Free Remainder by Stacy H. Pan

at least put on some mascara and lip-gloss," she commands. She hands me a tube of mascara and lip-gloss. I watch her as she applies her mascara. I bend down in front of the mirror of the vanity and open the tube of mascara. The lash wand is smothered with the black gooey substance. Clumsily, I place the wand under my lashes and pull it up. My lashes feel heavy from the thickness of the mascara. I apply the same treatment to the lashes on my other eye. I examine my handiwork in the mirror. Although it is a strange feeling to have the mascara on, it does help to make the green color of my eyes pop. I apply the lip-gloss to my lips and instinctively rub my lips together. The result gives them a shiny pink color. I look at Bailey and see that she has been very generous in her makeup usage. Her pretty face looks like it has been painted on with thick paint, giving her face the appearance of shattering if someone was to be so bold and touch her.
    "Take your hair down." I pull the tie out of my hair so that my hair falls around my shoulders and down to my breasts. Bailey looks me up and down. "There, that's better," she exclaims with a small smile on her face. I can’t figure out if she is smiling at my appearance or because she is pleased with herself. I gaze at myself in her vanity mirror. If I didn’t recognize myself a few moments ago in my bathroom mirror, I certainly don’t recognize myself now.
    "Okay, let's go downstairs and finish the preparations," Bailey says excitedly. I, for one, am not excited. I don’t feel like going to a party. I especially don’t feel like being paraded around as Bailey's new prized possession.
    We go downstairs, and I am expecting to be put to work, but Bailey's idea of "finishing preparations" is to yell at the people she has hired to prepare for the party. Once Bailey is satisfied with everything inside, we walk outside to the back yard. The sun is setting behind the mountains and the view is absolutely breathtaking. The entire sky is a wash of deep oranges, soft reds, and glittering yellows, with the most beautiful shades of purple and blue that lead out into sky beyond my view.  All of the trees are covered with little twinkling lights that blink in different colors that seem to match the sky. There are gorgeous round paper lanterns strung up attached to the house and the trees. Their light is so soft and warm that it seems as if they are floating in the sky and could fly away at any moment. There is a DJ booth and tables covered with all kinds of snacks and platters of food with tons of bottles laid out for beverages. There is even a bonfire raging. All the lights and colors beautifully reflect off the water of the lake, making the lake look more like glass than water.  I realize that in this one moment, I feel at peace, almost as if I am in some other life, but it ends as swiftly as it began.
    People begin to arrive and before we know it, the entire back yard is filled with people drinking and having a good time. I stand in the corner watching everyone have fun. Alec and the rest of the Enforcers are spread all over the place and staring steely-eyed at the young people, making sure no one gets too rowdy. I see Alec standing on the other side of the crowd. He looks just as thrilled to be here as I am. He looks in my direction. I can’t tell if he is looking at me or right past me. Whatever he sees seems to have shocked him, judging by the look on his face. He looks almost uncomfortable, the way he looked during his unpleasant discourse with Killian yesterday. I smirk to myself. It brings me joy to see him uncomfortable. Maybe more joy than it should.
    The party is lively. There are so many people, I wonder how Bailey can know that many people. I stand in the corner of the yard near the house. After the events today, I don’t feel like talking to anyone. I don’t feel comfortable in this too-tight dress, high-heeled shoes, and little bit of makeup. Bailey is nowhere in sight and I am