Through the trees, Sarah saw a girl in a black lace dress walk by. She assumed it was Tiffany, so she called out her name. The girl stopped and looked in her direction, then walked towards her.
"Wow, Tiffany," Sarah said. "You look so different."
Tiffany looked down at herself. "I feel different. A few days ago I was horrified that I'd be stuck wearing these dresses, but ..." She sat down next to Sarah. "I'm kind of liking them." She ran her hand over her lace dress.
"I've had that feeling too," Sarah said. "It's weird, but I actually like dressing like a Goth."
"It's not weird, it's disturbing. We aren't supposed to be this way, Sarah."
"Yeah, I know."
Out of the corner of their eyes, they saw something silver walk by. It was bizarre enough to grab their attention, and when they looked they saw that it was Melissa. That blue-dyed hair was unmistakable.
"Hey, Melissa. Over here," Sarah yelled out.
They watched Melissa walk towards them. She was smiling.
"What are you so happy about?" Sarah asked.
"I'm just glad to see you, that's all. Man, I had one interesting time last night," she said, sitting down on the log on the other side of Sarah.
"I hope it was better than mine," Sarah said.
"What happened with you?" Melissa asked.
"It's my fucking dad. He won't get off my back."
"Oh. What about you, Tiffany? Have a nice night?"
"It was okay. But what about you? What's with the outfit? And the silver make-up?"
Melissa looked down at her silver latex body suit and smiled. "Do you like it?"
"It's a little bizarre, isn't it?" Sarah asked.
"So? I like wearing it."
"Melissa, people are gonna make fun of you."
"So what? I don't care what people think of me."
"You used to," Sarah said.
Then, Melissa realized that Sarah was right. Suddenly she saw herself in a different light. "What did I do?" she asked, as if waking up for the first time. "I look ridiculous in this."
"I think you look okay," Jessica said, walking towards them. She was wearing a tight black T-shirt displaying an image of a skull and crossbones, a black leather miniskirt, ripped fishnet stockings, and black knee-high buckled boots with three-inch stacks. Around her neck she wore a spiked collar and a string necklace, from which hung a pendant shaped like a skull.
"Whoa, Jessica. What's with all the skulls?" Melissa asked.
"You know, I just realized this morning how much I love the color black. And it's weird, but I also realized that I've got this fascination with death. I was thinking of stopping by the cemetery later."
"Sarah," said Tiffany, with a worried look on her face. "It's happening to all of us. Suddenly, we're all okay with being Goths."
Jessica heard what she said and began to think about it. And when she did, her eyes went wide. "It's like I'm someone else," she said, realizing that it wasn't normal to be feeling the way she did. She had to keep reminding herself that she wanted to be a cheerleader again, but as time went on, it became harder and harder.
They sat there, looking at each other for a moment. Each one displaying a look of worry. The silence was broken, however, when they all heard the snap of a tree branch. They all turned and saw Amber. She was dressed in a black leather corset, a black leather miniskirt, fishnet stockings, and black knee-high buckled boots with three-inch stacks. All her tattoos were clearly visible, and a cigarette hung from her mouth.
"What the fuck are you doing back here?" she asked, approaching them.
"Amber? Are you feeling okay?" Sarah asked. Amber's tone of voice sounded very similar to Sabrina's.
"Of course, I'm feeling okay. I mean, except for my fucking dad. Can you believe that that asshole actually hit me?"
"He hit you?" Sarah asked. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I am now. But I'm reluctant to go back home after school." She drew in smoke from her cigarette, then took it out of her mouth. "Shit!"
"What is it?" Jessica asked.
"That was my last one," she said, throwing it on the ground and stepping on it.
"Are you sure you're feeling okay?" Sarah asked. "Because you're not acting like yourself."
"Then who the fuck am I acting like?"
"Sabrina."
Amber was about to say something, but then it left her mind as she realized that Sarah was right. Without even realizing, she had been acting just like Sabrina. She didn't even know it was happening to her until Sarah pointed it out. It felt as if her knees were gonna buckle, so she sat on the log next to her friends. "What's happening to me?" she asked, looking up at them.
"I don't know. I really don't know," Sarah said.
