That Last Little Spark

“Yeah...in the lobby...in front of EVERYONE.” Jess wiped her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time as she relayed the good news to April and Phil. She and Bam were back in her apartment, getting ready to go to the club to meet everyone. So far, Jess had called two bridal shops and had already set up meetings for the weekend...one for her dress and one for the bridesmaids and maid of honor, though she was still lost on a flower girl. Jess had called Kelsey and asked her to meet her at the club with everyone. She held the phone away from her ear as April started screaming with joy. Her aunt had done the exact same thing, before firing a series of questions at her about the wedding. The only thing they had decided on so far was when they wanted the wedding to be.

“October 17th. I want to get married on the day my parents got married.” she smiled at Bam as he took her hand in his.

“Oh my god, that’s less than two months away! How are you going to get everything done?” April gasped.

“I can do it, don’t worry.” she laughed as April started screaming with joy yet again.

“April, I have to go. Bam and I are meeting my friends at the club I work at. I’ll talk to you soon, okay?” she said.

“Oh my God, I can’t wait!” April was exclaiming when Jess hung up.

“Let’s go.” Jess stood up. They were still wearing the clothes from earlier. “Oh my God, Erica’s going to kill me because she’s not here to see this.” she laughed as they made their way to the door.

When they arrived at the club, her friends smiled.

“You finally got out of bed?” Ashleigh asked across the bar. The club hadn’t opened yet, so everyone was gathered around the bar.

“Actually, we’ve been out since this morning.” Jess had her left hand on her neck, hiding the ring behind her hair.

“Really?” Kelsey asked.

“Bam surprised me with tickets to Wicked.” Jess smiled. Everyone started exclaiming how sweet he was.

“And then he surprised me with something else.” Jess casually moved her hand to brush some of her hair behind her ear.

As the light caught the ring, Chloe screamed so loud that Jess was surprised the windows didn’t shatter, and everyone looked at her.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Kelsey gave her a weird look.

“SHE’S ENGAGED!” Chloe pointed at Jess’ hand. The rest of the group looked at her ring finger and started cheering and screaming.

“Oh my God, I win the bet! Pay up, Ashleigh!” Kelsey exclaimed, turning to face Ashleigh, who groaned and pulled twenty dollars out of her pocket.

“What the fuck is with you guys making bets on my love life?” Jess asked.

“Hey, I’m living vicariously through you. That allows me to make bets on whatever the hell I want.” Kelsey grinned and admired the ring.

“It was my mom’s engagement ring.” Jess announced. Kelsey looked up at her with a smile. Ashleigh opened a bottle of champagne as Joey pulled out some glasses.

“I propose a toast. To Bam and Jess.” Chloe raised her glass in the air.

“Chloe, Ashleigh...I want you two...and Erica, to be my bridesmaids.” Jess smiled as the girls broke into excited squeals, then she turned to Kelsey.

“Kelsey...you’ve been one of my best friends for as long as I can remember.” she took Kelsey’s hand. “You’re like the sister I never got to have. Will you be my maid of honor?” she blinked back tears as Kelsey wiped her own eyes.

“I would be honored.” she wrapped her arms around her best friend and hugged her tightly.

“Erica’s going to be so pissed that she missed this.” Ashleigh wiped her eyes.

“Oh, and clear your schedules for October 17th.” Jess announced when she and Kelsey pulled away from each other.

“Why? Is that the bachelorette party?” Kelsey grinned.

“Nope. That’s the wedding.” Jess smiled.

“Are you serious?” Ashleigh’s jaw dropped.

“Mm-hmm.” Bam nodded with a smile.

“How are you going to pull a wedding off in less than two months?” Kelsey asked.

“Come on, Kelsey, we’ve both been planning our weddings since we were little. I can do this. I want to get married on the same day my parents did.” Jess explained.

“Where’s it going to be?” Joey asked.

“How about the skate barn in the backyard? We can clear out the ramps...and it’ll definitely fit everyone we would want to invite.” Bam suggested.

“I’ve never heard you plan something out like that, Mr. I-Do-Everything-At-The-Last-Minute.” Kelsey leaned forward to look at him, laughing when he flipped her off.

“When are you going to start planning?” Ashleigh asked.

“As soon as we possibly can. I’ve got a meeting with a few places already to talk about my dress...and your dresses, but I’m thinking of taking a road trip to Westchester to look at those old bridal magazines.” Jess smiled at Kelsey.

“Oh my god, yes!” Kelsey clapped her hands.

“When are you guys leaving?” Joey asked Bam.

“How about tonight?” Bam asked.

“Tonight?” Jess echoed. The sun was starting to go down.

“Yeah! Why not? It’s only like...two hours away.” Bam shrugged.

“Go! Do it! Go on, lovebirds, get the hell out of my club!” Ashleigh smiled.

“Kelsey, come with us! We can go back to our childhood.” Jess grabbed her hand.

“Okay, I’ll follow you two in my car.” Kelsey agreed.

“This is happening so fast!” Chloe laughed.

“That’s how we do it!” Jess nodded as the group of three stood up.

“I think I’ll just leave from here. I have an emergency change of clothes in my car.” Kelsey announced, as the group turned to stare at her.

“Don’t ask. It’s something she’s always done in case she gets stranded somewhere.” Jess explained. “We’ll see you in Westchester, then.” she nodded to Kelsey as she and Bam left the club.

“They’re going to go insane when we walk in.” Jess said to Bam after the two hour drive to Westchester. Kelsey was following them in her car as they pulled into Bam’s driveway. It was almost ten.

“Ape!” he yelled, walking in the door. April screamed from the Pirate Bar and dashed up the stairs, with Phil and the rest of their friends following behind. She engulfed Bam and Jess in a hug, talking a mile a minute about plans. Phil finally managed to pry his excited wife off of the pair, allowing them to talk about what they had decided on so far.

“This calls for a drink!” Dico announced when the conversation died down.

“Hey,” Jess caught Bam’s arm. “Kelsey and I are going to go to her house to look at her magazines.” she explained.

“Alright, we’ll still be here.” Bam kissed her and followed his friends down to the Pirate Bar.

“We can take my car.” Kelsey offered. She was strangely silent as they got in and started driving.

“You okay?” Jess asked.

“Are you sure this planning thing isn’t going too fast? I mean, hell, Jess. He just proposed today!” Kelsey explained, drumming her fingers on the wheel when she stopped at a red light.

“It’s a little fast, but I need to get the dresses out of the way before I can do anything. I don’t know much about weddings, but I know it takes a long time for a dress to be made.” Jess glanced at Kelsey knowingly as it started raining. “And he’s right about the skate barn. I don’t know of any place around here that would have any openings for that day, for that many people, anyway.”

“So you’re definitely going to have the wedding here?” Kelsey asked as the light turned green.

“I think it would be easier than trying to get everyone in a hotel in the city. Sure, people would be able to stay in the same place, but again, would any hotel have an opening for that day?” Jess stared out the windshield, looking down when Kelsey grabbed her hand.

“As long as you’re happy, I’m so fucking excited. And my dress better be hot.” she winked.

“Yes ma’am.” Jess laughed as Kelsey pulled into her driveway. The lights were still blazing in the living room.

“Hello, hello!” Kelsey called into the house after she opened the door.

“There’s my baby!” her mom, Colleen, hurried down the hallway and engulfed her in a hug.

“And the bride-to-be! Oh, congratulations!” Colleen turned to Jess and gave her a hug as well.

“Mom, you still have those old bridal magazines, right?” Kelsey asked when her mom pulled away.

“The ones you two used to plan your pretend weddings with? I believe they’re in the box in the basement labeled, ‘Bridal’.” her mom replied.

“Let’s go!” Kelsey kicked off her shoes and ran for the basement door in the kitchen. Jess followed her lead, and the giggling girls descended the stairs into the family room like they were ten years old again.

“Found it!” Kelsey sighed after they spent fifteen minutes in anxious silence, moving boxes around in the dusty storage area off of the family room. They dragged the box out into the family room. And sat down.

“It’s like some kind of time capsule.” Jess smiled as Kelsey blew the dust off of the top. She opened it to reveal stacks and stacks of magazines. Already, they could see the pink and green Post-It notes they had used to mark their favorite pages.

“Holy shit. Did we really go through this many?” Kelsey gingerly picked up a magazine.

“I get the feeling we’re going to be down here a long time.” Jess laughed. Kelsey nodded and turned around, turning on the TV behind her.

“The pink notes HAVE to be yours.” Jess remarked, looking at the picture that the note marked: a woman in a ball gown style wedding dress with a lot of pick-ups and ruching. She showed her the picture, and Kelsey rocked back in laughter. On the opposite page was another huge ball gown with ribbons and lace all over the skirt.

“Dear God, what was wrong with me?” she giggled. “Hey, look at this!” she showed Jess the magazine she was holding. On the page was a picture of a woman in a skirt that seemed to flow out at least three feet in every direction.

“She’s like...drowning in it!” Jess laughed and continued flipping. Shaking her head when she came to the end of that magazine, she picked up one that had only green notes marking the pages. As she went to lift it out of the box, a faded Polaroid picture fell out, landing on top of a stack of magazines.

Holding her breath, she carefully picked up the picture.

“Oh my God.” she whispered, putting her hand to her mouth.

“What’s up?” Kelsey asked, putting her magazine down.

“It’s my mom.” Jess whispered, looking at the picture. She was wearing a dress covered in lace applique and crystals. It had a fitted skirt that went to her knees before flaring out to the floor, and a plunging v-shaped neckline.

“Oh...oh wow.” Kelsey breathed when Jess gave her the picture.

“That’s what I want.” Jess nodded. “I don’t care if I don’t go flip another page in any of these. This is what I want.”

Kelsey looked up from the picture and met Jess’ eyes with a smile.