How To Play the Player (COMPLETED)

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Bryan insisted that we spend Saturday afternoon together. According to him, I needed a break from all the new problems in my life and a day to just fall back into the old routine of things. Bryan being Bryan, I was shocked when we ended up at the mall. He tried to avoid it at any cost, but having a twin sister without a car, he tended to play chauffeur to her on a daily basis. It wasn't until we passed by a dress shop that I looked from Bryan and to the window. My lips parted in surprise when they fell on the dress being showcased in the window. It was a floor length crystal blue dress with lace sleeves. It wasn't loud or full of unnecessary glitter and ruffles but gorgeously subtle. I absolutely loved it.

"Try it on." Bryan prompted, seeing what my eyes had fallen on. "I bet you'd look great in it."

I waved my hand in the air dismissively. "Prom isn't for four months and I don't even want to look at the price tag on that thing."

"There's no harm in trying it on Reese." Is all Bryan said, but it was the thing I needed to hear.

Leaving Bryan on one of the uncomfortable chairs outside the dressing room scrolling through his phone, I headed for the dressing room. I made sure not to look in the mirror until after I saw Bryan's reaction, afraid I'd be too embarrassed to show him. He glanced up as soon as I knocked on the wall beside me with a grin.

"So how's it look?" I watched his eyes narrow. "That bad?"

His eyes left the dress and met mine. "That good, Re. You look gorgeous."

He nodded toward the full-length mirror and I turned to finally get a good look at myself. Unlike my Homecoming dress, this dress was purposefully snug around the waist and gave me curves that I had no idea existed. The skirt of it fell loosely down my right leg but left my right leg exposed, out in the open and in the right pair of heels might give my legs more length and dimension. I reached up to pull my hair from its ponytail and watched it fall against the lace shoulders, framing my fair complexion and allowing for the blue of the dress to make my eyes pop. With the right amount of makeup, I'd look breathtaking; like a real life Disney Princess.

Like Raya.

"I love it." I said aloud, turning back to my best friend with a grin. "I look like a Princess."

The way he was holding the phone I had no doubt he was taking a picture. "You mean a Queen, yer majesty?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "No, that title belongs to Queen Bri. I'm content with being the Princess."

He dropped his phone back on to his lap and chuckled, then smirked and said. "As you wish, Princess Reese."

*

Turns out this whole "friend" day had never been Bryan's idea to begin with, but my mother's. With the new baby and the divorce being finalized, Mom was worried that she wouldn't be able to afford a dress for me and had hired Bryan for a payless mission to try and find one. Apparently she'd seen the same dress I tried on a few days prior and had already asked to have it put aside for me. I suppose my mom knew me a lot better than I thought. Walking out of the store with the dress had cheered me up a lot, but of course it didn't last long.

As soon as we stepped foot in the food court I halted to a stop when I spotted Nicola sitting opposite of Jay in front of McDonalds.

Bryan made a clicking noise with his tongue, then snickered. "They're probably trying to muster up some wicked plan that's going to blow up in their face."

I tried at a smile, but it faltered quickly when Jay's eyes flickered to me over her head. I braced myself, ready to finally get the breakup out there and in the open, but he remained seated, slowly leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed over his chest. Nic, seeing his expression, threw a look over her shoulder at me and mumbled something before turning back around.