Lily's Summer of Precarious Happenings

Chapter Nine

I sighed and stared at the notepad on my lap, reading the words out loud to myself.

"Cons: Uncomfortable. Can I even last all night?  Pros: Are there any?"  

"Lily! What the hell are you doing in there?" Kennedy shouted through the bathroom door.  I jumped a little bit, almost dropping my pad of paper.  The door shook as Kennedy rammed her fist or possibly her entire body against it.

"You might be the most impatient person I've ever known," I muttered to myself as I rose from my seat on the toilet and approached the door.

"I took wood shop!" Kennedy was yelling, "I can take this door down!"

Just as she was about to rattle the entire bathroom wall again, I swung the door open, revealing my comedically disgruntled friend.  "It's too tight," I blurted before she could say anything further.

"What are you even talking about?" Kennedy squealed, grabbing me and positioning my body in front of her massive mirror.  She peaked out from over my shoulder, hands flailing excitedly and pointing to different parts of the dress.  "Honestly, you should just keep the dress.  It looks so much better on you!"

I grimaced and pulled my bottom lip through my teeth.  "Don't you think it's a little too... you know..."

"A little too what?" She lifted one eyebrow at me in the mirror, and placed her hands on her hips.

"Nothing!" I chirped, plastering on an excited smile.  This seemed to satisfy her, as she continued tittering on about accessories and what kind of necklaces I could wear with my outfit.  My entire life had been spent in gym clothes and pajamas, and needless to say I still wasn't quite used to Kennedy's obsession with dressing me up.  She seemed to enjoy it, and well, it was beginning to rub off on me.  If anything, it was a nice reminder that I could be attractive if I wanted to.

This dress, however, was something else.  

My favorite part about it was the color: black.  Everything else was questionable.  It hugged every curve of my body, and ended only mid-thigh with a wildly high slit on one leg.  Although the straps were thick, the low back matched the plunging neckline that somehow made my cleavage look pronounced.  

Kennedy had done my hair in loose waves and left it down, and the dark eyeshadow she had majestically swiped on had somehow made my eyes look bright and piercing.  It was more makeup magic that I had no knowledge about.

"Here," She said, absentmindedly handing me a pair of platform Doc Martens as she rifled through her jewelry.

I eyed her incredulously and happily slipped on the boots.  

"What?" Kennedy laughed as she placed a thick gold chain around my neck.  "I know you don't like heels."

"Kennedy, I think I love you," I said, only half-joking as I took in my appearance, slightly taken aback in shock and awe.

"What's an artist without her muse?" She sighed dramatically, maneuvering a pair of gold hoops into her ears.  Kennedy tugged at the hem of her slinky gold dress, which complemented her dark skin beautifully and gave her an other-worldly glow.  It was almost unfair how little she did to look like that.  "What do you have in your hand?"

I looked down and realized I had my notepad still grasped tightly in my right hand.  "Oh, nothing."

"I thought we agreed.  No secrets."  She huffed and crossed her arms.  I thought briefly back to our day spent by the pool, and all the stories we exchanged as we officially declared each other to be best friends.

"It's a list," I relented, "Sometimes my thoughts get a little overwhelming.  It helps me make decisions."

Instead of laughing at me, she shrugged, "Whatever floats your boat."  She held up a finger, "Although, from what I've seen, you're pretty good at making decisions on the spot."