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I squealed with happiness and crushed Luna to me so hard she squeaked. “I’m getting married!”
“Fuck yeah, you are. Where’s your husband-to-be?”
“He’s on the phone with his mom in the bedroom.”
Luna hugged me again. “I really am super happy for you. And I promise not to let any of my weirdness about marriage pop up during this process. You’re trusting me with a sacred duty and I’m going to be the best fucking bridesmaid you’ve ever seen.”
“I believe you.”
“I guess I should probably let you go. I’m sure you’re both eager to roll around on each other after a proposal. I just really wanted to make sure that you knew I supported you.”
“Loons, you are too fucking cute.”
And so were all of the Marinos when we went over the next evening to give them the news in person, though Sidney’s mom had inevitably spread the word as soon as she heard. I was excited to start planning now that we had confirmed our bridal party and would have some partners in crime for all the details.
Nicky and Luca were going to stand on Sidney’s side, and Meg and Luna would stand on mine. All the parents were super jazzed. I had assumed everyone would be excited, and it was a relief to know my estimation was accurate.
The next weekend, the whole bridal party got together so we could make a plan of attack with wedding organization. We could have hired an event planner, but my friends and in-laws had all offered their time and expertise, and I absolutely loved the idea of planning this event with all of them.
Luca nearly dropped the tea tray he was making when Luna walked into the door, his eyes gone wide and adoring as she skipped inside and hugged me. Meg followed more sedately after her.
“Luca, this is Meg and Luna. Girls, this is Luca.”
His cheeks flushed red as a beet when Luna waved hello to him. Nicky joined us and I made sure everyone was introduced before we convened in the living room with our drinks and snacks. Luca’s adoring gaze only left Luna when someone asked him a direct question.
“How many people are you thinking?” Luna asked.
“Maybe a couple hundred?” Sidney replied.
“Okay.” Luna took the laptop from Luca and added the information into our shared drive. “Luca, can you please go through the list of all the venues I found and remove any that won’t be able to accommodate that many people?”
“You bet.” Luca was way too cute, with his flushed cheeks and bright eyes. He’d been entranced by Luna from the moment she walked in the door, but I didn’t want to make either of them uncomfortable so I kept my amusement to myself for now.
Meg was researching florists, Luca and Luna were on venues, Sidney was checking out catering options, Nicky was looking at stationary companies for invitations, and I was trying to figure out a vague schedule for when everything would have to be booked, when we would send out save-the-dates and invitations, and when we would have the bridal shower. Ten million things were on my list, but it didn’t seem so overwhelming with five other people to help me manage it.
I knew we couldn’t plan it all in a single afternoon, but after a few hours we were actually able to knock out a decent amount of the initial list. We had narrowed things down, sent out inquiries to the various companies, and had at least some semblance of a plan to move forward.
“I’ll pick up all of the sample binders before our next meeting,” Luna said. “We have to pick your wedding colors and make sure that all of the companies can accommodate.”
“I had no idea this was so much work,” Luca added. “We’re absolutely sure we don’t want to hire anyone to help?”
“Don’t underestimate your sister’s organizational powers,” Nicky said with a laugh. “It seems like a lot, because it is, but we can definitely handle it. Plus, if we need to, there’s like a billion Marino cousins we can tap for different tasks.”
Sidney laughed. “You’re definitely right about that. No shortage of cousin power.”
“I think an August wedding is going to be beautiful,” Nicky said, smiling. “We have a whole year and a bit before the date you picked and we can definitely throw you the party of the century with that much time.”
I stared down at my beautiful ring and wiggled excitedly. “I really want to go wedding dress shopping but it’s probably too early.”
“Fuck too early.” Luna took my hand in hers. “We can do that whenever you want. You just say the word and I’ll book us an appointment at every bridal place in the city.”
“Twist my rubber arm, why don’t you. Okay, it’s not a rush but I’m happy to try stuff on whenever we can get that sorted.”
There were plenty of styles that I loved, but I was so ready for that moment when you put on the dress and burst into tears because of how perfect it was. The only thing I was more excited for would be seeing Sidney’s face when I walked down the aisle toward him, wearing it.
The bridal party and the moms gathered at the Marinos’ before we all went over to the dress shop. Luca had connected the laptop to the TV and we were scrolling through options for bridesmaid and mother of the bride and groom dresses. Everyone was so excited and giggly, laughing and voting on cuts and colors. I wanted to see the girls in the dresses before I made any concrete decisions. Maybe the vision I had in my head wouldn’t even work.
Luca tiptoed in sheepishly with a hefty tray laden with cups, a pair of teapots, and a plate of cookies piled high. “Hope I’m not interrupting. I wanted to make sure you had enough fuel for the afternoon.”
