by S. L. Baum
“Of course,” Raleigh and I both said at the same time.
We glanced at each other, sharing a small smile, amused at our mirrored, automatic response.
Aspen hadn’t noticed. She was halfway up the stairs when I turned to Raleigh.
“Thank you for the gown, it truly is lovely.”
“You are very welcome, Bluebell. After tonight, I’ll be overrun with requests for my services. So, I can say thank you to you, as well. The stylist to the Lush Ambassador… not a bad position to be in. Are you going to cover it?” she asked, looking at my wrist.
I knew she was talking about my Citizen Brand – the five interlocking circles on my left wrist that formed a flower of sorts and marked me as Lush. My rare brand was a point of curiosity. It made me unique. It made me special. It made me want to take my right hand and circle it around my left wrist to cover the unique mark and hide it from everyone. I often found myself that way – covering it up, wishing it away, hoping I wouldn’t be noticed. But it was too late for that hope. I’d already been announced to all the Citizens of Concord as Lush. And after the night was over, I’d be shoved into public view where my Brand, and I, would be on permanent display. To set that in stone, Cimarron and I were scheduled to begin our tour of all four Concords.
“Yes, I’m covering it,” I told her. “I have a bracelet of stacked black pearl strands tied with a pale blue ribbon, a gift from my father. There are matching earrings and a necklace as well. I should probably go upstairs to put them on. And I suppose I should read through Aspen’s list, while I am up there, as well.”
“Don’t sit for too long. You’ll wrinkle the fabric.”
I gave her a nervous smile. “I’ll try to remember that. See you at the Gala.”
“I’d better be off. I need to hurry if I want to get there before you make your entrance. And don’t worry, it will be smashing! You’ll be smashing! This is the night of a lifetime.”
About an hour later, the car arrived to transport my parents and I to the Gala.
The theme of our Gala attire turned out to be black and blue. I wore a pale blue gown accented with black pearl jewelry. My father wore a shiny black suit with a metallic looking blue tie that matched the color of my dress perfectly. Aspen wore a deep black gown, with long sleeves, and a jagged looking, high, tulle collar. Her eye make-up was striking blue, to match her eyes. Amazingly, she had no bracelets on her wrists, relying on the long sleeves to cover her Brand.
There was something about her Brand, something that was nagging at me from back of my mind… it wouldn’t come to me. I closed my eyes and tried to remember, but was forced to abandon the thought when my father reached out to clasp my hand.
“I am surrounded by beautiful women once again,” he said as he draped his free arm around Aspen’s shoulders.
I smiled at him. “Thank you, Father.”
“Yes. Thank you, my love,” Aspen soothed as she leaned into him and turned her head to place a kiss on his cheek. “You are such a sweet man.”
My father smiled at her and whispered something in her ear, which brought a satisfied smile to her face. His eyes brightened as he turned his attention to me. “The pearls look lovely on you. Your mother helped me select them for you. A perfect choice.”
Aspen raised her eyebrows. “Yes. Perfect.”
I forced a smile to my face. “The jewelry is beautiful.”
Why was I forcing a smile? Why wasn’t I happier? What was wrong with me?
I furrowed my brow.
Aspen wagged a finger in front me. “Don’t crease your face up like that. You’ll ruin that beautiful make-up application, not to mention the risk of pre-mature aging.”
“Sorry, Mother.”
I leaned back in my seat, trying not to wrinkle my dress… or my face.
The first thing I did after we arrived at the Gala was to seek out Lily. I was a little surprised that Aspen allowed me to leave her sight, but then I hadn’t exactly waited for approval. I took off before she had a chance to stop me and breathed a sigh of relief when I didn’t hear her call out after me. Our introductions were scheduled for later that evening, so we had time to relax, if only for a little while. But I knew that I’d have to be on my best behavior all evening long, I was a point of curiosity and Citizens would be watching me.
As soon as I spotted my friend, I squealed her name. “Lily!”
“Bluebell!” Lily squealed in response. She grabbed my hands and we twirled around in a circle, lavishing each other with compliments. My friend looked absolutely stunning. Her gown was brilliant, just as she’d said it would be. Her long, brown, spiral curls were perfectly set, fanning around her shoulders. A jeweled headband glinted in her hair, keeping the spirals away from her flawless face. As always, I was ridiculously jealous of her perfect, creamy, milk chocolate skin. It was like silk.
“You look gorgeous!” I told her. “Beyond gorgeous! Way beyond.”
“So do you! And isn’t this whole place gorgeous? It’s just perfect.” She sighed as she pointed up at the lights that shone overhead. “Can you believe that? I love it.”
The entire ceiling above us sparkled. White twinkling lights were twisted around iridescent white pearlescent strands, which dangled from above; silvery threads that were reaching down toward us. The large chandelier that hung in the center of the room had its normal clear lights replaced with muted blue ones. The blue lights cast an eerily beautiful glow over the area directly below it.
There was some form of visual stimulation in each corner of the room. One area was filled with video screens, that flashed colorful, artistic photographs. In another area, glow lights hung from the ceiling, and the guests were marveling at the way the lights made their skin, clothes, and hair glow bright with different colors. A third area had several fountains, which were bubbling up different colored enhanced drinks. And at the last area, a bead, bracelet, and bangle station was set up, where the female guests could choose an accessory to wear, and keep, as a Gala gift.
“Wow,” I breathed. “Aspen outdid herself. I agree. It is just perfect.”
“Aspen did it, alright. My mother told me that this is nothing like the design they agreed upon. I think her feelings are slightly injured, but I’m not complaining. I love it.” She spun in a circle, looking up at the glowing blue chandelier. After a second, she stopped and stared at me. “Hey! You just said Aspen again, so are you going with the Aspen thing or with the mother thing?”
I shrugged, not wanting to answer the question.
“It doesn’t matter. Come with me. Fisher is over there, talking to Stone and Rosebud,” she said pointing to the far side of the room. “I swear Stone is completely smitten with that girl, and I have never seen her smile so much in my life. It’s really kind of sweet. I hope his parents, her mother, and The Council approve of the relationship, if they decide to move forward.”
I squinted my eyes and looked to where she’d pointed and noticed two boys and a girl standing together. Fisher, I repeated the name in my head. Lily and Fisher. They are a couple. I shook my head, trying once again to clear the strange fuzz. Why was my mind confirming things that I should already know? It didn’t make sense.
I pushed the thought aside and hooked arms with Lily. We began to walk, taking slow measured steps, keeping our composure, as dutiful girls should do, and we both politely greeted everyone in our path. “So good of you to come.” “How nice of you to say.” “So good to see you once again.” “Thank you so much.” “It truly is a gift.” “Concord Reigns.” A smile here and a wave there to the few well-wishers lining the way.
“You’re pretty good at this,” I whispered.
“And that, my friend, is without any formal training.” Lily smiled widely at me.
“You should probably stand back, then. I am a trained professional.”
“Ambassador Bluebell, be my guest.” She waved an arm in front of her as we reached our destination.
Before I could say anything, Stone grabbed me a
round the waist and lifted me up into the air, twirling me around. “Blue!”
“Stone! You’d better put me down before Aspen sees you wrinkling my dress.”
He lowered me, making sure I was steady on my feet before releasing his hold. “You look lovely.”
“Thank you. You don’t look so bad yourself.”
“Rosy thinks so too,” he said with a wink.
Rosebud stepped to his side and gave me a small wave. Her face was glowing. “Hi, Bluebell. I’m so glad to be here. Thank you both for inviting me.” She looked from me to Lily. “You both look so pretty. But if you don’t mind me asking, Bluebell, how are you breathing in that dress?”
Lily laughed loudly. “I was going to ask you the same thing.”
“Shallow breaths. But I’m still getting used to it. Don’t make me laugh to hard, I might pass out.” I warned.
“Do not pass out,” Fisher ordered. “I am in no way trained to revive a Citizen.”
“I’ll try not to.” I said with a smile. “How long have you all been here? Aspen insisted we wait until everyone else had arrived. She refuses to be early to anything or even on time for that matter.”
Stone pulled out his mini tablet to check the time. “Not long. Maybe twenty, thirty minutes.” He pushed the button to black out the screen and slipped it back into his pocket.
“Long enough for us to see that some very prominent Council members and Armory managers are in attendance tonight,” Fisher pointed out. “Somehow I doubt this is a typical mix of attendees for one of these things.”
Lily placed her hands on her hips. “I think it comes standard when you are celebrating with women as wonderful as we are.”
“Exactly!” I said, and mirrored her pose.
“Fish, how could you not know that?” Stone said with a laugh as his hand reached into his pocket. He took out his mini again.
“What is it?” Fisher asked.
Stone held up a finger and he read whatever was on the screen and then he blew out a bubble of air. “Apparently, our friend Thorn can’t get in. He’s been denied access.”
“Thorn!” I hadn’t thought of Thorn all day long. He hadn’t even crossed my mind one time. I closed my eyes and tried to picture his face. The crazy thing was, I could barely do it. I forced myself to concentrate on him, and suddenly I remembered the time I met him at the park, and we sat next to each other under the big tree. My pinky curled. I could almost feel our skin touching as he hooked his little finger with mine.
“Fearsome foursome to the rescue.” Stone pointed toward the main entrance. “Rosy is a fifth and once we get Thorn in here then we’ll be at six. We might have to lose the name,” he said with a frown.
Fisher shook his head. “I never liked the name.”
Stone took a step back. “I did. How could you not like the name?”
Fisher shrugged. “We were never exactly fearsome.”
“I was fearsome!”
Rosy stepped between the two of them. “Boys, focus.”
I looked at Lily. “How is he stuck outside?”
“There’s got to be a mix up,” she said as she grabbed my hand and led us all toward the door. “He was on the list, right? He had to be.”
I frowned. I wanted to say, absolutely. But I just wasn’t sure, so I said, “I think so.”
“You think so! Blue, how could you forget to make sure Thorn was on Aspen’s list? We’ve been talking about this for days and days.”
“He is.” I shook my head. “I mean, he was. I know he was. I remember typing his name in.” I paused in my tracks, brought my hands up to the sides of my head, and pressed in on my temples.
Lily grabbed onto my shoulders. “Blue, are you alright?”
“I’ll be fine, Lil. Let’s just get out there and see what’s going on.”
“Message him that we are coming,” Fisher told Stone.
“Already done, my friend.”
Somehow Thorn had been whisked out of my mind. It felt like the walls of my brain were closing in, like my world was getting smaller. I wanted to scream in frustration.
Chapter Three
Together
As the five of us walked over to the main entrance, I heard Aspen call my name, but I kept moving forward. I refused to look behind me. We exited the hall and the cool night air greeted me. A shiver ran across my skin as a slight breeze blew by me. From across the street, Thorn came out of the darkness, his form appearing under the streetlight. The hair on my arms stood up as goose bumps dotted my skin. There he was.
He paused under the light, and I saw his face cast in shadow. His eyes sought out mine and I stared back at him, wondering how I could have spent an entire day without thinking about my friend, my confidant, my Thorn. I shook my head again.
“Thorn,” Stone called out, waving him over.
“Why are you lurking in the darkness?” Fisher asked with a laugh.
“That big guy with the check list refused to let me in or even inquire about there being a mistake. He threatened to call a Peace Keeper if I didn’t leave. So I took a walk and messaged you guys.”
“What a strange mix up,” Lily said.
Stone patted the pocket that held his tablet. “It’s a good thing I had my mini with me.”
Aspen had insisted that I leave mine in the car. She said she didn’t want me on it all night… that I should be paying attention to my guests.
I stood there, dumbfounded, staring at Thorn’s face, while the flood of who he was washed over me. I had no idea what was going on in my head. I just knew I didn’t like it. Thorn noticed my pained expression but didn’t say a thing. He simply walked up to me, draped his arm over my shoulders, and leaned in to whisper in my ear. “Whatever it is, we’ll figure it out.”
I leaned my whole body against him. “Thorn.”
“My flower,” he whispered in response.
“I’m so sorry. I can’t… I can’t…”
“Shhh.”
Stone grabbed Thorn’s shoulder. “Let’s go back in.”
“If he’ll let me,” Thorn said, pointing.
As we walked back to the entrance, the “big guy” – as Thorn had aptly labeled him – stepped forward, blocking the door. “He’s not on my list.”
I stepped up to him, holding onto Thorn’s hand. “He should be. I put him on there.”
“You really do need to just step aside,” Lily added.
“I am under strict orders, young lady. I can’t do that.”
“I don’t really think it matters who gave the orders,” Fisher countered. “This Gala is for these two young ladies, right here, and they are telling you to let him in.”
The big guy shook his head. “Can’t do it.”
“Ugh! Give me a minute. I’ll get my dad. I’m sure a Councilman can change your mind. I can’t believe you are being so stubborn.”
“You’re making the Lush Ambassador very angry,” Stone warned. “Not a good idea.”
I heard the guy repeat the words Lush Ambassador under his breath as I walked back into the Gala. I spotted my father and Aspen, not too far from the entrance, talking with a group of their friends. I walked up beside them, grabbed my father’s hand, and pulled him toward the door.
“Bluebell?”
“I need you to tell that thickheaded person guarding the front door to let my friend Thorn into my Gala.”
Aspen slid over to my father’s side. “We can’t let just anyone in here. This is a private Gala, by invitation only.”
“He’s not just anyone, Mother. He’s my friend. I personally invited him. I put his name on the list; that means he was invited. But the man out front is saying he can’t let Thorn in because he has orders.”
My father took a step toward the entrance, holding my hand. “If you invited the young man, then there should be no question.”
“Thank you, Father.”
“Jackson,” Aspen said. I heard a hint of a warning in her tone.
“I invited him,” I in
sisted.
“It’s our daughter’s Gala, Aspen. I know you want the evening to be perfect for her, and she’ll clearly be upset if her friend isn’t allowed in. So I think we’d better clear this up. Don’t you?”
“I…”
“Well, don’t you?”
“Of course, my love. I want the evening to be perfect for Bluebell. I see Raleigh. I need her to look at one of the closures on my dress. Go ahead and help Bluebell’s friend,” she said with a dismissive wave. “Bluebell and Lily must be ready for their introductions in about twenty minutes. See that they are, dear.”
Aspen spun around and walked away from us.
My father squeezed my hand. “Shall we?”
“Yes. Please hurry.”
My friends were all waiting outside, right where I’d left them. Thorn, Stone, and Fisher were leaning against the side of the building, Lily and Rosebud were in front of them, and the big guy was still standing guard. The authoritative scowl fell from his face, when he saw who I had by my side.
My father walked up to him. “Rockford?”
“Yes, Jackson, sir.”
“Is there a problem here?”
“This young man is not on the list,” Rockford, aka the big guy, said, pointing to Thorn.
“He is my daughter’s guest,” my father explained.
“My instructions were clear. I was simply following orders.”
“And we thank you for your diligence and dedication to your post. But I’m here now, to clear up the mistake. Thorn will be coming in with me. Is that clear?”
Rockford nodded his head in understanding and took a step away from the entrance. “Yes. Of course.”
My father turned to Thorn. “Everybody inside.”
“Thank you,” Thorn replied. “You saved the day out there.”
“It is my daughter’s night. Her desires are my priority.”
“Thank you, Father.”
He smiled down at me and then kissed the top of my head. “Bluebell, you and Lily will be taking the stage shortly. Stay near, or your mother will not be pleased.”
