Mandy walked in, trailed by the couple, and gasped. “Oh this is nice.”
“I thought so.” Simon said, moving forward to see the host. “Sasha and I came here on our anniversary. She liked it so much I thought it would be a nice gift for her birthday.”
“Thanks, by the way.” Sasha said. The host took note of the new guests and asked if they had reservations.
“Under Harris.” Simon answered. The host pulled out three menus from a carrier next to the greeter podium and motioned for them to follow him. They were escorted to a very accommodating and plush booth. The three scooted in. Sasha was sandwiched between Simon and Mandy.
“James will be your waiter today. Enjoy your dinner.” the man said with a little bow.
“So Mandy,” Simon started as the host left their table. “Is your relationship with the guy in Oregon very serious?”
“I think it will be. He’s been amazing.” Mandy said.
Third time she’s called him amazing, Sasha thought as she held back a snicker. She was tempted to tell Mandy to come up with another word to describe him, but she held her tongue as any good friend would.
Mandy continued, “He’s majoring in — would you believe this — brain science! I didn’t really think many people would be interested in neurology but he is. He’s interested in memory functions and how the brain stores it.”
“Sound like that would be a challenging curriculum.” Simon said, not sure how to respond. He’d been offered a contract with a semi-pro soccer team. While he did well enough in college, he did garnish a full scholarship for athletics. Books were never his thing. He liked a tangible application of skills.
“I suppose so. What are you doing now since you graduated?” Mandy wondered. She hadn’t kept up with Simon as much as she had with Sasha, as little as Sasha actually remembered.
“I have a job at the paper. Journalism is something I really enjoy. It’s not like having a job at all. I did get a contract with a soccer team and I’m considering going for it. It does have a half-life though. You can’t play sports forever. Writing is my back-up.” Simon explained.
“What about you, Sasha?” Mandy asked, turning to Sasha.
“I’m not so sure I’m going to get a job in my field. I’ve been working at the local library until I find one. Seriously, the market for architects is so small and you have to be stellar to get noticed.” Luckily, Sasha’s experience in the library when she was a teenager enabled her to get a job there once again.
“Really?” Mandy asked, sounding surprised. “I saw a few leads in the paper here. I want to obviously move back and work here if I can and if Rob wants to — he’s my boyfriend. He’s got family on the east coast so it’s closer here. It was just easier to get into the residency in Oregon. Things you’ve got to do to get a job I guess.”
“They aren’t a good fit.” Sasha mentioned, referencing the leads in the paper. The real reason she didn’t apply for them was because she didn’t know a lick of anything remotely close to architecture. She knew she went to college for it, but that wasn’t her. She didn’t have the memories of the other her.
“You doubt yourself way too much.” Mandy admitted.
Before Sasha could say anything further in defense of herself, a shorter man with curly hair, a broad nose and strong features approached their table. “Hi, I’m James.” he said professionally. “I’ll be serving you this evening. Can I start you off with a drink or appetizer? We have a special running on our spinach and artichoke dip.”
“I’ll take a water.” Sasha said. She didn’t know if she liked beer or wine yet and was too afraid to try them, especially here when a glass was well over five dollars.
The waiter took out a pad of paper. The underside was encased in leather and monogrammed with the restaurant’s initial. Mandy continued with her order, “I’ll have a diet coke, please.”
“I’ll have a Long Island iced tea.” Simon responded, still looking over the drink menu.
“Thank you. I’ll be back with your drinks in a moment.” James said, heading off towards the bar and then kitchen. Sasha turned back to Mandy.
“It has nothing to do with me being hard on myself.”
“Then what’s the deal?” Mandy wondered, puzzled.
“Are you ever going to tell her?” Simon asked, whispering in Sasha’s right ear.
“You think she’d believe me?” she whispered back.
“Not sure.”
“What are you two talking about?” Mandy inquired, frustrated. Their private conversation was rude and disrespectful. If they wanted to talk in private they should have done so apart from their table.
“What we are eating.” Simon said, blatantly lying. “I’m getting the grilled pork. Sasha is thinking about changing careers.” He wasn’t just lying, he was covering for her. Apparently he didn’t think Mandy would believe Sasha’s story. Of course, he didn’t believe it was a story, especially after spending the past year “starting over” with her.
“Really?” Mandy asked surprised. “To what?”
“Photography.” Sasha stated.
“How will you make any money on that? Doesn’t an architect bank it?” Mandy thought, considering in her head how the salaries could compare with one another.
“Not everything is all about the money, Mandy.” Sasha said, a little put off by the harshness in her friend’s voice. “Actually I was thinking about doing weddings and corporate events. If I charge per day I can really make a ton.”
“That’s interesting.” Mandy announced, dully. “So who is going to do your wedding? Have you thought about it?”
“We haven’t put too much in the details yet. I was thinking about that Jenna Grimes — she graduated a year before us from high school. She’s doing really well for herself. She’s got like three employees already and that’s saying a lot for her age.” Sasha noted. She took out her cell phone to check her messages and then pocketed it. Then she grabbed the sanitary gel from her purse and cleaned her hands with it. It was a force of habit before eating.
“Do you think you’ll get to be that successful?” Mandy asked.
“I don’t think it will be hard.” Sasha commented. Mandy just shrugged as James returned with a tray littered with glasses and plates for another table.
“Here are your drinks.” he said, taking one off at a time from the tray and laying them down in front of each person. “A water, diet coke, and a Long Island iced tea.”
When they had all received their drinks, the waiter asked if they were ready to order and Sasha began. “I think so. I’ll have the spinach and feta cheese salad with Caesar dressing. Can you take off the bacon pieces?”
“We can do that, yes. For you, ma’am?” the waiter asked Mandy who was still scanning the menu until her eyes stopped on an enticing dish.
“I’ll have the roasted chicken with maple glaze.”
“And your two sides?” James asked, making notes on his paper.
Mandy skimmed over the menu, trying to find where the sides were located. “Green beans and mashed potatoes, please.”
“Sir?” James asked, turning to Simon.
“I’ll have the grilled pork with green beans and the cheddar potato soup.” Simon answered. The waiter collected their menus and went off to put their orders in with the kitchen. Simon used the time to talk to Mandy. “Sasha’s got a good eye for photography, I think. Her composition is excellent. I’ve actually thought about referring her to the paper as a photo journalist.”
“But you know I don’t like the editorial stuff.” Sasha said. In truth, taking photos was something that came naturally to her and it was the first thing she thought of in terms of profession since she phased in. She didn’t have to learn much of anything.
“Hey, money is money, right?” Simon chuckled, referencing Mandy’s previous comment.
“I guess so.” Sasha muttered, not realizing the joke.
“You weren’t concerned about making the big bucks anyway.” Simon told her
and Sasha finally got where he was going.
“Can we talk about something else? Something happy? Money is a tiresome subject.” Mandy said, stifling a fake yawn.
“Like the wedding?” Sasha asked, cracking a smile.
“Yea, that’ll work.” Mandy said, smiling back. She took a sip of her drink.
“Hey, do you want to go dress shopping with me tomorrow? I know you don’t have much time here and I don’t know when you’ll be able to come back and visit.” Sasha asked.
“That would be awesome!” Mandy said, nearly choking on the beverage.
“I already have an idea of who I want to make the cake. Très Fab. Their cakes are absolutely delicious and always beautiful. Maybe I can schedule a tasting?” Sasha said, licking her lips at the thought of such a delicious dessert. It probably wasn’t a good idea to think about food while hungry and waiting for dinner to arrive.
“What about the flowers?” Mandy wondered.
“I haven’t decided on that yet. I don’t want some place that uses an online vendor like FTD.” Sasha said. She looked over a Simon who was taking his old sweet time on his iced tea. It was probably too strong for him.
“Why not?” Mandy asked. “Won’t they still look the same?”
“I’m concerned about the freshness factor.” Sasha explained. “If they go through a company like that, do they also bump up the prices?”
“I see your point.” Mandy mentioned with a nod.
“I’m going to have a money-conscious wedding. I don’t want to splurge on stuff.” Sasha told her. Relying on one income for the immediate future put a damper on big wedding plans, and they had just committed to a larger apartment together.
“Don’t I deserve it though?” Simon snickered sarcastically, crinkling his nose at the taste of his drink.
“I thought men didn’t care about that.” Sasha giggled, giving Simon a playful shove.
“Yea, I just wanted to see what you’d say.” Simon said. “Boy this drink is strong.”
“Tease.” Sasha said. “I kind of figured as much from the speed you’ve taken to drink it.”
“Probably wasn’t the best idea. I wondered what it would taste like. Mandy’s mom likes them.” Simon said. He couldn’t get used to calling her Sasha’s mom either.
“Hey, here’s the food!” Mandy said excitedly. James came over with a tray laden with steaming food, apart from Sasha’s salad.
“Spinach salad.” James said as he handed each plate over one by one. “Roasted chicken with mashed potatoes and beans. Grilled pork with beans and potato soup.” He put the tray down to his side and shifted his feet. “Is there anything else I can get you?”
“I think we’re fine. Thanks.” Simon told the waiter who dismissed himself. Simon looked down at the plate. There was some kind of sauce that was covering the pork and spreading down into the beans which were glistening. The soup smelled lovely and seemed to be the perfect temperature. “It looks great.”
“Oh my gosh, it tastes great!” Mandy said through a bite of roasted chicken. “How is yours Sasha?”
Sasha picked through her salad. “I don’t know about the cheese with the dressing. I should have gone with a vinaigrette I think.”
“I’m sorry.” Mandy consoled her and offered her some of her chicken which she refused.
“I can ask for an exchange.” Simon offered. Sasha dismissed him.
“No, it’s all right. I’ll eat it.” Sasha said, spearing some greens with her fork.
“I can’t wait for tomorrow now.” Mandy said, stopping to pull out her cell phone and punch in the details on her calendar for the next day.
“It’s going to be fun. You should try on dresses too. You won’t object to being my maid of honor?” Sasha asked and Mandy shook her head violently.
“Oh hell no!” Mandy exclaimed, putting her phone away.
“I’ll get your — our parents — fitted for stuff after you leave.” Sasha said, although the back of her mind thought, Even though they adopted me, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to calling them Mom and Dad. Helen and Bill is so much more comfortable.
“Do you want Mom to come tomorrow, though?” Mandy wondered. It was customary for the mother of the bride to join in with the dress shopping.
“I think she should.” Sasha murmured.
“Cool. I can’t wait. Your wedding is going to be insane. I just know it! Even if you want to be frugal, you’ll still pull it off.” Mandy said. They resumed eating their dinner, chatting all the while about their lives and how things had changed since high school. Sasha had met new friends in college, but the bonds weren’t there since she didn’t remember them. Mandy was really all she knew other than Simon and Kendra. Kendra was off in California for college. She was taking some fashion design classes while doing modeling work.
Sasha wondered how long she would remain in this timeline. Would she have the pleasure of meeting Simon at the end of the aisle? She wanted to experience it so bad.
CHAPTER 18
“Almost ready?” the voice of Helen Kline soared over the changing room door.
“She just needs to zip it up.” Mandy called back. Sasha was trying on dresses in the fitting room at the bridal salon. The staff at this particular shop was limited, so Mandy volunteered to be the assistant for her.
“It’s not tight enough. Where are those clips?” Sasha asked. She was in a floor-length gown and was looking around for clips to fasten her gown. “Over there.” She pointed to a little basket above their heads.
“Clipping is so much easier.” Mandy said, stretching up to grab a few. She mushed some fabric from the back of the dress together and stuck a clip on either side.
“Okay, we’re coming out!” Sasha called again. They opened the fitting room door and faced Mandy’s mom Helen. She just stared open mouthed at her two daughters.
“Are you going to say anything Mom?” Mandy asked nervously.
“I’m just...in awe. You both look absolutely beautiful.” Helen said, on the verge of tears. Mandy wanted to laugh because she wasn’t even in a dress yet. Of course, her mom didn’t want to make her feel less pretty, so she said both. Mandy would get her turn soon enough.
“Let me see how it looks.” Sasha said, looking down at her white gown. She wanted to see the back of it and the train and there wasn’t any way to see the embroidered hem at present.
“There’s a pedestal over here.” one of the store employees said.
Sasha walked over to the pedestal and stood on it while Mandy bent down and smoothed out the train for her. “Wow. This is a beautiful dress.”
“Isn’t it?” Mandy asked, rhetorically. “I told you to try it on and you said you didn’t think it would look good on you.”
“I guess it looks different on the hanger.” Sasha breathed out. Mandy looked her over. Sasha didn’t seem overly enthusiastic over it and they’d tried on several so far.
“Do you think it’s the one?” Mandy wondered.
“Hmm.” Sasha paused in thought. “Do you think there is too much beading up top? Maybe I should have something less decorated.”
“I’d like to see something less fitted.” Helen commented. Of course, that was just motherly conservativeness.
“I’d be open to that.” Sasha agreed, although it was to appease Helen. She didn’t want to hurt her feelings by not trying on something she suggested.
“You should show off your curves!” Mandy exclaimed and Sasha giggled. Sasha wasn’t really too curvy. She had been working out with Simon to keep fit. She did have a perfect body for modeling, but it wasn’t her thing.
“You can with a nice corseted bodice.” Sasha said. The store assistant offered to provide more samples to them with both options.
“Sasha, you know how important this day means to me. I’d be happy with whatever you decide.” Helen smiled as she spoke, and bent down to grab a tissue out of her purse to blot any tears that were sure to be incoming.
“I know, and it’s the ten
th dress I’ve tried on. It just seems surreal.” Sasha mentioned, and she wasn’t just talking about the experience of trying on dresses. She was mentally a seventeen-year-old. Mandy just explained she hadn’t been engaged long, so perhaps that was why. “Mandy, do you want to try on dresses now? You won’t have another chance to.”
“It’s your time now.” Mandy beamed.
“I know.” Sasha said, a little disheartened. Shopping was fun. She wanted to milk the opportunity for all it was worth. “I want you to enjoy your own experiences too.”
“Okay.” Mandy relented. “Have you decided on wedding colors?”
Sasha giggled and gave her “sister” a hug. “I like blue.”
“Of course you do. Blue is your favorite color. You should go with that. Simon likes blue too.” Mandy said playfully. They walked over to the bridesmaid section and Sasha looked through the racks. Mandy wanted her to ultimately make the choice.
“I don’t want to be predictable.” Sasha said, shuffling through the racks and stopping at a couple unconventional pieces. “Maybe blue and black?”
“Sounds like a winner. But, you know blue isn’t predictable. It’s pretty. At least, if you get the right shade.” Mandy said, and Sasha nodded.
Shortly after making a mental note to get some samples for Mandy, Sasha was greeting by the store assistant who was laden with a variety of different bridal dresses. “Here are a few more.” the woman said.
“Thanks. Let me switch into...” Sasha started, and thumbed through the dresses, seeing if anything stood out to her. “This one.”
“I’ll help.” Mandy said, following Sasha into a changing room. At least it was designed to be large enough to fit two people.
Many of the dresses in the showroom, especially with trains, were quite heavy. Sasha’s latest obsession was following My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding and Mandy was glad Sasha wasn’t one, just for the fact they’d have to deal with a dress that would be well over twenty pounds. Mandy did adore their moral compass and wished more girls growing up followed the same.
“I bet Mom would like a dress too.” Mandy said softly.
Out of Time Page 7
