The house looked so different. Blair gazed at its wide bay widows and neatly trimmed shrubs as if she had never seen them before. In actuality, she had partially grown up in this house, after her parent’s decided to divorce when she was eight. During those years, Blair had spent every other Friday evening in the car with her father, driving from West Palm to Kissimmee. Her memories of this house were always happy ones, but she hadn’t been there in over two years. Now on the verge of her nineteenth birthday, and already a sophomore in college, she decided to spend the Thanksgiving holidays with her father, stepmother and stepsister.

Her sneakers beat against the paved walkway as she neared the door. Knocking loudly, she heard voices inside. The door flung open, and there stood her lifelong best friend and stepsister, Kalista. In every aspect, they were opposites. Kalista was a petite girl of about five feet, four inches, while Blair was just pushing 5’8”. Blair had plain brown eyes, and thick wavy auburn hair. Kalista on the other had had been blessed with the most unusual hazel eyes and bone straight, dirty blonde hair that fell in the middle of her back. Kalista was what most people would call a head-turner, and her sister, more like a ‘Plain Jane.’ But, the biggest difference between the girls was their personalities. Blair had always been a giver, a listener when needed, but always felt free to give her opinion as well. She was a very family oriented person, and she loved to find new ways to express herself. Kalista was a taker, never mean-spirited about it, but she was always looking out for number one. She was a materialistic sort of girl, and was very caught up in appearances, which was evident by the tight black pants and even tighter maroon shirt she was wearing when she answered the door. Nevertheless, the girls had been friends since before they could remember, and they had been thrilled when Blair’s father and Kalista’s mother decided to marry when the two were in the seventh grade.

“Blair!” Kalista squealed. The girls hadn’t seen each other for a few months, and they were happy to be together again.

“Hey Kallie, dang I missed you.” Blair said, enveloping her sister in a hug, setting her bag down next to the front door. They released each other, and Blair looked around. “Where’s dad and Sue?”

“They are in Colorado ‘til Monday. That was Ron’s birthday present to mom, a week skiing in Aspen. They decided to go beforehand, though, cause they knew you were coming and they wanted to have Thanksgiving as a family.” Kalista moved into the kitchen and pushed herself up onto the counter. She grabbed a cookie out of the jar to her left and began to nibble on it. “So, what’s new with you little sis?” Kalista insisted on ribbing Blair cause she was younger than she was—both of the girls were 18, but Kallie’s birthday is 1 month earlier.

“Not too much, really. School takes up most of my time, and when I’m not studying or in class, I am writing, reading or singing. You know me.” Blair smiled, but Kalista’s face seemed to darken a little.

“Yeah, you are the same old Blair. But I think you need some excitement in your life, and I am just the person to help you get some.”

Blair’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean? My life is plenty exciting.”

“When was the last time you went on a date?” Kalista countered.

She thought. “Last week actually.”

Kalista smiled knowingly. “A date that didn’t involve studying or school in one way or another.”

Blair opened her mouth, then closed it and then opened it again. She repeated this several times until the girls both burst out laughing. “You know me too well Kallie,” she chuckled.

“Yep, I still got it!” Kallie said, referring to the girls’ uncanny ability to read each other’s thoughts.

“So, what about you, any guys?” Blair knew this was a stupid question. Guys flocked to Kalista like bees to honey. She could walk through any public place and have her pick of the males, it was that easy for her.

“You could say that. Ben and I broke up a few weeks ago, cause he met somebody up in Tennessee, and the distance thing wasn’t working out anyway. I have been dating this guy named Dave for about that long, but we aren’t talking because he decided to go away this weekend to the Keys when he knew I had to stay home because you were coming.” Kalista looked extremely mad as she said the last few sentences.

“I’m sorry Kal, I didn’t mean to ruin your plans.” Blair said sincerely. “You can go, really. I can look after myself here.”

“No, Blair, I meant that I wanted to stay here and be with you, and I also want him to meet you. But, oh well, its his loss.” Kalista paused for a moment. “And there is this other guy…”

“Damn, spread the wealth sis!”

“Funny. No, this guy is really sweet. My friend Janeane is dating one of his friends, and I met him last week. His name is Josh, and he’s gorgeous. We look really good together, plus he’s nice to me and his friends.” The phone down the hall in Kalista’s began to shrill loudly, and she jumped down and ran to pick it up.

Blair picked up her bag from the front door, and started down the hall after her. Nothing drastic had really changed inside the house. It still had all the girls’ school pictures from throughout the years, and a few family portraits. Blair’s room, right next door to Kallie’s, was utterly untouched from the way it was left 2 years prior. Blair smiled, and sat down at her piano bench. The piano in the small alcove, next to the bay window, that’s what made this room Blair’s. She ran her fingers lightly over the keys, making up a melody as she came along. Kalista’s voice broke into her musical trance.

“No, that wasn’t me…my sister Blair…she’s here for Thanksgiving…yeah, I’m sure she would…it’ll take us about a half hour…yeah, I know where it is…uh huh, so I will see you then…bye Josh.” Kalista pushed the off button on her portable phone.

“Where are we going?” Blair asked.

“Orlando. Josh wants to do something, but we have yet to decide what exactly. We are just going to drive out there and find something to do.” Kalista turned and walked into the foyer, looking for her keys. Blair was not far behind.

“Kallie, I can stay home. I don’t want to intrude on your date, really.”

Kalista laughed. “It’s not really a date, B. We are just friends as long as Dave is in the picture. Besides, I want to see what you think of him, and I promised you a weekend of excitement, and I plan on delivering.”

“But, Kal-,” her sister cut her off.

“Blair, you are coming, so help me find my keys.”

Blair sighed deeply. “Fine.” She walked to the couch next to the door and pulled a set of keys out of the cushions. “Some things never change. Let’s go.”

The drive to Orlando was a short one, but it seemed years to Blair, mostly because of the rap music her stepsister insisted on playing the entire way. Blair loved any kind of music, to a point, but all of the profanity in the music Kalista listened to didn’t sit very well with her. She breathed a sigh of relief when the car came to a stop in front of a large two-story house, and Kallie cut the engine.

“Wait here, I will be right back.” Kalista said, pulling her long golden hair over her shoulder. Blair nodded in response and watched Kallie saunter up the driveway and to the front door. Blair watched as she knocked on the door and drummed her nails on the frame as she waited for a response; watched as the door opened and a redhead girl that looked to be about their age ushered her inside. Minutes later she watched as Kallie and the redhead came outside. Blair opened her door as the girls approached, but remained seated inside.

“Hey.” The redhead smiled at Blair. “I’m Janeane, nice to meet you.”

“Blair; it’s cool to meet you, too.” Blair turned to Kalista. “So, what are we all gonna do?”

Kallie shrugged. “I dunno yet. Maybe catch a movie. It’s just going to be me you and Josh because Justin is kind of sick, and Janeane is going to stay here with him.”

“Oh, that’s too bad. Tell him I hope he is feeling better soon, ‘cause I want a chance to get to know you all,” Blair said genuinely.

Janeane had only met one other person that was so concerned with other people's health, even a stranger's, and that was Josh. “Thanks I will. And the feeling is mutual. But, for now I better get back to the big baby. I can practically hear him whining from here!” And with a laugh and a wave Janeane was gone back into the house.

Blair giggled. “I like her, she’s funny.”

Kalista didn’t hear her, though. She was glancing between the door and her sister seated next to her in the car. “Josh might want to sit there, just so you know.”

Blair bit her lip. She knew that this was going to end up being a date and she would just end up getting in the way. She wished that she knew Janeane and her boyfriend a little bit better so that she could stay with them and avoid embarrassing herself in the future. She was about to say screw her pride and do it anyway when she heard Kallie speak.

“Hey Josh.”

Blair looked up, and directly into the most amazing set of blue eyes that she had ever seen. They seemed to jump out of his face and grab a hold of something inside of her being; it was a feeling she couldn’t begin to explain. Suddenly, she felt one hundred times more out of place than she ever imagined she would. “Um, I will just…sit in the back…yeah…” Josh laughed and stopped her.

“No, that’s all right, I will jump in back.” He smiled and for the first time, Blair studied his face. His angular cheekbones and nose seemed to add depth to the blue of his eyes. His dark brown hair was combed neatly, the color only adding to his shining light blue eyes. It all came back to his eyes. Kallie was right, this man was gorgeous, but she was also right in the aspect that he would look great with her. Never in her wildest dreams could Blair picture herself with someone like Josh.

Before she had a chance to protest, Josh had already opened the back passenger-side door and gotten in. Blair swiveled around in her seat. “I am Blair, by the way. Kalista’s stepsister, among other things.”

Josh stuck out his and shook hers; his enormous compared to her petite one. “Josh Chasez, nice to meet you Blair. I heard you playing the piano earlier. You’re good.”

Blair faced the front again, mostly so he wouldn’t see her blush. “Thanks.” Before she could say anything else, Kalista stepped in and began talking to him.

“So, what did you want to do Josh?”

Blair could feel him smiling behind her. His warm smile seemed to light up the night darkened car. “I don’t really care too much. I think we should let Blair decide.”

Blair laughed, and she suddenly felt at ease with Josh. She forgot her uneasiness about the ‘date’ prospect, and just focused on how his voice seemed to melt into her ear. “No way buddy. You are the one that lives around here. It’s still your call.”

“OK then, I know a perfect place.”

The three pulled into a gravel parking lot 15 minutes later, only after Blair and Josh were threatened by Kalista to have to walk, because they didn’t know the name of some random rapper that was on the radio. Josh got out of the car, and ever the gentleman, opened the door for both Blair and Kalista. The night air had a chill to it, and Blair shivered as soon as she stepped out of the passenger’s seat.

“Hey Blair, do you want my shirt?” Josh asked politely.

Blair rolled her eyes playfully. “You’ll freeze if you take your shirt off Josh.” Then she gasped at the sight before her. They were on a secluded inlet, with a beautiful view of the city lights across the water. “Wow, you were right this place is…beautiful.” That was the word that came out of her mouth, but Blair was really thinking…

“Yeah, very romantic Josh, I love it.” Kalista walked up to Josh and enveloped him in a hug.

The discomfort came back ten-fold for Blair. She saw this shaping up to be a really romantic night for her sister and Josh. But, this time she also felt a twinge of…jealously. All she knew was that she had to get out of there quickly. “Kallie, can I have your keys?”

“Huh?” Kalista mumbled, pulling out of Josh’s embrace. “Why do you want my keys?”

“I am feeling like an icicle, and I saw you had some sweatshirts in the back seat.”

“Oh, OK. Here.” Kalista pulled her keys out of her small black purse.

Blair breathed a sigh of relief that her excuse had worked. She could sit in the car until they came back, and claim that she was so cold that she didn’t want to leave the warm confines of her sister’s Honda.

“Hey B!” Kalista yelled. Blair spun around and started walking backward, questioning look on her face. “Bring me back one, will you? You’re right, its cold.”

Blair cursed her bad luck the whole way to the car.

“You’re sister seems nice.” Josh said to Kallie, smiling.

Kalista rolled her eyes dramatically. “Yup, that’s Blair, the ever nice one. I love the girl to death, but she needs to stick up for herself a little. She thinks that school and studying is all there is to life.”

Josh looked at her thoughtfully. “I dunno. She seems like she knows how to have fun. There's a lot of personality there.”

To this Kallie just laughed. No other words were exchanged between the two, and Blair rejoined them, grumbling a few minutes later.

“Here you go Kal.” Blair threw a small Fubu sweatshirt at her sister, and proceeded to straighten the plain gray sweater she had pulled on earlier.

“What, none for me?” Josh asked, laughing.

Blair joined him, sitting down beside Kallie. “Just like a man. Expects the woman to just assume that he needs something without asking for it. Living in the 50’s much?” Cracking an even wider smile at Josh’s shocked expression, she tossed a large navy pullover at him, striking him right in the head. “Just call me Donna Reed.”

The rest of the night continued in pretty much the same fashion. Josh told stories of his friends, who seemed to Blair to be a hysterical bunch if accurately depicted by him. Kallie added a few of her own anecdotes from the times she spent with them, and Blair told of her relatively boring college friends. They all laughed and joked together into the wee hours of the night. Blair was on her toes though. Sometimes when she least expected it, the moment would turn tender between Kalista and Josh, and Blair forced herself to look away. In all honesty, it didn’t take much willpower to avert her gaze from Josh looking so lovingly at her ‘perfect’ sister. It was something she always watched, but never experienced. She was beginning to think that the only romance for her was contained in the stories she read and wrote, and the lyrical poetry of songs.

During a lull in conversation, Josh got up and walked to the end of the pier. While he was gone, Kalista spoke in hushed tones to her stepsister.

“So, what do you think of him?”

Blair smiled thoughtfully. “He’s definitely nice. There’s a lot of personality there, that’s for sure.”

Kalista rolled her eyes, thinking that Josh had said almost the same thing about Blair a few hours before. She continued on as if she hadn’t heard her. “He’s cute, isn’t he? I told you he was.”

“Um, yeah…he’s all right. Cute, yeah.” Blair stumbled over her words, willing that the blush threatening assault on her cheeks would subside. Josh was probably the most gorgeous man she had ever met. He was expressive and considerate, funny and serious. It seemed to Blair that, as many people had said of her throughout her life, Josh was a walking contradiction. But, whatever emotion he was feeling, you could almost read it as if it were printed inside the iris of his shocking aqua eyes.

Before Kalista got the opportunity to tell her stepsister how full of it she was, Josh rejoined them. “Guys, it’s getting kinda late and I am worried about Justin.”

“I was just thinking that we should head back.” Blair said absently.

Kalista was a night owl, but she had to be out doing something, unlike Blair who could sit up all night and read or write poetry or music. “Yeah, whatever, let’s go.”

The ride back to Josh’s house was somewhat quiet. The rap music had been turned off, and nobody spoke, but in Blair’s mind there was a loud voice yelling at her. She didn’t understand her attitude toward Josh and Kalista. Sure, she had put up with the same situation for many years, but this time there was something different. Always, Blair had been jealous, believing that she deserved love and admiration just as much, if not more than her sister did. But, for some reason, she just couldn’t shake the feeling that Josh might be worth fighting for, even if she lost. ‘But that’s absurd. He is only being nice to me because of Kallie. Nothing has changed Blair, you are still the same nobody with the star sister.’ Even as she was thinking this, another part of her body, her heart, the vessel that contained all of her hope reminded her of the countless times during just this night that she and Josh had had the same thought at the same time. Shared the same opinions or interests. Met each other’s stare evenly with a notion of understanding. But then her head would remind her how he looked longingly at Kalista, and the bubble world of her perpetual dreaming would burst. And the inner conflict raged on.

Blair awoke the next morning with a sense of dread. She couldn’t put her finger on the source of the feeling, until her mind flashed back to the previous night and the last few moments that Josh had been in the car with the sisters replayed over and over and…

Blair continued fidgeting in the back seat, oblivious to the conversation that Josh and Kallie were having in the front seat. Actually, that wasn’t true at all. Although Blair was having fight with herself, she could not force her ears to tune out their dialogue.

“So, Josh, what do you do for a living again?”

‘He’s a singer’ Blair answered the question to herself. Josh had mentioned that a few times, and also that his group was pretty popular in Europe, and was beginning to gain recognition in the States. Kalista just didn’t pay attention.

“I am a musician.” Josh answered. “You are studying fashion design, right?”

‘See Kallie, he listens when you talk.’ Blair thought.

“Yeah, that’s what I do. What kind of music?” Kalista pondered. She continued to ask questions that Josh had already answered for the rest of the ride to his house. Blair knew from experience that it probably wasn’t the last time he would hear them from her, either. As they pulled into the driveway, Blair turned her head and let a minuscule sigh escape. She had seen Josh stare at Kallie all night and she had seen Kalista flirt in her rarest form; the night could only end with a goodnight kiss. Blair averted her eyes and waited for the inevitable to be over with.

Josh looked over at Kalista. “I had a great time tonight. It was awesome getting to know you.”

“Yeah, you too. Have a good night Josh.”

There was an awkward silence and then he spoke. “Do you…would it be all right if I kissed you?”

Kalista sighed. “Sorry, I have a boyfriend.”

Blair’s head shot up, her eyes wide, and she watched at Kallie leaned over and hugged Josh, who wore the same expression. He quickly hopped out of the car to escape further humiliation, but then, as if remembering, he turned around and walked back to the back door. He opened it and helped Blair out.

“Thanks for the great night Blair. I will have to hear some of that music sometime.” All she could do was nod and give him a small hug before reclaiming the passenger seat and closing the door. She watched his retreating form, but all she could see was the hurt and confusion that reigned in his eyes. It all came back to his eyes.

As much as the thought of Kallie kissing Josh irked her, the lost look that Josh had worn the previous night could possibly have killed her had she stared into it for too long. As it was, it haunted her dreams all night. She hadn’t bothered to ask Kalista why she refused his advance; in fact, she had not said a word to her since they left the pier.

Blair padded out of bed and made herself breakfast. With second consideration she made a plate for Kalista too, and headed to her room to wake her up.

To her astonishment, Kalista was sitting up on the bed talking on the phone. She smiled at Blair and mouthed ‘Good morning’ before finishing her conversation. “Uh huh…OK…sure thing…Yeah I can pick you up again…No, its not any trouble…All right, 2 it is…See you then…Bye.” Kallie hung up and looked at the plate of waffles in Blair’s hand. “Is that for me?”

“Yes, here you go.” She placed the plate on Kalista’s lap and watched as she took a few bites before speaking. “Who was on the phone? What’s going on at 2?”

“Oh, we are going to the mall with Josh.”

Blair’s mouth noticeably dropped. “Oh. I see.” She looked at the clock, and stood. “Well, I had better start getting ready then.” She pushed her hands through her brown hair and walked out of the room.

Kalista was perplexed by Blair’s sudden nervousness and turned her own body to see the time. It read 10:00 AM. Kallie shrugged off the stupid thoughts about Blair, and chalked it up to the fact that her sister liked to be ready for everything.

At around 1:15, Blair was pacing the living room. It took a half-hour to get to Josh’s house, and they needed to get some gas on the way. By the looks of it, though, Kalista was nowhere near done blow-drying her long corn silk hair. Blair walked into Kallie’s room for the 50th time since she had gone to get dressed. Blair chose a simple outfit of bootleg jeans and a navy blue shirt. On her feet were her once white sneakers, and her hair was pulled into a tight ponytail at the back of her head. Blair looked in the room, and finally Kalista had moved on to her make-up. Blair had always wondered why she wore so much, because in he opinion Kallie was much prettier without it. From her position on her bed, Blair could see that Kallie was wearing a pair of white shorts and a low-cut black V-neck. It was as if the girls were night and day. Kalista’s sun kissed blonde hair lay splayed across her shoulders and her now finished heavy make-up coated her face. Finally Kalista looked up and saw Blair in the doorway.

“Hey we had better go or we will be late.” Blair said quickly.

Kalista laughed. Punctual Blair always has to be on time. “Chill Blair, geez. Josh isn’t going to turn into a pumpkin at the stroke of 2. And he’s too nice to get angry about me being a few seconds late.”

Blair took a few deep breaths. “You’re right.”

After Kallie pulled on a pair of black platform sandals, they left the house behind.

Josh sat in his living room waiting for Kalista and her sister, Blair, to come pick him up. He kept glancing at his watch as the 2 ‘o clock hour approached. Between looking at the time, he absently watched some show on television. He really wasn’t paying much attention. He kept thinking of the previous night and the time he spent with Kalista. In his mind, however, he kept remembering all the things he had in common with Blair. Blair was the one who would laugh at his jokes almost before he finished them, while Kalista had had to have them explained to her. Blair shared his passion for music and writing, while Kalista had talked mostly of the latest trends and fashions. But, Kalista was the one with the looks, while Blair…well, actually, the more he thought about it, the more attractive Blair became. At first he had of course noticed her wavy short brown hair and her plain brown eyes. Her average frame that didn’t really compare with her sister’s. Josh had to smile, though, when he thought of the happiness that flowed from her eyes, making them the most expressive he had ever seen. The way she ran her hand through her hair when she laughed, or was uncomfortable. The way she seemed to apologize for her sister without saying a word the night before.

‘No, Josh. You were set up with Kalista, and you are sticking with Kalista. No matter how perfect for you Blair is.’

He glanced at his watch again, and it read 2:10. As he was making his way to the phone to page them and make sure everything was all right, he heard a car pull into the driveway. A few seconds later there was a knock on the door. Expecting to see Kalista on the other side, he took in a deep breath and forced a smile. When the wooden panel was pulled open, exposing Blair, the smile came on its own.

“Hey B. What are you doing knocking on my door?”

Blair smiled at his sarcasm. “Aw, is poor little Joshy missing Kalista already? Go ahead, run to the car, she’s waiting for you.” She turned her head quickly, expecting him to bound off toward the car.

“That wasn’t what I meant B. I was just surprised, that’s all. So, why did you volunteer for the ‘pick up’ duty?” Josh asked.

“So that you could take the front seat without arguing this time!” With that, Blair ran to the car with Josh hot on her tail, both laughing hysterically. Blair jumped in the back before Josh could get there and strapped herself in. He looked in her window and pouted, and Blair laughed and stuck out her tongue. Josh faked a look of reluctance and opened the passenger side door.

“Hey Kalista.” Josh reached over and gave her a quick hug.

Kallie rolled her eyes slightly. “Hey Josh. You ready now?” There was a touch of annoyance in her voice.

Josh smiled. “Yup, all set.”

With that she turned the radio on full blast and drove the 10 minutes to the mall. Throughout the ride, Blair and Josh were making funny faces at each other through the mirror, and Kalista just kept rolling her eyes and raping along louder and louder.

As the group walked into the mall, Josh and Blair were shoving each other playfully behind Kallie, who was leading the way. Abruptly, she stopped and turned around. “Would you two please grow up!”

Josh mumbled a sorry, and Blair just tried not to laugh. When Kalista stalked off out of earshot, she leaned over to him and whispered, “Oh, she’s got you on a short leash there, buddy.”

“Not really,” he replied, eyes cast downward. Then he looked up and met hers for a brief second. In that time, Blair could have sworn that she was falling inside his soul.

Josh felt it too, but he knew that it would be wrong to ditch Kalista for her sister. Quickly he turned his eyes forward and started walking. “We had better catch up with her.”

Blair scoffed quietly to herself. “Suuure she doesn’t, Josh. Keep telling yourself that.”

An hour later, Blair was bored out of her mind. Josh looked like he was going through the same feelings, although Blair tried to keep her eyes from gravitating to his form. Kalista was going into the dressing room for the countless time today. Blair usually went in with her to avoid being left alone with Josh. As she was following behind Kallie, who had 12 pairs of jeans thrown over her arms, Blair felt a hand and an electric charge on her wrist. She turned and looked for the second time that day into Josh’s beautiful cerulean eyes. This time they were pleading with her.

“Stay with me, please.” Josh motioned behind her head. “People are gonna think I’m a pervert for standing here by the woman’s underwear.”

Blair looked over her shoulder and laughed when, in fact, there was a wall full of undies on sale right there. “Fine, I will stay.”

There was an awkward silence before Blair spoke up. “So, are you enjoying this little excursion as much as I am?”

“Oh, yeah.” Josh rolled his eyes. “How many pairs of jeans has she tried on now?”

Blair laughed melodically. “I lost count at 57.”

Josh joined her in laughed, and it seemed that their jovial attitudes blended together in perfect harmony.

“The worst part is,” Blair continued, “All of them looked great, but she insists that they either made her look too fat, her butt looked too flat, she looked like a hick…”

They couldn’t control their laughter any longer, so Blair grabbed Josh’s hand and pulled him up to the glass encasement at the center of the store. They continued to laugh and make jokes, but Blair stopped suddenly when her eyes locked on something in the display.

“What? What is it?” Josh asked. Blair pointed and he followed her finger and her gaze until he too was looking at the same object. It was a delicate silver watch with a navy blue face on it. It was unlike any watch Josh had ever seen, and he knew that Blair felt the same way.

What Josh didn’t know was that the first thing that drew Blair’s eyes to the watch was that the color of the face reminded her of the color of his eyes whenever he smiled or laughed. She couldn’t take her eyes away from it, just as she couldn’t take them away from his eyes whenever they were connected.

Josh rested a hand on her shoulder gently. “I think you should get it. It suits you.”

Blair smiled at him and called the salesgirl over. “Could I see that silver watch please?”

The girl unlocked the cabinet and pulled the watch out. Blair held it gently in her right hand before slipping it onto the opposite wrist. She continued to stare at it and gasped when the light his it a certain way, for she could almost feel the energy that Josh emitted without knowing. She looked at the price tag, which read $50. Blair handed the watch back to the salesgirl and sighed. “Thanks, it’s really beautiful, but I can’t take it.”

Josh was perplexed. “Why not? It fit you perfectly and I can tell that you love it. You can see that in your eyes.”

Blair smiled sadly. “Yeah, well, I’m still a poor college student, and all the money I have right now has to go toward a few books and some music.”

Josh stopped the girl from putting the watch away. “We’ll take it.”

“Josh, what the hell are you doing?”

“You want the watch but you don’t have the money. Well, I have the money, and I want more than anything for you to have the watch.” Josh pulled out his wallet from the back pocket of his khakis.

Blair sighed. “I can’t let you do that Josh.”

The watch had been rung up and Josh already paid. “Too late. Think of it as an early Christmas present.” He thrust the bag into her hand, but not before taking the receipt out and tearing it to shreds.

“You are one stubborn man J. But I am the most headstrong girl you will ever meet. So, I will pay you back for the watch if it is the last thing I do.” After a moment, Blair reached out and hugged Josh close to her. “Thank you so much,” she whispered against his ear. They stood holding each other until Kalista came up behind them and cleared her throat.

“I’m ready to go guys, come on.” Kallie grabbed Josh’s hand and pulled him out of the store, and toward the mall exit. Blair practically had to run to keep up with them. By the time they reached the car, they were all panting. And Blair couldn’t help but notice that Kalista hadn’t bought anything. Blair was about to say something about it when Kallie gave her a look she had never seen her sister direct at her before. It plainly said ‘he is mine!’ Then she grabbed Josh and pushed him, still panting, against the car and kissed him full on the mouth. Blair felt like the wind was being knocked out of her, and she began to cry when Josh started to respond to her sister’s kiss. She turned away and hunched over, tears falling on the asphalt.

Josh meanwhile was shocked when Kalista seized him and began to kiss him passionately. But as he closed his eyes and let his imagination run free, he saw Blair’s face in place of Kalista’s. When he realized what he had done, he jumped back, startled. “Um, what was that for?” he asked Kalista.

“I’ve wanted to do that since we met, Josh. Haven’t you?”

“Uh, yeah.” As the words left his mouth he heard an anguished sob from over Kalista’s shoulder. There he saw Blair hunched over, crying her eyes out. Without thinking he pushed Kalista out of the way and ran to Blair. “B? What’s wrong?”

When Blair head his voice, she looked at him, frantically. “Nothing. I just…I got a cramp in my stomach from running. I will be fine.” She continued to clutch the bottom hem of her shirt from under her crossed arms.

Kalista walked over and smirked at Blair, because she knew exactly why she was crying. “We should get you home then Blair.”

Blair rolled her eyes at Kalista’s mock concern. As much as Blair knew her stepsister loved her, she knew that she loved winning more, at any cost. Blair got up from the ground and walked to the car. She opened the back door and lay herself inside. Blair tried to sleep during the car ride home, but memories of the kiss and Josh’s words floated to her every time her eyelids crashed downward. So she kept them wide open, watching the ceiling pass from shadow to light every few seconds. Minutes later, the car stopped in Josh’s driveway.

“Well, I had a good time again. Do you want to do something this week, after Thanksgiving?” Josh asked politely.

There was a long pause before Kalista spoke. “No, I don’t think so Josh. My boyfriend comes home from the Keys tomorrow morning and he really doesn’t like when I go out with other guys. But I will see you around, OK? It’s been a great weekend.” She kissed him lightly on the cheek and waited for him to leave the car.

Josh was holding his tongue, trying not to call her a tease, or any of the other words that sprang to his mind at that moment. But, there was one question he had to ask. “Why did you kiss me, then?”

Kalista shrugged. “I felt bad cause you begged me for it last night, so I figured, what the hell? I would give you a nice going away present.”

Josh chuckled. “You really are full of yourself, aren’t you?” With that he got out of the car and stalked up the driveway.

Kalista turned the car back on and drove off down the street. When they reached the first major intersection, she turned to Blair. “You can stop pretending you are asleep now.”

Blair brushed the tears from her eyes. “Why did you do that Kallie?”

“Do what?”

“You just…humiliated him. He doesn’t deserve that Kal, and you know it.” Once again, Kalista shrugged.

It was a while before she verbally responded. “I can tell you had a little crush on him, so I figured I would cut him loose so you could try and get him. I mean, it’ll be hard enough for you, but it would have been impossible with me standing in the way.”

Blair chuckled the same way that Josh had moments before. “Josh was right, you are so full of yourself Kalista. You have had people falling at your feet for so long, you don’t realize that you are still just like the rest of us.” And there was silence between the once close sisters from then on.

Thanksgiving dinner had gone as well as could be expected, but both Kalista and Blair were thankful for their parents ski stories, because they hadn’t been forced to explain the fact that they weren’t speaking. After all the leftovers had been put away and all the dishes washed, Blair went into her room. She stood in front of the bed for a long time, looking at herself in the mirror. Her hair was down, resting on her shoulders. She wore a knee length black skirt and a dark blue top. She couldn’t see just what was so wrong with her that drove every male away. She sighed, and resigned herself to not thinking about it. She would get her prince someday. She could only hope that he was half the man Josh was. His name came into her mind, even though she willed thoughts of him away. She looked down at her wrist, where the watch he had bought her rested comfortably. Looking into the face, she was suddenly inspired, and sat at her piano bench.

In the living room Blair’s father, Ron, was watching football on the large TV when there was a hesitant knock on the door. He got up, trying to keep his eyes glued to the screen, and opened it. Outside there was a man of medium height with neatly combed dark hair and bright blue eyes. He was wearing a pair of dark blue jeans and a brown sweater.

“Can I help you?” Ron asked the clean-cut boy. As he started to speak, Ron cut him off. “You must be here to see Kalista, right?”

“No sir,” he replied cordially. “Actually, I was wondering if Blair was here. My name is Josh Chasez.”

Ron looked at him quizzically, but invited him into the house all the same. “I’m her father, Ron. Blair’s room is the second door on the left. Just follow the piano.”

Josh shook his hand and then walked down the hallway. He passed a closed door that had a small pillow hanging from the doorknob. ‘The Princess is Sleeping’ it read. “Kalista,” he muttered. Then next door was slightly ajar, and as her dad had said, piano music could be heard coming from inside. Gently, he pushed the door wider and he saw Blair, with her hair falling into her eyes, playing the saddest tune he had ever heard. Her voice was filled with as many emotions as he could name as the words of the song flowed from her lips.

The moon and you appear to be

So near and yet so far from me

And here am I on a night in June

Reaching for the moon and you,

I wonder if we'll ever meet

My song of love is incomplete

I'm just the words, looking for the tune

Reaching for the moon and you.

I'm just the words, looking for the tune

Reaching for the moon and you.*

He listened with his eyes shut, absorbing the music, until it stopped without warning. Before he even thought about what he was doing, Josh said, “No, please, keep playing Blair.”

Blair looked up, startled, the tears that had forced her to stop still clouding her eyes. She held her left wrist in her right hand, against her heart. She thought it was just her imagination, but there he was, Josh, standing at the foot of her bed, with tears streaming unnoticed down his face.

“Wha—what are you doing here?”

“I came to see you.”

Blair scoffed. “This is me, J, Blair. Kalista’s room is right next door.”

“Yeah, I know. The Princess is sleeping. But I don’t care B. I said I came to see you, and I meant it.” Josh walked over and sat beside her on the piano bench. After a moment, he picked up her left wrist. “This really does look great on you.”

“It is a beautiful watch Josh, thank you.”

“You deserve it Blair. Besides, I don’t think it is so much the watch’s beauty, as it’s owner’s.” He smiled tenderly at her, but was met with a questioning glance.

“How much is Kallie paying you to pretend you like me Josh?”

He jumped up. “What? Why would you think that?”

Blair continued her skeptical gaze as she stood and walked toward the door. “You have no reason to like someone like me. You were just being nice because I was the third wheel all weekend or you are trying to get Kallie back. Or, you really need the money for the watch, or…”

Josh grabbed her by the shoulders and made her look directly into her eyes as he spoke. “You know that you are wrong. Money is not a problem, and I sure as hell don’t want anything to do with Kalista.” More tenderly, he continued, “You were not the third wheel Blair. You and I, we were on the same page every step of the way. Kalista was the one in the way, not you. And, I don’t need any compensation to tell you that you are beautiful, inside and out. That watch doesn’t do you justice.”

Blair’s eyes were already spilling tears, but now they gushed out at a frenzied rate. But Josh brought his hands up and brushed them away as soon as they fell onto her soft cheek.

“Shh, baby, don’t cry. I never want to see you cry again.” With those words, Josh brought his mouth tenderly to hers, and kissed it softly, as if she were going to break or disappear if he added any pressure.

Blair felt as if she were soaring above her life, reaching a point of joy that she never felt was possible for her. And yet, here she was, with Josh’s arm wrapped tightly around her, his very essence invading her, and she knew that as long as he was a part of her life, his wish would come true. She would never cry again.

Josh broke the kiss first, and staring into her eyes, led her to the piano. She sat and began to play a tune that was so very familiar to him. As he began to sing the words he knew that no other harmony would ever compare to what he had found with Blair. His perfect match was the ‘third wheel.’

Some day, when I'm awfully low,

When the world is cold,

I will feel a glow just thinking of you...

And the way you look tonight.

Yes you're lovely, with your smile so warm

And your cheeks so soft,

There is nothing for me but to love you,

And the way you look tonight.

With each word your tenderness grows,

Tearing my fear apart...

And that laugh that wrinkles your nose,

It touches my foolish heart.

Lovely ... Never, ever change.

Keep that breathless charm.

Won't you please arrange it?

'Cause I love you ... Just the way you look tonight.

Mm, Mm, Mm, Mm,

Just the way you look tonight.**

*"Reaching for the Moon"-Ella Fitzgerald*

**"The Way You Look Tonight"-Tony Bennett**