“My God, it feels like it’s been ages since I’ve seen you, kiddo,” AJ declared, hugging his sister tightly. Nodding to Louie, he added, “Do I have to chew my brother-in-law a new one for overworking you?”

“No, just the opposite,” Emily replied, grinning. She sat in the nearest chair and waved a thick stack of papers at the group. “It was his idea that I take a break from everything. I’ve been busy, you know. Jobs, side projects, things like that. I’ve been working on this for a while, and if all goes well, it could be successful.”

“What is it?” Tiffani asked.

Emily smiled down at the pages and ran her fingers along the edges, as though trying to draw a response from the manuscript. “A story. A fictional story. But not entirely fictional,” she finally replied. “I wrote a story based on my high school experiences.”

Tiffani scoffed and rolled her eyes. “That’s as good as fiction. No one’s going to believe any of that really happened. I mean, only in stories and silly movies like The Breakfast Club can a group of such different people actually get along. I mean, look at me. Do you really think anyone would believe that someone could go from being a cheerleader with a weigh problem to befriending people she’d never so much as wanted to interact with in the past?”

Emily chuckled and shrugged. “Well,” she responded, “Louisa May Alcott based a lot of her work on her life. She said that the stuff she made up was described by critics as being so realistic, while the stuff based on real life was described as being fake-sounding. I guess maybe I’m following in that tradition.”

“Yeah,” Louie spoke up, “but still… you have to admit, a lot of what we went through wasn’t the ‘typical’ high school experience.”

“Well, what’s the ‘typical’ high school experience, then?” Emily asked. “Not everyone is a cheerleader or football player. No offense, AJ and Tiff.”

“None taken,” AJ replied easily. “I’m sure you know what you’re doing. I’d like to read this sometime. You know, to see how accurately you portrayed me.” This last part was said with a wink and nudge.

Emily laughed and patted her brother’s arm. “Don’t worry, I have you in there, just like you are in real life. The good and the bad.” She made an evil-looking face and added, “And being your twin sister, I know all the bad stuff about you.”

“Can we read it?” Tiffani asked.

“Sure. That’s why I brought this copy for you,” Emily replied. “Also, I have plans for the next book I’m going to work on. I’m going to examine various beauty pageants-- for adults as well as kids-- and look at the negative effects of them. I’m going to try to use scientific evidence as well as anecdotal. It could be interesting, you know.” She looked over at Tiffani. “Maybe even do a section on cheerleading.”

“I’ll be happy to talk to you about how that affected me,” Tiffani offered.


“That’s great!” Emily responded. “When the time comes to work on that, I’ll call you up.” She rummaged in her pocket for a second and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. She smoothed and unfolded it and placed it where everyone could see. “I’m planning to do a lot of observational work here,” she added, tapping the paper with a finger. “Little Miss Oakdale.”

“First prize is a trophy and $300 for the winner. They’re selling kids’ souls and childhoods for cheap these days,” Louie added.

“My mom used to put my sisters and me in those stupid contests all the time,” Tiffani replied bitterly. “I hated it. I can’t believe how parents will use those damn things to make themselves feel good. They’re dolling up their kids like miniature adults. What’s wrong with letting kids be, you know, kids?”

Just then, Jane peeked her head into the room. “Mom, can we have some popcorn?” she called out.

“Sure, but don’t burn it,” Tiffani replied.

“She said ‘okay,’” Jane yelled into the room she was in. “Press the ‘start’ button, Eva!”

A faint reply could be heard by the adults, and seconds later, a loud gunfire-like sound emerged from the kitchen. Jane strode into the living room and peered at the wrinkled piece of paper. “Little Miss Oakdale,” she murmured. “First prize… $300.” Her eyes widened, and she turned to her mother, a broad smile on her face. “Mom, can I be in this?”

“Well, sweetie, I don’t--”

“--Come on, Mom, it’ll be so fun,” Jane whined. She grabbed up the paper and raced into the kitchen, waving it like a flag. “Hey, Leah, Eva, check it out!” she yelled. “$300!”


Emily raced behind her, trying to grab the flier back. “No, honey, don’t, I need that!” she cried out. Louie, AJ, and Tiffani watched her disappear into the kitchen, then looked at each other uncomfortably.

“You’re not going to let her enter this… are you?” AJ asked.

Tiffani sighed and replied, “She’s your daughter.”

“I’m not sure if this would be right for her…”

Emily emerged from the kitchen, clutching the remains of the flier and looking weary. “Tiff, I’ve got some bad news for you,” she announced. “Jane’s not the only one who wants to enter. They all do.” She looked over at Louie. “You were right, honey. They’re selling souls cheap these days.”