She stood in the mirror.
I wish I looked different.
Her reflection stared back at her. Dark brown eyes on chocolate milk skin. Long, dark hair, thick and flowing halfway down her back. Not thin, but not fat. Not short, but not tall. Thin lips and long lashes. Small black glasses framed her face and chipped nail polish dotted on her hand.
She used to be happy with the way she looked. Used to feel pretty. But all that changed in middle school. Now, in sixth grade, she isn't blond, fair skinned, and tall.
She isn't beautiful. At least, not by their standards.
A hand rose to the mirror in her school bathroom as the girl imagined herself morphing into who she wished she was. The hand touched her reflection, and she invisioned a better version of herself.
Poof.
Blond hair flowing down her back.
Poof.
Skin acne free, fair and pale.
Poof.
Poof.
Poof.
Big eyes like emeralds, sparking.
Pinker lips.
Her face was no longer long and round, but pleasantly heart-shaped.
Poof.
Taller.
Poof.
Thinner.
Poof.
No more glasses.
Poof!
No more thick eyebrows!
Po-
Another girl entered the bathroom, bumping into her. She recognized her; they had a few classes together. Her eyes were sparkly blue, and she was short but beautiful. Her hair fell in a gentle bob around her neck and her lips were full and bright. She immediatly felt like she was less than this girl... this popular, beautiful girl.
Blinking back tears, she raced from the bathroom and back to her class. As she caught her breath, she noticed the girl from earlier now secretly on her phone, not paying any attention to the instructions for the new project. Sighing, she turned to talk quietly to her partner.
~~~
A few weeks later, she rose once again to go to the hell they called school. Approaching her locker, she noticed something was different.
On the locker was a collage of pictures clearly taken from the past few weeks.
Her eyes were sparkling as she laughed at a joke her friend said.
Leaning over, her hair fell into her face as she scribbled notes.
A cute blush coming over her warm cheeks when he talked to her.
Playing mindlessly with her hair and smiling at a guy sitting nearby.
Pushing up her glasses as they fell down her nose.
Laughing, working, cheering, blushing. It all repeated.
At the bottom of the collage of pictures, she saw a note. The handwriting was familiar. She knew who it was from. The girl she ran into in the bathroom.
At reading it, her eyes watered and she looked up to see the girl smiling warmly at her.
You are beautiful. Never change.
♡
