Bill squinted when he cracked his eye open. He felt around for Bailey. The other half of the bed was cold and long abandoned. He blinked a few times before his sight adjusted to the brightness. He glanced at the clock, it was a little later than when he would usually get up for work anyway, 3:15 am. Bill groaned as he sat up. He just wanted to flop back down and go back to sleep. The light blaring down killed any notion of that happening. He made his way into the bathroom and took care of business before finding Bailey.
Bill shuffled tiredly into the living room where he spotted her huddled up on the worn out couch. Did she turn on every light in the house? Her eyes were drooping as she stared at the tv. He wondered if she was watching My Ass is Haunted 2 again. She jumped when he got closer. Bill looked at the tv and froze. Why was she watching that? He gaped at the screen before his expression morphed into melancholy.
She returned her gaze to the screen and said nothing. Bill managed to tear his eye away from his old wedding tape. He picked up the remote off the dirty wooden spool table and took a seat beside her, draping his arm around her shoulders. Bailey leaned into his side. "You're so handsome there." Bailey whispered tiredly. Bill sighed in despair, "Yeah, I was." He put on a random show.
"Sorry." She said quietly.
"For what?" He asked, his voice scratchy.
She shrugged. "Lenore is stunning there. You two looked so happy. What happened?" She asked.
Bill grunted, he didn't want to talk about this right now. "That was two weeks before she started cheated on me." He huffed bitterly.
"Oh...that's a shame. How awful." Bailey said, sliding her hand into his. "You don't have to ever worry about that with me, Mr. Bill." She said sincerely, looking up at him sweetly. He kissed her forehead tenderly and tightened his arm around her. Bill knew he could trust her with his whole heart. Is this what it felt like to feel secure? He looked down at her face that was illuminated in the tv light, she was looking back at him sleepily. How did she manage to be so sweet, so angelic?
He felt a pang of guilt. She deserved all the glitz and glam on their big day. She would only be married once, right? Bill kicked himself for being in such a rush without consulting her for any of it. He just wanted to make things official and get her all the benefits of marriage. He wanted to seal the deal more than anything. Bill knew his friends disapproved but they didn't know her like he did. He sighed, who could blame them? He really did make a fool of himself all these years. He shook his head, warmth returning to his heart. He had his sweet Bailey now and nothing else mattered. Every single person on this planet could be against him as long as he had her.
He looked back down and noticed she had fallen asleep. Bill found himself smiling, he stroked her shoulder and turned his attention back to the tv. As long as they had each other, they could weather anything. A warm security blanketed him.
Bill woke up, he looked around bleary eyed, the sun shone in from the open windows, illuminating the hazy dust motes. He rubbed his eye and yawned. Bailey moved her feet back under the blanket, resting them on his thigh. He looked over at her, she was watching the tv intently, a headset on. Bill looked at the screen and saw she was playing some kind of war game. He must have fallen asleep at some point.
He looked around and noticed the house looked a little less dusty. It actually smelled a little nicer too. He spotted a candle on the far side of the table. Bill watched her play the game and how she'd squeeze her controller in frustration when she would "die". It warmed him that she was making herself at home already. "Good Morning, sweet pea." He said. She jumped and started at him in surprise for a moment before calming.
"You scared me." She said, moving one of headphones off her ear so she could hear him.
"Sorry." Bill said with a grin. She gave him a playful glare before turning her attention back to her game. "You're so cute, just sitting there playing your game, next to me." He said, enjoying the blush that crept across her cheeks. He watched her for a few more minutes, taking in every detail, a sappy grin splayed on his face. He would get to spend the rest of his life with this sweet angel of a woman. "Do you think you'll be able to drive, love?" Bill asked, stroking the top of her foot.
"Uhhh? It's been quite awhile since Amy let me drive..." Bailey said, glued to the screen.
Bill's expression soured at the bitch's name. Of course she wouldn't let Bailey have any sort of independence. He clenched his fists tightly, if only he could get his hands on her; make her pay.
"Why?" Bailey asked again, taking off her headset.
"Huh?" Bill blinked, pulled out of his increasingly dark thoughts. "Oh, I can't really drive...like this." He trailed off and looked away. He hoped with time his depth perception would return to normal. Bill didn't want to rely on Hank any more than he had to. His left eye area itched like nothing else. He hoped the doctor could do something about it when he went for his appointment in a few days.
"It shouldn't be a problem." She said with a shrug. The only time Amy would really let her drive was when she was piss drunk and unable to herself. It would be nice to drive again. "Is there somewhere you want to go?" She asked.
"To get you a wedding dress." He chirped.
She stared at him in shock that turned to excitement. "Really?" Her mind raced.
"Mhmm! We should get a head start on the day, and maybe grab something to eat too." He said, patting his gut.
Bailey shut off her Xbox and got to her feet. Bill smiled at her eagerness. He hoped they could find something she liked on such short notice. Tomorrow he would be marrying his gorgeous bride.
Bill got up himself, it wouldn't take too long to get ready. He got changed into his usual attire and stopped by the bathroom, seeing Bailey stare sadly in the mirror.
"What's wrong, Angel?" He asked, putting a burning hand on her bare shoulder.
"My hair looks so gross." She sighed, struggling to pass a brush through it.
"Oh, this is an easy fix. We can wash you up in the kitchen sink so your bandages don't get wet." He said as he grabbed up the things he would need.
"You're going to wash it in the sink?" She asked, trying to hide the look of mild horror.
"Mhmm, it won't be exactly like the salon but it'll do just fine." He said excitedly.
Bailey feigned a smile. She didn't want anything on her head to be in that nuclear waste dump of a sink. It didn't seem she had much of a choice. Maybe greasy wasn't too bad. She did have a hat she could throw on. "Its okay Bill, I can just throw on a hat." She said, flashing a smile that didn't meet her eyes.
He gave her a confused look. "Its no problem, dear."
"You shouldn't get your hand wet, its okay, really." She said, already in his bedroom. Bailey wanted her hair to be washed so bad, it was so itchy.
"Oh...you do have a point. I do have some dry shampoo, that would help with the oil some." He said as he set everything back in its grimy, hairy corner. He grabbed a can of dry shampoo, that had a sticky film on it.
Bailey eyed a dubious looking loofah on one of the shelves, she hadn't noticed it before. "That'd be great, thank you." She said, relieved she wouldn't have to put her face near that sink. Maybe he wouldn't be too hurt if they stopped in a salon later?
"Okay, take a seat, Mrs. Dauterive." He said with a giggle.
"Okay, Mr. Dauterive." She said as she sat on the edge of the bed.
Bill kissed the top of her head before getting down to business. He carefully worked a wide toothed comb through her tangled hair. Bailey was waiting for him to tear through the rats nests, she could feel him working carefully. She winced in anticipation when she felt him bring the comb from her roots to the ends. She relaxed some, when he gently combed her hair out. "Are...are you done?" She asked in surprise.
"Not yet, I just de-tangled it." He said as he picked up the dry shampoo.
"How? It didn't hurt at all. I couldn't really even tell." She asked, raking her fingers through her hair.
"I just worked through it." He said with a shrug and sprayed up her roots with the dry shampoo. Once he was done with that he brushed it through.
"Can we maybe stop at a salon later?" She asked hesitantly.
Bill made a face. "Sure." He could take care of her ends later instead of paying someone else to do it.
"Thanks, my head itches so bad." She said as she got up. Bailey pulled a hat out of one of the drawers. She looked in the mirror as she adjusted the black beanie with cat ears.
"Aww, that looks so cute on you." He crooned.
She blushed and carefully wrapped her arms around him. "Thanks for not tearing my hair out." She said softly.
"What kind of barber would I be hmm?" He laughed.
"You look nice." She said before planting a kiss on his cheek.
"Nothing compares to your radiant beauty." He breathed into her ear.
"Nah, am trash baby." She said as she slid out of his gentle embrace.
Bill stared after her for a moment before he quickly caught up. "You're not trash!"
"Chill, its not a bad thing." She said, patting his upper arm.
"I don't get it." He said, still trying to figure how exactly that wasn't an insult.
She shrugged and dug out her purse from one of the boxes, thankful Amy hadn't done anything weird with it to throw off the investigation. "Does your car have Bluetooth or an aux cord?" She asked, still hunched over the remainder of her things.
"I have a cd player." Bill said with a shrug.
"I was afraid you'd say that. Its okay, I got us covered though." Bailey said as she waved a Kidz Bop cd around.
"Ready?" He asked, jingling the car keys. Bailey took the keys from him, her hand lingering on his for a moment.
He led her out the door and even opened the car door for her. She got in and started the car. "Wow this thing is ancient." She muttered as Bill got in. Bailey took out the cd and sighed. She always put the cd in whatever case was empty. "Powerwolf it is then." She said, turning up the music real loud before backing out. She stopped, "Where are we going?" She asked.
Bill turned down the music. "David's bridal."
"Oh...I know where that is." She said, masking her jitteriness. She backed out of the driveway, dropping off the curb some. She laughed and put it in drive.
A few minutes passed as she navigated her way out of the neighborhood. Bill rested his hand on top of her thigh.
"I didn't think you listened to Uhh Christian music..." Bill said after a few songs played.
Bailey glanced at him in amusement. "I don't."
"They're singing about resurrection or something!" Bill said, trying to listen closer.
Bailey laughed, her face tinged red. "Resurrection by erection? I guess that could be out of the bible."
Bill stared at her in amusement, he wasn't too fond of the band though.
"What?" She asked as she felt him staring a hole in the side o d her head.
"You're full of surprises." He said, squeezing her thigh. When the song was finished, he turned on the radio. Classic rock poured over the speakers. Bailey grimaced, she never listened to anything on the radio.
A few songs later Bailey pulled into the parking lot. She turned the car off, relieved to be free from the radio for now. Her heart raced, she never thought she would have any need to go in there.
Bill took her hand in his and practically floated into the store.
"Hi, welcome to David's Bridal! Do you have an appointment?" The consultant greeted them.
Bailey squeezed his hand nervously. "Uh no?" She said nervously.
"Oh, I'm sorry, we're booked up today." She said as she went to rifle through some dresses.
Bill went to protest when he felt Bailey tug him towards the exit. "Ok, thank you!" Bailey said as she turned to leave.
"Bailey, we could have waited in case someome cancelled or they worked us in." Bill said as she practically dragged him back to the car.
"No offense but that's just plain rude." She said as she slid back into the driver seat.
"The customer is always right." Bill hummed.
Flashbacks of her last job filled her head. "Ok, boomer." She sneered.
He stared at her in surprise and hurt. She had never raised her voice or snapped at him until now. "Did I do something to upset you?" He asked, grabbing her hand.
"Yea, I really hate the whole the customer is always right bullshit. Its rude for one and two it makes their jobs harder than they need to be." Bailey said, remember a particularly irritating event at her old job.
"Consumers have rights though-"
"What rights? They were booked, we didn't have an appointment, its not a big deal." Bailey huffed, slamming on the breaks so she didn't run a red light. She turned the radio back on and switched it back to her CD. "I can't drive without music." She muttered.
Bill wanted to argue back but wasn't sure what he'd even say. "This is our first fight isn't it?" He said with hesitant amusement.
Bailey looked at him for a moment before looking back to the road. "No? We're arguing? Just don't be a dick to retail workers."
Bill sighed, "Lenore and I would fight all the time."
Tears threatened to fall. Bailey shook her head and sniffed. This was ridiculous. Did he just compare her to his ex-wife? "Is this fighting?" She asked, exacerbated.
"I'm sorry Bailey." Bill conceeded, tightening his grip on her hand.
"I don't feel like shopping for a dress anymore anyway." Bailey sighed and pulled into a Kurger Bing. She parked and turned to Bill.
"Bailey, we're getting you a dress." Bill said, a pleading look on his face.
"I'll just wear my prom dress." She said tiredly.
"No, we'll find a dress." Bill said, growing desperate.
"I don't want to anymore to be honest. My prom dress will get the job done." She sighed in resignation.
Bill looked at her sadly. "I'm sorry." He whispered.
" Its fine." She said, fidgeting.
Bill pulled her into a kiss. It was long and almost sad. "I love you." He said in a panicked desperation.
" I love you too. Its fine." Bailey said. It still felt foreign on her tongue to utter those words to someone other than Amy.
Bill pecked her cheek," What do you want?"
"A heart attack with no ketchup." She said, bouncing her leg.
"Is that it?" He asked as he climbed out of the car.
" Yeah!" She said, already scrolling through memes. Bill went inside. Bailey sighed and found it in herself to text her mom back finally. She was scared about her reaction to her impending marriage. Bailey knew she'd disapprove. Her mom disapproved of anything she did.
Bill came back with a large greasy bag and extra large soda. He flopped down in the seat and slammed the door shut. He practically shoved fries in her face. She leaned away and took the fries with her hand.
"Are you excited for tomorrow?" He asked nervously.
"Are you?" She asked, turning it back on him.
"Of course! I wish it was already tomorrow." He said, gazing at her longingly.
"The wait is killing me too." She said shyly.
Bill pulled her into a kiss. His greasy fingers slinked up her inner thigh. The kiss deepened into a passionate exchange.
Bailey broke the kiss, " We should continue this at home." She said breathlessly.
Bill squeezed her thigh and shook it some. He was glad the food bag was hiding his erection. "I told Hank you're pregnant. So I need to make good on that and put a little bun in your oven." Bill purred as he stroked her thigh as she sped down the street, her heart hammering in her chest.
"O-oh?" She stammered.
" Mhm."
