Bright Lights and Spotlights

It's not fair. My own sister stole my spotlight. I was supposed to be the star, not her. These days I see her face everywhere- TV, billboards, magazines. She is the face of one of the most expensive makeup brands in the country, the cover girl magazines covet.

After she graduated, she got a job as a backup dancer for pop sensation Kiki Lane. She was fired when the paparazzi caught her with Kiki's boyfriend, actor Dane McCaul. She was all over the tabloids for a few months, strutting around in her Prada shoes, hanging off of Dane's arm, blowing kissy-faces to the cameras.

Then Dane got cast as the lead in an action flick, and he got hera part as the damsel in distress- the girl he would rescue. She dumped Dane in front of the paparazzi, and the movie bombed at the box office. Some people thought that would be the end of her career.

Unfortunately, it wasn't.

Her next role was in a comedy/action film, as the lead. In interviews, she said she was surprised to get the part, that she had only auditioned for a very minor role. I was surprised she got a part at all; her acting skills had always been mediocre, at best. This movie was one the critics hated, but audiences loved.

She dated nearly every man in Hollywood. She was cast as the female lead in dozens of action and comedy movies, and in interviews she bragged she did all her own stunts. One year, she was voted the sexiest woman in America. Tonight, she will be walking the red carpet with her third husband.

He never spoke to her in high school unless he could help it.

But now Beck Oliver will proudly stand next to Trina as they attend the premiere of her latest movie- not his, never his. His are too artsy, too obscure to catch the press's attention. His latest is bombing at the box office; I would blame his ex. Ever since he asked for a divorce, Jade has made a point to ask everyone who attends her concerts to boycott his movies.

She shouldn't worry. It will only be a few months before Trina is done with him, anyway.

It isn't fair. I was supposed to be the star, not Trina.

I was going to be a pop star.

I had a record deal and everything. I went on tour to promote my new CD. I even opened for Kiki Lane when Trina was still dancing for her.

It wasn't my fault it all ended.

My career as a pop star ended the paparazzi. As Trina began her career as an actress, every tabloid in the country called me an addict.

I wasn't, really. I only used sometimes. Max, my guitarist, was the real addict. I only used when we were hanging out.

The record label dumped me, but the paparazzi still follow me, trying to make me into the next Britney or Lindsay.

Every picture of Trina looks fabulous. She always smiled for the camera, even when she was caught with another woman's man. She never went out in sweatpants, always in Gucci and Versace.

Trina Vega is a world-renowned superstar. Next to her, everyone else is nothing.