Bears Know Best

Chapter 10: Friends

I EVENTUALLY MUST have fallen asleep that night, because my alarm was the next thing I knew. I really didn't feel like running that morning, but I felt like I should. I threw on my workout clothes and put my hair up into its traditional ponytail for the run. I ran into a problem though with my bangs. I eventually found some bobby pins that we'd bought and managed to pin them to the main part of my hair that was pulled back by the scrunchie. It was a slightly different look than I'd had in the ponytail before.

I headed downstairs after texting Alyssa to let her know I was going running. She said she'd be up for it too.

"I wish you hadn't put your hair in a ponytail, I want to see it!" She told me as she greeted me at her door.

I smiled, "Hopefully I'll be able to get it back to the style after a shower."

"Oh my God! Your nails are gorgeous!!!" She exclaimed when she caught sight of them. I let her have my hand to look at them more, all while smiling. "Are your toes done too?"

"Uh-huh, I can't believe that she did them in front of me like that," I told her.

"You mean they're not wraps?"

"Wraps?"

"Pre-made, they just stick them on and glue them?"

"No, she glued the jewels on and painted the flowers on herself."

"That is so awesome!" She told me.

'I guess I know what to get her for her birthday...' I thought to myself. 'Whenever that is...'

"I know, right?" The two of us started off on our morning jog, with me pushing it more than the last couple days.

Alyssa was really getting out of breath about half-way through, so I slowed down. "I really need to get you into cycling," she said, "then I can make you be the one out of breath," she told me.

"Whenever you want to try it," I suggested.

"Really?"

"I said I would, didn't I?"

"How about we do that instead tomorrow morning?"

"As long as you have a bike I can borrow?"

"Yeah, I do. I had Dad work on an old one of mine last night when he came home," she told me.

"What am I going to wear?" I asked her teasingly.

"I definitely have a cycling jersey and shorts you can borrow," she told me with a smile.

"I just hope I'm able to keep up enough to see your dust," I told her.

She laughed breathlessly as we continued on the route. It wasn't long before we arrived at our houses. "What are you up to today?" I asked her.

"Not much, you?"

"I didn't have much planned, you mind if I come over, and we'll do something?" I suggested.

"Any ideas?"

"Not really."

"We'll think of something," she said. "I can't wait to see your hair!" she added excitedly.

"I'll try and do it justice from yesterday," I told her as I went towards my house. I pulled my key out of the hidden pocket in my shorts and unlocked the front door.

Given my excitement to show off my hair I was trying to also find something that I thought would look pretty to wear. I started shoving things around in my closet with a vengeance. I didn't have a lot of choices in there... I liked several of the outfits we'd purchased last night, but they were all in the laundry to be washed later. For so few of clothes, I was genuinely not sure what to wear!