See it Sultry Assignment 1

Jessie waited a month to wear this dress. It still surprised her that she had bought it in the first place. Anna’s Originals launch party would be getting underway in less than an hour and Jessie needed to get dressed. Still fascinated by the silky little red number, it dawned on her that she had no idea how she should wear her hair. In this heat, she knew the humidity would bring forth all the curls that she hated. Her only option would be to wear it up, and not the daily ponytail she had been sporting either.

She went into the bathroom, grabbed her curling iron from under the sink, and plugged it in. Jessie looked at herself in the mirror, cocking her head to the side. She sighed as she tried to figure out how to wear her shoulder-length brown tresses. She supposed she could skip curling it and just wear it in a bun, but that seemed so drab for the dress. She needed style with a little flair. An ache hit her heart when thoughts of her mother crossed her mind. If only they were still alive. Jessie knew her mother would love helping her get ready for this kind of thing. Her eyes burned from fighting tears that threatened to escape. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, pushing thoughts of her parents out of her mind. For now, anyway.

She opened her eyes and a flash of her mother standing behind her appeared and faded. Jessie spun around, looked toward the empty space between herself and the bathtub. She remembered then; her parents all dressed up to go to a co-worker's wedding. A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

“Thank you,” she whispered. It was a sign; she knew it had to be.

Jessie rummaged through the cabinet drawer for the box of bobby pins. Her mother always said they were a girl’s best friend. She grabbed a comb and parted her hair in the middle from top to the back of her neck. She grabbed the left side and started twisting it into a loose coil. Once she had it the way she wanted, she pinned it up and then moved onto the other side. She pulled a few strands from the coils and took the curling iron to it, hoping the curls would remain in place with a little hair spray.

She stared at her reflection, and gasped, surprised by how much older the style made her appear. She still had her rounded babyface at the age of twenty-four. At this point, she did not think she would ever outgrow it.

With her olive complexion, she did not need to do much regarding makeup. She could thank her mother for that. She added mascara, black eyeliner, and rosy blush, her look finally complete.

“Jessie,” Aunt Abby called, lightly rapping on her bedroom door. “Are you ready to go?”

Jessie gave herself one more long look in the mirror and smiled, liking the way she looked.

She left the bathroom and headed to the door as her aunt entered. “I just need to put the dress on. Five minutes.”

Her aunt smiled and grabbed her hands. “You are stunning. You remind me so much of your mother when she was your age,” she said.

Jessie blushed. “Thank you.” That was all the compliment she needed to hear.

“Do you need any help?” Abby asked.

Jessie shook her head. “No, I’ve got this.”

Abby laughed, “Yes, you do. We’ll be down in the kitchen when you’re ready to go.”

Her aunt backed out of the room, closing the door behind her. Jessie moved the gown hanging on the door to the closet, her fingers down the silky skirt as excitement wormed its way through her body. She slipped the straps of her nightgown down over her shoulders and let the cotton frock drop the floor. She slid the dress off the hanger, holding it by the thin spaghetti straps and stepped into it, pulling up slowly over legs. The silky fabric felt so soft against her skin.

Tugging it up her torso and over her chest, all she had left to do was slip her arms into the straps. She walked back to the bathroom to take a good look in the mirror. The red look nice against her skin, and the rounded vee hugged the curves of her breasts like it was made for her. The red and silver sequins around the vee picked up the light and shimmered. Happiness washed over Jessie is a wave, making her skin tingle. She could not wait to go to the party, to see everyone’s reaction when she walked through the door. It would be the first time she ever attended something this, and with any luck, she would find that she really did belong here in Endurance.

WC:819