"Son of a twister, Telvi, come on," Eydis says to me the next morning.

"Do you know all the Motherwealth swearwords?" I ask, trying to buy time to stay in bed a little longer. My limbs are stiff, and every movement hurts. I want to go with Eydis, but leaving bed is harder than I imagined.

She chuckles. "Nearly. There is one I just never can remember. I think it starts with a b." She rubs her chin then pulls on a coat. "We only have one day, let's make the most of it."

She's right. I need to make the most of it. Campus is one thing but what is life like outside of campus?

Enough stalling.

With a deep breath, I stretch then rip the covers off.

"That's the spirit!" she cheers me on as I slip on a pair of pants and a thick homemade sweater. "First we will get you cute clothes."

I am not sure how that will happen since I have no money to spend. But I keep my mouth shut, not wanting to ruin the mood. Anyway, I am not sure if I want new clothes. The clothes I have remind me of Hell. I fear that if I shed them, I will forget about everything I left behind. Eydis doesn't talk about her hometown, and I worry that will happen to me too.

"These days are always my favorite. I love campus, but I'm always excited to leave. It gives my mind a break. All that studying really causes headaches." She frowns, rubbing her head. "So, are you ready yet?"

I slip on a pair of shoes that have holes in them. "Let me go pee then I'm good."

She smiles at me. "Great! I will meet you by the front door on the ground floor."

As I walk into the shared bathroom, I run into Odette. She glares at me before stepping aside, allowing me to get into a stall.

I have no idea what I did, but she hates me. It isn't like I did anything to her. We have barely said anything to each other since I arrived. I try to not let it bother me, but the thought lingers in my mind as I pee.

As I walk out of the stall, to my dismay, she is there, waiting for me. To trap me in her spidery web.

"So how's campus?" she asks as her eyes flicker from my head to my toes.

I hope she doesn't eat me.

I look towards the door, ready to run at a moment's notice.

"It's alright," I say, trying to keep my voice even. I wash my hands, trying to not stare back at her. Maybe if I ignore her, she will vanish.

"And Eydis?"

"She's alright."

"You better be grateful you have her in your life. There aren't many as great as her."

Eydis' friendship is something I don't take lightly. She is special. I already know that. But clearly Odett wants to remind me. Did the two of them have a falling out? Why did she care so much anyhow?

I nod silently. She walks out of the bathroom, and I take a deep breath. Looks like she will not eat me today. Today, I am safe.

I purposely wait a few minutes before exiting the bathroom myself. The last thing I want is to run into Odett again.

I meet Eydis in the lobby of the dorms. She smiles at me then runs some red colored liquid over her lips, turning them a bright shade of red. They are brighter than rose petals in spring. It is memorizing.

"Hey, you want some?" she asks, holding out the red tube.

"What is it?"

She laughs. It is light and airy. I like it when she laughs. "You don't know what lipstick is?"

I shake my head. It's not like people in Hell had money for such things to put on their lips. Most of the time they put some kind of clear jelly in the winter to protect them from splitting.

"Walter, Hell must be a sad place. Have you ever used any makeup before?"

I shake my head again. Makeup, maybe Hell had it, but it wasn't like I was close with any other girl to talk about it. They surely did not have this special red liquid. I would have seen it if they did.

She steps closer to me and opens the tube. "May I?"

I nod as my heart races a little faster. My eyes meet her mahogany ones. She gently smears the red liquid on my lips but it's her warm breath I focus on. It tickles my face, turning my cheeks hot. Today she smells of honey and sunshine.

"There, beautiful," she says, snapping me out of my thoughts. She steps away from me, placing her tube back into her winter coat pocket. She leads me to the reflection of the window and smiles. "It looks perfect on you."

The red stands out against my pale skin, making me look even whiter. Why couldn't I have rich warm color to my skin like Eydis?

I want to frown. The lipstick is too bold. I would never wear such a thing out. Not this bright and eye catching, but I melt into her words. Did she really think it looked perfect on me? I stare at my reflection. I never viewed myself as beautiful. It's not like men chased after me in Hell. So how can she think I am beautiful?

"Now we're good to go," she says, opening the front door. "We look better than those Motherwealth folk."

Yes, she does. But me?

I follow her towards the gates of campus. Although, I wish I could look at my reflection longer. The image of myself wearing lipstick already fading into my mind. I want to memorize it. Pick it apart. Judge it then wipe it off.

"So first, let's get you a new skating outfit for practice. I know just the place for that," she says as she takes my hand, leading me out of the campus gates which are open.

I have never seen them open before. This is new. It must be because of the day.

I hold her hand tighter than when I first arrived. I like that she always reaches for my hand. It is comforting. I know expect it. Want it. Desire it. Everything about her is comforting. She is like a cup of hot tea on a cold day. She warms my soul.

"Oh look!" She points towards some buildings that have their doors open. "They are actually opening on time today."

On the other side of the road stood buildings with light-up boards displaying some new fashion. I think it is a hat that resembles a cloud. It's not important...

Eydis is already walking across the street. I didn't realize she dropped my hand. I run after her, passing a few people in the process.

None pay attention to us. All wearing the same board look. As if living here is that boring. I resist rolling my eyes.

"Does Hell have any of this?" she asks, pointing to the window display of the shop. Within the window are clothes on little dogs. The dogs in Hell were mainly street ones. Putting clothes on them seemed so ridiculous.

Hell is nothing but a small village compared to this place.

"We don't even have sidewalks."

She chuckles, pulling me down the road again. "If it helps, we don't either. This place is nice though. Don't get me wrong. There is everything I could ever want. We have food for days, all the energy we can use, and don't even get me started on the fashion. But Solano... I miss it. I never thought I would. You see, I don't have anyone waiting for me in Solano. I had no parents and no siblings. I was just me. So when they offered me this contract, it took me all but a second to decide."

"What happened to your parents?" I ask, unable to hold back my curiosity.

"A flood wiped them out. It rained for days and our house clasped. I was out at the time. Lost everyone in one foul swoop."

My mouth is dry. Words cannot come to my mouth. It is terrible. She knows this. I know this. I want to say something, but nothing comes.

"Enough about that. I'm sure if you ask anyone on campus, most will have some kind of sad story too. The thing was, Commonwealth life is hard. We all struggled."

She is right. I am proof of that struggle. But here, it looks like no one ever experienced hardship. Not like I did. Here, everything is bright and new.

Eydis takes another turn and continues to walk down a less busy road. In the shade of the high raises, it feels cold. There is even a dusting of snow on the ground.

The road slowly gets smaller, but Eydis pushes ahead until we are at a dead end next to trashcans.

"This is the place."

I look around and see a small white sign on one of the only doors. I can make out the word 'shop'. She must be kidding. This place looks more like a back entrance to a house. After passing so many fancy store fronts, this feels like a letdown. I want to see Motherwealth fashion. This does not look like it.

Eydis drags me into the shop. "This is where all the athletes go for winter sport clothes... or so I'm told."

The clothes are stuffed onto hangers, displayed on racks. Some clothes are stacked onto boxes or chairs. It's cluttered. It smells musty. I take a deep breath in, bumping into a box. I feel trapped in such a tight place.

There were few clothing stores in Hell, but none were this packed. It is hard to breathe. It is too tight in here. I pull on my coat, feeling hot.

"I know your card hasn't come in, so I'll cover you. Think of it as a welcome to Regal gift."

Before I have time to thank her, a lady, who stands no taller than my shoulders, walks over to us.

"Can I help you?" a lady asks.

"Yeah, um, do you have any clothes suited for figure skating?" Eydis asks.

She nods as she pulls on her bright yellow short shirt, covering only half of her torso. No one in Hell would ever dream of wearing something so revealing or tight. It takes all my self-control to not stare.

"Of course. We have a good selection. You can find skating appropriate clothing here," she says as she points towards a rack of pants and long sleaved tops.

"Great. Thank you." Eydis smiles then walks over to the rack of clothes and starts to sort through them. "You know your size right?" she asks as she glances at me from head to toe. "Actually, how about I pick some things out for you and see if they fit."

I shrug, walking up to the rack. My eyes spot a price tag. The number on it is high enough for me to take a step back. People only dreamed of making that much in a month. My brother would be ashamed if he knew I even thought about spending that amount on no more than a pair of pants.

"Don't worry about the price. I got it." Eydis winks as she hands me a stack of clothes to try on. She then pushes me to a small room. "Try them on."

I stand in the room and look at my reflection in the mirror. I have little experience with clothing stores. If I needed anything, I would go and pick out the cheapest thing, not even bothering to try it on. The concept of trying clothes on is foreign to me. What am I looking for?

"Don't take too long," Eydis's voice rings out on the other side of the door.

Quickly, I pick the first top on the pile Eydis gave and slide it over my frame. It is tighter than I normally wear. It's green color is nearly the same brightness of summer grass. It is too bold, too loud, too tight. I should not like it, but I do. I like the way it hugs my body. I like the bright color. I feel pretty in it, confident even.

"Please tell me you have at least one shirt on."

"I do. Want to see it?" I asks as I pull on the fabric.

"Of course I do."

With a deep breath, I step out to face Eydis.

She smiles brightly. "That's absolutely perfect on you. I love it. Alright, next one!"

_____________

We end up getting more clothes than I think necessary. Eydis insists I need everything even though I protest. She complemented every piece of clothing I tried on and by the end, I was bubbly. I didn't care if she was just being nice, I hung onto every complement. I believed her.

With bags in hand, we walk down the road. Eydis gushes about how she loves shopping but most importantly, loves spending Motherwealth money. She explains the monthly stipends. The monthly amount is more than my brother makes in half a year.

It feels wrong taking such a large amount when I know what people live on in Hell. Eydis doesn't seem fazed by it though. She claims that she deserves the payment and wants to waste whatever money the Motherwealth throws at her.

"Hey, is that Eydis and Telvi?" Yuri's voice rings out from behind us.

The familiar voice causes me to freeze mid-step. I turn to face him with a smile.

"It's good to see you guys. So how do you like the Motherwealth?" he asks me.

I looked at the bags in my hands. Shopping with Eydis is the most fun I've had in years, but I still feel conflicted about it. I hate the Motherwealth, so I shouldn't have fun, should I?

He laughs. "Yeah. shopping is always fun in this part of town."

Eydis gives him a hug and nods. "We're going out for shakes. Want to come?"

"Shakes sound good. It's not like I have much going on right now."

"Great!" she cheers as a large plane flies overhead.

It is close enough to shake the ground.

Yuri moves under and awning knowingly, but Eydis and I can't take our eyes away from it. The plane has a flag on its wings that I don't recognize.

"What's that?" I ask.

Yuri looks at Eydis quietly. Fear flashes across his face. "Eydis will tell you later on. It's not something that I can talk about so freely in the Motherwealth."

Before I have time to ask more, Eydis claps her hands. "Alright, let's get going before it gets dark." Eydis grabs my hand, pulling me down the road. "The last we want is to be on the streets when the sun goes down. So what brings you out, Yuri?"

He shrugs. "Needed something to do for the weekend." He pushes up his sleeves of his coat to show the green rope bracelet he always wears.

Eydis smiles. "I see you are still wearing my bracelet I gave you."

He smiles back at her and anger flares up within me. She gives him a look that she has never given more. I want her to look at me like that. Those two have something that I want. Friendship. Connect, maybe? My cheeks turn hot as I scowl at the ground.

"Hey, Telvi, I can make you one too if you want."

My eyes meet hers. "Really?"

She nods. "Of course. Just name the color and I'll make you one. Actually, you look more like a blue and white girl."

"I like those colors," I admit as my anger fades.