Capítulo 3: "SURPRISE!"

I finished my dinner with my dad, letting him go home as I took an uber to downtown to meet up with my friends. Main Street on a Saturday night meant a lot of foot traffic, a lot of hot guys, and a lot of drunk girls. The uber driver let me out in front of the Rose Lounge, a very chic and partially classy bar in a relatively trashy area. It's where we three always met up before getting plastered. I walked in and found my single girls.

Raquel was part Hispanic; she had the long, straight, brown hair that reached her butt, colored with some highlights. Her makeup was always bold, going for a bright red on the lips and a shimmery pink around her eyes. She was the makeup guru in our group. Chrissy and I kept it plain and simple: foundation, concealer, mascara, and chapstick. The similarities between us ended there though. Chrissy was tall at 5'8", while I stood at a measly 5'2". Chrissy was model-sexy and I was cute-next-door-neighbor. She was what you call...a blonde bombshell. She routinely did her hair and had the prettiest eyes. I really looked like a plain-Jane next to these two with my normal brown hair and eyes. I didn't even both brushing my hair most days.

"You made it!" Raquel squealed, getting up from the black leather couch in the lounge, racing to me in her high heels. She squeezed me to her chest, making me feel super uncomfortable with her boobs in my face.

"It was about time." Chrissy snorted, yet still got up and hugged me after Raquel was done. "I thought you got into an accident or something."

"I was coming from dinner with my dad." I explained as we three sat down. I noticed one extra drink on the table. I smiled, happy that they already ordered me something. I picked it up and started to sip it. "What is this? Are you guys trying to make me drink something weird again?" I gave it another sip.

"Uh...that was actually my drink." A deep voice, with a hint of an accent, said from my right.

Startled, I started to choke, and ended up spraying out the alcohol I was just drinking.

"Oh my God." Chrissy raised her voice. She flagged down a waitress for napkins and had their ruined drinks taken away.

Raquel just laughed at the scene. "Val, are you okay?"

I wiped the liquid running down my chin. "Do I look okay?" I looked up at the man who just scared the wits out of me. "Who are you exactly?"

"Alex." He pushed his black curls out of the way of his eyes. "Raquel's fiancé."

My jaw dropped. "Her what?!"

Even Chrissy paused, obviously caught off guard. "I thought you guys were just dating?"

"SURPRISE!" Raquel shook her hands in a celebratory way.

I looked from her to him and back to her. "Are you joking?"

"Of course not, silly." She laughed. She stood up and went to Alex's side to hold his hand. "Let me start over. Chrissy, Valerie, this is Alex Rogers and we're getting married."

I looked to Chrissy, unable to comprehend what I was hearing. "Are you in on this?"

Chrissy shook her head. "I really thought they were just dating..." She looked at Raquel. "You're completely serious?"

Raquel pouted, visibly upset. "Guys...I thought you would be happy for me." Her shoulders sagged.

Alex let go of her hand and pulled her into a hug. "It's okay. Everything's going to be okay. They're just in shock right now." He smoothed out her hair, all the way down her lower back. "Why don't I give you ladies some time alone. I'll go for a walk up and down the street." He smiled warmly, pulling away from our friend.

"I'll text you when we're at the next bar." Raquel smiled sweetly and waved her fiancé away.

I pulled her by her hand, forcing her to sit back down, making sure she was between me and Chrissy. "Okay, what the hell is going on! Who the heck is that guy?"

"No shit." Chrissy agreed. "We just saw you two weeks ago. Were you hiding this? How long were you with Alex?"

"Ten days." She smiled proudly.

...I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

Neither could Chrissy. She flagged down the waitress again. "Bring us a bottle of champagne and three glasses, please." The waitress nodded and hurried away. Chrissy whipped her head back to Raquel. "I'm thinking, if I get drunk, I'll start understanding what you're saying."

Raquel laughed. "Okay, I'll start from the beginning. The real beginning. Alex and I actually knew each other from college. He was a foreign exchange student my freshman year and his senior year. We hooked up a time or two, then he graduated and went back to his home country, New Zealand. He's currently job hunting in Los Angeles with a few interviews lined up." She paused.

The waitress dropped off the glasses and bottle.

"Thanks." Chrissy told her, sending her away. She poured three glasses and passed them out. She gulped her first glass down and refilled it again. "I feel like I know where this is going. Let me guess, he's on a temporary visa of sorts so somehow after you guys reconnected, he decided you guys should get married so he can get his green card that way."

Raquel applauded. "Wow, on point!"

I started to drink my champagne too. Raquel was kind of ditzy, but she wasn't dumb. She was just slightly naïve and kind of an airhead. "Raquel...I don't think we have to tell you our concerns, do we...?"

She leaned back with her champagne glass. "You girls are worrying too much. We sincerely want to date. We might be jumping the gun, but I want this. We want this. If it doesn't work out, there's always divorce." She looked at Chrissy, then at me. "This isn't how I imagined it either, but I want to take a chance on this. Please?"

Chrissy sighed. "What are you saying 'please' for? This is your decision. All we can do is support you. Either everything works out and we'll be happy together, or it doesn't, and we'll be cursing this Alex guy together."

Raquel pulled her into a hug. "I knew I could count on you girls. That's why I have something important to ask you...Will you be my bridesmaids?"

I finished off my drink and grabbed the bottle to pour another.