Indy frowned at all the decoration her mother forced on her and the dress she'd been told to wear. The frills were nice, but they itched due to the summer heat. She hadn't felt it earlier when they were inside the house, but playing with her friends made her sweat which made it worse.

   "Mom, can I change?" She pulled on her mother's dresses.

   "Not now, Indigo. We haven't taken a photo of you with the girls yet."

   "Can we do that now, then?"

   Mona sighed, "Alright, Indigo. Come girls, gather around."

   Beth came skipping forward first followed by Bri and Fia.

   The four of them stood behind the two-tiered glittered cake and the table of desserts. A photographer who'd been hired for the party came running with their equipment.

   "The birthday girl is ready to take pictures. Get her good angle," Mona instructed.

   She continued to move things around for the perfect picture to hang on her perfect wall of family photographs.

   "Smile big, Indigo."

   Indy smiled with her teeth showing and the photographer took his shot.

   "No, no sweety. Smile big and pretty. Let's try that again."

   Indy tried to smile big and pretty, but it wasn't comfortable for her.

   "Like this Indy," Beth showed her signature practiced smile she'd been working on with her mom, "pretty."

   Indy nodded and said, "pretty."

   Bri copied them while Fia made a funny face.

   "Fia," Greta called her daughter out. "Do it for your Indy."

   Fia breathed heavily but did as she was told.

   "Pretty..." She mimicked them.

   After a few more shots, the photographer was dismissed to continue their work elsewhere.

   "Do I cut the cake?" Indy asked.

   "Of course not, Indigo," Her mom carried her off to get change, "we'll do that later."

   She was changed into a new dress. The fabric was more flexible than the last and didn't poke at her skin. She preferred this one.

   "Don't get dirty now, Indigo. We'll be taking more pictures later."

   Indy nodded and said, "Yes, mom."

   The rest of the day was the same. She played, got hot, and took pictures whenever her mom called for her. She ate, but she couldn't remember how they tasted. The anticipation of waiting for the red string to appear gnawed at her whenever she stopped running around.

   "Oh, God Ewos, pwease gif one of us a wed stwing," Beth would say every now and again, reminding Indy of her anxiety.

   "Stop that," Fia would then tell Beth. "It's just a string."

   "Not just a stwing, Fia," Beth argued back. "It'th ouw whowe wife."

   Fia rolled her eyes something Regina often did with her. She didn't dislike the idea of the red string, but it was all she could hear from her mother and sister. They yapped about it all the time, especially Regina. And now Beth was doing the same.

   It got to a point where Fia felt like they were making too much of a big deal about something none of them could see.

   Nevertheless, Fia and Bri were asked to pray with Beth while Indy fidgeted quietly.

   Indy looked uncomfortable to Fia, as if she was battling some unknown creature.

   "You okay?" Fia whispered.

   Indy didn't answer but kept looking down at her hand, waving it as if to swat away whatever was stuck there.

   "Napkin?" Fia grabbed a nearby napkin and handed it to Indy.

   They both looked to each other and then to Indy's hand.

   "The cake got me too," Fia showed the icing still lined across the side of her hand and then laughed, "I snuck a piece."

   Indy would've laughed, but she was much too occupied by her hand to really drink in what Fia had just confessed. She looked around instead. Everyone's attention was anywhere but on her, already moved on to how the cake would be divided even though she'd yet to blow the candle.

   Indy had felt something slowly twist around her pinky. It was a thin red string, wrapping and tying itself, immovable. Her heart stopped for a second, her breath caught in her throat, and her eyes were fixated on the color.

   She followed the line of string. It was long, originating from her finger, and trailed far from what her eyes could follow. A tugging sensation coursed through the string and on her pinky. It was light but noticeable. She looked around again, waiting for someone to point out the sudden red string that had appeared, but no one said anything. Fia ignored her finger, still talking about something she couldn't care less about.

   Her heart beat against her chest loudly.

   "What's wrong?" Fia asked her again.

   "Nothing," she quickly said, hiding her hand.

   She hadn't meant to, but the omission had slipped out before she could stop herself. A lie followed after.

   "My hand was dirty," she added.

   "Like I said," Fia nodded her head in understanding, "The cake was good."

   "Hey," Beth approached them, "you weady, Indy?"

   She was of course referring to the candle, but Indy couldn't think straight.

   "Ready for what?" Indy asked.

   "The cake, siwwy," Beth laughed.

   "Right..."

   Bri pursed her lips and asked, "You don't wike youw cake?"

   Indy's lips twitched.

   "No, she we like it," Fia answered for her.

   Everyone was busy minding their own business, waiting for the cake, or just ready for the party to reach it's climax. Indy wanted it to end.

   She got to the step that she'd had to stand on multiple times that day to get a good picture, said 'pretty' for the photo op, and blew her candles after they sang a hearty happy birthday song. Then she rushed out like she was being chased.

   "Bathroom," Fia told everyone.

   Beth and Bri didn't believe her for a second, not that they could ask Indy what happened as she didn't pop up until the end of the party to prepare for their sleepover.

   Indy, by that time, had become quieter than usual, but Beth didn't question it, her mind preoccupied with thoughts of the red string.

   "Sinthe it didn'th come today, it'ww come tonight," Beth had told them.

   She sequestered the sleepover when Indy showed no interest in it, and forced them to play along with her princess and castle games. Beth was the princess, as usual, and Bri was the prince. Fia was the villain, and Indy was the fairy godmother.

   "Can girls be princes?" Indy asked when she came to on their third run-through of the game.

   "Just fow fun," Beth informed her.

   "Can I be a boy next time?" Fia asked, drawing her nonexistent sword.

   "I want to be fairy godmother next," Bri admitted.

   "Let's switch roles!" Fia quickly took her chance. "Indy be the princess. I'm the prince. Bri is the fairy godmother, and Beth, you're the bad guy now."

   Beth threw a little tantrum long enough that Bri surrendered her role to switch with Beth.

   They played princess and castle all night until Fia called quits.

   However, the night was long, and Beth refused to let it pass by. Beth waited all night like she did on her birthday, dreamily staring at the twinkling lights.

   "I hofe he'th nice," she muttered.

   Her eyes drooped almost to a close, but she blinked her fatigue away, still waiting.

   "I'm sleeping," Fia announced.

   "You can'th, wight Indy?"

   Indy didn't answer. She'd long ago fallen asleep as soon as the clock turned ten.

   Beth groaned but tucked herself to sleep anyway.

   "Goodnight, Beth," Bri said before drifting off.

   The four of them all dreamed of different things that night, but they all woke up thinking about the red string. Despite Fia's skepticism, she expectantly shot to her feet as soon as daylight broke.

   "So, who got theirs?"

   Beth groggily uncovered herself, yawned, turned once, and then yawned again before checking herself.

   "Not me," she said, disappointed.

   "Not me either," Bri responded before going back to her merry sleep.

   "Same."

   Fia watched as Indy made no attempt to even check her body for any sign of the red string. She raised a brow and then fell back into her pillow.

    "Okay," she said.

    A long silence between the three who were still awake filled a long five minutes before Fia spoke again.

   "It's alright, you know if it never comes. My mom says, some people never have theirs come." Fia's voice was low and soft, a little groggy.

   Indy had spotted Fia looking at her hand earlier.

   Fia's eyes flickered open and closed a few times before she spoke again.

   "Just ask Bri about her uncle..."

   "About what?"

   Fia didn't answer, so Indy asked again.

   "About what, Fia?"

   "We can athk hew watew, Indy," Beth said, yawning once more.

   Indy was forced to drop the subject, but she couldn't fall back to sleep again. The red string was still there when she woke up which meant yesterday hadn't been a dream.

   She was the first to have gotten hers, and she wasn't sure why she felt the need to hide it.