"Urrrurrruuuggghhhhh....Suzy, you're awake and dressed....urgh, what time is it?" said a bleary eyed Neil Humphries as he woke up.
"It's 6am...well, 6:03 to be precise" replied Suzy. "I was too excited to sleep in, even though it's Saturday. So I got up, showered, got dressed, cleaned the kitchen...."
"Too excited? This hour of the morning...and on a Saturday...is for sleeping, or at least laying in bed" he replied. "What's there to be excited about?"
"It's my bachelorette party today, have you forgotten?" she said.
"Oh my goodness! Yes! I remember now! Sorry, I didn't realise...well, I hope it goes better than my bachelor party did"
"Oh I'm so sorry about how Jeremy was with you...I wonder what's bugging him?"
"He claims its 'work'...I don't know; something you said or did seems to annoy him at the moment"
Suzy shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know either. Action told me that Jeremy was short tempered with him as well. But at least Andre and you had a good time together. Now I've got a lot packed in to my schedule. Summer's got something planned for me this afternoon and Barbara's organising the evening entertainment."
Just after lunchtime Suzy went to meet Summer in Newcrest, where her Bridesmaid had planned a special treat.
"Summer, thanks for organising this" she said, on meeting her friend.
"I hope you enjoy it...I know this is the kind of thing you really like" replied Summer.
"Ooh, excitement! What is it? Tell me, tell me!"
"An afternoon of luxury pampering at the Perfect Balance Spa!"
"That is one of my favourite places in the world! I can't wait, let's go! What shall we do? Massage? Yoga? Pedicures?"
"Easy tiger! Let's get in there first!"
The spa was renowned as the best in Sim City with its combination of modernist architecture mixed with traditional East Asian woods and stone. From the moment they walked in, past the ornamental ponds, the changing mood lighting and with the waftings of Jasmine, Citrus and Eucalyptus filling their nostrils they were entranced by what the spa had to offer. They changed into robes and grabbed some towels and headed upstairs to where the treats lay.
"I've not been here before" said Summer. "What do you recommend?"
"The sauna is a must" said Suzy. "Let's cleanse those pores"
"Hmmm, I can get used to this" said Summer, as she luxuriated in the sauna.
"You and Travis should become members" said Suzy. "I think he'd like some of the things they do here"
"He'd probably fall asleep in here" replied Summer.
"Nervous about next week?" asked Summer.
"I should be but I feel calm at the moment..." replied Summer. "Everything is falling into place with the preparation and, frankly, I can't wait to make it official with Neil. He's been nothing short of fantastic these last few weeks and to think when I first met him he was this shy, awkward guy who got the shakes just standing next to a woman"
"It's the effect you have on men" joked Summer. "Now are we sure about our dresses? I mean, we're breaking a bit with tradition with them"
"I have a reputation as Sim City's style expert to uphold" Suzy smiled, half jokingly. "We're not our mothers' generation, Summer. Time to make our own mark in our own way"
After a relax in the sauna, the friends then went to sample some of the other treats and services of the spa. Suzy had a pedicure and Summer a Swedish massage.
Afterwards the two friends reconvened in the changing rooms. Summer was stretching and craning her neck whilst Suzy was admiring her bright pink toenails.
"I have muscles I never knew I had" said Summer "That massage has really perked me up...just what I need for this evening: We've got a big, private function on at the restaurant."
"Aww, it's such a shame you can't come to the Orange Peel with the rest of us" replied Suzy.
"I know, but I set that all up: Barbara, Liberty, Julia and Eliza are all going to be there, it's only your work colleague, Sadie, who said she couldn't."
"We'll have a round on your, Summer....once again, thank you for setting this all up. I've had a great time here...you must be my guest in future." said Suzy.
The bride-to-be and the maid of honour hugged and said goodbye to one another. Suzy headed home to change into a party outfit; her new, pink patterned one, and headed off to Newcrest again to hook up with her other guests at the swingingest place in Sim City: The Orange Peel Club.
Suzy's friends were all there ahead of her and were having a chat on the dance floor in anticipation of the guest of honour. Suzy saw all her neighbourhood girlfriends were there but she was pleased to see Eliza Pancakes present as well. She had got to know Eliza from frequenting the Blue Velvet nightclub in Willow Creek and Eliza had come to her aid whenever Edna Sneedley and Nancy Landgraab tried to be short with Suzy. From those beginnings a friendship had grown. Eliza would be the sole married person present...but she had never met her husband, Bob.
"Here comes the bride!" they all yelled to Suzy.
"What are you all doing standing around here? Are we going to dance or what?" Suzy replied. And with that, the merriment began.
After half an hour of dancing, the ladies were in need of a drink so they convened at the bar.
"Julia, you are seriously good out there!" said Suzy. "And it looks like you haven't even broken a sweat"
"Sweating is disgusting, ugh" replied Julia. "But I do have some small ability at dancing...I come from a very musical family" she said in that particular way she had of inadvertently bragging without realising it. The others understood that was Julia being a social ingenue, and they forgave her if she did sound pompous at times: She didn't mean to be.
Barbara raised her glass for a toast. "Here's to Suzy and Neil, may they enjoy a lifetime of wedded bliss!"
"To Suzy and Neil" the others cheered.
"Good luck...you're going to need it" said Eliza, downing her drink.
"Oh come on, Eliza, I keep hearing you making jibes at Bob...surely he can't be all that bad!" said Suzy.
"Well, make sure you're not marrying in haste like I did" said Eliza. "How well do you know Neil, honey?"
"Intimately" replied Suzy.
"I don't mean how he is in the sack. I mean, do you know what he likes, how he prefers to spend his time, have you even been on a vacation with him?"
"We've shared perils together so, yes, I know what he's like" said Suzy.
"Perils! I wish Bob and I had some perils to contend with...maybe he'd pay some more attention! The closest thing we came to peril recently was this mouse eating out of the cookie jar but Bob said he wouldn't deal with it because he was too busy picking his toenails."
"Gross, Eliza, that's just gross"
"That's what marriage is like, most of the time. Those little things he does that annoys you now...they'll still annoy you years later."
"Let's change the subject..." said Liberty. "Tell us about your wedding dress, Suzy. What's it like?"
Suzy told them.
"Wow, that sounds beautiful, but also a bit daring! Neil won't know what hit him!" said Liberty.
"Well, ladies, I don't about you but I came here to dance!" said Suzy, slamming her empty glass down on the bar and standing up. "Who's with me?"
"I'm in"
"Yep, let's do this"
"Feet, do your stuff"
"I wonder if the disc jockey takes requests?"
"OK, girls, GROUP DANCE!"
It was past 1am when the girls, all tipsy and exhausted, started to go home. Julia was so far gone she was calling Suzy "her bestest ever friend" and giving her a hug that didn't seem to want to end.
Suzy herself hailed a taxi and bundled in along with Barbara, Julia and Liberty and it was a struggle for them to remember where they lived but eventually they made it back to Foundry Cove and Suzy staggered into the house to find Neil still awake.
"Neil...you gorgeous hunk...come here..."
"I think you're a little drunk, Suz"
"I'm very drunk and I want my future husband right here, right now"
"So I take it the day went....HMMMMMMMMMMHMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM" Neil didn't get to finish his sentence as Suzy's lips latched on to his.
