𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐑𝐮𝐬𝐡 | 𝟏𝟖+

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧𝐞

I rummage through my makeup pouch for my beauty blender, but I can't find it. I must've left it in Bianca's bathroom when we were getting ready for graduation. All right, hands it is I settle as I roll up the sleeves of my long sleeve t-shirt.

"¡Cami, no tenemos todo el día!" Mom shouts from the bottom of the stairwell.

"Give me five more minutes! We don't have to leave until nine," I yell back reading the time to be only 8:40.

I smear the light coat of foundation on my cheeks and work my way all over my face. I continue with my concealer and the rest of my makeup until the eyeshadow. As tempting as it is to attempt a smokey eye, I go with a nude look to accompany my flowy light blue dress.

After putting on my lip gloss as a final touch, I walk over to my closet and pull the dress out. It's perfect to wear to Cameron's wedding, especially in a garden venue.

Cameron is the son of my dad's best friend from college, but unfortunately, my dad passed away in a car accident when I was twelve. It's just been me, Chris, and Mom ever since, but we've been taking care of one another.

Chris came back home from his freshman year of college last week and it finally felt like somewhat normality. The vibe was so off when he wasn't home and being an only child for a year turned out to be horrible. At least with Chris around, I could get away with sneaking out or fucking something up, but now, no mistakes. I am constantly being watched by a psychotic Latina mother with a chancleta always in hand.

I also have a dress for the reception that I already put in the car last night after steaming it. All I need is my makeup bag and some jewelry to change into from the minimal ones I have on now. I take one last look in the mirror and brush the ends of my dress, flattening them out. I grab the matching clutch off my desk and head downstairs.

***

Chris pulls up to the venue three long hours later and parks as I look out the window to see the greenery adorned with flowers. There are gold chairs lined up in rows with ample room being left for the aisle. Ahead there is an arch in the middle with an assortment of various colored roses. On both sides, there are beautiful fountains pouring out water. This is only the second wedding I've ever been to with the first one being when I was four. So, starstruck is the word to describe how I am feeling.

"Damn, Cameron did good," Chris says amazed as he gets out of the car.

"We all know it was really Daniela who did all of this," she brushes us off.

Chris and I look at each other and look back at our mother. "Who is Daniela?" I ask.

"Cami, she's the bride. You should know this," she gives a disapproving look. We make our way to our seats and wait for the event to start.

Daniela's mother makes her way down the aisle with her banana-colored dress. It complemented her skin tone beautifully. She stood to the side and looked behind us. We all turned our heads to see Cameron walk down the aisle and stand on the right side of the arch. He looks different from six years ago, clean-shaven and in a tux. He doesn't even have his usual glasses on. He finally took the suggestion my twelve-year-old self dished out.

It really set in that I haven't seen this man for six years. Our families used to be so close, having group dinners every other Friday night. We soon realized that our father was the one holding our families together. Everything came to a halt after the funeral and we haven't known much about them ever since. Hell, I didn't know that Cameron had a girlfriend until I found out that we were attending their wedding a month ago.

His brother, David, soon follows along and stands beside him, patting him on the shoulder. Next, come the bridesmaids with their arms hooked around the groomsmen'. They all had lilac chiffon dresses with their white and violet bouquets in their other hand. Oh to be a bridesmaid. It must be fun dressing up and seeing what happens behind the scenes.