For the next two days, Essie May sweated, starved and smiled until every cell in her body quivered with hidden rage and fatigue.  Her hair had been transformed into a luxurious mass of shimmering blond curls laced with pure white gold strands (courtesy of a $400 salon job that included extensions and highlights), her eyebrows sculpted into gorgeous arches, her eyes framed with thick lashes (fake) and her skin a delicate bronze (fake).  Living on nothing but cottage cheese, salad, water and running 9 miles a day, she dropped more than the five pounds she had gained working at Mrs. Bumfrey’s shop.  Her mother and pageant coach were thrilled. Not only did she look good in her evening gown, but she looked incredibly slender in her bikini for the swimsuit portion.   Essie was exhausted and would have murdered someone for a waffle with syrup.

But finally, after 48 hours of torture, the pageant came.

The morning of the pageant, Essie rose at 4 a.m.  to hop on the treadmill for some last minute exercise.  Her stylist, pageant coach and a whole bunch of individuals her mother was paying to guarantee her win would be here at five.  As her feet pounded the black belt, she barely noticed when her mother opened her door.

“Essie May?  What are you doing?”

“Just sweating out another pound or two, Mom,” Essie replied, a bitter tone to her voice.  “Go back to bed.”

“Well, don’t get your hair too sweaty,” her mother admonished.  “You know it has to be somewhat dirty to look good in an updo. Not sweaty and dirty.”  Essie rolled her eyes.  Pausing in her door frame, her mother turned.  “You know Essie, I’m really proud of you.  You’ve worked hard.  I know you’ll beat Queenie and make this family proud.”  Smiling at her thin, beautiful daughter, Barbara Baker turned and sauntered back to bed.

She didn’t see her exhausted, hungry daughter sticking her tongue out at her back (the most un-Queen like of behavior!)

A few hours later, Essie May was backstage with a twenty three other girls who had been chosen as finalists to compete for Coconut Queen.  Before the pageant had even began, judges had whittled down the competitors to the most beautiful and talented high school seniors in Coconut.  Essie had grown up with all of them.  Besides Queenie, serious contenders included Susan Samson, who had studied at Julliard, Emma Kelly Rodeax, who had once been in a Rascal Flatt’s music video and Alexis Bendal, who had modeled in Paris runways.

And all Essie May had was a Secret of Coconut Cream Pie and a pink sequined evening gown to compete.  Chewing on her fake nails, Essie May watched from backstage as Queenie pranced across the stage in her peacock feather-trimmed evening gown.

“Nervous?”

Essie May whirled around, her face breaking into a smile.  “Miss Louise! Mrs. Bumfrey!  You came!”

“As we promised,” Miss Louise murmured, giving her protege a hug.  She stepped back, her eyes skimming over Essie.  “Mrs. Drew would be delighted.  You look lovely.”

“Lovely?” Mrs. Bumfrey squawked.  “She looks beautiful!  Gorgeous!  Stunning!  Get your eyes checked, Louise!”

Trying not to giggle, Essie May glanced behind them.  “Where is Mrs. Drew?  Eating pie in your attic again?”

Miss Louise’s ice blue eyes twinkled.  “Actually, she’s in the audience with Freda and her sisters.”

“But she keeps dozing off,” Mrs. Bumfrey added.  “Apparently some of the girl’s “boring” dresses, in her words, lulls her to sleep.”

Essie snorted, trying to restrain her laughter.  “That’s the best thing I’ve heard all day,” she said.

“Ready to compete?” Mrs. Bumfrey asked, glancing at Essie’s chipped nails.

“I guess,” Essie replied, hiding her hands behind her back.  “You know, it’s funny.  A few days ago, I couldn’t care less about this.  And I still don’t care, really.  Not even the scholarship excites me anymore.  But now, I want to win.”

“But not for you.”  Miss Louise’s ice blue eyes were staring her down like twin laser beams.

Essie May’s cheek curled in a half-grin.  “No, for my mom.  You should have seen her the past few days.  She’s just so happy, so excited…I’d hate to let her down.  I don’t even care about learning about the secret of Coconut Queen anymore.  I just want to win.”

“Well, you won’t.”  Mrs. Bumfrey’s voice was blunt.  “If you’re doing this for someone else, they’ll see right through you.  Queenie will win, your mom will be depressed and all this will be for nothing.”

“But”–Miss Louise interrupted as Essie’s face fell, “There’s an easy remedy.”

“What?”  Essie May leaned forward eagerly, ignoring the curious looks from her contenders behind her as they took turns prancing across the stage.

“Remember why you wanted this,” Miss Louise drawled, her eyes hardening like steel.  “Think about all the animals you could help with that scholarship.  Think about the pie you baked with Freda.  Think about the miles you’ve run; the Coconuts you’ve handed out.  Think about the little girl with her birthday cupcakes, the little girl with the dog you let eat in the bakery.”

“Listen, I’m sorry about that”–

Miss Louise waved her hand, sweeping away the words. “The point is, Essie, you’ve been Queen of Coconut all along.  You’ve just got to let them see that.  And after you’ve fought so long and hard for your kingdom, why would you let a pretender to the throne take it away?”

Essie nodded.  She glanced behind her as Queenie bounced off stage.  Fluttering her mascara-gobbed lashes, Queenie’s garishly painted red lips simpered.

“Good luck, Essie May!” Queenie called, sweeping her blue rhinestone-studded and peacock-feather hemmed skirt around her.  “May I– I mean, the best woman win!” Blowing her a kiss, Queenie cackled and clomped backstage in her obscenely high heels.

Pressing her lips together, Essie’s eyes burned with a fire Miss Louise hadn’t seen since she first walked into her attic.  Turning to the two older ladies, she bowed her head.  “Excuse me, ya’ll.  I’ve got a pagent to win.”

And when she stepped on stage, throwing her hair back so the curls tumbled down her back in golden shimmers, her blue eyes sparkling as her pink sequined gown swished around her feet; the crowd went wild.  They cried out in envy when she sauntered across the stage in her tasteful bikini (unlike Queenie’s Paris-Hilton-look alike suit) and drooled in envy as the judges devoured her entire Secret of Coconut pie.  Every other contestant’s pie had been discarded, with only a bite or two taken for the rule’s sake.

“What’s in this?” one judge panted, licking his plate.

Essie May smiled coyly, fluttering her lashes.  “That’s a secret.”

“Would you give my wife the recipe?” another begged.

“Or mine?” Another pleaded.

“Why, I’d be delighted,” Essie May smiled, leaning her head back for pictures.  From behind the stage, she could see Queenie glowering.  Essie’s smile stretched a few more centimeters towards her ears.

Finally, after all the divisions had been completed, Essie stood on stage with the other contestants.  Susan Sampson, the Julliard dancer who had done a stunning rendition of the Sugar Plum Fairy dance, stood on her left.  Queenie stood on her right, plastered into some ridiculous red sequined evening gown with a mermaid skirt.  With her teased hair and thick rouge, she looked like a 1960s Barbie Doll that had partially melted.

“Good luck girls,” Essie mummured.  “May the best girl win.”

Susan squeezed her hand.  “Good luck Essie.”

“Yea, she’ll need it,” Queenie hissed, smirking at Essie.  “We all know who the real Queen is.”

The announcer’s voice caught the girls attention and their heads snapped forward.

“And the winner of the Coconut Queen, the Coconut Queen for this year is….”

Stay tuned, Invisible Friends!  Tomorrow we have a tasty recipe and Friday, a new Twirl!  Saturday we have our lunchbox confessions!  Stay tuned for more whimsical fun!