Chapter 4: I hope your ship is the Titanic

Bubbles walks into my room, her bag hanging off her left shoulder. She surveys the white walls and four poster bed, the chest of draws, my desk and a large bookcase. She plops down on my bed and looks over at the photos on the right wall. "You've got a cool house."

"Thanks," I say walking in after her and laying my backpack down on my desk's chair.

"What are you doing tonight?" she asks me.

"I think we're just going over to an old friend's place," I say and spin around on the chair.

"Ooo! Really? I might know them. Who is it?" she asks the dreaded question.

I groan and mumble, "TheCollinsfamily."

"The who now?"

"The Collins family."

"Ah! Really? We gotta get you looking fiiiine."

"Nah, Bubbles, I'll just wear some random jeans and shirt or something."

"Oh, no you won't!" my mum bursts into the room with a shopping bag in her hand, two others on her left arm for the boys since we refused to go shopping with her. I don't know what's worse, actually going shopping, or letting Mum choose our outfits. "Oh, hi sweetheart," she says when she sees Bubbles.

"Hi Ms Bennett, it's nice to meet you," Bubbles says, smiling at Mum.

"You're Nat's friend! Lovely to meet you too," she says.

"I'm Claudia," Bubbles informs her and Mum smiles before handing the large pink shopping bag to me.

"Well, Claudia, I assume you'll be helping my daughter look top notch this evening, I've heard that Alex Collins is really something," she winks and walks off, closing the door behind her.

I roll my eyes. "Your mum is so cool!" Bubbles says, smiling.

"Mhm, sure," I say and turn to the shopping bags. I open them and tip the contents onto the bed beside my friend groaning when I see the dress. "Is it okay if I call my friend from Paris? I can introduce you two," Bubbles nods and claps her hands together. I log in to my laptop and skype Adele.

She picks up after around five rings and her face pops up on the screen as she beams at me.

"HEY GURL!" Adele yells, before taking her headphones out.

"Hi Dele," I say.

"Whatcha doing?"

"Not much," I shrug as Bubbles walks up behind me and waves through the camera.

"Hey, I'm Claudia!" she says from over my shoulder.

"Have you befriended my friend?" Adele asks.

"Well, I hope so... Unless she secretly hates me or something," Bubbles pouts at the end.

"Nat's not that mean," Adele laughs and Bubbles smiles. We talk for a little while, me filling her in on my first few days at school before I walk over to the clothes Mum bought for me. I call out over my shoulder to Adele, hoping she can still hear me.

"My mum bought me some clothes since we're going to... uhm, an old friend's place tonight," I tell her, picking up the clothes and walking back.

"Yes! I love it when your mum shops for you," she claps her hands through the screen.

"They're probably going to just get put into the 'restricted section' of my closet," I say, showing her the dress.

"Aw, don't put it there, I like it! I don't know why I told you to talk to me about fashion when you've got your mum," she sighs.

I shrug. "Do I have to wear it?"

"Yes!" Bubbles and Adele chorus. I groan. Bubbles continues, "Alex is going to love it!"

"Alex!" Adele asks me, an eyebrow raised.

"An annoying guy," I mumble in her direction, walking back towards the bed and throwing the dress on it.

"Who?" Adele asks.

"He's the bad boy-" Bubbles starts, but I interrupt her.

"He's a bad boy?" I ask.

Bubbles looks at me like I'm crazy. "Bro, have you seen the ray bans and leather jacket he wears and the girls he plays? And he's the most handsome kid you'll ever see! How do you not get that he's a bad boy?"

I shrug. Adele gazes from Bubbles to me. "Do you have a photo? If this guy is handsome, I need some evidence."

Ah, well you jumped over bushes to take a picture of the "cutest dog you have ever seen.""

"That was an animal Dele, not a human," I huff and Bubbles grins.

"I do," she takes out her phone and starts swiping. I stare at her, one eyebrow raised. "Hey! I'm not the only one that takes screenshots of his Instagram posts OK? He's hot."

I make a strange face at her then at Adele. She smiles and mouths: "I like her," and I grin back.

Bubbles finds what she's looking for and shows Adele through the screen. When she pulls it away my best friend looks up to me with an eyebrow raised. "Who is this gift from God and how did you meet him?" I out of the room and I hear Bubbles explaining to Adele how I know Alex.

I walk back in with some Extra, popping it in my mouth and chewing it. I go to get my phone from my desk when Bubbles speaks to me and Adele.

"I ship Natalex. The ship has set sail."

"I hope your ship is the Titanic." I mumble.

"Aw, yes there are lovers on it."

"No, I hope it sinks," I say, unlocking my phone and checking my messages, chewing on the gum.

"Oh." Bubbles frowns before it turns into her usual contagious grin. I smile back at her.

"So," Adele claps her hands together. "We need to see this outfit! Other wise this ship really will sink."

I roll my eyes and mumble. "I hope it already has, even though it never set sail,"

I grab the dress and walk into the closet to get changed.

"Apparently they're really rich or something," I tell them from the closet as I pull on the dress.

I hear them chatting while I get changed. The dress has got a slip for my leg and and shows skin through the top part. The dress is black. I really don't understand why some girls wear black to clubs and it is considered a "hot" color. People wear it to funerals. Seriously, I'm going to look like an emo.

I walk out of the bathroom. I hear Bubbles and Adele breathing heavily with laughter. Bubbles has tears in her eyes and Adele has her face buried in her hands through the screen.

"Um, guys?" they both breathe in and out before giggling once more and look at me. They smile and look at each other.

"You look great!" Adele says.

"YES! Your gonna slay, be Alex's Bae, its gonna happen this very day, first you'll say hey, and he won't say nay, you'll get married in may, I'll catch the flowers and all will be yay!" Bubbles screams.

"What?" I look at her with wide eyes.

"I thought that was pretty good," she says to a laughing Adele.

"Yeah, yeah.. yeah," Adele says through deep breaths. We calm down after five minutes, when Bubbles starts playing with my teddy on my bead and mumbling a song under her breath that she makes up on the spot, I think she got bored of waiting for us. She's pretty strange, though I can tell why she has so many friends.

"So, I think you should curl her hair then brush it out?" Adele says to Bubbles.

"Yep, I'll do that," Bubbles tosses the teddy aside before throwing it an sympathetic look as if to say sorry.

"I hate curling irons!" I say.

"Well, its either that or the ship sinks," Bubbles says.

"I want it to sink!" I reply.

She shrugs. "I don't. So where's your curling iron?"

"I don't have one?"

"Don't be ridiculous Nat, of course you do. Bubbles, check the top of her cupboard it'll probably be in the back."

Bubbles goes off to follow her directions. "Sometimes I hate it how you know me so well," I huff, crossing my arms when Bubbles comes back with the curling iron.

I sit down at my desk while Bubbles plugs in the curling iron. I talk with Adele about Paris and Bubbles sometimes throws in a joke, to which both Adele and I end up shaking with laughter and Bubbles telling me to "stop moving or I'll burn you."

By the time Bubbles finishes curling my hair and brushing it out, its 5:30 and we're supposed to be there at 6:00.

My mum walks in and asks if I'm ready.

"Why did you put me in black mum? I look like an emo."

"You look fine Nat, that dress was expensive."

I sigh and pull at the straps in the middle of the holes of the dress.

"Oh, I brought you some shoes from my room," she tosses me some high heels and I catch them, looking at the strappy black shoes.

"NO!" I yell.

"Nat, come on, we'll be sitting down for most of the night anyway."

"But these are toe squishing machines!"

"You'll live," my mum starts to walk away but steps back and addresses Bubbles and Adele. "Ladies, I'd suggest doing some smokey eye make up and contour," she walks away and I turn and look at my friends, an evil grin on both their faces.

"NO!" I yell again.

"Oh, Nat, please!" she pleads.

"Nope, nope nope," I turn my face away from her big, blue puppy dog eyes.

"Oh, Nat, come on. You're already gorgeous, why not make you even more stylish!" says Adele.

I blush and look down. "I don't wanna be stylish, and I'm not gorgeous," I mumble.

"Please Nat, we can rub it off if you are extremely against it or you get hives or... something?" Bubbles says.

"Ugh, I hate you both, fine," they both squeal with delight and sit me down, I let them get away with that way too easy.

I'm not allowed to look until they're done, so I sit there, extremely bored for fifteen minutes while they go on girly rants about make up and stuff. What in the world is foundation? Concealer? Lipstick? OK, I know what lipstick is, but still. I barely ever wear makeup, it feels too cold and heavy on my face, I only wear it on special occasions, when Mum forces me into it. I sit there while Bubbles tilts my head back and forth while she applies different kinds of make up. Actually where did she get this from? Oh, I know, it was probably from the top of my cupboard, where I store all other girly things I don't want to associate myself with. It includes: hair curlers, straighteners, high heels, make up, purses and other weird things that people, mostly Mum, has bought me.

I stop Bubbles when she pats some weird egg shaped thing on my face.

"What is that?" I ask.

"Its something I use for your make up," she continues.

"It looks like an egg. I don't know about you but I don't want something that's come out of a chicken's butt to go on my face," I pout.

"Well, face it Nat, you eat things that come out of chicken's butts," Bubbles says. She does have a point...

Two minutes later Bubbles jumps up.

"I'm done!" she squeals. I sigh as she pulls the laptop over and shows Adele. I pull on a fake smile before frowning.

"Yeeeeeeeesssssssssss Claudia! Pretty good, for someone that doesn't wear make-up."

"HEY!" I yell at her and she smiles sheepishly. How come she gets no make-up and I do? I huff and cross my arms. Bubbles spins my chair around.

I look at myself in the mirror. Not that I would admit it, but I think I look alright, if it wasn't for the grumpy face and crossed arms. I have dark mascara that highlights my long eyelashes, oh, don't tell me I'm becoming narcissistic! I shouldn't have thought that. Somethings has been put on my cheeks to make them look higher than they are. My lips look full and are painted with red lipstick.

"HA! She loves it," Adele's watching my reaction through the camera. I roll my eyes.

"I feel like a Barbie doll," I huff.

"Stop trying to hide it. You're going to slay," Bubbles says. She brings me my high heels and I strap them on. I stand up and sigh. I feel really wobbly and uncomfortable.

"Yay. Now you'll be the same height," she says.

"Oh, how tall's the bad boy? My bestie's pretty high," I stare at her, she knows what else that means right? Bubbles giggles.

Bubbles says "oops."

"He's about a couple of inches taller than her," Bubbles says.

"Perfect match!" Adele says.

"NATALIE! ONE MINUTE," my Dad calls from downstairs.

"I told you, that ships gonna sink," I mutter, as Bubbles gets a black purse for me and stuffs in my phone and some tissues. "Tissues?" I ask her.

"In case you get a runny nose," she informs me.

"Have fun Nat, charm that kid," Adele winks as I sway out the door, I hate high heels.

"Oh, for goodness sake Natalie! You look like a Kimmy K just that just got her butt implants," I turn to stare at Bubbles and burst out laughing.

"C'mon Nat!" my mum calls.

"Ok I'm coming," I walk out the door but not before I hear Bubbles say something to Adele.

"Those tissues are for her to hand to Alex when she breaks his heart," I step back inside and throw her the tissues from my purse.

"C'mon bubbles," she shuts down my laptop and grabs her school bag and heads out the door, giggling at me. I say goodbye to her, and thank her for coming over. My family and I walk out into the car.

Paul and Lucas are dressed in matching suits, though Lucas's is blue and Paul's is black. Dad's in a button up shirt and trousers and Mum's wearing a shorter black dress. Lucas looks nervous and he's playing with a button on his shirt. Paul is waiting impatiently with Dad.

"Hey Paul, you, Mum and I can be emo's together," I say. Mum turns to glare at me and I look down, smirking, I open my purse to get my phone out and take a picture of Lucas and Paul, only then do I find that Claudia has shoved in some extra tissues, separate from the packet.

That Psychic Bubble, she must've known I would've thrown them back .

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If you enjoyed this chapter, please vote and comment. I'm sorry it was uneventful, the next one won't be.

byeeeeeeeeeeeee