Hiraeth: Belonging (II)

Chapter Twenty

"How do I look?" I asked Vincent, standing in front of my mirror.

My brother was dancing in place, hands squished against his wide-smiling cheeks. "Like Mom!"

I felt my face flush. "Is that good or bad?"

"Well, Mom always looks very pretty. And you look a lot like her, especially right now."

"Oh, thank the stars... I thought you were calling me old or something."

Mum peeked her head into the room. "Excuse me! I'm twenty-two, at heart." She suddenly gasped. "Roxie Ray! Look at you!"

"You like it?"

I was wearing a deep turquoise overall-dress over a white t-shirt, along with my favorite spiked black boots. I had made sure to tie the laces perfectly. I also had earrings in and had put some light magenta eyeshadow on. Before Mum's decision to let me have more freedom, I never wore makeup. But now I could, and since I was going to be attending a nice dinner I wanted to try it out.

"I love it! You look stunning!" Mum exclaimed.

Vincent nodded, now dancing around our mum. "You're gonna sweep him off his feet!"

"Don't expect him to be dressed as nicely, though."

I raised my eyebrows. "You'd be surprised. I think dark fashion has started to rub off on him."

Vincent bent his wrists and fanned his fingers on his shoulders, smiling proudly. "That would be my doing."

Mum and Vincent went with me down the stairs, out the door, and to my tiny white automobile.

"Have fun!" Vincent shouted as I slowly pulled into the street.

"But not too much fun!" Mum added, wiping tears from her eyes.

I laughed and waved goodbye, rolling down the street, headed for SAM High. As I drove, the radio played Beach Rabbit and the stars danced in the sky high above.

"Looks like another beautiful Starscend Day out there, Bijou City!" the DJ announced before transitioning to the next song. "Perfect for this classic hit by You Too!"

I turned the radio up and pulled into the drop off lane at my school. I smiled at the sight of the academy's many buildings - including the brand-new darkness and alternative buildings, which were separate rather than stacked.

I waved at Mike as he ran up from the office, unlocking the passenger door. His mouth dropped open at the sight of my new vehicle.

"Whoa!" he said, sliding the door open. "This is so cool!"

I laughed, shrugging. "It's a very simple model. But thank you."

My boyfriend gasped again, eyes wide and on me. He sat down and I headed for the Topaz Highway. "Roxie, y-y-you look b-beautiful!"

"Thank you." I glanced at Mike and winked playfully. "You look handsome."

He wore a faded magenta vest over a collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up past his elbows, tucked into straight dark pants, tucked into mahogany knee-high boots. I had to do a double-take before I realized, "Your hair!!!"

Mike chuckled, running a hand through the mess. The half-and-half style was gone now. Instead, his entire hairdo was black other than the back underside of his head, close to his neck. "H-How does it look?"

"Perfect."

Music was all that I heard for a while.

"S-So, Jade Mountain?" Mike asked, tracing his finger along my car's detail.