Chapter 37
(THREE MONTHS LATER)
"We are here today at the wedding of the season! All the cameras around the world are poised in anticipation, waiting for Fiona Anderson to enter the Church The groom, Edward Heffron, waits patiently at the church. The doors have and opened and…"
"Tickets, please!" A conductor's voice rang out, waking me up with a start and out of my dream.
"Good dream?" Babe asked from the seat opposite me, amused.
"Wh- how long was I out?" I asked, drowsily.
"Couple hours, we should get there in an hour," He said, picking up his newspaper.
Yawning, I sat up properly in my chair. "Are you a little nervous?"
"Why, are you getting cold feet?" He asked looking up, alarmed.
"No," I chuckled. "I don't mean about the wedding, I mean nervous about going back to Philly. We've been away a long time now."
"I know, but it'll be good to see everyone again," He replied. "Good to get the families together, and where better to do that than a wedding, huh?"
"Yeah, I'm glad it's finally happening, it's so much hassle organising a wedding in Philly from Pittsburgh," I said, trying to get me head around it.
He burst out laughing. "What work, Sweetie? Your mom and Sandra did everything, you just told them colours you wanted."
"Hey, thinking of colours is really….difficult," I joked, rolling my eyes and playfully hitting him with his paper. "Excuse me, organised all of the guest list and sent out the invitations!"
"That's true, I guess you did at least 1/15th of all the tasks," He joked, winking at me. "Who from Easy RSVPed?"
"Quite a few," I smiled, reaching into my bag and pulling out the RSVP slips. "the Malarkeys, Joe Toye, Buck, Lieb, Perco, The Roes, Webster, Bill and Carla, Johnny Martin, Spina and the Major RSVPed."
"He did? " Babe asked, impressed.
"Yeah, he wrote on the underside he'd be coming but that he might be late," I replied. "Quite exciting."
"Guess it's all arranged now," He laughed, joking. "Definitely no cold feet?"
"No," I laughed. "Definitely not."
……………………..
After Babe and I dropped our things off at his parents' apartment, I left them to catch-up and made my way over to see my own parents, quite nervously.
"Anyone home?" I called, out opening the door.
"Fiona, is that you?" My mom called out from the kitchen.
"Yes," I laughed, calling back to her. "The Wanderer has returned."
She ran through to greet me in the hallway, squealing with delight as we hugged.
"Sandra!" She shouted out. "Fiona's here!"
"Welcome home!" Sandra cried, bounding through and joining in the hug.
"Oh now," My mother said, disentangling herself and dusting down her dress. "Come on, let's have a nice cup of tea."
"It's so good to see you," Sandra said, squeezing my hand as they led me to the kitchen. "There's someone you have to meet."
"Ooh," I smiled, excitedly. "Could this be my niece?"
Walking into the kitchen, Sandra indicated to the Moses Basket in the corner.
"Oh Sandra, she's precious," I smiled, admiring the cherubic sleeper nestled amongst a pink blanket, admiring the name sewn into it. "Jane Anderson, what a beautiful name."
"She's angel, isn't she Moira?" Sandra said, glancing over at my mum.
"An absolute angel," My mom agreed, laughing. "Except when she's screaming the place down."
"That's true, enjoy this quiet…because soon she's gonna be awake again," Sandra smiled affectionately at the basket.
"Anyway," My mother side, motioning for me to sit down next to her where she filled my cup with the teapot. "Let's get down to business- The Anderson-Heffron wedding."
"Everything arranged?" I asked.
"Well…," My mother said, looking over at Sandra, who looked down at the table.
"What?" I asked, nervously.
"It's Edward's mother…," She sighed, looking down. "We're not agreeing at all."
"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Sandra, what's going on?"
Sandra held her hands up defensively, suggesting she was taking no part in it.
"Let's just say we have some differences in opinions," She said, dryly.
"Oh Mom," I frowned. "I really thought you two got along well! I wanted everyone to get along. What differences?"
"Oh, we get along perfectly well, it's just some differences in opinions with regards to the wedding traditions?"
"What traditions?" I asked.
"For a start they're a Catholic family, we're protestant," She said, exasperated.
"Oh," I said. It was something that hadn't really registered with me before. "And?"
"The Lord's Prayer! She wants their version!" She exclaimed.
"There's a difference?" I asked, wrinkling my nose.
"Yes! They stop after 'But Deliver us from Evil'," She said, looking pointedly at me. "But you knew that, right?"
"Oh, of course I did," I lied, blatantly. "Is this really what you've been arguing about?"
"Yes, it's critical, dear," She said.
"Why?"
"Because all of our family and friends sitting on our side are Protestants and they'll want to say the full version," She said, agitated.
"Mom, calm down," I said, patting her hand. "This isn't a big deal. When everyone stands up to say The Lord's Prayer, the Catholic guests can say as much as necessary for them and sit down, and the Protestants can continue until they're done. Okay?"
"That's what I said!" Sandra cried out, then looked down when my mother glared at her.
"I suppose," Mom said. "But people standing and sitting at different times...it's a bit messy."
"But at least then everyone's happy," I chuckled, squeezing my mom's hand. "What else have you been arguing about?"
"Oh!" My mother's eyes flew open. "Scottish/Irish differences!"
I sighed, rolling my eyes. "What differences, Mom? As far as I was aware Scotland and Ireland had many similar traditions."
"She wants you to wear a garland of flowers in your hair," Mom told me, angrily. "Apparently it's an old tradition."
"Ma, I don't mind doing it if it keeps the peace,"
"That's not the point," Mom ranted. "You're Scottish, not Irish. By all means, if she wants Edward to wear flowers in his hair then that's fine, but…"
"It might be pretty," I argued, trying to reason.
"But I…I wanted you to wear the veil I wore when I married your father," She said, sadly.
I broke into a smile. "Oh, Ma! That's lovely! Of course I'll wear your veil…we'll just work something out with Ed's mother."
"Okay," She said, finally cracking a smile.
"But please, please try and make the peace with her. I'd love for us to all get along. What does dad think about all of this?"
"Oh, he doesn't care," She chuckled, rolling her eyes. "He and Ed's father are suddenly best of friends, and don't care at all about any of it."
"Okay, so my veil is taken care of…what about the dress?" I asked, nervously anticipating the words "Carla's dress" to be spoken.
"Well…," My mother smiled at me and turned to Sandra. "Time to get the box."
Sandra walked over the curtained space under the sink and pulled out a large box. She lifted the lid on it, and lifted out a gorgeous long white dress with sequins sewed onto the ruffled waist, with long lace sleeves.
My mouth dropped open. "Is that…do I…can I wear that?"
"Well we made it for you, so I don't see why not," Sandra laughed.
"But it's so beautiful…how did you…you made this?" I asked, shocked. "How could you afford the material?"
"Oh we didn't really, we made it from old bits and pieces. Some people in the neighbourhood donated old bits and pieces, I used my wedding dress and Helen Heffron gave us hers. We took the bits we needed and made this," Ma said, proudly.
"You used your wedding dresses?" I asked. "Oh, I feel so bad. I didn't want anyone to give up their wedding dresses."
"Oh it's okay," Mom smiled. "Mine was out of style and Helen doesn't have any daughters. We thought you could use this one to pass down to your daughter, if you have one."
"It's so beautiful," I breathed, moving closer to inspect it. "Look at this detail!"
"Well I don't call myself "The Best Seamstress in South Philly" for no reason," She chuckled. "But you shouldn't thank us though, thank Carla."
"Carla?" I asked, shocked. "Why?"
"Well we couldn't afford to buy you a new one, so we thought we'd just ask her to lend us hers again. We went to ask her and she seemed insistent that you wouldn't like that, with the history, obviously. It was her suggestion."
I smiled. "That was nice of her."
………………..
I was stunned by Carla's thoughtfulness. Truth be told I'd expected that I'd have to wear her dress and I dreaded it. It was just wrong on so many reasons, for all four of us- Bill, Babe, Carla and myself. I felt I had to go and thank her personally. So, the next day I found myself walking up the gravel path to the Guarneres' front door.
Knock knock.
Opening the door, a bleary-eyed Bill appeared at the door. His eyes lit-up. "Fiona!"
"Hey Bill," I said, smiling as I kissed him on the cheek. "Is the Missus home?"
"No, she went out to her Mother's for the day," He said, wiping his eyes. "Want to come in for a minute?"
"Oh, I don't know," I said, worried it might be a bit inappropriate now.
"Come on, you have to meet the little guy," Bill smiled.
"Oh," I said, it all coming back to me that Carla had been pregnant. I guess I'd conveniently forgotten. Bill had a son. "Okay."
He led me inside into the sitting room.
"Here he is," Bill said, lifting the baby out of the crib and facing him towards me.
My heart melted. "Bill! He looks just like you! How adorable! Can I hold him?"
"Sure," He said, gently placing him in my arms.
"Oh, Bill," I gushed, sitting down on the couch, cradling the baby. "What's his name?"
"Henry," Bill said, proudly looking at his son.
"After your brother?"
"Yeah, my Ma liked it," He told me. "So how's Pittsburgh treating you? Obviously pretty well, you're glowing."
"It's going well," I said. "Life's going well in general."
"Yeah, I guess congratulations are in order," He said. "The Big Day soon, huh?"
"Thank you," I smiled. "It'll be good to see you and Carla there. How is she doing?"
"She's alright," He said, looking down, sadly.
"What?" I asked, concerned.
"Things haven't been going so well lately," He admitted, looking away. "We've been fighting and arguing a lot."
"I'm sorry, Bill," I said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Having a baby is difficult at first. It's a lot of added strain on a marriage...or so I hear, anyway."
"Don't get me wrong, kid, I love being a father and I love that little guy with all my heart but…I can't get over the fact that nothing's working out as it should. I just wish it could be…"
"Could be what?" I pressed.
"The way I wanted. I wish it was you and I had just had a kid," He admitted, quietly.
"Shut up! Don't say that!" I scolded him, though it tugged slightly at my heartstrings. "You can't say things like that, Bill. That is Carla's baby, and it's disrespectful for you to wish otherwise. Besides, you're only saying it because you're having problems with Carla. You and I have gotten past all this, Bill."
"Have we? You don't sound convinced," He shot back. "Tell me honestly…does any part of you still love me?"
I looked away, floored. "Part of me will always love you Bill, you know that."
He smiled.
"But you're not the only man I love anymore, Bill," I said, bluntly. "I've got a chance to be happy with a man I truly love and nothing is going to stop me from doing that, got it?"
He stared at me as I angrily stood up and set the baby back down gently in the crib. I put my hands on the crib bars, fuming.
"Sorry," He mumbled. "I didn't meant to upset you or nothin'."
"You say these things to me two days before my Wedding and expect me not to get upset. What the hell are you trying to do? Ruin my Wedding?" I exploded. Angrily, I started to walk towards the door. "I'll see you at the Wedding."
"I don't think I can come to your Wedding," He said briskly, catching up to me at the door.
"What?" I asked curtly, turning back round to face him.
"How can I watch you marry someone else?" He asked simply.
I tried to remain as calm as possible, despite my blood boiling. "Again, Bill, I thought we'd gotten past this but obviously not. I'm gonna say this only once, alright? I'm marrying Babe in two days time, and when I say yes at that altar I'll be saying it sincerely. Now, I really want you to be there. I think you owe it to me to come."
Looking warningly into his eyes, I left. I'd have to thank Carla another day.
…………………….
The next evening, Babe and I headed to the train station in my Father's car to pick up Eugene and Vera at the train station. In the car, the previous day's events were spinning around in my head, making me sit in silence, simply staring out of the windows at the rolling streets.
"So…my mom is still going on and on about this head flower thing," He said, trying to fill the silence. "She was hoping you'd wear the one she wore when she married my dad."
"Mmm hmmm," I said, not really listening.
"I think it's because she doesn't have a daughter so she wants someone in the family to wear it," He said, letting out a chuckle.
"Of course I'll wear it," I said, staring out the window absent-mindedly, not even remembering I'd already promised to wear my mother's veil.
"It's up to you, Sweetie, but I know she'd b happy," He smiled, reaching over and squeezing my hand. "Are you okay, you seem a little preoccupied."
"I'm fine," I said, smiling at him as we drove into the station. "We're a little bit late, they might be there already."
Hurriedly, we walked into the station just as their train pulled in. We watched the crowd of people disembark in their droves, looking out for the Roes.
"There they are," Babe said, pointing over to a couple struggling to get a stroller, a Moses basket and a suitcase off of the train. "Hey, Eugene! Over here!"
Setting the Moses basket inside the stroller, they walked over to us.
"Hi!" I exclaimed, hugging them each. "It's so good to see you. We can't thank you enough for coming all the way out here to come to our Wedding."
"Are you kidding," Vera beamed. "We wouldn't miss it, Honey."
"And who is this lovely little thing," I said, crouching down to peer into the Basket. "Hello, Marlene."
"Adorable, huh?" Vera beamed, proudly. "A little angel all the way up here on the train, too."
"Good job, you two," I said, standing back up. "She's a cutie pie."
"Good to see you, Gene," Babe said, shaking his hand and picking up the suitcase. "Car's this way."
"So, the big day is tomorrow, huh?" Vera smiled at me as we walked behind the men to the car. "Nervous?"
"No," I smiled. "Of course not."
…………….
Babe dropped the Roes and myself off at my old apartment. Sandra and Duncan were now living there with baby Jane. It was nice for them to finally have a family home and it seemed pointless for it to be lying empty whilst I was in Pittsburgh.
Trudging all of the Roes' belongings behind us, we walked along the corridor to the front door. Ushering the Roes inside, I turned around to say goodnight to my husband-to-be.
He pouted. "I don't wanna sleep without you tonight, it'll be too weird."
"It's bad luck for you to see me before the wedding," I chuckled, kissing him. "I wish we could sleep next to each other too but hey, we have the whole rest of our lives to do that."
He smiled, pulling me close. "No cold feet?"
"mmmm…nope," I said, confidently.
"Not even a little nervous?" He pressed further, stroking my cheek.
"Nope. Not even a little bit," I said, adding on jokingly (ish). "But what's with all the questions, honey? Are you having cold feet?"
"Not in the slightest," He laughed. "I guess I'm asking so many questions because I can't believe it's finally happening. I never thought you'd actually be my wife."
"Well, surprise," I laughed.
Smiling, he took both of my hands and kissed them. "The only thing I'm feeling right now is excitement. Excitement at getting you to the church, down that aisle and making you Mrs Heffron."
Pulling me into a hug, he kissed me goodbye and walked off, pumping his fist into the air. "Whoop! Mrs Heffron! Finally!"
I watched him leave, laughing happily.