Chapter Seven: Carmen

Everything is in pain.

Except for our heads, they had waxed every other part of our bodies. Our legs, arms, armpits, cheeks, and even the back of our necks had all been waxed. And every time they ripped off the wax, we let out ear-shattering screeches. It seemed to go on forever.

When they were finished, they applied oil to all of the waxed areas, which would prevent the hair from growing for 6 to 12 months. Then they washed our feet and painted the same design on our toes as they did on our fingers. I could feel stray tears running down my face the entire time because of the waxing's pain.

We grabbed our garment bags and met Mami in the waiting area when we were all done. Then we paid thanked them, grabbed all of Mami's books, and left.

"What's next?" I asked.

Mami looked over her to-do list.

"Food first, then masks, then shoes."

Cami massages the back of her neck, saying, "Great, I'm starving."

All of our jaws fell when we entered the food court. It was breathtaking. It was one large open restaurant rather than many restaurants. When we arrived, we parked our stuff at the first available table and headed to the counter to place our order.

Their menu had a wide range of options. They served everything from burgers and fries to t-bone steaks and gravy-topped mashed potatoes.

I had ordered their daily special, which included a sirloin steak, four pieces of chicken, fries, a chocolate souffle, garlic bread, and an ice tea. Cami ordered a 12 piece chicken, garlic fries, a cheese souffle, and a sprite, while Mami had a fillet mignon, garlic fries, and a coke zero.

We returned to our table after grabbing the receipt with our order number, 247.

"So, I have been reading about table etiquette, and I thought we would try out some of the tips I learned," she adds as she pulls out the book she was reading earlier and places it in the centre of the table.

She then asked us to move our seats so that we could all read the book. We began to read when a loud voice yell disturbed us.

"Order number 247!" shouted a woman, who had a Harley Quinn-like accent.

"Well, that is us," I add, wanting to end this conversation.

She asks if we want anything else when we pick up our dinner.

"Yes, we need spoons, knives, forks, and napkins," Mami replies as she grabs her tray.

She answers, "Of course," and hands us the stuff.

We thank her and return to our table with our trays in hand.

Cami admires her nails and comments, "I like how their cutlery is metal and not plastic."

I do not blame her since, to be honest, I was too. This is a big deal for us because we have not had our nails done since Mami and Papi lost their jobs.

Mami gives each of us a fork and begins to instruct us.

"Mami," I reply, interrupting her. "Please do not go all fancy right now. We are at a food court, so we are supposed to get a little sloppy. Pleeeeeeeaaaaaaaaase,"

"For all we know, Carmen, the ball could just be hundreds of people seated at a table with the royal family, and the prince could be eliminating people based on their eating habits!"

Cami begins, "But Mami." "Can not we do that at home? When we have finished our shopping?"

Mami lets out a sigh.

"Fine, go nuts," she adds, a ghost of a smile on her face.

Cami and I let out a relieved sigh and did as we were told.

We went nuts!

The utensils were barely used. We were all stuffed, filthy, and thrilled when we were done.

Mami sighs and pats her stomach with her grimy palm, "Ah, that was good."

I copy her and add, "Yeah, it was."

Cami imitates us and says, "Mmm-hmm."

After about 5 minutes, we located a bathroom, did our business, washed our hands, and exited the food court.

As we pack our belongings and leave, I joke, "I hope we can still fit in our dresses."

"The dresses, oh my goodness! I completely forgot about those!" Mami is on the verge of screaming.

"What?" Cami expresses her concern.

"I do not have a dress!" she exclaims, her face flushed with terror.

"It's fine, Mami," I say. I tried to calm her down by saying, "You can go grab a dress while Cami and I go get masks, and you can just meet us at the shoe store."

"All right, all right," she murmurs as she fans herself with her palms.

"All right," Cami patted her back again.

We decided that Mami would go dress shopping while Cami and I would go mask shopping and text each other when we were done, so that is exactly what we did. Cami and I went in search of a masquerade shop that was not closed or sold out. We came across one named 'Masks by Melissa' and we rush into the store, believing that if we take even a millisecond longer, the store will close in front of our eyes.

There was a tinkling of a bell when we opened the door. It smelled like cotton candy and gummy bears and was very bright. We take a five-minute stroll through the store before remembering that we were meant to be looking for masks.

"We have to focus!" I say, giggling while clutching my stomach.

"Yeah, we should," she responded, laughing so hard she was out of breath.

We began looking for masks after we had finally calmed down.

"These bags are killing my arm, ugh. Why did Mami buy such a large number of heavy books and force us to carry them? We already have our garment bags to carry "I grumble as I juggle two book bags and a garment bag on my arm.

"I know, right?! I am exhausted! "she said.

"Ooh! Cami, take a look at these!" I point to a few masks and say.

She said, "Those are lovely!"

We looked for another five minutes, oohing and ahhing over masks and moaning about the agony in our arms before finding the masks we were looking for. Cami got a silver mask that covered the right side of her face and her left eye, while I got a white lace mask with a golden lining. A total of $56 was spent on both masks.

As I was paying for my mask, I received a text from Mami asking where we were, so I gave her the location. She arrived five minutes later, carrying her garment bag.

While Mami shopped for her mask, Cami and I waited outside.

"The mall is closing shortly," she adds as she walks out of the store, checking her watch, "and if we do not buy our shoes in the next 44 minutes, we might not get them at all."

"Can not we just come back the next day?" Cami asks.

Mami motions for us to get up, saying, "No, the mall closes after today until after the ball." We rushed out of bed to locate the closest shoe store.

As we entered the shop, a woman sweeping the floor stated, "Excuse me, ma'am, we close in 20 minutes."

"We promise to be extremely quick," Mami urged.

"All right," she murmurs hesitantly as she sweeps.

We were all at the counter checking out our shoes ten minutes later, and I made a real effort to keep one of my shoe boxes hidden from Mami because she had specifically instructed us to buy five-inch heels, but I also chose the most stunning baby blue eyelet lace-up platform wedge all-star sneakers. In case I decide to be comfy at the last minute, I now have heels and shoes that are about the same height.

When we got home, Mami told us to put our belongings away and come downstairs in our heels, which we did.