“AMBER! You’re gonna be late!” her roommate screams up the stairs.

The bathroom fan muffles the sound of her own voice as she replies “What time is it?”

“It’s 10 pass the hour, you will never make it on time” exasperated.

“I just have to finish putting on my makeup.”  Knowing that was a lie, she said it anyway, it would keep her roommate from asking again, for at least 5 minutes.  She still had to pack her purse and figure out what shoes she was going to wear.

Amber liked her roommate for keeping track of time for she hated watches, thought they were too bulky and the thought of taking her phone into the bathroom while showering would be the same as eating cereal on the toilet, disgusting!  Seriously, you might as well live on the toilet if you are going to do that, shoveling it in one way as it comes out the other, Ugh!  It made her shiver at the thought but it made her shiver even more that she had done it a few times herself.  As she shook her head her hand quivered and the liquid eye liner she was applying became uneven, “Crap!  Now I have start again.”

Amber knew she was never good at this stuff.  It wasn’t that she didn’t like make up, she just never had a steady hand.  She admired the artists and regular women who could draw a smooth line.  Her hand eye coordination was never good anyway.  Amber gave up on using the track pad of her laptop and used the Hello Kitty mouse plugged into her USB drive she was given as a present instead.  Totally not her style but it was the result of when she and her roommate ended up going shopping after several hours of failing to master the track pad.  It seemed to happen very quickly, she remembers being at the store looking at some new computer programs when her roommate walks up to her with bag in hand and said “Let’s go.”  What could she say, she didn’t want to disappoint her, she was compelled to keep it, just like this liquid eye liner that is meant to make your eyes pop.

Looking in the mirror though, she felt she looked more like a raccoon than anything else.  Washing off the eye make up and going back to her old eye liner and her way of putting on makeup, she finished.  She knew she didn’t look like a model but she didn’t think she was the elephant man either.  She quickly put away her things and went into her bedroom.

Picking the right shoes was always a problem, why couldn’t she wear her tennis shoes.  She always like them, even had a couple of the same pair.  As she stares at all the shoes in her closet she hears, “AMBER!”

“I’m coming!” realizing she had to hurry she grabs the boots that are her fall back shoes when wearing dresses.  The boots are extremely comfortable and keep her legs warm, their was always a side of practicality to her choices.  After she packs her purse rushes downstairs, she was ready and wasn’t late.

“I see you decided to go curly.  I really wish you would cut your bangs, I hate them hanging in your face like that.  Here this is what you need to do.”  Standing in the doorway lifeless as her roommate redoes her hair, spits on her thumb to wipe away the make up she just redid.  “Now that is better, look don’t you look better?”

Glancing in the hallway mirror, knowing she was late and it would make her roommate unhappy, she just nods her head hoping she could leave.

As she puts on her coat she hears “You know that other dress would be better, I like that dress, it really makes you look better.”

“I am already late!”  Amber snaps.

“Don’t get all huffy with me.  You are the one that didn’t give yourself enough time. You should really put on that dress!” Her roommate retorts.

Amber knew she wasn’t going no where unless she changed.  Reluctantly she went upstairs put on the other dress and came back down.  Begins putting on her coat, opens the door.  Her roommate says, “Bye have a good time, don’t stay out too late, you never know who you will run into.”

“Bye, see you later.” Amber says solemnly as she walks out the door a completely different person.