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Epilogue - [3/5]

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Epilogue - [3/5]
The Queen Bee Makes
Her Final Statement
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My eyes widened when I saw who Ryan brought with him, and my fingers fiddled with the loose strands of my hair. "W-What's this about?" I asked, inhaling sharply. With a flick of my wrist, I gestured to the person standing beside my friend. "You said this was an emergency, Ryan." 

As of now, it had been a week after Leo proposed to Julia, and I was taking a short break with my parents. Mom recently had her attributes checked up on, because after the last time she came back to life, they wouldn't function properly. Papa and I were helping her cope with the pain of losing the abilities. While I was home, Ryan called me, telling me of an emergency. I was told to wait outside of my parents' house.

And after so long, Linda Skies stood tall and confident before me. She was still an unfortunately attractive person, with her expensive clothing and staggering heels. With a clean layer of makeup on her face and a trendy and studded handbag at the tips of her fingers, I could tell that she had come back from an important modeling gig. The tremble in my step was also still there, and I felt insecure standing near her with my pajamas on and my hair tossed in a tangled bun.

"I didn't really lie," Ryan defended himself. "I brought Linda here for a reason."

"O-Oh..." was all I could say at the moment. That doesn't explain anything! What kind of reason would she be here for? Standing up straight, I gave Linda an awkward smile. "Um, I heard that you.. uh, you made a successful career with modeling and fashion design." Make small talk, Meredith. Small talk. "How's that going for you?"

"Peachy," she responded dryly, her voice filled with distaste. Her eyes gleamed blankly, and I shifted my feet uncomfortable, feeling as though I was smacked with a frying pan. Looks like she lost her fake kindness. But, it's been replaced with that deadpan personality. As she crossed her arms, I heard her tell me, "You haven't changed. Still wearing those kind of clothes, as always."

Ryan turned and glared at her, hissing out, "I told you to play nice..!"

Linda's gaze turned to his, though she didn't move. Her eyes became angry slits, and she snapped, "I'm being honest here..!" Huffing, she tossed her hair and peered at me. I glanced back, waiting for her to say something else. Say that my eyes are still weird. That I don't deserve my fame. That I'm a murderer. I anticipated a poisonous comment, my blood boiling by the second as she stayed silent. Then, she said something. "I heard from Ryan..." Immediately, my figure perked up at her sentence. That's no way to start an insult. "..that you needed a stylist, for your future interviews."

"Oh, yeah," I nodded. Pulling on the strings of my hoodie, I explained, "My mom says I should hire someone, but I've been struggling to get a hold of someone. No one really gets what I'm going for." Weird of her to say that. Looking up at the sky to avoid her gaze, I said, "It's hard, but it's not too important." Realization struck me, and I glanced at her, hope flickering in my eyes. "Are you possibly interested?"

Linda's posture tightened when I figured her out, and I noticed the bashful blush dusted on her cheeks. "I.. am available." A smile tugged in my face, but my gratitude was interrupted as she exclaimed quickly, "But I'm only offering because you clearly need the help!"

Ryan's arm swung over her shoulders, and he grinned, saying, "Alright, cool! I did what I needed to do!"

"G-Get off me, you— you animal!" Linda spat, pushing his arm away from her. I couldn't help but cover my mouth as laughter escaped. Shaking her arms, she gestured to her outfit. "You're going to get your disgusting sweat all over my dress!"

Ryan glared down at her, unamused. He crossed his arms, yelling, "I am not an animal!"

"Says you!" Linda pointed an accusing finger at him, her sharp eyes matching Ryan's. "At this point, you might as well be fucking Bigfoot!"

"I'll just leave you two to your sweet, old, bickering couple act," I slid in smoothly, waving my hand dismissively with a quirky smirk on my face. The pair turned to me, appalled by my claim. It's almost ironically funny. My past school bullies have a weird romance between each other. Giggling, I added teasingly, "You two really are made for each other~..!"

Ryan grabbed my shoulders and began shaking me vigorously, only to make me rumble out a few more laughs. "Wake up, Meredith! I'm not dating her— you're reading this whole situation wrong!"

A furious blush was on Linda's face as she whipped around, shouting, "How dare you assume that I'd date someone like Ryan Duff! I'm leaving!"

"Hold up, I have to drive you home!" Ryan exclaimed, running after her and leaving me standing in front of my house. Linda's pace quickened visibly, causing him to snap loudly, "Hold up, woman!"

"I-I'll just walk!"

I watched as the two argued even more, crossing the street side by side. A light smile was on my face, and I let out a small, serene sigh. "God, how funny life is..." I murmured to myself, putting my hands in my pockets.

Catching one more breath of fresh air, I headed back inside the house, the lingering thought of my high school bullies engraved in my mind.