Elias stared at me with an arch to his perfect brow. He paused mid-way with a spoonful of cheerios between his fingers.

"You want to do what this year?"

I plucked at my skirt pleats.

Our basement, attic, and garage were full of the odds and ends my brothers collected within the six months we lived in the new house. I never considered their habit of adding a fresh addition to the various storerooms a problem until the jolly calendar headlined my approaching birthday. I inhaled and took the plunge.

"I'd like a birthday party this year, a small one actually, since I've got a few friends now."

Abe, sitting across the table, blew some unseen dirt from the heavily glossed pendulum clock he was polishing. He said without raising his head,

"If she wants a couple of friends over, then why not?"

"I don't know..."

Abe glanced up.

"She's seventeen for crying out loud and she wants a party... what's wrong with that?"

Elias shoved some cereal into his mouth, as if eating was tiresome and detestable.

"Nothing's wrong with that... I guess..."

Abe and I looked at him.

Elias ran a hand through his shaggy hair.

"Sorry, Sara, I don't mean to be a stinker, but... a party?"

I quickly shook my head, but Abe rose from his chair and squeezed my arm. He gave Elias a stern look.

"A party is what she wants, and a party is what she'll get."

"Uh... no it's fine, Abe, really. I don't even know why I brought it up. We can watch movies and have pizza. That'll be fine."

Elias waved his hand.

"Hey, stop rambling, kiddo. Of course, you can have a party. Abe's right: you deserve it and it's about time you had friends over." He gave me a reassuring grin.

"And since this'll be your first party," Abe said with a small smile.

"We'll make it one you won't forget," Elias finished, rising from the table and pressing a kiss on top of my head.

~

Elias and Abe would never call themselves hoarders, though you and I know it's the correct terminology for their uncanny habits of collecting things. But their habits weren't all that bad, considering they found pleasure in restoring whatever junk they brought home. Restoration was their brilliance. Remaking their cadence. Recreating their greatest pleasure and never have I not been in awe of something that had once seemed beyond repair that they, with magic hands, mended, altered, reassembled or remade in a blink of an eye. Because of this, I didn't mind their strange obsession with old, broken and battered things, which in their eyes were infinitely beautiful.

The first time I witnessed their skill was when we'd moved into our house, a banged up two-story structure with battered windows, peeling paint, a termite infested porch, a leaky roof, and a lawn fit for a cemetery. They were ecstatic. Obviously, they expected the same reaction from me, but I only surveyed our new accommodations with a feeling of neutrality; considering my last home with an alcoholic aunt and her drug addicted boyfriend, the smell of mildew and dust surpassed that of cigarettes and booze and was, all things considered, a major improvement.

My brothers wasted no time in beginning the repairs: every morning I woke to the noise of hammers and table saws. Every day after school, I found them replacing something, rebuilding something else... it was crazy. It was as though an obsession drove them on from the brink of dawn to the starry hours of night. They never remembered to eat and before I knew it, I was bringing them breakfast, lunch and dinner and tons of water that they sucked up like a pair of fish. They needed another way to use their energy and talents when they completed the house three months later, thus began the hoarding. 

It started with an old, solid mahogany table our neighbor said wasn't right for their modern house. The boys sanded, chiseled, stained and polished that thing back to her former glory, but the former owners called it an even greater glory and seemed genuinely sorry for having given it away. Next came a guitar I brought home from a classmate, then the grandfather clock Abe had bought from an antique dealer and the jewelry box Elias' ex-girlfriend's auntie gave me and eventually the two took to seeking their own collectables. The only 'new' thing in the house was the lighting because Elias had this thing for quality LED lights and large windows and would be more than willing to spend a fortune on either of them.

My birthday wish seemed to have set something off in my brothers' heads: everyday they brought something to the house from old and dusty tables, popped-string guitars, lamps, a weather-beaten piano with yellowed keys, rusted chandeliers, paintings, iron bed frames, medieval-looking mirrors and dressing tables, a dilapidated doll house, ventriloquist dummies, display shelves, china sets, etc. By the end of the month, movement became impossible without getting stubbed on the toe or scraped by a sharp object. I told the boys that their valuables, as they preferred to call them, were becoming a problem, but they only laughed or shrugged it off. My situation plagued me.

"How are we gonna have a party?" I'd said to the guys one morning. It was two weeks before the appointed day. "Have any of you 'looked' at the state of this place? It's a mess in here!"

They looked taken aback.

"You're over-exaggerating," said Elias with indifference.

"Yeah, it's not that bad. It's just a little.... crowded."

"A little? A little! We can barely move! Why don't you guys sell some stuff?"

Elias let out a deep, hearty laugh. Abe shook his head before carefully choosing a soft shade of rose-pink paint to outline the lips of a baby doll he was restoring.

Elias wiped a tear from his eye. "You are adorably hilarious, Sara."

I frowned. "Can't you guys tell when I'm being serious?" I threw up my hands. "I want to cancel the party."

"No can do, gummy bear. We are throwing you a bash and none of your petty concerns will make us change our minds."

And that was that. I got the boot the next day.

I stayed with our chatty cousins who were okay so long as they didn't bother me with gossip and boys before I finished my homework, daily word crush, and sorting my many socks. I couldn't help wondering what surprise the boys were plotting and why they needed a whole fourteen days to plan them. After all, it was my idea to have a party, and I worried about the state in which I left the house; a mad mess of polished and valuable objects mingled among moldy, broken, rusty and completely useless looking junk decorated the place like a thrift market! I tried canceling my party plans many times, but the boys were adamant that we go through with it.

Trepidation chewed me to the core on the long-awaited day. A plain box arrived with a note attached.

"Happy Birthday!

We've taken it upon ourselves to get you something for this evening. Wear it with our well-wishes.

Elias & Abe"

It was a charming, old-fashioned black dress with an enormous bow in the front and laced sleeves, quite unlike anything I've ever owned or worn. My cousins squealed, criticised, scorned and admired everything about it. It was their way, and I was used to it.

The boys had issued invitations of their own, so the five girls from school (only two of whom I'd invited personally), my three cousins and I went to the house at 6:00.

I gawked at the people swarming the well-kept lawn Elias somehow kept perfectly maintained despite his busy schedule. It looked as if the entire neighborhood came, and the house was beautiful. They hung pretty lights everywhere. The three pianos they'd restored were shining with their freshly finished coats and whitened keys-they'd tuned them, too. Various foods adorned the tables, and the chandeliers hung in precarious places while guests gaped at the junk turned to lovely and strange artifacts. Inside, some high-school kids (I didn't invite them), were respectfully admiring the dummies that sat apart on a Victorian bookshelf. I found my brothers, dressed to the nines in navy button downs and gray and black slacks, speaking with three older gentlemen. When they moved away, the boys hugged me and wished me a happy birthday.

"Are you ready for the tour?" Abe asked with an uncanny smirk.

"Tour?"

Elias reached into his pocket and pulled out a black mask. Abe tapped his glass, earning the attention of everyone in the room and, with a gesture of his hand, each person brought out their blindfolds and covered their eyes.

The brothers kissed my temple and blindfolded me.

"Let's begin!" they chorused.

An unnatural silence overcame the room. Not a breath, whisper or ruffling of ladies' skirts and I heard the steady drum of my heart so clearly, I almost forgot it lay in my chest and not in the room itself.

"Elias? Abe?"

The crooning of the wind outside was the only response, and after another minute of patience, I threw off my mask and gasped at the sight before me; I stood in the center of a massive ballroom with ceilings that had to be about forty feet high. Dazzling chandeliers lighted the place, the shiny white and black marble floors covered the expanse of the room. There was a winding staircase with intricately carved banisters and a balcony overhead... I gaped and blinked, rotating all round. I jumped when a voice said near my shoulder,

"Breathtaking, isn't it?" My brothers stood cool and collected, turning their careful eyes over the room as though they'd seen it a hundred times over.

"But... you... how...?"

Elias chuckled while Abe shook his head and gave me that familiar half smirk of his. He took my arm. "Let's begin the tour, hmm?"

"Wait," I said, pulling back, "where are we and where'd everyone go? If this is a trick, you two ought to give yourselves a pat on the back 'cause it's the best I've ever seen!" I cried, remembering not moving from my place when blindfolded. The men appeared unmoved and exchanged wary looks. Then, Abe, a little too brightly, held out his hand once more.

"You flatter us, gummy bear, but this is only a taste of what you're about to witness," and, each offering an arm, they led me about with the solemn air of proprietors. We entered room after room, each furnished in silk, velvet or chiffon curtains, rug-skins, gleaming crystals and delicate china figurines, and old-fashioned paintings of medieval times. The walls were either of solid wood paneling or detailed tapestries portraying green forests and sprawling hills. But despite the splendor of everything, despite the brilliance of the lights and fairy-tale atmosphere, I could not shake the feeling that something dangerous was happening. The dream-like glint in my brothers' eyes filled me with a foreboding that was further strengthened by the repulsive wasps of perfume, beeswax, lavender-scented candles, and a blend of masculine cologne. I swallowed, trying desperately to moisten my dry throat. I searched Elias' and Abe's faces for some clarity.

"W-where are we?" It occurred to me we were no longer home. "Where is everyone? What happened when the lights went out?"

Abe smiled.

"This, Sara, is your home now."

Elias patted my hand, which had become cold on his arm.

"And the guests are all waiting in the showroom for the birthday girl."

"Can we go there now? I－I think I'm tired of touring and would like... some cake."

The two smiled down at me.

"Of course."

The ease and unassuming way in which they answered failed to make me less troubled and, with an unsteady drumming in my breast, they led me down the winding staircase once more. We crossed the expansive polished floors, and, with a flourish, they threw open the massive double doors blocking our path. I stood rooted to the spot. My discomfort left me like a match dipped in cold water and I was... bewildered?

"What am I looking at?" I said after a lengthy pause.

Abe took his place on my right.

"Can't you see it?!"

Elias clasped his hands behind his back and took my other side.

"She can, but she hasn't grasped just 'what' she's seeing yet." He gave me a gentle nudge.

"Go. You'll accept its true beauty if you're up close."

I nodded and slowly, almost tentatively, I walked among the life-sized statuettes scattered about the room. Potted plants and raised beds bloomed bright green things that gave a feel of nature; everything was precisely placed, and I admired handsome, bowing men and poised, dancing ladies-even a gentleman with an alert-looking mastiff! -and all to my heart's content. Everything was beautiful.

Beautiful.

As the thought settled on me, as I noticed not one ugly, blemished, or average-looking face among the statues present, I purposely sought an err or imperfection in their features or dress. Not a spoil or bruise foiled the beauty that pervaded around me. Every male and female replica from old to young was beautiful. No children were among the collection, and I frowned as I peered into the faces I passed.

One statue caught my eye. A chill crept over me as I took in the face of a girl about my age, wearing an old-fashioned dress with billowing sleeves and plunging neckline. The clothes were from a time past, but that face was one I knew! Those full, rose-tinted cheeks and the mischievous mouth that would never stop chattering about things I considered unimportant. My heart rate had quickened by the time Abe put in an appearance with a decorative slice of cake and a glass.

"Are you speechless?" He let his gaze wander proudly. "Everything is... perfect and will always be perfect."

"Abe... she-she looks like Jody... cousin Jody."

He turned to me with an astonished expression.

"Of course, she does. This is Jody." He frowned at me, no doubt because the color had drained from my face. He turned to Elias, who approached with his hands hidden in his pockets. He gave me a winning smile.

"How's the birthday girl?" His smile dropped the minute I met his eyes. "What's the matter? You look like you're gonna be sick-"

He and Abe caught me before I collapsed.

"Easy now... Are you alright, kiddo?"

I pulled away from them once I composed myself.

"What's going on here?" My breathing increased and my hands trembled. "What is all this?"

Elias sighed and traced the statue's jawline with his thumb. "She was always so lovely, you know..." Abe answered with a grunt. Elias began in a collected tone.

"Do you know what we do, Sara? Of course, in your eyes it's no more than playing with other people's garbage, but we've shown you how much beauty there is in it, haven't we?" I nodded to keep him going.

"These people are all ugly, however, not in the obvious sense of the word. They've done ugly things, are cruel, selfish, judgemental, unappreciative of the good around, snobby-you get the picture. These people's beauty lay on the surface like our darling Jody here." He tapped her forehead.

"Elias-"

"Don't pretend she wasn't horrid, Sara. The things she said and did behind people's back-even yours! Now look at her... she couldn't be more lovely, could she? These people didn't deserve their beauty, but now... they couldn't be more worthy."

"Cake?" Abe offered a fluffy piece of dessert with lavender and pearl colored frosting. Even the fork and plate were stunning... My insides lurched and I took a hesitant step back.

"Sara?"

"I'm dreaming, yes, this is all an ugly dream!" I laughed. "No, this is not real. It cannot be real. Abraham, Elias, tell me this is all a dream."

The two exchanged looks that slapped my brain into action. I turned to run, forgetting the ridiculous old-fashioned dress with its sweeping train and would have face planted on the polished floors had they not caught me in time.

"Oh, Sara, we wished you could have come to terms with all this." Abe nodded to his brother, who slipped his hand into a pocket and pulled out a tiny bottle and a snow-white handkerchief. I wrestled against him, but it wasn't long before tears and shrieks escaped me.

"Please, no, don't!"

"It won't hurt, gummy bear," Elias said, brushing loose strands from my face. "I couldn't live with myself if any harm came to you. Come on. Don't fight it." An unusual odor emanated from the cloth. Their voices became a drawl to my ears and their faces blurred. My body was light and fluid and my feet seem to float above the ground; it was as if my body had taken on a mind of its own and was sinking into an abyss.

"How should she pose?" someone said.

"I don't know, but it has to be something familiar... How about like that time we went to the fair?"

"Sure, that was a good time, but I don't see how that's possible since she's already getting comfortable on the floor. Don't worry, I'll get her up."

"Don't! that's a perfect seated pose."

Wait. Me? I couldn't tell where I was. Couldn't see or feel my surroundings either.

"Sleep, Sara," a dream-like voice caressed my thoughts, and, slowly, my legs weighed like anchors; awareness propelled my head, and I tried moving my fingers and arms, but none budged. My lower half had taken on an unnatural sheen, and before my eyes, it started at the tips of my fingers.

"No, no, no! Sara, wake up-you know it's a dream!" I mentally screamed. "Wake up!"

"Sara?"

I sat bolt right on the sofa. A hazy, mid-afternoon sun shone through the white curtains while the late spring breeze made them do a lazy dance. The grandfather clock ticked loudly down the hall. The smell of wood stain, sawdust and paint thinner greeted my nostrils with a warmth of nostalgia. I sighed into the silence and ran my palms over my face.

The kitchen area greeted me with the chaos following six hours of non-stop labor: various bits of wood chippings, metal wires, assorted glues and wax, various concoctions of some gooey substance and an array of tools from chisels, hammers, drill guns, jig saws, pencils, and an assortment of paints covered every spare inch of the breakfast table and kitchen counters. Two disheveled heads bent over their work with fixed concentration. Elias, frowning at the cereal box as if it had somehow insulted him, looked up from the dripping spoon.

"Hey, look who's up. We didn't think we'd see you 'til after five."

I stared at him as he frowned once more at his spoon before shoving it distastefully into his mouth.

"You know," Abe began, blowing at the shiny and ancient-looking cuckoo he was polishing. "Your birthday is just round the corner, and you haven't-"

"I want to go out," I said in a rush. "To the movies and pizza for dinner."

They both looked up. Elias smiled after a pause.

"Are you sure? You've got nothing else to add to that?"

Abe set his work aside.

"You're only seventeen once, you know."

"Um, yeah, just one more thing."

"Shoot," they said at once.

"We're auctioning the most beautiful things around here first thing tomorrow."