Transformations
The morning began differently than usual. I had only just woken up when Mario entered the dressing room. Before Amber or I could react, he gently lifted me up and carried me through the bedroom. I looked in amazement at Amber, who looked at me with wide eyes. I didn’t have time to ask anything, because shortly afterward Mario sat me down on the couch in the guest room. A few moments later, he returned with Amber, who he also carefully sat on the couch. She seemed just as confused as I was.
“You’ll both spend the whole day here today”, he said in a calm voice, but his eyes betrayed a slight excitement.
“Why?” I asked in wonderment, but Mario said nothing more. Instead, he turned around and disappeared again.
“I have to lock the door”, Mario explained.
Amber frowned. “But why? What’s going on?”
Mario hesitated for a moment, as if he was having trouble keeping a secret to himself. Then he smiled. “You’ll see. Later.”
That should have reassured us, but before he left, he took all our jewelry. That silenced us both once and for all. What did it mean?
As the door closed and we heard the key turn in the lock, Amber and I looked at each other questioningly.
“What’s happening?” I finally asked quietly.
The first few minutes passed in complete silence. Amber and I wondered what Mario could be up to.
But then we heard voices and heavy footsteps on the stairs. Several people seemed to keep going up and down, and we could hear things being moved. Then dull noises followed from the dressing room. Rumbling, pushing, hammering. Amber and I looked at each other wide-eyed.
“They’re not tearing down the walls, are they?” Amber joked nervously.
I giggled softly, but a certain uneasiness remained. It went on and on, noises changed, there was drilling, then hammering again. It was a constant noise that just wouldn’t end.
Then, in the late afternoon, it suddenly went quiet again. The strange footsteps moved away and fell silent. Only Mario’s quiet pacing could be heard.
“Is it over now?” Amber asked cautiously.
But no sooner had she said it than the house vibrated to a new, loud drilling noise. This time it seemed more intense, more direct. I could almost feel it in my bones.
“Okay, that definitely sounded like a wall coming down”, I murmured. Amber looked at me with wide-open eyes. “What is he up to?”
The sun was already starting to set when the door finally opened again. Mario stepped in, his hair slightly disheveled, beads of sweat on his forehead. He looked exhausted, but there was a satisfied glow in his eyes, as if he had been working towards this moment all day.
“So?” Amber blurted out immediately. “What was all that noise? Why have we been here all day?” “And why did you take our jewelry?” I quickly added. Mario just grinned. “You’ll see in a moment.”
Then he pushed two swivel chairs into the room. Amber and I exchanged a questioning look, but we said nothing as he sat us down one after the other. He slowly pushed us through the bedroom. The sliding door to the dressing room was closed.
“So”, Mario finally said with playful drama. “You wanted to know what happened here today?” He put a hand on the door. “Welcome to your new – completely customized – own realm.”
With these words, he opened the sliding door and pushed us into the room.
Amber and I were amazed. With wide-open eyes and open mouths, we looked at the change in front of us. The old wardrobe was gone – in its place stood an even larger, bright white wardrobe with four sliding doors and a large floor-to-ceiling mirror.
The large chest of drawers next to the window had also been replaced – now there was a new white chest of drawers with an elegant glass top.
Where the sofa had been before, there was now a long, low white chest of drawers with drawers. But the most impressive thing was what was on it: four stylized heads with our wigs, beautifully arranged. In between was a new jewelry box in which all our jewelry was neatly lined up. A small sparkling string of lights with orchid flowers snaked through the ensemble.
Soft light filled the room – from light balls on the floor, from two thick burgundy red glasses with tea lights on the windowsill. And directly under a modern chandelier stood a white bench on a fluffy round carpet.
I swallowed. “Mario… this is…” I didn’t know what to say.
Amber took my hand. “It’s beautiful.”
I could only nod, overwhelmed by the sight. An entire room just for us, designed with so much love.
“But there’s more”, Mario said gently. He turned to me. “Nathalie, I have another surprise for you.”
I blinked. “For me?”
Mario took a step closer. “Do you trust me?” I nodded immediately. “Absolutely. Unconditionally.”
Mario smiled, then gently took the wig off my head.
I winced. “What…?”
But he only left the room briefly and returned with a new wig. It was brown like mine – but it had shimmering strands and was only shoulder-length.
He stood behind me and turned me in my chair with my back to the mirror. I couldn’t see myself.
Amber stared at me open-mouthed. “Oh…” I wanted to ask what was going on, but Mario raised a hand. “Wait.” Then he asked, “Are you ready?”
I nodded excitedly.
He slowly turned me towards the mirror.
My eyes widened. I couldn’t utter a word – instead, tears of joy immediately welled up in my eyes.
“Mario…” I whispered. “I… I never thought I’d look good like this…”
Mario smiled. “I tried an app to see what you would look like with shorter hair. And when I saw the result, I knew I had to get you a wig like that.”
I couldn’t help it. I put my hands around his face and gave him a loving kiss.
Amber beamed. “You look adorable, Nathalie.”
Mario turned to her. “I also tried out what you would look like with a different hairstyle.” He showed her pictures on his smartphone. Amber thought for a moment, then laughed. “No, my long hair is just right for me.”
Mario grinned. “I thought so. And I feel the same way.”
Then he said with a smile, “I’ll leave you two alone now so that you can take it all in.”
He left the room, but left the warm light on. Amber and I looked around, trying to grasp that all this had been created for us. I turned to her and saw that she was as moved as I was.
Only now did I notice the two pictures on the walls. They were black-and-white photographs. While one of them showed Amber in a seductive pose, the other captured a scene from my own photoshooting. The pictures were framed in elegant white wooden frames. “Amber, look!” I said.
“We have our own little paradise”, she whispered.
And within that moment, I realized once again what a wonderful life I had been given by that once-so-tender awakening breath of doll magic. A life full of love, security and wonder.