Party Night
Chapter 1
Mark and I had this bridal appointment all set,
but then he bails on me. Again. All because of
Lily.
Mark used to whine about her. “Your
stepsister’s such a drama queen, not half as
دو
cool as you.”
But now, as soon as he hears Lily fainted,
he’s running every red light to get back to
her.
“Sarah, I still love you, but Lily’s just so
vulnerable.”
I just laughed.
Talk about wanting to have your cake and eat
it too. Get lost, you jerk.
- 1.
I came out of the dressing room, all done up
in the gown, and Mark was nowhere to be
seen.
The manager awkwardly shuffled up to me.
“Mr. Miller got a call about half an hour ago
and had to rush out.”
I nodded, walked over to the couch, and
grabbed my phone.
Nothing. Not a single missed call.
L
I sat there from noon until night. The manager
kept glancing over, like she wanted to say
something.
“Ms. Jones, we’re about to close up.”
I blinked, focusing on the manager’s
apologetic smile, and stood up, facing the
full–length mirror.
The woman staring back had perfect makeup,
but it couldn’t hide the dark circles under her
eyes.
Mark kept saying he was swamped.
Yesterday, he finally promised to come with
me to try on dresses. I stayed up all night
finishing my work schedule to make it
happen.
L
And then Lily happened. Mark bailed. Again.
The staff were practically holding their breath.
They clearly hadn’t seen a scene like this
before. It was so awkward.
I smoothed out the skirt, one wrinkle at a
time. The dress was gorgeous. I’d spent ages
picking it out.
Guess it’s never gonna get used now.
By the time I left the bridal shop, it was dark.
I called Mark. It rang and rang, and then my
brother answered.
“Lily fainted. Mark panicked and drove back.
Don’t get all worked up, okay?”
L
I wasn’t worked up.
I just wanted to know if someone could pick
me up.
But Ben hung up on me before I could even
ask. Some girl was saying something in the
background.
I stared at the black screen and almost
laughed.
My childhood sweetheart fiancé and my
brother forgot one crucial thing.
I couldn’t drive at night.
In the end, I had to ask the bridal shop
manager to give me a ride home.
<
When I saw the sign for County General
Hospital, it snapped me out of my daze.
I’d instinctively given her the hospital address
when I got in the car.
Lily’s always fainting and ending up at that
hospital. Ben works there.
Mark’s probably there, too.
Right in front of the emergency room doors, a
group of people was coming out.
Ben, a couple of our friends, and Lily, all
huddled in the middle.
Everyone was fussing over Lily, until they
spotted me.
く
Ben frowned, clearly annoyed.
I played dumb. “Where’s Mark?”
Ben was not happy with my tone. He was
practically shouting, “Lily’s your sister! Don’t
you think you should ask how she is?”
That made me look at them.
Lily was standing next to Ben, clinging to him.
Like a scared little bunny, she whispered my name, “Sarah.”
I didn’t say anything, just stared at the blazer
she was wearing.
It was Mark’s. I ironed it for him yesterday.
And now it was on Lily’s shoulde
^
And now it was on Lily’s shoulders.
