Coverage

Chapter 24

Fin pulls his hair back in a rubber band and tucks it under his cap before we get out of the car at the City Clerk's Office. He also dons his glasses and the loose chambray shirt that he threw in his bag earlier.

"Are you Clark Kent? Can people not see the superhero muscles beneath your disguise?" I tease.

"Actually switching outfits around sometimes can throw off the vultures. Other times I like wearing the exact same thing for days on end, because it makes their shots look less fresh and therefore less likely to sell," he explains.

We get upstairs and pull a ticket so we can stand in a line with a handful of other couples and stare at the red LED numbers on the 'Now Serving' display.

Fin can't stand still beside me, he rocks back and forth on the balls of his feet and blows out little puffs of air every so often. He's tense and it reminds me of the way he was when he showed up unannounced at my apartment. 

Maybe it's the shade of paint on the walls; an institutional green that brings back memories of the hospital room where my grandmother died. I would like to ask him if that's what bothering him, but I don't. We decided not to talk on the line in case anyone listens in. 

When our number finally appears, I offer to let the couple waiting behind us take our turn. We want the window with the elderly woman behind the glass, not the younger one whose light is flashing. She seems more likely to recognize Fin.

They ask if I'm sure and I insist. "He's nervous and needs another minute," I joke with a laugh. Although I'm not sure it's entirely untrue.

I trade tickets with the other woman. Fin avoids eye contact with the man while they thank us.

We finally get called up to the desired window. The woman barely glances at us as she slips the forms under the divider. "Fill these out. Then come back to my window."

She shoos us and waves over the couple waiting in the wings with their inked in papers. The guy in the couple does a double-take at us. Fin puts his head down and we turn our backs to them to find a corner of the counter to lean against.

As I begin to fill in my portion, Fin stands beside me. I read aloud softly. "Spouse A Personal Information. Surname – Stevens. First name – Amelia"

Fin interrupts. "Your full name is Amelia?"

I look sidewise at him, and my hand freezes in the middle of writing. My stomach feels like a block of ice at the realization that the man I'm engaged to, doesn't even know my proper name. I put the pen down. "Amelia Cara Stevens."

He smiles at me. "I assumed Millie was a cute nickname for Millicent or maybe Mildred."

I melt a little bit and I blush. "I guess it's not as bad as those, but when I was younger I thought Amelia was too old-fashioned. Plus, it means 'industrious and striving' which always made me think of a beast of burden, like an ox or a donkey."

Fin chuckles and moves behind me. He brushes my hair back, rests his chin on my shoulder and hugs me from behind. "That's ridiculous. I think Amelia is a beautiful name."

My stomach is fluid again.

"My Dad picked it because of Amelia Earhart. He has a thing for planes and wanted to be a pilot. But he's colorblind so he couldn't fly."

Fin reaches over, picks up the pen and places it into my hand. "Your Dad wanted you to soar because he couldn't."

"I suppose I never thought of it that way, especially with the number of things he grounded me for over the years." I snort.