The Not-Rebellious Rebellious Second-Born

In every family has the uptight, overachieving, stressed-out child, usually categorized as the daunting "first-born." This first child sets the standards for the rest of the children; every successive child must strive to copy and out-do the oldest child, proving their worth when in comparison. Some second-born kids even go so far as to rebel, demonstrating the obvious differences that are blatantly clear if you would just look at the second oldest child as not following in the footsteps of the eldest because they are obviously different people.

And then there's Lauren, who really couldn't care less about being the second child.

The second child must try to live up to the standards of the first child? Who cares. She must prove that she is equally talented? Yeah, whatever. Life is life, and she's living it young, wild, and free.

Lauren doesn't try to be like me. Okay, disclaimer: this isn't "Inception" in any way, I'm not living inside of her, and I have no way of creeping on looking inside her brain, therefore I cannot back this up with empirical evidence. But I have been putting up with living with this kid for the past thirteen (almost fourteen) years...just saying.

She has an air of individuality about her - not the hey-I'm-wearing-candy-for-clothes-or-lingerie-to-school approach (thank God for that) - but a reckless approach to life that lets her define who she is by her own standards. I don't know many freshmen girls who would jump from lunch table to lunch table, friend group to friend group, grade to grade, hanging out with whoever they knew and liked. She doesn't care what people think of her. Being around her makes you feel reckless in a good way.

After all, I'm the frugal, no-nonsense child who couldn't make a decision if my life depended on it, and a little recklessness helps me to decide. "I don't know if I should buy that shirt. Am I really, like really, going to wear it?"

Lauren, on the other hand, is Lauren. "Well...just buy it. You could always return it later. Or I'll wear it. It's going on the credit card anyway."

"I forgot you were a bad influence."

This little individual just happens to be quite a contrast to me; she's 5'6" with straight hair (most days), a wicked sense of style, "popular" friends, a knack for taking risks, serious determination to do what she wants, and a cool life-is-chill vibe about her. She doesn't try too hard for anything; she's automatically friends with the right people, her homework is fine if it isn't perfect, she doesn't need to be in the front row for dance, and her room is more or less clean. Life just happens for her. Lauren spends her weekends seeing movies, going to games, hanging out with friends, and chasing boys. I spend my weekends reading books, learning music, and doing homework. Do we try to be opposites? No. It just happens.

But there's a part of her that likes being this close in age to one another. We are three years apart, so I'm the senior driving the freshman to school; her first homecoming is my last homecoming. I give her advice like she gives me cute outfits. Sometimes I have to go steal my clothes out of her room when she isn't home, but that's another matter entirely. We are actively involved in choir, dance, and theatre. She has some of my old teachers. We talk shows, characters, cast drama, boy drama, friend drama, stupid inside jokes, music, and school. We even defend our ages and heights on a daily basis:

"Are you guys twins?"
"No...we're just sisters."
"Oh. You look really similar."
"Yeah, we get that a lot."
"Who's older?"
"She's three years older but I'm two inches taller." Yes, thank you Lauren. I was not aware that I am short. 

Even though we have our differences, I can't help but wonder if she feels pressure being related to me. I mean that in the least-cocky way possible, of course. I've never been the younger child, but there must be pressure to be just as good as your older sibling. Mr. Dahl mentioned that today, saying, "Your sister has made incredible progress. She might grow up to be just as good as you...but don't tell her that. It must be hard being your sister." That's when I question if there's undue pressure on my sissy, my Lolo, my confidante. Maybe in her subconscious mind, she's urging herself to live up to my standards, to prove she's different, to show she has more to offer than being "Julia's little sister." She doesn't know it,  but she's her own kind of rebel. She's the carefree, high-achieving, talented second-born, and it's blatantly clear that she is here to give 'em hell.