Exercise 1

I only clocked in at 250 words, and admittedly only spent about 30 min. It's been a very busy week, but here it is!


Marla stood her ground. She knew her daughter, and was wise to the tumult that came with the surging hormones of a pre-teen.
“You're too young.”
“Becky's mom lets her wear makeup.”
Becky's mom also comes to PTA meetings smelling like martinis, she thought. Probably not the best judge of character for this situation.
“I said no, now go wash your face. You're pretty as it is, you don't need makeup.”
“So you don't think you're pretty?”
“Why would you say that?”
“I didn't, you did.”
Marla didn't remember saying anything of the sort, but her mind wasn't as sharp as it was when she was younger. Nevertheless, she pressed on.
“Aspen, you're getting yourself confused. I said nothing of the sort. And just to clarify, no matter what you say the answer is still going to be no.”
“Then why do you wear makeup, mom?”
“To make myself look prettier.”
And it hit her. She had said it earlier, she just hadn't realized.
Marla stood speechless in the kitchen, looking at her little girl. It was one of those “do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do” moments, but she couldn't muster up the fortitude to stammer out that lie. Marla was caught in a memory of the first time she put on lipstick and meant it, while Aspen's big green eyes gazed at her, waiting for an answer.
“Just don't let your father see you.”
Aspen exclaimed a drawn out “yes,” and skipped out of the room.