"You're mean."
Alex couldn't help but stifle a chuckle as he gazed at Sarah through the rearview mirror. "Mean? Nah, not me. I'm just holding up my end of the bet." He replied, his lips curling into a sly grin. "I mean, I could have asked you to prance around in a chicken suit, but I didn't, did I? And Deliah thinks it's a great idea."
Deliah beamed at her sister, nodding her head fervently. "Oh my gosh, Sarah, it's going to be so much fun!" she exclaimed. "I've been dreaming of this moment for years! The boys are going to be drooling all over you!"
Sarah rolled her eyes and shot both her sister and Alex a withering glance. She slumped down in her seat, letting out a resigned sigh. "You guys are the worst," she groaned. "I'm not ready for this. I don't think I can do it." She fidgeted with her hands nervously. "I think I might have one of my old shirts under my bed from when you guys threw out all my clothes. Let me go change."
"No way!" exclaimed Alex as he hit the gas pedal, causing Sarah to jerk back into her seat. With a mischievous grin and a head shake.
"You have to go through this, it's your punishment from me."
With a sense of resignation, Sarah leaned her head against the window.
"For how long again? A day? Two days?"
"Forever," Deliah and Alex said in unison.
Alex turned to Deliah with a smile and raised his palm for a high-five. Deliah giggled happily.
"Forever, sissy! You have to wear pretty dresses like this every single day. I'll be watching!"
Feeling defeated, Sarah slumped down in her seat.
"You guys are mean. MEAN."
Alex chuckled softly as he drove them to school and watched Sarah's reaction in the rearview mirror.
Monday couldn't come fast enough for him. He had been eagerly anticipating it ever since he made the bold request for Sarah to revamp her appearance. He had a vision in mind, and it was all he could think about. He spent countless hours imagining Sarah in various outfits and even tried to pry some information from Deliah on her sister's fashion sense, but the tight-lipped Deliah refused to spill the beans.
But now, as Sarah emerged from the house just moments ago, he was awestruck. His heart skipped a beat as he took in her new look.
Sarah was dressed in a lovely white cotton blouse paired with a light blue high waist skirt. Deliah, her sister, had discarded her plastic glasses and forced her to get a haircut. It was obvious that Sarah's hair had not been well-maintained before this, but now her soft brown locks cascaded down to her abdomen, and her fringe was cut into side bangs. Alex couldn't help but notice how adorable she looked without hair covering half of her face.
Despite her obvious attractiveness, Sarah seemed unsure about her appearance. Alex found this quality to be the most endearing thing about her. He had encountered various types of girls: those who flaunted their beauty at every opportunity, those who thought they were pretty when they weren't, those who were pretty but thought they weren't, and those who knew they were average. Sarah, however, belonged to a peculiar group that recognized their beauty but tried to hide it as much as possible.
Alex didn't aim to enhance Sarah's appearance, but he couldn't help but notice her beauty as he kept glancing at her through the mirror.
He didn't want her to hide behind a façade anymore. He wanted Sarah to be herself, to feel beautiful and confident in her own skin. And as he caught her admiring her clothes through the glass cabinets, he knew he had just uncovered the real Sarah.
But what happened next left everyone stunned. Joe's jaw dropped all the way to the ground, he couldn't believe his eyes. "Pinch me," he said, as if questioning his own reality.
Henry didn't waste a second and pinched Joe's arm hard. Joe shrieked in pain and hit Henry's head. "So hard?" he said, slightly annoyed.
Steve intervened, "You didn't specify how hard you wanted it." He grinned, knowing what was about to happen next.
Joe's eyes were still wide open as he looked ahead in disbelief. "Everyone, I think I've died and gone to heaven. I see a fairy," he mumbled, barely able to contain his excitement.
The rest of the group turned their heads, their eyes widening in unison. They couldn't believe what they were seeing either.
As Alex, Sarah, and Deliah strolled down the hallways, all eyes turned and widened in unison. The trio made an impression, drawing choruses of "Oh. My. God" as they approached the Aerospace boys.
Deliah giggled as she saw the boys' astonished expressions, confident that she had done a great job making over her sister. Or rather, helping her sister to look like her beautiful self again.
Alex noticed Sarah's shyness and bumped shoulders with her. "Hey, be yourself. You're pretty, and they're looking, so let them look."
Sarah looked up at him with curious eyes, and Alex couldn't help but redden slightly. It was impossible to keep your cool around Sarah when she looked at you like that. Sarah bit back a smile and continued walking, her head held high. For the first time, she realized how much a simple compliment could make her happy.
Sarah was capturing everyone's attention. Unlike Deliah, who was strikingly beautiful, Sarah's charm was subtle. It was her gentle charisma that drew people to her. The sudden transformation made everyone gasp, and some even took pictures and posted them on social media, exclaiming to everyone about her change.
Deliah grinned at her sister and encouraged her, "Charm the socks off everyone, Sarah. Make those who bullied you in the past hang their heads down in shame. All the best!" Deliah gestured and rushed off to class.
The Aerospace boys approached Sarah with their jaws wide open. Alex couldn't help but feel proud but also disturbed at the same time. Why must they look at her like wolves or something?
"Hi, I was wondering, are you Sarah Johnson?" David asked politely.
Sarah burst out laughing at David's tensed and awkward face. "Hahaha, what happened to you, David?" she chuckled. David's eyes widened, and he turned his face to the others. "She knows my name!"
"Are you stupid?" Alex shook his head. "She's Sarah. The very same one." he nudged her, grinning.
"OH MY GOD, I can't believe I actually ate pig organs soup in front of this beauty!" Joe blurted. Alex shot him a look, shaking his head. David looked Sarah up and down and gulped. "Wow. Just wow."
"Bro, I think my jaw is officially not a part of my body." Philip muttered as he gaped at Sarah.
Brad's eyes finally tore themselves away from Sarah, and he eyed Alex. The guy was smiling at Sarah the whole time, looking like a love-sick fool. *Oh, no. Oh, no, oh, no. I think this might be true,* he swallowed.
Joe pushed Alex away and conveniently inserted herself between the two of them. He slung an arm around Sarah's shoulder and grinned flirtatiously. "Sarah, I believe I haven't shown you my manly charms before. Do not be misled by my funny moments. I am actually manlier than that stupid Henry over there," he thumped his chest.
"Hey!" Henry frowned.
Alex scrunched up his face in irritation as he tried to wedge himself back beside Sarah. "Dude, ease up a bit. You're eyeing her like she's a buffet, and it's freaking her out." He tried to nudge Joe away.
Joe evaded the push easily and steered Sarah away. "Come on, Sarah, let's get to class." He waggled his eyebrows suggestively at her, then shot Alex a playful smirk. "You already have a girlfriend, man! Stop trying to poach all the pretty girls and give your best bud a shot!" He playfully grumbled.
Sarah looked up at Joe with a quizzical expression, and he winked at her. She turned back to Alex and saw him seething with anger, which made her want to giggle. "Don't worry about Joe, Alex. He's a good guy," she said, pretending to pat Joe's shoulder. "See? Even the lady thinks so!" Joe swept Sarah away before Alex could catch up, leaving Alex stunned and his hands twitching with the urge to punch Joe in the face.
"He's your best friend, Alex. Your best friend," he reminded himself sternly. "Don't mu*rder him."
********
Matthew McCall leaned back in his chair and grinned mischievously at his group of devoted fangirls. "Girls, you won't believe what happened next," he teased.
"Oh, do tell, Matty," they replied eagerly.
Well let me tell you that ugly girl was hilarious!" Matthew guffawed. "She actually tried to..OH MY FRE*AKING GOSH!" he jumped up from his seat.
"Sarah Johnson?" Matthew gasped, his eyes widening as he scanned the room.
Sarah, who had been enjoying Joe's jokes, looked up in surprise. She followed Matthew's gaze and locked eyes with him. His gaze traveled up and down her body before he muttered her name in disbelief.
Joe rolled his eyes at Matthew's antics and playfully patted Sarah's head. The rest of the Aerospace boys arrived and shot daggers at Matthew before taking their seats. Sarah felt tempted to give him the finger, but she held back. After all, he wasn't worth it.
As Sarah attempted to move to her usual seat at the back of the classroom, Alex grabbed her wrist. "Don't," he said, shaking his head.
He turned to a girl named Hannah and asked, "Can you switch seats with Sarah?"
Hannah beamed with excitement at the prospect of being noticed by Alex. "Sure!" she replied eagerly.
Alex looked at Hannah, a hint of hesitation in his eyes as he gestured towards Sarah's table. "So, can you move over to her table now?"
Hannah finally caught on to what he was saying, but she had already agreed to switch seats. She sulked her way to the back of the class while Alex pulled Sarah over to her new spot. She looked at him with a puzzled expression. "But I liked my old seat."
Alex grinned mischievously. "Well, I like having you beside me, so there." He made a goofy face at her.
Sarah felt her cheeks turn pink as she tried to suppress a smile. She opened her book and attempted to focus on her reading, but she couldn't shake the feeling that the whole class was staring at her and whispering about her.
She especially felt the piercing gaze coming from the far left of the room. She stole a quick glance and caught Matthew drooling over her. She couldn't help but grin to herself, relishing in the small victory. "Hah, in your face," she thought, while hiding her smile behind her hair.