Chapter Seven
Ella
I’m humming at work while cleaning the deep fryer.
“You okay over there?” Faye asks, lowering her glasses down her face to get a better look at me.
It’s almost nine in the evening, which means only a few more minutes until closing time tonight, and I’m off to my first college party ever.
Hey! I’ve only been in college for less than two months, and I’ve been quite busy!
“Fine!” I say with extra pep in my step, and Faye tosses me a knowing grin in return.
I couldn’t help but share my excitement with her. Yes, she is triple my age, but I had to tell somebody.
Plus, Faye is cool. I’ve known her for as long as I can remember. She’s worked for my dad from almost the beginning. She was an ice-skating coach when she was younger, but Vienna moved her to the snack bar when she took over to make room for some more unique coaching changes.
The switch worked well for me, though, because Faye is great and easy to work with when the snack bar gets a crowd. Plus, she doesn’t tolerate Vienna’s crap as much as most do.
Speaking of crap, the devil herself bursts through the entrance and marches over to me. “You need to stay late,” she states with a firm face.
“Excuse me?” She has my full attention now.
“You need to mop the floors. They are absolutely filthy,” she says, spitting the last word out, despite the fact that I already mopped yesterday.
“I can’t tonight. I have plans.”
Vienna snickers. “Oh yeah, what would that be? A Halloween party? I found your little cat costume and fed it to our actual cat for dinner.”
“What?” I rub my temple. “Is that a thing? He ate it?”
“Well, he just ripped it apart.” Vienna pulls out my shredded black Halloween costume from her tote and tosses it on the ground. “You’ll also need to sweep again, and I need you to organize the storage closet out back. It better be organized by the time I get back.”
“You’re coming back?” I ask, bewildered.
“Of course, I’m coming back!” She says it like it’s the craziest thing, despite her sporadic visits. “I’ll be back at midnight.”
“Okay,” I respond as my shoulders slump. I head over to the closet to grab the supplies as Vienna disappears out the front door.
Faye follows closely behind me. “What are you doing?”
“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m mopping.” I pull out the mop and point it at her.
“You have plans tonight.”
“No, I had plans tonight. Now I have new ones.”
“No.” Faye points at me, her tone serious. “You are going to that party.”
“I can’t. You heard Vienna.”
“Listen, Ella.” She emits a long, deep breath. “You deserve some fun for once. I’ll take care of this stuff for you tonight, and I’ll see you in a few hours.”
I sigh, debating my choices. Don’t get me wrong, I do want to finally meet my SoloSurfer, but I also don’t want to piss off my remaining family and make matters worse for myself.
“Well, even if I want to go, I don’t have anything to wear. For some reason, I don’t think an overworked snack bar girl will work for tonight.”
“Hm,” she says, cradling her chin in her hand. “You could find something in our pro shop.”
“I really don’t want to go as an ice skater or hockey player tonight.” I need a break from this place, even if it’s for a few hours.
“You could go as a ghost!” Harry says, walking over from the pro shop.
“What are you still doing here?” I ask. Usually, he leaves before now.
He shrugs in response. “Just working late. Those skates won’t sharpen themselves.”
“I don’t really want to wear a sheet tonight.” I let out a long sigh. “Maybe I should just forget it. It’s not meant to be.”
“Not with that attitude!” Faye points at me, and then her eyes light up. “I’ve got it! Come with me!”
I follow her out of the rink and over to her SUV in the dark parking lot. She unlocks her vehicle, opens the door, and pulls out a long, black garment bag.
“I almost forgot I had this in my car,” she says, handing it over to me.
“What is it?”
“Let’s go inside, and I’ll show you.”
We rush back into the building and head directly to the women’s locker room, the familiar scent of sweat and cleaner lingering through the air. She hooks the long bag onto one of the hangers.
“So, my daughter was in a wedding last month, and I told her I’d get this dry-cleaned for her. Which I did, but I haven’t seen her since I picked it back up.” Faye unzips the garment bag, and I gasp at the sight of it.
The dress is the most beautiful dress I’ve ever laid eyes on. It’s floor-length in a soft pale blue color with a form-fitting bodice and a huge skirt. Intricate beading is sewn through the dress.
“This was a bridesmaid’s dress?” I raise an eyebrow and stare at Faye. I can’t believe any bride would approve of this dress. It’s absolutely gorgeous and would overshadow any bride on her special day.
She shrugs. “It was princess-themed, and if you think this dress is a beauty, wait until you see her friend’s bridal gown. I’ll show you a picture tomorrow. The train.” She whistles.
“Haven’t seen anything quite like it.”
“I haven’t seen anything like this one.” I casually trail my fingers over the silk. “But what would I go as? A desperate bridesmaid?”
“No.” Her eyes cross. “Cinderella, of course!”
“Cinderella?”
“Cinderella!”
“Oh, I can’t,” I say, my fingers still stroking the gown.
“You can.”
“One dress isn’t a full costume…” My words trail off as Faye pulls a pair of gorgeous silver pumps out of thin air.
“Size eight,” she says with a curt nod. Exactly my size. What are the odds?
“Knock. Knock,” a masculine voice says instead of actually knocking on the locker-room door.
Faye hustles over to Harry, where they whisper back and forth until Faye turns back around and heads to me with an item in her hand.
“Harry found this for you.” She hands over a light blue eye mask with lace.
“It’s beautiful. But where did he find this?”
When she moves her shoulders up and down, I decide then and there if everything fits, it’s meant to be.
“Do you mind helping me into this thing?”
Faye squeals, and internally, I do too.