"Fireside Diaries"
Story Written by Freedom Fighter
Jumping right in... this is the winter/mid-season finale! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: The characters of 'Phineas and Ferb' belong to Disney.
Entry #110 - Written by Isabella Garcia-Shapiro, troop leader
Hi! Whatcha doin'?
It's been a long time since I last uploaded an entry, but I figured since I haven't been a Fireside Girl for a few years now, you all would understand.
"Do you know if my friends are here yet? The reservation is under Sweetwater."
21-year old Isabella Garcia-Shapiro had a giddy smile on her face. She waited patiently in the lobby as the maitre'd looked down at her reservation list and found it near the top. She replied, "Yes, they are. Right this way, miss..."
She led Isabella deeper into the restaurant, and it did not take long for them to reach the booth where Adyson, Ginger, and Holly were waiting. And they were all grown up as well.
"She finally showed up," Adyson chuckled. "For a recent college grad, you're sure slow to realize that it's no longer cool to be fashionably late, right?"
"I still love you, girl," Holly said, wearing a red-haired wig to mask her identity, "but you do realize that I leave on my first cross-country tour tomorrow, right? And I've still only packed half my wardrobe!"
"Give her a break," pleaded Ginger. "I'm sure she has her reasons. Besides, we should be happy! This is the first time the five of us have been in the same place in months!"
Suddenly, the holographic projector in the middle of the table came to life, and a three-dimensional miniature version of Gretchen appeared before them.
"I wish I was there in body," Gretchen told them, "instead of just in virtual reality. But it's the same thing."
Isabella smiled as she slid into the empty spot on the side of the booth next to Adyson.
"Have I got some BIG news! Today's the best day EVER!"
"Why?" asked Adyson. "Did you score the winning bucket in the women's basketball championship game last year?"
Adyson then flashed off her accompanying title ring, on her right ring finger.
"Or maybe your first CD went platinum in just ten days!" exclaimed Holly.
She then showed off her platinum record to the gang, which somehow had fit into her disco ball shiny $500 purse.
"Or learn you're spending nine months abroad in Holland," questioned Gretchen, "helping the world's greatest scientist create the first heavy-duty, zero-pollution power source?"
She stepped aside and showed off the windmills in the background behind her in her projection.
"Or you finally figured out the difference between regular and decaf?"
The four women turned towards Ginger and shot odd, confused looks at her.
"Gimme a break!" Ginger defended her statement. "You can be a coffee drinker for four years and not know the difference!"
"It's better than all of those combined," Isabella shouted, "except maybe Ginger's thing..."
Isabella pulled out her right hand from behind her back, which had been there the entire time, and the girls nearly lost when they saw the sparkling diamond ring on it.
"Girls, he asked me to marry him!"
"EEEEEEEEEE!" the women all squealed in delight.
Yep! Today, I'm now officially engaged!
-
Entry #110 [FSD209] - Big News (02.27.12)
-
It was a couple days later, and Isabella was knocking on the door of apartment number 303 at the Lobster Estates complex. She waited for a few seconds, and the door was eventually opened by 26-year old Candace Flynn-Johnson.
"Isabella! I've been expecting you!"
The two shared a friendly hug. Candace then stepped to the side to allow Isabella to come into the apartment, and then she closed the door. The two made their way to the dining area, which was only a few steps away from the entrance.
"So," Isabella spoke up, "where is she? Where's Amanda? Oh, I bet she's grown again since I last saw her."
Candace giggled as he motioned for Isabella to take a seat. "She's sprouting like a beanstalk, I tell you! You'll see her later... she and Jeremy are out buying school supplies."
Isabella gasped. "OMG, she's starting kindergarten next month, isn't she?"
"I know! I'm thinking about signing her up for the Lil' Sparks!"
"I'm sure she'll love it!"
"But enough about that. Show me... IT!"
Isabella held out her hand to show Candace her engagement ring.
"Diamonds? WOW! Lemme guess... he actually went to Africa and mined them himself, didn't he?"
"He wouldn't say, but knowing him..."
The two girls laughed heartily.
"Oh. Good to see he hasn't changed over the years."
"Unlike you. You're so much more... more... more..."
Isabella hesitated to say the word, as she did not want to offend Candace - particularly since she was putting her wedding in the redhead's hands - but...
"You can say it, Isabella. Mature. I'm more mature. Yeah, I know. Marriage changes a person."
"On that topic... I'm hiring you to make sure mine goes off without a hitch. Unlike the last three weddings I went to..."
First, there was Jeremy and Candace's wedding six years ago...
"You SURE you wanna do this today?" Jeremy asked. "I mean, it's not gonna hurt to postpone it just one day..."
"YES!" yelled Candace. "It's gotta be today! TODAY, TODAY, TODAY!"
She shouted that as her guests were being drenched in a torrential downpour at their outdoor wedding, swans were wandering around without a care in the world, and only one person of the 20-man orchestra they had hired - the triangle player - had shown up.
Isabella was frowning as Gretchen sat next to her, holding up an umbrella to keep them reasonably drier than most of the other guests.
"Take a note, Gretchen. Check the weather BEFORE spending four hours getting hair done."
Gretchen nodded, saving the reminder to memory.
Then, there was Baljeet and Ginger's, two years ago...
Baljeet was freaking out as baby elephants were being marched into the mosque, paper komodo dragons were hanging from the ceiling, and the caterers had brought in a bunch of boxes that were marked donuts, but they actually had rice balls in them.
"This is NOT the wedding I envisioned," Baljeet cried.
Her wife-to-be at the time, Ginger, tapped him on the shoulder.
"I think it's about to get worse."
She pointed to the mosque entrance, where an irate Mishti had forced her way past the doormen.
"Baljeet is betrothed to me, you harlot!"
Mishti leaped at Ginger and tackled her to the ground.
"While I have always dreamed of two women fighting over me," Baljeet proclaimed loudly, "I never envisioned it would involve so much of the pulling of the hair."
And then there was that one back in March...
The church was full and everyone was facing the back, waiting for the wedding party to begin the procession. When nothing happened for a few minutes, an assortment of murmurs filled the room.
"Where's the groom?"
"Where's the bride?"
"Where's the cake?"
"Did we get the date wrong?"
"Are we at the wrong chapel?"
"Do these pants make my head look big?"
To be fair... I don't even remember who the couple was supposed to be that time...
"That's just weird," Candace commented on the flashbacks. "And the last one... what kind of groom and bride fail to show up at their own wedding?"
"Who knows?" Isabella shrugged her shoulders. "But listen, Candace. I'm trusting you to make sure this wedding goes off without a hitch! I've been dreaming of this day ever since the day I first laid my eyes on him, and I refuse to accept anything but perfect!"
"Trust me, Isabella! I've been planning this day for years!"
"I trust you, Candace! No chicken cakes, okay?"
"I can't believe you still remember THAT! And could you blame me? I had to put that wedding together in mere hours! We've got eight months! What could go wrong?"
Suddenly, the two women heard thunder and lightning.
"That's odd." Candace scratched her head. "The weatherman said it would be sunny all day."
There are several important events a woman must go through before getting married. The first of which... getting a wedding dress!
"Are you sure this is necessary, Candace?"
"Trust me, Isabella. Fresh out of college, entry-level job, wallowing in student loans. There's only one way you're going to be able to afford a wedding dress!"
Candace grabbed Isabella and pulled her out of the tent that they were in. Upon exiting, they found themselves among at least 100 other women, all of whom had camped out in front of Sarah's Loft in order to participate in the store's annual 'Running of the Brides.'
"I don't know." Isabella was having second thoughts. "This is not going to end well."
"You shoulda told your fiancé NOT to spend a fortune on the engagement ring!"
Isabella knew that the remark had come from Adyson, who was walking up to her from her left, with a hot cappuccino in each hand.
"Don't talk about him like that!" snapped Candace, as Adyson handed one of the cappuccinos to Isabella. "And where's mine?"
Candace felt someone tap her on the shoulder. It was Ginger, who had a cappuccino in each hand as well, and she gave the wedding planner the one she had asked for.
"Oh, Adyson." Isabella gave her friend a sly look. "You'll understand once you have someone who cares so much as to spend all of his money to profess his undying love for you."
Adyson huffed, then crossed her arms over her chest.
"You know I could get a boyfriend any time I want, right? I... just don't want one now, okay?"
"Settle down, Adyson," Candace said, looking over at her. "That's not the kind of language a prospective maid of honor should be using."
The brunette sighed. "You're right. I'm here to do a job. I'm here to help Isabella get the perfect dress for her wedding!"
"And don't forget me!" shouted Ginger. "I'm here too!"
"Alright then." Candace's face grew serious. "Let's do this!"
A few minutes later, the doors were opened, and the rush was on! Dozens of screaming women poured into the store, racing for the back, where all of the dresses were waiting on numerous racks. Things got insane, as they was a lot of shouting and shoving. Most of the women who were the ones actually shopping for the dresses ended up converging on those that were the most expensive, and thus the most heavily discounted. In the melee, Isabella lost track of her helpers, and she was forced to fend for herself.
She spotted one dress worth $2500 being sold for $325. That one was snatched up before she could get to it. Next was a grouping of four dress, all of the same design, which retailed for $6300 apiece, but were priced for today at $480 each. But those, too, were taken before Isabella could claim one for herself. She continued to scan the store, and seeing that many women were just starting off by grabbing whatever dress they could get to, even if they already had several in hand, Isabella stopped being so selective and decided to just go for the next dress she spotted.
That happened to be a peach-colored dress with shoulder padding and a plunging neckline. To Isabella, it resembled a dress that a princess might wear to a royal ball. Coincidentally, its tag was labeled 'Princess.'
"YES! This is the ONE!"
Isabella reached for the hangar and grabbed a hold. Unfortunately, another woman decided to do so at the same time. They both pulled it off of the rack and then a tug of war began.
"I saw it first!"
Her opponent responded. "No, I saw it first!"
Isabella froze. She recognized that voice.
"Adyson?"
Sure enough, Adyson was on the other side of the dress.
"It's me, Adyson!"
"I know."
Adyson then pulled the dress towards her, pulling Isabella that way as well.
"Um, hello, right here! You can just let me have the dress."
"What if I don't wanna?"
"What are you talking about? I'm the one getting married!"
Isabella then pulled the dress towards her, and Adyson was tugged in that direction, too.
"Well, so am I! Eventually! When I get a boyfriend! And he asks me to marry him! So there!"
Adyson pulled once more.
"You're supposed to be helping me!"
And so did Isabella.
"Well, there was no rule saying I couldn't help myself!"
"It's not your style! You don't have the figure for it!"
The two started pulling at the same time, holding the dress by the sleeve, stretching the fabric and the hanger it was on towards its limit.
"Last time I checked, neither did you!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
"Well, I still want it!"
"You can't have it!"
"I want it!"
The two women pulled and pulled and pulled, until, at long last, the hanger could take no more. They lost their grip at the same time, as the wire hanger snapped back into itself, resulting in the propulsion of the dress into the air. It ended up landing right into the arms of another woman nearby, one who was actually more buxom and actually had the figure for said dress.
Still, neither Adyson or Isabella were happy.
"See what you did?" growled Adyson.
"Me?" Isabella was taken aback. "You started it!"
"Nuh uh! You did!"
"No, you did! And now, instead of either of us having a dress, we don't have any at all!"
"That's what you think!" Candace shouted from afar.
They turned in the redhead's direction and saw that she was coming up to them with four different dresses in hand. Isabella was impressed.
"How... how did you get so many?"
Ginger would end up answering that question, as she ran up to the group with six dresses in her possession.
"Trust us, Izzy! This isn't our first go-round, if you know what I mean."
"No," chuckled Isabella. "No, I don't."
"Who cares?" Candace was excited. "Let's get you trying these babies on!"
And so, I began going through the labor-intensive process of trying each and every one of those dresses on to see if they were the one. I tried one on that had long sleeves, then one with none at all. There was one that had feathers, and another that had sequins. I felt relaxed as I put on one that had a large V-shaped opening in the back, then a little unnerved when I put on one which had a slit that displayed nearly my entire thigh! There was a dress that was of a baby blue color and another of electric blue. Or maybe the first one was electric blue and the second... they're pretty similar shades of blue.
Anyway, I wasn't happy with what Adyson had done, but I figured that she had a point. So I let her try on a few as well. Soon after, even Ginger and Candace got in on the fun, each giving a dress or two a spin. Not that either of them will need another one any time soon.
But when all the fun and games were done, I finally had come to a dark realization...
"None of these are the one."
Isabella sighed as she grabbed a few of the dresses and begun hanging them on a nearby rack. Candace, Adyson, and Ginger all had looks on disappointment on their faces, saddened that they failed in their mission.
"Excuse me?"
The three women looked up and saw a beautiful blonde woman, about Candace's age, had come over to them. She had a gorgeous pink dress in hand, but surprisingly her face was not one of happiness.
"Any of you looking to trade? This is the only dress I could get off the rack, but... this just isn't me."
Before any of them could answer, the woman took the initiative and turned towards Isabella. Suddenly, her face lit up when she saw one of the dresses Isabella was hanging back up.
"WAIT! Are you putting that one back?"
Isabella stopped to see which one was the one the blonde was referring to. It was the feather-laden dress in her hand.
"Would you be willing to trade?"
She held up the pink wedding dress she had so that Isabella could get a good look at it. Her jaw dropped in shock.
I couldn't believe it! It was so beautiful. So gorgeous. So... perfect! I had to have it! Unfortunately, I was so entranced that I couldn't move to respond. Thankfully...
"DEAL!" Candace yelled upon seeing Isabella's response.
Adyson and Ginger cheered as Isabella and the blonde completed their exchange. Isabella had found her dress.
But getting THE dress was just one of many things on the to-do list. There was finding a place for the wedding reception that also had room for a banquet set-up and a dance floor...
Isabella sat at the dining table, looking uncomfortable as Candace negotiated on her behalf over the phone with a full-time event planner.
"About 200 people, bub! Uh huh? No, that's too small! I need bigger. Bigger! GET BIGGER!"
...plotting out the design of the wedding cake...
Again, Isabella sat there at the counter as she watched Candace negotiate in person with the head chef at a local bakery, who was showing off a three-tier cake.
"Are you kidding me? That's it! I need bigger. Bigger! GET BIGGER!"
...and, of course, booking the entertainment...
Isabella was shaking her head while a very miffed Holly sat next to her, unhappy of the demands Candace was placing upon her.
"You're a multi-millionaire pop star, and you're telling me you're ONLY going to bring a miniature set, bring just two backup dancers, and sing JUST ten songs? Unacceptable! I need bigger. Bigger! GET BIGGER!"
Holly grumbled. "Now I know why I let my agent book all my gigs."
"You're still going to do it, right?" Isabella asked, sheepishly.
"Of course, girl! What could of friend would I be if I said no? Just one question..."
"What?"
"Why is she so obsessed on wanting everything to 'get bigger?'"
At the time, I didn't have an answer for Holly...
...but I soon would...
Isabella was meeting with Candace once more, but this time at the food court in the Googolplex Mall. And her wedding planner was not alone this time, as she had brought along her husband, Jeremy, and their daughter, Amanda.
"Only eight weeks to go, Isabella," Jeremy said with a smile. "Nervous for the big day yet?"
"Of course not-" Isabella replied, before adding, "yet."
"Good," Candace interjected, "because Jeremy and I have some news."
"Yes?"
Isabella watched as Jeremy scooted his chair over to Candace. He then wrapped his left arm behind her neck and then reached over his own stomach with his right hand and placed it on her stomach. Isabella immediately got the hint.
"No way! You're pregnant!"
Candace squealed. "Yes! YES! We've got another one in the oven!"
"And I'm sure he'll come out perfect, just like the first one."
The married couple turned towards Amanda, who reacted to the sudden display of attention by taking her kids' size cup of water and dumping it on her lap.
"I made an oopsie!" she shouted.
"Oh, Amanda!" exclaimed Candace. "I just washed that yesterday!"
Candace got up, picked up Amanda, and started walking for the women's restroom to dry her daughter off. Jeremy laughed as he saw his little girl dripping water on the floor.
"Well," Jeremy said, turning back to Isabella, "she's still perfect in my eyes, no matter what she does."
"Aww," cooed Isabella, "that's so sweet."
"Shoulda seen this coming, though. She keeps telling me she's 'about due' for Xavier. She's so confident it's going to be a boy, and she's only six weeks in. I amazed I'm still surprised at the things she tells me sometimes."
"Wow. Two kids already. Incredible."
Isabella was genuinely happy for Jeremy and Candace. Yet Jeremy could somehow tell that Isabella was hiding something.
"You okay? You... have something on your mind?"
She nodded. "Yeah. I... I've made such a hullabaloo about this wedding that I... I just realized that I've never really thought about the future. You know, what happens after?"
Jeremy leaned forward, motioning for Isabella to continue.
"In particular, having children. Do I want them? When do I want them? Can I afford to, between both of us having part-time jobs, him in graduate school and me considering it as well? Candace has essentially been planning out the rest of her life since she was 14! I... I never thought to imagine my life after my wedding!"
Jeremy attempted to keep Isabella calmed down.
"It's okay. Candace has always been a bit, and don't tell I said this, outside the box. Most women don't go into marriage knowing things like 'I'm gonna have two and only two children, and their names are going to be Xavier and Amanda.' So relax."
"I'd listen to the man. He knows what he's saying."
Isabella turned around and gasped in shock as a person she had not seen in a couple years had just reappeared out of thin air.
"It... it's YOU!"
To be continued...
Author's Notes:
So the news is out! I'm sure you all have many questions, like why are we suddenly ten years in the future, who is Isabella marrying, and who is the mysterious figure is at the end? You'll find out the answers... in 28 days.
That's right! We've reached the midpoint of the season, and with that, this series is taking a brief recess. Don't worry, folks, the second half of the season starts March 26th, and that begins with the conclusion of this entry! So, take some time to speculate what adventures still await in this escapade and in the rest of the season, and I'll see you in four weeks!