The Girl in the River

Chapter 15

Her new clothes were so beautiful. The wedding outfit Brook's mother had made for Sage hadn't fallen short in a single detail. Each stitch in the blue fabric had been laid with care, the shift indulged with extra thread-wasting embellishments. She felt somewhat outside herself to have something so luxurious on her body. So used to standing out from shabbiness, she found she wasn't completely comfortable with the opposite reality.

    Brooks' eyes glowed when he saw her dressed that way though, she'd caught a glimpse of them when she managed to raise her own eyes from his feet for a moment. Her own feet had sandals on them, of all things. She'd laughed when he gave them to her, how ridiculous to spend money - or time - covering one's feet in the summer! She'd only put them on today because of the occasion.

    A small table had been set up in the street in front of their new doorstep, the completed house rising invitingly behind it. The garden was nothing but bare dirt as of yet, but everything else from the floorboards to the finishings was ready for its occupants. One final touch remained; the space above the door had been built with an indent like a shallow cupboard, the same size as the wooden mould full of wet clay that sat waiting for them on the table.

    It was drying already, Sage could see the edges losing the gleam of moisture by the second. Anxiety over it drowned out all the nice things Brooks' father was currently saying about them.

    Brooks took her hand, making her jump. She sidled a fraction closer to him so their entwined fingers tucked into a fold of her skirt. The crowd of people gathered around them to watch the ceremony made it feel impossible to look at him, even though she could feel his eyes on her face. In her mind's eye she could see the exact expression he would be wearing, it was a look she'd been able to return without flinching a few times, when they were alone. It made her heart swell almost to gasping when she really thought about it. Brooks would probably be indignant to know how much less love from him she still would have been happy with, how special she felt just to have a person outside her family think of her. He seemed to want her to accept every kind of generosity from him with a calmness bordering on nonchalance and entitlement that she hadn't yet been able to muster. All she'd managed over the summer was to mask her shock at all his purchases for their home together.

    Finally, the speeches were over. The Chief took his position across the table from them, clearly delighted to be finally presiding over this ritual for his own son. Brooks let go of her hand and reached for his seal where it hung around her neck. He guided it up over her head, gently tugging it free from her loose hair. Sage forgot everything for a moment when he touched her, the lapse letting her raise her eyes to his face.

    He smiled at her and tipped his head so she could retrieve her seal as well. Given something to do, her moment of courage lasted. She had the freedom to notice the colour of his skin and hair in the sunshine, even dared to let her fingertips brush against his neck more than was strictly necessary. Then they both turned to hand the seals to his father and she felt the eyes on her again.

    The Chief pressed the seals side by side at the top of the clay, leaving most of the space in the mould empty. Then Brooks took her hand again, it was part of the ceremony this time. They stepped closer together and both reached their free hands out above the clay.

    "These seals and markings, to be displayed above the doorway of this household, are a sign to all of the bond between these two," the Chief announced. "Strangers, friends, family alike will witness from this day forward that they are joined. In life, home, work, and rest they will continue together."

    As he finished, he reached out as well and pressed their hands down into the clay. It was a harder pressure than Sage had expected. She squeezed Brooks' hand in reaction, letting out a breath of relief when it was over. His clay covered fingers reached for hers as the onlookers began their loud congratulations, and he pulled her closer for a kiss.