Starr and the High Seas Wedding Drama (Flower Girl World chapter book) (5 page)

“That's for sure!” Ivy and Starr giggled.

“Let's have a fashion show,” suggested the store owner.

Starr and Ivy grabbed five dresses each and headed back to the dressing rooms. Abuela sat on the sofa to enjoy the show. Every few minutes one of the girls came out wearing a different dress. Starr's picks
were always colorful and shimmery, while Ivy's choices were dark and edgy. They cheered each other on as they pretended to be supermodels on a runway.

“How will you ever decide on a dress?” asked the store owner.

“I'll choose,” said Abuela, walking over to the racks. After a quick search, she pulled out two dresses. One was black and the other
was pink. But they were both traditional Mexican dresses with lace and ribbon.

Starr's and Ivy's eyes lit up.

Starr reached for the pink one, and Ivy took the black one. They emerged from the dressing room a few minutes later looking like princesses.

“Shall I wrap them up?” asked the store owner.

“
¡Sí!
” exclaimed the girls.

Back on the ship, Starr, Ivy, and Abuela went looking for Grandpa Walt. They found him in the sports lounge watching a soccer game on TV. He looked tense as he rooted for his hometown team, the Los Angeles Lions.

“Grandpa Walt,” said Ivy as they approached. “Look at our flower girl dresses. Aren't they pretty?” The girls held them up for him to see.

“That's nice, dear,” said Grandpa Walt, his eyes still glued to the TV.

“Walter!” Abuela said loudly to get his attention. “These are the dresses the girls will be wearing in our wedding.”

“Oh! They're pretty.” He turned back to the television.

Abuela grimaced. “What's so important about this silly soccer game?” she snapped.

“It's a very important game,” said Grandpa Walt, raising his voice.

Starr had never heard him do that before.

“The score is very close. The Lions have to win,” he added.

“Who are they playing?” Ivy asked.

“The San Antonio Sharks,” he said.

Abuela's eyes opened wide.

“You're right. This is an important game,” she said with a devilish smile. “Go Sharks!” She pumped a fist into the air.

Grandpa Walt snorted. “‘Good luck, Sharks' is more like it.”

Starr and Ivy exchanged startled looks. Their grandparents had always been kind to one another. But now, as they watched the game together, the older couple began to taunt each other while cheering on different teams.

“Yes!” Grandpa Walt yelled whenever the Lions would steal the ball.

“Hah!” Abuela squealed whenever the Sharks would steal it back.

As the game wound down to the final seconds, the score was tied 2 to 2. Grandpa Walt had to wipe his sweaty forehead with a napkin.

A Sharks player kicked the ball toward the Lions' goal, but his aim was off. Suddenly, his teammate jumped up into the air and hit the ball with his head. Everyone in the lounge gasped as they watched the ball fly straight into the Lions' goal.

Buzzzz!
The game was over. The San Antonio Sharks had won.

Abuela started a victory dance. She waved her arms in the air and chanted, “We beat the Lions! San Antonio is the best!”

Grandpa Walt scowled. “San Antonio isn't the best. Los Angeles is a much better city.”

Abuela froze. “What?”

“Los Angeles has the beach, Hollywood, Disneyland—”

“San Antonio has the river walk, beautiful Spanish missions, and, most importantly, my family!”

“Los Angeles has my family!” said Grandpa Walt.

“Are you saying your family is more important than mine?”

Starr blinked in surprise. “I don't think that's what he meant, Abuela,” she said quickly.

“Both cities are great,” Ivy added.

“Girls, stay out of this!” Abuela hissed.

“Go back to your rooms,” Grandpa Walt ordered. “The adults need to talk.”

As Starr and Ivy walked away, Grandpa Walt and Abuela started arguing again.

“I don't like this,” said Ivy.

“Me neither. I hope they make up soon,” said Starr.

But Grandpa Walt and Abuela did not make up soon. That night they stayed in their rooms, not even coming out for dinner. There was no sign of them the next day either. They missed making sand sculptures in the morning, playing bingo in the afternoon, and an Italian dinner buffet that night.

Ivy and Starr picked at their pasta dishes.

“Grandpa Walt loves Italian food,” Ivy said. “He never misses a meal.”

“It must have been a very bad fight,” said Starr.

After dinner, the girls and the rest of their families went to the theater to watch a comedy show. The comedians told clever jokes, sang silly songs, and fell down over and over again. They had the whole audience cracking up. Everyone, that is, except Starr and Ivy.

“I'm too sad about Abuela and Grandpa Walt to laugh,” said Starr after the show.

“Me too,” said Ivy. “Everything has changed. I actually want them to get married now. They seemed so happy before.”

Starr nodded.

“And if they don't get married, I may never see you again,” Ivy said.

“That would be terrible!” Starr cried. “We have to get them to make up.”

“How?” Ivy asked. “We couldn't get them to break up. And there's only one more day left on the cruise!”

Starr felt her stomach drop. With all the drama between Abuela and Grandpa Walt, she had lost track of how quickly time was passing.

“That means the talent show is tomorrow night! I don't have an act.”

“Me neither,” said Ivy. “I was going to write a song to play on my guitar, but now there's no time.”

“Wait,” said Starr. “I think there is enough time.”

“What?” Ivy shook her head. “I've never written a song in one day before. It takes a while to figure out the melody and write lyrics.”

Starr smiled. “But before, you never had my help. I know we can do this! And I bet we can save our grandparents' relationship at the same time!”

Starr and Ivy met before breakfast in the Kids' Club. They had a lot of work to complete before the talent show that night.

Ivy tried out different tunes on her guitar, while Starr worked on the lyrics.

“What rhymes with belong?” asked Starr.

“Strong?” Ivy suggested.

“Perfect!”

When the song was finished, it was time to get crafty. The girls headed to the ship's art studio to put a sparkly touch on their scheme. There, they ran into Jenny and told
her all about the plan. They needed her help to make it work.

“You can count on me!” said the cruise director.

Then they got busy with scissors, tissue paper, and glue.

An hour before the show, the girls slipped glittery invitations under the doors of their grandparents' rooms.

Later, when the theater doors finally opened, Starr and Ivy hid behind the stage curtain to watch the audience file in. They
saw Abuela in a silky white gown find her reserved seat in the front row. Grandpa Walt was already in his seat, wearing a handsome black suit. The couple smiled politely but didn't talk to one another.

“At least they're not fighting,” said Starr.

The lights dimmed and Jenny walked onstage.

“Welcome to our talent show!” the cruise director announced. “We have many exciting acts tonight. Our first performer is Greg the Great!”

Greg was a ten-year-old magician. He dazzled the audience by pulling scarves out of a hat and making a quarter disappear. The guests loved him, along with all the other performers: a baton-twirler, two break-dancers, a poet, and a gymnast. Starr and Ivy knew it was their turn after a girl named Maya finished her hula-hoop routine.

“Are you ready?” Starr asked Ivy.

Ivy nodded. “I'm glad we're doing this together.”

“Me too,” Starr agreed.

“It's time for our final act,” announced Jenny from center stage. “Starr Ruby and Ivy Glendon will be singing a song they wrote for two very special people.”

Jenny winked at Starr and Ivy as they took their places onstage. There were many faces in the audience, but Starr only cared about two. She heard Abuela gasp in the front row. Abuela was probably surprised by what Ivy and Starr were wearing: their flower girl dresses.