Living with Myself

Summary: Reba is at a busy point in her life and feels overwhelmed – though she doesn't want to admit it. A wish for reduced stress proves that help can come from the strangest of places.

A/N: I know, I know. You're all probably looking at this like "Wait, it's only been four days since the last story ended...right?" Well, this is what happens when an unemployed college student is on winter break. Boredom consumes you.

So, to those tuning in for the plot summary, I just want to make it clear that you do not have to have read the other stories in order to understand this one. Yes, there are developments in Reba's life you might not understand, but all are explained and none too confusing.

Anyway, to those who read this series, you know the drill. This is the fourth, and probably last, story in my somewhat twisted Reba series. The other three are Living a Dream, Living a Nightmare, and Living a Life Not Mine, all located on my profile page. In the tradition of using cliche movie and sitcom plots, I got this one from a Lifetime movie first, then got further inspiration from a Charmed episode. This one should go pretty quickly, since I have the whole thing planned out down to the last scene.

Thanks to all those who reviewed my other stories! As it's now 1:19 in the morning and my eyes are barely open, I'll shut up now - enjoy the prologue!

Prologue

January 2009

"So it's all settled for January twenty-second then?" Reba asked into the cordless phone. It was balanced on her right shoulder, while her hands held a large day planner. "Okay, thank you."

With that, she hung up the phone, tossed it to the side…and fell back on her bed from pure exhaustion. "Lord help me."

"You need a vacation," Lori Ann declared. The blonde stood facing Reba's closet, sorting through outfits as if they were her own. Every outfit she chose was either a "no" or a "maybe." The "no's" went back with the rest, and the "maybes" were hung on the closet door knob.

"Yeah, right. Like that'll happen within the next fifty years," Reba retorted, sitting up on the bed and sighing at what her best friend was doing. "Don't I get a say on what I'm wearing on my date?"

"No."

"Lori Ann!"

"I'm sorry Reba, but Adam's taking you to one of the fanciest restaurants in Houston. Given your fashion sense, I'm not prepared to let you take that risk," Lori Ann replied. She paused when she took out a dress and held it against herself in front of the full length mirror next to the closet. "Though this is nice. Can I –"

"No. I'm still waiting for that sweater you borrowed from me…in high school," Reba interrupted, her arms crossed.

Shrugging, Lori Ann put it back in the closet. "Fine. You're a size bigger than me anyway."

"Oh, that was a petty blow," Reba laughed, grateful for the momentary relief. While she chatted with Lori Ann, her mind was an automated to-do list, reminding her of all the calls she had to make and errands to get done. But that's how it was when you had a wedding to plan and two careers to keep in line.

Looking into a mirror as she considered another blouse, Lori Ann asked, "So who was that on the phone?"

"The rectory at my Church to confirm the wedding date," Reba answered with a long sigh. "I wish all my other calls were as smooth as that one. When I called the caterer to change something, that chef nearly chopped my head off." She hesitated, then added, "Excuse the pun."

Lori Ann shook her head. "Have you ever heard of a wedding planner?"

"It's my wedding – I can plan it," Reba snapped, starting to clean up some of the clothes that managed to find their way on the bed.

"Not from what I'm hearing. Reba, honey, look at yourself…" Lori Ann demanded, pulling Reba in front of the mirror. "You're stressed out."

Reba would've argued, but after a second of staring at her tired eyes she found that she couldn't. Her hair was a mess, thrown up in a sloppy bun that tilted to the side. The jeans she wore were dirty from multiple days of wearing, her button-up shirt was rumpled, and everything about her screamed fatigue. Finally she put a hand on her hip. "And just what do you expect me to do about that? It's my real estate business, my singing career, my family…and it all needs my attention."

"But can't Adam help you with the wedding? I've been doing as much as I can, but you still have to do a lot," Lori Ann suggested, trying to fix Reba's hair as she spoke.

"No. He's been busy with a case," Reba muttered. Her social worker fiancé had been occupied with a case for a week now, and the anxiety of missing him so much was beginning to take its toll as well. She was grateful that she'd decided to let him move in from his apartment a few months ago, otherwise she feared she wouldn't see him until they both said "I do."

Not knowing what else to do, Lori Ann finally took down Reba's bun and started putting it in a manageable ponytail. "What about your careers, Ms. Businesswoman? Can't you hire anyone to make your life easier?"

"My real estate business is in a slump right now – hiring someone would cost me more money than I'm willing to part with. As for my singing career, that's just starting to pick up after more than a year of work. I even got a call from Good Morning,, Houston asking me for an interview. But I don't have an agent yet, so it's all on me to arrange it," Reba explained. Once Lori Ann was done with her hair, she tightened the ponytail and nodded. "Thanks."

"My pleasure. That hair was driving me nuts," Lori Ann replied, going back to sorting through Reba's closet.

Still looking at her reflection, Reba argued, "Okay, I know it seems like I'm stressed, but trust me – I'm fine. Really I am. Once this wedding is over my life will be back to normal, with the exception of being married."

"Define normal," Lori Ann retorted. It was clear by the way her eyes were narrowed at Reba that she didn't believe her friend for a second.

Reba chuckled, glancing at the mirror one last time before returning to her cleaning. "I'm serious. You are looking at the queen of stress management."

They both looked up as Adam poked his head in the door. "Hey, Reba? Cheyenne's downstairs."

"Oh, now?" Reba moaned. While she loved her daughter's company, she was already burnt out from making calls all day.

Giving her a sympathetic smile, Adam explained, "She claims that you agreed to baby-sit Elizabeth while she goes to her class…is this ringing any bells?"

Reba's eyes widened as she remembered and she groaned again. After all she'd been through that day, she forgot about her usual task of watching her granddaughter while her daughter went to class for grad school. "Now it is. Lori Ann, I'll be right back."

"Okay, I'll be here…" Lori Ann trailed off, taking yet another item of clothing from the closet. "Hey, would the queen mind if I borrowed…"

Not even bothering to look to see what it was, Reba said, "Put it back, Lori Ann!" as she followed Adam out the bedroom door.

Disappointed, Lori Ann continued to stare at the top with longing after her friend went out the door. She and Reba didn't agree on fashion for the most part, but once in a while Lori Ann found something that wasn't completely repulsive. Going back to the closet to hang it up, she continued her self-assigned chore of choosing Reba's outfit.

She did usually have other things to do, of course. After almost a year and a half of being back in Houston, she managed to find a full time receptionist's job. But her romantic life was in a little bit of a slump, which left her with considerable free time. And Reba was her best friend – who needed help, whether she wanted to admit it or not.

"I wish there was something I could do," Lori Ann muttered, rummaging through the bottom of the closet for shoe options. Seeing her friend in so much pain was enough to bring on some serious anxiety.

Digging out some high heels, she stood up to examine them in the light, banging into the side of the closet at she did so. That didn't hurt as much as the cardboard box that came crashing down on her head. "Ouch! You son of a…"

She trailed off in a string of curses while she took the box over to the bed. "What is in here…" she said to herself, seeing that it was a box of personal mementoes and important papers. There were Reba's divorce papers, bank statements, pictures, Jake's birth certificate…"Hello, what is this doing here?"

It was the Christmas star. The Christmas star. The one that caused Reba's life to take decidedly unusual supernatural twists. By Lori Ann's count, there were three experiences so far. All caused by the star she was now holding in her hand, and Reba's guardian angel Terry, who happened to be her deceased ex-boyfriend.

Define normal, indeed, Lori Ann thought with a smirk. The body switching incident was already a year ago, and nothing, as far as she knew, happened since then, aside from a visit from Terry every once in a while.

Her eyes widened as she realized just how much power she held in her hands. She knew that anyone could make a wish on the star – Reba had made the first two, but Barbara Jean made the last one.

A wish to help Reba reduce the stress in her life already forming her mind, Lori Ann held the star at eye level and smiled. Reba would kill her for it, but with the state she was in now, she would thank her for it in time.

"This is going to be fun."