I didn’t have much I could complain about, maybe nothing at all. I lived a good life, not extravagantly rich nor miserably poor, but in a comfortable enough middle ground. I was also blessed with beautiful looks and brains to go along with them. I grew up to a very fine woman, or so did everyone around me say, and eventually the rest of the people too. I made my way through my studies and I exercised my body, the saying “a healthy mind in a healthy body” having been engraved in my mind. It was also engraved the drive to be the best, in any and all matters. And I came to not being able to stand it, not the saying, but the people. Regardless of their intentions, they always wanted more, it never was enough, no matter how hard I tried or how far I would go, I always fell short of expectations.

And that was when I met her. She had undergone a similar situation, and she was as smart as she was gorgeous, with an unyielding will to be the best. We started slowly, but eventually we became good friends. She was kind, warm and wasn’t afraid to try and crack a joke when in private, and I tried to answer in kind. It had been a long time since I could simply be myself, and the relation would foster through the years. As models, we would meet time and time again in different pageants and events, always glad to see each other again. But as time passed, I could feel a tinge of jealousy grow within me, and it was most likely the same was happening to her. However, we managed to keep it under control, or at least keep it to ourselves, never wavering or breaking the façade. It posed a very ugly question, as I asked myself how much of the relation was true and how much was little more than an elaborate act.

It was something that ate me from the inside out. I was trying to be sincere, honest and open with her but what I got in return was nothing but an act? All that time spent for nothing? How dared she?! But, after a moment of anger and resentment, I always calmed down. Although it wasn’t that I calmed down and more along the lines that my anger deflated like a balloon, more so given that I was playing the exact same game. She was probably just as angry at me, so it would only be fair that we both payed the same game, right? Either one or the other, but both with the same rules, so to speak. And if she was fine with it, I would be too.

As time carried on with its march, our relation became even stranger, if that was possible. We were bitter rivals to each other, but always keeping a formal front. We were close friends, as we had gotten closer and closer with time, but we both knew that each of us had incredible jealousy for the other. A remnant of past days, but it remained nonetheless, and it would not go away any time soon. But we had it under control, or so we thought, until in a pageant it was just the two of us left. A fair skinned beauty, tall, lean and with sensual curves. Long straight black hair, like a smooth and silky cascade that fell behind me. Long and graceful legs, a plentiful and heavy bust. A beautiful and delicate face. And she was just as beautiful, with a tanned bronze-like skin and an equally long straight black mane. Her hair just as silky, her body just as curvy, supported by two long and beautiful legs. Two statuesque beauties they called us, the end result being a draw between us both. We played the part, smiling and acting, but inside I was mortified, and she was too. Depending on who one asks, a draw is worse than a defeat, and for us it was. However, she came up with an idea that, despite its outlandish premise, seemed much too alluring and tempting to let go. Doing so would, in a sense, concede my defeat and the many years of pressure were not having any of it, so it took up her challenge.

We told no one about it, but we looked up a place that would suit us and our challenge. And we did find it, a park that while not being the most visited one, it had plenty of people during the day for our little stand-off to work. It wouldn’t be looks or brains the deciding factor, nor would be luck, as it was as unreliable and unpredictable as it could be. We would do it fair and square, and the one that backed off first would be defeated. A stand-off of endurance, perseverance and commitment; although in our minds we did notice it was about sheer stubbornness. But whatever, we were going through with it.

As accorded, we met at night, when we knew for a certainty that the park was empty and no one was around. The night was warm and quiet, a rarity during this time of the year, but it would work nevertheless. After making sure that no one was around, we discarded any and all clothing, giving it to the other so that she would hide it. If one of us wanted to get dressed, she would have to ask where her clothes were, and by extension raise a surrender flag. We stepped up in an empty pedestal, and we assumed the pose we had agreed on. The round pedestal was made of white marble that had dark streaks here and there, and it was smaller than we had imagined at a first glance, but we fit in regardless. I put my right leg forward, near her crotch, and she moved her left leg, gently touching the skin of my right leg. We stood as tall as we could, chin high and hands planted in our hips. She stood ever slightly taller than me, and in a moment, she had her breasts press against mine, but putting hers above mine. We kept our poker faces, but saying it didn’t annoy me it would be lying.

And so we remained, standing still and motionless, looking into the other’s eyes. Her hazel eyes were beautiful to look into, two small gemstones that never wavered nor looked away, except when she had to blink. She had two of her locks fall over her shoulders and around her breasts, which only added to her beauty. And I could only sincerely hope I was keeping the pace in that side of things.

We couldn’t tell how much time had passed, but even if we had brought a watch or the like, we had discarded it when we stepped on the pedestal. But I didn’t care, we didn’t care. I didn’t know I knew this, but I simply knew. Under the radiant moonlight, she was absolutely gorgeous, more than ever before. Her beauty was somehow enhanced, her figure more appealing and sensual, her skin smoother and her eyes seemed to glisten in the night. I felt more beautiful too, maybe I was too caught up in the moment, but I didn’t care. I was beautiful, I had a beautiful friend, and it was just the two of us. No worries, no pressure, just us. I cracked a small smile, unconsciously, and she followed suit. Had her skin always been so glossy? And had it always been so dark? It didn’t matter, as we slowly approached the other, putting our hands and arms around the other in a loving embrace. There was a noise that surrounded us, a cracking of sorts, but we didn’t worry. It was gentle, and it filled us with calm and warmth.

As the cracking continued, we became… denser. We moved slowly, but each movement was graceful and calculated precisely, and as our hands ran all over our bodies, we squeezed our breasts together. She was glossy and smooth, just like me, with the slight difference that she was glossy black obsidian while I had transformed into white marble. But each of us had marking all over us with the colour of the other. We didn’t know why, but we had petrified without noticing, or maybe we had noticed and just didn’t care. As we tightened our loving embrace, we locked our glossy lips in a tender and loving kiss, as the first chirps of the morning birds started. Our pose froze, both of us entangled in a hug and kiss, as we shed our old selves and started anew, not as rivals but as lovers.

We were no longer who we used to be, now simply being Marble and Obsidian. I was gorgeous, she was gorgeous. Each of us stood out on her own, a flawless statue of a beautiful woman, but only when we stood together, we achieved our greatest display. We were different, but similar at the same time, and by complementing the other we maximized our beauty. We were two statues, women that had waited and waited until we had petrified, and now, free of worries and pressures from our previous lives, we would gladly be an unbreakable couple of statuesque beauties.