Arranged Marriage - Shawn Mendes

27

It had finally struck home that tour was over. I had applied for citizenship to Canada so I'll be able to live with Shawn. The next thing on the agenda was the wedding. We only had the flowers organised; no venue; cake; dress; guests; honeymoon; bridesmaids; best man; groomsmen; transport; invitations. It all had to be done so I called the only person I knew that could get me through this: Nick.

Nick had to be one of the most organised people- not only that I knew, but in the world- his career of a singer and songwriter was hectic enough but he manages to have lots of free time away from the studio- that's all where I ever am. His life seems perfect, I heard he's getting close to the actress Priyanka Chopra- she was stunning (although I had never seen her in real life, her instagram was definitely defining how ethereal she is).

Nick had told me to find a small boutique where not many people would be on a less busy part of London, he had said that it would be less of a hassle to find the perfect dress as people wouldn't see me and follow me into the shop. It was a good idea to be honest- it made sense. I hung up on Nick, just as I realized Shawn was not by my side- I decided to run with it.

Shawn had dissipated into the vast streets of London- I had no clue where he was so I took this opportunity to find a boutique where I could find the perfect dress. I came across a small terraced shop- laced with flowers on the outside, beautiful dresses hung effortlessly on the mannequin in the glazed shop window. I pondered up to the front door, pushing it gently as a little bell rings out as I enter. A young woman is placed at the front door- she had he glasses pushed up the bridge of her nose as she lightly taps her keyboard as clicks become more evident as I make my way over to her observing the rustic feel of the boutique.

"Oh wow! I love this one" I gasp as I try another dress on- it was certainly an eye opener to actually be in a wedding dress: it had hit me that I'm actually getting married. The dress I had on was the mermaid illusion- it pinched my waist in and flared out at the bottom. It had minimal detail on the top of the dress- it had straps so that my father would approve of a dress that wasn't too revealing. The bottom was dramatic- a bit like me- it flared out a lot, the trail was everlasting. The dress was all I wanted and more- but it was expensive- £4856 to be precise.

"Where are you?" Karen's voice rings through my phone as I tell her to bring Aaliyah with her to come see the dress and approve. I sit patiently waiting for them as i talk to the assistant, Frenchie. I had found out that she had a French bulldog- suiting for her name- and her son was working towards being an orthopaedic surgeon as well as her daughter being a fashion designer. She had handed me a box full of photos of her daughters work- it was phenomenal; the amount of detail and time that had been put into every piece was astonishing. There were: dresses; pants; bras; shirts; shoes; socks- anything you could dream of for all occasions. I was flicking through until I found a familiar item of clothing- a dress to be specific. It was the dress that I had hanging on the dressing room hanger- the one I adored.

Karen and Aaliyah eventually arrived, I smiled at both as Karen came over hugging me and Aaliyah shortly after doing the same. "Now, let's see some dresses" Karen clapped her hands as her and Aaliyah perched down on the white chair in front of the mirror.

I decided to come out in 3 dresses- 3 different styles to get an opinion off both of them for all. I came out in a ball gown- not my favourite but it was really remarkable; the beads and sequins glistened off the dress as I walked- the top was a see-through mesh with white detailing- the under-layer of the skirt was a blush pink that you could see through, it was certainly something new and I liked that about it. The skirt was tremendous- the train could probably reach Paris if we extended it out all the way. Karen's eyes began to well up as she saw me wobbling in the huge wedding dress, her hands clasped over her mouth as a single tear rolled down her cheek. Aaliyah had a colossal grin plastered over her lips. As I began to get closer and closer to my entourage I had seen the amount of beauty this dress brings- it glimmers and is not too over the top.

Wiggling into the second dress, I knew straight away it wasn't for me; but I was going to show Aaliyah and Karen anyway. It had straps, which I liked, but it didn't give me shape or give me the "wow" factor I had dreamed of. Don't get me wrong- it was pretty- but it wasn't my dress. I couldn't envision walking down the isle in this particular dress. It was A-line, not my favourite as it didn't give me a figure that I wanted to show off- it almost hid me away. The dress was the perfect amount of beading, not too much not too little, but it didn't have enough drama to show my inner diva. Although Karen and Aaliyah liked it- it wasn't ranked as high as the ballgown.

Finally, I decided to strut out in my favourite of the day- the mermaid dress from before. It was perfect. It was me. It was definitely the dress I wanted to walk out to Shawn to- and something that he would hopefully love. Also, the fact that it was Frenchie's daughter's design made me love it more because it was something that no one else would have- it was unique and I could meet the designer (not that I needed to, but more for a "thank you" and take her for a coffee).

Karen, Aaliyah and I had made a unanimous decision that this was the dress- after only trying on 7 dresses today, I knew it from the second Frenchie brought in into the dressing room it was mine.