"You'll pick me up at 7:00? What are you going to wear? OK, I'll be ready!"
Becca hit the "end" button and tossed her iPhone on the bed.
"Great! My first official duty as an officer of the drill team! Look awesome, go out, and make guys crazy! I think I can handle that!!"
Becca was one week away from her senior year in high school. She had always enjoyed school, at least the social aspects of it. She was bright, beautiful, and had the kind of vivacious personality that made her a favorite among coaches and other male teachers but caused female teachers to make snide comments about her when none of the men were around. She had been on one drill team or another since first grade and lived for half-time of Friday night football games.
Today was one of the greatest days of her life. By some bizarre process she did not understand that included voting by members of the team, recommendations from teachers and administrators, grades, and community involvement she had been elected as one of the six officers of the Pacesetters. It would take more of her time but would be well worth it in prestige and popularity.
Becca headed to her closet and began rummaging through her wardrobe. Item after item flew across the room, some landing on the bed, others accumulating in a pile on the floor around it. In a matter of minutes the bed was nearly invisible.
"I don't have a thing to wear!"
she thought angrily to herself.
Becca went to her dresser, wading through the pile of discarded garments. She yanked open the top drawer and stared blankly in before slamming it shut and repeating the process on the remaining three drawers. Each breath she took was a little louder and a little more aggravated than the last, and her face was becoming flushed. Finally, in desperation, she ripped off her shorts and her tank top, dove into the pile of rejects, grabbed something slinky, and headed to the mirror.
Without much enthusiasm, Becca stepped into the mini skirt and pulled it up her long, tan legs, staring into the mirror as she went. She fastened the buttons and grabbed a small, matching, half-length tank top and pulled it over her shoulder-length blonde hair. When it was in place, she stood back and gazed at her reflection.
Becca was her own worst critic, and what she saw only annoyed her more than she had already been. Her hair hung softly down either side of her girlish face, outlining her blue eyes and dimpled smile. Curling under on the ends, it lightly landed on her bronze shoulders and the thin straps of the teal and white tank top. The straps dove down her chest exposing ample cleavage while the bottom of the flimsy material hung just below her breasts and away from her flat stomach. The purple and teal mini skirt clung tenaciously to her round hips, leaving little to the imagination, and snapped just below her navel. It was barely long enough to be legal. Her long legs dropped gracefully from the bottom of the skirt and ended in small, tan feet with painted toenails.
She was incredibly beautiful in her own right, and if she were at this moment walking down a crowded street, men would be straining to catch a glimpse of her. But Becca did not realize this. Instead, she had to compare every physical aspect, every personality trait, everything she knew and did, with the same attribute in her older sister, Jennifer. She had always been locked in the same, frivolous competition, and instead of capitalizing on her own strengths she wasted valuable time trying to be like her older sis, only better.
She turned sideways one way and then the other. She looked up and down the reflection of her perfect body, and in disgust, she ripped off the clothes and added them to the pile.
* * *
Becca peered around the corner to make sure Jennifer wasn't in her room. She hadn't seen her all weekend, so she didn't think there was any danger of stumbling across her now. But she was about to raid her big sister's closet, and since their parents were in New York for the week, there was no one here to protect her if she got caught. The room was empty, but she still tiptoed in and pulled the closet door behind her. Quietly, she rummaged through piles of unfolded clothes looking for the blue-leather mini skirt she needed when she headed out later that evening. She finally found it at the bottom of the laundry basket, grabbed it, and reached for the doorknob.
"Wait just a minute!"
It was Jennifer, opening the bedroom door and giggling. Becca let go of the knob and flattened her body into the back corner of her sister's closet. The closet door was open a few inches, but if she tried to close it now she would definitely be discovered.
"No one's home. What are you worried about?"
Becca knew that the second, pleading voice was DJ, Jennifer's loser boyfriend from college. They had been at the lake all day.
"I'm not worried about anything," she said walking to the stereo and hitting the power button. "Just give me a second to put my stuff down and go rinse off! I feel all gross from lake water"
Becca heard the sounds of
Pink
as the bathroom door closed. She peeked out of the small opening of the door and watched DJ. She wanted to make a break for it, but she would have a hard time explaining what she was doing in Jenn's room, never mind that she was in the closet. Besides, she was wearing only her underwear, and she didn't want to give Loser Boy the thrill of a lifetime. He randomly picked something up off the shelf, studied it, and then with an indifferent air, set it back down.
"It's an Academic Decathlon medal, moron. I'm sure you've never seen one of those before!"
she thought to herself with disdain. Even though Jennifer met DJ at college, he was not a student. He worked on the grounds crew, keeping everything neat and tidy for those who had brains. Becca hated him because he was beneath Jenn. She had guessed that her sister only hung out with him to make their parents mad, and it did. She knew for sure that mom and dad had no idea that he had come up for the weekend. She could wear that mini skirt now without having to sneak it out. Unfortunately, how would she explain hiding in the closet?
"Hey, Einswine!"
she thought to herself.