And I Will Live
an excerpt

Jay chewed on her lip nervously, reaching for an outfit, and then discarding it before she had even touched it. //That’s not right either.//
All the clothes she owned, not many, but enough, were strewn about her bedroom floor. They were generally practical garments like jeans and t-shirts. Most of the shirts were second-hand, the colours faded, but their designs were still pretty. The jeans were clumsily patched. //Ma never did teach me how to sew.//
She had to admit reality. She simply did not own any clothes fancy enough to wear to a banquet. And there was no chance of buying anything new. She was desperate to make this engagement work, but not desperate enough to blow her hard-earned pay on clothes of high class calibre. If the ugly-suit, fashionable suits were very ugly, hosting the banquet had not realized that a working-class girl would not own anything suitable, certainly the servant who had extended his invitation should have.
Jay paced back and forth, small, bare feet chilled against the hardwood floor, little pieces of fingernail falling to the ground as she switched from chewing her lip to biting her nails. How could she simply show up in regular clothes? They would all laugh at her. No, they were too well-bred to do that. Some would smirk behind their hands; others would simply raise their eyebrows at her like she was some sort of interesting bug they had spotted in the garden. A praying mantis maybe. They were interesting. But really, the ugly-suits were preying mantises, not she. She was their prey. What did they prey on anyway? Oh wait, high-folk didn’t like bugs, did they…
//Hey honey//, said her brain, //you’re gonna be late.// She had just enough time to get there if she left now. But she really had to wear something. They definitely wouldn’t let her in wearing underclothes. //Everyone wears underclothes, dumbo. Just…under something.// And Jay had to laugh. Because really, this whole thing was very silly. //It’s not like you’re a guest, love.// The reasonable part of her brain had finally decided to return to her. //You’re only the entertainment. They’ll all be talking amongst themselves anyway, hardly anyone will even hear you sing, let alone care what clothes you’re wearing. And if they don’t like it, well, you’ll still get paid.//
Feeling considerably more cheerful, Jay pulled on the outfit closest to her, and turned to look at herself in the mirror. Lovely, nearly colourless blue eyes stared back at her, lined in black. Makeup? Check. Didn’t have to worry about that. The thin-sleeved, low cut black shirt didn’t cover her shoulders, which she was not sure was alright among the upper classes, but she didn’t have the time left to care. Shirt? Check. Fly zipped? Check. She ran a brush quickly through her light, dusty-brown hair, and, slinging her guitar case over her shoulder, finally walked out the apartment.
She turned back at the end of the hall, remembering that she needed shoes.

~~~

(I'd written an intro for Jay, but then I realized that it didn't work at all with the plot or her personality. Darn. Until I edit in December, though, I can't get rid of it because it'll decrease my wordcount. *sob* So I'll just ignore it until then. This'll be Jay's intro! ^_^ Also, I'm usung //...// here for thoughts, when really I use italics.)