Chapter 6:
Miguel walked his way back to the alter. "Charity..." he began but was
interrupted.
"Shut up, Miguel!" Charity hissed, revealing a darker side of herself to
everyone within watching distance. "Everything that needed to be said was said!"
"But... I love you!" Miguel said that for the first time in the last ten minutes.
"Love me?" Charity asked, laughing scornfully. "That's very funny."
Miguel grabbed a troubled Charity's hand. "I do love you," he repeated.
"Nothing can change that."
"Ha," Charity cried out. "Not even something like my cousin's pregnancy?"
Miguel, as serious as ever, looked Charity in the eye and without having to
think about it said: "Kay's pregnancy did not kill our love. It just put a damper on our
wedding plans. The three of us need to sit down, like adults, and talk about this."
Just then I walked back to the alter where everyone already was standing
around, whispering to each other. I was able to hear the last thing Miguel had just told
Charity - the part about the three of us discussing this like adults. Let's just say - like
hell Charity did.
When she saw me walk over to where everyone already was, she went ballistic.
That was the first chance where she was able to directly display to me how she felt
about my news. And directly display she did. Don't get me wrong - she barely spoke,
didn't even cuss obscenities at me. But she did go on a full, physical attack.
She flung flower vases at me, missing me narrowly. She ran to my side, pulling
at my hair, punching at my stomach. "There's no way you're gonna have this baby!"
she screamed at me. Daddy, Noah, Hank and Miguel pulled her off of me.
"That's enough!" Daddy shouted to everyone. "There will be no wedding today
folks. You can all go home now."
The audience, who I might say got more than they bargained for by coming to
the church today, sighed as they got up to leave. Apparently, some people liked the
drama I had created more than the potential wedding that was to happen between
Miguel and Charity.
"I want to talk to you later, young man," I heard Daddy fiercely say to Miguel.
"Yes, sir," Miguel gulped.
Pilar came up to stand by her youngest son. She had tears in her eyes. She had
thanked God that Antonio, Luis and Theresa had had successful marriages. How she
wished that Miguel had had the same. But there was no way I would let that happen.
Not to Charity anyway.
Theresa came up to me as I was getting ready to leave the church.
"I need to talk to you, Kay," she said neutrally.
I turned to look at her. I used to always think of Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald as
an older sister, but I could tell from her facial expressions that day that older sister
was the last thing she was going to be like to me at that moment. While her tone was
neutral, her body and facial languages weren't. She looked just as mad as Mother and
Charity. Grabbing my arm, she practically dragged me off to the far corner of the
church.
"How could you do this to Miguel and Charity?" Theresa asked me, aghast.
I sighed. No one seemed to care about what I was going through! I was
pregnant for Chrissake! How could I let Miguel marry Charity when I was carrying his
baby?! I realized that this was a fight I could not win, either way. If I had let Miguel
marry Charity, people would have wondered why I did not tell Miguel about his child
before he married her. And if I did tell Miguel about my pregnancy, people were going
to blame me for ending the marriage before it even began.
"Theresa," I said crisply. "Tell me something. What would you have done? If
you were in my position and Miguel was Ethan and Charity Gwen."
Theresa huffed. "I don't have to answer that now because I will never be in
your position! Ethan and I are married now. Gwen can't bother us."
"What about hypothetically speaking, Theresa?" I blurted out. "If you were
carrying Ethan's child just as he was getting ready to marry Gwen - would you have let
him marry her?"
"My child?" Ethan, my half brother, asked, coming up behind us. He had only
heard part of what we were discussing and he looked confused.
He turned to his wife. "Theresa, are you pregnant, too?" he asked half in shock
half in glee.
Theresa shook her head no vehemently.
"We were just speculating, Ethan," I said. "About what Theresa would do if she
were in my situation right now."
I turned to stare at Theresa, waiting for a response, but she became quiet. She
may not have answered, but her silence spoke volumes.
"Don't blame me for something you would do no differently, T," I told her, as I
walked away.
I could hear Ethan and Theresa arguing about what we had just discussed. It
made me laugh. I did not want to cause problems in their marriage - heck I was just in
it to ruin ONE marriage today ok?! - but it was amusing to see how many people were
being affected by my pregnancy.
*****
Miguel walked his way back to the alter. "Charity..." he began but was
interrupted.
"Shut up, Miguel!" Charity hissed, revealing a darker side of herself to
everyone within watching distance. "Everything that needed to be said was said!"
"But... I love you!" Miguel said that for the first time in the last ten minutes.
"Love me?" Charity asked, laughing scornfully. "That's very funny."
Miguel grabbed a troubled Charity's hand. "I do love you," he repeated.
"Nothing can change that."
"Ha," Charity cried out. "Not even something like my cousin's pregnancy?"
Miguel, as serious as ever, looked Charity in the eye and without having to
think about it said: "Kay's pregnancy did not kill our love. It just put a damper on our
wedding plans. The three of us need to sit down, like adults, and talk about this."
Just then I walked back to the alter where everyone already was standing
around, whispering to each other. I was able to hear the last thing Miguel had just told
Charity - the part about the three of us discussing this like adults. Let's just say - like
hell Charity did.
When she saw me walk over to where everyone already was, she went ballistic.
That was the first chance where she was able to directly display to me how she felt
about my news. And directly display she did. Don't get me wrong - she barely spoke,
didn't even cuss obscenities at me. But she did go on a full, physical attack.
She flung flower vases at me, missing me narrowly. She ran to my side, pulling
at my hair, punching at my stomach. "There's no way you're gonna have this baby!"
she screamed at me. Daddy, Noah, Hank and Miguel pulled her off of me.
"That's enough!" Daddy shouted to everyone. "There will be no wedding today
folks. You can all go home now."
The audience, who I might say got more than they bargained for by coming to
the church today, sighed as they got up to leave. Apparently, some people liked the
drama I had created more than the potential wedding that was to happen between
Miguel and Charity.
"I want to talk to you later, young man," I heard Daddy fiercely say to Miguel.
"Yes, sir," Miguel gulped.
Pilar came up to stand by her youngest son. She had tears in her eyes. She had
thanked God that Antonio, Luis and Theresa had had successful marriages. How she
wished that Miguel had had the same. But there was no way I would let that happen.
Not to Charity anyway.
Theresa came up to me as I was getting ready to leave the church.
"I need to talk to you, Kay," she said neutrally.
I turned to look at her. I used to always think of Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald as
an older sister, but I could tell from her facial expressions that day that older sister
was the last thing she was going to be like to me at that moment. While her tone was
neutral, her body and facial languages weren't. She looked just as mad as Mother and
Charity. Grabbing my arm, she practically dragged me off to the far corner of the
church.
"How could you do this to Miguel and Charity?" Theresa asked me, aghast.
I sighed. No one seemed to care about what I was going through! I was
pregnant for Chrissake! How could I let Miguel marry Charity when I was carrying his
baby?! I realized that this was a fight I could not win, either way. If I had let Miguel
marry Charity, people would have wondered why I did not tell Miguel about his child
before he married her. And if I did tell Miguel about my pregnancy, people were going
to blame me for ending the marriage before it even began.
"Theresa," I said crisply. "Tell me something. What would you have done? If
you were in my position and Miguel was Ethan and Charity Gwen."
Theresa huffed. "I don't have to answer that now because I will never be in
your position! Ethan and I are married now. Gwen can't bother us."
"What about hypothetically speaking, Theresa?" I blurted out. "If you were
carrying Ethan's child just as he was getting ready to marry Gwen - would you have let
him marry her?"
"My child?" Ethan, my half brother, asked, coming up behind us. He had only
heard part of what we were discussing and he looked confused.
He turned to his wife. "Theresa, are you pregnant, too?" he asked half in shock
half in glee.
Theresa shook her head no vehemently.
"We were just speculating, Ethan," I said. "About what Theresa would do if she
were in my situation right now."
I turned to stare at Theresa, waiting for a response, but she became quiet. She
may not have answered, but her silence spoke volumes.
"Don't blame me for something you would do no differently, T," I told her, as I
walked away.
I could hear Ethan and Theresa arguing about what we had just discussed. It
made me laugh. I did not want to cause problems in their marriage - heck I was just in
it to ruin ONE marriage today ok?! - but it was amusing to see how many people were
being affected by my pregnancy.
*****