Free Out of the Blue by Sarah Ellis Page B

hand?”
    â€œNo,” said Megan from inside the dress.
    The clerk, who had very selective hearing, zipped the dress up the back. “Oh, that’s very sweet. Let’s show the others.” She pushed Megan out the door.
    Megan stood in front of the mirror. The dress made her look absolutely ridiculous, like some too-tall, bony Alice in Wonderland with stupid hair and a zit on her chin. She stood stiffly, trying not to let the dress touch her body. Her arms and legs looked as if they didn’t belong to a human being, much less her. But the clerk didn’t give her a chance to say anything. She was hovering, giving the dress little tucks, and poking Megan in the process, until Megan could hardly keep from hitting her.
    â€œWe’d like to take a little dart here, and of course you don’t quite get the effect with runners.” The clerk gave a revolting little laugh.
    Megan looked down at the growths at the end of her legs.
    â€œPerhaps you’d like to try one of the other styles.”
    The worst thing was that Megan could see how beautiful the dress was, how beautiful it would have looked on her when she was Betsy’s age. But now it made her feel like a mutant.
    â€œA size larger?” asked the salesclerk.
    â€œNo.” Natalie’s voice was clear and definite. “The size is not the problem. That dress is just far too young for Megan. We’re in the wrong department.”
    â€œAh,” said the salesclerk, “thinking of a more sophisticated image, were we?” She gave Natalie that making-fun-of-kids-while-pretending-to-be-nice look.
    Natalie didn’t play along. “We’ll be fine on our own now, thank you.”
    Megan fled to the change room and put her normal human being clothes back on again. But even in them she felt misshapen, as though the dress had warped her. She couldn’t even imagine something that she could wear to a wedding. And she sure wasn’t in the mood for more shopping.
    She emerged from the change room. “Can I just wear my blue dress from last summer?”
    Mum looked disappointed. “Sure, if you like. Don’t you want to look at some other things, though? Nat has some ideas about other shops we could try.”
    Megan just shook her head. Mum’s disappointed voice made her itchy with irritation. Hadn’t she just saved Mum a whole bunch of money? Mum should be grateful, not sad-sounding. Oh, why was everything she did
wrong
? Maybe she really was as mutant as she felt in that dress. Going shopping used to be fun. Now everything was just . . . impossible.
    When Megan went to bed that night Betsy’s dress was hanging in the window. She went to lift it down.
    â€œDon’t.”
    Great. Betsy was still awake. “But I can’t close the curtains.”
    â€œWe don’t need to.”
    â€œBut people can see in.”
    â€œNot with the dress hanging there. I need to have it there.”
    Betsy was becoming a real whiner. “Oh, all right.”
    â€œMegan, I have a theory that Princess Mayonnaise is going to get married.”
    â€œWhy am I not surprised?”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œNothing. Betsy, you’ve already handed in your story. You beat Kevin Blandings. Why are you still making up things about Mayonnaise?”
    â€œI just like to think about her. She’s going to have five bridesmaids and one flower girl. The flower girl gets to wear nylons, lipstick, perfume, and nail polish.”
    â€œI didn’t even know she had a boyfriend. Who’s she marrying?”
    â€œI haven’t made up that part yet. A prince.”
    â€œI thought she was going to be a superhero.”
    â€œShe still is, but I’m not thinking about that. The flower girl carries a big bunch of tulips and daffodils and those white ones with pink middles.”
    â€œDoes she drop them?”
    â€œNo, of course not.”
    â€œDoes she come first down the aisle?”
    Betsy