Cinderella's Evil Sister

06 | Dumb enough to work

          WE SAT ON THE BED IN MY ROOM, holding our money boxes with savings in our hands. Only me and Juniper, Cooze claimed that he wasn't interested in participating in my public humiliation, but he's going to look at it from afar.
          "Okay, you first." Juniper ordered and I spilled on the bed all the money I had, which was exactly $643 I got for painting fences in our neighborhood. I looked at Juniper to indicate it was her turn. She nodded, took out the rubber closure from her pink piggy money box and shook it several times and exactly one dollar and fifty cents fell on the bed. When her eyes fell on the cash she had saved in her pink piggy bank, she frowned and lifted the piggy bank over her head and looked closely at the bottom cap to see if anything was stuck inside. Once she found out it was all she had, she lowered her hands in surprise and opened her mouth a little bit.

          "In my defense, I never knew how to save money."
          "And that is defense how?"
          "I don't know, I just felt like telling you."

          For a moment there was a silence between us, in which Cooze digged through the pockets of his black jeans and then, with an enthusiastic smile, threw two dollars - all in cents - at the pile. Juniper took a few cents in her hand and then threw them back on the pile and said sarcastically: "Yeah, that really helps. Thanks."
          Cooze looked at her in shock with his mouth open and immediately fired back at her: "All I did was look in my pockets and I still gave more money than you did with your stupid piggy bank, you jerk." Now it was Juniper's turn to look at Cooze in shock, and gasped with her hand on her chest.

          As I stared thoughtfully at the pile of money, Cooze and Juniper embarked on a passionate quarrel that began with Cooze's tongue sticking out, then I could only see by peripheral vision how they started hitting one each other. I minded me own business for a while, and then when I looked up to ask Juniper what was the reason to collect as much money as possible, I could see Juniper holding Cooze's head under his neck with her forearm and running her knuckles over Cooze's head repeatedly to which he hissed in pain. When they both caught my eye, they stopped what they were doing, and I finally asked Juniper what we needed money for.

          "I went through your closet earlier and found out everything is absolutely not usable. You need completely new closet." she explained, letting go of Cooze's head but still glaring at him as she continued. "Also, you need complete transformation." she added gesturing to my face. I furrowed not getting what was so bad at my face.

          Juniper sighed loudly and without answering my previous question, she asked one question herself: "Do you trust me, Aspen?"
          "Absolutely no."
          "Good. You shouldn't."

✿ ❀ ✿

           It had been two hours since we had walked through the mall from one store to another, each of us carrying at least two bags of clothing.
          The only positive thing about it all was that Cooze had stopped complaining twenty minutes ago that his legs were hurting because Juniper had warned him that if he said once more that his legs were hurting, his whole body will hurt after she throws him over railing.
          "Where are we going now?" I asked and pushed my falling glasses back to the root of my nose. I didn't get an answer, instead Juniper stopped in an instant, which neither of us expected and we bumped into her back. She didn't even bother to look at us with an annoyed look, because she herself was too tired.
          "Here." she responded simply and I turned toward the store we were standing in front of. "Hairdresser's?" I don't even know why I bothered to ask, because as always I didn't get any answer. I slowly began getting use to Juniper answering only those questions she wants.
          She went to the hairdresser's, tossed all the bags into the corner and raised her knuckles for brofist to one of the hairdressers. He smiled, which I understood as both know each other very well, and their knuckles bumped.