Make Me Perfect

Chapter 29 - The Girl At The Music Store

Pria Lemming. Born at the Brandon Hospital on May 16th, 1987. Birth parents being Rosie and Ray Lemming.

That was all the information I needed. A name, an age, and proof that I indeed had a lost sibling some where out there in this huge world.

As I walked down the street after returning to Liana's house I thought about what my sister would look like. She would've been 25 as of this year, in fact, her birthday would have just passed a few days ago. She could look like me, a spitting image of my father, or she could have light brown hair and green eyes, a spitting image of my mother. Either way, it was fairly easy to imagine the appearance of Pria. However, I hadn't a clue whether she even still lived in Brandon.

She would've been nine when I was born, and yet I didn't have a single memory of her growing up. She couldn't have moved out until she was at least fifteen. But then I still would've been six, and Preston would've been born by then, too.

Why didn't I remember? It didn't make sense. None at all.

I sighed as I pushed open the door to the music store, a little shop in the middle of town where I used to go to buy records and sheet music to practice on my guitar. I had kind of given that hobby up once my father had died. He had been the one that had given the guitar to me on my ninth birthday, where I played and played until my fingers bled.

I walked through the aisles, remembering my nine year old self bouncing around the displays as I dragged my father behind me. I smiled at the thought, but I quickly turned my expression into a straight face as I fingered through some sheet music.

I looked around for someone to help me, my eye catching a young woman stacking shelves. "Excuse me," I cleared my throat as I tugged my jacket tight over of my chest.

The woman looked at me with blue eyes, her light brown hair swinging back and forth as she stepped down off a step stool. "Can I help you?" she asked, her voice sounding impatient.

I nodded, "I'm looking for a song in sheet music for guitar."

The woman scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest, and I noticed the youth burning in her eyes. She couldn't be much older than 20, and curiousity pecked at my skull. I had never seen this woman before, which was strange considering the lack of population in Brandon, Manitoba. However, the familiarity in her expression burned into my brain.

"Yo, kiddo?" she said loudly, waving her hand in front of my face.

I shook my head, embarassed that I had let myself get so lost in thought, "Sorry, what?"

She rolled her bright blue eyes, "I need to know the name of the song first."

I nodded, giving her a slight smile, "Right. Umm," I shook my head, "I don't remember the exact name. It's like--" I paused, "Nevermind, I don't know."

The woman licked her lips, "Do you know who it's by?"

"Guns N' Roses," I whispered.

The woman nodded, and I desperatley wanted to know her name. I glanced for a nametag, and I frowned as I discovered that she didn't have one. She flipped through some music until she pulled out about five folders.

"Check these over," she handed them to me.

I took them from her and began fingering through the pages. I smiled, pointing at one. "This one," I said with a grin as I handed the rest of them back.

"Sweet Child O' Mine, one of my own childhood favourites," the woman said with a smirk. She glanced up at me, her eyes fixed on mine for a moment. She shook her head and looked away, "What's so important about this song?" she asked as she shoved the other folders back onto the shelf.