Friday Fiction - The Ring Toss Pt. 6

A last-minute change lands Mack in a long white dress, but can she commit?

And now we're at Week 5! If you're just stumbling over this story, you can check out Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 to catch up. 

Mack's been cast to play a bridesmaid in an equity-waiver production of "Something Borrowed, Something Blue", but at the last minute she's upgraded to the role of Brittney, The Bride. It's a tough gig for a woman with a wedding phobia, especially since her boyfriend Joe's not around to talk her off the ledge. In the last snippet, Mack and her bridesmaids were off to meet the male stripper, though some of her costars were a little weird off-stage...

The Play – Something Borrowed, Something Blue: A Bachelorette’s Adventure

Director: Dusty Squires

Assistant to the Director: Donald Loudemilk

Cast:

Brittney (the bride): Mackenzie Reed

Mara (the maid of honor): Geneva Louise

Kenley (the bride’s sister): Dusty Squires

Caitlyn (the bridesmaid): Cheyenne Miller

Salvatore (the stripper): Julio Lorenze

Pete (the groom): Julio Lorenze

Dusty patted my shoulder as he passed me on his way offstage. I wasn’t sure if he meant the gesture as praise or sympathy. With no time to prepare for the role, I was pretty much happy I got the lines in the right order, let alone found ways to create a character. I’d get to know Brittney better, finding her quirks and what made her tick, after the rehearsal was over. 

I needed a beer and some sleep first.  For right now, it was pretty much like riding Class Five rapids, with speed and adrenaline surges and maybe a splashdown or two.

Cheyenne stopped when the door to Dusty’s office closed and I almost ran into her. She was lowering the zipper that ran up the front of her leather dress. One of the tricks she used was to unzip little by little as the show went on, changing her appearance from sophisticated to slutty. I slipped around her as she stared at the director’s door, adjusting her boobs to maximum cleavage for the next act. Dusty was going to be in trouble.

Back in the dressing room, I all but ran to see if there was a text from Joe. We’d started dating in college then separated for eight years when he moved to L.A. Now here I was, an independent thirty-something woman and a hot mess after two weeks apart. I couldn’t imagine how I’d survived all that time alone in Seattle.

It wasn’t just that he looked like a cross between Robert Downey, Jr. and Collin Farrell. He got me. He saw who I was and who I could be, and I loved him for it.

I know you're rockin' the bachelorette action.

Smiling, I sent him back a text saying at least I hadn't bungled any lines.

Donald popped in with his clipboard a couple of times. Beads of sweat speckled his bald scalp. He had to be just as hot out front as we were back here. The rest of us kept ourselves busy while we waited. Geneva was checking emails on her cell phone and Cheyenne was brushing out her hair. Again. Everyone took advantage of the brief downtime to filter the earlier scenes and check our plans for the next few. Except for me, whose only plan was to keep on winging it.

And when I get home, I'm going to give you something else to rock.

Oh yeah, that's what I’m talking about. I quickly typed in a message. We’re going to have to make up for lost time, dude. I might charge interest. I hit ‘send’ with a smile on my face.

Nerves were a bigger issue for me now than during the opening scenes, because the upcoming action was designed to spread Brittney’s insecurities all across the stage and, sadly, Brittney’s insecurities lined up awfully close to my own. It wasn’t just that Julio ended his big dance number wearing not much more than a pair of white chaps and a little satin bag—although that wasn’t going to help. If Joe was here he’d say something wise or funny and it would be perfect and perfectly helpful, or he’d keep his mouth shut and just wrap his arms around me until I wasn’t scared any more. And I wouldn’t look twice at Julio and his…bag.

Except Joe was in New Orleans, probably wrapping up the day with a cold one and some good music. He’d be hanging out with other actors and some of them would be pretty girls. Heck, he probably didn’t need to go far to find an attractive woman in New Orleans. Okay, that was not a constructive line of thinking. The phone chirped again.

Missing my girl.

And I was missing my guy. I should just grow a pair and ask him to marry me. I already knew his answer and it was a good one. I just hadn’t wanted to get married before. A swirl of watercolor blue caught my eye.

“You’re going to be awesome as a bride,” Geneva whispered, referring to the final scene when Brittney and Pete got married. At least, I thought that’s what she was referring to.

“Bite me,” I said soundlessly, hoping she could read lips.

She chuckled quietly and wandered off.

Cheyenne turned away from the mirror. “Where I grew up, we called single women your age ‘cat ladies’.” Her voice was a shade loud for a whisper and her smile wasn’t entirely friendly.

I suddenly couldn’t remember why I liked Cheyenne. I stared at her ‛til she went back to brushing her hair. It’s funny what happens to people under pressure. Cheyenne was showing her bitchy streak and I was hot and sweaty and my stupid dress wanted to stick in awkward places. Out of patience, I pulled myself to standing and tugged the dress back down over my butt before stalking off to the bathroom.

And next week....dancing with Salvatore the Stripper...really not something you can miss, right? Jump HERE to see what happens next!
Cheers!
Liv