by Angela Smith
I got home around 1 o’clock and was just figuring out where I had stashed my best shoes when there was a knock at my door. I opened it, fully expecting it to be one of the ladies from the senior center telling me that my decorations had been horribly off-putting or some other disastrous news. Instead I found a middle-aged man in a uniform standing on my doorstep holding what appeared to be a garment bag.
“Miss Autumn Hayes?” he said, squinting at a piece of paper on his clipboard.
“Yes, that’s me.”
“Sign here please.” He handed me the clipboard without even telling me what I was signing for or who it was from. I asked as much but he said he had no information; he was only the delivery man. Some delivery man he was!
I took the bag inside and hung it up on my bedroom door before unzipping it to find a dress that literally took my breath away. It was a light pink color, with a sweetheart neckline and lots and lots of tulle on the bottom. It was strapless, which was a little worrisome but otherwise it was the most perfect dress I had ever seen in my entire 28 years on earth.
Attached to the package was a note that read:
Wear this tonight with your Dior shoes and your brooch. You’ll be the belle of the ball. Xx
No name or any sign of the store this immaculate piece of clothing came from, just those few words. I was really stumped as to who sent me this dress because it was so obviously not a piece you’d find in any store locally. I could tell just by the detailing that this had to have been special ordered with me in mind. I couldn’t stop staring at it in disbelief.
Eventually I pulled myself away and began the process of getting ready. A dress like that couldn’t be worn with messy hair or no makeup. I had to pull out all the stops to make myself look as good as that dress looked hanging on my door. I did my hair in a Flapper-esque style and added a dainty little diamond studded headband. I wore light makeup as to not take away from the beauty of the dress and slipped on my Dior heels. When I looked at myself in the mirror, I barely recognized the person staring back at me. Whoever she was, she was gorgeous.
I felt a little silly stealing the spotlight since the dance really wasn’t about me but about the seniors in the community. However, I couldn’t help but smile at my reflection. I don’t think I ever looked this amazing in my life!
Deciding that walking would be a dangerous task tonight in these heels and this dress – I’d look like I escaped from a Cinderella themed party – I decided to call for a cab but was shocked to find Bernard waiting outside my door at quarter to four.
“What are you doing here?” I asked. It was a stupid question in hindsight, because obviously he was here to pick me up. I got into the car as gracefully as possible, trying not to lose a shoe, or my confidence, in the process. Once I was fully in and my dress was situated, Bernard shut the door and got into the driver’s seat.
“You look stunning tonight, Miss Autumn. Radiant, like a flower that has finally bloomed.”
For some reason his words hit me and I started to tear up a little because in this dress that is exactly how I felt. I felt like I was the most beautiful girl in the world, heading off to meet her Prince Charming. I instantly let all the negative comments people had thrown at me over the years slide off my shoulders and felt lighter for doing so. It felt like everything had finally come full circle after so much pain and heartache. How one simple dress could make me feel so many emotions, was beyond me.
When we arrived at the senior center, I saw dozens of people milling around in evening wear. Everyone looked so glamorous and I was so happy to see them all out and about tonight. No one should be sitting home alone on a day that is all about love. Whether you’re in a relationship or not, it doesn’t mean you can’t find love with your friends, family or complete strangers as we were all about to experience tonight.
When I stepped out of the car, I instantly felt all eyes turn to me. It was a weird feeling but I let myself relish in it for the moment. Fame was fleeting after all, so I better make the most of my fifteen minutes (if I even had that much time!) in the limelight.
“My God, don’t you just look amazing! Doesn’t she look amazing girls?” Kora asked. Nora and Dora instantly agreed and offered up compliments of their own like “Wonderful”, “Romantic” and “Sensational”.
“Thank you so much! You all look great yourselves. Are you hoping to find Mr. Right tonight?” I asked. It was obvious that the three women had put a great deal of effort into looking their best and all in all, they looked twenty years younger than they did when I met them at bingo so many weeks ago.
“Dear girl, we’re not looking for Mr. Right, we’re looking for Mr. Right now!” Nora said, as they all collapsed into a series of giggles like three young schoolgirls. I smiled at the fact that everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves already and the dance hadn’t even started. Maybe a job in event planning would end up being my destiny…
We all piled into the hall and I could hear the echoes of “oohs” and “ahhs” as everyone took in the scene before them. I have to say that it was quite a scene. I was able to recreate the roaring twenties to precision and was thrilled with the result. My favorite era had finally come to life and it couldn’t have been at a better place or time.
I scanned the room for Marisol, but saw no sign of her. I figured that Bernard must be going back to pick her up now after he dropped me off. That was very kind of him, but he could have picked up Marisol at the same time as me. I think both our egos could have fit in the town car!
Since I was the only one here who had any authority, so to speak, I ascended the podium which was decorated with red and pink roses, and welcomed everyone to the first annual Valentine’s Day Dance. Cheers of applause and woots of excitement permeated the air and before I knew it, dinner was served.
I wasn’t sure what everyone would like so I took a poll one night at bingo and found that the elderly community had a liking for pot roast, tender vegetables and a buttered roll or two. They were an easy group to please, it seemed.
After dinner, everyone chatted amicably as they waited for the tables to be cleared and the lights to be turned down low. I watched from the sidelines as everyone shyly looked for a dance partner. Those who had come as a couple were already on the dance floor, cutting a rug, but those who came as a single person were waiting for someone to ask them for a dance. It was so sweet to watch the tender exchanges between an elderly man and woman who probably hadn’t dated in thirty or more years. I watched as Kora, Nora and Dora were paired off with equally glamorous men and then was slightly shocked to find a glamorous man of my own standing in front of me.
“You look remarkable, Autumn. Can I be the lucky man who has the first dance of the evening with you?” Fred, the 86-year-old retired salesman from Northbeach asked. I took his hand and stifled a laugh as he curtsied in front of me before pulling me on to the dance floor with more force than I expected. I’d have to watch out for these older ones, they still had a lot of life left in them it appeared!
“Well, Fred. You certainly are surprising, aren’t you?” I inquired. “Quiet as a mouse at bingo but a real charmer on the dance floor!”
“What can I say? I’m a ladies man at heart!” he replied, continuing to twirl me in time to the music of Rosemary Clooney. Luckily, I had taken some more dance lessons over the course of the last few months and was able to dance slightly better than a newborn deer now. Just slightly though.
Once our dance concluded, I went back to the sidelines to see if I could spot Marisol. When I finally found her, I was shocked to see that she was sitting in a wheelchair, being pushed by Bernard. I ran over to her, trying not to break down in tears as I did.
“Marisol! What happened?” I inquired.
“Chickadee, don’t you worry. I’m fit as a fiddle. My nurse thought that walking around would be too much for me and Bernard here agreed and then offered to be my minder for the evening,” she said, jerking a finger in the direction of her helpful staff. At this point, I sa
w Bernard as more than just staff. I think Marisol did too.
“Can I just say you look amazing, my dear? Your grandfather is so proud.”
“Thanks, Marisol. I don’t know where this dress came from but it’s gorgeous, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it suits you perfectly.”
Our conversation was interrupted by a screen at the front of the room that had been showing people doing various twenties style dances. Suddenly it was filling up with hearts that looked like they were floating in thin air, it was really pretty to see. However, it wasn’t something that I had rigged to go up on the screen. Being myself, I worried that there was some sort of malfunction and people would be forced to watch Valentine’s Day smut in a minute.
That wasn’t the case at all, however, because as soon as the hearts appeared they began to evaporate and in their place was a live shot of Bayani. My beautiful, wonderful, loving Bayani. My heart ached seeing him on the screen.
“Hi everyone! I hope you’re all having a great time at the first ever Valentine’s Day ball!” he said, waving through the camera at those inside the hall. “I’m sorry for interrupting your night but I just felt like if I didn’t say what I had to say now, I wouldn’t have the courage tomorrow. Basically, I want to say that I am in love with the most beautiful woman in the world. It’s not just her outer beauty that got to me, it’s her inner beauty as well. This girl…well, she is pretty much the sun to my moon; the water to my ice; the summer to my winter. She’s everything I ever wanted and I knew she was the one for me the moment she ran in front of my car back in the Fall. Unfortunately, we had a miscommunication and broke up but our time apart only showed me just how much she means to me. I can’t live without her nor do I want to. So, Autumn, I’m sitting here asking you in front of all these people to give me a second chance. I’m not sure if you feel the same but I need to know once and for all because every day without you is pure torture. If you don’t want to tell me on camera, I understand,” Bayani said, brushing his fingers through his hair and standing up. I watched him silently, with big, fat tears rolling down my cheeks. If he were here, I’d run over to him and never let him go again but the fact that he was on a screen in God knows what country made it so much harder.
Suddenly, the screen went black and everyone looked around in confusion. Then a spotlight came on and illuminated me. A second spotlight came on and illuminated an empty spot on the other side of the room. I looked around at the expectant faces, who probably thought I had something to do with all of this, and shrugged my shoulders. I knew just as much as they did, which was basically nothing.
Then it all made sense. Bayani stepped into the second spotlight holding an Orchid and looking divine in a grey tuxedo. He smiled at me in a hopeful way before walking towards me. I instinctively did the same and we met in the middle of the floor not ten seconds later.
“Hi,” he said.
“Hi,” I replied, grinning from ear to ear.
“May I have this dance?”
“You may. But there is one thing I need to do first,” I said. He frowned but nodded his head. I couldn’t wait one more second to bury my hands in his hair and kiss him like I never kissed him before. The second our lips met, everything felt OK with the world again. Unlike my kiss with Luigi, I felt at home with Bayani. We fit together like two pieces of a puzzle and everyone seemed to agree as the room erupted into applause.
“OK. Now we can dance,” I said. And we did. We danced until our feet hurt and our legs ached. We danced through slow songs and fast songs; through dessert and drinks. When it came time for the night to end, I knew with all my heart that every mistake I had made up until this point was a path to this moment. Every heartache and tragedy brought me closer to this incredible man. I felt a tap on my leg as I stared at him and wondered how I got so lucky. It was Marisol.
“Toots, I’m heading home. I just want to thank you for all you did. This ball was a roaring success! Take your time tonight and make sure you don’t lose sight of your palooka ever again!” she said, winking.
I wouldn’t. I knew that with one hundred percent certainty.
“Autumn, I’m so glad to have you back in my arms. You have no idea how glad I am. But, there are some things we need to talk about…serious things…” Bayani said. “Can you meet me for coffee at The Sticky Bun Café tomorrow?”
“Absolutely,” I said. Bayani smiled and kissed my cheek before turning around and dashing towards the door. He walked backwards for a second, as if he wanted to pin this moment to memory, and then he turned on his heel and was gone.
As much as I trusted him and loved him, I had a gut feeling that something was going on and tomorrow I’d find out what it was.
Until then, I only had my memories and this beautiful gown to distract me.
To be continued…
Table of Contents
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen