A Part of My Memory

Zara

Harley and I were fashionably late for the bridal shower.

It was at the Sunset Gardens and it looked like Jess had booked the whole place including the restaurant because there wasn't a single person who wasn't dressed in white, which was the dress code for the bridal shower. Even the staff were wearing white, placing platters of food on the large banquet table that ran the length of the wall. Against the wall was a large white platform with the words 'Jess' Bridal Shower' in large golden letters. There were only savoury snacks on that table.

Harley and I walked outside to where all the chatter was. There was another long table in a massive gazebo that was decorated with white fabric, flowers and balloons. On that table were the sweet foods. Cakes, biscuits, a way too-large chocolate fountain and so much more. There was a large sign hanging from the roof of the gazebo that read 'From Miss to Mrs' in large gold letters. A staff member walked past us with a tray of macarons, heading for the table in the gazebo, when Harley suddenly snagged one.

We spotted Jess outside and made our way to her. There was so much greenery. The grass was perfectly trimmed as were the hedges which were cut to look like different shapes, animals and flowers. The flowers were fully bloomed and burst with colour, bringing the garden to life. There was even a cocktail truck and a photo booth under a beautiful beech tree.

"Hey Jess," Harley and I greeted.

"Jinx," Harley said in a whisper to me. "You owe me a chocolate."

"Hi!" Jess greeted us cheerily, hugging us both. "So glad you could make it."

"As are we," Harley said, but her eyes were on the snack table in the gazebo.

"Happy, erm, Bridal Shower," I said, handing her a gift bag.

I hadn't known what to get her. It wasn't easy gifting someone who was ten times—if not more—richer than you. I had settled on getting her champagne, scented candles, a journal and a mug that read, "officially his Mrs." It was harder than I thought to buy the mug, but it had a better inscription than the others. One had the words, "To do list: ☑️My husband." That particular mug made me burst into laughter and I immediately sent a picture to Elliot.

He responded seconds later with skull and laughing emojis and a text that read:

"How am I possibly supposed to respond to a message like that?"

I responded by texting: "You just don't," and laughing emojis of my own.

Jess took the gift bag and placed it on the gift table with several much larger gifts. She then introduced us to her surprisingly friendly friends. And might I just say, they also all looked like models. Harley and I socialised for a bit before she suddenly tugged on my dress—or should I say her dress. I didn't have any dresses, and I was fine wearing white jeans and a white top but Aunt Mary insisted I wore a dress. Hers were a bit too big on me but Harley happened to have one that was too long on her, a gift from an aunt who didn't know her size. It was a white, high-low lace dress. I refused to wear heels but paired the dress with sneakers and it matched perfectly. The dress had short sleeves and it was backless but it was comfortable enough that I planned on not giving it back to Harley. I had hurriedly left the house before Elliot came back from an errand, feeling jittery at the thought of him seeing me in the dress. After the bridal shower, I planned on putting on a large hoodie to cover up the dress for when we went back home.

"What's up?" I asked her.

"Snack table. Now," she said desperately. We had been caught up in talking to people and couldn't find openings to leave. But this was our opening.