-In 2023, not all parents hold their children to traditional standards for love and marriage, but modern lifestyles are still not always accepted. Especially not when your younger sibling is getting married first and your parents are practically jum...
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The next morning you wake up to go shopping for your bridesmaid dress with Fuyuko, her friend, and, unfortunately, your mom.
Inside, Fuyuko calls over a worker who pulls out an array of dresses all in the exact same shade. Burnt fucking orange. Why anyone would want a color lit on fire for their wedding is beyond you, but what choice do you have? Besides, you care about your brother so the only reason you're even putting up with this crap is for him.
Fuyuko begins to then sort through the dresses, holding a few up to you, before shaking her head and starting the process all over again.
While your mother waits, she sits back in one of the upholstered chairs and stares at the different dresses Fuyuko places on you.
"You look so lovely in a gown," your mother smiles as she observes your frown. "If only it was one in white."
"Of course I look good. I'll make anything she picks out look nice," you scoff to spite your mother. "Doesn't mean I plan on letting anyone take it off for more than a six-pack of pineapple Malibu."
"Y/N!" she then gasps. However, at the same time, Fuyuko begins to shuffle you toward the dressing room.
"Jesus, Y/N, don't give her a heart attack," she whispers to you as she stuffs you into the small room with an orange dress. "She'll come back to haunt you if she dies."
With a quick smile, she closes the curtain and allows you to change. "You know, I'm taking time out of wedding planning to help you with this. I know you think I'm a bitch but don't act like you don't appreciate the help. I know you hate this kind of stuff."
"It's not that I hate it," you explain quietly from the other side of the curtain so your mother doesn't hear, "I just hate her. She sucks the life out of everything. How can you even stand marrying into a family where she's part of it!"
Once you finish putting the dress on, you open the curtain and show Fuyuko how it looks on you. But of course, the first thing she does is scrunch up her nose and shake her head.
"Don't like it. Let me get another," she says quietly before walking off.
You sigh to yourself as she leaves you alone with your mother nearby.
"I don't think it looks so bad," she comments to herself. "But you would look nicer with a date."
Here it comes again. She just doesn't know how to stop talking until she gets what she wants.
"Actually," Fuyuko interrupts when she comes back with another dress for you to try. "Sawamura found her a date with one of his friends."
"Thanks," you grumble as you shut the curtain. "I don't even need a date... actually, it's not even a date. It's a forced match. Isn't that like an arranged marriage?"
"Hm, not a bad idea, sweetie. Maybe I could arrange-"
"Don't even think about it," you grumble as you look at yourself in the mirror. To be quite honest, your dress does look quite nice on you. Maybe it's the burnt orange that's turning you off. Perhaps red would be more your style.
"Do you think they have this in red?" you ask Fuyuko as you open the curtain.
"Not a chance," your mother gasps. "It's too small on you!"
"Red isn't the color we're going for, Y/N," Fuyuko reminds you for the hundredth time.
"I know that. I meant for the after party or something," you hum as you turn back to the mirror and ignore your mother's face. You're not sure if it's the split thigh, the cowl neck, or lack of sleeves that are throwing her into a tizzy, but whatever it is, it makes you grin wider than you have all day.
"Fuyuko, can you please go ask someone if they have this in some kind of red? Oh, and I liked the dress from before. That'll be the one I wear for the wedding," you tell her before once more shutting the curtain.
You let out a sigh as you begin to undress. Fuyuko isn't one for taking orders but at least she didn't snap back at you like you've seen her do to Sawamura more times than you can count. And as for your mother, well, perhaps her breathing stopped when you said you'd buy the 'too small' dress.
After you've changed into your regular clothes, you pull back the curtain and see Fuyuko beside the employee who is holding up two different shades of red from the dress you wanted.
"Which one, Y/N?" Fuyuko asks when she sees you, almost as though she's relieved you arrived before she had to start making and tough decisions about a dress' color.
"This one," you point to the dress on the left. "The cherry-colored one."
"Good choice," the employee nods before putting them down and placing the one you chose on the counter.
"The other one was too pink," Fuyuko whispers to you. "You were right about the red. That'll look beautiful on you."
"Thank you," you smile at her as the employee rings you up.
"I'll be right back," Fuyuko then whispers as she nods in your mother's direction. When you look over, you see her still sitting down with her eyes closed gently and her head facing up. Just like she always does when she's pouting. Thank god she loves Fuyuko.
