Meg Cabot - Queen Of Babble - In The Big City

I look up from my diet Coke. “What?”

“Look, Lizzie.” Her dark eyes seem fathomless in the dim light of the bar. Even though outside it’s sunny, only being noon. “Luke’s great and all. And I think what you did—getting his parents back together, and convincing Luke to go after his dream of pursuing a medical career—was really cool of you. But as far as you two long-term—”

I blink at her, totally stunned. “What about it?”

“I just,” Shari says, “don’t see it.”

I can’t believe she’s saying this. My best friend—ALLEGEDLY.

“Why?” I demand, horrified to feel tears stinging my eyes. “Because he’s a prince—sort of? And I’m just a girl from Michigan who talks too much?”

“Well,” Shari says. “More or less. I mean, Lizzie… you like to watch The Real World marathons in bed with a pint of Coffee Heath Bar Crunch and the latest issue of Sewing Today. You like to listen to Aerosmith at full volume while you hem fifties cocktail dresses on your Singer 5050. Can you imagine ever doing either of those things in front of Luke? I mean, do you really act like yourself around him? Or do you act like the kind of girl you think a guy like Luke would want?”

I glare at her. “I can’t believe you’re even asking me that.” I’m practically crying, but I’m trying to hide it. “Of course I act like myself around Luke.”

Although it’s true I’ve been wearing my control-top Spanx every day since I got to New York. And that they leave angry red lines along my waistline that I have to wait to fade before I let Luke see me naked after I’ve peeled them off.

But that’s only because I started eating bread again when I was in France, and I gained back a little of the weight I lost over the summer! Just a little. Like fifteen pounds or so.

Oh, God. Shari’s right!

“Look,” Shari says, apparently noticing my stricken expression. “I’m not saying you shouldn’t move in with him, Lizzie. I’m just saying you might want to cool it on the wedding-planning thing. Your wedding, anyway. With Luke.”

I reach up to wipe the tears from my eyes. “If the next words out of your mouth are that he won’t buy the cow if he can get the milk for free,” I say bitterly, “I will seriously vomit.”

“Of course I’m not going to say that,” Shari says. “Just take things one day at a time, okay? And don’t be afraid to be yourself in front of him. Because if he doesn’t love the real you, he’s not Prince Charming after all.”

I can’t help gaping at her a little. Because, really. It’s like she’s a mind reader.

“How,” I ask tearfully, “did you get so smart?”

“I majored in psych,” Shari said. “Remember?”

I nod. Her new job is counseling women at a nonprofit program that helps victims of domestic abuse find alternative housing, obtain orders of protection, and secure public benefits such as food stamps and child support. It’s not a high-paying job, salary wise. But what Shari doesn’t receive in financial compensation, she’ll make up for in the knowledge that she is saving lives, and helping people—especially women—to attain better existences for themselves and their children.

Although if you think about it, those of us in the fashion industry do the same thing. We don’t save lives, necessarily. But we help make lives better, in our own small way. It’s like the song says… young girls, they do get weary, wearing that same old shaggy dress.

It’s our job to get them into a new one (or a refurbished old one), so they can feel a little bit better about themselves.

“Look,” Shari says. “The truth is… I don’t know. I’m kind of bummed. I was really looking forward to us getting a place together. I even thought about how much fun it was going to be thrifting for old furniture and then fixing it up. Or borrowing a car and going to IKEA in New Jersey to buy a bunch of stuff. Now I’m going to have to live with Chaz’s hand-me-down furniture from his family’s law offices here in town.”

I have to laugh. I’ve seen the elaborate gold-trimmed couches in Chaz’s living room—the one with the wood floor that gently slopes south, and the windows with the folding gates over them because they look out over a fire escape… the same windows from which Shari saw Julio’s dad go on his stabbing spree.

“I’ll come over and see what I can do about the couches,” I say. “I have a bunch of bolts of material I got when So-Fro Fabrics closed down. When my mom ships my boxes to me, I can make a slipcover for you. And some curtains,” I add. “So you won’t have to see any more stabbings.”

“That’d be nice,” Shari says, with a sigh. “Well. Here.” She slides her copy of the Village Voice toward me. “You’re going to need this.”

I look down at it blankly. “Why? If Luke and I already have a place?”

“To find a job, dufus,” Shari says. “Or is Luke going to support your thrifting habit as well as provide your housing?”

“Oh.” I let out a tiny laugh. “Yeah. Thanks.”

And I flip to the jobs section of the classifieds… … just as a dwarf with a long, Gandalf-like staff opens the door to Honey’s, ambles up to our table, looks at us, then turns around and leaves, all without uttering a word.

Both Shari and I glance at the bartender. She doesn’t appear to have noticed the dwarf. Shari and I look back each other.

“This town,” I say, “is very weird.”

“Tell me about it,” Shari says.

Know your…

Wedding-gown sleeve lengths!

Strapless—no sleeves at all, of course!

Spaghetti strap—very thin straps

Sleeveless—wider straps

Cap—very, very short sleeves, usually just an extension of the shoulder. Not attractive in brides over forty (unless they work out. With weights).

Short—lower edge of the sleeve usually falls straight across the middle of the upper arm.

This length is generally considered too casual for a formal wedding.

Above the elbow—this length works best on brides who are concerned about “chicken skin” beneath their arms.

Three-quarter—this sleeve ends three fourths of the way down the arm, midway between the elbow and the wrist. Flattering on nearly everyone.

Seven-eighth—ends two inches above the wrist. This is an awkward length for bridal gowns.

Wrist length—this length works nicely for more conservative brides, or those trying to hide unsightly eczema on their arms.

Full length—falls one inch below the wrist bone. This is the preferred length for brides favoring a “medieval” or “Renaissance” look to their gown.

LIZZIE NICHOLS DESIGNS™

Maybe Shari’s right. Maybe I do need to take things with Luke a little slower. There’s no need to start planning our wedding now. After all, I only just got my degree… or not even, actually, since I just turned in my thesis, and my advisor says I won’t technically graduate until January. Not that I’m changing my graduation date on my résumé, because, you know, who even checks that?

Besides, Mom and Dad would FLIP if they found out I took off for Europe—let alone accepted all those book lights as graduation gifts—without actually having finished my degree.

The same way they would FLIP if they found out I was moving in with a guy I met there. In Europe, I mean. I’m going to have to keep my living situation on the DL. Maybe I’ll just tell them Shari and I are sharing a place… except what if they talk to Dr. Dennis? Dang…