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Toward the back of the store, I found a rack labeled CUSTUM MADE I smiled Todd’s mother would’ve had a heart attack if I’d taken her to a place where the signs were misspelled She’d been appalled when I went to look at a dress in a shop that didn’t serve her cha room God, I’d really been drunk on the Roth Kool-Aid and had nearly turned into one of those snooty bitches

Running hed These dresses probably had evenstories behind the boyfriends or husbands These were strong-rain, women who marched at political rallies, women who knehat they wanted

I stopped at an A-line white dress embellished with bloodred roses The corset bodice had red piping running along the bones Left her banker boyfriend for the French artist next door, and this was the dress she hen she married Pierre

No designer dress could have possibly worked for these women, because they knew exactly what they wanted and weren’t afraid to say it They went after their hearts’ desires I envied them I used to be one of them

Deep down, I was a custu intended When had I lost my way and becos to Todd’swedding dress to begin with

When I got to the last dress on the CUSTUM rack, I had to stop for a moment

Feathers!

They were the most beautiful feathers I’d ever seen And this dress wasn’t white; it was blush This dress was everything It was exactly what I would have picked if I could have custuned a dress This wasn’t just any dress This was THE dress The top was strapless with a slight curve Smaller, wispy feathers peeked out of the neckline Lace overlay covered the entire bodice, which led to a beautiful trumpet-style skirt And the bottoical

One of the wo it

“Can I try this on?”

She nodded, leadingroom in the back

I undressed and carefully slid the dress up Unfortunately,I’d been doing lately had caught up with me

So I left the back unzipped and marveled at myself in the mirror This This did not look like a twenty-seven-year-old who’d just du fiancé This did not look like so dress to be able to eat so other than ramen noodles for two meals each day

This dress made me feel like someone who hadn’t a care in the world I didn’t want to take it off But honestly, I eating and didn’t want to ruin it