The alarm clock blared like sirens going off next to my head. I slammed it off and turned over in my bed. It was Saturday morning but I had planned to go for a run, so I had foolishly set my alarm for 7:00 a.m., thinking that was a good idea. My head hurt, my feet hurt, and I felt like someone had ironed me flat. I slowly sat up and held my head in my hands. It wasn’t hard for me to play this role—I disliked all of it, so being nasty and bitter was coming easier. I groaned and stood up. My head pounded. Too much champagne. I lay back down, rolled over, and opened up the side table next to my bed, feeling around blindly for the jar of pills Jenna gave me to help with hangovers. I found it and pulled it out of the drawer, slowly rising up out of bed again.
I took the jar of pills to the kitchen and opened the bottle, popping two in my mouth without even reading the instructions. That's what a D Glow would do, right? Then, I chugged the remaining water left in a glass on the kitchen cabinet.
Lorana had told me once that she read in a magazine that Normals often ate greasy food to counter the effects of a hangover. I opened up my fridge to take inventory: two bottles of champagne and some French strawberry jam. Ugh! I shut the door in frustration. I guess the champagne and jam were my “welcome to the new apartment” food? I wish Jenna would let me go to the store, but she was worried I would be tempted to read the back of everything, so she insisted food be delivered to me three times a week. Wait, what day was it? I replayed events and realized it was Saturday. Food would be delivered at 9:00 a.m. today. My heart rejoiced. I looked at my watch. It was 7:15 a.m. OK, I have only an hour and forty-five minutes to wait. The fog that had enveloped my head had started to clear. Wow! Those pills work fast! I hopped in the shower, blow-dried my hair, applied basic foundation, blush, lip gloss, and mascara, and slipped on a pair of dark-gray Lulu leggings with a black strip down the side, a workout bra, and a tank top. I had just slipped on some nonslip gray yoga socks when the phone rang.
“Hello?” I answered, almost too eagerly.
“Miss Lavaigny?”
“Yes,” I replied, a bit more coolly.
“There is a delivery here for you. Would you like me to bring it up?”
“Yes,” I stated flatly and hung up the apartment phone. Between the shower and the Bureau pills, I felt like a new person compared to the girl who’d first woken up this morning. Minutes later there was a knock at my door. I didn’t bother to ask who it was; I went over to the door and flung it open.
“Thanks, here you go.” I took the three bags and tipped the concierge a crisp twenty-dollar bill. I quickly shut the door and eagerly took the bags to the kitchen. It felt like Christmas!
I set the heaviest bag on the counter and peered inside. A six-pack of cola and a bottle of Jack Daniel's. Really? Completely useless. I shook my head disappointedly. I set the bag to the side and grabbed the next one, slowly pulling out the first item: a loaf of white processed bread. I grimaced. Couldn’t they at least get me multigrain? Next was a carton of strawberries, then a bunch of bananas, a box of assorted bakery cookies, two dark chocolate bars, and a bag of tortilla chips. Oh, I can work with that.
The third bag had eggs, bacon, shredded cheese, a sour cream dip, a tub of salsa, a tub of guacamole, a bag of frozen tater tots, and two already seasoned packages of prime rib. A plastic bag inside the first bag remained. Inside was a newspaper, a carton of cigarettes, and a shower gel called “sinful sensations.” I flipped the lid and took a whiff. Cinnamon and hint of vanilla. Um, OK. I rolled my eyes and set the shower gel back down.
I examined my loot and put everything away except the eggs, bread, salsa, and guacamole. I then proceeded to make scrambled eggs with salsa topped with a dollop of guacamole and a side of toast. Sitting down with my prized meal at last, I smiled. With the exception of the bread, it was pretty healthy. I slowly cut it with my fork and knife and savored each bite. You can take the girl away from the light but not the light out of the girl, I chuckled to myself.
As I put the dishes in the dishwasher, I thought about my behavior with Stephen. Ugh, I’m such an idiot. You aren’t supposed to make him hate you. I acted like a fool. Honestly, I didn’t mean to drink so much, but the pressure of seeing him in his full D Glow self and looking so hot—well, it just made me nervous.
I stopped scrubbing my plate and rinsed it off. I needed to call him. I set the dish in the dish rack. Apologizing would be out of character and therefore not an option. Think! Oh, maybe I could blow it off like it was no big deal? I dialed the number he put in my phone at the restaurant.
“Hello?” I heard his voice. I paused, trying to remember the Jade voice I was supposed to use.
“What's up, Jade?”
“Yes,” I quickly went on in my cold, silky D Glow voice. “I was hoping we could meet for lunch today.”
“Ah, lunch? Well I’m heading out to meet a friend for tennis. “
“Never mind then,” I said and hung up.
Seconds later my phone rang. It was Stephen.
“Hello?” I asked, as if I didn’t know it was him.
“Yes, you know it's me, Stephen. I put my contact information into your phone.”
“Did you? Oh, look at that.”
“Anyway, you hung up before I could say that we could meet afterward. I really can’t cancel on my friend Ty again. He will literally have me killed.”
“You poor darling,” I crooned. “I would actually like to meet this Ty, but I have to meet the ladies from the Boutique at a fitness place at 3:00 p.m.”
“Sport n Fit?”
“Yes.”
“Great! That's where I’m meeting Ty. Why don’t you meet me up front at two? We can have a coffee or whatever at the café and your girls can come grab you there.”
It might be a good idea for them to see me with a LeBete. “OK, fine,” I said casually, automatically flipping my hair for effect even though he couldn’t see me. “I will see you then.”
“OK, bye.”
I had no idea what to expect when I got to Sport n Fit. L Glows knew it was a D Glow gym and avoided it. I assumed it was mostly pools and different types of massage and spa treatment rooms.
Stephen wasn’t at the front when I got there, so I hung back as other apparent D Glows were talking—and, in most cases, complaining—to the receptionist.
“The towels should be heated,” said one tall blond Glow.
“I can’t believe you don’t have valet parking,” whined another female Glow.
I looked at a sign that showed the layout of the so-called gym. There were archery rooms, axe throwing, a shooting range, tennis courts, an eyebrow bar, a massage section, a tanning salon, a giant swimming pool, and jacuzzis.
“Jade!” Stephen waved at me behind a turnstile. He pointed to me and told the receptionist, “She's with me,” and they quickly nodded and buzzed me in.
I could smell by the strong scent of his pine-heavy cologne that he had showered and changed. He was wearing black shorts and a black, tight-fitting Nike T-shirt that clung to his defined muscles.
“The café is this way,” he said, leading me past the glass-encased swimming pool one floor below.
Stephen picked a table furthest away from people. As we sat down, a voice cried out.
“Wowza!”
Before Stephen could say anything, a lanky Asian guy wearing baggy purple shorts and a loose green-and-purple Lycra top bounded toward me.
“Ty,” Ty announced as he sat down. “You must be Jade.” He continued before I could reply. “Dark! You’re even hotter than I thought you’d be.”
“Of course I am,” I said coyly. I rested my chin in my hands and stared him down.
“Let's get some drinks,” said Stephen, thrusting a menu in Ty's hands after a few seconds of Ty and me just checking each other out. I was looking at him more out of curiosity since I had heard about him when I was Skyla. Stephen—or, back then, Julien—had described him well, except for the Dark Glow part, of course. He was taller than I had imagined, though, and his hair was so spiked up with gel that it looked like it might hurt to touch it.
“I already know what I want.” Ty looked over at me and winked.
“I already beat you in tennis. Don’t make me do it here, too,” Stephen threatened flatly.
Ty fake laughed and held his belly for effect. “OK, for real, I want a Milky Way milkshake.”
“I would like a black coffee,” I said.
Ty looked at me oddly, and Stephen quickly added, “…with whipped cream and a shot of cherry jubilee added on, right? I think that's what you told me earlier?”
I caught on that he was trying to help me order correctly. “Yes, I was trying to decide between that and peppermint mocha. I’ll need five packets of sugar on the side to boot,” I smiled.
“Cool,” Ty said, now distracted by a group of short tennis skirts that had walked into the café.
“I think I’ll get the same as you, Jade,” Stephen said as he typed out our order on the screen embedded in the table.
While we waited for our drinks, Ty grilled me about my family and Florida.
“No, I don’t have a sister. No, I have never modeled,” I added coolly.
The second the waitress set our drinks on the table, Ty immediately started to slurp his shake down with a straw.
A few seconds later, he cried, “Pee-pee time!” He jumped up and did an odd little jog around the corner.
“Hard to believe he's not partnered,” I remarked.
“Quick, open the sugar packets and pour them into Ty's drink,” Stephen whispered, ignoring my comment.
I did what he said and stirred it with my spoon.
“Won’t he notice?” I asked.
“No chance,” Stephen laughed, taking a sip of his coffee.
“Oh.” I looked at the table and quietly said, “I want to redo last night.”
“How are you feeling today?” he asked, casually changing the subject. I could tell he was trying to help me steer clear of subjects we shouldn’t be discussing in public. He took one of his packets of sugar and added it to his drink.
“I am fine now, due to some special pills,” I smiled faintly.
“Ah yes, those have saved me several times.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Ty asked as he plopped back down in his chair.
“Drugs,” I chimed nonchalantly.
“Oh, cool. I tried some real funky stuff a couple of weeks ago.” Ty sucked down the rest of his drink and burped. “Oh! That was extra good today.”
I gave Stephen a knowing look and proceeded to bombard Ty with questions to keep him from asking me anything while Stephen remained quiet for the most part, adding a story or two about Ty being arrested or crashing his car.
Before I knew it, my Boutique coworkers, Veronique and Jyl, were standing at the table.
“Aren’t you going to introduce us to your tablemates?” Jyl asked, staring right at Stephen with an enticing smile.
“Of course. This is Ty and this is…” I trailed off.
“Oh, I know who you are,” Jyl gushed, taking a seat opposite of Stephen. Jyl, originally from Oklahoma, was five years older than me but still looked like a teenager thanks to a smattering of freckles on her face. In addition to her red nails and long false eyelashes, she accessorized her red Lycra leggings and tank top with diamond stud earrings.
“You two are in today's paper,” Veronique said matter-of-factly to Stephen and me as she sank into her chair with effortless grace, not bothering to look at anyone directly. She immediately began to scroll through her social media, uninterested in us. I’d been intimidated by her detached coolness ever since I had first met her—the kind of careless confidence that radiated the fact she knew her worth and knew you knew her worth, too. She had made a name for herself not only with her shooting skills, but—according to Jyl—she’d also managed to turn a Normal sporting goods company heir to a negative four on the scale. There was no going back for that Normal. In the field of looks, she was also a wonder to behold. Her native Indian hair was charcoal and glossy while her eyes glinted an enchanting blue-green color, like a tropical ocean. Although she wasn’t always the social type, Veronique certainly was dressed to kill. Her one-piece jumpsuit zipped up in the front and highlighted her toned, full-figured body. She didn’t bother carrying a purse; instead she had a phone holder on a tactical gun belt around her waist. Had I been a real D Glow, I would’ve been worried about Stephen falling for her.
“We’re in the paper?” I looked at Stephen in surprise.
“It's no big deal,” Stephen said nonchalantly.
“How did you guys meet?” Jyl asked, almost comically leaning in closer to Stephen. I had to admit, although Stephen and I were still on neutral terms, I couldn’t help but feel irked by Jyl's unsubtle advances.
“Who cares?” Ty interrupted, jumping up from his seat. “The more important question is, are you free tonight for drinks with me?” He picked up Jyl's hand and kissed it.
Stephen and I exchanged looks and shook our heads. Jyl was delighted with this attention and put a hand on her chest in faux surprise.
“Yes, I suppose I would love someone as charming as yourself to take me out,” she gushed in her Southern drawl. I guess she didn’t care who the attention was from, as her initial interest in Stephen quickly turned to Ty.
“Oh, please,” Veronique muttered under breath, still on her phone.
“OK, that's great,” Stephen said, standing up. “Ty and I have to go now.”
Ty, soaking up his victory, giddily entered his number into Jyl's phone.
“You can erase all other numbers,” he said, winking at Jyl.
“OK, come on,” Stephen said, pulling Ty away from the table.
“Bye!” Jyl called out, waving.
Stephen turned around and quickly glanced back at me before heading out of the café.
“Can we go shoot some guns now?” Veronique asked impatiently.
“Yes!” I said, springing up before Jyl could ask me more questions about Stephen.
That night I texted Jenna. Perfect score at the shooting range. She wouldn’t give me a burner phone, but she had one I could send messages to if absolutely necessary. I was feeling lonely and this was a good excuse to write.
As it should be, she texted back minutes later.
I sighed and put down the phone. I had no one else to write except Stephen, and I didn’t feel like talking to him right now. I padded over to a small hallway desk and retrieved a magnifying glass. Carefully, I opened up the bottom panel where batteries were inserted to illuminate the glass, and pulled out a necklace Lorana had given me for my birthday two years ago. I’d first hidden it in a box of tampons and then transferred it to the magnifying glass when I moved into my apartment, feeling the magnifying glass to be safer, craftier. I know it was against the rules to have anything from my past, but I needed something to remind me of who I really was.
I held the silver chain and stroked the amber stone dangling from it. Slowly, I dropped it back into its hiding place and wandered into the bedroom to start getting ready for bed.