Let Your Heart Hold Fast: Bicycles, Weddings, and Kittens
Chapter 4
The wedding was almost over and for the first time since they had arrived Peter felt like he could breathe. Apart from the fiasco of the walk down the aisle, things had gone well so far, and to Peter's relief, they were at the part of the ceremony where the exchange of rings would occur. Peter watched as the officiant asked for the rings, watched as the Groom turned to Neal, watched as Neal handed over the rings. He thought that everything was fine, until the Groom turned back to Neal and said something.
Peter had no idea what was going on, but he could tell that the Bride and Groom were upset about something. As they all watched, Yvonne bent down in front of Neal, frantically talking to the little boy. Peter glanced nervously over at Elizabeth who looked upset, too. Finally, Elizabeth stepped out of her place and walked over to Neal, as well. None of the guests seemed to know what was going on, but Peter suddenly had a good idea.
Before too long, Elizabeth was frantically waving at Peter, directing him to come forward. As he did, the officiant made an announcement.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, we seem to have a bit of an issue that needs to be addressed. Please be patient for a few moments while we sort this out."
By this time, a few of the groomsmen had left, seemingly in a hurry to go somewhere. Peter walked up to Elizabeth and Neal, wishing the whole time that he was at home watching a game. Or anywhere else, for that matter.
"What's going on?" Peter asked as he gave Neal a curious look. The boy looked like he was about to burst into tears, to his great surprise.
"I'm sorry, Daddy," Neal immediately cried. "I didn't mean to make Y-Von sad. I was just trying to be a good ring-bearer."
"What did he do?" Peter asked as he turned back to his wife.
"He lost the rings," Elizabeth answered.
"But I saw him hand them over to Rick."
"Those weren't the real rings," Elizabeth explained. "They were candy rings that he got out of the goody bag that Yvonne gave him."
Turning back to Neal, Peter felt a sudden desire to laugh at the absurdity of the situation again. "Neal, what happened to the real rings?" he asked.
At those words, Neal burst into tears. "I don't know, Daddy!" he cried. "I didn't want to lose them when I was waiting for everyone to get ready, so I kept my really good eye on them, just like you said. I put them in a safe place."
Peter and Elizabeth exchanged a look of unease, aware that the entire audience was closely watching them. Not knowing what else to do, Peter knelt down in front of Neal. "Okay, listen, buddy… I need you to think really, really hard for me, okay? What were you doing when you decided to put the rings in a safe place?"
Neal didn't answer right away, but then he looked up at Peter in excitement. "I remember!" he yelled loudly. "I was sitting next to Jasmine cause we were supposed to not run off. That lady gave me the little box with the rings in them and told me not to move. She said that the wedding was starting soon."
"Okay," Peter said, relieved to hear that Neal was remembering something. "So, how did you lose the rings, then?"
"I didn't lose them, Daddy. I put them in a safe place, remember?"
"I appreciate that, buddy, but where did you put them? And why didn't you just hang on to them?"
"Because, Daddy….." Neal said. "I had to go to the bathroom and I kept asking if I could go, but no one heard me. I really had to go, Daddy."
"What did you do with the rings, Neal?" Peter asked, his exasperation finally starting to show through.
"I took them with me," Neal explained. "I didn't want to take the box with me, so I gave it to Jasmine. But, I didn't want to leave the rings with her since they were my sponsibility, so I took them with me."
"Into the bathroom?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yeah, but I put them in my pocket to keep them safe."
"So, then how did you lose them?" Elizabeth asked in confusion.
"They were there, Mommy. And then they weren't."
"Where did they go, then?" she asked.
"I don't know. After I washed my hands like you always tell me to, Mommy, I went back to Jasmine, and I took the box back. When I tried to get the rings out of my pocket to put back in the box, they were gone."
Neal looked like he was about to burst into tears again, but to Peter and Elizabeth's relief, he held it together.
"Why didn't you tell someone, sweetie?" Elizabeth asked softly, not wanting to send him over the edge again.
"I tried to, Mommy, but everyone was so busy and no one would listen to me. Then, it was time to go. It was almost my turn to walk with Jasmine when I remembered that I had the candy in my other pocket that Y-Von gave me. And the bag had candy rings in it, so I put two of them in the box."
Elizabeth bent down and checked Neal's pockets, not surprised at all to find a hole in one of them. "He has a hole in his pocket," she told Peter quietly. "I'm guessing that the rings are somewhere between the steps he was sitting on and the bathroom."
Without a word, Peter turned and headed off to search that area, praying the whole time that he would find the rings. Elizabeth turned back to an obviously upset Bride and explained what she thought had happened, as Neal stood miserably next to his mother, his finger poking through the hole in his pocket.
In what seemed like hours, but was actually only a few minutes, Peter and the groomsmen made their way back up the aisle. The rest of the Bridal party all breathed a sigh of relief when the Best Man held out the rings, and much to the relief of everyone in attendance, the wedding continued without anything else going wrong.
After the ceremony was over, everyone moved over to the reception area. Neal, who had been looking forward to this part of the day, was acting strangely subdued, never leaving Elizabeth's side. Even when Jasmine and few of the other kids present at the wedding tried to get him to join them, he refused. Elizabeth's heart broke at the sight of such a disheartened Neal, but she didn't know what to do to make him feel better. After trying for the fifth time to explain to him that it wasn't his fault that the rings fell through the hole, she finally gave up.
It wasn't until almost an hour later, when the Bride and Groom finally made it to the reception, that things changed. Peter, Elizabeth, and Neal joined the receiving line and made their way up to the newly married couple to offer their congratulations. Once it was Neal's turn, he shyly hid behind his mother's leg, not wanting to look at Yvonne.
Yvonne knelt down and tried to coax Neal out from behind Elizabeth's leg. "Hey, baby," Yvonne said gently. "Thank you for being such a great Ring Bearer for me."
Neal's eyes welled up with tears and he buried his face in Elizabeth's dress. Yvonne gently pulled on Neal's arm. "Neal?"
Neal slowly turned his face to look at Yvonne, who was surprised to see a few tears falling down his face. "Y-Von, do you hate me now?"
"Why would you think that, baby?" Yvonne asked. "Why would I hate you?"
"Because I messed up everything!" Neal cried. "I'm the worstest Ring Bearer ever!"
"No, you're not," Yvonne asserted. "Neal, you were the best Ring Bearer ever!"
"But I lost the rings, Y-Von! And I made Jasmine fall and I knocked over your light thingie!
"Did you mean to do those things?" she asked.
"No!" Neal cried. "I tried to be good, I promise. It's just really, really hard sometimes."
Everyone around them laughed at Neal's words. Yvonne pulled him forward and gently hugged him. "Neal, everything that happened was an accident. I know you put those rings in your pocket to keep them safe. And you didn't know that there was a hole in your pocket, did you?"
At the small shake of Neal's head, she continued. "And I know you didn't make Jasmine fall on purpose or mean to knock over the lantern. Those things happened and it's okay. Whenever I think about those things, I'll smile."
Neal didn't look convinced, but Yvonne continued. "I'm so glad that you were part of my wedding, baby. Whenever I look back on this day, I'll remember how adorable you looked in your suit and fedora."
Neal rolled his eyes. "Y-Von, I'm too old to look adorable. I'm six, remember? I look sophissicated and swab."
"You most certainly do, baby," Yvonne said as she gave Neal a big kiss on the cheek. "The most sophissicated and swab person here, I think. Now, why don't you go find the rest of the kids? You're holding up the line."
"I'm not holding anything, Y-Von. See?" Neal held his hands out in front of him to prove that they were empty.
Yvonne smiled again at the complete look of adorable indignation on his face. "What I meant, baby, is that there are people behind you in the line that are waiting to see us. And the sooner we get through this line, the sooner we can all eat."
Neal looked behind him at the growing line of people. "But, there's so many people," he whined. "And I'm really hungry."
Yvonne bent down again to whisper in his ear. "If you don't tell the other kids, there are extra cupcakes in the kitchen. I bet your mommy could take you in to get one."
"Really?" Neal shouted excitedly.
"Really. They're special cupcakes made especially for the best Ring Bearer in the world."
"Thanks, Y-Von," Neal shouted even more enthusiastically. "And wait til you see the present I got you. It's special cause you're the best Bride in the world."
With that, Neal grabbed Elizabeth's hand and led her away, eager to get to the cupcakes. His smile nearly blinded everyone around him and Elizabeth was relieved to see him acting normal again.
When they finally arrived home, Peter had to carry an exhausted Neal into the house. They had stayed out way past the boy's bedtime, enjoying the dancing and wonderful food at the reception far into the night. When Neal wouldn't wake up long enough to get a bath, Elizabeth and Peter gently pulled off his clothes, leaving him in his t-shirt and undies, before tucking him into his bed. Elizabeth gently washed his face and hands, wondering just how many cupcakes the boy had eaten that evening. Once she was done, she stayed seated on the bed next to him, carding her hands through his tangled curls.
"What a day!" she said with a tired sigh.
"I'm glad it's over," Peter admitted.
"Peter!" Elizabeth cried.
"Come on, El, you know you're glad, too. Just admit it!"
Elizabeth laughed. "You're right, hon. I am glad it's over, but it was a great day, wasn't it?"
"I don't know, El. I thought for a while there that we were going to have to buy a new set of wedding rings to replace the ones that Neal lost. And the whole day I kept waiting for something else to go wrong."
Elizabeth laughed again. "That was a little scary."
Peter looked down at the sleeping boy, an amused look crossing his face. "Things are certainly never dull with him around, are they?!"
"Nope. And I wouldn't have it any other way."
"Me, either, El. I think things are perfect just the way they are."
A week later, Peter wasn't so sure that he still felt the same way. Life with Neal definitely wasn't ever dull, but it sure could be frustrating. He was sure the six year old currently sitting in the much hated time-out chair would agree with him, too.
The days after the wedding had been nice, uneventful days for the Burke family. On Sunday, they loaded up the car and took a drive into the city where they ate a picnic lunch in central park and rented a canoe for a trip around the lake.
Monday and Tuesday, Neal went to Caleb's house when Elizabeth and Peter left for work. He was excited to spend the day with his friend and they had several activities planned to fill the day. Peter and Elizabeth both reminded the boy to be on his best behavior, as they were thinking to themselves how hard that would be for him.
Neal spent Wednesday morning with Elizabeth and then spent the afternoon with Caleb again. Since Elizabeth had an event that afternoon, Peter had to pick Neal up for a doctor's appointment. He had been sniffling and sneezing for the last several days and Elizabeth wanted to make sure that everything was okay.
Neal wasn't excited to go to the doctor, at all, and from the moment he got into the car, he made sure that Peter knew it. From his constant whining about how he hated doctors, to his occasional pleading with Peter to forget about the appointment, and then his attempt to bribe his dad into turning the car around, he made it quite clear that he absolutely, positively did not want to see the doctor.
"Please, Daddy. I promise I'll be extra good for a week if you don't make me go. I'll do my best behavior. Please!"
"Neal, it's not up for negotiation, buddy. Mommy says you need to see the doctor, so you're going to see the doctor." Peter patiently explained for the third time.
"Can't we just tell Mommy that we went? I promise I won't sneeze again and I'll make my nose stop running."
"You want to lie to Mommy?" Peter asked. "Do you think that's a good idea?"
Peter looked at Neal in the rearview mirror, wanting to laugh at the look on the poor kid's face. He could tell that he was torn between his desire to stay away from the doctor and his desire to not do anything to make Elizabeth mad.
"Mommy doesn't like lies," Neal answered sadly.
"No, she doesn't. So, what do you say we just get this over with, so we can go home and relax?"
Neal didn't look happy at all, but Peter could tell that he had resigned himself to the fact that he was going to have to see the doctor. Ten minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot.
By the time the appointment was over, both Neal and Peter were greatly relieved. Despite the fact that Neal hated going to the doctor, he had been surprisingly cooperative during Dr. Dayton's examination, earning him a prize out of the office prize jar. Peter wasn't too enthused when Neal picked out a plastic kazoo, but after several minutes of trying to get him to choose something else, he finally gave in.
He regretted his decision to give in almost immediately though, when Neal, who seemed to think that he was a musical genius, pranced around the busy waiting room as he blew into the kazoo. Before Peter could get him to stop, several other kids had joined Neal, following behind him as he led them in a very noisy little parade. Most of the mothers smiled and laughed at the noisy group, but there were also a few that sent Peter rather disparaging looks.
Once they were in the car, Peter had to confiscate the kazoo immediately, for the sake of his pounding head. Neal, of course, thought that it was grossly unfair that the kazoo had been taken away from him, especially after submitting to all the poking and prodding from Dr. Dayton.
After stopping by the pharmacy to pick up the medication the doctor recommended, Peter and Neal finally made it home. Neal was still rather unhappy about the loss of his toy, and after throwing a spectacular tantrum, Peter informed him that he couldn't have it back until the next day. This, of course, led to another tantrum, although Neal cut it rather short after the stern look leveled his way by his father.
When Elizabeth finally made it home a few hours later, Neal was nearly falling asleep on the couch and Peter was looking through some case files he had brought home from work. As soon as she walked through the door, she went over to check on Neal, who looked up at her with a heavy-eyed look.
"Hi, sweetie," she said as she placed a kiss on the top of his head. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm mad, Mommy," Neal answered seriously. "Daddy's being unreasingable."
"Why is Daddy being unreasonable?" Elizabeth asked, trying not to laugh at Neal's mispronunciation. "What happened?"
Neal sent a small frown over to where Peter was sitting. "He took my toy away, Mommy. Dr. Dayton said that I was the best patient he had all day and he let me pick out a toy and then Daddy took it away."
"Why on earth would he do that?" Elizabeth asked in mock indignation.
"Because he's mean!" Neal exclaimed loudly.
"I'm sure he must have had a good excuse, sweetie," Elizabeth tried to reason.
"I did have a good excuse," Peter interjected. "I couldn't take the noise anymore. Whoever thought it was a good idea to give one of those to a kid should be arrested!"
Elizabeth laughed at the look of outrage that now crossed Neal's little face. "It wasn't noisy, Daddy," he said angrily. "I was making music."
"It was noisy," Peter asserted. "And loud, obnoxious, and irritating."
By the look on Neal's face, Elizabeth knew that she needed to intervene. "What on earth was it?" she asked.
"A kazoo, El. A loud, obnoxious, irritating kazoo."
"I'm sure it wasn't that bad," she laughed. "But, I think we should make that an outside toy, okay, Neal? No kazoos inside the house."
"Okay, Mommy, but can I play it for you tomorrow? I'm really, really good at it."
"Of course, you can, sweetie. I can't wait to hear it," Elizabeth said with a smile.
Peter rolled his eyes, muttering something under his breath.
"Did you say something, hon?" El asked.
"Nope, not a thing," Peter said smartly.
Elizabeth decided to smartly change the subject, steering it into safer waters. "Well, what did Dr. Dayton say about Neal? Does he think he needs antibiotics?"
"He said that it's most likely allergies, El. He said that the pollen count is really high right now and that's most likely what is causing it. He also wanted me to ask you if we've made any changes in food, bath soap, shampoo, or laundry detergent. Neal has a small rash that he thought could be an allergy to something new in the house."
"Hmmmm," Elizabeth said absently. "I don't think I've changed anything lately. I'm still using the same products."
"He also asked about pets in the house, but I told him that it was just Satchmo and that Neal hasn't ever had a problem with him. Anyway, he wrote down a few over-the-counter things that might help, so I stopped by the pharmacy on the way home. Neal's already had a dose of the allergy medication and I put some stuff on the rash, too."
During Peter's explanation of what the doctor had said, Neal had fallen asleep. Peter and Elizabeth quietly watched him sleep for several long minutes, before Peter's voice broke the silence.
"A kazoo, El! Who in their right mind gives a kid a kazoo?!"
Author's note: I'm so sorry for the long wait on this one. My creative thoughts haven't been flowing very well lately and when you add that to the fact that I've been really busy the last few weeks, you get a long period between chapters. That's the only excuse I have, really.
I think this story will probably have only one more chapter, unless Neal decides to do something that I haven't planned for, lol. Trust me….. It's entirely possible. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and the antics that little Neal always seems to get up to. He's sure a handful, but well worth the hassle, right?
Thank you all so much for reading. I would love to hear your thoughts on the chapter/story/universe, of course. Take care, all!