Aurora glanced at her sister, waiting for a reaction. Without even looking at their mom, Ariel sarcastically responded.
“Oh shoot, Mom. See I would, but I need to finish discovering the cure for cancer first. Then after that, I have to teach a group of pigs to fly. So sorry, but I’m booked!”
“Alright I get it,” Rachel said shaking her head. “Be ready to go to dinner by 6:00 then.”
Similar to her cousins’ problems, Ariel avoided swimming. She had been scared of the water ever since she and Aurora were tiny and their mom used to teach swim lessons. They would accompany her and float in the kiddy pool with their bright orange water wings until she was done.
One day, after her water wings had been removed, Ariel approached the deep end and slipped. It took a minute for everyone to realize where she had gone, and Rachel barely got to her in time. Ariel never went near water again, even though her mom had tried to teach her how to swim on several occasions. In junior high, they had to swim for gym class from time to time. Ariel’s mom had talked to the teacher and she had gotten out of having to participate by running extra laps after school. But during the class, Ariel still had to sit on the bleachers and watch while the other students learned things like the backstroke and the butterfly. Some bullies in class thought it was funny that ‘the little mermaid’ wouldn’t swim. When the teacher wasn’t looking they would splash her with water and then laugh when she started screaming. The other kids would jokingly bet on how wet Ariel needed to be before her fins would sprout.
Belle was the only Princess who didn’t let the teasing get to her…too much. She would often tell her cousins to not let it bother them. Yet she was never found reading in public, and when her teachers wanted her to stand up and read in front of the class, she flat out refused. Belle was threatened with going to the Principal’s office, but no punishment fazed her. She would take whatever was dished out, and then continue on as if nothing had happened. And eventually her teachers gave up trying.
Belle had inherited her mother’s beauty. With her father’s olive complexion, her big dark eyes and blonde flowing hair made her seem exotic. It seemed unnatural; the way her dark skin and eyes contrasted her naturally light hair. And as we all know, boys act stupid around pretty girls. More than once a boy in her class would approach her with a one-petal rose and tell her to kiss him quickly so he could become her prince. Belle always rolled her eyes and would walk away from them, but she secretly liked the attention.
Perhaps their names were why the Princess sisters never had any friends other than each other. They grew up together and could relate to one another. With four almost-sisters their same age, the girls never saw the sense in bothering to make other friends. They had four built-in best friends from the time they were small. Growing up next door to each other, they would often get passed from aunt to aunt while their mothers worked, and sometimes their moms would joke that they often couldn’t tell which daughter belonged to which mother.
Chapter Two
Around six o’clock that evening, in four different homes that stood side by side, four different mothers were telling their daughters to hurry or they would be late. Then three different cars pulled out of their parking spots and revved their engines as they waited for the fourth. When Belle and Mary finally emerged from their front door, the others began honking and cat-calling from their open windows.
“Alright, alright,” Mary said, waving at them with a grin. She and Belle climbed into their sleek, black Celica to join the others. Dana and Cinderella were waiting in the front, nearest the road, in their dark blue Outlander. Next to them were Elizabeth and Snow White in a white Mini, covered in dirt from a recent windstorm. Just behind the large form of the Outlander sat Rachel, Ariel and Aurora in their silver Prius. When the Celica pulled in behind the Mini, Mary slammed on her horn and they were off.
Dana and Cinderella began in the lead, their tires peeling as they pulled onto the road. Then Mary and Belle came up beside them from the left lane and stuck out their tongues as they pulled past. They got in front and turned left at the light ahead just before it changed to red. Dana and Cinderella came to a stop, stuck behind the red light of discouragement. The white Mini with Snow White and Elizabeth saw the red light ahead and quickly turned off into a neighborhood side street. They maneuvered their way through the quiet roads, and then pulled back onto the main street right in front of a dark blue Outlander. Snow White and her mom cheered and then high-fived over their success. Cinderella’s jaw dropped when she saw the white Mini.
“Faster, mom!” she screamed. “They beat us last time!”
“We’ll just see about that,” said Dana speeding up.
She was closing in to pass the Mini, just as Mary and Belle had done to them, when a silver Prius pulled onto the road ahead from an unknown neighborhood. Instead of pulling into the place in front of the Mini, Dana continued to coax the gas until she found herself even with the offending Prius. They reached the red light ahead at the same time. Just then, Dana’s cell phone rang.
“You know you’re supposed to turn right here?” came Ariel’s laughing voice from the other end. Dana looked up and realized they were in the lane to go straight, whereas Rachel and her mocking daughters sat in the ‘right turn only’ lane.
“Dang it!” said Dana, hitting the steering wheel as the Prius and then the Mini turned right and continued on to their destination. “Sorry Cinderella,” she said, “I guess I was trying so hard to get ahead that I lost track of where we were going.”
“We could always go to another restaurant and tell everyone else they went to the wrong place,” said Cinderella. They both laughed over the memory of Mary and Belle trying that same tactic last time, after they had lost.
“We’ll get em’ next time,” said Dana.
After getting back on course, the Outlander turned into the restaurant parking lot. The other women stood waiting by the entrance, clapping as Cinderella and Dana approached. They paused, took a bow, and then continued in through the front doors.
“Table for nine please,” said Dana to the hostess behind the podium. The hostess’s eyes widened as she looked over the group of women.
“It may be awhile,” said the young girl, pushing a strand of loose hair behind her ear.
“We’ll wait,” replied Dana with a shrug and she turned to join her family, sitting on the faux red leather benches.
“Let’s see,” said Mary, looking over the dessert menu in front of her. “Dana is buying dessert tonight which means we need to find the most expensive thing listed.”
“Be nice,” said Dana. The Princess sisters looked between Dana and Mary and giggled. Dana and Cinderella hadn’t lost the race in a long time and Mary was obviously taking pleasure in it.
Snow White got to her feet and walked toward the large open tank, filled with live lobsters. She watched their maneuvering legs as they crawled over each other’s marble-brown shells. The smallest one in the bunch seemed to be the smartest, as it scurried up the piling lobsters. His pointed claws, forced shut by a green rubber band, flailed against the glass in front of him. As the lobster inched toward his freedom, the tower toppled over and several hard shells came crunching back down to the bottom of the tank.
Snow White looked away from the fleeing creatures and noticed her reflection in the glass. Out of all the girls, the name Snow White fit her best. Her skin was pale and creamy and, well, snowy. She had very few freckles considering her raging red hair. She was told by her aunts that the gene containing her red hair was the only good thing Grandpa Princess had left them. Snow White glanced sideways at her reflection, looking over her rounded cheeks to her cabbage patch nose. Her dark green eyes were met by another pair of identical green, approaching on her right side.
“Whatcha doin?” asked Ariel.
“I just didn’t feel like sitting,” said Snow White.
“My bet is on the little one,” said Ariel, pointing at the smallest lobster who had begun his ascent to t
he top of the pile once again. Snow White grinned, revealing her slightly crooked teeth.
“That’s the one I’ve been watching,” she said. “I’m willing to bet those little legs won’t give up until he’s either free or cooked.” Ariel returned her cousin’s smile.
“It’s amazing how something so disgusting looking can taste so good!”
“I know,” Snow White said.
Ariel began pinching her cousin as she displayed her best lobster impression. Snow White smiled again, but it quickly faded this time. She bit her upper lip and turned back toward the motionless lobsters.
“Something wrong, Snow?” asked Ariel, looking in the reflection at her cousin. She and her identical twin, Aurora, shared the same green eyes as their cousin Snow White. But in every other way, the girls’ features were quite different. Ariel and Aurora had very blonde hair with a few natural, light brown highlights─the kind of coloring most women spend hundreds of dollars to obtain. They also shared larger, pointed noses and high, thin cheekbones. The twins were a tall 5’9” compared to Snow White’s shorter 5’4”. They also carried themselves well, with long, beautiful necks over their proud, thin shoulders. It was easy to tell Aurora and Ariel were both dancers, while Snow White’s thicker build suggested she preferred reading to physical activity.
“You okay?” Ariel tried again.
“I was just thinking about what Aurora said today,” Snow White replied quietly.
“You mean high school dances?” asked Ariel after thinking for a minute.
“Yeah,” answered Snow White, turning to face her.
“Are you worried about getting a date?” Ariel asked
“Well…yeah. I mean, what if you all get asked and I don’t?”
“You have nothing to worry about, Snow,” said Ariel. “You look Ab Fab, darling!” she added, primping her hair in the glass reflection. “Seriously though,” she added in a more somber tone. “Give yourself a little credit; you’re much prettier than you think you are!”
At that moment an identical face to the one on Snow White’s right, showed up on her left side. The only difference between the two was a small mole just above Aurora’s upper lip on the left side.
“They’re ready to seat us,” Aurora said.
The three of them walked away from the tank and followed the rest of their family to a large table toward the back of the restaurant.
Chapter Three
“To our new junior high graduates,” Dana said, raising her glass into the air. Eight other hands raised identical glasses high and they all ‘clinked’ their agreement.
“Mary! What are you doing?” came Rachel’s exasperated voice.
“Oh, it’s not gonna hurt her to try a little,” said Mary, handing her champagne glass to Belle. Belle took a sip and immediately wrinkled her nose.
“It tickles,” she said, bringing her hand to her throat. “And burns a little too,” she exclaimed, rubbing it. Belle then passed the glass to Snow White, whose eyes lit up as she brought it to her mouth.
“Well I’m not about to let my daughter start drinking,” said Elizabeth, snatching the glass away before her daughter was able to get a taste.
“Mom!” Snow White shrieked.
“When you’re eighteen maybe,” Elizabeth replied, handing the glass back to Mary. Mary and Snow White both rolled their eyes.
“Anyone else want to sample?” asked Mary, holding the debated beverage up. Snow White slumped down in her chair while three other sets of pleading eyes looked at their mothers.
“I agree with Elizabeth,” said Rachel. “You’re too young.” Aurora and Ariel both slouched into positions similar to Snow White’s.
“Not fair,” Ariel mumbled as she folded her arms over her chest.
“I guess it would be alright,” said Dana looking at Cinderella. “But just a taste.” Cinderella grinned, showing off her perfect smile, as she reached across the table for Mary’s drink.
“When did you get your braces off?” Rachel asked in a desperate attempt to lighten the mood. Cinderella brought the glass back down from her lips. She crinkled her nose and then smacked her tongue against the roof of her mouth a few times before responding.
“Last Thursday it doesn’t taste very good does it,” she replied in one fluid sentence.
“Not a fan?” Dana asked, taking the glass away again and passing it back to Mary.
“Not as sweet as I thought it would be,” she replied, still making a face.
“You better just stick with what you’ve got then,” said Dana, pushing Cinderella’s virgin margarita glass toward her.
“Definitely!” said Cinderella, taking a long drink before her expression returned to normal. Cinderella’s cousins seemed to be in lighter spirits now that they had seen her reaction to the drink.
“Can I get lobster?” Ariel asked her mom, breaking the short silence.
“Of course, sweetie,” Rachel said with a sigh. “You can get whatever you want.”
“Steak too?” asked Aurora.
“It’s your celebration dinner,” replied Rachel. “So get whatever you want.”
“Speaking of celebrations,” Mary cut in, glancing around at the other moms.
“Now?” asked Elizabeth and Dana together.
“I think so,” said Rachel glancing over at Mary and nodding.
“What is it?” asked Aurora. The girls had perked up a bit after watching their mothers’ strange behavior. Then, in perfect unison, five small jewelry boxes appeared in front of the five surprised girls.
“It’s not any of our birthdays,” said Belle, eyeing the package in front of her eagerly.
“No,” said Mary, “But going on to high school is a big deal and we wanted to do something special.”
“Well…” said Elizabeth with a grin, “Open them!” Aurora and Belle tore the lids off quickly and discarded their boxes on the table. They each held a small, silver bracelet in their hands. The bracelets consisted of several tiny links with a small hollow heart on one end. On the other end was a small arrow that went through the heart and then lay flat to close the bracelet around the wrist. A smaller, solid heart charm dangled from the middle. Aurora fingered the bracelet gingerly before bringing it closer to her eyes for inspection. A tiny gasp escaped from her lips.
“Oh,” she said, barely audibly, “It has my initials on it.” Ariel, Snow White and Cinderella, who had taken their time opening the boxes, now examined their bracelets closely. Sure enough, Snow White found a small SW engraved into the tiny heart. Belle had a simple B on her heart’s front and Cinderella had a similar C. Ariel and Aurora’s hearts were designed with a small AR and AU in turn.
There were many excited whispers and much hugging from the younger Princesses. At that moment, the waitress appeared at their table and the girls quieted.
“What’dya want?” she asked without looking any of them in the face.
Cinderella knew exactly what she wanted to order, but as the waitress went around the table with her little pad of paper, she kept sneaking glances at her menu to make sure she got the name of the dish right. When her turn finally came, she took one last peek before saying,
“Can I get the candied sesame teriyaki salmon, please?”
“Soup or salad?” the waitress asked as she drummed her pen against the back of Cinderella’s chair.
“Um, what kind of soup do you have?” Cinderella asked, quickly looking over her menu again. She was overcome by a case of “order anxiety.” She had devoted so much time deciding on a main dish that she had forgotten to look up the options for sides. The waitress finished listing off the flavors of soup for the day, in a bored voice, then folded her arms across her chest and waited for Cinderella again.
“A green salad with ranch and mashed potatoes for my side,” she said, slamming the menu closed and handing it to the waitress.
“Goody,” the waitress said in a bored voice. Then she wrote two quick notes on her pad and hurried off.
“Well sh
e’s pleasant isn’t she?” asked Mary.
“Maybe she’s having a bad day,” tried Elizabeth.
“Or maybe she broke a nail earlier,” said Ariel, covering her mouth in mock concern.
“She’s always like that,” said Belle. Everyone turned and looked at Belle, eyebrows raised.
“Don’t you remember Cynthia Brown?” asked Belle, looking at Snow White.
“That was Cynthia?!” Snow White shrieked louder than intended. She quickly glanced behind her in the direction the waitress had gone. Cynthia was nowhere to be seen. She was safe.
“Should have guessed,” said Aurora.
“Are you going to fill in the rest for us?” asked Mary.
“Cynthia was in ninth grade when we were in seventh,” Belle explained, turning toward her mom. “She wasn’t very nice to anyone.”
“Unless she wanted something from you,” added Ariel. “Remember that time in dance class?” she asked Aurora.
“Oh yeah,” said Aurora, an irritated look coming over her face.
“She wanted to be voted dance captain,” Ariel continued, looking around the table. “So she was super nice to us like the week before we voted.”
“I don’t even think she looked at us again after she won,” Aurora finished.
“Is she the one who had implants?” asked Cinderella, the memory coming back to her. Dana glanced over at her daughter, eyes wide.
“Yeah, that was her,” said Belle.
“All the boys were in love with her,” Aurora said, her eyes burning.
“Sounds to me like they were in love with her boobs,” Mary said in an amused voice.
“Mary!” Elizabeth exclaimed. But no one seemed to hear her, or they didn’t pay attention at least.
“They’re pretty much the same thing to a teenage boy,” continued Cinderella.
“They’re pretty much the same thing to an adult man too,” Dana added, somewhat bitterly. Everyone looked at her, the conversation screeching to a halt.
The Princess Sisters (The Princess Sisters Series) Page 2
