He did not tell Stephanie about any of it.
On the Day of the Party She Walked In Dressed in White and Kissed His Cheek and Said It Was Beautiful — He Said It Would Be
The venue was everything it was supposed to look like. Decorations, balloons, the aesthetic of a celebration that people attend expecting to leave happy. Guests arrived in the mood that gender reveal events produce — loose and festive, phones ready, the anticipation of a pleasant announcement.
Stephanie arrived last.
She was dressed in white, which struck Nick as a specific choice, and she moved through the room with the ease of someone who believed the situation was under her control. She kissed his cheek when she reached him.
“This is beautiful,” she said.
“It will be,” he said.
She did not register the distinction in his phrasing.
When the time came, everyone gathered near the table with the cake. Phones were raised. The room had the expectant quality of people prepared to respond to something delightful.
Nick picked up the microphone.
