Page 56 of Scars Like Wings
I heard the shower turn on. On one of my windowsills, a candle ignited, making my room smell like pumpkin bread fresh from the oven—very seasonally appropriate. The beats of my favorite sleepy lo-fi hip-hop station switched to a soothing morning R&B, pop, and hip-hop playlist starting with “Good Days” by SZA. The large jasper, carnelian, and sunstone crystals that charged during the day on my windowsill started glowing to the music as if they were dancing to its beat. Distantly, I heard the beginnings of boiling water in my glass teapot on another windowsill. I watched a green tea bag float to my favorite mug, reading “Cup of Ambition.” On their own, honey swirled into it and lemon juice poured itself in. Soon, the teapot lifted to pour water in to steep.
Gods, I loved living in a modern magical world.
“Are you feeling a little under the weather? Your internal temperature is reading lower than usual despite it being sunny and with a forecasted high of seventy-four degrees outside. Would you like me to raise the thermostat in your room? It’s currently on cooling, at sixty-nine degrees.”
“Yes, please. Can you set it to heating?”
“Done. Would you like to hear your Tarotscope?”
“Not today, Cleo.” The spoon in my mug clinked against the sides as the teabag was removed and placed into the trash. Despite the steam from the freshly brewed cup, I took a sip. It should have burned my tongue, but it quickly sent warmth throughout my whole body. I chugged the entire cup in just a few gulps and felt the heat pool in my stomach. It was enough liquid courage for me to face the cold in my room. Dinah yowled as I shifted, but she got the hint and jumped to the end of the bed instead. I shoved all the covers away, threw my legs over the bed’s edge, and headed to the shower while I had some heat still left within me.
The bathroom was filled with fog, rolling in large clouds from the shower. The steam alone helped, but the shower? It felt like pureheaven. The water heated me down to my soul. I didn’t want to leave. I stayed long after I had bathed until the hot water ran out.
A towel floated over from my heated towel rack and encircled me. A microfiber towel—because lint was a bastard to get out of locs, you havenoidea—wrapped around my locs to dry them. Snuggled in the towels and savoring the hot steam, I went over to my mirror and rubbed the fog away. I began my facial routine.
Black can definitely crack if you don’t hydrate and moisturize, and I had a whole process.
Giving my serum a moment to soak in, I started lotioning while sitting on the edge of my deep-soaker tub. When I reached my shoulders, I paused and went over to the mirror. I turned with my back facing the mirror and looked. I had to squint to see without my glasses, but the image was still discernible.
All I saw were my scars. They branched out from my spine, spreading toward my shoulders, sides, and down toward my ass. They were raised and lighter in color than the rest of my skin. Still, if I stared long enough at all the scars as a collective, therewas something there. I could just barely make out what it was, its outline and shape. It kind of looked like…
“Dragonfly wings?” I was suddenly overcome by a strange sense of déjà vu. Not just because Quinn had said the same thing at Chill’s, but it almost felt like I had heard someone else say it before years ago?—
“Byrdie, you have a new text message. Do you want me to read it?”
“No, I’ll get my phone,” I replied to Cleo. I quickly put on my moisturizer, wrapped myself in my fluffy robe, and left the bathroom. I put on my glasses and grabbed my phone from the nightstand.
QUEENIE ♥?
Good morning, baby girl. I hope you slept well and had some sweet dreams. Maybe some had me in it? ?? I had such a fun two days with you, sweetness. You are so beautiful and fun. Nat is still talking about you. It was great seeing you interact with my crazy family. I can’t wait for us to do it again. Anyway, I hope you have a great day!
Baby girl. I could scream seeing every word Quinn had sent on my phone’s screen. Instead, I smiled so big my cheeks started hurting. Quinn and I had exchanged numbers at the party, but since we had spent most of the time together, we hadn’t texted until now. TheGood Morningtext was the morning coffee of the dating experience: the best start to the day, absolutely delicious when done correctly, and one of my favorite things on the planet. And this one was perfectly brewed and served. As many times as I had received a text like this, there was something different about this time, something that felt like this was the first of many, but this was a valuable and important first. The idea ofQuinn was becoming more material and solid. I laid back onto my bed and covered up with the blankets.
I responded:
ME
OMG, good morning! I did sleep very well, actually. No dreams about you, unfortunately, but I also didn’t dream a lot tonight. Maybe I will get lucky tonight… ?? I had so much fun this weekend, too! I can’t wait to go on another date with you. Your family is wild but so fun. I had a great time with them, too. Any plans today?
I didn’t have to wait long for theDeliveredto be marked asRead. The three dots popped up and hovered for just a moment before her text appeared:
QUEENIE ♥?
I like the sound of getting lucky. ?? Honestly, no plans! Looking forward to just enjoying my first day off from work in a while. Nat and I will probably smoke, go eat, and watch some trashy reality TV. A well-deserved chill day. Wbu?
ME
The girls are coming over soon! We are going to do a little bit of a sleepover with pizza, wings, wine, and some ANTM while doing some research. It should be fun!
QUEENIE ♥?
Oh, so toxic, but so entertaining that show. What is your go-to pizza and wing combination?
ME
The blackface and fat-shaming get me every time honestly. We watch the show for the contestants more so than Tyra, who is absolutely unhinged. My favorite pizza is a bacon, Canadian bacon, four-cheese, and pineapple. I love garlic parmesan wings, but I’m also a sucker for ranch.
QUEENIE ♥?