head. There was always a new one, and never a lengthy amount of time between them.

"So what's with this Acuna celebration anyway? His son didn't explain much of it in the invitation." I explained. Em shrugged her shoulders before answering, "I know just as much as you with me being so new in town, but I heard that the Acuna guy throws one of these celebrations every time his business gets more money, buildings, or recognition. The way I see it it's basically a 'Yay me!' party. We're here." I quietly nodded in understanding before unbuckling and getting out to collect my dress.

"Now, don't forget that you promised to call me when you get back!" Em reminded me through her window. I laughed and nodded good-naturedly. She rolled her window back up, tapped her temple as one last reminder to remember, and with a wave she disappeared in a cloud of dust down the drive. I waved back, watching until her car was lost within the trees and the dust had settled. Then I hurried inside to get dressed. Gran was waiting for me in the living room.

"Oh, you went with the forest green for your dress, too!" Gran sang adoringly when I held it up for her to see. She gently pushed it against me to get a glimpse of what it would look like and giggled to herself. I couldn't help but grin at how excited she was; it must have been a while since she had gotten to be a part of something exciting. The thought of all those days that she had spent in my hospital room made my smile dim, but I hid it by pretending to look down to admire the dress once more.

"Well, go on now! Go get ready!" Gran cried excitedly, and pointed towards the stairs to my room. I laughed and jogged my way there, making sure not to trip on the dress. My makeup was laid out neatly across my desk and ready for me to use. I stared carefully at the different choices; I didn't want it to be too dramatic, but I wanted it to be a bit fancier than my school makeup. I opted for a brown-ish smokey-eye in hopes of exaggerating my eye color, a teeny bit of highlighter to gain some shimmer, and some soft pink lipstick to keep it all from feeling too bold. I plugged in my curling iron before adding some blush. When it was finally to my desired temperature I split my hair into two chunks and began to methodically wrap small slivers around the wand. My arm got tired quickly, but I seemed to be getting the hang of it until I heard a car horn.

"Kelsey, the car for you is here!" Gran yelled from the living room. I went into panic mode. This was a fancy party that the guests were probably expected to arrive at on time, and I didn't even have my dress on yet! I picked up the speed on my hair curling, only pausing when my hand slipped and the sizzling rod bumped the top of my left shoulder. I jumped for a moment, but ignored the pain so that I could get the last two strands of hair done. Then I scurried to my bed to pick up my dress and the silver heels I had laid out. I had found the heels buried at the back of my closet the day before and had practiced walking in them until I didn't look like a newborn deer. I had no clue as to why I had them, but I was grateful that I did.

I pulled the dress over my head, smoothed it all out, and then slipped my feet into the heels. The mirror caught my eye, and I studied the dress one last time. The dark green fabric was a stark contrast against my pale skin. Bejeweled sleeves were made to fall off my shoulders, and the back was cut down to the middle. I noticed the red mark where I had burned myself, and gingerly tapped the raw skin to test. It hurt to the touch. Hanging some of my hair over that shoulder quickly fixed it.

"Kelsey!" Gran called up as a warning. I was cutting it close! Gathering up my dress in my hands to prevent me from tripping myself on the way downstairs, I made a run for it. It wasn't a graceful one, but it was a genuine try. Gran was waiting patiently at the door with my purse and cellphone. I took them and thanked her. She smiled at me proudly, and as she opened the door I managed to glance up.

A shiny, matte black limo sat parked in our driveway. It was facing sideways from the house, and looked like the driver had backed up the entirety of the way. Black chrome wheels were nestled neatly into the dark tires. Even the windows were tinted so darkly that they just barely caught the rays of the retreating evening sun as it glistened through the beginning shadows of the forest. My eyes bugged at the sight of the beautiful vehicle. My head jerked towards Gran and I suddenly stopped.

"I thought you said a car!" I cried in shock.

"Go, go, go, keep going!" was Gran's only response as she ushered me out the door and off of the porch. I felt like Cinderella as I did my best to sprint to the limo. Only in this version, Cinderella was running to the ball. An older gentleman got out of the front seat and grabbed the door handle just as I got to the door. I thanked him graciously before ducking through the door and looking around. The seats were weird to me. I didn't remember having ever been in the limo, but you'd think I would remember something as basic as limo seats being on the side rather than the middle. The limo started moving before I even got buckled. Apparently I had taken even more time than I thought.

The driver pulled down the drive and up through town. I had forgotten to ask Gran exactly how far out the Acunas lived, but I couldn't ask the driver now due to a thick pane of glass between the front seats and the back section of the limo. An old fashioned phone had been screwed into a wide arm rest beneath it. I stared at it for a bit as I debated trying it out. I decided not to bother him and instead watched as we left the thicker parts of Wolf Creek and entered the forest on the opposite side. We at last approached a giant stone wall with dark, heavy iron gates directly in the center. On each side of the gate the Acuna name was evenly chiseled into the gray stone.

I watched as the driver pressed a button on his key ring, and the gates automatically opened. There might not have been much technology that I knew about, but I knew enough to know that that was cool. The limo continued down the Acuna's driveway. I wasn't sure if it quite qualified as a driveway, however; more like their own personal road. It was paved and painted just like a highway, only the yellow was metallic gold, and the white was silvery. Who in such a small town could afford these types of things?! Even the surrounding trees had an air of luxury-tons of them had cameras facing at every possible angle as if they expected a home invasion any day now. I watched all of this with a quirked eyebrow.

The mansion got the biggest reaction out of me. I gaped in amazement as the trees began to thin and finally gave way to the view of the Acuna residence. Four stories of castle-like stone were built perfectly. There wasn't so much as a smear of grout in the wrong place. Wherever William Acuna had gotten his wealth, he sure liked to show it off. The driver pulled around the circle drive that surrounded a beautiful fountain and parked in front of a set of steps that seemed to spill out from the double doors at the front of the building. The door was opened for me again, but this time it was James Acuna in an expensive-looking suit. I jumped in alarm.

"Oh, James! I didn't even see you come to the door. I'm so sorry that I'm late-I mean-I'm so embarrassed." I stuttered. James smiled down warmly and reached out his hand politely. I put my hand in his and carefully climbed out of the limo. He glanced around as if to see whether or not anyone was watching us. A mischievous grin lit up his features.

"That's alright, Kelsey. In fact, I think I know just the way to sneak you in without anyone noticing you were ever late. Follow me!" James said in a whisper. Then I was being pulled towards the double doors. James' newfound playfulness caught me way off guard. His attitude was so different from the hospital that it was almost like being around a different person. Nevertheless, I followed him up the stairs and inside.