.: 2 :.
Objects Are Closer Than They Appear

Vicki groaned and forced her eyes open, rubbing the backs of her hands against them when all she could see was a blurred face. "What?" she mumbled sleepily. "What's the matter?"

"We're going to walk around today. Remember?" Andy made her way to Vicki's still unpacked suitcase and pulled out a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt.

With a moan, Vicki reluctantly kicked back her sheets and forced herself to sit up. "Now? It's barely morning!"

"Quit whining, you big wuss."

"Why couldn't I have a normal sister?" Vicki mumbled. "There's no possible way we could be related."

Smirking, Andy tossed the clothes at her younger sister. "Ha ha. Very funny."

Vicki caught them, barely, and smiled at her sister. "Just kidding, Andy. Geez. Loosen up or something."

Andy straightened and motioned to the door. "I'll be downstairs when you're ready." She left, and Vicki could hear her steps down, and then the swinging of the kitchen door.

Vicki slid out of bed and stretched, giving a good scratch here and there through her pajamas of tank-tee and shorts. Then she crossed the second-story hall to the bathroom almost directly across from her room, locking the door to prevent distractions, and cranked on the hot water.

Pulling her cleansing cream out of the cabinet behind the mirror, she washed and dried her face, braided her hair - which could be a pain because her arms weren't long enough to do it all the way behind her. She'd had to learn how to bring the braid in front mid-way to finish, making it look a little weird at times. Then Vicki slipped into her sweats and one of Steven's yellow sweatshirts.

When she looked at herself in the mirror, however, her reflection had her lightly biting her lip while rolling the sweatshirt's hem. Too-big sweatshirt - or t-shirt - and baggy jeans were her usual mode of dress. Mostly because it happened to be the best way to keep her from feeling 'fat'. Not that she was, it was just... she had a few more curves than what she liked.

I'd rather feel dumpy, she admitted to her reflection.

Vicki sighed. In Ouray, everyone knew about her thyroid gland suddenly not working her freshman year. That had made her gain almost 15 pounds in less than one school year even though she had been active in P.E., on the neighborhood soccer team, and a starting player on the church's youth-group softball team.

It had taken a long time to get used to the weight gain, the change in diet, and the doctor visits and medication she now had to take. Thanks to her friends, it had been easier to forget about it. But the students here didn't know about thyroid glands and how they worked. Or don't. So now she would have to ignore glances and whispers because no one knew that it wasn't her fault.

Vicki sighed again as she slipped on her cross-trainers to hurry downstairs. Andy waited by the door, her one hand on the doorknob while the other rested on her hip.

Andy's expression showed pure amusement. "Ready, Sleeping Beauty?"

Vicki made a face.

Pulling a map out of the back pocket of her jeans, Andy held the door open for her sister. "I don't think we should go to the library today. It would be a little bit too nerd-like for the new kids to have their noses buried in a book." Andy smiled a moment and then put on a serious face. "Or maybe I'm being too sensitive?"

Reluctantly smiling, Vicki shook her head. "Whatever. Just don't wake me up at eight o'clock anymore. Especially not on a Saturday. It's not exactly sleeping in."

"Even Max is out and about, went to some place called Costco with Steven and Dad, I think. But I suppose noon would be better for you?" Andy asked, grimacing as they made their way down the sidewalk away from their new home.

"Yeah. Noon sounds perfect."

"Oh brother." Andy gave Vicki a firm shove. "What are you going to do when school starts? You're going to have to get up earlier than that, you know."

Like she had to remind me of that, Vicki thought, kicking a rock down the sidewalk.

Andy tucked the map back into the pocket of her jeans as she watched her sister. "Fine. How about ten o'clock?" Vicki only shrugged, so Andy stopped her with a hand on her arm. "What's the matter?"

Vicki continued to stare down at the sidewalk. What could she have said that wouldn't have sounded like a big baby? God, it isn't fair! Even that sounded too much like a whine.

"Vic-"

Vicki finally looked up, her eyes wide. "You know how I freeze up around people I don't know, Andy. Which is, like, everyone here! Then there's my weight, which you know is going to make everyone think I've got some kind of eating problem. 'What are you on? The see food diet?' Yeah. Ha ha. Very funny." Vicki grimaced. "They won't care about my stupid gland. All they'll see is the fact I'm a bit on the chunky side."

"Hold on, hold on," Andy protested. She put both hands on Vicki's shoulders, looking down into her face with a serious and no-nonsense expression. Vicki lowered her gaze. "If your weight matters to anyone at that school, then they have the problem. There is nothing wrong with you. Who cares what they think anyway?"

Vicki lifted her arms in a kind of helpless gesture. "I know that, Andy, but-"

"You're only allowed one butt."

Vicki slightly frowned and looked away. This isn't funny! But because Andy was slender and gorgeous she didn't 'get it'.

Andy released a slow breath. "Vi-vi, God loves you just the way you are, and so do we. You're pretty, have a great laugh, gorgeous blue eyes, cute freckles, and a kind heart, too. You give everyone the benefit of the doubt, even if they don't deserve it, and if given the chance people will see that you're the greatest. All you have to do is-"

"All I have to do is convince them before looking like an idiot," Vicki muttered.

"You're looking at this all wrong," Andy sighed, shaking her head. "To prove it, we're going to that park across the street to talk to those guys playing soccer."

Looking sharply at her sister, Vicki gasped, "What? We don't even know them!"

"Exactly, and how else are we going to do that?"

Vicki could only noiselessly work her jaw.

Laughing, Andy tugged at Vicki's braid. "Don't worry so much. You don't have to impress anyone." Giving the braid another gentle pull, she said, "Come on," and promptly wrapped her arm around Vicki's shoulders to guide her across the street.

If Vicki thought it might work, she would have planted her feet and refused to move. Instead, Vicki only licked her dry lips, desperately trying to ignore the growing knot in her stomach. Knowing what to say in order to get a conversation going wasn't the easiest thing for her. Unlike Andy, Vicki was always afraid of looking like an idiot, or saying something stupid, or not saying anything at all when someone asked her an easy question. Andy, on the other hand, was so good at conversation that it made Vicki feel even worse when she could barely say 'Hi' without thinking she sounded like a moron.

The guys had long since broken up their soccer game to watch the sisters cross to the park. Vicki swallowed hard, sending her sister a sidelong glance. What is she getting me into? Premature humiliation? At least it would be over and done with before school started. Vicki grimaced.

"Hi there," a tall redhead greeted them. "I haven't seen you around before."

Andy smiled. "We just moved, so we decided to do a little exploring. I'm Andy." Andy gestured toward Vicki. "This is my sister Vicki."

When the boys kept watching Andy, Vicki clenched her jaw and focused her teary gaze to the grass at her feet. No guy had ever looked at her like that. They always called her 'friend', 'chum', and a million other things that never meant the one thing she wanted: 'Girlfriend.' I know I'm not old enough yet, but still. It'd be nice.... She frowned and jammed her foot into the backside of the soccer ball. It careened into the goal while sounding a soft 'swish'.

Andy turned to Vicki and sent her a smile. "I see the Modine Muscle Kick hasn't lost its punch."

Shrugging, Vicki mumbled, "It's no big deal," as she continued to stare down at her feet. They don't care anyway. It's all ever about Andy. Big eyes, big smile... She grimaced. Big boobs.

"Okay, so it's no big deal. Then you won't mind showing these guys that kick again."

Vicki looked up sharply, the color draining from her face. ". . .what?"

Andy jerked her head in the direction of the tall redhead, who ran to get the ball, and then gave Vicki a meaningful stare. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind doing a little one-on-one."

A slender guy in basketball shorts and a Trailblazers jersey of white and red approached, easily smiling as he ran a hand through his red streaked, long-ish black hair. "Did you play on a team where you lived before?" he asked, nonchalant.

Vicki sent Andy a glare before once more focusing on him with a somewhat forced smile. "No." What do they care anyway? They're only asking because Miss Beautiful over here said something. Andy was the Queen of Conversation because guys wanted to show interest in her and everything about her.

"Don't be so vague," Andy scolded. She turned to the Trailblazers fan. "It was just a neighborhood thing, but our whole family got into it. Vicki here was one of the starting players. Our church's youth-group had a team, too. Nothing major competitive. Just to play before weekday service, and we got some other church youth-groups together for a kind of fund-raiser competition."

The guy nodded, eyebrows raised. Then he made his way over to a taller guy with a more athletic build and curly brown hair.

Vicki clenched her fists and took a menacing step toward Andy just as the others gathered around her with the ball. Andy, I'm going to hurt you when we get home. I'm going to absolutely hurt you, she promised while giving the group yet another forced smile and slowly reaching out for the ball.

She was sorely tempted to play crappy just so that Andy would look like an idiot. The only problem being then she would look like a mega-dweeb. That wasn't exactly on her list of things to do on her first morning in her new hometown. Jerk. She plotted this. Vicki wouldn't put it past her older sister at all.

She'd done it before.

"Do you mind playing one-on-one?" the redhead asked as he and the rest of the group followed Vicki farther onto the neighborhood field practically across the street from the Modine house.

Andy continued to watch from the sidelines with an 'I told you so' smirk that drove Vicki nuts. I'll get you for this, her responding glare warned even as she said, "Sure," aloud.

Andy only kept smiling.

Fortunately, the 'Modine Mob' didn't have a spare moment to do much more than kick the soccer ball around or toss the softball back and forth the first week in Westlake, and that in the evenings. Their days were filled to overflowing with helping their parents organize the right boxes to the right rooms, unpack boxes for the kitchen and living room, and erect shelving and bookcases for the bedrooms, the two-car garage, and the office their father would use when he wasn't in the city - he had arranged to work half from home.

Vicki was exhausted, but the act of 'settling in' made her not think about what might come later. It was better than being a pathetic whiner. Especially since she didn't like having her parents send her concerned glances over the dinner table.

Unfortunately, now Friday had come around again and Andy was pushing for another soccer adventure.

"Andy, I don't want to play soccer with those guys. I only did it that once because I was forced into it." Vicki struggled open another box of books and notebooks as she tried to forget that it had been fun.

Andy snorted and sat on Vicki's bed. "You lie like a dog. I saw the smile on your face."

Vicki ignored her. Admit she's right and have 'I told you so' aimed at me? No way!

"Come on," Andy pressed. "I'm just trying to get you to open up. You need some close friends that keep you from hiding who you are."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Fine. Deny it. But you have to admit that a little soccer game once and a while isn't going to hurt you. You were complaining that there aren't enough chances to play with someone other than us. Well, this will give you a chance to play with others, and meet new people and get used to doing it. Besides, Eric wanted me to talk to you about coming and joining in."

While Vicki tried to look uninterested, her question of "The curly haired guy?" came out more eager than she wanted. When Andy remained silent for a brief moment watching her, Vicki inwardly groaned. Great job. You've basically admitted everything, and she'll never let you say 'no'!

Andy brushed a slight wave of blonde out of her face. "Eric's the redhead."

"Oh."

Vicki wrinkled her nose as she stared into her box of notebooks. When she heard some laughter from outside, she let out a deep breath. It had been fun, so why was she looking for a reason to back out and not join in?

"I'll help you finish unpacking so that you don't get into trouble," Andy was saying. "But then you have to come and at least watch."

"They didn't do much playing last time we were there. It seemed to me that most of them couldn't take their eyes off a certain person." She sent Andy a dirty look. "Who will remain nameless."

"Maybe I'm funny looking?" Andy opened a box of 'collectibles'.

"Yeah. Funny gorgeous."

"Oh knock it off," Andy complained. "You know as well as I do that the beauty on the outside is only as beautiful as what's inside."

"Yeah, well, almost every guy I've known never took the time to get to know the inside," Vicki said with a sigh. "It always helps if you're pretty on the outside, too." She pushed the box of notebooks across the room to the bookshelf by the window facing the side of the house. "I can't help it if this world's point of view is messed up."

Andy gave a somewhat sad nod as she lifted out a ceramic figure of a little angel. "It is, but you've got nothing to worry about. You're adorable. Now quit changing the subject." She placed the figurine onto a shelf in the antique corner-hutch to the left of Vicki's bed.

Adorable? Since when? It was always the girls that thought she was adorable and the guys that called her a 'good sport'. "Sorry," she mumbled.

"It's okay." Andy sent her sister a smirk. "Just for that I'm not taking anything but 'yes' for an answer."

Groaning, Vicki slammed a notebook into the bookshelf somewhat harshly before turning and facing her. "Andy, how come you want me to go to this game so bad? What if I mess up? I'll look like an idiot and never be able to live it down!"

"I really don't think you'll have a problem with that. Just try to have fun and you'll be fine."

"Sure! Easy for you to say! You're going to be sitting on the sidelines with beautiful hair and beautiful nails while I'm getting all sweaty and gross. Some impression!" Vicki frowned, leaning back against the bookshelves. She tightly crossed her arms. "Why don't you play and get all icky?"

"You don't get 'icky' when you play, Vi-vi. Sure your cheeks get a little pink, but it looks cute. And your hair curls when you sweat. It's annoying." Vicki only frowned deeper. Andy chuckled. "Okay. Fine. I won't stand on the sidelines and let you get all the attention. I'll play."

Vicki blinked, her frown vanishing as she straightened. "Hey wait a second. What do you mean 'let you get all the attention'?"

Andy didn't focus on her sister as she continued to place ceramic angels, birds, and horses into the corner hutch. "Lots of guys like a girl that does sports. Gives them someone to play with, basically. Makes things easier to start. Well, it makes them more 'at ease', at least. Some girls are so afraid of keeping themselves perfectly beautiful that a guy can get scared spitless to even suggest a little sports action. Afraid they'll get their head chopped off and handed to them."

Vicki blinked again. "Oh." She had always wondered why she had more guy friends than girl friends. She hadn't ever been afraid to join in the games at their youth groups: softball, floor hockey, soccer, volleyball.... It was fun to be in the group and laugh with friends.

"I've also noticed that while a guy will laugh when a girl messes up, they like it when the girl can see the humor in the whole situation and laugh, too." Andy sent Vicki a slight glance as she continued to organize and place the figurines. "Shows that they're... relaxed about themselves or something. So, that makes the guy more relaxed. You laugh when you're on your butt, and your whole face brightens when you laugh, so it's a great ice-breaker."

Vicki's cheeks flushed and she self-consciously turned back to the bookshelf. How she was going to keep saying 'no' against Andy's logic she had no idea. I hate it when she does that. She grimaced and then reluctantly laughed. "Okay, Andy. Okay, I'll go."

"I knew you'd see it my way."

Retrieving a pair of tightly folded socks from the dresser to the left of the bookshelf, she hit Andy upside the back of the head. "Jerk."

Andy laughed and tossed the socks back at her, getting them into the drawer. "You'll thank me ten years down the road when you're having your first baby."

Snickering, Vicki turned back to the dresser just as a voice asked, "Who's having a baby?"

Vicki and Andy laughed as they looked to their older brother leaning against the door jamb of the room. "No one, Stevie! Geez!"

Steven, arms crossed and his usual boyish smile of amusement making him look as adorable as ever, sent her a wink. "Good. I'd hate to have to beat someone up."

Andy and Vicki laughed again.

Then Andy pointed at him. "We're going to a neighborhood soccer game. Want to come with? You could be the mysterious, good-looking guy that makes the guys want to get to know Vicki better."

"An-dy!" Vicki complained, throwing the same pair of socks at her sister and hitting her in the side of the face.

Steven laughed. "Now, girls. Let's play nice." Then he focused on Vicki's flushed face. "I'd like to come if it's okay with you, kiddo. It's always great fun to watch you blast other players into the stratosphere."

"I'm not going to be blasting anybody. You know the minute I feel pressure I suck."

"Yes, but when you suck, you laugh and look even cuter," Steven reminded, sending his youngest sister yet another wink.

This time it was Steven on the receiving end of a tightly folded sock.

"Knock it off!" Vicki whined.

He chucked the sock back. "You're supposed to say 'thank you' when someone gives you a compliment."

Instead, Vicki stuck out her tongue.

"Now that's attractive." Steven jerked a thumb behind him. "I'll get Max the Magnificent and tell Mom and Dad where we're going. I think they needed to go off to Home Depot for something anyway."

"Good idea," Andy said, nodding. "I'll hound Vicki."

Frowning, Vicki placed her fists on her hips. "Am I everyone's pet project or something?"

Andy and Steven both focused serious expressions on their younger sister. "Yes," they said together.

Vicki's jaw dropped. Then she gave a protesting growl of "Oooo!" and chucked a sock missile at each of them.

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