Shelly's World

Chapter 11: Until You Came

It was the big day, the day of Karen and Rick's wedding. Shelly woke up anxiously as she put some casual clothes on. She then ran downstairs and up to Doug, who was behind the counter.

"Hey, Shell-for-brains! What'll you have today?" Doug joked.

Shelly glared at him. "I'd like the Ann's Special Omelet, please," she announced. Ann looked over her shoulder, and smiled at Shelly.

"One Special Omelet comin' right up!" Doug said cheerfully. "Ann, it's time to show Shelly what you've got!"

Ann grinned even bigger. "Right away! Made specially for Shelly!" she declared, and then ran into the kitchen.

"That'll be 250G," Doug said, holding out his hand. Shelly scowled.

"I was joking," Doug pointed out. "I know you came here empty-handed…. Poor irresponsible girl." He then laughed.

"Ha, ha, very funny," Shelly mumbled as she sat down at a table. Just then, the kitchen's door slammed open. There stood Ann holding a metal tray with a metal top.

"One Ann's Special Omelet!" She shouted as she walked over to Shelly's table. "Enjoy the food." Ann then took off the metal top as steam arose from the food. As soon as Shelly got even one whiff of the omelet, she started to dig in.

"Good, huh?" Doug said. "It's called Ann's Special Omelet for a reason, you know."

"Yeah! It's my secret recipe! Not even Daddy knows what it is!" Ann exclaimed. "I don't want anybody to know, otherwise we might run out of business!"

"I wish I could cook," Shelly said between mouthfuls. "I'm terrible at cooking!"

"You're just like Karen; she can't cook either!" Ann said giggling. "Well, that's probably because she puts alcohol into everything she makes."

Shelly literally began to lick her plate clean. "Poor Rick will have to do all the cooking, I guess," she said.

"You know, when we're both free, I could try to teach you how to cook," Ann exclaimed.

"That'd be great, Ann! Would you really teach me?" Shelly shouted happily.

"Of course! That's what best friends do!" Ann said, smiling. Shelly grinned back.

"Well, c'mon, Ann, let's go get ready for Karen and Rick's wedding!" Shelly coaxed.

"What, are you crazy? It's only seven 'o clock! We have seven more hours until the wedding even starts!" Ann said, then paused. "You know, right now would be a great time to teach you how to cook."

"Then let's go!" Shelly shrieked, running toward the kitchen door. As soon as she opened the door, she gasped in shock.

"Cool, isn't it?" Ann said behind her. Shelly nodded. "We have all the ingredients in this cabinet," Ann said, pointing to a cabinet, "and the recipes and raw food are right over there." She pointed to a garden in the very back.

"Are you sure I can just take your crops off of your plants?" Shelly asked curiously.

"Of course! That's what they're there for! Of course, only certain crops grow in certain seasons," Ann pointed out. "And also, we have chickens in a barn, so we get plenty of eggs a day."

"That is so cool," Shelly said, gaping at the room. "You have everything!"

Ann then walked outside to grab a recipe. She then walked inside and handed her the paper.

"Here… let's start out by making just a regular old omelet," Ann said, then grinning. "Not with my secret spice, though, of course!" She then giggled.

"It looks a little hard… do you think I'll be able to make it?" Shelly asked.

"Of course! I'll be getting ready for Karen and Rick's wedding while you can go ahead and make it. After I'm finished getting dressed, I'll see how you've done," Ann said reassuringly.

"Okay," Shelly said. As soon as Ann walked out the door, Shelly looked at the first ingredient.

"Two eggs," she said to herself. She walked out the door, which led to the garden, then walked into the barn. She picked up two eggs without managing to get pecked or squawked at by the chickens. She quickly ran back into the Inn and cracked the eggs against the table, then poured the contents into a bowl. She then grabbed a fork from the counter and began to scramble the eggs. After she finished, she grabbed a salt and pepper shaker and put a little bit of both into the bowl. She then got some cheese from the refrigerator, and some peppers from the garden and chopped them up with a knife, then placed the ingredients into the bowl with the eggs. After that, she grabbed a pan, set it on the stove, and turned on the heat, then put the contents of the bowl into the pan. As soon as she thought the omelet was done, Ann walked into the kitchen. She wore a turquoise and yellow tie-dye dress with high-heeled black shoes and her white bow was now blue.

"Ann, you look terrific!" Shelly exclaimed. Ann walked over to where Shelly was.

"So does your omelet!" Ann said. "Can I try it?"

"Sure, go ahead," Shelly replied. She took the egg off the pan and onto a plate. Ann got a fork and took a bite.

"Wow, this is pretty good," Ann said after she swallowed. "I think I'll eat the rest… that is, if you don't mind."

"Of course not! How about I get dressed while you finish that," Shelly suggested.

"Okay! Sounds good to me," Ann remarked. Shelly then walked out of the kitchen and upstairs to her room. She searched for a good outfit to wear. She then found her black tube-top dress with red flowers decorated on it. She also pulled out her slip on black shoes and she took her hair out of her ponytail. She then walked out the door and down the stairs. She then heard somebody whistle.

"Hey, good-looking," Shelly heard. She turned her head to find Kai giving her the thumbs up. "You look like you're ready for a big party!"

"Actually, Kai, it's a wedding," Shelly commented, looking at Kai's gangster outfit. "Shouldn't you be getting ready?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on it," he remarked. "It's all cool."

Shelly continued to ignore him as she walked back into the kitchen to find Ann stuffing Shelly's omelet into her face. She noticed there was only one piece of it left, and she was curious to see how she had made her own food.

"Wait, Ann," Shelly said quickly. "Can I have that last bite?"

"Sure, I'm getting full anyway," Ann moaned. Shelly took a fork from a cabinet and dug into her food. She was pleased with her own work.

"I hate to brag, but I actually really like my omelet," Shelly said.

"Me too! You're not such a terrible cook like you say you are," Ann replied. "And I just love your outfit!"

"So does Kai," Shelly said with a hint of laughter. Ann giggled with her.

"I wonder what time it is," Ann said, while she looked at the clock at the top of the room. "1:30… we should be going."

"Yeah, c'mon! We don't want to be late," Shelly said. The two walked out the kitchen door, then out the front. On their way, they spotted Kai running past them, still in his gangster clothes.

"I wonder what in the world he's doing," Ann said suspiciously.

"Yeah, and why he's not dressed properly for the wedding," Shelly replied. The girls just shrugged it off and found their way to the church. As soon as they got there, they noticed that mostly everyone was there. Ann spotted Cliff and smiled at Shelly.

"Hey Shelly, let's go talk to Cliff!" Ann said excitedly. Shelly, blushing furiously, nodded her head and walked with Ann to where Cliff was. Cliff smiled and waved.

"Hey, Shelly and Ann," he said sweetly. Shelly wanted to melt, but tried to act cool.

"Hi, Cliff, how are you today?" Shelly said, smiling.

"I'm great! The weather is fantastic, and everyone seems so happy," he commented. "Today's perfect!"

"Weddings are so romantic, aren't they?" Ann said, eyeing Shelly. Shelly's eyes begged Ann not to give out any hints.

"Yeah, they are," Cliff said. "It'd be great to have my own sometime soon."

"Mine too!" Ann said cheerfully. "Except there's no one that I'd want to marry here!" She then giggled insanely as Cliff and Shelly cheeks turned a dark crimson red.

"Well, w-we should be heading inside the church," Cliff stammered.

"Yeah," Shelly said flatly. The two walked away from Ann, who was still giggling uncontrollably.

"Wait for me, you guys!" Ann shouted as she tried to catch up with the two. As soon as they met, Cliff and Shelly were talking with each other. Ann sat down with them. Just then, Mary began to play the church organs. The room became silent.

"Friends and family… thank you all for coming on this special occasion," the man, who Shelly thought was Pastor Carter, said. "Today, we celebrate the wedding of Karen Smith and Richard Yamashita." Rick, who was at the front, scowled. Shelly figured that Rick hated his real name.

Suddenly, a loud weep came from the audience. It was Rick's mother, sobbing uncontrollably. Popuri tried to calm her down. She didn't succeed.

The organ played once again. The doors then opened, as Karen stepped into the room wearing a white dress that went above her knees and a glimmering white veil that went over her face.

"Slut," Cliff coughed. Shelly giggled as she saw the little girl she met earlier when the newspaper had hit her. She was throwing flower pedals all over the floor. As soon as Karen reached the front, the little girl ran to the nearest row and sat down.

"Before I begin the sermon… whoever objects to this marriage, speak now, or forever hold your peace." Pastor Carter said.

Nobody spoke.

"Alright, good. Now, moving on…. Rick, do you take Karen to be your lawfully wedded wife?" Pastor Carter said.

"I do," he said sincerely.

"Karen, do you take Rick to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do," Karen said nervously.

"You may now kiss the bride," Pastor Carter declared. The two kissed passionately in front of everyone, then walked down the aisle.

"Um… where exactly was the sermon?" said Shelly.

"I know, I know… Pastor Carter is very strange. You should hear his speeches," Cliff said. Everybody started walking outside to where the food and drinks were. Shelly vowed not to drink another glass of wine.

"I'm so thirsty!" Pastor Carter screeched as he walked out of the church. "My throat is parched from all that speaking!" Shelly, Cliff, and Ann all gave him a weird look.

"Told you he was strange," Cliff said, laughing. Shelly and Ann snickered.

"I think I'm going to go get some wine; you two wanna come along with me?" Ann said.

"No thanks," Shelly said, laughing nervously. "You know why."

Ann giggled. "Oh yeah," she said. "Well, I guess I'll leave you two alone." She then skipped off to where the food was.

"So," Cliff began, "what'd you think of the wedding?"

"It was pretty strange," Shelly replied. "Without the sermon… and Karen in that skanky dress."

Cliff laughed. "Yeah, I know… that was disturbing. She always dresses in short clothes. I think she's trying to show off her legs."

"She did mention that she was the prettiest girl here," Shelly said, smirking.

"She's not," Cliff said. "You are."

Shelly blushed immensely. "Gee, th-thanks, Cliff," she said, stumbling on her words.

"Well, it's true," he replied, blushing too. "She doesn't have that pretty look that you seem to have."

"That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me," Shelly commented. "Well, okay, one of the nicest." She looked near the food court. She saw that people were leaving, yet Ann was still chugging on wine. Cliff checked his watch.

"Wow, 7:00 already?" He said to his watch. "It's getting late; I think we should be heading back home."

"Yeah," Shelly said. "We should."

So the two walked back to the Inn. On the way, Cliff's hand found Shelly's. They walked hand-in-hand the rest of the way.

Shelly knocked on the Inn's door. No one came.

"No one's answering," Shelly complained.

"It's probably locked," Cliff replied. The two sat at the bench across from the Inn. Their hands remained glued.

"It's pretty dark outside," Shelly stammered, trying to find her voice.

"Yeah," Cliff remarked. "Just look at the stars."

Shelly looked up. "They're so gorgeous!" She whispered. "I love how brightly they shine."

"Me too," said Cliff. They remained mum, until Cliff finally decided to speak up. "I have something to ask you… although it may sound sorta embarrassing."

"Yeah? What is it?" Shelly asked curiously.

"Well, I uh…" he started. He could seem to finish his sentence. He gently wrapped the arm that wasn't holding Shelly's hand around her neck and started playing with her hair. Shelly rested her hand on his shoulder. She started hiccuping.

"Sorry," Shelly stuttered. "I'm sorta nervous." She hiccuped once again.

"That's okay," Cliff whispered. "Take your time."

Shelly swallowed the lump in her throat then held her breath. After ten seconds, she continued breathing again, and then slowly started to lean in towards him. He did the same. Shelly could feel him breathing on her. Just then, out of nowhere, came a deliriously happy shriek.

"Cliffie and Shelly!" She shouted with joy. "How great to see you!"

Shelly slid her hand off of Cliff's shoulder to his elbow and leaned back, sorely disappointed. Cliff took his other hand off of her neck, yet continued to hold her hand.

"How come you two are out here all alone on such a dark night?" Ann slurred. Shelly figured the wine had gone to her head.

"Because the door-"

"Wait, don't tell me!" Ann screeched. "You two were making out! Right, right, right?"

"Well, no," Shelly sulked, then mumbled, "but we were about to."

"Until you came," Cliff finished.

"How romantic!" She screamed. "Oh well! Time to go inside!" She opened the door without a key. "Come on in, you guys!"

"Guess it wasn't locked after all," Shelly said, feeling stupid, but utterly depressed at the same time. Shelly and Cliff then went inside the Inn to their rooms and went to bed. Shelly then silently cried herself to sleep.


Haha! Left ya in suspence, huh? XP You thought it was the big moment, didn't you? Well... it wasn't! LOL! I'm just being stupid, R&R, please! :D