SirianaSims

Invisible String

Myra sighed.

“… but you know what my mom is like. There’s no mercy. So I had to apologise to my dumb teacher. Ugh, parents.”

I tried to mimic her tone.

“Yeah. Parents. Can’t live with them, can’t leave them yet. At least not for two more years. But then you’ll be off to Britechester.”

Myra laughed hoarsely. I liked the sound.

“Yes! Freedom! And I’ll scout out all the best hangout spots for when you join me.”

I turned my head, distracted. A couple of girls from my year, Sophia and Emma, were standing behind the hedge and whispering.

Myra saw them too.

“Stupid bimbos. Think they’re better than us just because they’re popular.”

“Look at them, Julia, not an intelligent thought in their head, spending their days gossiping and posting inane shit on Social Bunny about pillow fights. As if we don’t know what it really means. They seem to think the amount of likes they get somehow decide their worth as people. Why would anyone ever care about being popular?”

Her voice was dripping with venom, her thin lips curled in a sneer. I briefly wondered what it would be like to kiss her but pushed the thought away as so many times before. Myra wasn’t someone you kissed. Myra was something to be admired from a safe distance, all sharp edges and opinions.

“Maybe they just like having a lot of friends.”

“Friends? Julia, people liking you on social media are not real friends anyway. There’s a reason they call it followers. Like you were some sort of guru or something. It’s ridiculous.”

“I guess.”

Myra narrowed her eyes.

“Please don’t tell me you want to be popular.”

I hesitated. Myra was my best friend – my only friend, really. I should be honest with her.

“I don’t want to be popular, but sometimes… it would be nice to be… liked?”

I forced the words out, slowly withering under her glare.

“Seriously, Julia? You, the most unique and creative person I know, one of the only girls in this dumb town that doesn’t suck – you want to be just another clone?”

“No! I just feel alone sometimes, you know? Like, I’m already the fifth wheel in my family. My parents have each other, my sisters have always been really close and my brothers are twins. Sometimes I just think it would be nice to have friends.”

“And what am I, chopped liver?”

“You know what I mean, Myra. You don’t always have time for me and I’ll still have a whole year left after you graduate. All alone.”

The bell rang. Myra got up and brushed off her jeans, smiling at me. As quick as she was to anger, it never lasted long.

“Are you sure you can’t hang out after class? My dad is making Bhel Puri.”

“Sorry, not tonight. I’ve got to finish a project.”

It wasn’t really a lie.

---

I entered the auditorium, heart pounding in my chest. There were fake cobwebs all over and eerie music filled the air. People were laughing and dancing.

I nervously straightened my tie. I was wearing one of my most elaborate designs yet, based on my grandpa Conrad’s character in Quantum Llamas. I had asked him so many questions while I made it to make sure I got the details right.

It seemed like the entire school was here – except Myra. She would rather die than go to a lame Spooky Day school party, of course. I hadn’t told her I was going, didn’t want another argument.

I took a deep breath and made my way through the crowd. I felt their eyes on me, heard a few whispers, and I almost wanted to turn around and leave.

Suddenly Sophia stood before me.

“Hey, Julia! Your costume is incredible! It’s Dr. Llama, right? From Quantum Llamas? Where did you get it?”

“Oh, thanks, I… I made it myself. Or, well, the shirt and tie I bought, but I sewed and painted the suit.”

“Seriously? I didn’t even know you could sew! Hey, Emma, check this out!”

Emma joined us.

“Wow, you made this? You should join like, a costume competition or something. Do you ever post your stuff on Simstagram?”

Just a few minutes later, Emma had taken a picture of my costume and was showing me how to create a profile for my designs. I was overwhelmed. I always thought these girls were shallow and judgmental, had been almost afraid of them, but they seemed genuine.

The girls pulled me to the dance floor with the others. I tried to follow their movements, feeling awkward and clumsy at first. But I soon realised that most of the others were also terrible dancers and we just laughed it off. I finally relaxed a little.

Someone touched my shoulder and I spun around.

“Hey. Dr. Llama, I presume?”

It was Oscar. He was in the year above me, I knew of him from Myra’s classes. He was also wearing a blue suit with a yellow tie. I suddenly struggled to form words.

“You’re Julia, right? Your outfit is spot on. My dad refused to let me paint any markings on his suit, so this is the best I could do.”

He gestured to his own costume.

I finally recovered.

“Thanks. You still look great though. Only problem is, now one of us has to go home and change.”

Oscar laughed.

“I don’t think anyone else even knows who I am supposed to be. So, uh, are you a big Quantum Llamas fan too?”

“Well, yes, but I actually picked this costume because Conrad Richards is my granddad.”

“Really? That’s so cool! Hey, we should get a picture of our matching costumes, come on!”

He took my hand and dragged me towards the photo booth.

---

As the party wound down, Oscar and I walked outside for some fresh air. We sat in silence for a while and I felt very aware of how close he was.

Oscar finally spoke.

“You know, I honestly thought you and Myra felt too cool for the rest of us mortals, you always keep to yourself.”

“Oh. No, I just… I’m not good at sports, my grades aren’t great, I’m not on the cheer team or in the chess club or hanging with the popular crowd. I don’t feel cool at all, I just don’t fit in anywhere.”

His hand found mine.

“For what it’s worth, Julia… I think you’re pretty cool.”

Next thing I knew, he kissed me. His lips were incredibly soft. I tried kissing him back even though I had no idea what I was doing.

When we broke the kiss, my heart felt like it was trying to leap out of my chest. I desperately wanted him to kiss me again.

He leaned in to whisper in my ear.

“I think you’re more than cool, actually. I really like you.”

He sat back down next to me and pulled me close.

I was definitely not telling Myra about this.

---

I listened to Myra’s slow breathing. Her mom had taken us out to dinner at a fancy vegan restaurant to celebrate Myra’s birthday and then we’d watched a movie. It was tradition. It had been a nice day until we were in bed and Myra started another tirade against the popular kids in school.

I didn’t know what to say. She still didn’t know about the party last weekend, and I didn’t want to argue with her but I couldn’t quite bring myself to agree with her anymore. She ended up giving me the silent treatment until she fell asleep.

I quietly got up and went to the bathroom. It was dark, but Myra and I had been best friends since kindergarten when her parents moved to Copperdale so her dad could work with my dad. I knew their house like it was my own.

I washed my hands and looked at myself in the mirror. Was it really so bad to want more friends? To be a part of a group? Maybe I really was just a superficial person who wanted everyone to like me. I definitely wanted Oscar to like me. We hadn’t kissed since the party but we were messaging on Social Bunny every day, and yesterday we’d locked eyes across the hallway and I had to look away before Myra noticed.

The lights were still on downstairs. Myra’s mom never went to bed before her dad came home from the hospital. My own mom did the same.
I quietly walked down the stairs and Daria looked up from her laptop.

“Can’t sleep? Is Myra snoring again?”

“No, I’m just thinking a lot.”

“Want to talk about it?”

I told her about the Spooky Day party. Somehow it had always been much easier to talk to Myra’s parents than to my own. I did leave out the part about Oscar though.

“So since then I’ve been posting a few pictures of other costumes I’ve made. And now some people are asking for tips and I thought it would be fun to maybe make a channel and stream the process or something. Or make tutorials and post them online.”

“That sounds like a great idea! I’ve always been impressed with the stuff you come up with.”

“But what if Myra sees it as me just trying to be popular?”

“And what exactly is wrong with being popular? She should be supporting you in whatever makes you happy. Myra has a lot of strong opinions, Griffin stubbornly insists she gets it from me. But don’t let her hold you back.”

“Myra says having people like you online is dumb because they’re not real friends anyway.”

“Sometimes I think my darling daughter forget what I do.”

Daria gestured towards her computer.

“My podcast has a couple hundred thousand listeners. Are they all my friends? No. But some of them have actually become friends, because sharing what you love with a community that likes the same thing is a great way to meet people. You can even teach others and inspire them to share their own passions. I think you would do great, and I know you’re talented. But don’t take it from me, take if from those girls at school, because I’m probably too old and hopelessly uncool to listen to.”

I couldn’t help but smile. Daria was the coolest person I knew, second only to my grandpa Conrad. They didn’t care what people thought about them, but unlike Myra, they also didn’t spend hours talking about how little they supposedly cared.

Daria was telling me all about her podcasting gear when Myra’s father, Griffin, came home.

“Evening, my love. Oh, hey Julia, you’re up late.

“Hey Griffin. You’re right, I should probably go to bed.”

“Alright, let us know if Myra’s snoring gets too bad, we still have spare earplugs.”

He winked at me.

“And remember, we love to see what you do, Julia. So you’re guaranteed at least two followers who are also real friends.”

She stood, but then leaned down and kissed my forehead, just like she used to do when Myra and I were little.

“Goodnight, kiddo. Don’t let anyone tell you how to live your life, OK? Not even my dear daughter. Always be yourself. And if you want more tips on getting a proper recording setup, just ask me.”