Jessica

I stand outside the gates at the entrance to this impressive military complex with a clipboard tucked beneath my right arm and a pair of black flip flops in the grip of my left hand. The sun slowly sets over this beautiful desert landscape in a country that I never thought I'd visit.

Seriously, if you could ask a younger version of me if I thought I'd ever find myself here, or if I'd ever see this gorgeous view with my own two eyes, she would smile and give you a definite “nope.” But so much has changed in my life over the last couple of years.

And speaking of sights that a younger version of myself never would have expected to see, I just finished watching my own sister go from being goddess-sized to just another person of average height thanks to the help of a few green lasers like this were some sort of freaky desert light show. One second she was there, dominating the terrain as she stood further into the sky than anything else for miles, and the next, poof, she was reduced to being just another speck in the overwhelming vastness of this desert.

But make no mistake, despite being taken back down to size, Kelsey was still a goddess. At least in her own mind, that is. Anyone that's ever known her would surely be able to tell you just how high of an opinion she has of herself. Of course, the fact that she's absolutely gorgeous has always been there to feed her ego and keep her thinking that she's royalty. But now she finally has the means to make her body big enough to match that ego.

Yeah, Kelsey is definitely the more attractive sister. I'm just the more responsible one. It's not even fair, she even wound up being six inches taller than me! She was three years old when I was born, but growing up, I always had hope that one day I'd catch up to her in height. But no, here I am at twenty-two years old and she still ended up being taller and better looking. I actually look a lot like her, she's just a three years older, longer haired, six inches taller, much prettier version of me. Genetics is a cold bitch.

The men and women and various vehicles carry on their business around and throughout the base as I continue to stand off to the side of the entrance and gaze at the setting sun over the desert. I know it's probably just boring old sand to most people, but I find the sight to be beautiful, calming even.

It isn't long before I spot another person walking towards the entrance, the only person here other than myself that isn't decked out in full military uniform. My sister somehow walks gracefully through the awkward terrain. Damn it, I couldn't look that good traversing the desert no matter how hard I'd try.

In less than a moment, she reaches the gate and stops to stand just in front of me. Despite the long walk she's just taken through this rough desert heat, it hardly looks as though she's broken a sweat. That's another thing about my sister, she's always kept herself in great shape.

Kelsey takes her sunglasses off and tucks them away neatly into her shorts pocket. “Good test, right?” she asks.

“Yeah, everything seemed to go just fine” I reply.

“Just fine?” She laughs. “Come on, you saw me out there. I was born to do this. I was born to be gigantic, don't deny it.”

I laugh. “Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, Kels.” I notice that her feet are still bare as she stands in front of me and I suddenly remember the pair of flip flops I've been holding onto. I extend my arm and dangle them in front of her. “You know, you don't have to go barefoot across the desert, right?”

She rolls her eyes before taking the flip flops from me. “Oh, come on, Jess. Everyone knows shoeless is the best way to walk through sand.” She drops the sandals to the ground and they land with a light slapping sound.

“But isn't it uncomfortable, all that hot sand under your feet and between your toes?” I ask as she wriggles her way into the footwear.

“Nah, it feels good. You should try it sometime. Or maybe Jess is afraid of getting a little burny-wurny on her footsie-wootsies” she says, making a pouty face and mocking me in a baby voice. “See ya later, sis” she says before walking away from me.

Behind me, I can hear her stop and ask someone for a stick of gum before she once again begins walking away, traveling deeper into the base.