A/N: The new chapter of "We Three Hearts" is now available!
May 20th 2022
Chapter 140
Our Needs to Bond
When she had first moved to Texas and befriended Lucas and the others, Maya had quickly been made aware of – and was generally amused by – Asher and his claim over several 'connections.' They were always very useful if she needed to go somewhere or figure out where she might get something she wouldn't have known how to find… Looking back on it now, it was hard to say whether all of it was genuinely impressive or if she'd simply been thirteen years old and more easily surprised. More than anything though, she was realizing that, somewhere along the way, she had become the one with all the connections.
Here she stood on the morning of Phoebe Munroe's wedding to Khalil Russell, and as she looked around, she could see so much of it. They were holding the ceremony at the Zvolensky house. Neither the bride nor the groom had specifically asked for it – they'd left it up to her – but her immediate thought as she'd worked to secure a location was 'this was where they started.' It would make sense, wouldn't it? All she had to do was put out a call to Diana Zvolensky, and Sophie's mother heartily agreed. Location, check.
So, what about the food? Well, as far as the catering went, she put out a call to her old boss Chef Isabel back in Houston. Maya had been right there at the start of her restaurant's catering business, and in the years since it had continued to flourish. They might have had trouble booking this so short notice, but for Maya, they soon found a way. As for the cake, Maya needed to look no further than Beatrice up at Sullivan Stables. Actually, she'd first started off talking to Donna Devereaux, calling on the event coordinator so the couple and their party could have their photos taken on the property. She could have asked Lucas outright, but both of them agreed that going through Donna was 'the proper thing.' Donna promised them they could have their session and their cake, no problem. As for the photographer, well, who better than Shawn Hunter? So that was three more things handled.
Then there was the dress, Jo Munroe's dress from her second wedding. As promised, Grangie had stepped in and helped Phoebe to get the garment fitted to her and, when she was done, you would not have known that it had not been made for her all along. Maya had not seen the finished work yet, that would be at the wedding, but she had a good feeling that it would make her cry. She'd gotten the misty eyes several times just working on everything, bringing the small wedding together, and not all of it could be blamed on pregnancy shenanigans.
Flowers? Jenna and her mother had it covered. Decorations? Stella wanted to do the very most she could in that department, and Maya gave her free rein. Music? Ah, well, it just so happened that she had access to not one but two bands… Alright, one out of the sister band had to sit out on account of being all of a couple of weeks away from giving birth, but not to worry. They could carry on just fine. Actually, when she'd spoken to Olivia last, she'd been informed that they had a new member joining the ranks, and she would be making her great debut at the wedding.
"See, this is why I wanted to bring the walkie talkies," Maya told Lucas when he came running back out of the house. When he gave her a confused look, she gave him an innocent smile. He sighed. She needed him to go back inside again.
They were fortunate with the weather today, that was for sure. Guests were starting to arrive, guided through the house and out into the vast property beyond. Family members from both sides, friends from school, friends from work, friends of the families…
"Mom, you packed spare dresses, yeah?" Ella appeared, holding a fussy Kacey. Maya turned to look at them and let out a sigh. There was a giant stain down the front of the little blonde's dress, origin unknown.
"Uh, yeah, inside, upstairs, third door on the right," she directed. "Anybody else 'hit'?" she had to ask, looking around to spot Remy or Lucy. They were presently in the care of Taylor Munroe, very freshly landed back in town for his sister's wedding.
"No, we're good," Ella promised.
"Alright, well, I can take care of her if you want to stay out here…" Maya suggested. If she was going for subtlety – she wasn't – it was poorly achieved. Yes, Ella and Taylor were attending the wedding together, but it wasn't a date, no, just two friends… a bridesmaid and a groomsman, going together, nothing more…
"We'll be fine, huh, cub?" Ella smiled down to her little sister, who was busy poking at her stained dress. "I'm not sending you up a bunch of stairs if you don't have to."
"You are such a good daughter," Maya drawled. A daughter in denial, but still a good one.
Ella and Taylor may not have been here as 'dates,' but there were plenty of those still to be found in attendance. For one, though this would constitute a first outing together, not a proper one-on-one date, there were Lea and Theo, no longer relegated to dark corners and instead occasionally found with their hands joined to one another's almost on reflex. They would definitely need a bit more time before they were able to stop acting like they weren't sure whether they were in the right. From what she'd heard, Maya knew that this day had been preceded by a conversation, the two of them and Ella, too, sitting with Tori to explain a few things, so she would know exactly where everybody stood. According to Ella, the three-year-old had taken this with so much ease that the rest of them had been left thinking that she'd picked up the signs between her father and her mother's best friend for a long while. She liked them together. The only one who'd been stunned in any way had been Nika, when she'd heard about her brother's 'secret,' though she'd come around to it all soon enough.
The bands were arriving, and Maya would have to join hers before long for a bit of preparation, even though they wouldn't be called on until later. As the sister band arrived together, minus Cara, Maya was glad for two reasons. One of those would be to find out who their new member was, and the other, she was not ashamed to say, would be to see how Ava and Kelsey were doing. After a very long week of waiting, they would have had their first date just the night before. She could have feared the whole night turning into a disaster and bleeding into today and the band's participation in the wedding, but it didn't, not for a second, and to see the pair of them today, she knew she'd been right. They were both in awe of the Zvolensky house, and just the way they shared in this awe together… The transition had occurred. Whether they were ready to stamp a 'girlfriend' label on one another, they were definitely together and moving forward together, which made Maya very happy to see.
Olivia was amazed, too, as was Nika, and… Maya paused as she took in the girl that followed them, equally amazed by the venue. She didn't recognize her from school, so her initial assumption was that this was someone that one of the bandmates knew from somewhere else. She'd definitely come ready to perform. The outfit, the shoes, the hair, the makeup… She fit in very well with the other three who would take the stage that day as We Are Sisters.
"This is your friend's house?" Kelsey asked her teacher.
"She hasn't lived here since we all went to college, but her mother still lives here, yes… when she's in town at least," Maya explained, still amused by the girls' amazement. Finally, she cleared her throat to get them all back on track, and they looked at her, then each other… They smiled as they looked to the newest member of their band, and she stepped forward. "Hi…" Maya started in to introduce herself, only to pause as the girl pulled off her violet tinted glasses.
The entire look would likely fool most people – which was no doubt part of their plan – but maybe for being so observant to details as she was, Maya suddenly saw through the surface and recognized… Jenny Marshall. As soon as she realized it, her hand shot up to cover her mouth in case she let out any sound of surprise. This made the girl laugh as she slipped the glasses back on. Oh, it was such a transformation. There was no other way to describe it. This was not simply setting aside the 'Cody costume,' this was allowing the long suppressed Jenny to come around and take her first steps into the world. It wasn't just clothes, makeup, accessories, it was posture, and motion, and when she spoke, it was a voice, too. She'd been working on it.
"I don't think this would be an everyday kind of look, but for a show, it's pretty great, right?" she asked, taking a turn to show the whole effect. "This is Echo," she finally gestured at herself with a proud smile.
This was hardly the time or the place to get into the whole story of how they'd ended up here, but it wasn't hard to guess at it, looking at the quartet standing around her. They had all worked at this together, helping to pull this look into existence. No one could look at Echo here and even picture Cody Marshall as being what was underneath it all, which was clearly the intention. Whether Jenny would get to be Jenny out in the world any time soon, that would be up to her. But today, for now and for however long she needed or wanted to be, she could be Echo, the new drummer of We Are Sisters. And even before they hit the stage, it already looked like she was having the best day of her life.
There was little time to focus on any of this for now. They were coming up to the big moment and everyone had to take their seats. Maya spied Desi, walking arm in arm with her father and looking so glad to have him around. As awkward as things could be between Khalil and him, there was still just a whole lot of love underneath it all, so there he was, proud not only to watch his son get married but to know what he sought to do, following in his late wife and his footsteps. She also spotted Taylor now stood together with big half brothers Kyle and Dylan, the three of them gathered to see their sister's big moment and take part in it, too. Phoebe had it all figured it out, and when she'd presented the idea to them, they'd been on board in a heartbeat.
When she appeared, walking out of the open double doors leading out of the house, she walked arm in arm with her father. Peter Munroe would guide her all the way up until they reached the end of the aisle, but along the way, they would have others joining them. After a few steps of the father and daughter alone, they reached Kyle Orlando, and Phoebe's free arm came looped with his. However difficult the family's situation may have been in the years since they'd been brought together, at no time had Kyle felt anything but welcoming brotherly love for his one and only (half) sister. Up they went, until they reached Dylan where he stood. Here Kyle stepped back, and his younger brother replaced him. Onward they went, the siblings with such smiles on them, showing how similar they had always been to one another, more than any other in personality. Like Kyle, when they reached their next stop, he stepped away after sharing a quick side hug with Phoebe, before leaving her to take up the arm of her little brother.
It was only natural that Taylor should accompany her the rest of the way. They'd had one another to lean on all of their lives, and this far more than being half or full-blooded siblings would make them closest of all.
Looking as much to the bride's advance as the groom's anticipation for her, they could see Khalil fared about as well as most they'd seen before him. Much as this wedding might have happened just a bit earlier due to his decision, it was far from being a matter of convenience. One look at him, looking at her, and they would know. He loved this girl, loved her, respected her, trusted her with every part of him… He knew that it wasn't easy, this thing he'd chosen to do, for how it would impact them going forward. But here was someone who would meet that challenge head on, difficulties and all. For one thing, she'd be back here still, responsible for Desi while she continued high school. When he went off for training, and whatever came after that, Phoebe and Desi would be in Austin. Once Desi finished high school and figured out what she'd do next, then Phoebe and Khalil would figure out their next step.
The vows were spoken, sharing the fact that the very first time they'd spoken, truly spoken in any way that could be described as flirting, had been out here in the yard 'under that tree there,' as Phoebe specified. And now it was done. They were husband and wife, and what they wanted for themselves, and all their guests was a great big party. So, that's what they got.
"That was definitely an exception on account of a special occasion, I am benched until after this baby comes…" Maya breathed as she rejoined Lucas at their table after TXNY's performance. He had that grin like he fully supported this choice, even as he'd taken great pleasure in watching her up there. He presented her with a glass, and she took it at once, sipping up about half the contents before the sister band took up the stage for the remainder of the evening.
She sat up eagerly, even as she looked to her husband and tried not to give the surprise away as she watched the curious furrow in his brow. He hadn't noticed the new drummer yet, and same as she'd done, he wondered who she was… until she was introduced. Olivia asked the gathered guests to welcome the newest member of We Are Sisters… Echo! To most people in attendance, this meant nothing more than a name, but Lucas knew who it was attached to, and his eyes widened as he realized who she was. He looked back to Maya, and she signalled how she'd had no idea about any of this until today.
Jenny… Echo… Whatever they knew her as, she was a fantastic drummer, and she fit into the lineup of the band like she'd always been there, always belonged with them, and maybe she had. It would be an important day when she could share her whole story, not just part of it, but until then… this was the start, and it was electric.
TO BE CONTINUED
See you tomorrow! - mooners
