Felicity wore a festive outfit today. I wondered how she decided what clothes to wear. She must have a large collection considering the numerous variation of outfits I observed so far.
“Yu~ki! How are you doing today?” she greeted with bubbling cheerfulness.
“Pretty good since Tess let me off early so I’m done with her lectures,” I replied.
“Great, this is perfect timing. I have a present for you. Are you free right now?” Felicity asked.
“One of my high school friends actually is here right now. If you don’t mind, we can talk in my room,” I revealed.
“I don’t want to be a bother. But, I’m interested in hearing about you from one of your acquaintances. I can’t miss this opportunity,” Felicity accepted, nodding her head.
“I’m surprised you’re free. Didn’t you set up anything with friends or family?” I questioned.
“Oh, I have some things to do later, but I’m free now. So why not spend it with you, right? I’m the best!” Felicity declared, flashing a brilliant smile.
Something seemed off today. Her current behavior actually reminded me of when she was drunk. Whatever, it was probably just me overthinking like usual. Chihiro was inspecting my bookcase when Felicity and I entered.
“Sorry for keeping you waiting, Chihiro. This is Felicity Smoke,” I said.
Felicity extended her hand out and Chihiro shook it. There was uneasiness in her eyes which made sense since she never met Felicity before. I would be a bit apprehensive as well if in the same situation.
“Nice to meet you. Just call me Felicity. I hope we become good friends!” Felicity unleashed her dazzling smile.
“Shin Chihiro,” Chihiro responded, shaking Felicity’s hands.
Was there tension? Reaching for a snack, I realized a potential cause. The clash of two similar personalities. While not at the same level of Felicity, Chihiro’s nature was pretty happy go lucky.
“You met Yuki this quarter, right?” Chihiro asked.
“Yes, one of her friends introduced her to me. You’re familiar with Yuka, right?” Felicity replied.
“Yes, I’ve known Yuka for as long as Yuki,” Chihiro replied.
“Cool. I’ve only known Yuki for a few months so I was wondering if you could tell me some stories. I always want to know more about my friends,” Felicity requested, pulling out a small notebook from her coat.
“Oh, I have a lot of those! Are you by chance related to Smoke Incorporated?” Chihiro brought up.
“Yeah, no big surprise there, right? My father and grandfather are on the board for the company. Hopefully that doesn’t scare you away. I’m still just your normal everyday girl,” Felicity said
“Yuki, sorry to bother you when you have friends over, but could you hand me your dirty clothes?” Mom asked, entering without knocking.
“Sure,” I nodded, opening up my closet.
I gathered my pile of clothes, handing it to Mom. She gave me a grin and then left. Felicity grabbed my hand as I was about to close my closet door.
“Yuki, do you mind if I see what kind of clothes you have?” Felicity requested.
“Go ahead, there isn’t much to see though,” I allowed.
They talked about something fashion related which I didn’t understand. Well, I’ll just polish off the snacks while they bonded.
“Wow, I never expected Yuki to have these kind of underwear. This is quality material,” Chihiro exclaimed.
“Oh, you have them. Perfect!” Felicity exclaimed.
Yeah, my suspicions were confirmed. Chihiro pointed at the bra and panties from the party. So it was Felicity’s doing?
“Yuki, did you know? This is the Sica brand that’s been overtaking the market. They’re pretty expensive but cheaper than the top tier names. They deliver the same comfort so a lot of people have been asking for them at the mall,” Chihiro explained.
“Sorry for not telling you, Yuki, but I’m negotiating with Sica. I got some samples to test out so yeah…. I might have been too forceful though. This is a good time actually for my present,” Felicity gave a sheepish smile.
She handed me a bag. I opened it and saw a light red, almost pink, athletic hoodie inside. I touched the sleeves and felt an indescribable smoothness. This would come in handy for training in the future with Tess and the others. I flipped over the tag, seeing the Sica brand logo and a three digit price. This was pretty expensive. I felt bad, having nothing for Felicity.
“Wow, that’s one of the new lines they just launched. The stores don’t even have it yet,” Chihiro remarked.
“I know one of the designers. She asked me to give it to a cute girl. Yuki is the perfect fit!” Felicity replied, giving her trademark smile.
“I can’t….,” I started.
“Yuki, I know what you’re going to say. But, you reignited that spark within me for writing again so that’s enough for me,” Felicity cut me off.
“Fine, but this better be a one time thing only,” I said.
“Oh, that’s right! You haven’t opened my gift yet! Come one, open it up!” Chihiro exclaimed, pointing at her wrapped gift.
I tore off the gift wrapping and saw a necklace inside. A small white snowflake was attached to a golden string.
“It’s in honor of your name, Yuki! I know your name isn’t technically the character for snow but close enough, right?” Chihiro explained, putting the necklace around my neck.
Oh crap, it was too late. Chihiro’s hands brushed my pendant string and she pulled it out from underneath my shirt.
“Wow, Yuki! Was this a gift from Ichizen?” Chihiro exclaimed.
She wasn’t too far from the truth. In a way, it was from him. I couldn’t exactly tell her the details. Construct an elaborate lie or dismiss her notion it was from Ichizen? Felicity opened her mouth, ready to speak. No, I wouldn’t let her cover for me.
“Yeah. I only started wearing it after his death. It’s a way for me to remember him, I guess,” I answered.
“It might be a bit of a hassle to wear two at the same time,” Chihiro realized.
“It’s no problem at all! It’s not a hassle at all,” I insisted.
“Time to send everyone this picture of you wearing your beautiful necklaces,” Felicity announced.
“Wait, don’t send it out to anyone!” I shouted, reaching out towards her.
“I was just kidding,” Felicity remarked.
“You better not be lying!” I warned.
“I’m not a blabbermouth,” Felicity scoffed.
I sighed and glanced over at the snack tray. Time for a refill. Felicity and Chihiro once again conversed about clothes. I felt like an outsider when listening to them. It mirrored the situation when Zhuyu and the others discussed anime during the party.
“Hey, Mom, are there any more snacks in the cabinet?” I asked once downstairs.
There was no response and I peeked into the kitchen. She wasn’t there. I yanked open the cabinet door, finding a box of cheese crackers and egg rolls. I restocked the plate, carrying it back upstairs. Felicity and Chihiro were inspecting one of my coats. Please don’t be too harsh on my clothes.
“Welcome back, Yuki,” Chihiro said.
“Yuki, I’ll be leaving in an hour. Anything fun you want to do?” Felicity informed me.
“Whatever you want to do. I don’t have much in terms of entertainment. I’m sure you can see that from my room,” I said, waving my hands around the room.
The two of us stared at Felicity as we devoured crackers. Felicity finally clapped her hands in excitement. A mischievous grin appeared on her face. I didn’t like that look. What did she have in mind?
“Yuki, this will be perfect. Hang on while I grab a few things from my car,” Felicity said, bolting out.
“She seems like a good friend,” Chihiro observed.
“I’ve only known her for a few months but she’s pretty interesting. A little too intense at times though,” I agreed, recalling Felicity’s crazy behavior at the party.
“Yuki, I want you to know something. I’ll always be here if you need anything so don’t hesitate to come ask me for help. Just reminding you, that’s all,” Chihiro said with a serious tone
“I brought everything for a makeover, Yuki! This is perfect. I’ve always wanted to try this out,” Felicity burst into my room with a large case before I could respond.
Chihiro stared at the large case in Felicity’s hand and nodded with a knowing look. What was going on?
“Slow down, what do you mean by makeover?” I asked.
“Makeovers are makeovers. Come on, sit down here. Hold this mirror. Shin, can you give me a hand?” Felicity requested.
“Of course. Don’t worry too much, Yuki. We won’t be doing anything too strange,” Chihiro replied.
I sighed and allowed myself to relax. Felicity pulled out a large variety of cosmetic products, organizing them on my desk. Chihiro inspected the tools inside and whistled, probably because of their high quality. They finished their preparations after ten minutes. Felicity seemed to have a solid grasp of this.
“Ta-dah!” Felicity shouted out after half an hour.
I stared at the mirror and blinked. It was definitely me but Felicity brought out features of my face. The eyeliner brought more focus to my eyes. My cheeks were a lighter shade of red. There were also a bunch of other things which I had no idea about.
“What do you think, Yuki? Pretty impressive, right?” Felicity asked, the pride obvious in her voice.
“Yeah. I didn’t expect this,” I said, nodding.
“You’re pretty good,” Chihiro agreed.
“I wrote down the steps in case you ever want this look. You can always call me too! I left hair accessories in case you ever want to use them. Consider it a little extra bonus from me!” Felicity said, putting down a piece of notebook paper on my desk.
“I really appreciate it, Felicity. Are you leaving now?” I asked.
“Unfortunately, yes. I have obligations to fulfill. It was nice meeting you, Shin!” Felicity replied, packing up her tools.
“It was a pleasure for me too,” Chihiro nodded.
Felicity said a few more words before departing. Chihiro helped me sort out the stuff left behind. After we packed everything away into my drawer, we talked for a little awhile before she left too.
I stared down at my desk. Today was a pretty good day, just normal. No supernatural weirdness or anything similar to that. If only all my days could be like this. But, there was asskicking that needed to be done and I would deliver it.
