Devils Roses 01 - Cursed

only be described as a cluttered and disgusting mess. I grimaced at the odor I couldn’t quite place, maybe I could. It was 'L’eau de Homeless Man' who peed his pants and ate nachos.
    “ You want Blake to like you, Aimes; you need to put a little makeup on and try a little harder. Guys don’t ask out girls who’ve already crossed over into spinsterhood. Here try this,” she said as she made me sit in her makeup chair. Her hands flew up at me, as she started applying things to my face. I never spoke. I shut my sister out like usual and told myself I could wash my face when the torment ended. Alise tweezed and groomed like Edward Scissorhands, using both hands to do the work.
    “ You like Blake right?” she asked without waiting for me to answer. “Well you need to grab a guy like him and tell him you like him. He’s smart but not in relationships.”
    I nodded, trying to pacify her as she ranted. I grimaced at her holding something that looked like a torture device and moving toward my eyes. “You know when I liked Benny, he never knew for the first few weeks, but then I just told him one night at a pit party and we dated for like six months. Till I caught him with that slut Meagan, that was disgusting.”
    This was the story of Alise’s life. She had already dated at least fifteen boys in the last four years.
    I had still not dated a boy once.
    It wasn’t from lack of desire but more lack of options. The only boy I had ever liked was the one my sister was dating, Shane.
    Shane, who always seemed to be out of my league or dating another girl. A lot of other girls.
    I had liked him from grade two on, but I never told anyone. I sighed realizing he was ruined forever, having no doubt had sex with my sister. I threw up a tiny bit in my mouth and grimaced thinking about it.
    I was stuck with Blake, not that it was a bad option, but I knew there wasn’t any romance in the choice. Even worse, he was shyer than I was.
    She messed with my hair, ignoring the faces I made, while processing my love life. “You can’t like graduate a virgin, Aimee…university is not the place to lose it. And dude, if you continue the way you’re going, you’ll be in your twenties and a virgin. Aimes, no guys want to date a twenty-five-year-old virgin. There, what do you think?”
    She stepped back and swung the chair to face her mirror. I prepared myself for the worst— painted whore like her friends or maybe like a clown. I worried about the latter as she had been kind to me. I tried not to think about the fact, I had roped her into a month of extra laundry as I took my first look.
    I looked remarkable.
    The girl staring back at me looked attractive and I could barely see the makeup. Alise had respected the fact that I was a minimalist.
    “ You have a talent, Alise…this is miraculous,” I whispered as I touched my cheeks not feeling greasy makeup. My lips looked full and plump and my blue eyes were noticeable and sparkly.
    She stood behind me in the mirror, smiling at her work. “You look like we could even be friends, like a cheerleader or something.”
    And there it was, the old, mean and nasty, snot of a sister, I was accustomed to. “Yeah, well don’t get your hopes up.”
    She crossed her arms and gave me the look of doom. “Don’t do anything to get dirty or make a mess of yourself, and don’t eat. Just sit somewhere till eight.”
    I laughed as I left her room, feeling like an idiot for being talked into it. I walked back to my room to play World of Warcraft, while I waited for it to be time.
    Lost in the game a while later, deep in thought about the Alliance member I was creaming, my father interrupted me.
    “ You're doing this then?” Dad asked, as I slaughtered a noob Alliance player with my fellow guildies.
    “ Play World of Warcraft, yeah. I play everyday. Dad…please…you need to start paying attention to our comings and goings. It's getting frightening in here without any parental control.”
    “ I know you play, it costs me fifteen dollars every month kiddo, I notice. Whoever thought that game up, is a genius.”
    I never took my eyes off the screen as I spoke, “Duly noted.”
    “ No, I meant the party. It’s not your thing. You don’t have to go.” His flat tone sounded as if he played it up, but secretly excited I would be going.
    “ Yeah well, she promised me the moon and stars.” My eyes still never left the screen.
    “ Be safe and don’t drink, okay?”
    I turned to face him,