Page 15 of Better Than Gelato
“Also, the straps are like my mom’s blue pantsuit. They go like this.”
She adjusts them so they’re sitting off my shoulders.
Wow. I am an idiot.
I check myself out in the mirror. The cut is flattering, and the style makes me look older than twenty, which I appreciate.
Isa hands me my black heels.
I slip them on and do my best runway model walk. Isa giggles.
“Is that what you think runway models walk like?”
“Yes,” I say with a serious face. I add in some dramatic hip shimmies, and Isa falls over laughing.
“Mama! Come look at Juliet!” Isa hollers, still giggling.
There’s a timid knock on my door and Sofia peaks her head in. “Wow, you look very nice,” she says.
“Thank you,” Isa and I say at the same time.
“Ichose her outfit,” Isa tells Sofia. “She’s going on a date tonight. To the theater. With an attractive man.”
She pauses and looks at me. “Heisattractive, right?”
“Very,” I confirm.
“Now let’s put on all your jewelry!” Isa says, already rummaging through my closet.
“Oh. I don’t really have any jewelry,” I tell her.
Her face looks like I’ve just told her I don’t really have fingers.
“I think I have just the thing,” Sofia says.
I start to protest, but she’s already gone. She comes back a minute later carrying a diamond necklace. Each stone is the size of a plump blueberry and I take two steps back.
Sofia sees my expression and laughs. “It’s not real. It’s just costume jewelry. Inexpensive.”
She puts it around my neck and fastens it.
I looked good before, but now I look stunning.
“Wow,” I say. “Thank you, Sofia. I’ll take good care of it.”
“I’m sure you will,” Sofia says with a smile. “But it’s not anything to worry about. Marco used it for a runway show last year and it’s been sitting in a drawer ever since.”
My jaw drops. “This was in a runway show? Worn by a real supermodel?”
Sofia smiles. “We just call them models over here. But yeah, one of the girls wore it with a swimsuit I think. That show had some eclectic combinations.”
Sofia heads back to the kitchen, and Isa starts pulling at my hair.
“You should definitely wear it down,” she says.
“I thought up might look fancier,” I say.
“Your hair is the prettiest thing you have,” she says, like she’s explaining it to a toddler. “Keep it down all flowy, so he’ll want to touch it.”
