Invisible Man (Completed ) ✅

♥ Three ♥

The rehearsal was on Thursday night, so that the boys could have their party on Friday, and the girls could have theirs, or so the guys thought.  At the rehearsal dinner, Donnie pulled Oriana  away from the table and led her out of the restaurant.

"I can't wait until you're officially Mrs. Donnie Wahlberg," he said, pulling her into his arms.

"Mmm, me either," she mumbled as he kissed her passionately.  He was the first to pull away, about fifteen minutes later.

"So, it sounds like Miss Scarlett has quite a party planned for us tomorrow night," he said, pulling a flower off of a bush and placing it in Oriana 's long dark hair.

"Oh, really?  She hasn't said much."  Oriana  prayed she wouldn't let anything slip.

"So, what will you girls be doing tomorrow night?"  He nibbled on her ear playfully.

"Oh, boring stuff.  Watching videos, drinking cheap liquor, maybe trotting on down to see the Magic Mike review ."

"What?"  Donnie pulled back, laughing.

"Just kidding."

Lacey arrived at Danny's house around 4 Friday afternoon, with boxes and boxes of stuff.  He opened the door, his eyebrows raised.  "Need help bringing that in?"

"Yes, please, but no peeking!"  She shouted over her shoulder as she headed down to the family room.  The room was huge...and perfect for what she had planned.

"Come on...one little hint?"  Danny said, wrapping his arms around her.  "Couldn't I convince you?"

As sweet as Danny was, all she could think was I wish that was Joe.  "No, silly.  You'll find out tonight."

They lugged all the boxes in, and she sent Danny off to get ready to go pick up Donnie and the guys.  Thankfully, it was only going to be the New Kids and Donnie's brothers.  Contrary to what she'd told Oriana , she didn't think she could have handled any more than that.

She worked like a dog for the next hour and a half, creating an eastern paradise in the large room.  She draped the walls and windows with long pieces of silk that Oriana  had painted to look like exotic tapestries.  All furniture was pushed into the small room attached to the family room, and the floor was adorned with large pillows and cushions.  Low tables were strategically placed about the room.  On those she planned to place bottles of wine and bowls of fruit.  She locked the door behind her, yelled a goodbye to Danny, and left to meet Oriana .

"Are you sure you want to do this?"  Oriana  asked her as they entered the tattoo shop.

"Of course!"  Lacey replied, twirling a piece of hair that had escaped from her ponytail.

"No, you're not!  You can't do this unless you're really sure," Oriana  told her for the one hundredth time.

"If you wish, we can try something a little more...temporary," the tattoo artist's wife said, pointing to a small table set up for henna painting.

"Perfect!"  Oriana  said before Lacey could reply.  "Can you pretty much duplicate anything in one of the flash pictures?"  She asked the woman.

"Pretty much," the woman replied.

"Great.  Lacey, get the henna done.  It will be gone in a few weeks, and if you want it permanently, they can tattoo it!"  Oriana  yelled over her shoulder as the tattoo artist led her to the back room.

Lacey sighed as she sat down at the table.  She pulled out the pattern that the artist had drawn for her a few days earlier.  It was a Sanskrit symbol, for the word "Scarlet", like the color, but since she went by the name Lacey Scarlett, it was very appropriate.  One of her friends from college, a student of ancient and foreign languages, had written it down for her, and the tattoo artist had enlarged it.  The woman sat down across from her, and asked where she would like it.  Lacey showed her the place on her back where she wished it to be placed.  The woman looked at her for a moment, and Lacey started to squirm.

"I cannot tell you what to do, my dear, but I think your thigh is a better place for this."  Lacey just stared at her.  "Forgive me, but I have a gift of...second sight, you might call it.  There is a person in your life who will be very interested in seeing this marking...almost as interested as he is in you."  Jordan!! Lacey thought to herself.  "This man will be willing to peel away layers to see this marking, and to see inside of you."  The layers of my costume!  "He has had strong feelings for you for quite a while, but has not been sure of your feelings for him."  That confused Lacey for a moment.  There was NO way that Jordan could be unsure of her feelings for him.  Oh well.

"Yes, that is fine, if you think it is for the best."  Lacey decided to go along with what the woman said.

"Scarlett.  Your other name, perhaps?"  The woman said.  Lacey stared at her in shock, and slowly nodded.  "You hide the scarlet side of you underneath layers of falseness.  This person you show to the world is not the real you.  The person I have spoken of...he will find the wildness in you and bring it to the surface."

"Oh, no," the tattoo artist said to Oriana .  "She's doing it again."

"What?"  Oriana  asked, trying not to wince as he worked on her ankle.  She was getting a Chinese character done in red.  The character stood for eternity, which she thought was appropriate the day before her wedding.

"My wife.  She thinks she can foresee the future."

"Well, she has the perfect customer.  Lacey totally believes in ESP, second sight, all that stuff."

They left the store about 40 minutes later, satisfied with their work.  They went to Lacey's apartment to dress.