One
I brush my long, blonde, curly hair and gaze at myself in the mirror, is this really what I look like at the age of twenty-two? I see myself every day and have an occasional glance in a mirror, but do I stop to look at the girl staring back? Her deep brown eyes and huge red lips are the first things that come to my attention, the golden waves of her curly hair as it hangs freely down her back, all this is evened out by her light golden skin that is glowing. Who is she? The thing that strikes me most in my reflection is the way my eyes stare back, as if they have something to say, it is as if there is a hidden depth and another layer to me. The truth is, that it’s just my story and me.
"Alanna,” I hear my roommate shout as she pours in through the bathroom door. "Hey are you nearly done in here?” Sophie says,
"Yes, just one more second."
My roommate is from the city and she is very pretty some might say she is almost too pretty. She has a mass of thick, dark, straight hair, brown eyes and a skin tone so rich you would think she lived on a tropical island and not here in the cold winter of the East Hamptons. Sophie and I are currently staying in a small cottage-style house that I rented out while college is on break. Most of the time we live together in the college dorms of Columbia. From the very first time I met Sophie, I knew that we were destined to become friends. We met six years ago at a charity event held in my dad’s honor. My dad works for an advertising company in the city. There are huge client lists, all sorts of products and loads of boring parties. I cannot really say that they are my kind of thing, although I do make an appearance every so often to support my dad.
"Earth to Alanna," Sophie says, now looking annoyed.
“Sorry Sophie,” I say.
“You were doing it again.”
“I was?” I tend to have a wandering mind, and I do not think I have ever finished a conversation with anyone in my life. There are always a million things going round in my head at any one time. “How are you feeling about tonight?” I say trying to make up for ignoring her while I had my little thought bubble.
“These charity events aren’t always my kind of thing, but you know that tonight is one of those times I just have to go. I have to look my best, and try to show everyone including HIM, that I’m okay and that I’ve moved on.”
"Sophie you have been doing so well and as for HIM, he is just a loser who didn’t know when he had a good thing, it’s only his loss.”
"I know Alanna but seriously how am I supposed to be okay with everything?”
"Sophie." I say in my most sympathetic voice. "Chace is one of those guys, who you can tell is never, with a capital N, going to stay with the one girl. Even this one now, that he thinks he is so head-over-heels for, eventually she will get boring. He will break up with her for some stupid reason - that only he could have. He will realize that he actually does not really care for her, and just as he said about you, she’s only a distraction, someone to look good on his arm, someone he can show off as a trophy- just to make the other trust fund babies of New York jealous and think Chace has one up on them.”
“Alanna I know that you’re right, but the kind of feelings I have for him don’t just go away. I fight every second of every day, just to try to stop myself from thinking about him.”
“Sophie you have to move on."
“I know, I know.” Poor Sophie, there is nothing worse than seeing my friend upset like this. I really could kill Chace for the way he has treated her. Sophie went out with Chace for about a year, their dads are business partners who joint-own a hotel in the city, naturally they thought their kids would be great as an item and have pushed them together ever since they could walk. Every vacation they shared, the kids were always together, every party, every event - the two families were inseparable and from a very young age, Sophie has loved Chace. On paper he is perfect, standing at 6 ‘2”, his sandy blonde hair, his piercing blue eyes, his full lips and perfectly tanned skin, he is just an all-round nice looking boy.
But then they had one of the worst break ups in the history of bad break ups. They shared a small apartment on the edge of town and Sophie, like the little homemaker she is, had become almost the perfect little housewife. Everyone loved them as a couple, they complemented each other in every way possible and she was totally in love. Nevertheless, by the end of the year, there were all sorts of rumors about Chace and other girls, Sophie tried her best to ignore them until one night while she was out Christmas shopping in the city the worst happened.
Sophie had asked me to go round to the apartment to feed her dog, as Chace was out of town: she had run into an old friend from school, they had got into talking, and she would not be home for hours. However, Chace was actually home. I walked in and I could not believe my eyes: there he was with a girl in my best friend’s bed. And not with any girl - he was with one of Sophie’s best friends, Chelsea. I could not speak, I just stood there looking at them. What really shocked me the most was the look on Chaces face, it was as if he almost wanted someone to walk in and see him there with Chelsea: it was all a game to him.