Sunday - Wk 1 Chp 1 - Party Attire

"How about you?" I asked. "You don't look too keen on being here, yourself."

"Let's just say, I'm here because it's a sort of moral obligation, rather than because I actually wanted to be here," he explained.

"Then we're in the same boat," I smiled.

"So, what's you're obligation?" he asked.

"It's complicated," I told him before taking a gulp of my drink.

"I'm sure my brain won't explode," he gave me that same, incomplete smile. "I'm all ears."

"Well, the bride is my sister," I sighed.

"I can see the resemblance. That doesn't sound very complicated," he noted.

"Well, the groom is also my ex," I finished, followed by the final sip of my drink. I'd need another soon.

"Well, then," he laughed, "we really are in the same boat. The bride, your sister, she's my ex."

I shook my head, "Don't tell me. You're Wesley?"

"How did you know?" he asked.

"Yours was the first heart she ever broke," I told him. "I half expected to see you here. It figures."

"Figures, huh?" he asked.

"Yeah," I sighed. "A nice, good looking guy, concerned for my emotional well-being, and your smitten with my wedded kid sister."

He shook his head.

"You're not?" I asked.

"Katherine may have broken my heart in college, but she wasn't the last, nor the worst about it. Pining has long since ended," he told me, sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than me.

"Then what's your moral obligation?" I asked.

"She's a friend," he told me, sporting that unfinished smile. "A dear, old friend. Plus, I live in the area. I figured, what would it hurt to come?"

I nodded and let him think he had me fooled.

"Well, at least I now understand a bit behind that bright red party dress," he gestured with his drink toward my waist.

I huffed.