Imagination || L.H.

Chapter 25

Mali-Koa picks up a fresh set of clothes for me on her way back to the hospital and I spend the night curled up with Luke on the bed, his soft breathing in my ear. A little bit after lunch, Celeste strides confidently into the room, smiling contentedly. Shouldering her purse, she says, "Are you ready, Kat?"

I nod, quickly kissing Luke goodbye as I head out of the hospital with Celeste. She makes small talk as she drives us to her favorite boutique, which she promises is the best in town. I've never been very good at small talk, which doesn't matter in the end because she's perfectly content to do most of the talking in the conversation. Celeste is one of those people who it's just so easy to hang out with. She doesn't expect anything of you and doesn't make you feel awkward. It's her superpower.

We pull into the parking spot closest to the shop and Celeste brightly leads me up to the storefront. "Kelsea is the one who owns this place and she's the sweetest girl I know. I'm sure I can get you a discount!" Adjusting the stylish sunglasses perched on her nose, she shoulders open the door, gesturing for me to go first.

Cautiously, I step inside, unsure of what's awaiting me. It resembles an antique shop taking place in a quaint little barn, but with a modern touch. White paint covers the walls where the racks of clothes have breaks between them. Glass Mason jars are arranged in a DIY light fixture, colored lights filtering through the thick pieces of curved glass. Celeste smiles at me, grabbing my hand and dragging me towards the back of the shop, where the dresses are set up. Sun dresses are back by the shirts and jeans, the ones in front of me just the right amount of formal for a wedding. Absentmindedly, I reach a hand out and run it along the clothes, enjoying the texture of the fabrics.

"Is that Celeste?!" an energetic voice exclaims loudly. Before I can even look up, a beautiful young woman around the same age as Celeste is upon us, her arms flung around my unlikely companion's neck. "It's been so long," she says, still smiling. "How was your trip to the lake house?"

"It was amazing," Celeste gushes. "Unfortunately, I'm going to have to tell you about it later, Kels." Turning to me, she says grandly, "Kelsea, I want you to meet Katherine Fuller, Jack's younger brother's girlfriend. Kat, this is Kelsea, the owner of this fine establishment."

I wave awkwardly. "Hi."

Kelsea waves back. "Hi!"

"We're here because Kat needs a dress for the wedding," Celeste continues, launching into the details of our excursion. "As the best man's plus one, she has to look stunning, which won't require much work. We need your help finding something extra special for her."

I blink, realizing belatedly that she complimented me.

Kelsea steps forward, placing her hands on my shoulders as she inspects me carefully. The dozens of bracelets stacked on her wrists jangle as she turns me from side to side gently. "Stay here. I just got a new shipment of dresses that I think will look fantastic." She dashes behind the curtain covering the doorway to the back of the shop, tossing a wink over her shoulder.

Celeste turns to me with a vibrant smile on her face. "I knew she could help us. Kelsea's the best in the business."

As if summoned, the shop owner rushes back out, her arms laden with four or five dresses. She gestures toward one of the changing rooms, pushing the mountain of fabric into my arms. "Try those on and let us see how they look. I can find you a different size in whatever you need, but I think these will fit."

I thank her and step inside the little room, closing the curtain. Shucking off my jeans and T-shirt, I step into the first dress. It's a pale rose color, stitched with lace designs. It stops just below my knees and is relatively shapeless. Shaking my dirty blonde hair out of its ponytail, I smooth it down and tentatively step out back into the shop.

Celeste and Kelsea examine the dress with expert eyes. Kelsea bites her thumbnail as she strides over and adjusts my hair over my shoulder. "The color suits you, but the design's not really working for me."

"You have some really nice curves, Kat, I think you should show them a bit more," Celeste puts in politely.

I pull the curtain back into place and try on the next one. This one's tighter, clinging to my body until it stops at my knees. Tiny blue orchids travel down the dress, delicately stitched on. Biting my lip, I head back out for consideration.

"Nope," Kelsea says with a regretful shake of her head.

The next dress is a lovely sea foam green that matches my eyes and brings out the tiny freckles decorating the skin under my eyes and over my nose. Thin straps lead over my shoulders to form a criss-cross pattern in the back, leaving most of my back exposed. The bodice has bits of lace that reminds me of breaking waves and the design stretches down to bits of the skirt, which doesn't quite hug my body, but accentuates my curves quite nicely.

"What about this one?" I ask timidly as I slowly spin around to show off the dress to Kelsea and Celeste.

Celeste springs to her feet, clasping her hands together just under her chin. "Oh my god, Kat, you look amazing! I love it! Luke's gonna freak when he sees you in this."

"That's the one," Kelsea says approvingly, flashing me a big thumbs-up.

I blush slightly, twisting to admire the dress in the mirror. It is rather beautiful. I duck back inside the changing room to switch the dress for my regular clothes, thanking Kelsea as she leads us to the front of the store so we can pay.

"Don't worry about, sweetie. Celeste has been good to me for years; a friend of hers is a friend of mine." Leaning closer with a brilliant smile, she adds, "And I think we're going to be very good friends." She gives us a discount on the dress and escorts us to the door, waving goodbye as we pull away.

"I'm really glad we did this, Celeste," I say as she drives down the road, shocking myself with my honestly. "I had a lot of fun."

"Me too," she replies. "Hey, I know this great coffee shop just a few blocks away. Wanna stop there before we head back to the hospital?"

A real smile drags my lips upward as I say, "Sure."