Emma: Lights! Camera! Cupcakes! by Coco Simon

our store’s car, and she can dash anywhere we need to pick up anything. We will have extra stockings, no-slip pads for the shoes, hankies, stain remover—our usual emergency kit. Not that there will be any emergencies, of course! Just know we are prepared for anything.”
    â€œGreat,” said Romaine. “The wedding starts at twelve thirty, so they want us dressed for photos by eleven. Hair and makeup are coming at . . . ugh . . . seven thirty, so they can do everyone.”
    â€œAnd, of course, the caterers will be crawling all over, setting things up, and the tent . . .,” added Mrs. Ford.
    â€œAnd the cupcakes will be arriving!” Romaine said, smiling in my direction.
    I smiled back, nodding, but I gulped nervously at the same time. Now that I was in the middle of it, I was feeling like maybe it hadn’t been so smart to accept this big-league job, and all on my own, too. But it was too late to back out now. The wedding was only four days away! Oh boy. I felt nauseated all of a sudden. What had I gotten myself into?
    I caught Mona’s eye and saw her looking at mewith a concerned look on her face. Her brows were knitted together with worry. But then she quickly smoothed away the expression and looked happily and expectantly at Mrs. Ford.
    Mrs. Ford said, “Why don’t I show you around, so you have the lay of the land. That way you won’t need me on Saturday morning, since I’ll be running around like a chicken with my head cut off!”
    We followed Mrs. Ford on a tour of the house. It was very pretty and very comfortable. It was larger than my house or those of my friends, and it had bigger rooms and was more “decorated,” but not over-the-top at all. The living room and family room had coordinated upholstery on the furniture, with pretty printed fabric and coordinating throw pillows. There was bright lighting everywhere, which created a nice homey feel. The kitchen had new appliances and was all crisp and white and clean. She showed us the backyard and the long sweep of grass where the tent was being put up tomorrow and the tree with the swing where Liam had proposed to Romaine. The garden had hot-pink peonies in bloom, and the pale purple lilacs along the back of the house perfumed the air with a gorgeous, sweet scent. I looked at the yard and thought it was the perfect spot to get married.
    Romaine still shared a room with her sister upstairs, and they still had their awards from camp and cheerleading all around, plus a poster from her school play when Romaine was the star. Eat your heart out, Celebrity magazine! I wanted to yell. And How do you like this, Olivia Allen? But of course I didn’t. I just stayed quiet as Mrs. Ford explained where the bridal party would be getting dressed (in Romaine’s other sister’s room) and where Romaine would be getting ready (in the master bedroom), and she and Mona discussed in what order and timing they should do it all.
    â€œI can’t believe this is all really happening!” Romaine said to me, girlish and sweet as the “adults” took care of the details. “I’ve been looking forward to it for so long. I can’t believe I’ll get to be Mrs. Liam Carey after this weekend! It’s so amazing!”
    â€œWhen does your fiancé get here?” I asked. I didn’t want to pry, but I felt like I could reveal at least a small amount of my huge enthusiasm for the event.
    Romaine sighed happily. “Tomorrow. We’re going to sneak over to Green Lake for a private dinner at his friend’s restaurant. Just the two of us! I hope we can pull it off.”
    I winced, thinking of the reporter stalking little old me. “I hope so too. That would be a nice start to the weekend.”
    â€œIt’s going to be so wild having his family here, and our closest friends, all together in one place—the people we love the most! This is why I wanted