The Queen of Minor Disasters (29 page)

“What are you talking about?”
she says shutting the door. “Even if I
wanted
a wedding dress, I won’t have time to order one.”

“That’s exactly why we’re
here. I have pull with the owners. We’re getting you a sample.” I start walking
to the front door.

 Lucy remains near the car.
“Stell, I don’t have money for one of these dresses. We’re trying to save every
penny for the baby,” she frowns.

I look at my best friend.
“Which is why
I’m
buying you the
dress.”

She shakes her head. “No,
Stella, you won’t have a job after September. Plus with Gina and Pietro’s
wedding, you’ll be broke by Christmas.”

I walk towards her. The
morning sun is already hot, and if we stand out here much longer, she’ll be all
sweaty. You can’t try on wedding gowns if you’re sweaty. It’s against the rules.
I’m sure Martha Stewart would agree.

“Lucy I
won
the money in AC. It’s play money,” I
say grabbing her arm. “Come on.”

She tries to resist, but I can
see that she’s excited. “I can’t let you do this.”

“It’s already done. Come on.”

She lets me pull her until we
get to the doors, then she smoothes out her tank top and follows me inside.

“Look at this beautiful
bride,” Charlene coos as she greets us in the entranceway. “With a body like
this, we’ll have plenty of options.”

Maria scans Lucy up and down
then looks at me. “You didn’t tell me your best friend is a model.”

Lucy laughs.

“Who do you think I roll
with?” I joke.

She laughs and motions for us
to follow her. “Come sit down. Let’s talk about styles.”

Lucy looks around the room as
if in a trance. Bella Sposa’s sitting room is so luscious with its soft leather
couches and marble floors that it’s easy to get swept away.

 “What kind of bride are you?”
Maria asks professionally.

“I have no clue. I was going
to go to the BCBG outlet in Atlantic City to look for a dress. I didn’t expect
this.”

“So you’re an easy one to
please, huh? Follow Charlene upstairs while I pick some gowns for you. We’ll go
from there.”

In the dressing room, we sit
on the small bench and wait for Maria. “I don’t know how to thank you, Stella,”
Lucy says as tears fill her eyes. “I never imagined I’d have to get married so
quickly.”

“But you want to, right?” 

           
“More than anything. It’s just that, I wish I had more time to plan
things. I mean, it would be nice to do things like Gina.” She looks down for a
minute, and then adds. “Not that I deserve those things.”

           
My heart breaks a little. “You deserve even more, Luce. Why would you
even say that?”

           
“My dad isn’t even
talking
to me, Stella. And I caused problems in your family too.”

           
“You didn’t cause any problems,” I lie.

           
“Stella, I saw how your parents reacted.”

           
“Yeah but my parents always freak out, Luce. They love you.”

           
I get up to hug her.

           
“Thanks,” she says. I can see tiny drops forming in her eyes.

“I’m glad we’re here, getting you
a proper dress.”

           
“You’re the best,” she says and hugs me tight.

           
Maria arrives with five dresses. “We’ll start with these. While we’re
trying them, Charlene is gathering more. We’ll look for a style you can take
home today.”

           
 Lucy is beaming as she steps on the platform. Maria unveils the first
dress: a wondrous satin mermaid style gown with a long train, spaghetti straps,
and plunging V-neck. I hold my breath. It’s gorgeous.

           
“I love it,” Lucy coos and Maria slips it over her head and lets the
dress fall. The satin wraps around her body, hitting every curve in all the
right spots. Even though she’s pregnant, Lucy’s stomach is flat as a board. She
doesn’t even need Spanx.

           
I put my hand to my stomach and feel it’s softness. I really need to
start working out.

           
“My boobs already started to grow,” she shrieks and looks at her chest in
the mirror. “I have cleavage!”

           
“And you can work it, girl,” Maria says. She pins the straps tight,
adjusting the drop of the neckline and making the dress look even better.

           
Lucy turns to look at the back view in the three-way mirror. “I love the
train.” Maria fans it out so we can get a full view. The satin is cut to
reflect the light, and it seems to create an aura around her.

           
“Now dance around a little. Go and sit. See if you’re comfortable.”

Lucy steps down and sits on
the bench next to me. “What do you think?”

           
“You’re absolutely beautiful.” There’s nothing more to say.

           
She stands back on the platform. “I love it. I’ll take it.”

           
Maria laughs. “How many wedding dresses have you tried on in your life?”

           
“One,” Lucy replies still looking at her reflection.

           
“Then you can’t possibly decide rationally. You’re love struck. Take the
dress off and we’ll put it in the yes pile.”

           
“No, I don’t need to try on anymore. I want this one.”

           
The way she says it, full of conviction, makes everyone take notice. I
can’t help but be jealous of Lucy because she is getting everything she wants.
I thought I knew what I wanted when I was with Drew, but that all blew up in my
face. Now, as much as I hate to admit, I’m thinking of Roberto in the same way.
Could I possibly have a future with him? Does he even genuinely like me or is
it just his mom trying to fix us up? And am I just thinking of him because I
desperately want to get married?

           
“This girl knows what she wants,” Maria says snapping me out of my
thoughts. “That’s a good trait for a bride.”

           
We all smile but Maria’s words hit me differently. What do I want? I just
feel lost. And confused.

I try not to let the familiar
feelings of dread sink in. I won’t let them.

           
“Ok, time for the veil,” Maria says, ushering the appointment along. Lucy
is wearing her dress and glowing. “And shoes. I’ll be right back with some
samples. What size are you?”

“Ten,” Lucy says and Maria
raises her eyebrows. “I’m assuming you want a little heel, right?”

           
“Not too high though, Lorenzo is only two inches taller than me.”

           
I can’t help but laugh.  Lucy’s main criteria for a boyfriend was that
she always wanted to be able to wear heels with him. Lorenzo, her future husband,
just makes the cut.

           
Maria shuts the door behind her.

           
“Do you like this one?” Lucy asks.

           
“It’s perfect. It really is.”

           
Maria returns with a long veil and places it on Lucy’s head. She pushes
the blusher in front of Lucy’s face and I almost start to cry. Lucy is getting
married.

           
“Wow,” Lucy says. “This is it. I love it.”

           
“Me too,” I agree. My friend looks stunning. She beams as Eva starts
pinning the dress, marking where she needs to adjust it.

           
“Now Stella, how about we get you in a few dresses, just for fun?” Maria
asks me.

           
For a minute I’m caught off guard, but then I realize that if I’m going
to get over Drew I need to face the facts. “I’m not getting married anytime
soon.”

           
“You never know,” Maria says with a smile.

           
“Oh, I know. My boyfriend broke up with me.” I try my hardest to say this
without any emotion.

           
“You can get him back.” Maria winks at me.

           
I sigh. “Even if I wanted to, I can’t. He’s already with someone else.”

           
“A total slut,” Lucy adds and we all laugh.

           
“Well then the guy was a loser anyway,” Maria adds. “Any new ones in the
works?”

           
Lucy perks up. “One of Lorenzo’s friends is totally in love with her.”

           
I shoot Lucy a look. “He’s a family friend and he’s so not in love with
me. Our mothers are trying to set us up.”

           
“Is he cute?” Maria asks.

           
“He’s totally hot,” Lucy responds. I shoot her another look. “What? He
is!”

           
“Regardless, I’m just not interested,” I lie. It’s better not to get my
hopes up anyway.

           
It’s 12:30 when we step out of Bella Sposa. Maria told us to go to lunch,
and hang around Towson for a while as Eva makes the adjustments.

           
I want to take Lucy to Vince’s crab shack, but she’s not up for fish, so
we go to a diner instead.

           
As soon as we step into Chubby’s, the place feels right. The restaurant
is decorated in a 1950s style motif, with black and white checkered floors and
red vinyl seats.

           
We take a booth in the back and start flipping through the menu.

           
“Do you think a milkshake will coat my stomach just like milk does?” Lucy
asks after a minute.

           
“Yeah,” I say, looking down at their milkshake list. “I just wouldn’t go
for the peaches and cream.” I look at it again. “Or the Monstrous Mint.”

           
She laughs.” “I was just thinking vanilla.”

           
“That’s pretty boring,” I say. “Look at this list, there’s like fifty to
choose from.”

           
“I’m a girl who
knows
what
she wants.” Lucy repeats Maria’s words and suddenly, I feel sick. Why don’t I
know what
I
want.

           
“I need a milkshake too,” I say folding my menu and placing it on the
table.           

Before Lucy can respond, a
waitress comes to our booth. Lucy orders a vanilla milkshake and a grilled
cheese, and I follow her lead, and order a grilled cheese too.

           
“Something to drink?” the waitress asks me.

           
I take a minute to scroll down the list. “I’ll take a Death by Chocolate
milkshake.”

When all else fails, I turn to
chocolate.

Yields 1 serving

For when you’re facing a
million options and your life seems to be spiraling out of control.