Fate on My Side

Tap, tap, tap. Shaky fingers rattled on the keyboard as Elsie typed in the password to her Gmail account, inhaling a gust of air to soothe her senses.

This was her big chance. This was the way to finally break free from Annie’s shadow. This was the way to get fate on her side. This was it. The ever-so-cliche words she had watched spoken in others’ heads were now directed at her.

Sure enough, an email from the National Society of Architecture appeared in bold at the top of the “Primary” section of her inbox. Anxiously smoothing thick, platinum blonde strands of hair behind her ear, she hesitated and paused to read the subject and first few words of the email.

Winners of the 2014 NSA Contest! Here are the winn

Then it cut off.

As the control in Elsie’s fingers lessened to the point that she was practically tapping an audible rhythm, one of the taps triggered the button on her touchpad, accidentally sending her to the contest email. Shoot, she thought. Well, I have to do this anyway.

Five names were stacked below the run-of-the-mill introduction in alphabetical order. That meant if fate was on her side, the words “Arndell, Elizabeth” would be near the top of the list.

And in fact, the first surname was indeed “Arndell”. Elsie’s thin lips started to curl upwards to form a breaking smile. But just as she was ready to let out a squeal, she made out “Anne”, not “Elizabeth”, next to “Arndell”. They shifted downward, but the next name down was “Bjorkman”. The breaking smile melted quickly into a straight face, complete with gritted teeth behind pursed lips.

Great. What did I do wrong this time! Don’t the judges know how hard it is to book a tour of the Ice Hotel and find and work with unmeltable ice?

Just as the breakdown came upon her, footsteps behind her approached her open door. “I made it in!” a voice behind her squealed gleefully. Elsie could feel a slight vibration from the ground beneath her.

At the sight of large blue eyes that shone with glee and bouncing, fiery-colored pigtails, Elsie felt a scowl seeping onto her face. Of course you did. Why is fate on your side and not mine? Sometimes it’s hard to believe we’re even related. Elsie’s muscles started contracting in, as if about to burst. Don’t feel, don’t feel, don’t feel! she yelled to herself.

“Yeah, I heard,” Elsie responded in a not-so-enthusiastic drone. “Congrats to you.” Sure, Annie’s good at everything, but geometry was my specialty! she thought. She had even won an award in her geometry class three years ago for Best Geometric Model, when she used a graph to sketch an castle based on the Ice Hotel in Quebec City, Canada, which was quite similar to her entry for the NSA contest. Now I know that fate definitely isn’t on my side.

But Annie didn’t shrug off Elsie’s deadpan like she usually did. “Wait, what?” Annie muttered softly, a sudden change from her energetic persona from a minute ago.

When did Annie get so good at detecting my feelings? Am I seriously that bad of a liar? Elsie wondered, shocked by Annie’s reaction. “I mean, CONGRATULATIONS! I’m so proud of you.”

However, Elsie just wasn’t feeling the enthusiasm. She really wanted to believe what she was saying to Annie, but the voice in her head echoed over and over, Face it. You’ll be stuck in her shadow for life.

“Elsie, I’m your sister. Just tell me what’s wrong,” Annie muttered, cracking a small, friendly smile.

Elsie stared back at Elsie, a blank expression on her face. Maybe I shouldn’t spend my entire life not trusting anyone including myself. After all, that’s what family’s for.

Everything flowed out of Elsie’s mouth at once -- how she had spent a month dedicated to building the Ice Hotel model, how she always felt that Annie was the favorite compared to her, how she had entered countless competitions and still got no recognition, and how she felt like her learning disability got in the way of winning. Annie hung attentively on every word.

“Oh, Els. We aren’t so different after all,” Annie said, rubbing her hand up and down her older sister’s back.

“Really. You’re the prodigy, the best-seller, and magnet for honors,” Elsie scoffed, rolling her eyes skeptically. “I’m the ditz, the struggling artist, and honor repellant.”

“No, really,” Annie corrected Elsie’s tone of voice. “This is actually my first win. In fact, I actually lied about the past contests and made fake prizes for them to not let our parents or teachers down, since my reputation is based on me being a prodigy. You’re brave enough to tell everyone that you’re not perfect, and that’s what I admire most about you. In fact, Mom and Dad still don’t know that I lied.”

So I really haven’t been trying to outdo Annie all this time? Elsie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. But sisters were supposed to be there for one another. “Annie, win or lose, I love you.”

Annie smiled back fleetingly. “I love you more. But come with me to the winners’ reception and talk to the judges. I know how to get fate on your side.”

A way to get fate on my side, Elsie thought. This ought to be good.