16

I wake up already nervous. In exactly six hours before my date with Tom. Karen is coming around one o'clock in the afternoon so that she can help me choose a dress and get ready. And that means that I have the morning to prepare myself for the date: physically and mentally.

I still can't believe that I'm going out with Tom Polson. During the first month at this school, I discovered that Tom actually has a big reputation. Other than trying to get in the pants of new girls, he's one of the best athletes in the school. He's in the swimming team and on the football team. He's the playboy, the athlete and the troublemaker. And how in the world did the nerdiest girl on the planet actually got to go on a date with him? No clue.

I get up and go take a shower. The warm water wakens my senses and makes my worries wash away. Sadly, as soon as I step out of the shower I feel those same worries flood back.

I wrap a towel around my head and walk out of the bathroom. Since I don't have to go anywhere before the date, I decide to wear some simple sweatpants and a white cotton tank top. After putting on my earrings and brushing my hair, I go to the dining room and make myself some breakfast.

After the delicious meal (a banana and some PBJ), I force myself to do my homework. I have some Math problems to solve and Friday I have a Social Studies test. I first do the Math problems, which turn out to be pretty easy. Except the last one: that one's a bitchy exercise, but after a while I'm able to find a reasonable solution.

I get my Social Studies notes, papers, and theory sheets, and start making myself a summary. After a little while, my mother calls me downstairs to eat, so I run down, gulp down the food quickly and clean the dishes before going back upstairs to continue my summary.

After what seems like only fifteen minutes, the doorbell rings, but it's most likely the mailman. Then I hear my mother greeting someone. "Hello! You must be Emma's friend."

My head snaps to look at the clock next to my bed, and it shows 12.56. Shit.

I run downstairs to see my mother with a big smile shaking hands with Karen. Of course, she's nice with my friends. As soon as we have company, my mother becomes an angel. And as soon as they leave, she starts yelling chores in my face.

"Hey, Emma!" Karen says as she sees me. "Ready to get ready?"

I chuckle. "Yeah, let's go upstairs to my room."

I guide her to my bedroom. She walks through the door and looks around. "Your room is awesome," she comments.

I don't know what to say. My room isn't really big, but it's big enough for my needs. The entry door is on the far right of the wall. Next to is a big bookshelf with all my favorite books. Next to that is my dresser. In the farthest corner from the door is my bed, and over it is a big poster of a beautiful beach. My parents gave it to me last year and – I'm not making this up – when I look at it I feel myself calming down. It's almost as if I'm right there on the beach, enjoying the gentle noise of the waves and the absence of people. Next to my bed is my desk, which is now covered in sheets of paper. Finally, on the other side of the door and next to the desk are a few shelves where I put my school stuff: notebooks, schoolbooks and file folders.

Karen touches a few of my books, and I cringe a little. I'm really cautious about my books. I never give them away and I'm always careful not to eat or drink something around them. I know it's crazy, but I can't help it.

"You read a lot," she notes, and I laugh lightly.

"Yes, I do," I say.

"Okay, let's get to work," Karen says. "Did you eat already?"

I nod.

"Good. You don't want to eat a lot on your date, that way you don't look starved," she tells me. "I hope you showered?"

"Of course I showered!" I exclaim. "What do you take me for, a homeless person?"

She snickers. "Sorry. I brought a couple of dresses for you to try on. Or do you have something?" she asks.

"Um… I found this in my closet a few days ago, and I thought it was cute." I pull out a short white pantsuit decorated with little pink flowers on the bottom. Karen tells me to try it on, so I go to the bathroom and slip it on. It fits pretty well: it hides my belly fat and makes my legs look skinny. It shows a little cleavage, but not so much that it makes me uncomfortable. I step out of the bathroom.

"Wow," Karen says. "It looks great on you."

I blush. "Thanks. So, is this okay?"

"Of course! You look wonderful," she says. Then she turns around and searches for something in her bag. Shortly after, she fishes out a brush, a comb, some elastic bands, and a full makeup kit. "Let's get to work."

After a full hour of torture, I'm finally able to look at myself in the mirror. I have to admit, I look pretty good. Karen made up my hair in a cute messy bun. She applied a little bit of makeup on my eyes to make them pop a little bit more and instructed me to wear some blue earrings, which were the same colors as my eyes. Again, she told me that the earrings made my eyes pop. When she told me that again, I thought I would look like a wide-eyed toad.

Surprisingly though, it looks good. And I understand what Karen meant: as soon as I looked at myself in the mirror, my eyes immediately went to… well, my eyes. They were stunning, and I don't mean to sound conceited, but Karen's work really paid off. It isn't much, really. She just curved my eyelashes, put on some mascara and some eye shadow, but it looks incredible.

"Karen… wow." I say. "Thank you."

She smiles. "Don't worry about it." she looks outside and her eyes widen. Then she stares at my clock. "It's time," she says. "Where did you guys say you'd meet?"

"Uh… we didn't." I say, and I start to panic. "Shit! We didn't say where we'd meet! Should I text him?"

"No need," Karen says and points out the window. I follow her finger and see a black Audi parked outside my driveway. I see Tom in the front seat typing something on his phone.

"Damn, is that his car?" Karen asks. "Sweet ride."

I agree with her, but just then a ping! distracts me. I look at my phone and see a new notification from Tom.

I'm outside. U ready?

I type back. On my way.