She rambled on about being old enough to dress myself, which made me blush as she dragged on the new jeans. They were dreadful. They were light blue with frayed pockets in the back and subtle whiskers in the front. There was an intentional rip in the right knee.

I hated the outfit instantly and wanted to undress the minute I saw myself in the mirror. I looked like one of her friends, which bothered me. I didn’t even want to think about the fact that I looked better.

That being said, I felt like I wore a flashing sign that shouted, ‘look at me!’

“You’ve gotten too skinny for skinny jeans and you look horrid in black. You’re a spring/summer, Aimee. You need color.”

She grabbed my arm and dragged me to her room, which could only be described as a cluttered and disgusting mess. I grimaced at the odor I couldn’t quite place, maybe I could. It was 'L’eau de Homeless Man' who peed his pants and ate nachos.

“You want Blake to like you, Aimes? You need to put a little makeup on and try a little harder. Guys don’t ask out girls who’ve already crossed over into spinsterhood. Here, try this,” she said as she made me sit in her makeup chair. Her hands flew up at me, as she started applying things to my face. I never spoke. I shut my sister out like usual and told myself I could wash my face when the torment ended. Alise tweezed and groomed like Edward Scissorhands, using both hands to do the work.

“You like Blake, right?” she asked without waiting for me to answer. “Well, you need to grab a guy like him and tell him you like him. He’s smart, but not in relationships.”

I nodded, trying to pacify her as she ranted. I grimaced at her holding something that looked like a torture device and moving toward my eyes. “You know, when I liked Benny, he never knew for the first few weeks, but then I just told him one night at a pit party and we dated for like six months. Till I caught him with that slut Meagan; that was disgusting.”

This was the story of Alise’s life. She had already dated at least fifteen boys in the last four years.

I had still not dated a boy once.

It wasn’t from lack of desire but more lack of options. The only boy I had ever liked was the one my sister was dating, Shane.

Shane, who always seemed to be out of my league or dating another girl. A lot of other girls.

I had liked him from grade two on, but I never told anyone. I sighed, realizing he was ruined forever, having no doubt had sex with my sister. I threw up a tiny bit in my mouth and grimaced thinking about it.

I was stuck with Blake, not that it was a bad option, but I knew there wasn’t any romance in the choice. Even worse, he was shyer than I was.

She messed with my hair, ignoring the faces I made while processing my love life. “You can’t, like, graduate a virgin. Aimee . . . university is not the place to lose it. And dude, if you continue the way you’re going, you’ll be in your twenties and a virgin. Aimes, no guys want to date a twenty-five year old virgin. There, what do you think?”

She stepped back and swung the chair to face her mirror. I prepared myself for the worst— painted whore like her friends or maybe like a clown. I worried about the latter as she had been kind to me. I tried not to think about the fact that I had roped her into a month of extra laundry as I took my first look.

I looked remarkable.

The girl staring back at me looked attractive, and I could barely see the makeup. Alise had respected the fact that I was a minimalist.

“You have a talent, Alise…this is miraculous,” I whispered as I touched my cheeks, not feeling greasy makeup. My lips looked full and plump, and my blue eyes were noticeable and sparkly.

She stood behind me in the mirror, smiling at her work. “You look like we could even be friends, like a cheerleader or something.”

And there it was, the old, mean and nasty snot of a sister I was accustomed to. “Yeah, well, don’t get your hopes up.”

She crossed her arms and gave me the look of doom. “Don’t do anything to get dirty or make a mess of yourself, and don’t eat. Just sit somewhere till eight.”

I laughed as I left her room, feeling like an idiot for being talked into it. I walked back to my room to play World of Warcraft while I waited for it to be time.

Lost in the game a while later, deep in thought about the Alliance member I was creaming, my father interrupted me.

“You're doing this then?” Dad asked, as I slaughtered a noob Alliance player with my fellow guildies.

“Play World of Warcraft, yeah. I play everyday. Dad…please…you need to start paying attention to our comings and goings. It's getting frightening in here without any parental control.”

“I know you play. It costs me fifteen dollars every month, kiddo; I notice. Whoever thought that game up is a genius.”

I never took my eyes off the screen as I spoke, “Duly noted.”

“No, I meant the party. It’s not your thing. You don’t have to go.” His flat tone sounded as if he played it up, but secretly excited I would be going.

“Yeah, well, she promised me the moon and stars.” My eyes still never left the screen.

“Be safe and don’t drink, okay?”

I turned to face him while the flags reset in my game of capture the flag. “Dad, it's okay. When do I drink? I think you’re in the wrong room; Sleazy Drunks is next door. This is Dorks with Anonymity. Did you eat yet?”

He shook his head chuckling. “No, I ordered some pizza. Vince is coming over later. He wants to watch the game.”

I smiled. “Who’s playing?”

He ran a hand through his hair and laughed. “Oh…well…you know me and sports, kiddo. But adult company and some pizza will be a pleasant diversion.”

I laughed at my father. “Yeah, I guess we are both being held hostage for the evening.”

His eyes sparkled for a moment. “Maybe it’s what we need, Aimee. We don’t seem to be getting past this on our own. You look pretty, by the way. Want me to get a veggie burger when I pick up the pizza?”

I smiled looking him right in the eye, which I never did anymore, and nodded as he left my room.

My sister drove like a crazed woman, making all the pickup stops along the way. Blake and I sat squished in the back with a guy name Tommy, who had dated my sister and flirted mercilessly with everything that moved.

“Hey Aimee, looking good. You clean up nice,” he spoke in a soothing tone, as if trying to charm me or tame me like a wild animal. I wasn’t sure which.

“Yeah, I don’t really see how a t-shirt is cleaned up, but thanks Tommy.” I rolled my eyes at Blake, who muffled a laugh.

“McGinnis, dude, you’re way too big for the back seat. You should have tried out for basketball. What are you, six-one?” he asked Blake, trying to make conversation.

Blake smiled. “Uhm… six-three…but I am not the sporting sort. That is best left for the coordinated.”

He frowned at me, which I knew meant he didn’t want to be in this car full of the popular kids. They always asked him to join sports, based on his height and the fact that his parents were ridiculously rich. Team funding was a huge issue in a small town.

I laughed at his grumpy face, as he whispered to me, “You look nice. Pink is an improvement to black.”

I stuck my tongue out, almost feeling guilty to be having fun and laughing. Deep down, I knew my mom would want me to have a life again, even if it was Alise’s life.

We pulled into a long driveway far from the road to Shane Bagley’s house. His dad and mom had recently split, causing a rift in our small town. Shane’s father had been caught having relations, so to speak, with a checkout girl at the local grocery store. The store Shane's family owned. Shane’s mom had kicked him out, only to find out that he moved in with his twenty-five year old employee.

Shane had taken it hard, just as any of us would. Eighteen is too young to have a family torn apart by a new stepmom. In particular, one that’s only seven years older than her new stepson.

Alise had been sucked into the drama, her specialty if truth were told. She had gone from nearly dumping Shane to a devoted woman. She loved drama. It made me sick. As Shane went from being Plain Shane to heartbroken Shane, she got more into him. She never stopped cheating on him though.

I never understood why he chose to date my sister. He never seemed to enjoy the relationship. He hardly ever hung out with her, and when he did, they barely spoke. Alise had complained about it, but our father told her Shane was distracted by the tragedy in his family.

Shane’s mom had been vacationing more than normal in the last few months. In such a small town, it had people speculating that she was, in reality, in a center somewhere. I felt bad for Shane.

His only saving grace was that he had an older sister in university in the city. She came back on weekends, even though it was a five-hour drive, to help him out while his parents were both AWOL.

The music from the house could be heard from the long driveway. The large waterfront home seemed to have every light on inside and out, even though it wasn't dark yet.

Cars lined the driveway as Alise found a spot up beside Shane's truck. People bailed from her old car, boys picking girls up and running with them over their shoulders, and girls screaming in joy. I was certain that I watched someone climb out of the trunk.

The music stopped and my heart skipped a beat for a second. Shane came out to greet us. Behind him, the open door revealed a packed house. The huge windows in the living room looked like peeking onto a set of an American Pie movie.

He stood there, looking breathtaking. His eyes zeroed in on me. “Hey Aimee, I’m glad you came. Hi, Blake.”

I wanted to take it the wrong way, but I knew why he wanted me there. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Blake stood closer to me and puffed up his chest. I blushed, thinking that he must have noticed my crush on Shane and resented it.

I gave Shane a small wave and tiny smile. Mostly, I tried not to look at his lips and imagine what they would be like to kiss.

My sister walked up and kissed him on the cheek, making me want to disinfect him so I could continue my fantasy.