Miss Scarlet's School of Patternless Sewing (14 page)

Ciao ciao, cinnamon buns!

M
arco moved all the tables out of the way while Scarlet hauled in handfuls of bulky plastic shopping bags for the second week of her workshop. She swung the goods on top of the front table and began to remove the contents.

He chuckled as he watched her sort the rolls according to color. He couldn’t believe that within the hour the room would be filled with women (voluntarily) bound in duct tape.

At first Marco decided to close the curtains on the room’s front window, worried about cops passing by and getting the wrong idea. He changed his mind. Duct tape or not, ever since the room had been brightened up with chandeliers, wild fabric wall coverings, and that magnificent tree, passersby often stopped and pressed their noses to the glass to stare. Many times their curiosity led to their actually coming inside the store and buying records.

Marco’s thoughts were interrupted by Nadine tapping on his shoulder. “Dude, I work for you, not Wilma Flintstone over there. I better get a raise for this shit. Last I recall, I was hired to sell music, not take grown women hostage. We’re really going to wrap people in duct tape? Is this even legal?”

“Nadine! My new best friend!” Scarlet sang out when she
noticed the girl had entered. Actually, it was the glare off the silver spike in Nadine’s nose that caught her attention. “Thank you for your help, precious. Do you remember all the details?” Scarlet asked, removing the gingham scarf from her head and tying it around her neck. “Just to be sure, want to review again?”

Marco set down the last of the music stands next to Nadine and whispered in her ear. “Twenty bucks.”

“Twenty-five,” she replied without moving her lips.

“Deal,” he said.

“Yup. Wrap ’em and spin ’em,” Nadine stated. “Got it.”

Marco hadn’t built up the nerve to ask Scarlet out yet, but he would soon. The trouble was that her free time revolved around raising cash for her Johnny Scissors tuition. Since the sewing class numbers fell short, she took on extra hours at Carly’s as well as helping at her aunt’s quinceañera shop. That took up half of her sixteen-hour workday. Scarlet spent her early-morning hours packing and shipping orders from her online store. During the middle of the night she designed and stitched her Mexibilly Frock dresses. Somewhere in there she managed to promote all of it online at various social networking sites. He
would
ask her out, but not until he was sure she’d have time for a date.

In the meantime, Marco stepped in wherever he could. Just the night before he had spent four hours at her place, taking pictures of all her dresses and uploading them to her online store.

No wonder Scarlet was so bubbly,
he thought as he typed up the item descriptions. He didn’t know anything about sewing, but he knew each outfit told a novel through vibrant layers and depth, as if she personally squeezed a drop of her soul into every pleat and sequin. No one deserved success more than her, and it bothered him that her family didn’t see that.

He only wished she would relax a bit. With all she had going on in her life, she insisted on making him dinner for his help. He practically had to put up a block fence in front of the kitchen to stop her. Scarlet had more pride than anyone he’d known. She didn’t like or want to accept favors. To her it was a sign of giving up control, and she didn’t want to be in anyone’s debt.

As Marco unscrewed the top from each music stand, he admired her from the corner of his eye. She wore red sneakers, tight Levi’s rolled up at the ankles, and a black leotard that he couldn’t stop staring at.

“Marco… How’s it goin’ over there, champ?” Scarlet called out right before she tipped her cup upside down to ensure she caught the last drop of her quad mocha. She stuck out her tongue and licked the foam off her bright red lips.

His face turned a soft shade of pink. “Just fine,” he replied, as he accidentally stepped on the music stand and almost twisted his foot.

Scarlet giggled. “Take it slow mister, class hasn’t even begun! Hey, do you mind if we have open sewing lab on Tuesday and Thursday nights, too—you know, so the students can get more practice?”

So much for asking her out on weeknights,
he thought. “That’s cool with me, but don’t you already have enough on your plate? You don’t want to get burned out.”

“Ah, dontcha worry about me,” she said. “Hey look, someone’s coming!”

Olivia pranced in, twirling a huge white T-shirt around her chubby finger. “I’m here and I’m ready to rock! Oh my lord…” Olivia gasped and looked at all the body silhouettes they had made in last week’s class. Scarlet had pasted them on the walls.

“Love it. Great job, Teach,” Olivia said. “I read your blog this morning and cried my eyes out. No wonder you had us trace
our bodies last week. What a beautiful post. I’m going to print it out. Ooh, Mexican pastries again!”

Scarlet set out napkins, pitchers of water, and a tray of pan dulce that Nana Eleanor had made for the class.

“Oh, chica, you read my mind,” Olivia purred, and joined Scarlet in tasting one of the brightly powdered treats. “I’m gonna need more duct tape for my dress form after this! I’m telling you, Scarlet, being able to hang out with you like this has brightened up my life so much. Every time I feel like smacking someone, I think—‘What would Scarlet do?’ ”

Scarlet laughed. “Every time I feel like smacking someone, I think, ‘What would Daisy do?’ ”

As the rest of the students filtered in, Scarlet couldn’t contain her excitement. She raced over to each one, hugged them, and welcomed them back to the class.

“I have an announcement,” Scarlet hollered over the chatter. “In addition to Saturdays, Marco has offered the classroom every Tuesday and Thursday night for sewing lab.”

“My, you’re a live one today,” Mary Theresa said as she backed away from her eager teacher. “Red Bull?”

“Four shots of espresso,” Nadine blurted as she passed by to close the door.

Scarlet put her hands on her hips at the front of the class. “OK, everyone, scootch up close now. Did everyone bring long T-shirts? Go ahead and put them on over the shirt you’re wearing now.”

“How’d she get up there so fast?” Jennifer whispered to her sister while nodding in Scarlet’s direction. “I swear she was standing right here half a second ago.”

“I’m in Keds today, doll,” Scarlet remarked while performing a mini-moonwalk. “Now, let me explain how this works. We’re going to wrap your torso in duct tape from the bottom of your
booty up to your neck and under your arms. We’ll then snip the whole thing off, stuff it, and attach it to these adjustable music stands. What you’ll have is a custom-made stuffed dress form tailored to your body’s exact measurements. I’ll demonstrate the first one, and then we can all help wrap each other. Who wants to be the first model? I have all different colors of duct tape.”

“Hey, can we doodle all over it when we’re done?” Jennifer asked.

“Ohhh, fashion graffiti! Sure, I love that,” Scarlet said.

“I’m goin’ Jill Scott all over mine,” Olivia said as she recited her favorite lyrics from “Hate on Me.”

“ ’Cause in reality, I’m gon’ be who I be

And I don’t feel no faults, for all the lies that you bought.”

Mary Theresa stiffly glanced down at her invisible wristwatch. “Come to think of it, I’m waiting for a very important call sometime today; I really should exit just in case…”

Rosa nudged her. “Hey, kid, I’m older than thread and I’m doing it, so you can too. Come on, we’ll take care of each other.”

“Well, this just doesn’t seem… I don’t know, healthy?” Mary Theresa said, obviously beyond concerned. “Doesn’t duct tape have toxins? I have very sensitive skin. What if it comes in contact with it? And why do we want to see our bodies in true form anyway? Isn’t the whole idea of clothing to conceal?”

“Think of it this way, Mary Theresa. Dress forms are very expensive. Once you complete the project, you’ll see the value. Come on, I’d like you to be our first model,” Scarlet said with affection. “I know it’s not anything you are used to, but please give me a chance. Trust me. Please?”

Before Mary Theresa opened her mouth to refuse, Scarlet stepped in front of her and stared right into her pupils. “Instead of thinking of all the reasons why not to try this, think about
how good it will feel to do something totally unexpected. What can it hurt to take a little risk?”

In that second, it wasn’t Scarlet’s voice or face Mary Theresa heard and saw, but Hadley’s. It reminded her of why she was here and not at home working on the NorWest project. As much as she wanted to spurn the dress-form idea, she loved the irony of it… wrapping herself in duct tape in order to loosen up in life.

“Fine. Only because you are the expert.” Mary Theresa slipped on her long T-shirt and braced herself as if she were going to be whipped with duct tape rather than wrapped in it. She tilted her head and weakly smiled at Rosa. “Pray for me.”

Nadine turned up the music—a Portuguese samba station on
Pandora.com
—while Scarlet peeled away the first piece of silver tape from the thick roll and ripped it off with her teeth. Her eyes met Mary Theresa’s. “Trust me,” she whispered. She then applied it around the woman’s petite waist. Seeing a collection of sweat beads along Mary Theresa’s hairline, Rosa grabbed a second roll of tape and stepped over to assist. As Scarlet performed the specific directions, Nadine situated the other students so they could begin the process as well.

Scarlet and Rosa worked as fast as they could to cover Mary Theresa’s entire body, while she stood stiff as a scarecrow with her arms out at her sides. In order to create the shell of the dress form, they had to press strips across her chest and around her hips, pelvis, and butt. They figured the sooner they finished, the sooner the tense, busy mom could relax.

“You’re shivering. Are you OK?” asked Rosa.

“It’s freezing in here. I’m holding my teeth back from chattering,” Mary Theresa replied.

“Tell us about your twins,” Scarlet said, hoping to lighten her mood. Nana Eleanor always said anytime you needed to butter
someone up, ask them about their children, grandchildren, or pets.

It worked. “A boy and a girl,” Mary Theresa said with her first hint of glee all day. “My mother is watching them today so I can be here.”

“Twins? With this hourglass figure? No wonder your husband sticks with you! La verdad, no Scarlet?” Rosa laughed as she finished placing the final piece. She smoothed it down and exchanged a “Thank goodness, we are done!” glance with Scarlet. Rosa wondered why Mary Theresa had surrendered her Saturday morning when she obviously didn’t want to be there.

“We’re a very happy unit,” Mary Theresa fired back, now resembling a mummy reaching for a snack. “I mean, sure, times get rough, especially around the holidays; arguments happen, people get hurt. But at the end of the day, all is calm and loving. It really is. We’re very happy. We really, really are. We’re far from dysfunctional.” She blinked hard and held her breath.

Before Scarlet or Rosa could respond, a blaring, cringe-inducing siren went off in Mary Theresa’s… pelvis.

Rrrrrrt!

Rrrrrrt!

Rrrrrrt!

The other women in the class stopped, then turned to look at the exact spot where the noise came from—Mary Theresa’s bikini line. The teenagers broke out in giggles, but Olivia and Nadine froze, each with a perplexed expression.

Mary Theresa closed her eyes and counted to three to stay calm as the annoying alarm continued. “That’s my husband calling. My phone is in my front pocket. I can’t answer because I’m sealed in the tape.”

“You use a Defcon-4 alarm ringtone for your husband?” Scarlet asked.

“I told you I was waiting for an important call!” Mary Theresa hollered over the repeating sound, embarrassed as she clawed at the hem of her thick silver bodysuit.

Scarlet quickly pulled out her scissors and was about to snip up the front of Mary Theresa’s thigh. “I’m so sorry,” she said. “I’ll cut this off lickety-split so you can ring him back.”

Mary Theresa thought about how she had left multiple messages for Hadley since Monday, and he hadn’t had the decency to return the calls all week. What if Rocky or Lucy broke an arm? What if the kitchen caught on fire? What if she wanted to promise him again she would change her ways so he would come home? Well, now it would be his turn to wait and wonder. She tapped Scarlet’s hand away. “No. I’ll get back with him later. Let’s continue.”