Arianna, Spring 3, 10:00 a.m.
Something hit me in the face. Then another, and another! I damn near screamed, until I figured out that I was only being hit with pillows by my crazy siblings.
"Jeez!" I cried. "You guys-" I got whacked with a pillow again. "Scared the shit out of me!" The hitting stopped, and they laughed.
"So much for a blushing bride," Gerard said, laughing.
"Arianna's a big drooling baby!" Liam cried.
"And she snores!" Zoe added.
"Okay," I said. "Shut up, or I'll take all of you out with pillows. Why are you waking me up so early, anyway?"
"Because," a new voice said. "You need to get dressed and get makeup on so you can be on time for your wedding!" I looked in the doorway, and saw Lily and Leann, both looking like they were going to piss their pants from excitement. I quickly looked at the clock.
"It's ten in the morning," I told them. "And the wedding doesn't start until one in the afternoon!"
"It takes a while," Leann said. I groaned. "Trust me, dear. And Leona, Lily, and I still have to do hair and makeup for Lily, Flora, Ella, Zoe, and Raina."
"And you're going to need it most," Lily said. "You look like a kermit."
"A what?" I asked.
"A kermit," Lily replied. "You know, those guys that live in caves and never talk?"
"A hermit," I said. "That's called a hermit, Lily."
"Whatever," Leann said. "Enough about hermits and meander-thals. We have a mess to clean up!"
I didn't even bother telling Leann that the word was actually "Neanderthal", because it would be pointless, and it was good enough that she had gotten the word "hermit" right. Besides, by the time I had come up with a decision regarding that, Lily and Leann had already yanked me out of bed, and they started dragging me down the hall.
They sat me down in a chair, and they started brushing my hair mercilessly.
"Are you two out of your freaking minds?" I asked.
"No," Lily replied. "We just want you to look beautiful!"
"Wow, Arianna!" Leann cried. "You have the most gorgeous eyes! It's a shame you don't wear makeup more often!"
"You're just like your mother," I muttered. A hairbrush got caught in my hair again. "Ow!"
"Be quiet!" Lily said. "You have to feel pain to feel beautiful!"
The door opened, and Leona and Mom stepped inside.
"Leann!" Mom cried. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"We're brushing her hair!" Leann replied excitedly.
"God, Leann," Mom said. "You've raised three children, and you still don't know how to-"
"Let me take over," Leona said. "Lily and Leann, you can get the makeup ready. Aria, why don't you go and get the dress?"
"Ooh!" Lily cried. "That's right, I almost forgot about the makeup!" She and Leann went to a different room, and Mom followed them.
"What kind of hairstyle did you have in mind?" Leona asked.
"I don't know," I replied. "I don't want anything too fancy, but I don't want to look like my regular self, either. What do you think?"
"I think you're beautiful," Leona said with a chuckle. "And I'm glad that you'll be my daughter-in-law before the day is over."
Mom walked back into the room with a large box under her arm, and hangers full of clothing on the other.
"Are you ready to see it?" she asked.
"Hell yeah!" I replied.
The dress I would be wearing was the same one Mom wore when she got married. I had never seen it, other than in Grandpa Kyle's paintings, and I was blindfolded while I was getting the alterations. Mom really wanted it to be a surprise, for whatever reason.
"Well," Mom said. "I'll help you get into your corset and everything like that. Leona, we'll probably need your help. Leann and Lily will just have to wait."
"Of course," Leona said.
We walked to the back corner of the room. Mom carried the box, and Leona carried everything else.
"Everything off," Mom said. I stripped down quickly, and Mom turned around, but Leona stopped me from trying to make myself decent.
"Wait," she said. "You're not on your period, are you?"
"No," I replied.
"Good then," Mom said. "That'll complicate things less."
I put on the new underthings, and then came the time I was dreading: the time for Mom and Leona to stuff me into my corset.
"Are you…trying to…kill me?" I asked between gasps.
"No," Leona replied. "You may have gained a little weight, though."
"It happens," Mom added. "And I think this is as far as we can go, Leona. Let's see if we can get this damn thing tied."
After a few minutes, they were able to.
"Wow," Mom said. "They weren't kidding when they said this thing has a built-in push up bra."
"You're telling me!" I replied. "I could practically use my own breasts as cushions! I feel like a slut."
"You're not," Leona said. "And with the cut of your dress, nobody's going to be able to see anything."
"We bought this corset three months ago," Mom muttered.
For some reason, the phrase "three months ago" brought me back to my first time. It was Gunie's as well, and I tried not to laugh as I remembered how he blushed when we sat on Trampoli's beach at midnight, right next to the changing room, and he interrupted a kiss to ask me if I wanted to go all the way.
"Stop staring at the wall, dear," Leona said. "We're going to get you into your dress." I looked around the room for Mom, and saw her with the giant box in her arms.
"Ready to see it?" she asked.
"Yeah," I replied.
"Good," she said. "Because…I don't know if I am." She set the box on a chair, and opened the lid. She set the lid on the floor, and lifted the dress out, her hands trembling.
I smiled as I saw it. It was white, like any traditional wedding dress. The top half of the dress had the typical timeless design, with pearls adorning the neckline and forming swirls around the bodice. The skirt, however, was quite different. There were squares and squares of all different sizes of tulle, layered one over the other. The dress was a combination of edgy and elegant, and it was beautiful.
I heard Mom let out a sob, and I couldn't help but tear up a little myself.
"Take it, Arianna," Mom said, her arms outstretched. "It's yours now." I took it, and stared at it.
"It's beautiful," Leona said. "You have excellent taste, Aria."
"I'm glad my Mom wouldn't let me make the whole thing like the skirt," Mom said, wiping her eyes. "Otherwise, it probably wouldn't be as unique." While I was looking it over, I came across the tag in the back, and I was shocked at the size.
"And you wore this size six months after having twins?" I asked.
"Well," she said. "You and Tristan didn't make a huge bump. Now, let's get you into this. We can only keep Leann and Lily away for so long."
The dress was fairly easy to put on compared to the corset. I barely had a chance to look at myself, though, because Leann and Lily ran into the room, and started attacking me with combs, brushes, and just about everything that could be used for doing hair.
And before I could even approve how I looked, Lily announced that my makeup was done, and they practically started pushing me out the door.
I was on my way to the church.
Gunie, Spring 3, 12:25 p.m.
I slowly opened my eyes, since the sun was streaming through the windows. I got out of my bed, and stretched. Then, it hit me:
"I'm getting married today," I said.
I started to walk toward the kitchen, but instead of seeing the usual scene of a lazy breakfast, I saw chaos. My six-year-old sister Raina was running around with Arianna's brother Liam while my thirteen-year-old sister Ella tried to calm them down, Mom was putting lipstick or something on Arianna's sister Zoe, and Arianna's two other brothers were sitting on the couch and talking to Dad.
"What in the hell is going on?" I asked. Raina suddenly stopped in front of me.
"Get dressed, dumbass!" she demanded. "You're getting married in a half hour or something!" She stepped on my foot, and started chasing Liam again.
Tristan and Gerard came walking up to me.
"Raina needs to watch her mouth," he said.
"Yeah," I replied. "I guess that's what we deserve for calling her a pain in the ass for the first three years of her life."
"She's right, though," Gerard said. "You do kind of need to get dressed."
"Yeah," I replied. "Probably necessary. I'll see you at the wedding." I started to walk back to my room.
"See you, brother-in-law!" Tristan called. I turned around, and smiled.
"See you, best man," I replied.
The thought of getting dressed immediately caused me to worry. As idiotic as it was, I was worried about the outfit. I opened my closet, and grimaced, not because of the mess, but because of what I'd be wearing to my wedding.
My father and grandfather had worn it in their weddings, so of course, I had to. It was a traditional wedding robe, as most men in Trampoli wore.
Stop staring at it, moron, I told myself. I grabbed the robe off the hanger, undressed, and put it on.
I looked at myself in the mirror, and grimaced. I had always liked having long hair, but in the robe, complete with bows, a scarf, and a frilly collar, I looked kind of like a girl.
"Look at me," I said with a sigh. "Arianna's going to laugh."
"Grow a pair, Raguna," someone said. I jumped.
"Jesus, Grandpa," I gasped. "You just scared the shit out of me."
"Ah," Grandpa said, laughing. "I'm just surprised you didn't hear me open the door. I was just messing with you by the way."
"What else is new?" I muttered.
"I understand that wedding apparel in Trampoli isn't exactly flattering," Grandpa said. "But if you think that the woman who adores you more than anything else in the world is going to laugh at you because of the way you're dressed, you're a damned fool." I smiled.
"I guess you're right," I said. "But I still look like a dumbass."
"No," Grandpa said. "You don't look like a dumbass."
Then, he suddenly took something out of one of the pouches on his belt, and I feel my face involuntarily contort into a horrified expression. What he took out of his pocket looked like a misshapen fez, with two blue tassels on each end. It was the wedding hat, which Grandpa promptly stuck on my head.
"Now you do," he said, smiling.
"You're cruel," I said, smiling right back at him.
"And don't I know it," Grandpa replied. "Now let's get you over to the church."
Oh, Raguna...
And I intentionally made Gunie's preparation shorter. He didn't even brush his hair (but he's prettier that way).
Yeah, and I bumped up the rating. I forgot the sexual reference in the first chapter, and of course with the reference to female "cycling" and anatomy, it definitely needed to be done.
Of course, Leann and Lily haven't changed a bit. And I had to make Tristan and Gunie end up as friends.
There will be another upload soon!