by Chloe Taylor
“It feels pretty good, Zoey. How does it look?” Aunt Lulu asked. She stood in front of the mirror, turning left and right, admiring herself.
“It lookth almoth thone! I can’th believe how few alterationth it needth!” Zoey was holding a few straight pins in her mouth, which made it hard to talk.
“Oh good, I’m so glad.” Aunt Lulu exhaled deeply, and she seemed to relax. Unfortunately, that shifted some of the pins. “Things are set with the caterers, and the house is being cleaned at the end of the week, and I think I’ve got an idea for a little wedding gift for John, just something small. . . .”
Lulu chattered on while Zoey knelt down to checked the seams in the skirt of the dress. She’d basted them together already, and now she had to mark with pins the ones that needed to be sewn up on the machine.
“How’s your dress coming?” Lulu asked.
“Great!” Zoey replied. “At least, I think it is. My friend Sean ended up doing the sewing work for me, and he said he’s going to bring it by later today for me to try on.”
“That’s great news!” Aunt Lulu beamed. “I’ve been worried you were working too hard.”
“Not at all,” she assured her. “And remember, I’m getting some awesome experience! I’ve designed and made a wedding gown. I never, ever thought I could do that!”
Zoey stood up, and Lulu very carefully, since her bodice was still pinned, pulled Zoey close for a squeeze.
“I knew you could do it,” Lulu said. “And I can’t wait to tell all the guests that my very own, very talented niece made this gorgeous dress!”
“Well, it’s still not totally done, so you’d better get out of it so I can finish!” Zoey joked. Today was her last full day to work on it, since she had school all week. Plus, her grandparents were coming to town on Thursday. Zoey had to get the dress completed.
After Lulu left, and Zoey had just gotten back to work, the doorbell rang again. Marcus and her father had offered to help John today by running errands for the you-know-what, so Zoey had to answer the door. She hurriedly threw a large white bedsheet over the worktable, to cover Lulu’s dress. She didn’t know who was at the door and didn’t want to take a chance of anyone seeing it.
She was pleased to see Sean standing there, with her finished dress, all pressed and ready to wear.
“How on Earth did you do that so fast?” Zoey asked, amazed. She looked the dress over from top to bottom, expecting to see something he’d missed. But there was nothing. It looked perfect. “I can’t believe it!”
“Well, it was your design, and you’d cut it out, so I didn’t have to agonize over every design decision as I made it, like you probably would have,” Sean said. “I just sewed it together! Do you want to try it on?”
Zoey nodded, and she ran upstairs to change. Luckily, Zoey had made herself so many outfits that she knew exactly what size she was and had cut the fabric accordingly, so the dress fit like a glove. It looked terrific.
She ran downstairs to show Sean. She stopped at the bottom of the steps and did a twirl.
Sean applauded. “It’s great!” he said. “You’ll be the best bridesmaid there.”
Cheeks flaming, Zoey stopped her twirling. “What do you mean?” she asked. Anxiously, she tried to remember their conversation. Had she accidentally revealed the secret?
Sean looked confused by her obvious panic. “Didn’t you say you were a junior bridesmaid? You’ll be the best one at the engagement party.”
Zoey realized he meant that she’d be the best of the junior bridesmaids there (although she was the only one), not that she’d actually be performing her junior bridesmaid’s duties quite yet. She breathed a sigh of relief, both at having not been caught and also because this hideous secret keeping was nearly over. Only a few more days, and she could go back to her regular, honest life!
“I can’t thank you enough, Sean,” Zoey said. “You saved me, you really did. I’m sorry I haven’t . . . I mean, I’m sorry we haven’t had a chance to get to know each other very well at school. Maybe we could hang out sometime.”
Sean shrugged casually. “No worries. It was a great project for me. I love making clothes, but it’s not something that’s very popular for guys at Mapleton Prep to do, you know?”
Zoey nodded. “Yeah. I do know.”
Sean looked at her slyly. “Remember how you said you’d owe me?” He wiggled his eyebrows up and down, as if mimicking a villain from a cartoon.
“Yeeeees?” Zoey asked seminervously.
Sean coughed before he said, “Would you want to help me start a fashion club at school? I’ve been wanting to do it for a while, but until we had this home ec elective, I didn’t think there would be enough kids who knew how to sew. But if you did it with me . . . I mean, I think it would be really cool.”
“I love that idea!” Zoey exclaimed. Her brain immediately started to explore the possibilities. “Let’s do it!”
“Shake on it?” Sean asked, holding out his hand.
Zoey shook it firmly, and the deal was struck. Zoey couldn’t believe her good luck. She’d found a cool new design friend, had a finished junior bridesmaid’s dress, and they had a plan to create a new club at school.
“Well, I’ve got to get going,” Sean said. “But I’ll see you at school tomorrow, okay?”
“I can’t thank you enough, Sean, really!” said Zoey.
Zoey walked Sean to the door and waved as he headed off toward his house. She glanced at the clock and realized she really needed to hurry and get back to work. But first, she had to put her own clothes back on.
Upstairs, just as she was getting back into her tunic and leggings, the doorbell rang again.
“Good grief, who is that?” Zoey wondered.
Then she remembered she’d asked Priti to come by and help her pin the junior bridesmaid’s dress on herself, so she could make adjustments, because she didn’t know Sean would do such an unbelievable job. Usually, she pinned things on herself, but it was awkward to do, and she wanted this dress to look flawless for her aunt’s wedding.
Zoey hurried back down the stairs, carrying the junior bridesmaid’s dress on a hanger. She checked to see that the bridal gown was still covered, and satisfied the secret was safe, she opened the door.
“Hi, Priti!” Zoey said breezily, as if nothing were ever amiss.
“Is that the dress?” Priti said. “WOW—it’s beautiful! And Sean sewed that?”
Priti came inside and followed Zoey into the living room. She inspected the beautiful dress from top to bottom. “I’m really impressed,” Priti said. “He did a great job. How’s it fit?”
Zoey’s face broke into a smile. “You won’t believe this, but it’s perfect! I’d cut it out very carefully, and gave him my measurements, but even so, I expected it to be a little loose or tight or whatever. But it’s not! It’s totally ready to go. I don’t even need you for alterations help!”
“That’s amazing,” said Priti. She paused and bit her lip, her eyes fixed on the dress. “Um, I know you said you designed this to wear for the wedding . . .”
Immediately, Zoey became nervous once again. Priti looked like she was holding back something important. “What is it, Priti?”
“It’s just . . . well . . .” Priti sighed. “To be honest, I’m not sure you should wear it to the engagement party. It’s so special, and perfect for a bridesmaid. It’s the nicest bridesmaid’s dress I’ve ever seen! I just think you might want to save it for the wedding instead, and wear a regular dress to the engagement party.”
Priti looked down, as if worried she would hurt Zoey’s feelings. But instead, quite by accident, she’d said the absolute perfect thing.
“Really? You think so?” Zoey beamed. She loved the dress too, and she thought it was perfect for the wedding, but it was nice to hear it from someone else. “Okay, then I think maybe I do want to wear it for the wedding.” Zoey tried not to laugh as she said this.
Relieved, Priti flopped down onto the sofa. “Can I st
ay for a minute, or do you need to work?” She leaned toward the coffee table, and picked up the roll of lace ribbon that Buttons had picked out at A Stitch in Time. “I just don’t feel like going home.”
“Sure,” Zoey said automatically, although she really did need to get back to work. But something in Priti’s tone kept her from saying that.
Before Zoey could ask what was going on, Priti held up the ribbon. “What’s this?” she asked. “It’s very pretty.”
With a gasp, Zoey realized she’d completely forgotten the third project she’d promised for Lulu’s wedding: the ring bearer pillow for Buttons to wear! How could she have forgotten?
“Th-that’s, uh, um . . . ,” Zoey stammered. “That’s to make a ring bearer pillow for Aunt Lulu’s dog, Buttons. Isn’t that neat? She’s going to walk the ring down the aisle.”
Priti’s eyes went wide, and she laughed. “You’re kidding! I love that! What a fun idea.”
“But, Priti, I can’t believe it, but I—I forgot to make it!” Suddenly, a thought occurred to Zoey. Priti was at her house, with time to spare, and was learning to sew in home ec. Zoey needed help getting the pillow done. What if she asked Priti to do it while she supervised? She would have to tell Priti she’s been working on the wedding dress in secret, and still not mention anything about the surprise wedding.
She decided to go for it. “Priti, would you help me out and make the ring bearer pillow? I’ve got my extra sewing machine here, and I could show you how Lulu wants it to look. It’s a great project for a beginner, and we can chat and catch up while I work on my aunt’s gown.”
Priti looked stunned. “You’d let me help? Oh, I’d love to, I’d really love to!” She was quiet a moment, then asked, “Do you really have your aunt’s wedding gown started already? Can I see it?”
Zoey nodded, and led Priti to her worktable in the dining room. She pulled back the bedsheet to reveal the beautiful pearlescent gown.
“Zoey, you’ve been working on this?” Priti shook her head in disbelief. “I can’t believe it. How can you stand home ec class?”
Zoey burst out laughing. “I love home ec. I get to hang out with you! And we made those awesome cakes with the gooey chocolate inside.”
Priti picked up a scrap of the wedding gown’s fabric, smoothing it between her fingertips. Zoey pointed. “That’s what we’ll use to make the little pillow. Let me go get my other machine, and we’ll get to work!”
Zoey retrieved the fancy Speedman machine she’d received as a gift when her mom’s machine broke. She cleared a space for it on the dining room table. The she made a quick sketch of the pillow, with measurements for Priti to use as a pattern, and found some batting to use for the inside.
“So, there will be a little pocket here for the ring, and that’s about it,” Zoey said, explaining the basic design. “I’m so glad you’re helping me with it! My grandparents are coming later this week, and I know they’d love to see it. Plus, I really don’t have time!”
The two girls sat down alongside each other to work, and Zoey was happy to have her friend there with her. Priti always made everything more fun.
Then Zoey remembered the comment Priti had made earlier. “Hey, how come you said you didn’t want to go home? Is something going on?”
Priti was measuring the scrap of gown fabric carefully and holding it up to check with Zoey before she cut it.
“Um, well, no,” Priti said. “There’s nothing new going on. I just can’t get used to going back and forth every few days between my mom’s house and my dad’s apartment. And my sisters are never ever at either place, because they’re in high school, and they’re always gone all the time, so it’s just me sitting there with whichever parent. So it’s kind of lame.”
Priti was still wearing the dark, bleak goth clothing she’d begun wearing when her parents split up over the summer. Zoey had hoped that as school got underway, Priti’d go back to her previous wardrobe of fun, bright colors, and accessories with sparkle. But she hadn’t.
“Is there anything I can do, Priti?” Zoey asked. “You know you can always hang out here. And Sean and I might start a fashion club! You could join that. It’ll probably be after school.”
“Great idea!” Priti said. “I definitely will. And thanks, but I’m okay. My new ‘parental situation’—that’s my what sisters call it—will just take time to get used to, I guess.”
The girls worked in silence for several minutes. Priti seemed happy to be there, and she was doing a great job with the pillow. Zoey couldn’t help feeling like she’d gotten very lucky to have help from both her and Sean.
As Zoey was finishing up the hem on the wedding gown, she noticed Priti looking at it oddly.
“What?” Zoey asked. She immediately scanned the dress for flaws. “Do you see a smudge?”
Priti shook her head. “Nooooo,” she said. “I just think it’s odd that you’re so far along on the wedding dress when there’s still no date for the wedding. And this pillow . . .”
She let her voice trail off. Zoey could see Priti mentally adding up the wedding gown, the ring bearer pillow, and the junior bridesmaid’s dress. Priti had probably guessed what was really going on, but was kind enough not to say it out loud. Zoey knew Priti could keep a secret, and she longed to tell her, but Zoey had promised her aunt, and she meant to keep that promise.
“Aunt Lulu just wants to show everything to my grandparents ahead of time,” Zoey said, rather limply. “They’re coming this week, you know.”
Priti nodded. “Sure, that makes sense.”
The girls continued working, but Zoey began to feel guilty. She hadn’t been able to keep the secret after all. She’d tried her best, but, somehow, it seemed it might have slipped through the seams.
CHAPTER 9
Smaller Is Better (For Now!)
I’m thinking of taking a break from big, elaborate sewing projects for a while. . . . I’m wiped out! I’ve been working on a lot of complicated dresses recently, and even though they’re very satisfying to complete, they are very tiring to work on! I know that if I take a little break and make some new accessories for my Sew Zoey store, I’ll be energized and ready to get back to dresses again. Everyone needs accessories, and people seem to like buying them online, because they’re one size fits all!
I can’t talk about all the big things happening in the next few days, but I can say that they’re all I can think about! My aunt’s dress for her engagement party is nearly done, and my dress is completely done, but I’m helping with some other details as well. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt this busy and frantic. I feel like I’m bursting at the seams. I’m just so excited and nervous and exhausted, all at the same time.
On Tuesday, Zoey asked Lulu to come over after school to try on the wedding dress one final time. Zoey was pretty sure it was finished and ready, but she wanted to leave herself enough time to make any final final changes. She paced nervously by the front door waiting for her aunt to arrive.
Aunt Lulu was ten minutes late, and she showed up looked flushed and flustered. “I’m sorry, Zoey,” she said. “Last-minute wedding phone calls. The company that was delivering the tables and chairs thought the party was next Saturday! Thank goodness I called to confirm.”
Zoey ushered Lulu upstairs, and they went into Zoey’s bedroom. The dress hung on Marie Antoinette, Zoey’s dress form, steamed and pressed and looking gorgeous.
Lulu eyes teared up again when she saw the gown, and Zoey couldn’t help feeling glad for all the many, many hours she’d put in to make the dress as perfect as she could. Lulu slipped out of her pants and blouse, and Zoey helped her step into the gown. Lulu pulled a beautiful pair of pearl-colored satin sling-back heels from her purse and put them on.
“I bought these because the heel’s height was exactly what you and I had planned on,” Lulu said. And she was right. The hem of the dress just kissed the floor when the shoes were on.
As Zoey zipped up the back of the dress, she examined the bodice for
any puckers or wrinkles that needed her attention. Lulu admired herself in the mirror, the sparkle in her eyes telling Zoey all she needed to know about how Lulu felt about the dress.
To Zoey’s delight, and relief, the dress appeared to be done. It fit well, it moved well, and it was even the right length. Zoey couldn’t believe it. She’d finished her first wedding gown! And she couldn’t help thinking that maybe she had a knack for them. Could she really be a future Monique Lhuillier or Vera Wang?
Lulu walked around the room several times in her new shoes and dress, beaming and looking every inch the beautiful bride. Zoey was glad Lulu didn’t seem to want to take off the dress. That was a good sign.
“I think I’ll even be able to dance in it!” Lulu exclaimed.
Then she paused at Zoey’s closet door, where Zoey’s junior bridesmaid’s dress hung in a plastic dry-cleaner’s bag, finished and ready for Saturday. “Oh, Zoey!” Lulu said. “It’s even more beautiful than I thought it would be! And it’ll look great with Sybil’s maid of honor dress, although I know she’ll be jealous when she sees how adorable yours is.”
Zoey grinned. She couldn’t wait to wear her dress. “The ring pillow is ready too,” Zoey said, picking it up from her desk and showing it to Lulu.
Lulu ran her fingertips over the lace ribbon and dress fabric on the pillow. “It’s just lovely,” she said softly. “I can’t imagine how a busy student like you managed to get this all done.”
“Well, I had a little help from my friends,” Zoey admitted. “Actually, a lot. Or I never would have been able to do it all! My friend Sean sewed the junior bridesmaid’s dress together, and Priti made the pillow.” She cleared her throat. “The hardest thing, really, has been keeping the secret from everyone. I’ve told so many ridiculous stories about why I’ve been so busy, I’m sure everyone thinks I’ve lost it!”
Lulu laughed. “Me too! No one can believe I haven’t set the date for the wedding yet, since they all know John and I are thinking of starting a family sometime soon. I’ve said all kinds of absurd things. I feel like I might burst from keeping it all in!”
