The Year of Weddings and Babies

“What a loser,” Tori laughed.  She tossed her long brown hair over her shoulder and shook her head at Roger’s behavior.

“Yeah,” Samantha sighed.  “I’m thinking it won’t last very much longer.  I mean, what’s the point?”

“Aw, Sammy Girl,” Tori reached across the little table and put her gloved hand over Samantha’s.  “You don’t need the jerk.  Dump his ass!”

“Nice,” Samantha scowled.  “Way to be a comforting friend.”

“Whatever, you’ll get over it.  I have news for you anyway.”

“Yeah, what?”  Samantha asked.  Tori didn’t say anything but slowly began to pull her hands out of her gloves.  The grin that was on her face broke into a fully fledged smile that caused her dimples to grow deep and her eyes to sparkle with happiness.  Samantha cocked her head to the side and stared at her friend, a look of confusion on her own face.  “What are you so friggin’ happy about all of the sudden?”

Tori slide her now ungloved left hand over the table.  Sparkling, even in the dim light of the coffee shop, was an engagement ring.  “Steven proposed last night!”

Samantha didn’t know what to say.  Just a couple of weeks earlier Tori had been ranting about how Anna was stupid for getting married so young.  The two of them seemed to see eye to eye on the subject, and now Tori was joining Anna as another young bride.  “Holy sh-…well…whoa!”  Samantha couldn’t get the words to form in her mouth.  “Congratulations!”

“Isn’t it crazy?”  Tori was glowing with excitement.  She adjusted her handmade scarf around her neck and then stared down at her new ring.  “One second we were arguing about who was going to take out the trash or something stupid like that, and then all of the sudden he was down on one knee.”  That actually wasn’t much of a shock.  Tori and Steven always seemed to be arguing about something but then would immediately kiss and make up.  They were both very passionate people who spoke their minds and liked things their way.