“Have you apologized to her?” Scott asked. And really, that was such an obvious answer, right? Find Mara, put his tail between his legs and apologize.
But the thing was, Jay didn’t know if Mara wanted this brought up again. Internet trends came and went quick, and this was disappearing just as fast as the next. Maybe she just wanted to move on?
“Ummmmm.”
“Wow. It’s a miracle you were still invited to the wedding.”
“Of course I was still invited, I was the last guy Marina dated before she found The One.” Jay snorted, licking off his ice cream in slight agitation. Marina and David were not the first people to invite him to their wedding because he had inadvertently pushed them toward each other, and he knew the drill. He got invited to witness their love because he made it happen. Or, if you believed the urban legend, his kiss did. “Like that girl I accidentally kissed during the Sign of Peace part one Sinbang Gabi.”
“What?”
“It was 4:00 a.m.! I was tired! Her Lola was a great dancer.”
Okay, so in the case of him and Mara Barretto, he was definitely the asshole. Finding her and apologizing was definitely the right thing to do. If only to a) clear the air between them and b) set a good example for his niece because he was not going to be a bad ninong. Canceled people usually wrote, “I’m sorry if you were offended” notes on their phone, posted them on social media and hoped for the best. Jay knew he could be a better person than that.
“I’m going to go somewhere else so you guys can talk about me,” he said, standing amid Mon and Scott’s vehement protests. He personally never subscribed to the urban legend that surrounded him, but he did work with numbers a lot. His record (so far) did not lie. Ten to none, every girl he kissed would marry the person they dated after him.
Jay refused to face what was behind the numbers, even when wedding guests from Tagaytay to Tawi-Tawi talked about the incredible magic of his kiss. He thought of Mara again, at the anger that flashed in her eyes and made his entire soul shiver. Yeah, he definitely didn’t deserve to be invited to this wedding.
“Or you could—”
“Apologize.” He sighed, because god only knew if Mara would even listen. But she deserved an apology, even if he didn’t deserve acceptance. Jay was just going to build up to it muna. “If you don’t see me at the reception…”
“We’ll tell Luna her ninong died trying to do the right thing,” Mon assured him.
“We’ll tell Ate Irene that you died because you were an idiot.” Scott nodded. “Go, go.”
THREE
Growing up, Maralovedwatching princess movies.The Swan Princessin particular was her favorite. She learned at a very young age that falling in love was done when you were wearing a beautiful dress. It made sense because a beautiful dress made you feel beautiful, and how could a prince not see that?
In her younger days, Mara loved to pretend that she was the princess. She liked to throw her mother’s yellow sweater over her head (because the princess was blonde, of course she was), and tied ribbons up the arms of her mother’s bathrobes to simulate Princess Odette’s puffy sleeves. She would sing the songs word-perfect, skipping through the house, twirling and waiting for the day someone would make a vow of everlasting love to her.
What elsewasthere?
Years later, many of those concepts were unpacked, of course. When all she saw were thin, blonde and blue-eyed princesses, she changed the channel. She found more princesses to watch—more Filipinas, Black women, other Asians and Latinx people to inspire her. Vows of love would come after a lot more trials than facing an evil wizard or a spell that turned you into a swan in the daytime. Vows were tested on a daily basis when the person you chose failed to meet some expectation you didn’t express.
But the power of wearing a pretty garment and feeling beautiful? That was never going to get old.
But it would be nice if someone said it to her, right?You look beautiful. You look like someone to love. I will do my hardest never to disappoint you.
Sadly, the fantasies remained fantasies. The closest Mara got toThe Swan Princesswas with one client who wanted to re-create the dress from the movie. Complete with puffy sleeves and blond hair.
“Thanks for the sandals,” she said to the wedding coordinator, who stood beside her and off to the side of the ballroom. Des had just explained that the tacos were still being made and would be served with the other after-party food following the reception. Disappointing, but late tacos were better than no tacos at all. “You know you didn’t have to help me take off my heels.”
“I can tell when a person in a gown isn’t totally comfortable in heels,” she said, and Mara had to agree. Heels, she decided, were the worst part about wearing a dress. “And it can’t be easy, with your…um.” Des very pointedly eyed Mara’s body. Her arms, her legs.
“My boobs? My stomach?” Mara asked, daring Des to say it out loud. It wasn’t exactly rocket science, connecting her discomfort to her weight. But even though that was applicable to her, it was not something to just be assumed. “Thanks for the consideration, I guess.”
“I didn’t—I mean, wasn’t—”
“Relax, Des. It really was hard. My feet thank you. And I did appreciate your help,” she said, and the wedding planner sighed with something that sounded much like relief. “Are we still on track to start the reception at seven?”
“The Wildflower staff is just about to finish up, and the sound system is being tested as we speak,” Des said, nodding and peeking at the clipboard in her hand. “I’m checking on your sister after this, and if we can find your parents before six, we should have enough time for family portraits and head in.”
“Find my parents?” Mara echoed, taken by surprise. “You mean they aren’t here yet?” She swept her eyes across the venue and, sure enough, found the ballroom absent of her father’s salt-and-pepper hair and her mother’s scarlet red dress.
Her parents had left the church a full hour before Mara and Mabel could join them. The plan had originally been for the unmarried Barrettos and their parents to head to the venue together. Mara had briefed her parents of that plan during the despedida de soltera. But no, Mara and Mabel were left behind, and had to hitch with David and Marina in the bridal car, and now her parents were not even at the venue yet.
