Chapter 8

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself." -Leo Tolstoy

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A single decision will change your life. That's something I hear every time, but I never had the chance to see if it's really true. If my acceptance of Isa's offer changed my life, then so be it! It's no secret my life needs a change. Isa's room is a typical 17 year old's room, clothes and shoes everywhere. The room is pastel color but I couldn't see her duvet color because of the laundry, which needs some serious washing, spilling on top of it. But overall it's nice and wide. The white fluffy carpet feels like clouds under my sock clad feet .She has a bunch of cosmetics stuff on her dressing table, so I started to open some of the bottles and smell them. Their smell is too strong for me, it made me cringe.

"Hold this." I heard Isa say, and gave the wine bottle and her half full glass to confused Penny. After I accepted Isa's offer to a makeover, Penny and Sam followed us, leaving Hen to play by himself in the living room. Sam looks like she is analyzing the room like I have been doing, and Penny is horrified. She is a clean freak and this room is a pure torture for her, I'm sure. Isa looks like she is searching for something under all the cloth in the bed, and she is getting upset by the minute. She started to throw the clothes on the floor and made an appreciative sound while holding a shiny thing between her fingers, which I recognized immediately as a key.

"Aha!" she shouted, showing the key to me. She looks comical under all the clothes that Penny dumped on her picking from the floor. Isa didn't mind though, she shrugged the clothes and went to a door "Ready?" she asked me and before I could answer, she opened the door that revealed a walk-in closet- A gorgeous walk-in closet that is not kept well. As I neared the closet, I noticed most of the clothes still had their tag on.

"Hold this." Isa said, giving me a small blue dress. Before I could see it properly, she started to pile cloth after cloth in my outstretched arms and it became more and more difficult to keep up. "There is nothing good in here." Isa said and when she noticed that I am getting really tired, she didn't offer to relive my poor arms, rather she started to throw the clothes out on the floor.

"Hey! don't do that." argued Penny and came to collect the fallen piece of articles ,which could be hundreds of them based on how the pile is growing up to my neck and how Isa is doing a marvelous job of tossing the clothes out in record speed. I don't think she is even seeing the clothes, she just keeps on tossing them out.

"There is nothing here." Isa grumbled. When she saw me, she took a huge pile and tossed it ,yet again in the closet, and she started to collect the clothes and put them all back in.

"Won't it be difficult to find your clothes tomorrow?" I asked.

"Whatever." Isa shrugged.

"Of course whatever." came Penny's sarcastic voice from far away. She was organizing the clothes in the bed. "I don't know how you live in this mess." Isa just ignored her and squirted her eyes to look at me; she circled me like a predator.

"You are almost the same size as her." she whispered to herself then a smile bloomed in her face. "I have an idea, follow me!" she shouted getting out of the room after retrieving her wine glass.

"Why do I feel that whatever you are about to do is bad?" I asked following her to the end of the hallway to be faced by a sleek closed door.

"Because it is." was Isa's reply before opening the door to reveal an elegant room, which I recognized was her mom's. The room smells so good and when Isa turned on the light it illuminated to a neat and classy interior, which is totally opposite to Isa's. The bedroom has heavy dark curtains, a King sized bed at the center and a bedside table with an exquisite looking lamp that sat on top of it. Isa went to a closed door at the center and before she opened it she faced all of us and said "Are you ready?" she was smiling so brightly.

"Ready for…." before I finished the sentence, she opened the closet door and came to the view of the most beautiful closet I have ever seen. I couldn't help myself, I ventured inside inhaling the rich lavender scent that enveloped the small room. I saw Isa behind me and she was swapping her hands on the white dress, which left an instant wine stain against it. "Won't your mom be mad?" I asked before my hands wandered around and touched the clothes.

''Of Course she will be mad." was what she said. "That's why we will do it." Isa thinks she hates her mom, but I know that's not true. She is just mad and hurt. Miss Paula left Isa when she was 4 to chase her 'Dreams'. Now she took custody of her almost legal daughter when Isa's dad got arrested and ruled unfit to be a parent ."This will do it." Isa said and pulled me out. In the process I knocked Penny, who was admiring the clothes like I was doing a few moments ago. Isa had 3 dresses on her hands, which by the looks of it are...short ."Try this on." she trusted a silver mini dress with a plunging neckline to my face. I took the dress and made my way to the bathroom.

"Where are you going?" Isa asked, she looked confused with a frown itched on her face.

"To change," I gestured towards the dress on my arms.

"Why don't you change here? Are you ashamed?" Isa asked eying Penny and Sam. I have never ever stripped in front of anyone, not even my girlfriends and when Isa asked the question it hit me because the reason why I had never stood bare in front of other human being was because of my body insecurities. "It's ok, we won't bite." Isa teased when I said nothing, "Ok we will cover our eyes." she said, a smile evident on her voice. When all 3 of them covered their eyes with their hands, I slowly removed my jacket, then my sock along with my pants, and at last my shirt then I was left with an un matching bra and pantie set. Before I wore the dress, Isa removed her hands and shrieked and came running towards me.

"Your body is beautiful.'' she said, trying to pry off the dress I used to cover up. I am blushing, my entire body is as red as a tomato. "Let me see." she whined and tugged the dress out of my grasp. She started to admire my body, exhibiting it to Penny and Sam. "Do you work out?" Isa asked.

"No." and it's true. I have never worked out in my life, but I don't eat that's why I have a slim body, it's not as gorgeous as the ones I see on TV though.

"Here, change." Isa said, handing me the dress. When I wore it, it covered almost nothing. If I had big boobs, it would have spilled out. "Perfect!" Isa whispered and pulled me inside the closet, towards a big mirror which had lots of supplies on the desk attached to it. Before I saw myself in the mirror, Isa covered my eyes. "Naa, you will see yourself after I finish everything." she said, sitting me and herself face to face. When she picked a pencil, I leaned back,

"You are drunk. What if you poke my eye out?" Isa huffed in response .

"Look." she said, applying the eyeliner to her own eyes. She lined the inside of her left eye, it was disgusting but when she finished, it looked beautiful. "See if I can line myself without using the mirror, I can line you better." she smirked and I lost all the fight and gave her eager hands my face. "You are paranoid, you know. What if I poke your eye out? it's not like you would die. You will have an eyepatch, which is sexy?" she winked at me while applying some liquid on my face. "I wanted to cover this pimple from the moment I saw you." she grumbled. So much for making me feel good. Sitting still became more and more difficult, I desperately wanted to see myself but Penny took the liberty to cover the mirror with a sheet.

"You look scary." Penny commented. I don't even have any reference as to how I look, only Isa's face with only one painted eye.

"Don't scare her, shoo." Isa pushed Penny out of the small room. At last, Isa applied a red lipstick and she was so close to me while doing it, it made me uncomfortable. "Wait!" she said before I got up. "You need heels.'' she ran towards the massive shoe rack and grabbed a very high heel "This would do it!" I don't know how many things I have said 'I don't know' and 'No' to, but this is not the last one, I am sure. I have never walked on a high heel.

"I can't walk in those." I said pointing to the silver stilettos. Isa didn't even look surprised; she just pulled me up and ruffled my hair. After she took me to the full mirror, she put the shoes on the ground.

"Don't walk on it, just wear it." she said and helped me clasp it. "You look... I don't even have a word for it." Isa giggled. Penny and Sam came to look at me ,even before I knew what I looked like.

"Wow!" Penny exclaimed. Sam nodded in agreement. I am giddy now if they don't let me see myself in the next second, I will kill someone today. Isa carefully turned me towards the mirror and all I could do was gasp. My eyes look bigger in the minimal makeup and my lips much more fuller in the red lipstick. I look tall with endless legs. The dress hung me all in the right places. I looked beautiful; I felt beautiful. I can't help the smile that bloomed in my face. Isa snuck her hands behind my back and put her face on my shoulder. She slowly whispered in my ears,

"Don't you think Justin will fall in love with her?" she asked, pointing to the mirror.

"He would." was my simple answer. Justin Black is going to fall in love with the confident and gorgeous girl staring back at me. "Let's do it!" I said to my reflection and the meaning behind my words was not lost to everyone.

"Atta girl!" Isa shouted and brought me the glass which is half filled in her wine, and I accepted it without any precondition. "To Change." Isa whispered, raising the wine bottle and I raised the glass.

"To the best makeup artist!" I shouted ,sipping from the glass. Wine doesn't taste bad.

"To the beautiful You." Isa followed suit and drank from the bottle. Meanwhile Penny and Sam just kept on staring at us, Their faces looked funny, with equal parts of shock and fear. I couldn't help but laugh.

***

Isa is not picking her phone, and I am assuming it's because of the unhealthy amount of alcohol she consumed yesterday. Yesterday before I even got the chance to finish the glass, Sam's mom came to pick her up and Penny and Hen took Uber home. It was late so I returned home and the moment my head hit the pillow, I was enveloped in a dreamless sleep. It took me a while to get up and get ready for school, but Isa is nowhere to be seen. If she doesn't come out of her house in the next 3 minutes, we will be expelled for the day.

"Sorry sorry!" shouted Isa putting her shoes on and running towards me. She has a toothbrush in her mouse ,and her snickers aren't laced but she runs towards the car nevertheless. I couldn't even shout at her for being late. When we got in, she got to action speeding the car down the road. At least we both agree that we shouldn't be late.

"Hangover huh." I asked. She put the toothbrush out of her mouth ,and drank water from the bottle and spit it out of the window. I hope her spit won't be spilled to someone's face.

"It's not a hangover," she said. "I was up late with you guys." she pushed the car faster and before I said anything, she added, "Besides, a little wine isn't enough to make me drunk."

"Aha" was what I said. We reached school with just 2 minutes to spare. When I was getting out of the car, Isa remained seated and opened the driving mirror. She applied lip gloss, eyeliner, and brushed her hair. She had everything in the cupboard. After she smelled her breath using her palms, she looked satisfied. She literally did all that in just 2 minutes ,and we heard the bell ring. Isa left the car and locked it behind. I didn't remove my eyeliner from yesterday and Isa noticed.

"You look nice." she commented and linked our hands as always. The hallways were empty with students already in their respective classes. When I was about to reply to her, I felt the hair on my neck rise to the end. I felt him before I saw him and my suspicions were proved when I raised my eyes. It was Justin and Leo coming towards us, and Justin was looking straight towards us and making his way to where we were, in the hopes to meet us halfway.