Chapter 2 All that Glitters

Chapter 2
Amidst the horde of unrated fencers that passed through that summer, Sandra stuck to the sport into the next season.  I was done with the youth circuit but unfortunately, Maya visited my house with dozens of other teenage girls who my sister liked to smirk at, so the tournaments came to me.  With my father being a trauma surgeon and my mother's father owning a hedgefund it should have been possible for us to own a big enough house that my sister and I could exist without ever making contact. But Annette played dirty and brought in her invading forces so there was no hope. They would chase the dog around, trying to crush him in kisses and descend like biblical locusts upon the fridge.  But the youth circuit results hovered over me with or without their gossip as tournament results were posted on the club walls.  When the strips were full at practice I read them, unless there was someone whose conversation was more interesting.
Annette won the Regional Youth Circuit tournament where Sandra debuted.  Then she dropped off the Youth circuit.  She didn’t even compete in the Y-14 of the Summer Nationals that followed.  When asked why, she shrugged and said that it didn’t matter to her, and since everyone expected her to win, it was the same as if she had already won.  I’m not sure how true that was, but I think Sandra scared her.  Losing to a superior is fine, losing to an equal, acceptable, losing to a beginner, shameful.  I understood it, though I didn’t respect it.  But what could I expect from Annette?  She aged out and there was nothing more to be said, at least until she realized that expectations had followed her.
Sandra came in third at the first tournament of the new season.  I heard the question “Who’s Sandra Morrison?” buzz throughout the studio when the results were posted.  I had forgotten who she was too.  It was Tomazeuski who remembered.  He came up to me and said.
“Hey hey remember that one chick with the yellow eyes who gave Annette some trouble?  I guess she’s not that bad.”
“I don’t get it.  All I had to do was hit her.”  Maya popped up, unwanted as always.
“Yeah I notice you took thirty-first out of thirty-five.”  I pointed to the sheet. 
“You think you’re so cute.”  She flipped her hair at me and waddled off, not half as angry as I had hoped.
“Well Annette should be happy.”  I said rubbing my chin which was still irritatingly smooth.
“Are you talking about me, Spencer?”  Somehow Annette heard me, though she had been surrounded by a ring of girls.  She turned her head with a smile that I didn't like.  It was the smile that she gave me in public.
“I was saying, your friend Sandra is doing well.”  The smile faded.
“Who’s Sandra?” She asked.  I couldn’t tell if she was faking.
“That one unrated girl from a few months ago who had like a six touch comeback on you? Well she’s not unrated anymore, she picked up a D.” I squinted at the sheet.  I knew that it would irritate her.  Maybe I shouldn't have said anything, but for some odd reason, I couldn’t be bothered to feel sorry.  Annette glared.
“Oh. Well I don’t see why that should make me happy.”  Annette flipped her hair and whispered something to a friend.
“Nevermind then.”
"That's right.”  She turned back.  I heard giggling, and rolled my eyes.  I hate when circles of girls start laughing.  I always feel like they’re laughing at me.  I turned to Tomazeuski.
“Want to fence?”
“Imma kick your butt. I watched this bout yesterday and saw this sick foot touch. You better write your will.”  He was only half joking. Tomazeuski tried to hit my foot but I dodged it.  I pretended not to notice Annette turn around again and made my way towards a strip. I creamed him fifteen to seven.

A few weeks later I made the mistake of walking in on one of Annette's friend-fests.  They were camped out in the kitchen chittering away like the squirrel-brains they were.  They had come back from the mall and were going to watch movies later.  My mother had gone out, so it was my job to “supervise.”  This meant that Annette gave me two hundred dollars, and I went up to my room on lockdown.  Even if she hadn’t paid me, I would have gone, but I took the money.  I never understood how Annette could have pockets stuffed full of cash when she spent so much of it.  I knew that my mother offered to pay her for grades, one hundred for an A, fifty for a B, but somehow I didn’t think that Annette collected often. 
I couldn’t be bothered to remember the girls’ names. They didn’t interest me.  I found that with so many of them, they were less of individuals and more of an entity, a massive super-girl spirit that I couldn’t fight or interact with.  Annette would sit in one circle with the size 6 and unders while Maya would head the other.  They would only merge (as they had that day) if the news was too vicious to keep from the other half.  Her eyes more alert than they had been in a month of practices,  Annette leaned into the circle.  I noticed that there was fencing Annette and social Annette.  Fencing Annette was too cool to speak to anyone, social Annette would derive amusement from her lessers by talking to them.  Then of course there was at-home Annette, who left me alone unless she wanted something or felt like exploding for no reason.  Annette, as always, was sitting, observing, an ironic twist to her glossed lips.  Maya was bobbing around, flicking her fingers out.
“Can you believe her mother?”
“It’s so embarrassing.  I don’t know how she’ll show her face at another competition.”
Friend #1 giggled and Maya glanced at me. Annette turned.
“Oh look who it is.”
“I came for food.” I opened the fridge.  There wasn’t much left in it, only a jug of cranberry juice sweetened with some kind of plant syrup that was not sugar.  A glance at the nutrition facts revealed that it was likely worse than sugar, but it came in an expensive recycled bottle.  The friends had done a number on the cheescake and leftover pizza. Annette made a scoffing noise and Maya volunteered unwanted opinions.  
“Fatass.”  She giggled, as if I should be amused.  “ Anyway, if my mother yelled at the director like that, I think I’d die.” I drank out of the juice container.  Giggling ensued as Maya broke off to say,  “Eew Spencer what are you doing?”
“It’s not like I have herpes.”
“Oh yes it is.”  Annette smirked.  I rolled my eyes and took another sip.  I’m ashamed to admit that I wanted to hear the end of the story.
“What exactly did she say?” Friend #1 leaned in. Maya gave me one last fake glare that I’d have prefered to be real before continuing.
“You know Katherine Xu?”
“Yeah, I know her.” Friend #1 nodded.  I took another sip of cranberry juice.
“Isn’t she a loser? And her shoes are so obnoxious. Well anyway, Katherine was fencing Sandra, and she hit Sandra’s foot.  But Sandra didn’t think that Katherine hit her foot.”
“Did she?”  Friend #2 bugged her eyes out as if there were something unusual about a disputed foot touch call. I closed the cranberry juice. Annette rolled her eyes.  Maya’s went rolling after hers.
“Who cares?  The point is that Sandra wouldn’t give it up.  She said that there was no way that Katherine hit her foot.”  Maya shifted and began to bounce, her hair, which was in an eerily familiar unkept bun flopping along with her hand motions. Her blinking was spastic and one of her false eyelashes was beginning to come up.  I turned to the fridge to avoid snickering.
“And then Sandra’s mother stands up and starts shaking her fist at the director.  You know how she has that weird accent?  She was like ‘Floor, floor.’ and the director was like ‘F off you psychopath. Yellow card.  If you keep yelling at me, you’ll get black carded and evicted from the premises by security.’” I don’t know why Maya gave Sandra’s mother an Indian accent. I happened to know that Mrs. Morrison was Canadian. 
“Oh my gosh.  What did Sandra do?”  Friend #1 couldn’t hide her grin. I stuck the cranberry juice back in the fridge and began to slip away.
“Sandra stared like an idiot.  You know, how she always does.”  The circle of heads nodded.  I remembered my comment about her blinking and felt a twinge, mostly because I didn’t want to associate myself with their opinions.  Agreeing with them was always a warning sign.  On the other hand, for no other reason other than my sister’s army seeming to dislike her, I was starting to think Sandra might be okay.  “And then Nastasya comes up and tries to calm Sandra’s mother down.  But Sandra’s mother pushes Nastasya off and stomps away.  Leaving Sandra to finish the bout.  And then Nastasya leaves too.” I left the room, disgusted.

Maya’s account of the events was never a reliable news source. If you listened to her you'd find that Eric and I were fighting over her hand in marriage.  Either that or we were both gay.  You’d also find that Annette asked her for advice all the time, and Lars, our coach, was once part of the mafia.  If Sandra’s mother and her coach were in fact arguing it sure didn’t seem to affect Sandra’s performance in the tournament.  She won.
I was looking at the sheet, smirking at the outrage brewing behind Annette's face when Maya came up behind me and bumped me with a large hip.
“Hello Spencer Chang.”
“Hello Maya.”  I didn’t look at her.  I had been her entertainment for the last few weeks and I was beginning to tire of it.
“You’re going to the NAC next weekend?”  NAC stood for North American Cup.  They were basically national tournaments that occurred throughout the season.  Canada showed up to a few.  Out of habit, I went to all of them.
“Since you asked Annette ten minutes ago, you know that I am.” I knew that Maya would grace us with her presence, as always.  I don’t know why her parents kept sending her.  She never did well.  I suppose that if I were them, I’d want her out of the house as often as possible, and as far as possible, two conditions that fencing tournaments satisfied.
“Well I’m going of course.  Milwaukee will be cold this time of year.”
    “Yep.”  I said. Though I tried my hardest to be uninterested, and uninteresting, she persisted.  Her blue eyes bugged as she clutched at my arm. I shuddered. 
    “You don’t talk much.”  She looked up at me, making a pouty face, her lips tiny pink flaps in a peach-colored mass. “Not to me.”
    “Annette talks to you enough for my whole family.”  She laughed too hard, showing glinting white teeth. “It wasn’t that funny.”  She slapped my arm and snorted.  Annette heard.
"Shut up Spencer. "  She whacked me with her sword, leaving a stinging echo across my thigh.  Maya jumped up her nails gripping me like a cat.
“Hey guys.”  Upon seeing Eric walk up, Maya released my arm and assumed a neutral position between the two of us.
    “What’s up.” I said.
    “Ready for Milwaukee?”  He put his arm around my neck.
    “More than you.”  He slipped me into a headlock.  His dark skin was covered in coarse curly hair.  I wondered if he ever got a rash in the summertime.  I ducked down and shoved him into the wall.  Annette humphed and walked away, flipping her hair. Maya leaned against the wall stroking her lips. I tried not to look her way.
    “What’s with her?” Eric nodded after Annette.
    “What do you mean?”  I asked.  He raised an eyebrow at me and leaned in, with an air of superiority.  I shuddered.
    “When Annette starts swinging her tail around, you know it’s gone down.”  I shoved him.
"Come on man that's my sister. Creeps me out.“  I lifted a corner of my mouth.  He was right.  Annette swayed her hips more when she was angry.
"Sorry, can’t help it.  She ain't my sister, thank God. What did you do this time? "
    “Beats me. Probably nothing”
"Oh Spencer. You’re so silly." I glared at Maya but she didn’t seem to notice.  "Boys are all so silly." She played with her hair.  Eric laughed, ignoring her.
    “All right, all right. Likely story.” 
“You have no idea.”  I went off to fence. Maya hopped on the other end of the strip.  Manners and courtesy only apply to human beings so I beat her 15 to 2. She stomped of the line huffing and left me alone for a few days after that