Mallory's Melody

Chapter 22

MALLORY HAD NEVER SEEN HERSELF AS BEAUTIFUL, but now, staring at herself in the silver-framed mirror, she saw herself as something close to that. Her porcelain skin contrasted her anthracite black hair in its stark paleness, a skin so pallid and white that it gave her an almost ghastly look. She drew her hands along her colored lips, willfully ensuring the pigment coating them was the lipstick Kathy said they were and not the blood it so much emulated. The black outlines rimming her eyes suddenly stressed a shimmer she'd never seen glittering in those emerald globes before. But even amidst how grand and unblemished she appeared, there was a sudden sadness that filled her, with how the gold adorning her neck and donning her ears made her look overly surreptitious, an embodiment of the very vanity she detested.

"What have you done to me?" Mallory asked, peering into the mirror and finding herself more repulsing than ever. She spun her chair around to face Kathy, who was leaning over the dresser with an odd look of fascination. Judging by the brushes she had in her hands, Mallory knew Kathy wasn't done with transforming her into who-knows-what. She backed away instinctively. "No, Kat. I look hideous enough already."

Kathy rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't be silly. You look pretty, and when I'm done with you, you'll look even more beautiful." She dabbed on Mallory's face, steering away the sweat that was yet to approach it.

"I look like Bobo the clown!" Mallory peered into the mirror. "And are you sure this is lipstick?"

Kathy smiled "Stop it Mal, you're pretty."

"Yeah, by clown standards." Mallory jumped to her feet. "And what's with all this extra-cake up? I'm going to an audition, not a fashion gala."

"it's called makeup Mal." Kathy rolled her eyes. "Besides, with how you're looking now, I'm certain you'll win the favour of the judges."

Mallory narrowed her eyes at Kathy. "You're lucky I don't have a rag with me right now, else I'd have rubbed this trash off my face a long time ago."

"Whatever. You'll be thanking me when you win the competition."

Mallory's countenance deflated at the mention of the competition. She played with her hands and drew her sweater closer, suddenly cold. But it wasn't the kind of cold that came from the frigid air rushing out of the air conditioner. It was innate, borne out of the nervousness coursing through her body. She shut her eyes and shook her head. She couldn't do it, peform in front of millions of people, with their wary eyes calculating her every step, anticipating the very moment she would trip over her feet and fall. That doubled by the fact that she was uncertain about how prepared she was. She and Eric hadn't practiced as much as they knew they should've. They chatted their hours of practice away, indulged in hours worth of laughing when they were meant to be practicing their choreography. But even at that, she wasn't remorseful. Something about the time she spent with Eric made her feel whole, complete. There was something about Eric Rossi that was irresistible. He was cocky and funny whilst all the while never losing his air of wittiness. She felt herself around him, felt as though were meant to be together, their names written in the skies.

"Mal, are you okay?" Kathy drew her out of her trance.

Mallory sat up straight. "Yeah... was just thinking."

Before Kathy could press on, the door burst open. Mallory didn't need to turn her head to know it was Jason Trevor that just entered. Even though they had only met a few times, she'd committed the smell of his presence to memory, that acrid and strong cologne of his that gave her a physical blow. That coupled by the aggressive way he walked, made his entrance into a place unmistakable.

"Get the hell out." Jason stared Kathy down. "I want to talk to Mal...alone."

Mallory shifted in her seat. Something about the way he said 'alone' set her brain cells on fire. The soft innuendoes and undertones of secrecy in the word made her stomach churn, left her paralysed and incapable of reason.