Chapter Twenty-Five – Name Change
The children enjoyed dancing with Kelly and Erica at their wedding. After about another half hour of dancing Kelly and Erica said their goodbyes. They had decided not to do the traditional throwing of the bouquet and the garter belt as it was a family wedding and there were very few single people at the wedding. The car service had arrived and Kelly and Erica were excited, they were married and would now be spending their first night as a married couple.
Kelly and Erica picked up the children from school on January 17th after Maura had text them to tell them that she extended their stay at the Ritz-Carlton until 1 PM on Tuesday. Once Maura had sent them the text, Kelly jumped up and put on a robe and ran over to the door in an attempt to put the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door, only to find that the sign was already in place.
"Kelly, what are you doing? Come back to bed!" Erica exclaimed as soon as Kelly left the bed.
"I am putting out the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door."
Erica laughed, "That is the first thing I did when we got here and it has not moved and no one had disturbed us except for Maura but that was for a great reason."
"Yeah, that's true. I guess I just wanted to make sure that no one disturbed us." Kelly admitted as she took off of her robe and climbed back in bed with her wife.
"Well, room service can disturb us." Erica said.
"Of course, we both need to eat." They smiled at each other thinking of the innuendo of what Kelly had just said. "Erica, you know what I meant, get your mind out of the gutter." Kelly said as she climbed on top of her wife and assaulted her with kisses.
"Hey, it is our wedding weekend and my mind is staying right where it is. I plan on taking full advantage of you until check out time." Erica informed her.
"I like the sound of that, but it looks as if I am the one taking full advantage of you." Kelly said as Erica caught her off guard and flipped her so that she was now on top. They talked, laughed, and loved until it was time to check out and go pick up the children on Tuesday. They really loved that Jane and Maura extended their stay for one more night.
On the way home they stopped by the courthouse to pick up their filed marriage certificate. Kate was the first one that they needed to pick-up so they went into the office hand-in-hand to pick her up. Normally they would utilize the pick-up line but they needed to go into the office today so they called ahead to let the school know to keep Kate inside.
Kate was wondering why she had to stay inside today, she loved going out for the pick-up line with her friends. She was happy when she saw Kelly and Erica. They each took one of her hands and they walked into the office. "Hello, may I help you?" The office clerk asked.
Kelly spoke up and said, "Yes, thank you. We just got married and we need to change our name on Kate's pick-up card."
"I'm Kate Rizzoli-Isles. I am in Mrs. Smith's class. These are my two best friends, they pick me up almost every day." Kelly tapped Kate on the shoulder. Kate looked up to her and Kelly smiled at her and then put her finger over her lips to let Kate know that she needed to handle this. Kate nodded and then Kelly continued.
Kelly pulled out their marriage certificate while the office clerk pulled up Kate's record. Kelly gave it to the clerk and she reviewed it and then made the correction. The clerk said, "so your new last name is Rizzoli-Isles, just like Kate's?"
Kate looked at Kelly then Erica, "What? You have my last name?"
Erica spoke up and bent down to Kate's level and said, "Yes, is that okay with you?"
"Yes, that is perfect." Kate said as she hugged Erica and then Kelly. The clerk made the corrections and then handed the marriage certificate back to Kelly.
"Congratulations, ladies on your wedding. Here is your marriage certificate back. Is there anything else I can do for you?" The clerk asked.
"No, that is all we needed, thank you." Kelly said as she folded the marriage certificate back up and handed it to Erica to place in her purse. Kelly never carried a purse. If she couldn't place an item in her pockets of her jeans then she let Erica carry it. She didn't want to carry a purse ever.
Erica placed the marriage certificate into her purse and said, "Thank you," to the clerk and then grabbed Kate's hand and started to walk out with Kelly in tow.
When Kelly strapped Kate into her car seat Kate asked, "How did you guys get my last name?"
"Kelly, you want me to explain this while you drive?" Erica asked.
"Yes, please." Kelly stated.
"Kate, you know we both love your family so much and your family is like our family. Your grandmothers suggested it as they love us as if we are their daughters, so they thought it would be a good idea for us to be Rizzoli-Isles like the rest of you. How do you feel about that?" Erica asked.
"I love it, it is like you are my big sisters or Aunts." Kate said as she clapped her hands.
"I like the sound of Aunt Kelly." Kelly stated and Kate nodded. She liked it also.
"But does Aunt outrank best friend?" Kate asked confused as she thought that best friend was the best title a person can have besides wife or husband.
"No, of course not, they are equal in my book. You can call me any of those titles or just Kelly, like you have been doing." Kelly told Kate.
"I love the title, wife, that Kelly gave me on Sunday."
"I think I want to have that title one day also as well as have a wife." Kate admitted. Kelly and Erica just smiled at Kate, thinking one day in the not so soon future they would attend Kate's wedding. Whether she has a wife or a husband, they will just have to wait and see. At four years old Kate is too young to make that decision right now. Although they have noticed that this was not the first time that Kate has referred to having a female partner.
They drove over to the other school to pick up MJ, AJ and Lilly, repeating the same process of going inside to change their last name on the children's pick-up records. The other children had realized that Kelly and Erica had changed their last names to match theirs. Kate was the only one that had missed their last name at the wedding.
Jane had sent Kelly a text to let them know that she would bring dinner home with them tonight so it wasn't necessary to cook dinner. She told Kelly to just enjoy the time with the children. When Jane and Maura got home later that night with Italian take out, they found everybody downstairs dancing along with their X-Box dancing game. They were all having fun. Jane and Maura smiled as they watched everyone dancing. A few minutes later everyone headed upstairs to enjoy their dinner. After Kate took her first bite she said, "I think it's great that Kelly and Erica have the same last name as us now."
"Yes, your grandmothers planned that and didn't even tell us, so we were pleasantly surprised when your Uncle Korsak presented them as Mrs. and Mrs. Rizzoli-Isles." Maura said as she looked lovingly at Kelly and Erica. Maura remembered how she felt when she and Jane were announced as Dr. and Mrs. Rizzoli-Isles standing in front of their family and friends as they were ready to walk down the aisle for the first time as a married couple. Becoming a Rizzoli meant the world to Maura and having a family with Jane was an even greater experience for her.
After all the heartache that Maura had felt throughout her life, Jane helped her put all of that behind her and gave her the sense of family that she didn't know she was seeking. The Rizzoli's changed her life for the better and that is what she wanted for Kelly and Erica. Maura felt that everyone deserves to have a great life and Maura was happy that Angela and Constance were a part of that for Kelly and Erica. "Mommy do you know what Chrissy told me while we were dancing?" MJ asked his mother.
"No, baby what did she tell you?" Maura asked her oldest son.
"She said that if we grow up and get married, she would gladly take my last name. I think everybody likes being a Rizzoli-Isles." MJ stated and everybody seemed to agree with him. Everybody at the table sure loved being a Rizzoli-Isles family member.
"You and Chrissy looked so cute dancing. I took a few pictures of you." Maura pulled out her cell phone and handed it to MJ so he could look at the picture. Jane reached over and pulled at Maura's arm.
"Maur, you know cell phones are not allowed at the dinner table." Jane informed her wife. Maura pulled the cell phone back before MJ really got a chance to look at the picture.
"Mommy, I didn't get to see the picture." MJ stated as he looked at his mother.
"I'm sorry MJ, we will have to wait until after dinner to look at the pictures." Maura said as Jane smiled at her. Maura never broke the rules so Jane was smiling because she caught Maura breaking one of the rules she came up with. Jane understood the reason for the rule and she just laughed because here was Maura, who never broke the rules, breaking one of her own established rules.
They finished up dinner and after the dishes were done, Jane hooked Maura's phone up so they could look at the wedding pictures that she had taken. Jane had snapped a few also and she showed her pictures after Maura's had finished. Kelly and Erica just smiled getting a look at some of their wedding pictures. They still couldn't believe that Jane and Maura had done all of this for them.
Maura told Kelly and Erica that the photographer would have their pictures ready on Friday for viewing and asked if they would like the photographer to bring the pictures to the house, so that they could all view the pictures together, or if they would like to view them by themselves first. "We can all view them together." Erica stated without hesitation. They were a family now and this family did things together, now and forever.
Jane and Maura got off of work early on Friday and cooked dinner for the family. They had told Erica to take Kelly to the park down the street and that they would text her when dinner was ready. They had been working hard between school and watching the children so Jane wanted them to enjoy themselves a little and have a break.
Jane and Maura had cooked gnocchi because Kelly and Erica loved it. Maura had even made homemade cannoli. The photographer had come over and delivered the disc with the wedding video and all of the wedding pictures so after dinner they would watch the disc.
The children set the table and Maura brought a bottle of wine and apple cider. They decided to walk down and pick up Kelly and Erica as the children could use some fresh air. It was cold out but the family didn't mind, they were making it a special night for Kelly and Erica.
Jane and Maura knew from their own wedding that you never got to see everything that was going on so watching the video and viewing the pictures would bring back the feelings from their wedding day. That is why they were making tonight special. They wanted them to remember their special day through the video and pictures and a special meal.
Kelly and Erica were surprised when the children ran up to them and then they saw Jane and Maura walking arm in arm towards them. Kelly hoped that she and Erica would continue to be love like Jane and Maura. Jane and Maura seemed like they were still newlyweds even after all these years.
"Dinner is ready." Maura said as a greeting to Kelly and Erica when they reached them. "The photographer stopped by so the disc is already for viewing after dinner. They put the video on first and then all staged pictures and then all the candid shots."
"I can't wait to see them." Kelly said as she and Erica stood up from the bench they were sitting on. Jane smiled at Maura noticing that Kelly and Erica had been sitting on their bench. They all walked back to the house and sat at the dining room table.
"You made gnocchi for us, and cannoli." Erica said as a tear started down her face. Kelly reached over and brushed the tear away.
"Yes, we wanted to make some of your favorite things before we go downstairs and view the video and pictures." Jane offered as she passed the gnocchi to Kelly.
"You guys are too much." Kelly said as she took the bowl of gnocchi from Jane.
"Well, you are family now and that is how this family treats each other." Maura said as she smiled at Jane. Jane knew that Maura meant every word of what she just said.
When they finished dinner, Jane said, "leave the dishes, the dish fairies will take care of the dishes, let's go see what the photographer brought us." Maura squeezed Jane's hand. She knew that she and jane were the dish fairies and that they would clean up after they put the children to bed. Everyone was keyed up to see the wedding pictures.
Erica was snuggled into Kelly's side as they watched the video of their wedding. Jane didn't know that the photographer had taped when Jane and Kelly arrived and how flustered they both looked. Luckily that was only a few seconds of the video which then cut to Erica in her preparation room with Maura handing her the 'something' items that she had selected for her. Erica had a huge smile on her face as Maura presented her with her items. Then the video cut to Jane presenting Kelly with her 'something' items. Jane and Kelly looked very presentable in this scene.
The video covered the entire ceremony, some of which Kelly hadn't seen so she was thankful. They both enjoyed how Kate and Lilly tossed the flower pedals into the air and laughed as they fell down to the ground. The boys were very serious behind them as they marched with the ring pillows. Jane and Maura were the epitome of happiness when they walked down the aisle together.
The highlight for Kelly was when she and Erica danced together for the first time as a married couple. She loved the vows but the dance was special for her. They had said vows at different times during their relationship and they were special, but she loved to dance with Erica and the dance meant more to her. They both laughed when the dance with all the children came up. Erica cried when she watched her and Constance dance together. Constance loved her like a mother loves a child and although they had only known each other for a short period of time, Erica could see and feel the love that Constance had for her. Erica had cried almost through the whole video. Kelly just held her tight and kept telling her "I love you, thank you for marrying me."
The staged pictures were nice but some of the candid shots were downright funny. Kate was such a ham and it showed in the pictures. She looked so handsome in her tuxedo, she was the spitting image of her mama, Jane. At one point during the dancing Kate had her head resting on Kelly's shoulder and they both had such a huge smile on their faces. When Kate saw the picture, she jumped off of her mama's lap and went and climbed up in Kelly's lap and put her head on Kelly's shoulder just like in the picture.
The photographer had captured some great shots and Maura was already identifying some of the pictures that she would like blown up. The last picture on the disc was a family photo with Jane, Maura, Kelly, Erica, MJ, AJ, Lilly and Kate. "I would like a copy of that picture." Kelly said as she stood up and passed Kate off to Jane. They said their good nights and Kelly and Erica walked to the guest house hand in hand as Jane and Maura put the children to bed.