strangers. mileven au.

thirty eight.

CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT:
LIKE THE NIGHT SKY.

as much as eleanor loved shopping... she was definitely hating her life at the moment.

it was now exactly two weeks before her high school prom would occur and unfortunately because of her weak timing in informing her boyfriend about the dance... she was still without a dress.

with that being said, her beloved step mother had taken off work to accompany her on the restless journey to find the perfect piece of flowy fabric to wear to her night to remember. truth be told, the small girl wasn't trying to stand out too much. eleanor didn't care to be the star of the show or anything at some silly dance.

all she really cared about was making her cute freckled faced boyfriend happy.

however, they were only about six stores in when the short brunette was on the verge of losing all hope. each of the red, white and light baby pink options she had tried on were starting to blend together. all of the gowns either too short, too tight or too expensive...

yet there she was, occupying some crystal white dressing room she had never been in before... swaying back and forth in front of the mirror inspecting the pink fabric she currently had on. in all honesty, she didn't know why she was so upset about not being able to find the perfect dress. maybe it's because she thought it would be easy considering mike gave her three colors to work with.

"sweetie, are you okay in there? do you need any help?" joyce's sweet voice called from the other side of the heavy white curtain separating them.

"i'm - uh okay. i just... don't really know about this one." the small girl sighed, pulling back the curtain to revel her next option to her mother. "it's too poofy."

"aw but it's so beautiful. are you sure you don't like it?" joyce practically swooned, leaning over to puff out the bottom to the dress a little more. of course, her mother had loved every piece she had tried on that day.

yet eleanor just frowned, delicately playing with the fabric at her hips before mumbling sadly. "i look like a piece of cotton candy."

"a sweet piece of cotton candy." her step mother tried to encourage, only to earn a sad glance from her small daughter. "oh don't cry honey. we'll find one i promise. how about you go change back into your clothes and we can take a small break, okay? maybe get some iced coffee?"

the brunette nodded her head slowly before returning into the dressing room, gently closing the curtain behind her. it didn't take too long for eleanor to slip back into her regular clothes, finally free from the baby pink cotton candy cloud. she quickly met up with her mother at the front of the boutique, the duo politely waving a quick thank you to the two women working before exiting the store.

"this is so much more difficult than i thought it was going to be..." eleanor muttered to herself as they traveled down the long row of dress shops, the mannikins in each window mocking her with their pretty gowns as she passed them.

joyce couldn't help but to find a bit of amusement in the situation, chuckling a bit before remarking. "well you are only looking at three colors. maybe it would be easier to find a dress if you'd... broaden your horizons perhaps?"

"but mike said - "

"it's just a suggestion, sweetie." her mother interrupted as she held open the door to the small coffee shop. "plus i really don't think mike would mind if you wore a different color. it's not just about what he likes. it's about what you like too."