Free Relatively Famous by Jessica Park

on her cell phone, berating someone. “I said one-of-a-kind gown! Not some off - the - rack freak show creation. You better not screw this up or I’ll make you wish you’d never been born,” Ava threatened, before tossing her cell into a Coach bag. “Idiot. Total frickin’ idiot.” Ava pulled a pair of red sunglasses down onto her eyes and turned back to Dani. “Sorry. I’m having my seventeenth birthday party at the beach club in a few weeks and it’s impossible to get anything done properly.”
    “Oh, do you have a party planner?” Dani asked.
    “An event planner,” she corrected. “But that was my father on the phone. He actually suggested that I buy my dress from a store . Like that’s going to happen. Can you imagine me showing up at my own party wearing a dress that anybody could go out and buy? I’ve told that man ten times that I’m wearing an original design. I mean, how hard can it be to make a few phone calls?” Ava flipped her brown highlights to one side and shook her head in disgust.
    “Babe, you know you’ll end up with the perfect dress and the perfect party. You know how to get what you want, right?” Pete put a hand on his girlfriend’s leg as he accelerated.
    Dani leaned forward to look across Kayla at the guy sitting in the back seat. Kayla waved her hand dismissively. “Oh, that’s just my older brother , Nathan. Apparently he’s my biological brother, although without DNA proof, I refuse to accept that. I apologize in advance for any dorkiness you are forced to endure.”
    “Good to meet you,” Nathan said. “And I apologize in advance for any bitchiness you have to put up with from Kayla.” He wrapped an arm around his sister, forcibly pulled her in for a hug, and rubbed the top of her head, messing up her hair. “She just pretends to hate me, but deep down she is proud as peaches of her doting brother.”
    “Let me go, you infantile jackass!” Kayla wrestled herself out of Nathan’s grip and ran her hands through her hair. “I swear to God you better start behaving , or Dani will run screaming back to Michigan.”
    “Nice to meet you, too, Nathan,” Dani said, laughing.
    Nathan’s soft brown curls fell over his ears , and Dani immediately liked his ruddy appearance. If it weren’t for him, Dani would have considered the possibility that all California teens were of a distinctly different breed from Michigan teens. The group’s flawless appearance was moderately unnerving, so Nathan’s casual surf attire and friendly smile helped put Dani at ease.
    “I saw your interview last night,” Kayla said. “Was that your first one?”
    “Was it that obvious?”
    “I think you did really well.” Nathan said.
    “I could barely watch the segment on television. I hope it was my first and last interview. It was probably awful.”
    “I swear to you it wasn’t bad at all,” Kayla said, as she studied Dani’s face. “You have very good bone structure for television. I should know. Have you seen me on the soap Shorelines ? I have a recurring guest spot as the barista at the coffee shop. I’m perfectly symmetrical, you know.” Kayla lifted herself up so she could admire herself in the rear view mirror. “That’s why I part my hair in the middle. To accentuate the even alignment of my features. You could fold my face in half and everything would match up exactly. It’s very rare.”
    “Oh,” Dani said not knowing how to respond to an announcement of facial symmetry. “Very remarkable.”
    “Yeah, there’s a lot of remarkable things about my sister,” Nathan added.
    “Most people have minor flaws, but our mother used to be a supermodel , so Ava and I have an advantage over the rest of the population. Poor Nathan, as you can see, somehow missed out.”
    Dani thought he was pretty cute no matter what dominated his genetic make up. He had kind of a younger Joshua Jackson look that she liked.
    “Oops, here we go, kids. Paparazzi at three o’clock.” Pete glanced