Read Online Mayne Attraction: In The Spotlight by Ann Mauren - Free Book Online Page B

makeup with edgy, tough accessories.
Samantha also drew upon punk influences, incorporating a little of
both to create her own hideously ugly personal style that evoked a
frustrating but undeniable morbid fascination on my part.
    Sitting next to her in our shared Advanced
Program Senior English class provided a much closer view than would
have presented itself to me in the natural order of things. People
who looked like her frightened and repulsed me. Well, now that I
was older, what they really did was irritate me with such backwards
attempts to gain attention—something that offended me on multiple
levels.
    Upon very close scrutiny, it was clear that
somewhere deep beneath the layers of densely over done black makeup
and jet black hair highlighted with random strings of white and
neon pink was a perfectly pretty girl. She had great bone
structure. Her eyes made me think she might have some Asian
heritage. She was tall and thin, willowy and graceful. Her bulky
black clothes (and platform shoes that made her nearly seven feet
tall) combined with her heavy, painful looking jewelry all but
obscured her true self. I imagined that was the point, though I
couldn’t guess why.
    I was ashamed of my mental bigotry, assuming
that she was stupid, or insecure, or mistakenly vain. I would
never, ever say such unkind things aloud, but the fact that nobody
around me knew what I was thinking didn’t change the ugly truth
that I was being prejudiced and unfair. Who was I to judge this
book by her cover? Vowing to amend my ways, I decided to see what
it would be like to be friends with a person like Samantha. The
upside was that it didn’t seem like I would be in anybody’s way
trying.
    It turned out that Sam was surprisingly
smart for someone who looked so stupid. Of course, she was in
Advanced English with me, but I didn’t think of that until later. I
had framed my introduction by informing her that my middle name was
also Samantha, not Velleity, as perhaps it should have been.
    When we conversed before and after class, I
found her to be engaging and fun with a quick wit and a rather dark
sense of humor, which I enjoyed immensely. I think she understood
how hard I was trying and seemed pleased to be the object of such
effort. She was the only girl my own age that I had ever felt so at
ease around, which was ironic considering the normal effect Goth
looking people had on me. When I quizzed her on her likes and
tastes, she directed me to a whole new world of books, music and
movies I never knew I liked. I’d been avoiding entertainment of
every sort for a while and it was enjoyable to re-engage that part
of myself again, especially with the assistance of a knowledgeable
guide.
    We only had one class together, and it
quickly turned into the highlight of my day. Before long I was
invited to join her for lunch, which was a huge thrill for me. The
joy was dampened, somewhat, though, when I followed her to our
table and realized we would not be eating alone. The dampening had
to do with the realization that she was part of a clan, and not my
exclusive property. I was sliding helplessly back into reticent
mode even before I sat down with them. But Samantha, who must have
anticipated such a reaction, was determined to keep me engaged, and
interviewed me like a talk show hostess, while the three other Goth
girls acted as the studio audience, keenly interested in hearing
what I had to say, and laughing at comments I hadn’t intended to be
received as funny. Much to my surprise and relief, they all seemed
to accept me with a degree of pleasantness and cordiality I would
not have expected. Once again, I was very happy to be wrong about
things.
    One day, a few weeks into our friendship,
while we were waiting for class to start, I hinted that I was
curious how the Goth look would wear on me, and Sam nearly blasted
out of her seat with enthusiasm.
    “Oh my God, Ellery! You have to let me do
you up! You don’t have to buy anything. You can wear