I laughed. “That’s because my sister doesn’t read books without pictures. I always have to have a visual comparison available, or she will get lost.”

We walked, laughing and talking, until we got to my house. My arm brushed the back of his, making my inside dance about.

“Want to come in and meet my dad?” I asked, hoping to have more time with him.

He shook his head. “No, I need to get going. I was walking in the other direction, when you distracted me.”

“I’m sorry.”

He smirked. "Don’t be. I'm glad I could be there for you."

Just as he was about to say goodbye, my sister's car pulled into the driveway. She was out and flashing her smile, before I could push him and shout 'run for it.'

“Well, well. You must be the mystery man. I’m Alise, Aimee’s older sister.” She put her hand out for him to take like she was the Queen. He turned her hand in his and shook it.

“Hi, I’m Aleksander. It was nice meeting you—see you later, Aimee.” He let go of her hand. He smiled at me and walked away quickly.

We watched in silence as he walked hastily away from us.

"Wow."

"Yup."

“Oh my God! They weren’t kidding—he is hot. Wow, he looks like a celebrity. I feel so relaxed around him, like I know him from somewhere.” She licked her lips. “He didn’t really notice me though, huh? Maybe I’ll see if I can catch up with him. Maybe he wants a ride.” She winked at me and ran back to her car.

She started it and drove off in the direction he went. I wanted to strangle her, but I went inside and ate coconut milk ice cream instead.

I wished everyone could see her the way I did.

Blake sent a text asking if I was going to the party later. I ignored the message and watched the history channel. It was about the Tudors.

My sister never came home. She just left a message for our dad, saying that she was sleeping at Jaime’s house, her new bff since Giselle had gotten sick. Jaime was another of the popular crowd my sister insisted on being attached at the hip with.

I tapped my foot and wondered if Aleks was going to the party. If my sister stopped him from getting to his destination with her tempting good looks, he probably would be going tonight. The thought of them kissing enraged me. I was starting to feel like a crazed psycho. I started to twitch my whole leg, thinking about whether to go or not.

My phone made another noise. I looked at the message from Shane now, asking if I wanted to go the party or just hang with him and watch a movie. The movie sounded pretty tempting at that moment. My sister could have Aleks if he was dumb enough to fall for her. My foot twitching reached a whole new level.

“Arggg.” I stood up and stormed to my sister's bedroom to get a pretty outfit since my whole closet looked like it belonged to Wednesday Adams. I messaged Shane and told him to pick me up at nine. Then I went into my sister’s room and picked only from the closet selection. I assumed if it was hung, she either cared for it or it was clean.

I grabbed at the hangers, looking for just the right look.

I found it at the back of the closet and I knew she loved it. I could recall her buying it with Giselle. I smiled, feeling evil boil in my blood as I stormed back to my room. I put the dress on and looked at myself, frowning. Who was I kidding? My long, blonde hair looked stringy, my eyes had dark circles under them, my chapped lips were still peeling and my thin, long face was making my nose look birdlike. My grey-blue eyes seemed to have a small amount of sparkle but nothing to write home about. The only thing working for me was that I had managed to gain back a bit of weight and I had breasts again. The dress looked pretty good on my body, but cutting off my head was not an option.

I looked like an idiot.

I phoned Giselle.

“Hello.” Her voice sounded weaker than normal.

“Were you sleeping?” I felt bad.

She laughed. “God yes. All I do is sleep. What’s shakin’ bacon?”

I laughed at bacon. “I am going to a party tonight, stealing my sister’s clothes, and I don’t know how to do my makeup. I still look bad from being sick.” I regretted saying it to her the minute I did, but she ignored it.

She burst out laughing. “I have never been more proud than I am in this moment. Which outfit?”

I looked down at the dress, letting an evil grin cross my lips. “The red one. It still has the tags on it. It’s from the back of her closet.”

There was silence. “Oh my God. That’s the one she got on harsh sale at Holt Renfrew in Vancouver. Ok, you’re a beautiful blonde with plump lips and blue eyes in a red dress; you aren’t going to need much. Is your face clean?”

“Give me a second.” I wiped quickly with stolen makeup wipes from Alise's room. “Ok, clean slate. What do I do?”

“What kind of materials am I dealing with here?” Giselle sounded very serious in all of this.

I looked down at the old kit my mom gave me a year earlier and grimaced. “You know those kits you get from Walmart that have everything all in one? Like a painter’s palette.”

I heard a sigh. “Dear God—I knew it.” She went quiet for a moment and started to speak again, “Ok, this is what you’re going to do.”

She led me through the makeup, the hair, and the shoes.

When the doorbell rang and my dad called up at me, I whispered into the phone, “Thanks, Giselle. See you next week, ok?”

“Uh, speaking of visits, are you bringing the new hottie in your life or just regular old Shane?” Her voice was full of sarcasm.

I groaned. “Look, I don’t know what’s going on with either of them. Shane likes me and we kind of kissed, but Aleksander is the guy I was telling you about with the crazy blue eyes. I’m lost.”

“Oh my God, Aimee. He could be the psycho.” She sounded panicked.

I shook my head, like she could see me. “No, it’s not him. His lips aren’t the same, at all. I think my sister has her claws in him already, anyway. So I guess Shane is the one for me.”

“So, he kissed you. Was that your first kiss?”

“Yeah. It was nice.” I blushed, smiling hard. I looked at myself in mirror and knew Shane made me happy. I could see my face transform talking about him.

She moaned. “Awe, I’m so bummed. I’m missing your first party with a boyfriend, sort of. Good luck tonight. Don’t drink anything you didn’t open.”

I laughed. “Yeah, lesson learned.” I hadn’t told her or anyone about Aleks, but it seemed the news had traveled even to a children’s hospital in the city. Sad really. Damn Facebook.

I hung up my phone and stuffed it down the top of the dress, to the side of my boobs, like my sister always did. She was classy like that. I left the room and started down the staircase. I was one of those cheesy movies. Overly made-up girl, walking down the stairs. She's a nerd transformed into hottie. Her date is at the bottom, staring up at her the whole way down.

I focused more on the stairs than anything. The shoes Giselle picked were high heeled, and I was feeling very unstable. On the stairs, I realized my side cramps were back. I was feeling bloated and sort of gross, but I pushed it aside. I hoped Shane and I would have fun, and that maybe I would see Aleksander again.

“Dear God…what are you wearing? Go put something on,” my dad groaned at me.

I laughed. “Dad, Alise wears less to church."

He rolled his eyes at me and sighed. “If Alise went to a church, it would light on fire instantly. Besides, you’re my jeans and t-shirt daughter. I expect certain things from you. Just like I expect certain things from her, my high-heel wearing daughter. You’re not supposed to interchange like this.”

I kissed my dad on the cheek and looked at Shane, who smiled like he was a kid who just got his favorite toy.

“You look amazing, but your dad’s right. You look a bit like your sister tonight. I like you better the other way.”

“I like that you said that.” I smiled back at him, taking his arm. “I’m going to need your arm tonight—these shoes are death.”

"They make you tall."

"Yeah, they weren’t even the highest in the closet. I think these are like four-inch heels."

He looked. "I'd say…at least. You're almost as tall as I am, and I'm over six feet."

My dad looked worried. "Have fun. Take the shoes off if they hurt your feet."

“Night, Dad.” I laughed and waved back at him as we left out the front door.

He shook his head and waved us off. “Please take it easy and slow. Drink nothing. Shane, do not take your eyes off of her, no matter what. For Christ sake, Aimee, please for the love of God and all things holy, do not go into any woods. No matter what.”

Chapter Seven

Just call me Jessica Fletcher, with a cramp

The party was at some girl’s house I didn’t really know. I knew who she was, but I had not spoken to her since second grade. Her name was Michelle Mitchell and she had a party every month, when her parents left for the city. They had been having a date night once a month since she got old enough to stay home alone. My sister had been partying at their house for the last two years. The Mitchells didn’t seem to mind the partying, as long as there was no mess. To me it was not responsible parenting.

As we pulled up to the house, Shane leaned over to me. “You look very pretty, so I want you to stay glued to my side all night. Okay?”

He kissed me softer than he had before, and I felt his tongue slip into my mouth. It was an exciting feeling. I kissed him back, moving the way he did, until his hand moved up into my hair pulling me into him more.

“Not here, okay?” I pushed against him.

He reached down and kissed the side of my throat once. I didn’t know what to do to get my inner calm back. My pheromones were going nuts on his.

He opened his door and came around to my side to open my door for me. He growled as he helped me out of the truck and kissed me once more. “That dress is driving me nuts.”