Work Text:
Barbara Howard, a woman of consistency, had recently made a lot of changes. The main one being leaving her husband.
It was a mutual decision, both feeling that their time together had ended and she finally felt free, and free she was.
One of the first changes she made was with her hair, deciding to grow it out over the summer at a whim. She had sported long natural hair for years before she cut it short, finding it easier to manage once her children hit a certain age. Being a mother, wife and teacher took all her time and she never had time to nurture and care for it doing those yeas. But now, it was just her and she had all the time in the world to care for herself the way she wanted.
She settled on braids, knotless braids as Taylor had called them. They hung down her back, curly strands coming from them to give them a fuller look. She loved them. She loved styling them and mindlessly played with the ends of them throughout the day.
The next change was her wardrobe. Replacing suits with dresses and some clogs with heels. She wanted to look and feel younger and the clothes definitely helped. She swapped the pearls for gold dangly necklaces and her wedding bands for random rings Taylor had gotten for her. Taylor had also taken the chance to show her mother how to take flattering pictures instead of the blurry and off-guard selfies she would take on accident. Teaching her the importance of lighting and angles, the teacher was a slow learner but she eventually got the hang of it.
She also made social media pages. Facebook and Instagram being the main two she used to post pictures and share inspirational quotes and bible verses. Her accounts were private though and though her Abbott colleagues sent requests she was hesitant to accept them. Not ready for them to see the change until she was completely done changing.
The last change was with her makeup. Though clothes made her feel younger to herself, she wanted to appear younger to others. Thankfully she had retained tips and tricks from the makeup artist on career day, implementing them into her own beauty routine as the first month of summer passed. Taylor helped tremendously, helping her pick the right shades that complimented her skin tone and showing her how to do a 'natural' beat as she called it. The beginning of the school year approached by the time Barbara was comfortable and confident with her changes, leaving her to do one last thing.
It was time for her to showcase the new woman she had become.
Here she was, sitting on the couch in her new apartment. Mindlessly playing with the ends of her braids as she watched tv. Her phone rang, knocking her out of her hyper-focus on the tv. She picked up the phone, smiling as she saw Melissa's name and answered quickly.
"Hey Barb." Melissa voice rang out.
'Hello Melissa, how are you?" Barb asked as she paused her show.
"Eh, been better. Was just calling to see if you wanted to go out tonight? The kids want to go to some lounge and bond before school starts." She replied. Barbara didn't have to see her friend to know she was rolling her eyes.
"Sure, sounds fun. And it would be nice to get out. What time do they want to meet up?" The older woman asked as she got up from the couch and went into her bedroom.
"They said 8:30. I can come by and pick you up around 8:15 if ya want." Melissa offered.
"It's okay, I'll drive myself. Could you send me the address to the lounge though?" She asked as she went through the clothes in her closet.
"Sure thing. See ya then." Melissa replied. Barbara bid her goodbye before their call ended and she continued her search for the perfect outfit.
Her eyes landed on a black dress, sleeveless with a small slit right above her chest. It was haltered and came down to her mid calf.
"Perfect." She said with a smile as she set it on her bed. She paired it with a small black bag and black open toed heels with thin straps that wrapped around her feet.
She glanced at the clock. 6:02pm. Just enough time to shower, get dressed and watch a Youtube video on how she should do her makeup.
She proceeded to get ready, putting her braids in a high ponytail before showering and getting dressed. She put a robe on over her clothes to ensure no makeup would get on them before pulling up the video tutorial on how to do dramatic eyeliner. She watched closely, rewinding and pausing when she needed to before perfecting her makeup.
She went simple, not doing any eyeshadow, just doing black eyeliner that went from the outer crease of her lid and went out into a wing. When it was to her liking she smiled and finished getting ready, adding her earrings, bracelets and rings before putting her wallet, phone and lipstick in her purse. She carried her shoes to the car, wearing flats to drive and changing into her heels once she got to the lounge.
She arrived a few minutes late due to her makeup and traffic, she simply shrugged. Beauty takes time and some people can't drive. She changed into her heels and got out of the car, smoothing out her dress before walking into the lounge.
Everyone else was already there and sitting at a booth in the back, laughing and talking when she walked in. She spotted them and walked over, giving herself a mental pat on the back when she saw Melissa and Ava choke on their drinks.
"Woah Mama, you haven't dressed like that since '95." Melissa said making Barbara laugh.
"Damn Barbie! You look hot!" Ava exclaimed as she approached the table.
"Why thank you Ava. It's good to see you all!" She replied as everyone stared at her with wide eyes.
"You look amazing!" Janine gushed as Barbara sat next to her.
"You really do look amazing Barbara." Gregory said making Jacob nod in agreement.
"Thank you all. It feels good to look good and for others to know just how good I look." She laughed making the rest laugh as well.
The night went on without a hitch, the Abbott crew swapping stories of what happened over the summer and some plans they had for the upcoming school year. As their night came to a close Barbara stopped Ava on their way out.
"Ava could you help me take some pictures? I want to post them on Instagram." She asked as she handed Ava her phone.
"Sure thing. The lighting's better by the bathroom." Ava said as she directed Barbara over to the warmly it hallway.
"Okay, first let's get a close up on this face! You did your own makeup?" Ava asked as she opened the camera.
"Yes, took a while but did all myself." Barb said with a smile before looking straight at the camera. She dropped her smile, staring directly in the lens as Ava snapped the photo.
"Okay one without the purse. Put your hands on your hips and look off to the side." Ava instructed and Barb followed with ease, turning her body slightly to the side.
Ava took that picture, smiling at how it turned out before handing Barbara her purse.
"Now, pose like this." Ava said before showing Barb the next pose. She put one hand up on the wall, kicked her foot back and turned her head so it was slightly resting on her shoulder.
Barbara copied her, holding her purse in front of her and closing her eyes with a with a closed smile that made her dimple pop. Ava took the picture and cheered.
"Yes girl you are fine!" She exclaimed making Barbara laugh.
"Okay one more and we're done. Last pose do whatever you want." Ava said as she held the phone back up.
Barbara posed against the wall again, one hand on the wall and the other on her hip as she leaned back slightly. She tilted her head back and smiled again with her eyes closed as Ava took that photo as well.
"Period! That girl in full effect!" Ava said as she handed Barbara her phone back. She quickly looked at the pictures, her smile growing as she looked at each one.
"These are perfect Ava, thank you!" She exclaimed, mindlessly leaning over and kissing Ava's cheek before walking away, leaving Ava stuck and blushing.
She shook it off after about a minute and left as well, going to her own car to head home. She pulled her visor down to make sure she looked okay before glancing at her cheek. Barb's lipstick left a mark, her lips now outlined on Ava right cheek. She smiled then rolled her eyes for smiling so hard but the smile never left her face. She flipped her visor up and started her car as her phone chimed.
She lifted it from her lap to see two Instagram notifications. The first was Barbara accepting her follow request and the next was a mention in Barbara's latest post.
She unlocked her phone and went them. She smiled even harder seeing the pictures that were just taken and the caption.
'That girl in full effect❤
Photographer: @AvazingCo 💋💕 '