Star

I once again went with Reed and Bailey to help teach the boys. They were keyed up though and therefore weren't in the mood for much learning. Thankfully, my skillful cousins knew what to do, turn learning into a game.

The boys got really into the different games that they were playing, competitive natures and all. They were shouting and laughing and having a grand old time.

When it came time for us to go to lunch, we were surprised by Toby bringing in a large tray covered in plates.

"We're doing some work on the house so do you mind eating in here today?" Toby smiled sweetly as he set the food down. "Just text me if you need anything and someone will bring it up."

"No problem." Bailey agreed easily. I didn't understand what was going on, but they didn't seem perturbed by it so I let it all slide.

Lunch passed and we had recess in the library as well. I was starting to get suspicious about something being up.

"Reed, is something going on?" I asked him while looking out the window. There was no one in the yard, and I hadn't heard anyone moving around. If there was something going on downstairs that was keeping us in here shouldn't I at least be able to hear it or see something from outside?

"No, nothing, why?" I didn't believe his answer, he seemed like he was hiding something.

"I'm going to go see what is going on downstairs. This all just seems so strange."

"They're just working on stuff, it's no big deal." For some reason, that was making me nervous, Reed seemed nervous. "Just stay in here and help us while they do what they need to do."

"No, something just feels off." I was suspicious not of just the others now but of him as well.

I started to make my way toward the door but before I could even reach it it opened from the other side. Chay was smiling as she came into the room, looking as if nothing was wrong at all.

"Hey Star."

"Oh, hi Chay." I had been slightly startled by her appearance.

"Come here, I want to do something." She grabbed my hand and pulled me from the room. It reminded me of how she had pulled me along behind her the other day.

Once again Chay didn't stop until she had pulled me all the way into my room. There was a table with a mirror and a matching chair in here that had never been there before.

"What's this?" I asked her, confused by what was happening.

"This is a vanity table. I want to do a makeover on you." She was grinning as she beamed at me.

"What's a makeover?"

"This is why you need me to teach you how to be a girl." She sounded exasperated with me.

"I don't get it."

"A makeover is when I give you a new hairstyle and new makeup style. Since you don't do anything for either it's not exactly changing it as giving you a style that suits you."

"I've never worn makeup before." I guess I really didn't know how to be a girl.

"I figured as much, and that is why for your birthday I got you all this stuff. And no complaining!" She snapped at me at the end causing me to jump. "I wanted to do this and there are no take backs or give backs allowed. I'm giving you this vanity and all the makeup and hair supplies that go with it. And, it comes with lessons on what to do." She looked so happy as she was telling me all this. How could I refuse when she was clearly so happy. And, if I learned to be a proper girl, maybe I can look cute for Artem.

'WHAT THE HELL AM I THINKING?' I screamed inside my head. 'I so don't need to be thinking that.'

"Thank you Chay, this is really nice of you." I did my best to look calm and appreciative at the same time.

"What else are friends for?" She smiled as she hugged me tightly. "Now come on, sit down."

I had showered this morning, like I do every morning, so she didn't need me to go do that, or that was what she had said. Instead she sat me in the chair and had me face away from the mirror. That made me nervous because I couldn't see what she was doing.

For a long time I sat there while she put lotions and creams on my face and neck. Then she started putting something on my face with a soft sponge.

I was nervous, and scared, about everything she was doing, but I just sat there and did as she asked me to do. The entire time she was doing whatever it is she was doing she had a big smile on her face.

Eventually, Chay moved on to putting things on to my eyes. She used a soft brush and applied whatever it was to my eyelids. It actually felt really nice to have her do that part. The gentle strokes of the soft brush didn't hurt or tickle, it just felt really soothing.

The part about the eyes that gave me pause though, was when she had taken a pencil and told me to look up. She then started drawing directly onto my skin right below my eye. It didn't hurt, but I was nervous that she was going to somehow poke me in the eye on accident. Thankfully, she didn't slip at all and my eyes were fine.

The next thing for my eyes was this weird wand thing. The wand had these weird bristles on it and it came out of a tube covered in black stuff. Chay used it to brush my eyelashes. I had to keep my eyes open and blink several times. And when she was done I was told not to blink too much right away, to let her use a tissue to wipe away the water from my eyes, and absolutely not to touch or rub my eyes in anyway. It made me think that the stuff that she had just put on me would burn if it touched my skin or something. That was making me even more nervous.

After my eyes were finally done, Chay moved on to brushing something gently over my cheeks. That didn't take long at all.

Next she had me open my mouth into an O shape as she used some weird looking crayon in a tube to color on my lips. It felt weird, to have something like that put on my lips but it wasn't unpleasant really, so I didn't mind too much.

I thought when she had stopped working on my face she would let me see myself, but I was wrong. She kept me facing away from the mirror as she started on my hair.

First, Chay took a can of something from the table and pushed a button on the top which caused some sort of foaming white stuff to come out of the can. She rubbed her hands together and proceeded to put it all into my hair, moving her hands between the strands to get it all over my head.

Once that stuff was mixed in completely she started to brush my hair and separate it at the top of my head. I had never had anyone do my hair and I had to admit that it felt nice having someone massage my head and play with my hair. It was so relaxing that I thought I was going to fall asleep for a moment.

I didn't sleep though. Instead I tried to pay attention to what was going on with my hair. Chay had started to part and comb through my hair with her fingers. It felt like she was pulling and twisting my hair, but it didn't hurt.

Chay worked on my hair for what felt like an hour and a half at least. She worked on one side, then the other, and finally she worked on the back of my head. After she had twisted the hair on the sides she had taken this long thin tool that was metal and very hot. She used that to twist my hair up and hold it for a little while.

When she was finally done she clapped her hands together in joy before saying anything at all.

"You look amazing." She was beaming so brightly at me. "Oh Star, you're gorgeous."

"Really?" I asked her, skeptically.

"Yes, really, come on, turn around and look." She took my hand then and pulled me out of the chair so I could turn to look at my reflection.

What I saw then was a completely different person. My eyes were stunning, popping out with a mix of black and silver highlighting the contours of my eyelids and the lashes. My cheeks had a slight peachy glow to them, and my lips seemed to be a lot brighter than usual.

My hair, that was completely different than I was used to. She had twisted my hair into an elaborate rope like section on each side, but there were long strands that seemed to hang down out of the twisted sections. The hair that hung down was somehow curled and springy compared to how they usually were.

The two ropes of hair met in the back somehow and the hair at the back of my head was curled like the pieces on the side. It all looked so different than what I was used to seeing. And looking at myself I thought I really did look like a woman.

"I wonder if Artem will like this." I had meant to only think those words in my head but when I heard Chay's giggle I realized I had said it out loud.

"I think he is going to love it." She was still giggling when she answered me.