Thursday and Friday went by like a breeze. Wedding plans were on full swing. It wasn't much of a party, only a very close group of friends and family - my grandparents, Carmen's family, Audrey, Collin, Carmen's colleagues and Dad's colleagues. I had to pick up flowers and suits and dresses and people and whatnot.
My grandparents had a house in Haven and had no need to live with us. Carmen's mom, Monica was going to live with us. She was sharing Ray's room. I had to pick her up from the bus station on Friday.
She talked to me the whole drive to our house. She talked to me about my school and college days and the extremely safe topic of Haven's weather and told me stories about Ray's childhood. Monica was full of life like her daughter.
Ray ran in to her grandma's arms as soon as Monica stepped into the house. I noticed the resemblance. All the women I had encountered in Carmen's family looked similar.
The three women filled the house with laughter. They talked for about two hours before Monica asked me if she could cook something for everyone.
"It's Carmen's house as much as it is mine which makes it your house as well and when food is concerned, how can I say no?" I shrugged.
"I like you," Monica said and pinched my cheek before heading to the kitchen.
The house showed more life and laughter than I had seen of it in all the years I lived in it. Ray chattered with her grandma like I had never seen before. I thought about what Audrey said to me a day ago.
How's it going?
Carmen's mom is here. She's
making honey oatmeal cookies.
Their family is a chatty lot.
Oo honey oatmeal cookies!
Save one for me.
Are you liking them?
They are different than people
I usually interact with but
they're cool I guess.
Told you.
How could I think that you
would miss a chance of saying
'told you'?
^_^ Go help make cookies.
I gotta go.
I love you.
The feeling is mutual.
"Zack, I forgot to tell you. You have to say something at the wedding," dad said.
"What?" I looked up from my phone.
"It's your father's wedding. Surely, his son would have something to say," Monica said.
"Yeah," I replied. Total lie.
***
On Saturday morning, Carmen woke me up at five a.m. I was so sleepy, I accidentally squeezed hand wash on my toothbrush. I had to wear a suit and tie.
"Zack, are you ready?" Carmen's voice came up the stairs.
"Yeah," I said coming down.
Carmen looked beautiful. She hadn't worn her dress yet but her makeup and hair was done and she looked stunning.
"You look great," I said.
"Thanks," She blushed. "Ray and Blake are waiting outside."
The ceremony was at nine in the morning but we had to be at the hall by seven to check everything. It was a good idea to go early. The caterer had got all the drinks messed up and the buffet table was covered by an old white cloth which didn't even look clean.
It took an hour to fix all the mistakes and get everything in order. Ray was wearing a powder blue dress and had her hair loose and curled. Dad wasn't allowed to see Carmen after she wore her wedding dress so he sat on a chair thinking of everything that could go wrong with the wedding.
Audrey arrived fifteen minutes before nine. She wore a plain green dress and had her hair up in a stylish bun. She wore matching diamond earrings and necklace.
"You're early," I strode towards her.
"I wanted to come earlier and help you out with stuff but Ayden decided to mess with my alarm," she said.
"You look gorgeous."
"You look sleepy," she said.
I frowned. "I had to wake up at five a.m."
"Aww you poor thing," she teased. "I was joking. You look very handsome."
"Audrey! I'm glad you came," dad said walking toward us.
"It's my favorite professor's wedding! I wouldn't miss it for the world," she hugged my dad.
"Yeah and my presence has no value whatsoever," I said sarcastically. They both laughed.
"You should introduce her to Carmen and Ray," dad said.
"I would love to meet them," Audrey said.
"I'll take her to Carmen but don't expect her to pass on any message. You're not allowed to see her till the ceremony starts," I said.
Dad pouted and Audrey and I laughed. I took Audrey to Carmen's room. Monica and Carmen were talking to each other when we came in. Carmen was wearing her gown now and looked really beautiful.
"Hey. I wanted to introduce you to someone. This is Audrey, my girlfriend," I said pointing to Audrey then pointed towards Carmen. "This is Carmen, my stepmom."
"Monica, Carmen's mother," I turned toward Ray, "This is Ray, my stepsister."
The four women said their greetings and started complimenting each other's dresses and jewelry. I had lost any hope of being able to follow the conversation.
It was Monica who noticed and said, "I think we've stolen Audrey for more than enough time. Zack, go show her the gardens."
Audrey said her goodbyes and came with me toward the gardens.
"They're all so nice. Ray seemed a bit shy though. She didn't talk much," Audrey said.
"She might be the introverted kind," I said.
"They're all great. This change might be good for you and your dad," she said.
"Can we not talk about them for a while?" I asked.
"We're at their wedding."
"Audrey."
"Okay. What do you wanna talk about?"
"Collin is coming today," I said.
"That's so cool. It's been months since we spent time together," she said excitedly.
"Well you have been quite busy lately. You have work or need to visit your relatives," I remarked.
"I can't bail out on work or family. I meet you in whatever free time I get," she pouted.
"Okay, let's not talk about that too." I said.
"You don't want to talk about anything that's going on in your life?"
"Who cares? My life is boring," I said. "The only interesting part in it is you." I interlaced our fingers.
"You're so cheesy," she blushed and pulled me close. I tilted my head downwards to look into her eyes.
"I thought we had rules," a voice came from behind us.
I turned back to see Collin Parks grinning at me.
"No making out in front of me," he grinned.
"Collin!" I went towards him hugged him. "You're actually on time," I said pulling away.
"It's your dad's wedding. I will be the last person to come to your wedding," he said.
"Good to know you're still the irritating Collin," Audrey hugged him. "We missed you."
"I missed you guys too but don't get all sappy on me. Most of your guests are here and the ceremony is about to start. Your dad's looking for you," he said.
"Then let's go see him," Audrey said and we walked back to the main area.
The ceremony was really about to start. Monica and my grandparents were helping everybody to their seats. I joined them and smiled at everyone while leading them to their seats.
It took half an hour to get everybody seated. I stood beside my dad. Carmen's brother was giving her away. She walked down the aisle smiling at my dad. My dad was smiling too. If Carmen made him happy then I could deal with it.
Carmen finally stood in front of my dad and the minister started the ceremony. Carmen and dad said their vows and the minister pronounced them husband and wife.
Everybody started cheering and I spotted a tear run down Ray's cheek but she quickly wiped it away. She hugged her mom and then my dad and I did the same.
Then began the speeches and I started getting nervous. Monica went first and then my grandparents. Much sooner than I wished, my turn came. I walked to the center of the stage and took the mic.
"Thank you everyone for coming here today," I started. Good, a safe start.
"For fourteen years, it's just been me and my dad. It wasn't until this year that Carmen came into our lives and put together all the scattered pieces of the puzzle. For fourteen years, I was the reason my dad smiled. I'm glad he now has another one."
Everyone clapped. I saw Carmen wiping a tear and dad smiling broadly. I didn't know where all that came from but once I started I knew exactly what to say.
"That was beautiful," Audrey said as I sat between her and Collin.
"Thanks."
The speeches went on for a while and then the dance started. Dad and Carmen had to go first and we had to join in later. It wasn't long until only Collin, Audrey, Monica and I were left.
Monica looked at everybody with sad longing eyes. Collin and I noticed it.
"Would you give me the pleasure of dancing with the most beautiful lady over here?" Collin asked Monica because that's just how sweet a guy he was.
She laughed. "I would love to," she said and danced with my best friend.
"Do you want to dance?" I offered Audrey my hand.
"I thought you'd never ask," she smiled and took it.
Now everyone was on the dance floor. People switched partners. I danced with Carmen and Monica. I looked around and saw Ray doing something on her phone. She looked at the people dancing and then went back to her phone.
I didn't know where it came from but I found myself going over to her.
"Don't you wanna dance?" I asked taking a seat beside her.
"All my uncles step on my feet when I dance with them. I have a dance audition at school on Monday. I can't afford to injure myself," she said.
"You are a dancer?" I asked surprised.
"Yeah," she smiled.
"Then you shouldn't miss the fun of dancing at your mom's wedding. It's not always that you get the chance," I grinned.
"I am not a great dancer but I promise I won't step on your feet," I winked. I had no idea where all this generosity was coming from. This was the first proper conversation I was having with her.
"Thanks," she said and we went to the dance floor.
It was after reaching the dance floor that I realized it would be awkward. Luckily, she was the better dancer and I followed her. She started grinning widely and enjoying herself. It wasn't awkward after that.
The song changed to a fun party song. Audrey and Collin came to my side and the four of us - me, my best friend, my girlfriend and my stepsister danced alongside each other.
Author's Note
So this wasn't that interesting but it is necessary to go forward with the story. Anyways, what is your opinion? Please don't hesitate to comment. They make my day. Feel free to point out any grammatical or spelling errors.
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