Lily had always had large eyes. Her mother told her they were beautiful — like large windows into the soul. But Lily always thought they were just a little too large. She called them her “anime eyes.” They didn’t fit right with the rest of her face, and so she started wearing glasses as a young child.
As Lily grew up, she began to feel like her eyes stood out more than she liked. She wore glasses, contacts, and even tried wearing colored contact lenses. None of them seemed to do much for her confidence, and she continued to be self-conscious about her eyes.
Lily was shy, but she also had a strong desire to fit in. And so, she decided to cover up her eyes, wearing as much makeup as she could get away with.
Lily did her best to fit in with her friends at school and even dated a boy named Josh for a while. But things were never quite right, and Lily eventually realized that the problem wasn’t with her friends or her boyfriend, it was with her. She just didn’t feel comfortable in her own skin.
After graduating from college, Lily found work at a local boutique. It wasn’t long before she became close with the store owner, Jenna, and the two became very close friends. Jenna often helped Lily discover new trends and clothes that were more flattering on her unique features. But Jenna also noticed that Lily always seemed to be self-conscious about her eyes. She knew that the confidence she’d gained from being friends with Lily meant that she needed to do something to make her feel better.
The next time Jenna went shopping for a new dress, she came across a style that she thought would make Lily feel more comfortable. Jenna knew that this new dress would highlight Lily’s eyes in a very flattering way, and so she decided to give it to her friend as a gift.
The dress was in a vivid shade of violet and hugged Lily’s body like a second skin. It was cut low in the back and accentuated Lily’s wide hips, small waist, and large chest. Jenna knew that Lily’s eyes would pop against the dark fabric of the dress and make her feel more confident and beautiful than ever before.
Lily loved the dress. She loved how flattering it was and how it emphasized her best features. And she especially loved how it made her feel confident and sexy in a way that no other outfit could.
Jenna was impressed by the way Lily felt so comfortable in the dress. It seemed to be the perfect gift for the young woman.
Lily decided to wear the dress to a party she had been invited to that Saturday night. The invitation had been given to her by a friend, who didn’t tell her much about the party but promised she would have a good time.
When Lily arrived at the party, she noticed that she was the only one wearing purple. Everyone else was dressed in shades of white and light pink.
Lily walked around the party, taking in the decorations and mingling with the guests. It was only after she’d made a few rounds that Lily finally found what looked like her friends. The group was standing together near the back of the room and appeared to be talking to one another in hushed voices.
She was excited to finally be introduced to some people who would understand the feeling of fitting in with a group of friends who shared the same interests as you did. But when she approached them, Lily noticed something strange: they were all wearing purple!
Lily’s excitement quickly turned to confusion as she tried to figure out why these strangers were all wearing the exact same color as she was. The woman in the center of the group noticed Lily approaching, and so she stepped forward and introduced herself.
“Hello, I’m Lily. I’m so glad you guys decided to show up in purple!”
“Hi,” said the man beside her. “It was your friend who gave us our invites. She said we had to wear purple if we wanted to meet you.”
“My name is Laura,” said the woman, gesturing to the others in the group. “I’m really glad you all decided to come tonight. I was starting to think we might not be able to find anyone else to match!”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t usually wear purple,” said the man beside Lily.
“No worries,” she replied with a smile. “It looks great on you!”
“I’m Christian,” said another man.
“I’m Kendra,” said the woman.
“And I’m Derek,” said another man, introducing himself.
The group continued to introduce themselves and explain their reasons for wearing purple. The more they spoke, the more Lily realized that all of them had grown up feeling uncomfortable about their eyes. Some of them even went as far as to wear glasses to help mask their distinctive features.
Lily was amazed by how many people she had met who struggled with the exact same issue she did. And she felt an instant connection with these strangers who were so different from her but were still kind and welcoming. She realized that she could finally fit in with a group of friends who understood the challenges she was facing.
Lily felt relieved and proud to have finally met someone who would understand what it was like to have a unique feature that stood out and made her feel different than everyone else.
The group continued talking until Lily realized that she had left Jenna waiting for her.
“I have to go,” said Lily. “I promised I’d catch up with my friend.”
“Oh, don’t worry,” said Laura with a smile. “We’ll wait for you here.”
Lily rushed away from the party, her new purple dress swaying as she walked. Once she reached Jenna, the two of them headed out together to continue exploring the city. The night was full of exciting new discoveries, and the two young women walked arm-in-arm through the city streets.
As they strolled down the street, they ran into a group of guys from their high school who were walking in the opposite direction. Lily couldn’t believe how happy she felt to see them again. She’d only gone to high school for a year before she dropped out, but even that was enough time for these guys to become some of her closest friends.
Lily and Jenna walked over to greet them and soon found themselves laughing as they recalled all the embarrassing moments they’d shared during their time at school together. They spoke about their favorite movies and bands and the way they used to laugh at each other’s jokes.
They shared stories from their lives and laughed about their embarrassing experiences together.
Jenna looked at Lily and smiled as she noticed how happy her friend seemed to be. Jenna thought it was so great to see Lily reconnect with these friends from her past, and she hoped it would bring her some joy. But Jenna also noticed that Lily seemed to be standing a little bit further away from her than before, as though she wanted to put a bit more distance between her and these friends from her past.
Lily had always loved spending time with her friends from high school, but after they all graduated, she had started to feel more comfortable around them than she had in years. But now, Lily felt like she had outgrown her old friends and was ready for something new in her life. She was ready to embrace the confidence she had gained since discovering a group of people who understood the challenges she faced and were more accepting of her unique features. And so, as Lily started spending more time with these new friends, she found herself feeling less attached to her old friendships from high school.
“I should probably head back to my hotel,” said Jenna after a while. “I have work tomorrow.”
“Yeah,” replied Lily with a smile. “You should probably get some rest.”
Jenna waved goodbye as Lily turned to walk back down the street alone.
Jenna had noticed how much closer Lily was standing with her friends than before, but she didn’t think anything of it at the time because she assumed Lily was just making an effort to fit in with this new group. And so, Jenna made her way back to the hotel and went to sleep.
Lily’s parents had been planning to visit the city for several days so they could see their daughter perform in a musical play that would be opening soon. However, as Lily had always struggled with anxiety and felt like it was safer for her to stay behind at the hotel, she decided to stay in her room with a few of her friends instead. She wanted to spend more time with them without being around all of her family members. And so, Lily had decided to postpone her trip until after the play so she could enjoy one last day out with her friends before returning home to her family.
Lily was excited to spend her last day out with her friends from school. They had been planning to meet up at a local park so they could enjoy an afternoon of playing games and eating pizza together before they headed back to the hotel to catch a movie. They were just about to head over to the park when they ran into their old high school friends who were also visiting the city.
Lily was happy to see Jenna again after so much time had passed since they last saw each other. They spent the afternoon together at the park before Jenna had to rush back to her hotel to prepare for work. When Lily said goodbye to Jenna after she left, she couldn’t help but notice how much closer Jenna stood with her friends than before. Jenna seemed happier and more comfortable with these friends than Lily had ever seen her.
Lily felt like something was off about their conversation, but she dismissed it as nothing more than Jenna wanting to fit in with this new group of people. But as time went on, Lily noticed that Jenna was spending less and less time with her old friends from high school and more and more time with her new group of friends who were all wearing purple.
Lily couldn’t help but feel disappointed that Jenna seemed to be moving on from their friendship so quickly, especially considering how long they had known each other. But she tried to convince herself that Jenna had only spent so much time with them before finding new friends who understood the struggles she’d faced and were more accepting of her appearance.