She Smiled

Chapter 2

A/N: If you are reading this story and you like it so far, it would mean the world to me if you could give it a vote and comment. I need some feedback because I have to know if I'm doing well. I do not want to continue something readers don't enjoy. Thanks!
xoxo. Courtney

Dear Diary,

Today is the day. 16 years old. I can't believe it's finally here. I just have to make it through the day.

Love,

Lacey

School was a breeze that day. Lacey spent most of the day reading her books and listening to music until 2:30 rolled around. As a sophomore, most of her teachers didn't care what the students did after they finished their work. Lacey, being the goody goody she was, always finished her work in the first half of class and spent the rest of it doing what she pleased. She ran out of the building to meet Andrew at his black Vovlo. She got in and breathed in the farmiliar scent of spices and woods that was uniquely Andrew and that she had grown to love.

"How was your day, birthday girl?" Andrew asked.

"Not too bad. If it weren't for the mystery meat in the cafeteria lunch, it might have been decent." She winced at the thought of our school's prized "gormet" dish. The recipe had been around since 1956 when the school opened and nobody had quite figured out what was in it. She really had to start brown bagging it.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I can't wait for tonight. Noelle has the best surprise planned for you." Andrew turned to look at Lacey. A crooked grin crossed his face and a michevious glint shone in his eyes.

"And I know that since you are my absolute best friend in the world, you will divulge this secret to me." she replied.

"Not a chance." He snorted. It was worth a shot.

10 minutes later, Andrew pulled into the parking lot of Lacey's house and she bid him goodbye until 6. Thank God that her birthday fell on a Friday this year. She didn't have to worry about being in bed at a reasonable hour and her parents had already given her permission to actually go out that night.

She grabbed a granola bar from the cabinet as she headed up to her room. As she entered, she launched herself onto her queen sized bed and wrapped herself in her favorite fluffy lime green blanket. She laid thinking about the night to come and munching on her granola bar. She wondered what her friends were planning. After some time, Lacey glanced over to the clock and noticed it was 3:30. She figured it was probably time to start getting ready, so she hopped up, stripped out of her school uniform, and headed into the bathroom that ajoined to her room.

She stood waiting for the water to heat up, and felt the cold tile under her feet. This was one of her favorite feelings. Most people hated it, but Lacey liked to rush that the temperature of the floor sent through her body. It was like a sudden rush of adrenaline. The water had finally reached the temperature she liked (really hot) and she stepped in, careful not to slip on the wet ground. The water instantly soothed her sore muscles from the pilates that she did every night.

As she absent-mindedly ran through her normal shower routine, Lacey began to hum the tunes of songs from her favorite artist, Jason Walker. Music was one place where she felt completely at home. She loved to sing, play her piano and her gutair, and write music. She hated the fact that she was too shy to sing in front of anyone but her shower head. Lacey had terrible stage fright, and singing to anyone made her turn the color of a tomato.

As she turned the water off, Lacey wrapped her clean body in a huge fluffy towel and plodded back to her room. She looked in her mirror to begin her work. First, she applied a frizz taming product to tame her normally lioness-esque hair. As she let that soak in, she applied her makeup and walked towards her closet. She pulled out the dress she had bought shopping with her mom a few weeks ago for the party. It was a cute little black number that had short sleeves and made a circle when she spun around. Everything about it screamed Lacey. She went back over to the mirror to style her hair. When she finished, she topped off her look with red lipstick and matching red pumps. She may have just been celebrating with Andrew, Noelle, and her parents, but this was her 16th birthday. She was going to look good doing it.

Her party began soon after, and her friends arrived at the Marshall household bearing gifts.

"Guys I told you not to get me anything..." Lacey grimaced.

"Haha funny Lace. It's your 16th birthday. You really thought you were going to pull that crap?" Noelle said. This is what Lacey loved about her. She was the epitome of spunk with her pixie cut dyed pink and her quirky sense of style. Andrew stood next to her, his chestnut brown hair swept out of his face. He had his signature crooked smile on and said nothing.

Her two friends entered the house and began her parents' ritual of forcing them into 500 different poses for pictures. They were the kind of parents that recorded Lacey blowing out her birthday candles every year. Basically every big moment of her life was documented either in photos or video. Shortly after, Lacey's mother announced that it was time for her to open her gifts. Noelle had gotten her a purse that she had been eyeing at her local boutique a few weeks ago. Andrew got her a music note and an L charm to add to her Pandora bracelet, and her parents got her a laptop.

"Oh...gosh. Wow." was all she could say when she opened the jet black Dell. This was something she had been wanting since she entered Elliston High School. All of her friends had them, and doing school assignments was extremely difficult. Before, she always had to trudge 2 blocks to the library to type reports or do online assignments. Now, she would be able to do them with ease. She would also be able to join the world of social media that all her parents seemed to be so fascinated with.

Finally, it was time. She walked over to the center of the room where her birthday cake sat. Her parents, Noelle, and Andrew gathered around her and the chorus of attempted harmonies began. "Happy Birthday to you.." they all sang. She was 16. Lacey Marshall would no longer be the girl that people walked by and didn't notice. She would have friends. Lots of them. She would have boys lining up at her door. She was going to be a new her.

One

Two

Three

The sixteen dancing flames that lit up the room suddenly disappeared and they were left in darkness. Lacey walked over the the light switch and flipped it upwards. She turned to see her friends and family glancing at her wide eyed and anxious.

"Well...what are you guys waiting for? Let's eat." She remarked. The night had only begun.