Resurfacing by Strawberry'd
Chapter Eleven: Wedding Dresses
Yoh froze. That was right. He was getting married in a couple hours. A frantic look formed on his face.
"Oh my god!" he looked at Pirika and Ren with wide eyes. "What are you just doing, standing there? Get to work!"
Then he ran off muttering about incompetent workers and the stress of a groom.
Yoh made himself calm down and to breathe deeply. Sure he was nervous but wasn't everyone on their wedding day?
And this was going to be the best day of his life, right? The day he finally joined together the bonds that will make Anna his forever. A blush settled over his features.
But NOT like that.
Yoh shook his head and thought of ice cream to get the blush from his cheeks. Mmm, yummy ice cream, maybe I'll get some later…
Anna could remember her dress fitting. She remembered how the lady at the desk swept Anna with her eyes and then tsked. Tsked. At Anna.
But even Anna couldn't get angry that day. She was happy. As happy as she could be, surrounded by white, that is.
Every gown of every style of every size imaginable. Anna didn't blame Pirika to go a little dizzy-eyed for a bit.
Anna walked around the store for the better portion of an hour and still couldn't find anything.
Pirika and Tamao all pressed gowns into her arms and pushed her into the dressing room, telling her that that gown will be perfect or that the gown with the frills would look absolutely breathtaking.
Anna rolled her eyes but submitted to their demands.
And every time she would come out with a gown on, the two of them would shake their heads and say, "No, I don't think that's the dress for you, Anna-sama."
At first Anna would say "I told you so" but after being right for so many times, it got a little tiring.
After about 20 dresses picked by Tamao and Pirika (each), Anna got a little fed up. She wouldn't try on any of the dresses that they picked her, nor would she be moved from her spot on the floor.
For about 15 minutes, this carried on so Pirika and Tamao both gave up as well and sat on the floor beside her.
"Ladies," the store clerk walked up to them with a peculiar look on her face. "What are you doing on the floor?"
Tamao blushed and Pirika spoke up. "We were looking for a wedding dress for our friend but we can't seem to find the perfect one so we've given up."
The lady laughed. "Here, come with me. I find a lot of girls who have this complex so I keep a special hoard of dresses away from the public eye. It's nice to give girls with no hope, something that fulfills their hopes."
Pirika grinned excitingly.
The three girls followed the clerk to a small room near the back. The door was partially covered by a rack of ties, so it could barely be seen.
The girls' eyes grew wide and even Anna had to keep from gasping out loud.
This room was entirely white. Not so much as the floor and the walls and the ceiling were white, but so much that the room was covered in white. Dresses hung upon racks after rack after rack.
White so much that it hurt Anna's eyes.
"Well ladies, have fun." The clerk smiled and stepped out of the room, leaving Anna, Tamao and Pirika alone.
The two girls (Tamao and Pirika, who else?) jumped immediately on the new dresses.
"Stop." Anna commanded in that tone.
They froze.
Anna walked to the rack nearest to her and began examining dresses.
Seeing that Anna was going to take away all the fun, Tamao and Pirika slumped to the floor with an undeniable pout on their faces.
Anna slowly ran her hand over the dresses, going from one to another quickly. She dismissed that rack immediately.
Pirika opened her mouth to protest but the words died on her lips.
Yep, you could say that she saw the look Anna shot her, or you could say that she felt that her action was unneeded and thought better of saying nothing.
So there Anna went, standing back to look at one dress but putting it back, after shaking her head.
Each time Pirika and Tamao would look up hopefully (seeing as that they've been there for over three hours) and would look down again, dejected.
How much longer was Anna gong to take?
Inevitably, a long, long time.
Tamao fell asleep at one point at another and even Pirika dozed off for a bit.
Anna didn't care. She was too intent on finding a dress.
Dress after dress, rack after rack, and still nothing.
She was reaching the end of her rope, and of her patience.
Anna kept thinking that after this dress, maybe that's the one that would be perfect. If not, maybe the one after it. And so on.
But it wasn't so.
There were few racks left and each had only a few amounts of dresses on them.
Anna reached the last rack with growing despair. What if she couldn't find a dress? She had spent the day looking for one and all that for naught?
With trembling fingers, Anna reached for the hanger. She pulled out the last dress.
And her shoulders slumped with disappointment.
This wasn't her dress.
She put the dress back and her fingers brushed against something behind the rack.
Frowning, she pulled the rack away from the way and noticed another little door. She opened it.
It was a tiny closet, and in it was only one dress.
Anna's mouth fell open. It was her dress!
She took the dress. It was a little wrinkled and dusty, but it was beautiful.
Still a little stunned that she had found her dress, Anna walked to the clerk, gently kicked Pirika and Tamao awake and went to pay for her dress.
"Anna?" asked Tamao groggily. "Have you found it?"
Anna nodded.
"Well? Aren't you going to try it on?" asked Pirika.
"Oh… right," Anna turned back and stepped into the dressing room.
Everything was a daze. She went from hopeful to despairing to surprised to delighted…
And the fact that the last dress was her dress! The irony…
She stepped into the dress and slipped her slender arms through the sleeves.
The sleeves were made of a lacy material that was cool on her skin. They were translucent and just lightly rested on her shoulders.
Anna blinked and smoothed out the dress. It was a perfect fit.
She zipped up the back with a little difficulty but managed it.
Anna blinked again. She looked in the mirror.
Blink. Blink.
Is that me?
Blink. Blink.
Unconsciously, Anna's hands ran over her figure and settled in the fold of her dress.
The skirt billowed out from her slim waist and settled on the floor elegantly.
Three red thick treads came from her waist and made a curved line to the bottom of the dress, to the side.
Anna let her hands rest at her waist and noticed something.
Two loops at either side of her dress… as if for a belt, but who would wear a belt with a wedding dress?
She resolved to ask the clerk.
Anna stepped out of the room and was greeted with squeals.
"Oh my gosh, Anna that looks sooo good on you!" Pirika said, jumping up and down.
Tamao nodded enthusiastically.
Anna blushed lightly. "Thanks."
She walked to the store clerk whose eyebrows were raised so high, they were lost in her hairline.
"Where did you get that dress?" she asked, a hidden emotion tight in her voice. Not anger… but surprise.
"In that room." Anna replied and then showed her the loops. "What are these for?"
The clerk shrugged. "Maybe for a sash of some kind."
Anna nodded absentmindedly. "I wonder…" she murmured.
Without asking anyone, she walked into the room adjacent to the one they were in and reached in her purse. Anna drew out her bandana she placed there earlier.
With a bemused look, she treaded her bandana through the "belt" loops.
At her side (the same one where the red threads started from) she tied it in a delicate knot. It fell to her side gently.
"That's it!" A shout startled Anna and she looked up.
"That's perfect." The clerk said simply.
Pirika and Tamao nodded their agreement.
Anna smiled. She glowed.
She had finally found the perfect dress. In the background, Anna heard the dim ring of a cell phone and some hushed words.
"Anna!"
A voice snapped her out of her reverie.
"Yes?" She asked, a little annoyed.
Pirika's smiled faltered. She stammered, "Hao wants to see you."
Notes: I know white is supposed to be the only colour on a wedding dress... but oh well. XD
End of Chapter Eleven
