The Engagement

8. The Party Don't Stop

The next few days rush by. Things get busy at work and at home. At work they are implementing a new workout course that everyone must be trained in. I spend my days learning new core strengthening moves and answering questions for Arnold. He has so many questions. Ever since he found out about the time traveler, he has wanted to know every single detail. Some of his questions about the old man are so personal that I doubt I will ever know the answer to them.

At home Arnold's questions give way to mom's. Things are ramping up with the wedding planning so she is constantly asking me about flowers, cakes, and place settings. Then there is the wedding party. Although the wedding party is traditionally announced at the engagement party, that is just a formality. The party is usually informed ahead of time so that they can get fitted for their dresses and suits. A good amount of my time is spent on the phone with family members and friends, convincing them that I won't pick ugly colored dresses. By the time I slow down long enough to take an uninterrupted breath, It's the day of my engagement party.

My family is always late to things and it seems like Charles's family is the same. The party is meant to start at 8pm but it's 8:15 now and only five people are in the building. Three of those people live in my house. The other two are Charles and Mandy.

To her credit, Mandy was the first one here. She was standing outside of the Derby C. Andrews convention center when my parents and I arrived. But Mandy is like that. She takes care of you better than you can take care of yourself. Although she's not a mother yet, I know she'll be a good one. She'll definitely be a better mom than me. Mandy has been a life saver for the past couple of days. I was so stressed with my mom's constant questioning. Whenever I was super stressed or didn't have an answer, Mandy was there to help. She basically planned half of my wedding and I'm not complaining.

At the moment Mandy is straightening the tablecloths on the ten circular tables while I calculate the spot in the room that can get me as far away from Charles as possible. I don't want to risk things tonight. There will be too many people here. I move around the room as calmly as possible, trying not to draw attention to myself.

"Are you ok?" Mandy asks. Apparently she was moving in my direction as she straightened the tablecloths.

"Of course, why?" I say, frazzled.

"Because you've picked up a knife from every table you passed." She looks down at my hands. I follow her gaze and see that I have two fists full of knives. I look at Mandy with a surprised expression and laugh nervously.

"Let me put these down." I say as I backtrack.

"Seriously, are you ok?" Mandy asks again. I don't know how to answer but luckily I don't get the chance to. Guests begin to arrive and my mom tells me I should go to the front and greet people as they enter. Mandy takes the knives from me to put them back so I can go to the front.

I move toward the front doors but I notice that Charles is already there. His family and friends smile happily as he greets them. Slowly, I inch toward the door, hoping that there's no heat or anger. So far so good. I'm about ten feet away and I'm only anxious, not angry.

I'm almost at the front when I see that darned time traveler outside the building. He's here again. It seems like he arrives before all of my worst moments. I can't let anyone at the party see him.

Charles's parents arrive, dragging Brian with them. They go over to talk to Charles and I slip out behind them. The old man seems to be pacing back and forth across the street. It's like he's trying to decide whether or not to come inside. When he sees me he stops pacing. He rummages around in his bag and pulls out a small bottle. It's either hand sanitizer or lotion. He pours a large amount into his hand and rubs it in thoroughly.