9 I Become Magical Like Bianca! (03)

What can I do now? Wait, I was standing behind the cabinet... Why don't I just hide them there and see what I can do in the afternoon? With this thought in mind, Beth took the materials and quickly stuffed them in a corner in the cabinet.

The afternoon soon came.

"This...This design looks fabulous. We need to get some materials to make it." Julianna was very impressed with Beth's new design. It was indeed much better than the original one that they were working on. Since the cabinet was just facing her, she directly walked towards it to see if anything usable was there. "Let's start by looking at this cabinet..."

No. She is gonna take out the materials!

"Jules, don't go there!! DON'T!!" Beth leaned towards and shouted.

"Is there anything bad?" Julianna turned back with a perplexed look on her face. However, "seeing is believing" was her life philosophy. Thus, she still decided to see what was hiding in the cabinet in order to believe what Beth had said.

As she opened the cabinet, the shiny lights that surrounded the materials instantly caught her attention. "Oh fudge, that is dazzling...How come no one had found that cloth and decorations before? Maybe I have been so busy that I have not noticed those details."

No way...the materials were still found. Beth could do nothing but to nervously smile back at Julianna.

"What's wrong, Beth?" looking at Beth's expression, Julianna was even more puzzled. She knew that it would not be a normal reaction of Beth, considering how much she had wanted this project to succeed. "We should take those materials out to see if they are suitable for making our project. Also, where's Simone's group?"

"Actually, I have no idea. But here, I recorded Simone's two friends saying that they took the dress to a tailor."

"Right. Now, speaking of those materials..." Julianna ran her fingers across the materials to feel their smoothness.

"Beth, you should try using this. But you know better than me on fashion-related stuff, Beth. You will be the one to decide. Wait...Beth? Are you listening?"

"Jules, here's the thing. I know you may call me crazy on this but I need to tell you. To be honest...."

My magic produced it.

Nonetheless, Beth ended her speech abruptly before she mentioned her newly gained magic. It's crazy enough for me to even say something like this. Would Jules believe in what I said? Yesterday was a blast for her--she was fighting off those weird color blobs all alone in the dark hallway, and she obtained her golden bracelet in a colorful dream. At first, she was startled by their appearance and kept telling herself that all those things were simply "magical thinking" that Owen had mentioned. After feeling the texture of her outfit after her transformation, and seeing the bracelet appear on her wrist, she was not sure if those things were illusions anymore.

Yet there were still some unanswered questions that lingered in her mind. Why did I become magical?

What does "just call me with this bracelet" mean? Does it mean that I can actually control the bracelet? But why did it suddenly became alert during lunchtime out of my control? Moreover, will the 'color blobs' appear again for me to fight? It's hard to prove that the magic Beth experienced was real with those questions remaining mysterious.

Nonetheless, she felt obliged to tell Julianna the truth.

"To be honest... " Beth looked down at her bracelet, trying to shake it with the anticipation that it might jump out of her wrist again. "the bracelet did the thing. The material just APPEARED today."

"What? What are you saying?"

"My host parents told me that there's a rumor surrounding Laurel that students saw unusual colors and shapes, and there were students performing magic. I guess perhaps the rumor is true. I saw something today earlier like that...hmmm...the colored shapes."

"Magic in Laurel?" Julianna was surprised, but she didn't cross the possibility completely off the table. "I mean, I've heard about the rumor before, but I am not sure if that's actually true. Magic and witchcraft may have existed in ancient times, but I have never seen a piece of concrete evidence about its existence in Laurel. You know what? Maybe we should wait for some time to see if anything magical comes from your bracelet."

"There's no need to wait! I will show you."

Beth stood facing the sunlight from the windows. She purposefully stared at the bracelet and stroke the bracelet with force. Then, she held her breath, waiting to see if something unexpected would come out.

Three...two...one. Nothing appeared.

Not completely convinced by the result, she stroke the bracelet again. Everything was still the same as before.

"Oh, why don't you do something, YOU STUPID BRACELET!"

"I see. maybe you are just tired and you start seeing things! Look, we are running out of time. As for now, let's just get our project going with the material!"

Beth nodded awkwardly to Julianna. There's nothing she could do at the moment. Maybe the best course for her now was to let go explaining how her experience confirmed the rumor at Laurel Prep.

A few days before the preliminary selection of the runway competition, things started to take on a different direction for Beth and Julianna. With the new materials in hand, they were able to make a very beautiful new dress. Because of that, other students started paying more attention to them as well. It started with a couple of students having art classes casually saw their project in a corner. Then, those students spread the news to their friends and classmates. In a few days, quite a few crowds could be seen admiring Beth and Julianna's works after school in the art room every day.

What also made Beth happy was that she had not seen Simone for a couple of days. She heard a rumor from another class that Simone had caught a bad cold and needed to rest at home. On hearing the rumor she giggled like a villain. Haha, this superficial flashy girl also got her down days! she definitely deserves this cold! It would be even better if she chose to quit the preliminary because of her cold...

Quite a few students were voicing their concerns to Simone in 'Laurel Prep Class of 2019'. Some of them wished that she could get well soon, while others sent her music videos in the chat and promised to help her with her coursework when she came back. I don't think she needs those things. Beth scrolled down the chat history and skipped all those messages. I guess she would be recording an 'I, unfortunately, caught a cold unexpectedly' video, and waiting for her little fans to cheer her up!

Out of the students who were concerned about Simone, there were, of course, the blonde and the brunette.

One day, Beth and Julianna went to the art room as always. As usual, people were talking about their project.

"Look, there's the pretty silky dress that Beth and Julianna made! Haha, Paige and Jade are going to be so pissed by that!"

Hmm! Are those two blonde and brunette actually called Paige and Jade? Beth and Julianna thought to themselves simultaneously. We never knew their names!

"Paige? Oh my gosh, that girl! She outrightly flirted with my crush in front of me and called me a fat pig!" One student in front of them mentioned the blonde.

"Jade. I heard that her dad is some kind of an executive at a consulting group. He sure knows a lot of things. That girl puts on that annoying stuck-up face every time when she walks by...gosh!" Another student called on the brunette.

Beth couldn't help but giggle while Julianna silently put her hand on her lips to prevent any noises coming from her.

"I don't get why they seem to have a lot of friends there and there. Also, did these two people grow up together? They resemble each other so much!" The first student continued with her speech.

"Maybe they both SPAWNED from the same gloomy MUD POD!!"

Several people laughed together this time.

"Honestly speaking, I don't quite get why Simone hangs out with them. I feel like Simone is a good person." The second student suddenly brought Simone up. As she saw Paige and Jade came up, she waved at the first student and the two people walked to the sideways of the hallway. "Shhhhh, they are coming."

What?! Is Simone actually good? Beth gasped and listened more carefully.

"I am so worried now because of what Beth and Julianna did." Paige was about to throw hands at the crowd.

"Laurel people are just full of cutthroat."

"What are we gonna do with this situation? Simone is not here. If we don't get the first place in the competition, how can I explain to my father about all the stuff he invested in the project?" Jade looked particularly anxious and angry as well. "We need Simone because she is a dazzling star that can help one of my father's client! I mean, what have we got from her now? Nothing! Simone might not even get unto the runway to be seen!"

I see. What a dad pleaser. Julianna frowned.

"Maybe we should have told Simone that her idea isn't good enough."

"Gosh! If we did that, Simone is not going to be pleased with us and will leave us. That way, we can't have her for the runway show!" Jade shook her phone and stomped her feet angrily on the ground.

What? Are they talking about Simone behind her back as well? Is this how Paige and Jade actually treat Simone?

"Also, are you sure that Beth and Julianna didn't cheat on the competition? Their work was very floppy before they even produced this dress!"

"I suspect that as well. Paige, we need to investigate them after the result is in. If they are cheating, they will also expose themselves during the fashion show."

Hey, you guys are the ones that are cheating! Beth was about to jump out and confront them. However, her thoughts carried her back instantly. I used magic for the project as well.

What should I do now?

Beth was still thinking about the same question after she went home. Thinking about them made her mind a mess, so she decided to watch some videos on her laptop first.

It's hard to expose their intentions on the runway show because I also used stuff produced by magic...But magic is hard to explain as well. Okay, maybe I should calm down for a second. Let me watch some videos really quick...

An old clip popped out as 'recommended' in her feed. It was from "Always In My Heart", a romance series that used to be famous in Laurel. I have always wanted to watch this show. Maybe I should do a preview of what it is like...

The video started playing. A girl with chestnut hair sat on a chair, looking joyous. She started with her narration. "Life is a colorful wheel. When you have worries, don't dwell on it so much because they will all be taken away with time." As she spoke, a line appeared at the right corner of the video.

"Starring: Simone Raine Chandler."

"Wait, wait! It that...Simone?!" Beth's heart was beating rapidly. "Why does she look so different from when she was young?"

Meanwhile, just when Beth was thinking about Simone, Simone was laying inside piles of blankets at her home. Giant color blobs appeared outside of her bedroom.

Beth's bracelet was alert--it detected the presence of "monsters" that were about to emerge out of Simone when she was still at school.

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