LLLB Sneak Peek - Paper Thin by Shelia M Goss

The Lip Gloss Chronicles explores the life of three Sassy, Urban, and Hip high school friends who are high on fashion and a magnet for drama.

Paper Thin by Shelia M Goss Excerpt

“Sierra, don’t tell Jorge,” Maria Sanchez said to me, as I helped her sneak shopping bags into the house. The way my step-mother shopped, you could not tell we were in a recession.

If my dad found out, he would be upset. He had sat the whole family down earlier this year to let us know that business was slow so we all needed to buckle down to ride out the storm. We used to have a live-in maid, but now she only comes over three times a week. My dad, a prominent Dallas real estate developer, over the years had received many awards. He was often compared to Donald Trump because whatever he touched seemed to turn to gold.

Zion and my dad were busy in the den playing a video game so it gave us time to put her things away. After what seemed like hours but was only minutes, I said, “Mom, I think I’ll take a nap. All of this shopping has worn me out.” I helped her remove tags to the clothing items as she hung them up in her closet.

“We’re about through here anyway. Dinner will be ready in about an hour,” she responded. “I’m trying to make sure we eat before six. We don’t want all of our hard work this past summer to go to waste do we?”

I loved Maria as if she was my own mom, but her constant obsession with my weight had gotten on my nerves. She was good at keeping secrets. My dad had no idea that our week long excursions over the summer were really weight loss retreats that she insisted her and I attend. Maria’s battle with the bulge was rubbing off on me.

It was times like these that I missed Vanessa, my real mom. I was real young when she died in a car crash. My memories of her sometimes seemed vivid and strong and then there were times that I could barely remember her. Those are the times when I would get depressed. My BFFs – Best Friends Forever, Britney Franklin and Jasmine McNeil, usually helped get me out of my funk.

I threw myself across my bed and closed my eyes. Sleep evaded me. I fumbled with my Blackberry and called Britney. “Hey chica,” I said, when she answered.

“Do you want a baby brother or sister?” Britney asked, as I heard the twins crying in the background.

“Nope. My little brother is enough.”

“Precious hit Teddy Junior because he was taking up too much of my attention. Now they both are crying,” she stated. It sounded like the babies were right in the phone as loud as they were.

“Call me back later. When things settle down,” I said.

“No, I can talk. I just buzzed their nanny. She’ll be in any minute.”

“Is Jas back?” I asked.

“She got back last night. She said she was going to text you.”

“She did, but she didn’t mention she was back.”

“I can’t wait to see you guys. It seems like these last two months had us all going in different directions,” Britney said. I no longer heard the twins in the background.

“At least you guys went on real vacations. I was forced to go on these retreats with my mom.”

“I’ve never been to Albuquerque or the Poconos,” Britney said.

“It may have been fun if I wasn’t starving. We didn’t eat anything but green vegetables and maybe a small piece of meat each time. And the long hikes. You ought to see my leg muscles. I should be fit to run a marathon.”

Britney laughed. “Girl, well you should be kicking up your heels during dance rehearsal next week.”

“I can’t wait. I’m hoping we get to perform more this year.”

“Me too. I’ve been practicing some moves. You ought to come over tomorrow so I can show you.”

“I don’t know. I think my mom wants me to spend quality time with her and the family tomorrow. I’ll let you know.”

Britney’s line clicked. “Three-way Jas. That’s her on my other line.”

A few seconds later, Jasmine was on the line. “Did y’all miss me?” Jasmine asked.

“No,” Britney and I said in unison.

“You both will be changing your tune when you see the gifts I brought back for you.”

I sat up in bed while thumbing through a fashion magazine. I said, “I promise to be nice.” I paused and then said, “For a minute anyway.”

We all burst out laughing.

Britney placed us on hold to talk to Marcus. Jasmine said, “I thought her and Marcus was through.”

“Their just friends,” I said, in her defense.

“She knows he still likes her so I don’t know why she keeps stringing him along.”

“I heard that,” Britney said, alerting us she was back on the line.

“Well you are. Marcus is not just trying to be your friend. He wants more. You know it and we know it.”

Jasmine and I didn’t always agree on everything but I did agree with her about Marcus intentions with Britney. Britney and Marcus were boyfriend and girlfriend for a few months but because of Marcus’ cousin, Dylan Johnson or DJ as we called him, their relationship fizzled. Just the thought of DJ, my worst nightmare, made my skin crawl. I thought I was in love with him and he would have taken advantage of my feelings if my friends wouldn’t have intervened.

I heard my name called a few times snapping me out of my bad memory of DJ. “Bri, spill the beans. Are you and Marcus back together or what?” I asked.

“We are just friends. How many times do I have to tell you guys that,” Britney said, sounding frustrated.

“Enough about Bri. I met the cutest guy on the cruise ship. He lives in Los Angeles. Get this. He has relatives in Shreveport so when he comes down to visit, we’ll be hooking up,” Jasmine said. She loved being the center of attention and it was clear that this past summer didn’t change her in that aspect.

We continued to listen to Jasmine tell us about her summer vacation. It had been two months since we had seen each other because of our family summer schedules. My two BFFs would be in for a surprise when they saw me—twenty-five pounds less of me. It’s not like I was keeping a secret but after Jasmine taunted me last year about my weight gain, I didn’t feel comfortable talking to them about my weight.

Jasmine and Britney were naturally thin. Me, I had to work hard at maintaining an average weight. My birth mom was what folks called big-boned and I inherited it from not only her but my dad’s side of the family. My cousins said that I shouldn’t try to lose weight because when I got older I would appreciate having the bigger booty since guys loved a girl with a big butt.

I didn’t know about that, but I did know my weight at the time was one hundred and seventy pounds and it had me stressing. It was more than likely the reason why I became DJ’s victim. I needed to work on more than my weight; I needed to work on my attitude. I had an unforgettable freshman year and I was anxious to see what challenges I would face my sophomore year at one hundred and forty-five pounds.

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