Then another person stops at the top of the stairs. He looks about my age and has a light complexion.
This must be Andrew.
He comes down the stairs and he’s wearing a type of clothes I’ve never seen before except on models in the internet ads that always sneak through.
He looks excited when he sees us all waiting. Well, I’ll be. Thank goodness. He’s human and responsive to the environment. After all this time doing nothing but hearing about him, I was worried I’d turned him imaginary.
I pull off my aunt and she slips her arms away and clasps her hands in front of her. I reach over to Eleni so she can hand me the bouquet of flowers. Then I freeze because my crazy mind wonders if this really is Andrew or am I about to offer myself in marriage to one of his deckhands.
I smile and tell myself to be serene and don’t fall.
It’s something I learned at the academy. Poise, they called it. Put signs up about it on the walls. Part of their holistic approach to education.
The walk to this Andrew guy is longer than I thought, but when I finally get there it’s easy because all I have to do is the same thing my zizi’s had me practicing on every single person that’s walked into the meetinghouse all week.
“Andrew. Welcome to our island. I’m Crusa, and we’re so happy you’ve come.” I smile until my cheeks plump and I reach up to give him a quick kiss on one of his ruddy ones. I debate whether I should actually let my lips touch him. I figure I should. His skin is chilly, and I bet the yacht has AC.
“Thank you for having me,” he says. “You’re more lovely than I imagined, Crusa. Please let me give you a gift.”
Hm, the boy gets points for already remembering my name. And bringing me a present. He turns to one of his black-suited men and takes a small box from him. I don’t know if I’m supposed to take presents from him right now, and my eyes want to search out my aunt but I don’t want to turn away so I force my head to stay forward. Another academy skill.
Andrew holds the box close to his stomach, and I take a few steps in to get a better look. He smiles down at me and I blush. It’s embarrassing, but honestly I’m just surprised I haven’t thrown up yet.
“Please accept this from me as a symbol of our attachment. Let it be the first gift of our life together.”
Um, ok. I think maybe he had a script, too. He looks like he’s nervous when I take the box, though, and it’s endearing. He’s suddenly much less scary.
“Thank you,” I say as warmly as I can. I have nowhere to put my flowers so I wedge them under my arm and open the box.
Inside are three gold bracelets, clean and sleek as the boat, excuse me, yacht, behind the sentinel-still boy.
“They’re beautiful,” I say. They are.
He smiles a nice smile, takes them out, and slips them over my hand. I take his arm because I know what we have to do next, and, thankfully, he allows it.
It must take over an hour just to get through all those people and back up to the meetinghouse.
I thank Jesus Christ when we’re safely seated at the head of a long table. People bring us things to drink. Having Andrew so close makes me nervous and tingly, so the cold lemonade is a nice shock.
I’m sure it’s a lovely meal because my zizi can do nothing less, but I don’t know because I can’t eat it. Mostly because I can’t believe I’m going to marry the creature next to
This must be Andrew.
He comes down the stairs and he’s wearing a type of clothes I’ve never seen before except on models in the internet ads that always sneak through.
He looks excited when he sees us all waiting. Well, I’ll be. Thank goodness. He’s human and responsive to the environment. After all this time doing nothing but hearing about him, I was worried I’d turned him imaginary.
I pull off my aunt and she slips her arms away and clasps her hands in front of her. I reach over to Eleni so she can hand me the bouquet of flowers. Then I freeze because my crazy mind wonders if this really is Andrew or am I about to offer myself in marriage to one of his deckhands.
I smile and tell myself to be serene and don’t fall.
It’s something I learned at the academy. Poise, they called it. Put signs up about it on the walls. Part of their holistic approach to education.
The walk to this Andrew guy is longer than I thought, but when I finally get there it’s easy because all I have to do is the same thing my zizi’s had me practicing on every single person that’s walked into the meetinghouse all week.
“Andrew. Welcome to our island. I’m Crusa, and we’re so happy you’ve come.” I smile until my cheeks plump and I reach up to give him a quick kiss on one of his ruddy ones. I debate whether I should actually let my lips touch him. I figure I should. His skin is chilly, and I bet the yacht has AC.
“Thank you for having me,” he says. “You’re more lovely than I imagined, Crusa. Please let me give you a gift.”
Hm, the boy gets points for already remembering my name. And bringing me a present. He turns to one of his black-suited men and takes a small box from him. I don’t know if I’m supposed to take presents from him right now, and my eyes want to search out my aunt but I don’t want to turn away so I force my head to stay forward. Another academy skill.
Andrew holds the box close to his stomach, and I take a few steps in to get a better look. He smiles down at me and I blush. It’s embarrassing, but honestly I’m just surprised I haven’t thrown up yet.
“Please accept this from me as a symbol of our attachment. Let it be the first gift of our life together.”
Um, ok. I think maybe he had a script, too. He looks like he’s nervous when I take the box, though, and it’s endearing. He’s suddenly much less scary.
“Thank you,” I say as warmly as I can. I have nowhere to put my flowers so I wedge them under my arm and open the box.
Inside are three gold bracelets, clean and sleek as the boat, excuse me, yacht, behind the sentinel-still boy.
“They’re beautiful,” I say. They are.
He smiles a nice smile, takes them out, and slips them over my hand. I take his arm because I know what we have to do next, and, thankfully, he allows it.
It must take over an hour just to get through all those people and back up to the meetinghouse.
I thank Jesus Christ when we’re safely seated at the head of a long table. People bring us things to drink. Having Andrew so close makes me nervous and tingly, so the cold lemonade is a nice shock.
I’m sure it’s a lovely meal because my zizi can do nothing less, but I don’t know because I can’t eat it. Mostly because I can’t believe I’m going to marry the creature next to
Similar Books
