When the morning of the wedding finally arrived, the preparations did not seem to slow down. In fact, things became even more hectic. It seemed strange, considering neither the Curtises nor the Carmichaels really had that much to do. Their side of the planning should have been out of the way and everything else left to those hired to run the day but it seemed that both mothers of the soon-to-wed couple couldn’t help themselves checking up on everything that was no longer in their hands.
Joella was told that it was time so went to get changed with her sisters. As bridesmaid she was to fit some sort of design theme, or rather her dress had to be designed by Valois because they were doing all of the wedding clothes. This was terribly expensive, Joella knew, but her father was paying Valois for everything without financial aid from the Carmichaels instead of him then giving them something in return for his son marrying their daughter as would be the natural tradition among the Hmong people. Brenna herself was very Americanized and followed little of the traditions that her maternal Hmong relatives did, even less so than her parents, who had both been born in the U.S but who had strong family ties and business in Asia. For her brother’s special day Joella was to wear a pretty strapless dress with a white bodice and a delicate pale pink puffy tulle skirt which reached just above the knee, making for a look that fitted both the summer weather and the formal wedding dress code.
“Here,” Rolene offered to do her make-up once she was dressed, applying a light coat of mascara to her younger sister’s lashes and a subtle pink lip gloss for an overall natural appearance.
“Thanks,” grinned Joella, glancing at her appearance in the full length mirror and feeling mildly surprised. She had decided to dye her hair a darker colour earlier in the holiday and Rolene had kindly done so for her when she joined “Wedding Preparation Central” in L.A. Her hair was now almost black and she didn’t know whether it was this that made her look a bit older. It could have been the dress, although Joella thought that the puffiness of the skirt made the appearance younger if anything. Or perhaps she was just growing up… she liked the idea and wondered at how different she must be now than when she first begun at Sonora with a firm dislike of any talk of ‘growing up’, determined to avoid doing so for as long as possible. She didn’t feel so disconnected from her eleven year old self as such but there was no doubt that she’d matured, in some ways at least.
Joella turned to look at her sisters, giving a spin so that the floaty material of her dress did the same. “How do I look?” she struck a pose mockingly.
“Gorgeous,” laughed Rolene.
“I must say I do love your hair, Joie,” commented Franki, smiling at her through the reflection of her mirror as she paused doing her make-up to take a look.
When the time came for the wedding ceremony to start, Joella found herself surprised by just how many people there were, especially how many people she didn’t know. Quite a lot of people from Brenna’s father’s side of the family had journeyed overseas from China specially for the occasions, as had Brenna’s mother’s Hmong relatives. Joella knew that her father had a lot of business in Hmong which he had acquired through Mrs Carmichael and that he was giving one of the farms to Bolivar and Brenna as a wedding gift. Joella didn’t like the idea of her eldest brother living so far away but she knew that he would likely stay in L.A and use his Hmong home for holidays.
Brenna looked beautiful in her wedding dress. She was quite petite but with an hourglass figure that was really shown off by the tight fit mermaid silhouette of the dress. Her long dark hair was down but curled and neatly pulled back and the material used for the main body of the dress was satin which made for a very elegant look. There was also a lot of fine lace; the dress had a lace choker halter-neck, a long lace train, and lace edging her tulle veil.
“Will you, Bolivar Timothy Curtis, have Brenna Eve Carmichael, to be your wife? Will you love her, comfort and keep her, and forsaking all others remain true to her as long as you both shall live?”
“I will.”
Although she did not quite feel the same emotion reflected in the moisture that was threatening to spill out of both Tess Curtis and Maiv Carmichael’s eyes, Joella could feel the happiness that radiated from the newly wed couple as they made their vows and exchanged rings. She felt oddly proud of Bolivar, so much that she thought she would burst, and excited that Brenna was now officially part of the Curtis family.
A lavish dinner was organized for after the ceremony and then came the party. Joella was looking forward to this part of the evening in particular as she finally found the opportunity to mingle some more with others her own age. Being sister of the bridegroom meant that there were a large number of people she knew well, despite the unexpected amount of unfamiliar faces, and even those she didn’t know seemed very aware of who she was. She was therefore never short of conversation or dancing companions. When she finally found herself free of company, the twelve year old sought out her old friend Alistair whom she had not seen since the Renaissance Faire at the end of term at Sonora. They had continued rekindling their friendship through letters, however, and Joella was very keen to see him again.