10
The
Day
of
the
Wedding
It
is
the
first
time
she’s
embodying
a
white
suit.
Branca
is
her
name.
Her
skin
is
keen
and
embraces
the
silk.
The
water
pours
down
the
church’s
steps,
where
the
amalgamation
is
gregarious,
after
the
pipes
exploded.
Not
many
people
want
this
marriage,
she
thinks,
imagining
sabotage.
As
a
tall
woman,
she
sees
horrified
faces,
delirium
of
other
people,
her
platform
shoes
increasing
her
stature
even
more.
“Don’t
worry,
I
can
walk
on
water,”
Branca
affirms,
overcoming
the
bursts
and
splashes
that
inundate
the
ground
and
make
her
see
things
that
are
not
there.
Help
arrives
in
a
truck.
Her
cousins,
holding
their
tools
in
respect,
watch
the
women
get
married,
the
bride’s
hands
soft
like
fur
and
her
lipstick
smoothing
the
day.
Moments
later,
they
close
the
register.
Soon,
the
sun
soaks
the
cement
and
the
cracks
on
the
sidewalk.
By
Desiree
Jung