Arackniss beheld Angel and Cherri leaving the room and looked away to hide the absolute jealousy that was consuming him.
Angel and Cherri looked at each other and smiled knowingly.
"Hey, Arackniss!" Angel said innocently while Cherri laid against his chest in a sexy pose. "Do you like how we look?"
Angel then held Cherri more closely much to Arackniss's chagrin. The latter fumed and gritted his teeth.
"Arackniss?" Doctor Red asked. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Arackniss replied coldly as he paced past the pair of "lovers."
"What do you think, doctor?" Angel asked.
"I think you look quite handsome," Doctor Red complimented. "And you look quite lovely as well, Miss Cherri."
"Why, thank you, doc!" Cherri said.
"Alrighty," Doctor Red said, gesturing down the hallway. "Now, if you'll follow me, I'll show you the way to the garden."
Angel and Cherri followed Doctor Red through the house with Arackniss following in the rear. The couple walked arm in arm and silently admired the home's décor.
Before long, Angel's mind was being flooded with all the unfortunate memories from when he was alive.
"Your Dad's got a nice place," Cherri whispered, jarring Angel from his thoughts.
"Yeah," Angel whispered back. "About as nice as a white-washed tomb."
"Is it bringing back unfortunate memories?" Cherri asked.
"Like you wouldn't believe," Angel replied, placing a kiss on her cheek to keep up the act.
The group continued walking in silence from them on until they walked outside onto the enormous stone patio with potted flowers overlooking the even larger garden beyond, all of it being lit up with soft outdoor lighting on the wall and in the gardens that allowed all four demons to see everything.
Said garden was comprised of hedges and flowery bushes that formed a kind of labyrinth around a stony walkway with even more flowers planted along the path. On the other side of the labyrinth to the left, there was green grass with flower beds along the fence surrounding the garden and in various other places besides large swathes of shade trees and benches where anyone could sit and chat under the light of garden light fixtures. There were more flowers than Cherri or Angel had seen in decades.
Angel and Cherri paused in place, both absolutely thrilled to be outside again and enjoying the night air and in awe of the beautiful garden that neither of them had had the chance to see.
"Holy shit, Angie!" Cherri said, kneeling and smelling the carnations growing in a nearby pot. "These flowers are real. I haven't seen these kind of flowers in decades."
Angel crouched next to Cherri and smelled the white, red, and pink carnations.
"You're right, darlin'," Angel said in amazement. "They are!"
"You two like the flowers?" Arackniss asked, making conversation.
"Yes," Doctor Red said. "Would you two like a vase of them for your room?"
"That would be swell, doc," Cherri said, enthusiastically getting to her feet.
"Hey, Arackniss?" Angel asked. "Where did you and Dad find all these flowers?"
Arackniss scoffed and replied, "We had them smuggled in."
"From where?" Angel pushed.
"Why would you like to know?" Arackniss asked, raising invisible eyebrows.
"Well, no one in Hell has flowers like this," Angel said, lulling Arackniss's snarky personality out of hiding with his fake innocence and shyness.
"All the respectable families do," Arackniss quipped. "You probably just haven't seen them since you've been too busy pleasuring the dregs of Hell for the last seven decades."
"Arackniss!" Doctor Red snapped.
Bullseye.
Angel shrank away nervously pretending to be ashamed, withdrawn, and forlorn as he sadly gripped his arm.
Cherri caught onto his cue, placed her hand on Angel's shoulder, gave Arackniss a nasty glare, and said, "What the hell, dude?"
"Arackniss, that comment of yours was completely unacceptable!" Doctor Red chided in his disappointed teacher voice. "You need to apologize to your brother right away!"
"I didn't mean nothin' by it," Arackniss retorted. "Anthony knows I was just foolin'…"
Right on cue, Angel allowed tears to form in the corners of his eyes.
"Does Angie look like he knows you were 'just foolin'?'" Cherri asked, air quoting and mimicking Arackniss's accent.
"Arackniss, I must ask you to drop this attitude right now," Doctor Red chided disappointedly. "That attitude of yours is what pushed Anthony into turning gay in the first place."
Arackniss scoffed and said, "Somehow, I seriously doubt that."
"That's it!" Doctor Red exclaimed, finally losing his patience. "Why don't you go back inside with your Father, gather your brother's toiletries from the basement, and put the items in Miss Cherri's bathroom so that Anthony can spend the night with his friend?"
"What the fuck?!" Arackniss snapped. "I ain't your errand boy!"
"We don't need your negative attitude effecting your brother's delicate psyche and interfering with his treatment!" said Doctor Red through gritted teeth. "Now, go!"
Arackniss reluctantly relented, gave the good doctor a nasty glare, turned away, and fumed his way back inside the house.
Angel stared at the ground sadly until he heard the door shut. Then he slowly picked up his head and wiped his eyes to make the tears stop.
The problem was never calling forth the tears. It was making them stop once they started flowing.
Cherri caught onto this struggle and said, "Angie, are you alright?"
"Yes, Anthony," Doctor Red said in concern. "Are you okay?"
Angel finally found it in himself to stop the tears from falling, looked back at Cherri and the good doctor with an innocent smile, and said, "Yeah, I think I'll be alright. Can we go walk in the gardens now?"
"Of course," Doctor Red said instantly perking back up. "The entrance to the labyrinth is just ahead. You and Miss Cherri can walk on ahead. I'll be following behind you in case you need me."
"The labyrinth looks pretty big, doctor," Cherri said. "Are you sure we won't get lost?"
"Oh, no need to worry about that," Doctor Red said gently ushering Angel and Cherri to the cobblestone path leading into the green hedges of the labyrinth. "There are signs directing the way."
"If you say so, doc," Cherri replied with fake nerves.
"If you're unsure, I can walk in front of you to guide the way," Doctor Red offered. "Would that help you feel better?"
"Yes, it would," Cherri said with a fake smile. "Thank you, doc! Mazes like this give me the willies if ya know what I mean."
Doctor Red chuckled condescendingly and said, "Don't worry about it, Miss Cherri Bomb. I'm always ready to comfort a patient and a lady in need. Now, if you'll follow me…"
Then without another word, Doctor Red entered the labyrinth while Angel and Cherri followed behind him.
"Angel buddy, are you alright?" Cherri whispered as soon as the doctor was far enough ahead of them.
"Yeah," Angel replied. "I'm okay now. Thanks. I just needed a moment to compose myself."
"You gonna be alright, Angie?" Cherri asked in concern. "You got your brother off our backs, but you nearly broke character there."
Angel smiled and said, "You and I both know that I've acted under much tougher circumstances than this. I can manage. Trust me."
"Okay," Cherri said with a confident smile of her own. "So, what do we do now? I mean, do we even have to be doing anything?"
"We need to talk and laugh like we normally do," Angel replied. "Doctor Stony Balls doesn't have to hear what we're saying. But he needs to hear us laughing like we're having a good time, so he thinks we're 'progressing.'"
"Sounds easy enough," Cherri said. "Let's get to it…"
The group wandered through the labyrinth with its hedges filled with white gardenia flowers and smooth, brightly lit stone paths. The walkways formed many paths surrounding a gazebo in the center. It was perfect for any garden party, especially when the weather was good.
Angel could say this about his family. They really knew how to decorate.
Angel and Cherri enjoyed whispering and laughing while the good doctor listened and hummed. At times, the pair were so into their conversation that they almost forgot they were even captives.
The good doctor continued walking ahead and humming more and more loudly. It grew so loud that Angel and Cherri had to take notice of it.
"What's he hummin'?" Angel whispered.
After listening for a moment, Cherri replied, "Oh, my God, Angie. He's humming 'Here Comes the Bride.'"
"Christ, subtilty is not the good doctor's strong suit," Angel quietly chuckled.
"No, it isn't," Cherri replied.
"At any rate, he's eating right out of our hands, Cher," Angel whispered, squeezing her hand in his. "We'll be outta here in no time."
No sooner had those words escaped his lips than did Doctor Red stop in place and pull his phone out of his pocket.
Cherri and Angel stopped behind him. They looked at each other silently and then back to Doctor Red to see what would happen.
After looking at his phone for a second, Doctor Red texted a reply and put his phone back in his pocket before turning around to look at his patients.
"Anthony, it is time for you and Miss Cherri Bomb to head back to the house," Doctor Red said.
"Uh, okay, Doctor Red," Angel replied submissively.
"Yeah," Cherri replied just as obediently.
Without another word, Doctor Red cut between them and said, "Right this way."
Angel and Cherri looked at each other confusedly as Doctor Red kept walking without waiting, but they quickly obeyed without any further complaint and caught up to him.
"Something's off," Cherri whispered.
"I know," Angel replied. "Stay on your guard."
Angel and Cherri followed Doctor Red briskly through the labyrinth until they had made their way back to the entrance.
Doctor Red exited first. Angel and Cherri walked out behind him and looked ahead at the porch to see a long wooden table with cake at one end and Arackniss, Henroin, and an official-looking, medium-sized imp that neither of them had seen before standing on the other end.
Angel and Cherri gripped each other's hands as they walked through the grass in the short distance between the labyrinth and the patio.
Doctor Red stood next to Henroin and smiled to greet the couple as they stepped onto the stone patio.
It was then that both Angel and Cherri noticed the document book laying on the wooden table. It was then that they both realized what was happening.
Nonetheless, Angel innocently asked, "Dad, what's going on?"
"Anthony," Henroin began. "Tell me. How much do you love this demoness?"
Angel looked at Cherri with an enthusiastic smile as he held her close to his waist.
Cherri reciprocated his smile, and Angel said, "Well, a heck of a lot if I'm honest!"
Henroin then replied, "Would you be willing to marry her and become a part of our family again?"
Angel gave Cherri a deeply apologetic look. Cherri smiled sympathetically and nodded.
Angel turned back to his family with a wide, enthusiastic smile and said, "Of course! What do we have to do first?"
The smartly dressed imp placed two pens on top of the document book.
"All you two gotta do is sign these documents and you will be officially married," Henroin said gesturing to the table.
Angel turned to Cherri, gave her a hug, and whispered, "Cherri, I'm so sorry."
"It's fine," Cherri whispered hugging him back. "Just do it."
Angel then let go of Cherri, walked over to the table, picked up the pen, and signed his name on the certificate of marriage. Cherri walked over and did the same.
The imp took the book and said, "I now pronounce you husband and wife."
"You make kiss your bride," Arackniss added.
Angel instantly took Cherri in his arms, dipped her, and gave her a deep kiss to satisfy the onlookers. Cherri gave him a kiss back to look as convincing as possible.
Doctor Red clapped enthusiastically. Henroin clapped slowly. Arackniss stewed jealously for a moment before clapping his hands along with the others.
When the happy couple stood back up, Henroin turned away to talk to Arackniss and the official looking imp with the documents.
Doctor Red said, "Congratulations to the both of you, especially to you, Anthony! I am so proud of you and all the progress you made."
"Thank you for not giving up on me, doc," Angel gushed. "I'm so much happier now."
"So, what happens now?" Cherri asked.
"Well, Mrs. Cherri Bomb, you two are married now," Doctor Red said. "Now, you and Anthony are full members of the Spider Family."
"Actually, I was wondering about a honeymoon," Cherri said. "Do my dear husband and I get to go out on vacation anywhere?"
Angel shot Cherri a horrified glance. She gave him a firm stare in return and looked at the doctor.
"Uh, doctor, if you don't think it's a good idea, I understand…" Angel tried to explain.
"Wait a moment, Anthony," Doctor Red said just as Henroin and Arackniss came back to where the good doctor and the happy couple were standing. "A honeymoon might not be such a bad idea. You two should get some time to yourselves. What do you think, Don Henroin?"
Don Henroin visibly hesitated, "I don't know about Anthony being given so much freedom so soon, but if you think he's ready for it, doctor, I'm willing to be open to the idea."
"Do you think you're ready for this challenge and the temptations you'll face outside of the safety of your home, Anthony?" Doctor Red asked.
Angel nodded as timidly as he could to not give off any suspicion and replied, "As long as you think I'm ready, doctor, I'm willing to do anything to make my new wife and my family happy."
"Hold on," Arackniss added in. "Are you guys really sure that this is a good idea? I mean, yeah, Anthony is behaving and doing what we ask now, but he has still only been in this program for about 48 hours. Don't you think we should do something to be sure that he and his new wife will be loyal to the family to clear all possible doubts away?"
Angel clutched Cherri's hand nervously.
"You have a point," Don Henroin said. "Doctor Red, what would you suggest?"
"Hmmmm…." Doctor Red pondered. "Don Henroin, does your family own any property close by? It needs to be a place where Anthony and Cherri can have their privacy but a place close enough to visit and observe them daily."
"Yes, we do," Don Henroin replied. "And I think I know just the place where my son and daughter-in-law can move to."
"Excellent," Doctor Red said. "Anthony and his new bride can move into one of these new homes tomorrow. We just need to take a moment to discuss the terms."
"Of course," Don Henroin replied with a nod. "You three enjoy the cake. Doctor Red and I are going to talk."
Doctor Red and Don Henroin walked across the patio to have their conversation, leaving Arackniss alone with Angel and Cherri.
"So, honey, would you like some cake?" Angel asked gently.
"I'll get it," Arackniss volunteered, making his way to the other side of the picnic table to cut a slice of the white icing cake sitting on the display plate.
"Oh, my God!" Cherri exclaimed. "I haven't seen one of these in decades! I didn't think people could make them down here."
"Thank you, brother," Angel said, breathing in and out as if to summon his confidence. "And if you don't mind, could you please stop staring at my wife? I think you're making her uncomfortable."
Arackniss blinked embarrassedly and said, "I wasn't staring at…Shut up and eat your goddamn cake."
"I'm sorry, bro…" Angel said shyly.
"You have nothing to apologize for, dear," Cherri said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "We're part of the family again. You don't need to apologize to nobody."
Angel smiled and gave Cherri a kiss on the cheek.
Arackniss looked away to hide his jealous grimace before he remembered, "Wait. I almost forgot. Before we eat the cake, I need to get a picture of you two with it. I promised our relatives that I'd send them pictures…HEY!"
Arackniss pulled his phone out of his pocket only for Angel to snatch the phone out of his hands.
"Cherri sweetheart, pose for me, would you please?" Angel asked with a bolder smile than before.
"Oh, yes! Of course, my dear Angel!" Cherri gushed.
Cherri began posing in front of the cake in every cutesy and adorable pose she could think of while Angel snapped pictures. They both made sure with the upmost discretion that Arackniss was watching dumbfoundedly and getting jealous.
Arackniss finally snapped out of his dumbfounded state, snatched his phone back, and said, "I meant that I wanted to take a picture of you two cutting your cake! Now, the both of you grab the cake knife, cut the cake, and try to look dignified!"
Angel snorted and said, "Calm down, Arackniss. We were just havin' a bit of fun. There's no need to get your boxers in a wad. Stop being so jealous."
"I'm not jealous!" Arackniss snapped. "Now, get into position."
"What are we doing?" Cherri asked.
"Hold on," Angel said. "Just follow my lead."
Angel and Cherri moved next to the cake. Angel moved Cherri so that she was standing in front of him and arranged Cherri's hair in a way that looked pretty, before wrapping one pair of arms around her waist and holding his other pair of arms over hers as they both grabbed onto the cake cutting knife.
"Alright," Arackniss said, adjusting the camera. "Now, one, two, three!"
Arackniss took a couple of pictures of Angel and Cherri holding their knife and cutting into the wedding cake. For the last photo, Angel tapped on Cherri's shoulder. When she turned her head around, Angel kissed her on the cheek. Cherri played along and smiled, much to Arackniss's chagrin.
Arackniss snapped the pictures of Angel and his new wife that he needed to while a jealous scowl crossed his brow.
"Okay, you're done," Arackniss said. "Now, sit down and let me cut you your cake."
"Hey, Brother-In-Law?" Cherri asked. "Could Angel and I have our phones back? We want to take pictures for Voxtagram!"
"Yeah," Angel added, taking Cherri in his arms. "Niffty will want to show Fat Nuggets pictures of me and my new darling!"
Arackniss looked at Angel and Cherri suspiciously for a moment before he relented and replied, "Okay, you two, let me talk to Dad."
"Thanks, big brother," Angel said springing on Arackniss and wrapping his arms around him in a hug.
Arackniss shoved Angel off him and said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, sit down and let me serve you your goddamn cake already."
Angel and Cherri joyfully complied and sat at the other side of the picnic table. They conspicuously flirted while Arackniss cut them two slices of cake.
The cake was served on two lovely porcelain plates with sterling silver forks and linen napkins. For beverages, Arackniss brought out a bottle of sparkling champagne and served drinks to the happy couple in lovely wine glasses.
"Alright, Cherri Berry," Angel gushed as he took a forkful of cake and held it to her mouth. "Ready to eat some cake with me?"
Cherri chuckled, let Angel feed her the mouthful of cake, swallowed the bite, and said, "We should totally do the thing where we put cake in each other's mouths."
"Hell yeah," Angel said cheerfully picking up his cake slice.
Cherri picked up her cake slice, and they each put their cake slices in the other person's mouth. Cake crumbs fell all around them and icing smeared across their faces as they each managed to fit their entire slices in the other person's mouth.
Once they had swallowed their slices, Angel and Cherri chuckled loudly.
Arackniss watched them and rolled his eyes as Doctor Red and Henroin finally walked back.
Doctor Red smiled, took a picture of Angel and Cherri with his phone, and said, "I am glad to see you two so happy."
"Thanks, Doctor!" Cherri said. "By the way, we were wondering if we could get our phones back. We want to take pictures for Voxtagram."
"Of course," Doctor Red said. "We were just about to do that anyway."
Doctor Red handed each phone with its charger to Angel and Cherri. The pair was overjoyed and quickly took back their items.
Before they could get too happy, Doctor Red said, "You two are allowed your phones back, but Anthony, your phone comes with conditions. We have blocked the numbers of all your former lovers, including that old boss of yours. If you try to contact any of them, we will need to put you through more therapy to treat your relapse. Is that understood?"
Angel chuckled loudly as he opened his Voxtagram, pulled Cherri close to him so that they were both in frame, and said, "Why would I want to text any of them when I have my beautiful wife here?"
Angel snapped a picture of himself and Cherri and instantly posted the photograph on Voxtagram.
"Very good," Doctor Red said. "Now, about your accommodations…"
"Yeah?" Cherri asked.
"You two will be honeymooning in a condo in the condominium that our family owns nearby since Doctor Red says that you two will still need to be monitored," Henroin said. "We won't put any cameras or recording devices in there to grant you your privacy, but we still need to make sure you two aren't running off."
Angel and Cherri looked at each other for a moment before Angel asked, "So, what did you have in mind?"
Doctor Red pulled two black ankle bracelets out of his pockets.
"Are those ankle bracelets?" Cherri asked.
"Ankle monitors to be more precise," Doctor Red replied.
"You're gonna track both of us?" Cherri asked.
"Yes," Doctor Red said.
"Why?" Angel asked.
"To keep an eye on you both," Doctor Red replied.
"You have made excellent progress, Anthony, but you can understand our fears that you might relapse," Henroin explained. "So, instead of monitoring you inside the condo, we're going to be tracking the both of you to make sure neither of you do anything you're not supposed to."
"But, Dad, why does Cherri have to wear one?" Angel protested. "Cherri didn't need to go to therapy."
"It's so neither of you pull anything while we're not looking," Arackniss interjected.
"Oh, okay," Angel said, allowing his face to fall dejectedly.
"Cheer up, Anthony," Doctor Red reassured him. "You will only be wearing these ankle monitors until Alastor's wedding is over. If you and your beloved behave all the way through then as I'm sure you will, those ankle monitors will be removed."
Angel sighed and said, "Okay, doc. How about it, Cherri? What do you say?"
"I'm for anything that will help my dear husband stay on the right track," Cherri said, hugging Angel under one of his pairs of arms.
"Awww, you spoil me so much, my Cherri Bomb," Angel replied, holding Cherri in a hug and giving her a kiss on her forehead.
"Then, it is decided," Doctor Red announced. "You two lovebirds will spend the night here so that your family can have time to set up the condo. Then tomorrow, you both will attend a party with your family and go to your condo afterwards. How does that sound?"
"Oh, that sounds wonderful," Angel said with Cherri still relaxing in his arms. "Doesn't it, sugar bomb?"
"You bet, sweetie," Cherri replied.
"Now," Doctor Red said, gesturing to the picnic table. "Sit down and let me get these trackers on you."
Angel and Cherri both willingly sat down and held their legs out in front of them so that Doctor Red could attach the ankle monitors to their ankles.
Doctor Red attached an ankle monitor to each of their right legs without hearing a single complaint.
"Now then," Cherri said, before she grabbed another piece of cake and splatted it on Angel's face.
Angel laughed loudly as he wiped it off and ate it.
"Delicious," Angel said.
"Oh, you want some more?" Cherri said, placing another slice of cake on a plate and walking backwards with it towards the labyrinth.
Immediately figuring out what Cherri was up to, Angel chased after Cherri and said, "Okay, sugar, if you insist."
"Should I follow them?" Arackniss asked.
"No need," Henroin said, pulling out his phone and opening the app. "We know where they're going."
Doctor Red and Henroin chuckled and sat down at the table to enjoy some cake. Arackniss joined them while suspiciously looking in the direction of the labyrinth.