Page 25 of Allure

She rolls her eyes. “Want some of mine?”

“Um, not how it works.”

“Yes, well…” She looks down at her chest. Her boobs are huge. Yesterday, when she had been typing, she leaned forward and hadn’t realized that her boobs were touching the spacebar, and she added two pages of blank nothingness to the paper.

I’m not nearly that big, and I’m glad. I never wanted overly huge boobs, not after…

I clear my throat and shake my head to banish away memories I don’t want to recall. “You never did make those cookies.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t make time to,” she mumbles.

“Dawn, is something—”

“Is that guy still giving you a hard time?” she asks.

“I refuse to let him,” I assure her. “Don’t worry about me, but I’m worrying about—”

“Do you want to go out for dinner tonight?” she asks. “My treat.”

“You don’t have to pay for me,” I protest.

“It’ll be fun. A celebration of sorts. We got through the first week alive. Maybe college won’t kill us.”

I snort. “Are you worried about dying?”

“Well, obesity has—”

“You are not obese!”

“I weigh more than I should.”

I scowl at the fountain that still looks like a blood-soaked tree to me. We had popcorn with the movie, but had Dawn eaten any? It’s inconceivable to me that someone doesn’t like popcorn, but I suppose that’s possible. Not likely, though, and my stomach churns.

“Dawn, has someone been making comments about your weight?” I ask softly.

She doesn’t answer, watching a tall, willowy girl who looks like a stiff breeze could snap her back. She’s arm in arm with a hunk, and without warning, they just stop walking. He pulls her close, reaching down to grab her ass, which—no lie—is even flatter than mine—and they start to make out.

“You do not want to be her,” I inform Dawn.

“Why not?”

“Just trust me. You don’t.”

“She has it all. A great education, money obviously if she can come here, that body is to die for, that dreamboat…”

“Dreamboat? Who says dreamboat anymore?”

“I would ride his boat,” Dawn murmurs.

“Dawn!” I burst out laughing. “You crack me up.”

Dawn finally looks away from the couple who are still trying to shove their tongues down each other’s throats. “I’m glad I can make you laugh. Maybe I should try to do that more.”

“Be yourself?”

“Be funny. It’s a better hobby than baking.”

“Because you can’t turn baking into a career.”

---