Author's Note:

Hi everyone :) Yup, I'm back with a new update for Blue Ersatz. It's been about two months that I haven't updated this baby. I know After Dusk needs more attention but After Dusk is nearing the end and BE is just at its first stages. :)

Anyway. I hope you enjoy this!

Thank you reviewers :)

| ~ | ~ | B l u e . E r s a t z | ~ | ~ |

7
"Mannequin"

-SuzieQuaKes-

"You're not a man, you're just a mannequin. I wish you could feel that my love is real, but you're not a man."

"Lauuura! I'm back."

I stumbled into my air-conditioned boutique and sighed in content. Throwing my purse onto the couch, I toppled right next to it, feeling completely worn out. I was glad to be back. My mood wasn't exactly top-notch at that moment and the torture of driving through heavy traffic in the melting heat only enhanced how miserable I felt. When Laura didn't reply after five seconds, I grew an uneasy feeling in my stomach. And it wasn't because I was worried something might have happened to her—no it was more of what might happen to me.

I slowly turned around and saw my friend standing at the counter together with a couple. Exactly how I expected it to be. I saw a flash of relief pass through Laura's face as she grinned and eagerly announced: "Oh, there's the girl you want. She's the owner and I'm sure she can help you more than I can." Then, my so-called friend had the nerve to flash a smile at me. "Hey, girl."

I pressed my lips together. Oh, hell no. I was tired and dejected. The last thing I wanted was to guide this annoying bride-to-be and her most probably equally annoying fiancé in the quest of finding the perfect wedding dress. I was sure that Laura was completely aware of the emotional trauma that I was going through after seeing Drew. And I guessed that this was her way of punishing me for going to see Drew without her approval.

Sometimes I despised Laura. Sometimes. Like right now.

But what could I do except get up, brush my skirt, run a hand through my messed-up hair and walk over to the couple? After all, they were customers. And I sold dresses for a living. Therefore, I was expected to do my job. Things like how I was feeling were simply unimportant.

"Hi." I gave the couple the best smile that I could muster at that moment. Then I reached out to shake each of their hands. "I'm May Maple."

The woman was the first to speak. She beamed at me, her white pearly teeth almost causing me to shield my eyes. I noticed that she was skinny to the bone and her shiny blond hair was pulled back to form a little bun at the side of her head, making her look even skinnier. The bones that formed her jaw stuck out noticeably. "Hello! I'm Caitlin. And this is my fiancé, of course." She giggled and motioned her hand to the man beside her. "He's—"

"Will Jackman" The man interrupted her and nodded at me with a little smile. Hmm. Maybe I was wrong to immediately think that the fiancé would be equally annoying. He seemed more like a decent person. He was broad and loomed over Caitlin. "It's nice to meet you, May."

"Nice to meet you too." I smiled politely and walked over to the counter, pulling out a few catalogs from the shelf. "This contains all the dresses that we sell here at Blessed Blue. There's a fresh batch of spring collections. May I know what the color scheme of your wedding is?"

"Pink!" Caitlin answered my question with a squeal. Why were women so annoying? Okay, maybe that was kind of a hypocritical question as I was a woman myself. But seriously. The girly kind of women never failed to make me want to punch them. Or punch myself.

"Honey, its beige and pink." Will had a stress in his voice as he ran fingers through his short dark hair. I heard a lot of those tones from fiancés. It always seemed as though being a bride gets you more emotional and feminine. And grooms were mostly annoyed with that. I guess I could relate to it. I had been a bride once in my life. But that was just an irrelevant thought. "Remember?"

The blonde rolled her eyes, grabbing the catalogs from me. "Whatever." She then walked over to the couch where I had set down my purse and set herself down daintily, flipping through a catalog. The groom settled to look around the boutique, at the many gowns that were dressed on the mannequins.

I stood there, beside the counter, awkwardly as Laura sorted out cash registers. I offered them both a cup of tea, which they accepted. And an hour later, Caitlin was still sipping the tea and flipping through the pages. Will had finished looking at every dress in the boutique and was sitting down across from Caitlin, looking ticked. A few minutes later, he pulled out a phone and started to text somebody.

And three hours later, after Caitlin had tried on about twenty-five dresses and Will looked as if he was going shoot himself in the face—the couple finally decided on a low-cut dress that was crisscrossed with a creamy pink. So it was kind of needless to say that I was about to kill Laura the moment the couple walked out of the shop. But Caitlin wanted to pick a matching veil and thought that none of the veils I showed her "matched the pink of the dress". So she started to go through the catalog again, hoping to find a dress that would match the veil. Will closed his eyes, sat in the corner of the shop and listened to music through headphones.

I inwardly groaned to myself. This was going to be one hell of a long day.

The next day at Blessed Blue was no different. It was spring, sort of what you would call a good time to get married. Couples, brides with mothers and brides with friends walked in and out of my boutique. I had to admit, brides with friends was the worse. It was kind of like having to satisfy the needs, wants, and must-haves of two brides. And believe me; one was more than enough.

It was the day that Laura took a break from her job and my mother came to help out. Mom wasn't that much of a help, but she took some of the customers so that I didn't have to do everything alone. And the best part of the day was that Danny came to pick me up around lunch time and we had a nice lunch together in the park. Then he told me that he had the day off from work and lingered around the store. It was kind of nice having him around to chat with when I was free from the customers. And he also kept the grooms company, which was always a good thing. Grooms often felt unnecessary in dress-picking.

When the fourth bride-to-be and her fiancé walked out of the shop, I sighed and leaned back into the cushioned settee. I heard the sound of footsteps and then two hands dropped onto my shoulders, giving them a squeeze. I smiled appreciatively and turned back to face my milky-eyed boyfriend.

"That feels amazing."

Danny smiled back at me, gave my shoulders another squeeze before placing himself down beside me. "Your job is not easy."

"A stock broker saying that?" I laughed and the brown-haired man shrugged his shoulders. "I'm flattered."

"It's nothing compared to this, May-o."

I just laughed and leaned my head back against the sofa. That was—of course—before the little jingle rang out through the room. I gritted my teeth slightly. Another customer. My God, Blessed Blue was becoming quite popular for a secondhand dress store.

Danny turned to give me a little sideways smile and then stood up. He offered me his hand and I took it to guide myself up. I was about to turn around with my best smile and greet the customer, before I heard:

"Posy, this is a secondhand dress shop. You know that your dad could get you the finest custom-made wedding dress from the runways of Milan."

"I know, Drew. But Caitlin said that this place was amazing. And I don't want to make a big deal out of a wedding dress."

I stiffened in my heels and had to grab onto the sofa to keep from falling. From beside me, Danny whispered: "Are you okay, May?"

For a moment I was too stricken to say anything. Then I slowly took a deep breath. This was not supposed to be a huge issue; I told myself. It shouldn't be. "Yeah, I'm fine." I whispered back and then turned myself around to see exactly what I had expected.

Drew and a tall gorgeous woman standing together at the entrance of my boutique. Drew had his arms crossed over the polo shirt that he was wearing, looking bored. Posy looked eager.

Posy.

A little pang of jealousy slipped through my heart. When I had talked to her on the phone, I hadn't expected her to be so . . . leggy and beautiful. She had flowing black hair that was so shiny you could basically see your reflection on it. Her cheekbones were high, her lips were full and her skin was scrubbed and glowed with a golden tan.

Drew had certainly picked a woman that leveled his attractiveness.

"Hi!" "May?"

Both of them spoke at the same time. That was when I felt three pairs of eyes fall upon me. The first was my mother's at the counter from where she was sorting through the catalogs. The second was Danny's. And the third set of eyes belonged to Posy. I muttered a curse word under my breath. This just had to happen.

"Hi Drew." I said in a soft voice. Slowly, a smile started to form onto Posy's face as realization struck her.

"Oh! So you're May! Wow, its funny running into you here, isn't it?" She walked up to me, her stilettos clicking on the marble floor and held out her hand for me to shake. "I'm Posy Donahue—soon to be Hayden, of course! We met on the phone the other day but that was all just general. Caitlin came here yesterday, didn't she? She's like my best friend and we're planning to get married on the same day. She told me that the dresses here were fantastic! So I just had to come."

I bit my lower lip slightly as I released her handshake. She sure talked a lot. So basically it was Caitlin that led Drew and Posy here. Oh, well that was quite lovely to know. "It's nice to meet you, Posy." I then motioned my hand to Danny who was beside me. "This is Danny, my boyfriend. Danny, this is Drew and Posy."

I saw Danny flash a smile at her and Posy grinned back just as eagerly. They seemed to hit it off immediately. But before I could say anything else, my mother joined my side. And she did not look very pleased.

"Drew Hayden, you have the nerve to walk in here! I don't want to see your worthless face ever again! Get out! Get out of my daughter's store!" And then my Mom started to push him.

"Ow!" Drew exclaimed as my mother smacked his shoulder. "Can someone get her away from me?"

"Oh my God, Drew!" Posy looked horrified.

"Mom!" I ran out to pull her away from Drew. Danny rushed over to help me. When we finally pulled my thrashing mother who was yelling out every colorful word that she knew, away from Drew, I started to explain everything.

"Mom, it's okay!" I started to tell her. She still looked furious. "It's all in the past. Let's forget about that right now. And I'll tell you everything later." Then I turned towards Danny, who was clearly confused and deserved a proper explanation.

"Drew's the ex-fiancé that left me." I whispered to him and his eyes suddenly flickered with understanding.

"Got it." He whispered back to me and then held my mother's hand. "Mrs. Maple, why don't we go and have a soda? May needs to do her job."

And then he leaded my mother away from the couple and out of the shop. When they disappeared, I took a huge breath. Drew looked blank, his hair all messed up and his shirt crumpled. Posy looked panic-stricken as she started to smooth Drew's shirt. I awkwardly coughed into my hand. Well this was off to a great start.

"I'm sorry. My mother still haven't gotten over that . . . thing." I preferred not to have named what that 'thing' was. Especially in front of Posy. But Drew seemed to understand.

"Yeah, I can see that." Drew flicked his green hair away from his forehead. "Well, anyway. Posy, you still in the mood to look for the dress?"

Posy moved herself away from Drew and shrugged her shoulders. "Although I have to admit, that was a total mood spoiler—" She giggled. "I think I still do want to look for the dress. Something tells me that my perfect fantasy dress would be here."

And suddenly, something striked me. Drew and his fiancée were here, looking to buy a dress for their wedding. What the hell was I doing keeping my gown behind a glass box and refusing to sell it to anyone? And then and there, I decided that it was only right to hand over the dress to Posy. She deserved it.

"I think I have the perfect dress for you." I declared, and then rushed over to the mannequin that stood behind the glass. Carefully, I unzipped the back of the gown and held the bundle of sweet-smelling garment like it was a newborn baby. Then I walked over back to Drew and Posy, both of whom were looking at me in confusion. I wasn't surprised that Drew didn't recognize the dress. I went to make it together with my mother and then he hadn't seen me on the day of the wedding because he was too busy running away.

A little twinge of pain sliced through my heart. But I forced it away.

"Here." I said, surrendering my burden to Posy. She held it at arms-length and scrutinized at it with a little smile on her face. Her green eyes twinkled. I took that as a good sign, and continued to talk. "I guess you could say that's one of the finest dresses we sell here. It's never been worn and it's worth far more than any of the gowns here."

"Wow!" Posy gasped in eager delight. "It's beautiful!" Then she turned towards Drew. "Baby, don't you think this is the most prettiest thing that you've ever seen?"

Drew shrugged his shoulders. "I guess it is sort of pretty."

Posy giggled and rolled her eyes as she turned back to me. "Don't mind him. I'm sure he thinks that it's gorgeous. Can I try it on?"

"Certainly." And then I had to lead her towards the trial room. But she wouldn't go in alone. She asked 'Drew-bear' to help her with the zipper and such. I couldn't help but snicker as he was led away like a dog on a leash. Psh. Drew-bear. What kind of name was that?

When they disappeared behind the curtain, I had a chance to really think things over in my head. Everything that was happening right now was all such a blur to me. Wasn't it ironic that Drew and Posy had to pick my store out of all the other millions of wedding dress shops in Petalburg? I sat down on the chair that my mother abandoned when she went to attack Drew. And I guess that was when I realized how much my heart really hurt. No matter how hard I try to convince myself, I wasn't over Drew. And right now, the dagger in my heart sliced deeper and deeper.

I sniffled slightly and a tear rolled down my cheek. Heartache. Oh God, it really did hurt.

A sudden gasp and giggle plunged me straight back into reality. Posy pulled the curtain open and grinned at me as she twirled in the fairytale-like gown. Quickly, I wiped away the trace of sorrow from my cheek and forced a smile onto my face. I was getting better at this 'pretending to be fine' thing.

I stood up at marveled at how the dress fitted Posy so perfectly. She did look divine. Her black curls contrasted beautifully with the white of the dress. Although my thoughts keep telling me: of course it looks beautiful on her. It's my dress after all. And deep down inside, I was jealous. I was jealous at the fact that I never got to show off this beautiful dress. And secretly I knew that I looked far better in the dress than Posy. After all, it was custom-made for me.

"How do I look?"

Posy was standing, admiring herself in the three-paneled mirror just like how Jennifer was, a few weeks back. Wow. Things had changed since then. I guessed I would be telling Jennifer that she couldn't have the dress.

As Posy twirled, I heard my dress call out to me again.

May.

Shut up! I thought to myself in frustration and then returned my attention back to the waiting Posy. Drew was standing beside her, smirking a little as he nodded to her in approval. I gritted my teeth as the pain in my heart returned. I guess I never got over Drew. It was silly of me to think that Danny, or anybody else could replace the mark he left in my heart. But if I still loved him so much to the point that I was numb with it. I would let him go. After all, if you love something you have to set it free.

Then I saw him looking at me. I looked right back with just as much intensity and we stared at each other for a quarter of a second, but it felt like a lifetime. My heartbeat become erratically faster as I realized that for that quarter of a second, it was just me and him. Nothing else—no one else—really mattered.

Drew smiled at me. A genuine one. No arrogance or humor was visible in his eyes. He smiled, as if to say 'thank you'. And then I realized that he wasn't a man. He was just a mannequin. He didn't know how much he truly hurt me. He didn't know how much I loved him and still do love him. I wished that he could feel all my love, my hurt, my loneliness. But no matter how hard I wished, he couldn't. He wasn't a man.

"May?"

A voice that was full of syrupy empathy shook me out of my thoughts. Posy was looking at me with confusion visible in her bright green eyes. "I was asking you how much this dress is."

"It's free." The words blurted out of my lips before I could stop them. "I—I want to give it to you for free. Um, take it as a wedding present from me."

Posy looked awe-struck. "Are you serious? Oh my God! Thank you so much!" She rushed over to me and engulfed me in a hug. The soft-material of my dress against my skin made me tremble as I struggled not to cry. I was going to miss that dress. It was the only reminder that Drew Hayden had been a part of my life. But now I guess I wouldn't need it anymore. It was true that I enjoyed my time with Drew. But now it was finally time to say good-bye.

"May, you're so kind!" Posy pulled away from me and grinned. I smiled back at her. She was truly beautiful. Drew deserved her.

Afterwards, I packed the dress up in a little box filled with confetti. I handed it over to Posy, feeling a little bit nostalgic at the fact that I was parting ways with my beautiful dress. The dress that never failed to remind me that I was so close to having my perfect happy ending. But I guess sometimes stories didn't always have a happy ending. Some stories ended in heartbreak and having to let go.

Like my story.

"Actually, you know what? I don't want to take the dress home right now." Posy smiled at me. "I want to choose the ugliest dress that Daddy would offer to buy me. And then on the day of the wedding, I want to surprise everyone with this beautiful one!" She turned to Drew and laughed happily. "Doesn't that sound like a great plan, Drew-bear?"

The green-haired man looked uncomfortable but he shrugged his shoulders. "Oh, I don't know."

"Oh come on! It's just a little fun. We all know how Daddy needs some lightening up." Posy grinned and then turned to me. "May, if you wouldn't mind, can you please deliver this dress to my house next week Monday? Around nine o'clock? I'll give you my address."

"Babe, I'm guessing that May would be busy! She can't go around and deliver stuff." Drew's voice was firm and Posy looked like a disappointed child. I guess that was where I had to step in.

"Actually, I wouldn't mind at all." I shrugged my shoulders. I guess that it would give me a little more time to say goodbye to my dress. A proper goodbye. "I'll be happy to deliver it to you."

"Aw, that's so nice of you! Thank you!" Posy rewarded me with another sparkling grin of hers. And then she took a wad of post-it from the counter and scribbled down her address. Drew looked at me as if I were crazy, but I ignored it.

And a minute later, the couple left the shop. If I had known what kind of trouble I was going to get myself in by delivering that dress, I would have never offered.

Author's Note:

A huge twist is coming. :) Prepare yourselves.

Review!

-Suzie x

Edited: 4th September '10