The Look Of Hope

Chapter 76: A Dress Story

The *NSYNC concert was fantastic, for Lydia, Grace, and Gemma. All of the screaming girls around Mary hurt her ears, and there was one in front of her. She held a poster that made it so she couldn't see. Recognizing she didn't want to be the concert Grinch, she held her tongue. Her girls had fun and that's all that really mattered.

They had so much fun they kept talking about it days after. "And when Justin sang to our section, I died," Lydia said. Justin is her favorite. Grace would follow up with "But when JC did his hot dance move, I almost fainted." The day after the concert, they both wore their *NSYNC concert tees to school. Well, Lydia did but Grace had to wear hers at home (since she can only wear the school uniform).

Every morning, for a week after the concert, all Lydia wanted to listen to is *NSYNC. In the mornings, Bobby has heard Bye, Bye, Bye so much he knows the words. When his daughter finally decided to listen to something different, he gave thanks. Bye, Bye, Bye to those pretty boys! Little did Bobby Brown know his world was about to change, in the blink of an eye. 

One Friday afternoon in late October, Mary and Lydia were in the living room. She was modeling the homecoming dress they bought together. Mary made her daughter twirl, she needs to see it again at all angles. She must have a plan in her mind, especially since Lydia will be modeling the dress for Bobby.

 When her daughter came to stand in front of her, she fluffed the skirt of the dress. "It's beautiful Bug! It fits you so well and compliments your best features," she told her. It does. The dress doesn't wash her out and goes well with her blonde hair. It also fits her just right, not showing too much skin at all. 

Lydia's first homecoming dress is a lilac A-line strapless number. It has sequins on the bust that blend into the flowing, satin, tulle skirt. It also comes with a cute little beaded belt. But the thing Mary really loves about it is the knee length. For a mother who wants her child to look pretty, and tasteful, it is SO hard to find an appropriate dress. Much less two of them. 

Mary couldn't believe her eyes when she saw the letter, stating her daughter had been nominated to the homecoming court. To a freshman girl that's a big honor. And because of this, Lydia needs two dresses. One to wear at the football game, a nice suit to wear to school that day with her sash, and of course the actual homecoming dress itself. What an ordeal! Luckily for Lydia, her mother is a shopping master. They found the suit and football game dress instantly, but the actual dress has given them headaches.

After checking Lydia out of school, earlier that day, the two of them spent all afternoon looking for a dress. With the dance only a week away, they needed to find something quickly. That way there would be enough time for alterations. The mother/daughter duo went to ten different stores and found nothing. Sure, they found OK dresses, skimpy dresses, ugly dresses, and oh heck no dresses, but not a single attractive dress. 

By the time they hit up June Bridal in Malibu they were worn out. However, they pressed forward and the minute they browsed the racks, Lydia held up her dress. "This is it, Mama. This is the one." Mary agreed. When her baby tried it on she had a "Mom moment". The kind where you realize this is your first child and now she's growing up, and here she is buying her first homecoming dress. Tears sprang to her eyes. The sales lady handed her a tissue and patted her back. "This happens all the time," she said. The two of them laughed.

The best part of it all is, the dress needs no alterations. It fits Lydia perfectly like it was made for her. Sometimes things work out that way. Now the only hurdle is showing it to her father. Who knows what kind of reaction he'll have. Mary just prays it will be pleasant.