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“PLEASE wait here for a moment. They are still preparing for the banquet.”
On the day of the fifteenth, the middle-aged man in the suit whom we met before picked us up at Mochizuki’s behest and brought us to the Arrows boutique.
All our classes were in the morning, so I expected he would pick me up from my house just after noon, but to my surprise, he came straight to the school.
Still, ever since our call with Mochizuki, Shizuku and I had both been impatiently waiting for this day to come. We happily hopped into the car.
“Are you okay, Urara? Not nervous, are you?”
“Yes, I’m okay. Somehow.”
That was a lie. The truth was that my heart was thundering in my chest like a drum. Yet I tried to pretend I was fine.
The night before, I had used Haruto’s phone to try to call Chouko again. He didn’t answer, but before I hung up, I promised I’d see him the next day.
So I couldn’t allow my nerves to get the better of me when I finally got to see him.
I flashed Shizuku a smile. At that moment, the two ladies who worked at Arrows charged over to us.
“Shizuku! Urara! Good to see you! Now, we don’t have much time, so let’s give you two the works!”
“First, to the beauty room. We’re gonna give you a glow-up from top to bottom. We’ll then get you in undergarments and have your hair and makeup done.”
“Tehehe. We have plans for you both, just you wait. Now, now, don’t just stand there staring. Let’s go!”
They shouted and spirited us out of the salon. Before Shizuku and I even knew what was happening, we were lying down in the beauty room.
“Wow. These people are crazy.”
“They’re certainly something. They’re giving us makeovers from head to toe.”
I had no idea why a designer boutique would also house a beauty salon, but getting a makeover from a professional esthetician was a first for me, in both this life and my last. My skin felt so shiny and springy.
We were moved next to get our hair and makeup done, but our hairstyles were completely different from how they were done for the dance competition. Shizuku’s loose updo, interwoven with fresh flowers, was a perfect complement to her bright-orange dress.
The ladies insisted my hair would look good partially down, so my hair was given a half updo on the top and sides, with the back falling free in light curls and accented with a hair accessory that looked as if it were made with twigs.
“I’m sorry we don’t have new dresses for you.”
“And the grizzly man promised he would!” Shizuku complained.
“We so wanted to make them for you.”
They chatted away as they helped us into the dresses.
That wasn’t a problem for me. After all, we had only worn them once, and for me, the person I wanted to see me in mine still hadn’t.
“No, this dress is just fine. Thank you for wanting to make us new ones. I appreciate your help.”
They met my polite words with smiles and thumbs-up. Their cheerfulness was starting to ease my anxiety.
Once we were done with our preparations, we looked at ourselves in full-body mirrors. The girls standing before us were unrecognizable, but undeniably ladies.
“Incredible...”
“Urara, you look so pretty!”
“You’re very lovely, too, Shizuku!”
“Don’t forget this,” the oldest-looking lady said as she produced a large velvet case.
Within that case was a charming necklace with several pearls, crowned with a large teardrop-shaped pearl at its center.
“This is yours, Shizuku. It goes well with your outfit. And, Urara, this one is yours,” she said, producing another necklace, a dainty pearl choker.
“This is far too valuable for me.”
“Not at all. The bear—er, I mean, the boss insisted that you wear it.”
She slipped behind me before I could say another word and put the necklace around my neck. When I gazed at myself in the mirror, I saw that a lovely butterfly-shaped pendant hung from the center of the choker.
“A butterfly?”
Butterflies reminded me of Chouko’s name.
“Yes. Now you’re both ready! Show off those lovely makeovers!”
Applause filled the room, and thus, we were ready.
“Give it your all!”
“We’re rooting for you!”
That’s right. They went to all this trouble to make us look our best. Now I had to see Chouko, to let him see their hard work. I knew he would love it.
We let out a final shout to psyche ourselves up before straightening up and putting our game faces on.
We had arrived at Arrows just after noon, but by the time we had received the full makeover, it was already dusk. Just as we were finishing up, the same chauffeur arrived to pick us up. To our surprise, and likely out of consideration for our rather large gowns, the car—or rather, limousine?—that came for us this time was much larger than the one that brought us.
“It will be a long ride, so you will find some drinks in there for you. Please do not hesitate to press that button if you need anything else,” the man said and stepped away from the door.
“Wait!” I called out to him. “Where exactly are we going?”
He stopped immediately but maintained his calm demeanor as he responded.
“You have been there before. The White Lily Room has been prepared for you to utilize until the banquet.”
He stepped away and closed the door quietly.
“I had a feeling that’s where we were going.”
“Seems that way. I thought it was some type of meeting place. It has all those side rooms and can likely accommodate overnight visitors as well.”
“Whoooa, the Prince’s family really is loaded.”
Agreed. Being able to claim ownership of such a massive property alone was a big deal. And thinking that Chouko’s family was said to have even more wealth than the Mochizuki family, I couldn’t even imagine what his house looked like.
It was understandable, then, that anyone else seeing a commoner like me aiming for someone so out of my league would be skeptical.
Even so, I had resolved myself. To live this life without regrets.
“Well, at least we know where we’re going and what time we can expect to get started.”
“You’re right. I suppose we may as well enjoy the ride. Let’s make this night one to remember,” I said and struck a pose.