Read Online Next Door to a Star by Krysten Lindsay Hager - Free Book Online

have them,” Grandma said, and she and Aunt Faith exchanged a knowing look.
    “So it’s really important to you?” Aunt Faith asked.
    I nodded. “I’m the only girl I know of in high school that doesn’t have her ears pierced.”
    “Well, I was younger than you when I got mine done and it turned out okay for me, but you have to promise to take care of them and get it done by a doctor,” she said.
    She called a couple of doctor’s offices, but none of them pierced ears.
    “What about trying Slater’s Jewelry Store? They’re reputable,” Grandma said. “But I had no part in this if your parents ask.”
     
    ***
     
    Aunt Faith took me to the jewelry store the next morning and a woman named Michalina sat me down and showed me how to turn and clean the earring posts. Michalina asked if I had any questions about cleaning them, but all I wanted to know was if it would hurt.
    “It might pinch a little. Some people don’t feel a thing, but others say it feels like a little poke. Nobody’s ever died in my chair,” she said laughing.
    I sort of wanted to leave, but I had come this far and I couldn’t walk out the door a like little kid. Besides, I’d never get this chance again if I left. I got in the chair and said a prayer.
    Michalina had me pick out a pair of earrings and told Faith the 14k gold ones were the best. She made a dot on each ear with a marker and asked me if the marks seemed straight. I nodded and she loaded the piercing gun. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.
    “Ready?” she asked.
    I bit my lip and nodded. She placed the gun against my earlobe. Punch! It felt like she had stapled my ear. I put my hand up to see if I was bleeding.
    “Are you okay?” Michalina asked. She and my aunt were staring at me. I wondered if I could go the rest of my life with one ear pierced or would it look weird? I decided to get it over with. Michalina pierced my left ear and it hurt worse than the right. I thought I was going to fall out of the chair from the pain.
    “See? You hardly felt a thing,” Michalina said.
    Yeah, I loved feeling like the earth was swaying underneath me. My ears were throbbing, and I was so lightheaded Aunt Faith had to help me out of the chair. Michalina asked if we wanted to look at earrings, but I thought I might pass out and I wanted to go home. I leaned against the counter as my aunt paid. Michalina came over and gave me a hug. She reminded me to clean and turn my posts and gave me a bottle of cleaning solution.
    “Are you okay?” Faith asked when we got in the car.
    “It hurt worse than I thought. Still, I’m glad I didn’t have Simone do it,” I said.
    “Ew.” She shuddered. “Promise me you won’t put any more holes in your ears. I don’t want to see you in a month with three holes in each ear.”
    I promised I wouldn’t get any more piercings. I wanted to say there was no way I’d ever go through that again, but I didn’t want her to get upset. I had to act like it was no big deal so she wouldn’t feel guilty for taking me behind my parents’ backs. I flipped the visor mirror down so I could see the earrings.
    “Do you regret it?” she asked.
    “No, it looks nice, don’t you think?”
    She nodded and told me to drop hints to Grandma about wanting diamond earrings for my upcoming sixteenth birthday. I couldn’t wait to show Simone. I wished I could have gotten cooler earrings. I didn’t realize I was going to have to wait so long to change them, but as soon as I could, I was going to go downtown and buy a pair of dangly palm tree earrings like Simone’s. Grandma was waiting by the door when we pulled up. She pulled my hair back with her hands.
    “Maggie, do these studs look even to you?” she asked, squinting. My aunt rolled her eyes and said they were straight.
    “Are you sure?” Grandma asked, tilting my head up. “They look off to me.”
    “Yes, Ma. Perfectly even. They look nice, Hadley,” Aunt Maggie said. She held Lily up to see and Lily put