Devilish Love

12. All Made Up

Chapter 12: All Made Up

Btw, pic of her dress, from Alexander McQueen's collection! I totally love it, it's beautiful:)

I loved the showers in Hell. Hell, I loved the toilets and the rooms and the palace. It was a place that fitted me.

After luxuriously scrubbing myself clean and slathering on this fresh, flowery smelling face cream, I was ready to start my beauty routine.

As a child, I hadn't been able to appreciate the power of makeup much. Simply because I had been raised in a relatively conservative family who believed that makeup was for adults. My mother staunchly refused to let me buy a single tube of lipstick. That's how bad it was. And then when I had shocked the entire family by becoming an actress and model...well, let's just say it hadn't gone well.

Once I had been invited into the exclusive circle of top celebrities, however, it was natural that I learnt to apply my own makeup, even if there were always stylists around. I had gotten good at applying it, and I was excited to start.

I dashed to the dressing table, wrapped in a towel, and plonked myself down in front of it. Let's see...where should I start? My hand automatically reached forward for some foundation. It grabbed at empty space. Horrified, I looked down, and I saw that the dressing table was empty. Why hadn't I thought of bringing my own makeup to the afterlife?

There was a knock on the door, and I called "Who is it? Don't come in just yet," as I frantically jumped to my closet and opened it, trying to find something to shimmy into. I had thrown open the closet expecting a skeleton- that would be just like Hell, and it suited the saying skeleton in your closet, but there was nothing, luckily, just a bunch of clothes in all colours of the rainbow. 

"Ianthe," a familiar voice said. "Let me in?"

"Uh, I'm only wearing a towel. I mean, I know we're both girls, but-" I faltered. But I'd like to have my own body to myself, especially in the afterlife. Because it was never really mine when I was alive.

I pushed away such depressing thoughts quickly. I did not want to revisit the awful world of Hollywood celebrities. And then the door burst open. I summoned a shaky smile and accepted my fate- I would never have my own privacy. My life, and death, would always revolve around my star status.

Ianthe moved in and shut the door. She kept her head down, however, and I found it curious. Usually, people would look at the other person. Even if she was wrapped in a towel. So I asked "Why are you looking down?"

"Dress yourself first, Ma'am. I have come with orders from the Devil King, but you should wear some clothing first," she said quietly.

And in that moment, I felt so grateful to Ianthe. She had come in because she had urgent orders, I was sure. Not because she...wanted to take advantage of me. It healed a small part of my torn heart.

I threw on an extra large sweater that hung to my knees, and then turned to her. "Okay, look up."

She looked up. But the look on her face frightened me.

"Ma'am, I'm so sorry to do this to you. You probably won't like it-" she begin.

Cold sweat started to form on my forehead.

"-but the Devil King has told me to dress you up. He says that  it would be a disgrace for a guest to show up poorly dressed, so he wants you to wear this," she held up a piece of fabric.

My jaw dropped. It was freaking gorgeous. 

My eye caught a glimpse of white, and I saw it was on her arm, a white bandage. "Ianthe, are you feeling better? Where is Gadina? And you stopped dripping!"

She smiled nervously. "Ah, Ma'am, do not be mad, but I have accepted a job offer from the Devil King. He made me stop dripping, as you call it, and I am to serve you during your stay here. I can wish for no better job, and it is also nice to be so dry. Gadina is resting now."

I threw my arms around her. "Aw, Ianthe! That's awesome for you. Of course I'm not mad! I just hope you're happy."

"Definitely. It is a nice change, and the staff quarters are much better," she replied.

"What were your old staff quarters like?" I asked.

She fingered her faded dress and avoided my gaze. "I was vaporized every night so I didn't need staff quarters."

"That's horrible," I gasped. 

She shrugged. "It is normal, Ma'am. At least it is an opportunity for me to learn about the water cycle."

I could not tell if she was joking. 

She barreled on. "The Prince does it too, doesn't he? Did you not see him do the same with his servants?"

"Lucifer?" I asked.

She raised her eyebrows. "Ma'am, excuse my nosiness, but you are on a first name basis with him?" She grinned slyly. 

I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, can we start? I wouldn't mind you doing my makeup for me."

Ianthe smiled happily and walked forward. Putting her cold hands on my shoulders, she steered me to the toilet and directed me to change while she waited outside. 

In the toilet, I wriggled into the dress. Thank gods it wasn't skin tight. I hated skin tight dresses. It was just short. It was an adorable pink tulle dress, much like Lana Condor's, only not as fluffy, and I would have loved to wear it under normal circumstances. However, it was a tad too short, and barely reached mid-thigh. Uncomfortably, I tried to pull down the dress, but ah, I forgot, it was also an off the shoulder dress, so pulling down the dress meant showing more than I wanted to on top. I sighed and looked myself in the mirror. I looked revolting. I put the dress to shame.

I flung open the door and stalked to the dressing table, where I sat down and folded my arms. I had wanted to wear a black dress. Sadly, I could not ignore orders from both the Devil and Heavenly King.

"Relax, Ma'am," Ianthe said, her thumbs rubbing soothing circles on my tense shoulders. "It is not easy to be in the limelight all the time, but you deal with it very well. I am starting on the makeup now."

Her voice calmed me a little. I sighed. Of course she was right. I could not throw a tantrum. That was what babies did, and I was an adult. As Ianthe made up my face, I made up my mind- I would put on a perfect show for the cameras and the King. I was going to be strong about it. So there, haters.

Ianthe put the finishing touches on my face, and when it was done, I had to admit she made me look way better than any of my past stylists. Maybe it was the magical makeup, which was extra shimmery and bright, and had vibrant colours. But I liked it. It suited me. She had touched up my face to make it look sharper, not with the baby fat I had on my face, and added smokey eye shadow, and glittery eyeliner that I thought was an interesting fashion statement since it contrasted with the eye shadow. Pale pink lipstick had been applied carefully on my lips. 

"Thanks, Ianthe," I murmured. 

She looked at me hesitantly, probably trying to decide if I liked it, and then clapped her hands. "Yay! Okay, go now! You don't want to be late, and I think the Prince is already waiting outside."

I slipped into my heels and lifted my chin as I walked to the door. A small part of me was relieved that I was back into the familiar life of putting on an act, of walking like a queen. In a way, it was something I knew best, and the routine felt like I was still the same Kayla Marie as back on Earth. Feeling oddly comforted by this, I opened the door.

BTW, you may notice I spell things in the British way, because that's the spelling I was taught. Americans, bear with it, thanks. (I think I'm the few people on Wattpad who actually say "bear" not "bare". I hope you all know that "bear with me" does not exist. Thanks, just my little ranting corner. I'm a Grammar Nazi.) Even though I'm a Grammar Nazi, I do make mistakes sometimes because I'm either typing late at night or I'm typing on my phone . Please understand that! 

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Speaking of limelight, is anyone a limelight? Haha;)))) I love WDW's voices, man.