Page 74 of Picture Us

“Rose.” Ellen’s voice snapped Rose out of her daydream. “Rose, what do you think?”

Standing before her, Ellen twirled around in a flowing, white dress. It was a strapless piece with a low back. Rose raised her eyebrows as she looked the dress up and down. “It’s beautiful, but I don’t think it’sthedress.”

With a nod, Ellen groaned. “I thought the same thing.”

As she returned to the dressing room, an attendant brought her another dress. Through the curtains, Ellen called out to Rose. “Why are you so distracted today?”

“Just thinking.” She was glad Ellen couldn’t see her face because all she could do was blush. Her mind had been consumed with Drew. It was probably a good thing that they’d work on the Tennis shoot separately.

Ripping the curtain back, Ellen revealed another dress. “Uh-huh. Just thinking? Liar. You’re thinking about your sex fiend… situationship.”

Before she answered, Rose scanned the dress. This was closer. It was sleek, hugging her body perfectly with a simple lace overlay. The train was long but she wouldn’t need someone to carry it. And one thing Rose knew for sure: it would photograph beautifully.

“I’m sorry, they’re just… kind of everything I want.” Rose confessed. Her chest felt lighter as the words left her lungs.

Smiling at her friend, Ellen took a seat on the white, suede couch. “Can I be honest with you?”

Rose bit the inside of her cheek. Ellen’s honesty was a mixed bag. On the one hand, it may be why Rose survived college. But on the other, she could be a real fucking buzz kill. But here she was, in a wedding dress to tell Rose the truth.

“Fine.”

With a deep breath, Ellen shrugged. “A month ago you said the same thing about Shannon. And before that, you said the same thing about Alexandra. And Kim. And Ash.”

Rose opened her mouth to fight her on it. But Ellen squeezed her leg. “I’m not saying you’re wrongthistime. But maybe you should take it slower. Really get to know them, listen to their signals.”

“You are annoying.” Rose grabbed a chocolate covered strawberry from the snack table. “I’ll try but can I just say, once, I really have a good feeling about them.”

Smiling back at her, Ellen nodded and patted her leg. “And I hope you’re right. Because you deserve the best.”

Without hesitation, Ellen stood up. “Now before this wrinkles, what do you think?”

“Closer, but not quite.” Rose pointed back into the dressing room. While Ellen tried on the next dress, Rose had no choice but to pound back snacks as she thought. Ellen knew her better than anyone else and had seen her at her worst.

Of course she was right. Rose had a tendency to dive way too deep, way too fast. And as much as Drew was everything she’d hoped for, they weren’t perfect. They were rude when they first met. And she wasn’t even sure she’d processed the breakup with Shan.

Her mind was racing as the room got quieter, only the sound of Ellen’s shuffling and faint pop music playing over the speakers breaking Rose’s thoughts.

Besides, Rose had noticed a red tent in the background of her pictures and she couldn’t be sure that Drew hadn’t noticed it and not mentioned it to her on the spot. It was just a hunch, but Rose did need to be better about noticing the little things.

She took in a deep breath as Ellen came out.

A gasp escaped her throat. “Oh, Ellen.”

“Really?” Ellen blushed.

A tear came to Rose’s eye. “That’s it. It’s perfect.”

Looking at her friend, Rose still craved a love like theirs. And if she was lucky, she might be on the right track for the first time in her life.

As Rose sat in Drew’s loft, looking at the picture of Ellen’s dress on her phone, she tried not to get carried away with thoughts of her own wedding.

Luckily, just as she was about to, Drew walked back in from the bathroom.

“How’s it going over there?” Drew asked as they got closer, looking at the black canister next to Rose.

Grabbing it, Rose gave it a twirl to mix the liquid with the film spooled inside. “Good!”

“How are your pics going?” Drew smiled, looking at Rose’s open laptop.

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