Darker London

It turned out skipping school was easier than Andy had thought it would be. The day after she handed in a note forged in her dad's handwriting and that was the end of it. No one suspected, no one asked anything. It was almost too easy and it gave Andy a little thrill. (Andy wasn't a bad girl. Andy liked the idea of being the sexy rebel but she was always just a little wary of straying outside the lines.)

She thought about taking another day off and doing the same she'd done before - which was walking around the city, trying on outfits and browsing shops - but she knew that she had to be careful. Too often would get her caught out. Although if anyone even noticed her being not there, Andy was pretty sure it would be a miracle.

( ... )

Every day before school, Andy was up two hours before she had to leave the house. She needed that time to get herself prepared, she needed an hour just to dry and style her hair after her shower (to either drag the straighter through it over and over, or to curl it into things more manageable.) She needed time to make sure her outfit looked right, and to do her makeup perfectly. (School makeup was a fine line - you had to wear it, obviously, but it had to be subtle enough that the teachers wouldn't complain.)

( She'd started eating half a grapefruit for breakfast )