Original Description:
Bijou Sapphire (full name “Bijou Precious Sapphire Stars Merchant”) loves all things fancy. In her town, she’s known as the “Friendsville Fashionista”. In fact, she runs her own business, called “Fashion Palace”. Sapphire is a popular girl, and she really loves the company of boys. Although most of her best friends have been girls, she feels a close connection with the opposite sex.
At first glance, you might never guess – but Sapphire is also autistic. On most days, she is an “autistic extrovert”.* On the outside, she usually seems very confident. Deep inside, however, she is always afraid of people rejecting her. Sapphire is always trying to keep up with the latest fashion trends, and she’s always trying to stay ahead of the curve. When she feels uninspired, she might melt down with anxiety. Demanding her to meet a tight deadline is a sure way to make her shut down.
Overall, Sapphire is prone to mood swings. Many people think she’s a drama queen. But she actually has serious struggles with anxiety and depression. Most days, it is not a big problem. On her bad days, she needs a psychologist to give her a sounding board.
Although she’s autistic, Sapphire feels needy for others’ validation. However, she tends to measure success in numbers, trophies, and material things. She has a shallow sense of what it means to be popular.
As Sapphire’s shop becomes more popular, the pressure does not diminish. On the contrary, the new fame pushes her toward the breaking point … especially when she starts gaining some very high-profile clients. When she feels everything’s spiraled out of control – when she feels all her friends have been imaginary – that’s when her true friends shine through. And that’s when Sapphire realizes that popularity is not the same as friendship.
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