“Scarlett, can I ask you for a favor?” Hannah suddenly asked.
“Of course!”
“Really?” She beamed as she continued, “You know how I don’t have many friends, so I was hoping you could be my bridesmaid.”
Her request caught me by surprise, though I was also rather flattered. “Are you sure that’d be appropriate? I thought only unmarried women could be bridesmaids?”
“Why wouldn’t it be appropriate? There’s no rule for that. It’d be so much more fun to have you as my bridesmaid.”
I couldn’t say no to my friend, especially when she was so excited about it. “All right then, I’ll do it. But when’s your wedding?”
“Dear, is our wedding on the fifteenth of next month?” Hannah asked as she tugged at Chandler’s sleeve.
Chandler sighed as he hit his forehead. “It’s on the fifth!”
“Oh, right! Sorry, it’s on the fifth of next month!” Hannah looked back at me with a toothy grin.
I was about to note the date down when I remembered something. “Sorry Hannah, I don’t think I can be your bridesmaid after all. I haven’t told many people about it but, I’m pregnant!”
Hannah stared at me as her eyes widened almost comically. “You’re pregnant? Are you serious?”
What made her reaction even funnier was that she was a mother herself, yet she was over the moon at my pregnancy news. I couldn’t help but laugh out. “Yes, it’s true. I’m two months along now, so you can’t really tell.”
Hannah was bursting with excitement as she grabbed my hands. “This is great news! Kiki’s going to have a sister to play with! Does Uncle Louis know?”
“Not yet. It’s still too early. My mother said to wait till the pregnancy’s stable before telling everyone. It’d be a good excuse to ask everyone out for a meal too.”
Hannah nodded eagerly, her goofy grin even wider now. All of a sudden, her face changed. “You’re pregnant, and you’re still out helping me with the dress shopping? Let’s send you home first! I don’t want to tire you out.”
“Oh no, please don’t make a fuss out of it! Besides, I’m only accompanying you. It’s no problem at all.”
Hannah looked a lot more relieved with my reassurance and broke into a grin again.
Hannah was such a stark contrast from her past self that I wondered if it was because of Chandler. The old Hannah didn’t like to smile. She was beautiful like a doll, but also very cold and distant. Hannah now seemed more like a bright-eyed child who had a lot of enthusiasm and hope for life. More importantly, she always wore a smile now.
It’s true what people said about love. There’s hope and joy when one falls in love with the right person. But love the wrong one, and life would be hellish and fraught with pain.
I don’t know if John was ever the right one for Hannah. But from what I can see now, Chandler is everything that Hannah needs and deserves to have.
When we finally arrived at the bridal shop, the staff immediately welcomed Hannah and me in.
The manager stayed close to Hannah as she recommended her the various styles and designs. However, Hannah already knew what she wanted as she dragged me along to pick out a few dresses.
Every woman dreamed about finding their perfect wedding dress, and Hannah was no exception. They were all looking for the moment where they don the dress and go, “Yes! That’s the one!”
When Hannah went off to try the dresses, I wandered around the shop admiring the vast selection.
The best item in any shop would always be in the most conspicuous place, and everything else would pale in comparison. That was exactly what happened when a solitary wedding dress in a window display caught my attention.
The eagle-eyed manager saw how I couldn’t peel my eyes off of it and approached me. “That’s the latest design for this year’s fall and winter collection,” she said enthusiastically. “It’s inspired by champagne and snowflakes to symbolize romance and happiness.”
“This dress is gorgeous,” I exclaimed. “Did someone get it custom-made?” A dress like that would have been made and reserved a while ago. Displaying it in the shop was just a means to attract more customers.
Sure enough, the manager nodded. “It has been made to order for quite some time now. We have it on display because the customer hasn’t come to collect it.”
“Why?” I couldn’t help but probe further. I’d be first in line to collect the dress if I were the customer. So why the delay? What happened to the wedding?
“We’ve asked the customer before. But we were only told the dress wouldn’t come in handy for the time being. We just assumed the wedding got postponed,” the manager explained with a shrug.
Hannah came out of the dressing room at that moment, dragging her dress along. “This hem’s too long and too heavy!” she whined.
Even though she was complaining about it, seeing Hannah in her wedding dress took our breath away. She was a classic beauty, blessed with an almond-shaped face, slender neck, and fair complexion. The wedding dress accentuated her figure, and there was no denying how attractive she looked.
“Ms. Anne, this dress looks perfect on you! It makes your fair complexion stand out even more,” the manager remarked.
“December is the next month, and it’s going to be cold in K City. Don’t you think this dress is too revealing? I’m going to freeze in this. Scarlett, what do you think?” Hannah asked while checking herself out in the full-length mirror.
