Everette: The Wedding

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Everette: The Wedding

Shelby

Standing in front of a full-length mirror in the luxury trailer I’d lived in for the past few weeks, I smoothed my hands down the sides of my knee-length white dress. It was simple, flattering, and had made me feel beautiful when I’d tried it on. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the makeup Megan had expertly applied or the way Katie had styled my hair in a loose updo.

“I know that look,” Megan said from beside me. Our gazes met in the mirror. “What’s wrong?”

Until recently I would have answered with a lie and said nothing, but there was a heaviness to my chest that I wasn’t sure how to address. Maybe I just had to say the words out loud. I waved my hands nervously at my sides. “I’m so happy to be marrying Everette and having a quick wedding was something we both wanted.”

“But?”

I let out a shaky breath. “I wish my parents were here.”

“Oh, Shelby.” Megan’s eyes shone with sympathy. “Of course you do.”

When she held out her hand, I took it like a lifeline. “It doesn’t feel right to be this happy without them.”

She didn’t tell me I was wrong and for once didn’t make a joke. Instead, she stood with me in the moment and in that feeling. Eventually, she smoothed the sleeves of my dress and fixed my curls even though not one was out of place. “I don’t know if it’ll ever get easier, Shelby, but your parents loved you so much I have to believe they’re here with you today. Nothing beautiful like that just disappears.”

I nodded and hugged her. “I’m glad Everette and I decided not to see each other before the ceremony. I wouldn’t want him to see me like this and think I’m not excited to become his wife.”

“Everette would understand. If you needed more time, he’d feed everyone, send them home, and reschedule the wedding for when you were ready. He’s a good man, Shelby.”

“Yes, he is. And I am ready. I just always imagined this day with my . . .”

“I know.” She hugged me. “This won’t be the last life event you’ll wish they were here for. I think it’s okay to take a moment and let yourself feel that loss, as long as it doesn’t stop you from coming back and finding joy in whatever it is you wish they were here to be part of.”

Deciding it was time to lighten the mood, I joked, “Sorry it didn’t work out with you and the prince. We could have had a double wedding.”

She smiled. “He was good-looking, but he knew it. We had nothing in common—outside of the fact that we both like fancy helicopters. He did ask me out, but I declined. Since then he’s been sending me gifts.”

“Gifts? Wait, how do I not know this?”

She shrugged. “Because they didn’t matter and we were planning your wedding.”

“What did he send you?”

Her nose wrinkled. “The first one was a diamond necklace. I thought it was fake, but apparently it wasn’t. It was delivered by a courier in a suit and had to be picked back up by a similarly dressed man.”

“Oh, my God.”

“Right? Who sends that to someone who just shot you down? The second gift was a Lexus convertible. It had not only heated seats but air-conditioned ones as well. I didn’t know my coochie needed cooling until I tried that option. Still not sure what I think of it, but that may be something I look for in the next car I buy.”

“And you sent that back as well?”

“Sure did. I also sent him a photo of the car I’m currently driving and am perfectly happy with. I don’t know what kind of women he’s hanging with that he thought I wouldn’t have one.”

“Anything else?”

“That’s it so far. I’m hoping he got the message that I’m not interested.”

A knock on the door interrupted our conversation. “Come in,” I said.

It was Everette’s parents. His father was in a nice suit. Behind him, wheeling him into the room, Everette’s mother looked lovely in a dark blue short-sleeved, sheath dress. Megan slipped out, saying she would return soon.

“How are you feeling?” his mother asked, searching my face.

I brought a hand to my stomach. “A few butterflies, but good.”

His father wheeled himself closer. “Lois and I don’t want to intrude, but we also wanted to talk to you before the ceremony.”

I clasped my hands together and tried not to worry about what they might say. “You’re not intruding.” I swallowed and followed my heart. “You’re family.”

Lois went to stand beside her husband’s wheelchair. “That’s why we’re here. Warning, I can be sentimental. I love traditions. Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.”

Felix cleared his throat and took out an envelope. “Something old. We don’t have much. Outside of our children, our family’s greatest treasure has been our beef jerky recipe. We know this day, for however wonderful it is, must also be hard for you. I wanted you to know that I won’t be offended if you’re never ready to call me Dad, but in my heart, today you become my daughter.”

I blinked back tears. “Thank you.”

Lois laid her hand on her husband’s arm. “I feel the same way. There’s no pressure here, only love. We’re so glad you and Everette have found each other. And when you’re ready I’ll walk you through that recipe and you can add your own personal flair to it as I did.”

I accepted the envelope and held it to my chest. “I don’t know what to say and I can’t cry or I’ll mess up my makeup. But, thank you so much.”

Lois bit her lip. “Your makeup. I didn’t think of that. Felix, maybe we should wait.”

“No,” he said firmly. “Let’s go through the list. She should at least hear it.”

Nodding, Lois pulled out a small frame and handed it to me. The photo in it was of me, Everette, his siblings, and both parents—taken on the day of our engagement party. “Something new. You’re new to us and we’re new to you.”

I sniffed and hugged that to me as well.

In a gruff voice, Everette’s father said, “Something borrowed. Considering the wheelchair, I understand if you would rather not have me at your side, but I’d love to accompany you down the aisle. Symbolically it’s to give the bride away, but I’ve never seen it that way. To us it’s always been a person from the bride’s family proudly escorting them into the next phase of their life.”

A tear escaped and I wiped it away. “I would be honored to be escorted down the aisle by you.”

Lois smiled. “Something blue. I’m the blue. I can push Felix and make sure he doesn’t roll over your toes. That is, if you’d like us both there with you.”

I couldn’t contain the emotion of the moment anymore; rushing forward, tears streaming, I hugged both of them. “I don’t know how you knew I needed this, but yes. Yes, I’d love to have both of you there with me. I can see where Everette got that big heart of his.”

A short time later, I stood at the end of a white cloth aisle that was flanked by friends and family on both sides. When I’d sent out invitations to old friends as well as my aunts, uncles, and cousins back home I’d questioned if any would come. For many, our last contact had been at or slightly after my parents’ funeral.

Over the past few weeks, pages and pages of my gratitude journal filled with the names of those I thought would think it odd that I was moving to Maine, but who instead had shown only support. And they’d come—all the way to Maine—without much notice.

Clay brought in a caravan of double-decker trailers and set them up on an empty ten-acre lot on the edge of town. It was a pop-up neighborhood that would roll out a few days after the wedding. The land, though, would stay with us as a wedding present. We’d tried to tell Clay it was too generous of a gift, but since Cooper had said they’d chosen and paid for the land together it was impossible to refuse.

Megan smiled at me from her place beside the arbor. She and Katie were dressed in matching knee-length sage dresses. Just as we’d promised each other as children, Megan was my maid of honor. Everette’s closest friends had drawn straws for the honor of best man. It had been amusing to see how awkward Megan and Ollie had been with each other during the rehearsal. I was planning to grill her the first chance we had to talk after the ceremony. Whatever had happened, I didn’t want to say anything that would make her self-conscious about it.

When the song that had played at my parents’ wedding started, I made my way down the aisle to Everette with Lois pushing Felix beside me. Love shone in Everette’s eyes as I approached. I loved that Tyr was sitting quietly at his side in a bow tie looking happy and calm as if he’d been in a hundred weddings.

A quick glance around at the smiling faces of people I’d loved for a long time as well as those who’d more recently made space in my heart, filled me with joy. There would always be a hole in my life where my parents should have been, but the love of those still with me would carry me forward.

I thought of what Megan had said about my parents still being with me and felt their approval. They were happy I’d found a family again. With that thought, when I reached the flower-covered arbor where Everette was waiting for me, I leaned down, kissed Felix’s cheek then Lois’s, and said, “Thank you for raising such an amazing son and for welcoming me into your family.”

They exchanged a look, smiled and each got a little teary.

When I turned from them to Everette, he pulled me to him for a bear hug that lifted me a foot or two off the ground and murmured, “I fucking love you so much, Shelby.”

My grin was instantaneous. “I fucking love you more.”

We said all the usual vows after that, but those would forever be my favorite.

Everette

Thanks to Clay our reception was beautifully decorated, but outdoor and casual. He was definitely being over-generous, but he and Cooper seemed to be bonding over taking care of the people who’d taken care of Cooper for so long. I couldn’t blame them. Had our situation been reversed, I probably would have done the same.

Being able to include everyone was what we’d felt was most important. Clay and Cooper had made that possible. It was a simple wedding with staff that seemed to appear magically when needed.

Shelby and I had held to some traditions but ditched the ones we considered outdated. She wanted to throw her bouquet so when it was time, Levi used a microphone to gather everyone around.

Rather than putting the microphone down, however, he announced that he and Ollie wanted to say a few words. Shelby and I exchanged a look. I had no idea what they were going to do or say. However, they were both sober, and with Katie looking on closely, I doubted it would get out of hand.

Levi started. “You all know Everette, Ollie, and I have been friends since we were in diapers, but not all of you know about Everette’s embarrassingly large collection of Hulk dolls.”

“Seriously?” I said with humor. “You’re doing this now?”

Shelby laughed, delighting in my friend’s humor a little too much. When she took my hand and smiled up at me, though, I forgave her instantly. God, I love that woman.

My pride had me defending myself publicly, though. “I’ve never bought one. You and Ollie keep getting them for me.”

Levi waved a hand dismissively at me and held the microphone between Ollie and him. “Pipe down, Everette; Ollie and I put a lot of thought into this speech.” He turned his attention back to the crowd. “To understand the Hulk joke, you have to go back in time to when we were all little and Everette was tiny.”

Ollie pinched the air. “So tiny. We could push him down with one finger.”

I wrapped my arms around Shelby from behind and playfully growled, “Never happened.”

Levi winked at Shelby. “Our love of toppling him over for fun might have been why he had a temper back then. He used to love to smash whatever we built.”

Ollie shrugged. “We might have teased him and called him the Hulk just to see how far we could push him.”

“He didn’t turn green, but he did get angry and stomp around.”

“So, so angry . . . stomping those little feet of his like an ant with an attitude. Which only made it more fun to tease him.”

I bent to speak into Shelby’s ear. “These are my friends. Imagine how the kids who didn’t like me were.”

Levi brought a finger to his lips in a sign for me to shush. “Then he had a growing spurt.”

Ollie brought his hand from low to high in increments. “That just kept going and going.”

My mother chimed in. “Oh, we remember. We couldn’t keep up with his clothes. By the time we bought him new pants, they’d also be too short.”

Ollie nodded in mock sympathy. “Yep, those were the years Everette walked around sporting capris. We may have teased him about that too.”

Shelby leaned back into my embrace and smiled up at me. “I’m seeing a pattern here.”

Levi held a hand far above his head. “Everette got so big most people stopped teasing him, but Ollie and I knew Everette’s deepest, darkest secret.”

I joked, “Don’t make me go smashy-smashy on you right here and now.”

Ollie laughed, undeterred. “Everette loved superheroes and wanted to grow up to be one.”

“So we started buying him a Hulk figurine every year for his birthday,” Levi said with a smirk.

Ollie’s expression was pure best-friend evil. “And it was hilarious. The kind of joke that never gets old.”

“Never?” I countered.

Levi’s grin widened. “Everette stopped getting angry with us, but he kept those figurines.”

“Because in Everette’s heart he always wanted to be a hero,” Ollie said to friends and neighbors who were also enjoying this far too much.

“Who knew that he’d actually become one?” Levi looked at me with such pride my arms tightened around Shelby.

“Aww,” she said. “I love your friends.”

Levi continued, “Not a green hero. Not a smashy-smashy one. Everette started finding lost people and inspiring us to do the same.”

Shelby looked up at me again. “Lost people like me.”

I kissed her temple. Okay, so I didn’t hate the speech.

Ollie smiled at Shelby. “When Everette told us about Shelby, we knew she was the one.”

“What we didn’t know was that she would also be a hero,” Levi added.

Ollie raised his voice and waved for Cooper to approach with a table he’d rolled out onto the lawn. “So, in honor of their perfect union, we made this for Shelby.”

Cooper stopped a foot or two in front of us with a big wrapped gift box. Rather than unwrapping it, though, he lifted it up, revealing a pair of one-foot-tall Hulk and She-Hulk figurines holding hands and I barked out a laugh.

Levi announced, “Today a new tradition is born. And since Baby-Hulk dolls are actually a thing, this is a joke that shows potential for real growth.”

In a serious tone, Ollie said, “Like your life, Everette. Shelby, when you married him today you officially became a Drivertonian.”

“Is that even a word?” Levi countered.

Ollie shrugged. “It is now. So, let’s raise our glasses to Everette and Shelby . . .”

“May their marriage be enduring and happy,” Levi said.

Ollie continued, “And their children less puny and smashy-smashy than Everette.”

The sound of glasses clinking together in cheers echoed through the crowd. I kissed Shelby, then turned to my best friends and said, “Thank you, guys. I’ll always remember this . . . always . . . like when you get married and I have a chance to speak.”

Shelby left my side to give Levi, Ollie, and Cooper a hug. “I will too. Thank you so much.”

Her gratitude sounded more sincere and didn’t hold the same promise of retribution. I was sure I could sway her to my side, though.

Karma reared its head beautifully, a short time later when Shelby threw her bouquet high in the air . . . and Katie caught it.

Levi swore.

Mrs. Williams told him to watch his language.

And I laughed my ass off.

Happily ever after was even sweeter when it promised a dash of payback.