Tug Of War - Coming Back Soon

Chapter Twelve

Inaaya's shoulders rose and fell with every breath she inhaled. Her eyelids, dusted with blue glitter, were pressed shut such that her eyelashes, longer and thicker with the black mascara, gently brushed her cheekbones. Her fingers worked the screw of the navy pearl earring on her right ear; a present from Axel.

A hand curled around her shoulder. Startled, Inaaya watched as the pearl earring and its screw bounced once on the floor before rolling into a remote corner under the dresser. She flinched, her hand fisting the skirt of her navy gown.

"Hey, relax!" Jermaine said, squeezing her shoulder gently. He bent down to retrieve the navy trinket, opened her fist and placed it in her palm. Inaaya murmured her thanks before putting the earring on. It's twin already adorned her left ear. "Inaaya, are you okay?" Jermaine asked, his voice calm but concerned.

Inaaya nodded, picking up a nude pink lip colour from the dresser. "Just nervous," she muttered, reapplying the lip colour before pressing her lips together to even it out.

"Why?" Jermaine asked, leaning against the wall as he observed her.

Inaaya turned to him with a miffed expression. "Why do you think, Jermaine?" She huffed, shaking her head at the blonde man. She turned back to her reflection in the mirror, aggravated at the sight of her stray hair. Determined on getting the baby hair settled, she brushed them back before diffusing the hairspray on the crown of her head in copious amounts.

Jermaine coughed, waving his hand in front of his face to get rid of the smell. "Stop that!"

The spray bottle was snatched out of her hand and a loud clack sounded as it was slammed back on the dresser. "At this rate, you'll spoil your hair more than style it," Talisa chided, brushing a comb through Inaaya's hair, attempting to get rid of the matted look. "Damn it," she cursed, undoing the ponytail. She began braiding Inaaya's hair on the side she had sprayed too much on before putting her hair back in a high ponytail. The tweak seemed only to enhance the hairstyle.

"What's up with you? Is it the gown? Well, I guess I can give you mine. No one's seen me wearing it yet," Talisa offered, gesturing towards her own reflection in the mirror. Talisa was decked in the same bold black gown Inaaya had passed upon during their shopping splurge three days ago. And as predicted, the woman rocked it.

Inaaya shook her head. "Thank you, Talisa, but it isn't the gown."

"What is it, then?" Jermaine asked, fiddling with his golden-black cufflink. He was dressed in a dark grey suit, looking as debonair as one could. Talisa moved closer and helped him put the cufflink right. "Thanks," he muttered, attempting to adjust his bowtie till Talisa did that for him too.

"You were quite excited till yesterday. What's gotten into you now?" Talisa asked, standing behind Inaaya while fixing her own hair. She had let her straight raven strands hang loosely around her shoulders and back.

"I was but that was before Jace here told me what exactly it meant to become a part of the pack," Inaaya answered, giving a stink eye to Jace over her shoulder. He was sitting on her bed, pulling on his socks and shoes. Talisa had come to help Inaaya get ready while Jace and Jermaine had shown for the moral support.

Alarmed, Jace looked up at Inaaya. His brows furrowed in confusion and Inaaya huffed again. "What if I can't do it, Jace?" she asked, panicking. "What if I can't handle the pain? What if- what if I faint or something?"

"Hey, calm down. Relax, eh?" Jermaine said, standing beside her and squeezing her shoulder. "I don't know what this idiot here told you," he gestured towards Jace with narrowed eyes, "but it won't hurt that much. You'll do just fine, eh?"

Inaaya inhaled deeply, meeting Jermaine's hazel eyes in the mirror and giving him a small smile. Just then, Axel entered the room, his eyes focussing briefly on Inaaya till they landed on Jermaine, narrowing ever so slightly. "It's time to go, Inaaya," he uttered, moving closer.