CLOSED ► @raekaplan
WHERE: at the entrepreneurship gala / WHEN: throwback to november 2019
jasmine’s stomach was twisted into a knot when she parked her car alongsides all of the fancy porsches and teslas of her fellow entrepreneurs. she felt absolutely out of place and she had not actually walked inside of the place yet. she squeezed her hand bag so hard when she finally appraoched the building that her knuckles were turning white. she was greeted by employees who asked for her name. she was allowed to walk inside, but insisted on waiting in the lobby. there were more important things than hearing more successful people brag about their riches. jas was definitely not her father’s daughter, or else she would not feel this urgent need to run outside and hide in the comfort of her home, wearing her favourite bunny ears slippers and texting her best friend or facetiming them just because she missed the sound of their voice. she checked her phone out of habit, still no news.
where was rachel?
the truth was, jasmine wanted to turn down the award for which she was honoured that night. she did not seek for pity or do it out of fake humility, she truly believed she was undeserving of it. she was so new to the whole business world and, quite frankly, she never thought she would be a part of it. she admired her mother’s career and dedication to making whoever walked into her workplace happy, but she also knew the ugly side of it all too well. everything was done for the sake of vanity and power. truly, she did not belong there. jasmine made a promise, though, and she was not one to break her pinky promises.
as soon as she received the invitation, she stormed into rachel’s salon, holding the enveloppe like it was her invitation for a royal ball. she entered a spiral of thoughts: what would she wear, who would be there, why was she the chosen one, who would take care of the shop when she was gone. instead of telling her to breathe and calm down, rachel just hyped her up and gave her confidence a well-needed boost. one thing was obvious in jasmine’s mind: rachel would be her date. she did not even think of inviting her mother who, more or less, paved the way on the tacky red carpet of the event. it was clear that she wanted no one to be by her side other than her best of friends.
jasmine was frantically looking from one side to the other, trying to keep an eye on the reception hall while also making sure she did not miss their arrival on accident. how could she have missed it? she heard a familiar voice call out her name and turned around. she was greeted by one of the most beautiful sights she had ever witnessed in her life. she heard her own audible gasp, which was the only sound that came out of her mouth left ajar aside from the sudden stuttering. she had to shake her head vividly to come back to her senses and to bring her friend in a tight embrace. and she smelled absolutely heavenly too. minnie tried to blink away the confusing sensations she was experiencing at that very moment. it was hard to describe, it resembled butterflies, fireworks and birthday euphoria. all she knew was that it felt warm. it felt nice. it felt comforting. it felt like something she did not want to stop feeling. once she managed to pull away, after what seemed like an awkward amount of time spent hugging and ruining rae’s perfect hair and makeup by smudging it around, she finally spoke something lucid.
“you just got here and you’re already stealing the show, bestie!”