Time Trials Read Online Free PDF Page B

had always been a plus. The flat chested females had envied her, and the males couldn’t pry their eyes away from her early blooming twin peaks. The more weight she lost, the bigger the girls got. She figured she’d done something right in her life to get such a nod from Mother Nature. However, after a while the mean girls ended up dropping her from their elitist group.
    “Flat-chested bitches,” she’d growled. “Who do they think they are, kicking me out?”
    They’re just jealous . Snow tried to be supportive.
    “I mean, look at me.” Regina had stood in front of the full length mirror in her room, an exercise she’d spent many hours doing while having this conversation with Snow. “How can they be mean to this? I’m thin, I’ve got boobs, and I’m beautiful. I’ve got it all,” she said too loud to her audience of no one besides her alter-ego.
    Snow had held her tongue on that remark. Thanks to Mama Patricia, Regina believed looks were everything, and found little pleasure or need in being kind. Snow realized, as Regina did not, that once all the compliments to herself had been doled out, there wasn’t much left to offer anyone else. Sad. Real sad. 
    After spending her entire sophomore year in high school walking the halls with her nose in the air and a smug smile she hoped translated into “I know something you don’t,” Regina tired of being a princess without a country. She had no friends except Snow, who more times than not had switched from gentle supportive phrases to sarcasm. So she had decided to join the school’s dance team. All Tyler high school dance teams prepped their dancers to become one of the acclaimed Apache Belles, a prestigious accolade at Tyler Junior College.
    “They’ll have to like me,” she kept telling herself. Certainly there was a rule about that sort of thing.
    Sure enough, she started hanging around with a group of dancers and they treated her nice. So she was nice. Regina quickly gained the status of the highest kicker and the best at performing the splits during dance routines. She refrained from pointing out this accomplished skill to her new friends, which was not an easy task, considering unnecessary and sarcastic remarks were her first language. In her opinion, fitting into a group and being the most beautiful was way better than being beautiful all by herself.
    But somehow she’d been overlooked when positions were assigned for officers of the dance team. She was by far the best dancer, and had the prettiest smile. What else could they possibly want…a personality too? Not getting an office that year fractured something inside Regina more than anyone knew. She had continued to keep her nose in the snooty position, and wore a plastered-on smile—the kind beauty contestants had to wear for hours during the Miss America pageants. But deep inside, she knew she didn’t fit. The girls in the dance team were nice to her in school, but they never invited her to hang out, like for slumber parties. She had no real friends, only Snow.
    This alone helped push her toward Sam Houston instead of Tyler Junior College. She wanted something different. She didn’t need to be in competition with all those bitchy high-kickers at Tyler Junior College. She knew Sam Houston had drum majorettes that performed with the Bearkat Marching Band during football halftime performances. And the clincher? There were only a handful of majorettes. Way less competition, and way more visibility. She’d get one of those positions if she had to hogtie her competitors and lock them away somewhere. She was beautiful; she knew it, and felt an obligation to let everyone see her shine.
    Snow sighed. Oh God….

 
     
     
    Chapter 6
     
    Janie Patterson - 1972
     
    She’d always wanted to be thin. Weight had been a struggle her entire life. As a little girl, the nickname “chunky monkey” didn’t bother her. Even “plump” had sort of a cute connotation. Now, the mere mention of one of those