A Hot Pot of Sweet Revenge

One teaspoon of sweetness, two teaspoons of funny, three tablespoons of smiles and a whole lot of vengeance. I await the day we exchange laughs and shake hands...but the longer I wait, the darker my heart gets. Why should you live only to feed my anger? Tonight, you will be fed; a dish so tasty it will drag you down to hell.

Before we commence the cooking, why don't you shed a light on what sparked this pure hatred of mine, Mr Narrator? Back to when it all began...

Once upon a night, two girls, a little too old for fairy tales were finishing up after a fantastic dinner. Compliments to chef Mirana, mother to Leslie, one of the girls. She had wavy dirty blonde bob hair and a beauty mark below her left eye. Her eyes were as blue as the ocean. Her best friend, Dolly, had looks that could make men of any age swoon and drool over her; with her striking red hair and stormy grey eyes and perky lips. She had the looks of a goddess...and she savoured every moment she had under the spotlight.

"I wish I had hair as smooth, silky and long as yours.", Leslie said, her eyes focusing on the dirty plates as she scrubbed them. "Mine tangles a lot."

"I just take very good care of these red strands. Mother always pressured me to look my best...no matter the circumstance.", Dolly replied, with a proud smile on her face.

The girls then got ready for bed. Dolly's style had always been a little crude and this was due to the influence of her fashion eccentric mother. She was in a sexy apparel, a soft, cropped tank top and lacy black panties. Leslie was very much the opposite. You can imagine.

Yes, long and humble pyjamas.

"I don't want to go to school tomorrow. I embarrassed myself worse than I ever have my entire life, last week.", Leslie sighed.

Dolly replied, in a voice as sweet as honey, "Don't worry, I'll protect you."

"Right. As long as I'm with you, no one would dare talk me down.", Leslie said. "Thanks for being popular."

"Hey, it's my pleasure!"

The girls laughed and spent the rest of the night in each other's arms.

The next morning seemed a little grim. The weather was cold and cloudy. It was as if the sky was emitting its own light and the sun was nowhere to be seen. However, the girls brightened up the day with their positive attitudes...and mostly Dolly's fiery energy for school.

“Another day, another line of compliments!”, Dolly said, completely ignorant of her best friend’s situation.

Leslie smiled and nodded along.

The school was loud and busy and as the girls set foot into the school building, all movement ceased. All eyes were fixed on Dolly. Dolly seemed confused at first. After a short time of silence, Dolly boasted,

“Well. This is just a whole new level of admiration!”

The ignorant girl strutted through the crowd of leering teenagers. Leslie followed suit…until a veiny hand pulled her aside. An unusually thin girl stared into Leslie’s blue eyes; both girls shared a look of horror, both for different reasons.

“Is it true?”, the thin girl asked.

“What is?”, Leslie said and removed the hand from her shoulder.

“About Dolly!”, the thin girl exclaimed. “There is a rumour going on about Dolly. Apparently, she was fooling around with the group’s men over two nights three days ago! Stringing them along!”

Leslie seemed awfully confused. She and Dolly had a three-day sleepover together. They both had been by each other’s side the whole time.

“But that’s—”

“Seriously. If this is true, I am telling you, no one is going to spend their time making your life miserable anymore. It’d be like a whole new shadow for you.”, the girl interrupted, with a snort.

Leslie paused. Should she finish her sentence? Or would a harmless betrayal help ease the intensity of her school life?

“Yeah. I don’t know.”, Leslie shrugged. “I haven’t seen her for quite a while until this morning.”

As she finished her sentence, Leslie walked away.

Class after class and not a single student approached Dolly for any small talks. Not even a single compliment. Dolly started to worry and tried to confide in her best friend; thinking she would understand and make her feel better. However, before she could catch Leslie, a group of four girls pulled her away.

Behind the school cafeteria…

“Spill it.”, the first girl said, her tone sharp and cold.

“We know that whore friend of yours messed around with Brady.”

“—and Clive!”

“Okay, look. Emma, Courtney and Ella, I don’t know what happened with Dolly. I certainly have no idea if Brady and Clive are involved.”

The three girls talked amongst each other in outrage. While the three were chattering, a tall and beautiful girl stood quietly, leaning against the wall with her eyes closed. Her name was Gabrielle. After a short while, Gabrielle hushed the girls.

She slowly approached Leslie and proposed, “What if we make you an offer?”

“What kind of offer? I still won’t be able to tell you anything.”

Gabrielle sharply inhaled, “I know you know. Zachary has been acting very odd lately. Now I know why. I just need more information from you so that we can confirm this once and for all. If you tell us what we want to know, we will make you a legend at school. You will be one of us.”

Leslie’s eyes gazed into Gabrielle’s.

“You won’t be a loser anymore.”

“Do you…promise?”, Leslie asked with a quiver in her voice.

“Please, that’s how I got in.”, Courtney, one of the girls, replied.

Leslie took a moment to respond. “Okay…I’ll tell you what I know.”

“Ever since Dolly got kicked out of your group, she has been very frustrated. She tells me everything that is on her mind. A month ago, she told me how badly she wants to hurt you guys. She told me of every plot she could think of…then she started gossiping about your boys.”

The four girls eyed one another.

“I guess she thought it would be funny if she were to mess around with your boyfriends…”, Leslie said, with a tone so convincing, but her gaze was fixed on the ground.

Gabrielle puts a hand on Leslie’s shoulder and thanked her. Then, they walked away.

For the rest of the day, Leslie did her utmost best to avoid her best friend. When the school day came to an end, their eyes met at the front entrance of the building. Dolly never smiled. Her eyes were as dead as a fish that had never seen light and her aura was as solemn as that of a dead sycamore in the night. The girls eyed each other…and then, parted ways.

Leslie spent the rest of her school years happy and lively with the group. Never once acknowledged Dolly’s presence. Dolly spent her school years alone and humiliated. Every chance she got under the spotlight was not what she used to expect…the spotlight was the means of laughter against her; and it burned.

During her years of degradation at school, Dolly had gained an interest in witches. Witches in fairy tales and films. She never liked them before her downfall. However, the more she observed the characters, the more she understood and relate to them. Humans did them wrong. They are simply retaliating. Dolly began inheriting their wits and motives.

Years and years after that, Dolly became a successful individual. Now, she sells beauty cream for women. They work wonders. She has many friends, a handsome crush and a cosy apartment…and yet…she is dissatisfied.

She wanted to make beautiful memories during her time in high school. She wanted to have the ability to share both the ups and downs of her experiences, not depress her chat mates. She wanted her old personality back.

One day, Dolly thought, “I have to make peace.”

Not with her enemies or with her past…but with herself.

Thank you, Mr Narrator…and that is why, I decided to serve dinner! I’m thinking; my special hot bowl of soup for Leslie. It has onions, chicken broth, garlic, celery, fish balls, soy sauce and…something else that is special. Now THAT is a killer.

It’s delicious and easy to whip up!

Oh, and a meatloaf for myself…you know, for once the show ends. Be right back.

Can you smell the hot boiling soup? The smell of fish dipped in chicken and soy broth, steam flowing out of the pot and into your nose…

It smells so warm and innocent. I think it’s done.

Perfect timing! The doorbell just rang. Time to make our guest feel welcome.

Dolly happily walks over to her front door and opens it. Her eyes meet with a woman’s. Her hair is long and curly, soft and bouncy. Her eyes, as blue as the ocean with a slight aqua tint. Her style sophisticated and respectful; a long belted yellow dress.

“Good evening Darcy! It smells great in there!”, Leslie happily greets.

“And I can’t wait to get it in your belly!”, Dolly replies. “Come in, come in!”

Leslie gracefully takes a seat in the dining room. Dolly pours the soup into two elegant see-through glass bowls and garnishes them with chopped spring onions. On two tiny plates, she places two crispy golden bread rolls on each. She sets the bowls and plates on a tray and carries it over to the table. She then places both bowls and plates on the opposite ends of the table. Dolly takes a seat on the other end.

“So, Leslie, it’s interesting that you’re a cosmetic collector.”, Dolly says.

“Yeah! And I’m so hyped that we love the same brand of facial cream! I mean, they work WONDERS!”, Leslie says, getting ready to eat.

“It’s funny. The name of the brand sounds a little familiar to me. Like it hits me in the feels. Makes me feel…nostalgic. Does the name of the brand mean anything to you?”, Dolly asks, her eyes squinting.

Leslie takes a sip from the soup. “Hmmm, I don’t think so— wow this soup is amazing!”

Leslie continues to sip and slurp on the soup, moaning in delight.

“Are you sure the name doesn’t ring any bells, Leslie?”, Dolly says as her eyes pierce Leslie’s skin. “Silky Dollie doesn’t hit you close to home?”

Leslie stops sipping and eyes Dolly. Her hands tremble as her eyes are forced to fix on Dolly’s stormy greys. Dolly gets out of her seat and slowly struts towards Leslie. She places both her hands on Leslie’s shoulders and Leslie’s mouth starts to foam. “Hello old friend…”

“My name is Dolly. We used to be so close…inseparable…”, Dolly whispers. “I had one hell of a high school experience, but I made it through. Now, I’m successful. So successful it brought you back into my life— just so I can finish you.”

Dolly shoves Leslie backwards, triggering a seizure. Her mouth foams uncontrollably and her eyes water.

Dolly squats down beside the dying Leslie and says, “Oh…yes. People give out fake names…”

“Now, I can finally be at peace with myself. I can finally accept who I am and embrace my life. I’ll see you in hell sometime…”, Dolly utters her final words to Leslie, her eyes as sharp as a knife.

Leslie’s body stops reacting and the foam stops forming. Her body lays lifeless on the stained magenta carpet. Dolly then slowly looks at you, reader.

My meatloaf is ready!