Love, Rosie (44 page)

Rosie:

Ruby:

Ruby:

You
won’t
fucking
believe
it.

You
got
a
date.

No,
worse
than
that,
Alex
has
asked
me
to
be
his
“Best
Woman.”

I
don’t
suppose
that
means
you’ll
be
standing
to
the
left
of
him
in

the
church??

Eh
no
.
.
.
to
the
right.

What
about
his
brother?

He’s
an
usher
or
something.

Wow
so
he
really
is
going
ahead
with
it?

I
think
you
should
stop
waiting
for
him
now,
honey.

Rosie:
Yep.
Looks
like
it.

Rosie:
I
know.
I
probably
should.

chapter
10

k

My
“Best
Woman”
speech

Good
evening
everyone,
my
name
is
Rosie
and
as
you
can
see
Alex
has

decided
to
go
down
the
non-traditional
route
of
asking
me
to
be
his
best

woman
for
the
day.
Except
we
all
know
that
today
that
title
does
not
belong

to
me.
It
belongs
to
Sally,
for
she
is
clearly
his
best
woman.

I
could
call
myself
the
“best
friend”
but
I
think
we
all
know
that
today

that
title
no
longer
refers
to
me
either.
That
title
too
belongs
to
Sally.

But
what
doesn’t
belong
to
Sally
is
a
lifetime
of
memories
of
Alex
the

child,
Alex
the
teenager,
and
Alex
the
almost-a-man
that
I’m
sure
he
would

rather
forget
but
that
I
will
now
fill
you
all
in
on.
(Hopefully
they
all
will

laugh.)

I
have
known
Alex
since
he
was
five
years
old.
I
arrived
on
my
first
day

of
school
teary-eyed
and
red-nosed
and
a
half
an
hour
late.
(I
am
almost
sure

Alex
will
shout
out
“What’s
new?”)
I
was
ordered
to
sit
down
at
the
back
of

the
class
beside
a
smelly,
snotty-nosed,
messy-haired
little
boy
who
had
the

biggest
sulk
on
his
face
and
who
refused
to
look
at
me
or
talk
to
me.
I
hated

this
little
boy.

I
know
that
he
hated
me
too,
him
kicking
me
in
the
shins
under
the
table

and
telling
the
teacher
that
I
was
copying
his
schoolwork
was
a
telltale
sign.

We
sat
beside
each
other
every
day
for
twelve
years
moaning
about
school,

moaning
about
girlfriends
and
boyfriends,
wishing
we
were
older
and
wiser

love,
rosie

73

and
out
of
school,
dreaming
for
a
life
where
we
wouldn’t
have
double
maths

on
a
Monday
morning.

Now
Alex
has
that
life
and
I’m
so
proud
of
him.
I’m
so
happy
that
he’s

found
his
best
woman
and
his
best
friend
in
perfect
little
brainy
and
annoying

Sally.

I
ask
you
all
to
raise
your
glasses
and
toast
my
best
friend
Alex
and
his