“Aloha! May I have your attention, please?” Leilani requested.
Balancing on her crutches, Leilani spoke to all the guests in the reception area. A hush spread across the crowd.
“Congratulations, Malia and Jay! As our gift to you, your flower girls, Hana and Iris, will perform a special hula dance.”
Iris gulped when she heard her name. She wanted to duck under a table and hide!
Hana grabbed Iris’s hand and led her out to the dancing area. “You’ll be great, Iris,” she whispered. “Don’t forget to have fun.”
At the first beat of the Hawaiian love song, Iris managed to take a step to the right. Another beat, and she shyly moved her hips to the left. Then, when the tempo of the music picked up, Iris finally had no choice. She had to dance!
It comes from the heavens.
It’s as deep as the ocean.
Love is in your heart.
Spread it around the world.
Phew! Iris finally let out her breath. She had performed the first round of the hula perfectly. But there was no time to congratulate herself. She had to do it again!
The music for the next verse started to play. Through all her jumpy jitters, Iris suddenly realized something – she was having fun. And the more she danced, the more fun she had. With their hips shaking and arms flowing, Iris and Hana repeated the dance again and again. Soon, all the guests were on their feet, dancing the hula with them.
When the music stopped, there was an explosion of clapping. Iris beamed.
I did it! she thought. And without any help from the Menehune!
Hana turned to Iris. “You were great! I’m so lucky you’re my friend, Iris. Thank you so much!”
“I’m so lucky you’re my friend, Hana. Mahalo so much!”
The girls giggled and hugged. They knew that they’d be friends forever through the special bond of Flower Girl World. Suddenly, their amusement was interrupted by a familiar booming voice.
“WHAT’S SO FUNNY?”
The sound made Iris jump, even though she knew it was Tutu.
“Why are you two standing around? It’s dessert time!” Tutu barked. “After your wonderful performance, you deserve a piece of my famous pineapple upside-down cake!”
“I get the biggest piece!” cried Hana.
“Not if I get there first!” Iris joked.
The flower girls dashed for the dessert table.
“Mmm…” Iris said as she took her first bite.
“Smile!” The girls looked up to find Mrs. Campbell pointing a camera at them. “Let’s take a picture for your Flower Girl World scrapbook. You can send a copy to Rosie and Starr too.”
“Wait!” Iris said. Then she put a little of the cake’s sugar topping on the tips of their noses. “Now we’re ready.”
“Say Aloha,” said Iris’s mom.
“ALOHA!” cheered the two flower girls.
Iris flashed her biggest smile. From the luau to the hula and everything in between, she loved her incredible Hawaiian wedding adventure.
