Killer - Preview.

Part One – Prom Prep.

Here we are…at the Mall…

“Let’s look over there for shoes, Krista.” Juliet said, pointing to a different section of the department store. “You want to look hot for Bryan, right?”
“Yeah…” Krista said, looking at some dresses. “Do you really think white is my color?”
“That’s what the design expert said.” Juliet held up a dress. “What about this one?”
Krista looked at the dress. It was a white halter-top dress that looked rather short to her. “Don’t you think it’s a little short?”
“I don’t think so. It’ll look great. Just try these on.” Juliet held up a bunch of white material.
“All right,” Krista said, taking the dresses from her arms and heading to the dressing room.
“Don’t forget to come out and let me see!” Juliet called after her.
“I wonder why she said white…” Krista said through the door, pulling on a dress from the gigantic pile, this one strapless and, of course, white.
“The darkness of your skin and eyes really makes the contrast pop.” Juliet replied.
“If you say so. What do you think of this one?” Krista asked, stepping out of the dressing room.

Juliet looked stunned.

“That. That’s it. It’s perfect!” Juliet said after a minute of staring.
“You really think so?” Krista said, admiring herself in the department story mirror.
The dress was stunning. It was more of a creamy white, rather than some of the hospital whites that she had seen in that pile. She thought it naturally complimented her dark Italian skin. The shortest part fell just above her knee, and the longest part brushed just above her ankle.
“That’s it. We’re buying it.” Juliet looked pleased with herself. “I knew those design classes would help me some day.”
“You mean we spent three hours to try on one dress?”
“Trust me, Kris. I know these things.” Juliet said confidently.
Krista went back into the dressing room.” Are you sure about this one? It’s kinda expensive…” looking at the price tag.
“Don’t give me that. It’s you birthday present. Now, hurry up! Let’s go get some shoes!”
“Shoes? Haven’t you done enough?” Krista laughed, stepping back out of the dressing room, dressed in her pink tank and blue jeans.
“Nope! Now come on!” Juliet said, dragging Kris by the arm, laughing.

* * *
Juliet finally collapsed on a bench. “We did good, for you first day of big time shopping.”
“Because a thousand dollars isn’t good enough for you.” Krista said, smiling as she plopped down next to her best friend.
“Hey. My mom said we had fifteen hundred dollars to spend for prom. We spent five hundred on dresses, combined, mind you, and two hundred on shoes.” Juliet said, watching the mall shoppers walk by.
“That’s only seven hundred, girl. Where’d you put the rest of it?” Krista asked, giving her friend a questioning look.
“Your real birthday present.” Juliet said, whipping out a black box.
“No.”
“Yes.” Juliet looked at her friend triumphantly. “It’s yours. Open it.”
Krista looked at the box for a moment, and then she took it from her friend’s hands. She could feel the burning on the back of her neck from her friend’s apprehensive stare. She opened the box and gasped.
“Juliet! You… you…” Krista was lost for words.
“Are a genius? I know. What do you think?” Juliet smiled happily.
“It’s beautiful!” It was a silver necklace, and dangling from the diamond accented chain was a glistening red ruby, Krista’s birthstone.
“Okay I lied. I used some of my allowance money to pay for that. But I’m not telling you how much it cost. You like it?” Juliet gave her friend a questioning stare.
“You think?” Krista gave her friend a monstrous hug. “I love it. Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“Don’t give it a second thought. I forgot your birthday once.”
“Sweetie, we were ten. And it’s only June! You’re kinda early for July.”
“So? I still missed it. And I haven’t missed one since then. And so what if it’s early? I’ll get you another one and call it your graduation present.”
“Yeah…” Krista looked dazed. “So… what’s next on our great shopping adventure?”
“Mani, Pedi, facial and deep tissue massage at my work for us, half off!” Juliet looked pleased. “See, I can shop smartly.”
“Yeah, and I was born into fame and fortune…” Krista smiled. “Ugh, I need a wax.”
“We can do that too.” Juliet jumped up from the bench, grabbing hold of Krista’s arm. “Now let’s go!” And she rushed towards the exit, headed for her car, dragging Krista along with her.

Back at home…

“You would think she’s Bill Gates, the way she spends money, Mom.” Krista said, as she collapsed on her bed, careful not to mess up her nails.
“Her parents have money, Hun. Your dad went back to school to put you through school. We all have our monetary issues.” Krista’s mother, a rather short, chubby Italian mother, sat down next to her exhausted daughter.
“That had nothing to do with it. Oh never mind.” Krista said, turning on her side to face her mother. “Can you believe prom is two days from now? I still can’t believe that we took this long to go shopping. I’m glad that Juliet had special privileges at the salon, or we would have never gotten in.”
“Now you look dashing, darling. And I forgot to mention, a boy called for you.”
“What?” Krista sat up. “Who?”
“Some Brandon, Bryan, something of that sort.”
“Okay. Can I use the phone?” Krista asked.
“Of course. Don’t be on too long now, dinner in thirty minutes.”
“Yes, mom.” Krista watched as her mother walked from the room, and grabbed her green phone from off her night stand and dialed Bryan’s number.
“Hello?” Bryan’s voice echoed.
“Bryan? It’s Krista.”
“Hey. What’s up?”
“Not much, just my mom told me that you called my house earlier.”
“Yeah, I was just wondering if you were still going to wear the pink dress. So we can match.”
“No, it’s white now.”
“Good, because I didn’t like the idea of wearing pink.” Bryan’s deep voice laughed over the phone. “I have one that matches, it’s cool though.” A crash sounded in the background, and some cursing followed. “Hey, I gotta go. Waffles just dropped a fish tank on his foot.”
“Okay.”
“Talk to you later.”
“Bye.”
Krista hung up the phone, secretly smiling to herself. Her mom and dad didn’t know much about Bryan, just that he was a year older than her. She didn’t know much about him either. She found that part about him mysterious. She thought it was hot. She stood up and walked towards her stereo, and pressed play on her lime green mp3 player, and switched it to her favorite song, Slither, by Velvet Revolver. Her stereo sang.

Krista took a brush to her hair. When she was little, her mother would brush her hair one hundred times a night. Krista didn’t know why she remembered this all of a sudden, but she did. And she smiled on the memories. Now seventeen, she could brush her own hair. She missed her mother’s soft Italian voice singing her folksongs as she did. In the back round, she could hear her father open the door, and the jingle of his keys as he set them on the table and the squeak of his chair as he collapsed in it. She remembered how she would always want to take off his shoes.
“Stupid tears,” Krista said to herself, wiping at her eyes. “Smudge my eyeliner.” She checked her reflection, and then went out to join her parents for dinner. She walked into her dining room.
“Krista, dear, will you set the table for me?” her mother called from the kitchen, her voice echoing from speaking into the oven.
“Yeah, sure Mom.” Krista snagged a few plates as her older brother and his friends ran through the front door. Krista paused to check to see if he was there.
And he was. Bryan was leaning against the frame of her front door, smiling her way. Krista blushed a little bit, and then she stood to finish setting the table.
“Did you miss me?” He asked, grabbing some knives off the counter.
“A little bit.” She smiled, her eyes lighting up as he brushed against her.
“Anthony! Are your friends staying for dinner?” Krista heard her mother calling her older brother.
“Yeah,” her older brother appeared in the entrance of the dining room, eyeing Bryan and Krista carefully. “Let me help you, Krista.”
“It’s okay. I have enough help, thanks.” Krista gave her brother the go-away look.
“Call me if you need anything,” he said, as he went to help his mother.
“I swear he doesn’t trust me alone with you,” Bryan said as he set the glasses out.
“He’s got a point…” Krista flirtingly smiled at Bryan. “He doesn’t know what we’ve done.”
“To speak in the terms of bases, we’ve hit first, second, and third.” Bryan smiled devilishly. “I let you keep fourth to yourself as a sign of respect.”
“If you’re a good boy you might hit it one day,” Krista smiled back.
Bryan walked over to her and kissed her neck. “Maybe,” he said.
“If the two of you are done I’d like to eat some time today.” Waffles stood in the doorway that connected the kitchen to the dining room. His foot was bandaged and he was leaning on a pair of crutches.
“You really fucked up your foot, then.”
Krista smiled at him.
“He tell you that?” Waffles shook a crutch at Bryan. “Damien wasn’t paying attention. It was all his fault.”
“Don’t go pinning the blame on me, dumb ass,” Damien appeared the dining room beside Bryan, taking a seat near the head of the table. “I told you to wait.”
“Right and you sitting on the computer watching porn is what I should wait for?” Waffles looked at him.
“That’s right. But whatever, what’s for dinner?”
“A four course meal, as always.” Krista’s mother came into the room, carrying a big pot. “Appetizer. Italian Wedding Soup.”
“Good stuff.” Bryan took a seat next to Damien, and Krista took a seat next to Bryan. Waffles took a seat at the end of the table just as Krista’s father, a tall, stately man, entered the room.
“Hey there, Mr. Bagerazzi.” Bryan said to the man.
“Hello Bryan, boys.” The group mumbled their reply.
“Krista, how are you? Did you go shopping yet today?” her father asked.
“Yes. Juliet and I went to the mall.” Krista replied, casting a sly glance Bryan’s way. He was eating soup. Anthony and Mrs. Bagerazzi came in to join them.
“So. Prom is only a few days away now, huh?” Anthony asked. “And who are you going with again?”
“Yes and I’m going with Bryan.” Krista replied looking toward Bryan, who patted her leg.
“How exiting…” Waffles said, shifting his weight. “I’ll get the second course, if everyone is ready.” He moved to get up.
“No, dear it’s alright. I’ll get it.” Mrs. Bagerazzi got up and collected everyone’s dishes and went into the kitchen, returning with a large casserole dish filled with baked stuffed shells.
“Looks good, Mom.” Krista sat up in her chair. Stuffed shells were her favorite dish that her mother made.
“Thank you, Krista. Everyone help yourselves.” Mrs. Bagerazzi said, as she sat back down.
“So, Bryan. What are your goals in life?” Krista’s dad asked, his eyes lit with interest.
“Computer Technician. Well. That’s my fall back. I really would like to be a musician.” Bryan said. He was relaxed and he met Krista’s dad’s eyes coolly.
“I remember my days in the band…” Mr. Bagerazzi’s eyes glazed over..
“Uh…Dad? Can we not relive those memories for the fiftieth this time this week?” Krista rolled her eyes. She stiffened slightly when Bryan moved his hand up to a more personal area of her…person. She shot him a teasing look, daring him to try.
He did.
She sat horrified that her parents might notice, but very happy at the same time. He removed his hand and asked to be excused to the bathroom.
“Come back,” she said, shooting him a dazzling smile.
“Don’t worry.” He replied, disappearing behind the hall door.
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That's the preview...well technically, that's all I have so far. But anyway...
send me reviews! every good writer gets critiqued!
thanx
-Krystelle