Riley and Maya stood side by side facing the silver framed mirror which covered the back wall of the dressing room and for a short and fleeting moment they were 16 again. When you are sixteen years old you dream of this moment but what you don't realise at 16 is that when the moment comes there will be a small part of you that whispers to time, "please turn back."
Riley stared at the dress she had picked out, it wasn't white but ivory, it wasn't quite pure but it was close. It didn't have puffed sleeves or a huge skirt, there were no diamantes decorating its trim. The dress she had chosen was straight and simple, it was twin strapped with a sweetheart neckline and little decoration. Her eyes moved to Maya who had chosen a red dress that fell just above her knee, it pulled in at the waste to showcase her tiny waistline and it had netting underneath the skirt to make it float. It was not too unalike the one she had worn to their final middle school dance. Riley sighed, "nothing feels right."

Maya changed back into her own clothes and hung her dress back on the rail. Wearing the dress had made her feel things she hadn't felt for a long time. He had danced with her, that was true, but she wasn't his first choice. She ran her fingers along the dresses as she searched for one which would bring back her sunshine, her optimist, her good influence of a best friend. Looking for Riley distracted her, it made her feel whole because someone else wasn't but as she looked through the dresses she couldn't help but wonder why she and Josh had never taken the leap. They were engaged, they were successful, they had their whole lives but neither was ready to begin them.
"Maya Hart?"
Maya jumped at the sound of her name. She turned to see a woman standing behind her with wild curly hair and a really kind smile. "Angela?" Maya was too afraid to be right and her eyes automatically shot to the woman's hands as she searched for a wedding ring.
"Hi Maya," Angela spoke softly, "You're getting married?"

Maya and Riley sat across the table from Angela in silence. The first interruption came from the waiter who took their orders. Then, when Maya couldn't take the silence a moment longer she finally spoke the words which might ruin the life she had come to hope would last forever.
"Why are you in New York?"
Angela nodded, "I have a daughter now," she explained, "her name is Sienna and she's two. I never married her father because I found out I was pregnant."
Riley's eyes grew wide and her hand shot to her stomach as she felt a surge of love for the child she carried.
"Anyway. It wasn't the right time, but now I know that I never want to leave behind the love that I've found. I know who I am now because Sienna showed me that sometimes God knows what he's doing and I trust that now is the right time to marry the man that I love. The man that Shawn made me ready for."

Riley was quiet for the rest of the day. She didn't smile at the puppy on the subway, she didn't give money to the homeless man who she walked past every single day and she didn't call Farkle to tell him she was okay. When the girls got home she went straight to her bedroom and didn't come down for dinner. Maya waited for a parcel she had ordered that day to be delivered and then went to speak to her friend.
"Do you believe in God, Maya?" Riley asked distantly as she stared out of the bay window. Maya tried to stare at the same spot but she couldn't find it so instead she looked at Riley, "I believe in something," she replied.
Riley was unsatisfied. "But do you think there's something bigger than us, something bigger than the world we live in, Maya?" she pushed further turning now to face Maya with desperate eyes.

Maya frowned, "I don't believe that there is a being who will punish or disregard you because of any choice or mistake Riles." She looked pointedly at her best friend's stomach and placed her palm gently across where the baby was slowly growing inside.
"So what do you believe?"
Maya smiled now, "I believe in Fate. I used to think that good things couldn't happen to me, that your 'God' didn't love me, that the universe was completely against me. I was wrong Riles, I can see now that all of the bad stuff it made me strong and ready for the good. Josh was right, I have a big capacity for love and I use it every day. I only get to do that because of the bad things. I believe that the universe, God or whoever you want to believe in, I believe they have a plan."

Riley smiled for the first time since they had spoken to Angela, "I want to get married Maya. Not for the baby, not even for Farkle or for God. I want to get married because I believe in love and I have always believed in good things. This is a good thing." She placed her hand on top of Maya's, "Hope," she whispered, "I'm going to call her Hope."
Maya grinned, "I'm glad you feel that way because I kind of got you something. Close your eyes." Riley closed her eyes and Maya hurriedly pulled the covers off her present and hung it on the door of the wardrobe. "Open your eyes." She moved away from the wardrobe as Riley opened her eyes and immediately burst into tears.
"Maya, its perfect." Riley sobbed as she hugged her best friend tightly, "thank you."

Hanging on the wardrobe door was a white dress with puff sleeves and a low neckline decorated with glittering pink and white diamantes which continued in beautiful flower patterns all the way down to the end of the dresses long train.