Absolutely!

Shocked at the sudden change that befell your sister, you flip the pencil around and quickly erase the sentence you just wrote, watching as the changes you brought fade in tandem with the disappearing of the words on the notebook’s pages. Ashley soon reverts to how she looked pre-bimbofication, her grumpy annoyed expression returning as she continues to begrudgingly eat the breakfast your mother prepared.

Spoonful in mouth, she notices your stare and sends you an all familiar glare in return, your sister asserting herself across from you. “What are you staring at, dork?” she chides after swallowing her mouthful, eyes locked with yours.

“Ashley,” your mother warns as she puts a plate of food in front of you. “Be nice to your brother, it’s his birthday.”

“You’re the one who wanted me here, mom.”

Your mother rolls her eyes at her comment, flashing you a warm smile as she turns to address you. “Happy birthday sweetheart!” she says while ruffling your hair, “Do you think Violet and Nick will want breakfast? I made extra.”

The question jolts you back from your reverie, the mention of your friends breaking the spell the notebook had over you. She’s right, Violet and Nick would be arriving any minute.

“Probably not,” you answer, unsure. “Usually they’ve already eaten by the time we leave for school.”

“Well,” your mother continues, walking back to the stove top to prepare another serving. “I’ve made extra so feel free to invite them in when they arrive.”

“Great,” your sister mumbles between mouthfuls, “I’m to sit here with my brother and listen to his dorky friends.”

The comment strikes a nerve, your sister Ashley being bitchier than usual. No doubt mom forcing her to enjoy a birthday breakfast with you is grinding her gears and making her lash out even more. For as long as you can remember, she’s always upheld a sense of superiority over you and your younger sister Julie by simple virtue of her being the oldest, something she takes great pride in frequently reminding you.

You’ve always wanted to put Ashley in her place and now, with the thick empty tome sitting next to you, you finally have a chance to do so.

Taking another bite of food, you bring the pencil back to the place you’d changed Ashley previously and write something new, quickly establishing a new hierarchy among you three siblings.

Ashley Haverty secretly finds her brother incredibly intimidating, her bitchiness towards him and their younger sister Julie Haverty a manifestation of the fact that she can’t help but be submissive around him when they’re alone together.

You place the pencil down just as your mother puts a third plate of food on the dinner table. Wiping bacon grease on her apron, she then turns towards the stairway leading to the bedrooms, sighing at the lack of movement beyond it.

“Guess I need to drag Julie down for breakfast as well,” she says to herself more than anyone. Without another word, your mother makes her way upstairs, no doubt fully intent on following through with her statement, leaving you and your older sister alone in the kitchen for the first time since you’d arrived.

Your gaze hiding behind the facade of eating your breakfast, you can’t help but notice how immediate Ashley’s response was. As soon as the two of you were left by yourselves, all fight seemingly deflated out of the older girl. In the span of a few seconds, she went from confidently eating her food and instead rolling a piece of sausage with her fork, unable to make eye contact with you.

The notebook, it seems, had worked exactly as you’d anticipated.

Seizing the opportunity before mom returns, you lower your fork and give Ashley what you hope is a stern look. “Ashley” you say, your voice level. The way she twitches at the lone word fills you with deep satisfaction. “It’s my birthday, can you at least pretend to be civil?”

“Right.” she says, her voice low. She shifts her gaze in an attempt to meet yours, only to quickly look away as she’s unable to keep it. “Sorry.”

Grinning like mad at the way she’s fidgeting in her chair, you swallow another mouthful of eggs, your meal suddenly tasting far better than before.

You take a brief moment to enjoy the newfound silence between you and Ashley, relishing the moment before your mother’s eventual return with Julie inevitably disrupts it. Picking the pencil back up, you decide to stack the deck even more in your favor, modifying your mom so that she’d forever be on your side, regardless of what was to come.

Tabitha Haverty considers her son to be her favorite child. He can do no wrong in her eyes; his happiness is her happiness.

At once, the plate of food before you seems even fuller. Even the bite in your mouth suddenly exploded with even more flavors than before, the change almost jarring had you not been expecting it. With the new reality in place, there’s no doubt that your mom wouldn’t have gone all out for your birthday meal. Hearing footsteps coming from above, you quickly jolt down another idea before the rest of your immediate family joins you and Ashley for breakfast.

Students of all ages have the option to be exempt from class on their birthdays.

Satisfied with yourself, you place the pencil back down just as your mother returns, your little sister Julie yawning half-awake as she trailed behind her.

“‘Morning bro” she greets you, the words half-mumbled by her yawn. She plops down before her arranged breakfast next to you, taking no time in grabbing her fork and eating a mouthful. “Happy Birffday”

“Julie!” your mother chides once more, “Don’t eat with your mouth full!”

The girl in question rolls her eyes, making a show of swallowing before addressing you directly. “So, are you skipping class today?” she asks before eating another bite of eggs.

You hesitate before answering, not actually having considered the option. You take the opportunity granted by the pause to quickly admire Julie, chuckling at her dishevelled look. Like you, Julie was a senior, both of you born on opposite ends of the year. Irish twins, they call it; the product of your mother giving birth to two children who were less than 12 months apart. It had resulted in the pair of you going through school at the same time, sharing the same classes throughout your entire schooling. It made the of you close, something that likely affected the way Ashley treated the two of you.

“Don’t you two have a test or something today?” the sister in question asks instead, not bothering to look up from her plate. The inquiry earned a raised eyebrow from Julie, who hadn’t expected Ashley to be anything close to civil.

“How do you know that?” she asks, genuinely impressed. “I thought you didn’t care to know what we did at school.”

Ashley just shrugged, eating another bite of food. “I notice things.” she offers as an explanation, refusing to elaborate further.

“Isn’t that why you stayed up late, Jules?” your mother interjects as she flips more bacon. You chuckle as she scoops a large tablespoon of honey over it, no doubt giving it it’s sweet flavor.

“Yeah!” Julie retorts, obviously annoyed at the way she was to spend her evening. “I spent it studying while Mr. Birthday Boy over here spent it playing video games!”

“Hey!” your mother interjects, “He can spend his night playing video games if he wants!” She pauses her statement to add the fruits of her labor to your plate, filling it up once more. You happily note neither Julie nor Ashley got more honey-glazed bacon. “I’m sure your teacher will be more than accommodating if he chooses to bail on your test.” She flashes you another warm smile and kisses your forehead. “It’s his birthday after all. He should do whatever makes him happy.”

“Good God,” your younger sister groans as your mother walks away, Julie staring enviously at your food. “I can’t believe how spoiled you are.”

You flash her a grin as you take another bite of bacon, absolutely loving the way your first wave of changes has changed the family dynamic. In your peripherals, you notice the notebook; it’s pages still open and just as captivating. Looking back at Julie, you decide she’s next, the possibilities at hand weighing heavily on your mind.