Fall 17
Dorothy, Julia, and I were in a room together, preparing for Dorothy's big day! The room was specifically designed for a bride-to-be and her bridesmaids; according to Gordon, this was the first time the room was being used.
"Dory!" Cammy's voice echoed as she opened the door, peeking her head in along with Roy who looked very upset.
"Cammy! P-please knock first!" Dorothy scolded before sighing, "Th-though I guess it d-doesn't matter now, as long as B-Barrett isn't around."
"No, he's waiting at the alter. It's almost time, but if you want to you can just leave the meanie there." Cammy said slyly.
"Cammy, he i-isn't mean anymore." Dorothy said with a sigh.
"Not like I have to be." Roy grumbled as Julia and I blinked at him in confusion.
"Ah, Roy? Why are you so upset?" I asked in concern, Roy's facial expression changed to surprise at first before he became angry again.
"I have to be. I'm the ring bear." Roy replied as Julia made a snort.
"And I'm a flower girl…though I have no idea how flowers act." Cammy said with a shrug.
"No, no, Roy! Ring bear-er! You just have to carry Dorothy and Barrett's wedding rings on a pillow down the aisle with a smile! And Cammy, your job as a flower girl is to throw petals down the aisle." I explained as Cammy's face lit up.
"I get to throw stuff?!" Cammy asked in delight.
"Do I get to throw the rings?" Roy asked in hope as Gordon appeared behind them, the biggest laugh ever rising from his esophagus.
"No, Roy. Please do not throw the rings. The flower petals are soft, however, if you throw the rings you might hurt someone!" Gordon exclaimed before he turned his attention towards Dorothy, his eyes welling with tears.
"You definitely have Audrey's eyes, Dorothy. They were the main physical thing I loved about your mother." Gordon's eyes began to stream as I noticed Dorothy's eyes starting to well up with tears as well.
"Ah, no! Dorothy! Don't do it! I'll stop as well! Today is a happy occasion!" Gordon exclaimed, wiping his eyes with his finger.
"I'll be waiting for you at the entrance. It's time, Dorothy!" Gordon exclaimed as Roy and Cammy followed closely behind him.
The organ started to play as Julia and Max met up to walk down first. Julia's face was flushed as she grabbed Max's hooked arm, and they slowly walked down. I inhaled deeply as Jack and I met.
"You looks beautiful." He whispered as I blushed, grabbing his hooked arm, we began to walk down the aisle.
"Not as beautiful as Dorothy." I whispered back.
"Well, in my eyes, you're the most beautiful woman on earth." He whispered as I blushed, Clara's movement became excited over my thumping heart.
Jack and I made it to the end, as we went our separate ways; he stood next to Barrett and Max as I stood next to Julia. The organ stopped playing as Natalie flipped through her sheets before playing The Wedding March.
Everyone stood up from the pews as Dorothy and Gordon started walking down the aisle. I noticed Barrett's face lighting up. They made it to the end as Natalie stopped playing and everyone took their seats.
"Usually, when you do a wedding, there's a long speech given by the priest before the bride is given away. However, considering I cannot ask myself 'Who gives this woman in marriage to this man?' without looking weird; I'm just going to go ahead and skip to the good part by giving my daughter to Barrett before making my way behind the podium!" Gordon began, laughing loudly.
He kissed Dorothy on her forehead, giving Barrett a nod as Barrett offered his hand to his bride. Dorothy took it, making her way to his left side. Gordon went behind the podium, clearing his throat.
"Do you, Barrett, take Dorothy to be your wife – to live together after God's ordinance – in the holy estate of matrimony? Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for better, for worse, in sadness and in joy, to cherish and continually bestow upon her your heart's deepest devotion, forsaking all others, keep yourself only unto her as long as you both shall live?" Gordon asked as Barrett smiled.
"I do." Barrett said softly as Gordon turned his attention toward his daughter. Tears started to well up in his eyes.
"And do you, Dorothy, take Barrett to be your husband – to live together after God's ordinance – in the holy estate of matrimony? Will you love him, comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for better, for worse, in sadness and in joy, to cherish and continually bestow upon him your heart's deepest devotion, forsaking all others, keep yourself only unto him as long as you both shall live?"
"I do." Dorothy replied as Gordon's smile became brighter.
"Then, by the power vested in me, and God, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride!" He exclaimed as Barrett cupped Dorothy's face, planting his lips onto hers.
I saw Dorothy swoon, holding onto her new husband to keep herself stable. We all cheered at the newlyweds before they rushed out of the church towards the North Square where the reception was being held.
The sound of a fork tapping a glass echoed as our attention went towards Gordon.
"I'd like to make a toast!" Gordon exclaimed, turning his attention towards Dorothy and Barrett.
"I don't talk about my late wife a lot. However, I think she'd want me to mention her at her oldest daughter's wedding." Gordon gave a smile to Dorothy.
"I know Audrey is smiling at her daughter's marriage to Barrett, because, in a way, you two are a lot like us in our youth! Dorothy definitely takes after Audrey on the quiet and shy aspect. Barrett, I'm just going to assume you take after your mother on the toughness side. Or maybe Byron was also tough in his youth?" Gordon began laughing.
"My point is, you two are complete polar opposites. However, like Audrey and I, you complement each other. Take care of my daughter, Barrett!" Gordon finished, raising his glass.
"I too, would like to make a toast to coincide with Gordon's." Byron began, standing up.
"To answer, Gordon's question, Barrett is a lot like his mother. I'm sure Andrew and Frieda remember her?"
"We do." Frieda said while sighing.
"How could we forget Piper?" Andrew asked while shivering.
"Ah, anyway!" Byron began, blushing slightly before continuing his speech. "I know that Dorothy is in good hands with my son. I can see how much you two love each other! When I married, well, let's just say it wasn't out of love. It was more…political." Byron paused for a moment, turning towards his son with a smile.
"Barrett's mother was tough, however, she never understood love itself. Which made her very weak, the opposite of our son. Barrett may have a tough exterior, but he has a huge soft spot for you, Dorothy! Please, take care of my son as well, Dorothy." Byron raised his glass as well, I looked over at Jack who was wiping his eyes.
"Jack?" I asked in concern.
"It's so sad that almost everyone has lost their mother in some way. And I can't imagine…poor Julia, she's lost both." Jack said as I blinked at him.
Ah, no, Jack…Julia's parents are both still very much alive. They just live in the east now." I replied as his eyes widened.
"Wait, they are? I-I just assumed, well…since I've never met them and almost everyone else here has a parent of some sort."
"Ah, well, take Roy for example, his father is still alive, however, Tanya's divorce from him was nasty. He comes by every so often but Tanya kind of scares him, so he doesn't come by as much."
"Huh…do you know about Egan or Natalie? Douglas?" Jack asked.
"Natalie and Douglas, yes. However, Egan…I don't know about him. And considering Jake's hatred towards humans, I'm going to assume his mother left them like Barrett's." I answered.
"Oh, Barrett's mother didn't pass?" Jack asked in shock.
"According to a conversation I overheard between my father and Byron, she left them when Barrett was very young. A toddler at least. So, Barrett has very little memory of her." I replied with a sigh before I began shaking.
"Rosalind?" Jack asked in worry.
"Sorry, I just had the most awful image about one of us leaving Clara in some way." I said as tears began to well up.
"Rosalind, you shouldn't worry about that. Remember what Byron said in his toast? His marriage was political. I love you, and I believe you love me too. I don't think Clara has to worry." He stood up from his seat.
"I'm going to grab something from the buffet. Do you and Clara want anything?" He asked as I giggled.
"Maybe something with protein." I replied as he kissed my cheek.
"I'll see what I can find." He said before going off, I noticed someone sitting on the opposite side of me as I turned my attention towards the person.
"Oh. Hello, Yue!" I exclaimed as she nodded, giving me a small smile.
"I just…wanted to thank you." Yue said as I furrowed my brows.
"For what?" I asked, as Yue's cheeks flushed.
"For giving me the courage to tell Ray how I feel. I told him how I felt last night, he accepted my feelings, and is my date for today." Yue replied as my face lit up.
"Oh! Congratulations, Yue!" I exclaimed.
"Thanks. Anyway, I shouldn't keep him waiting for me too long." Yue said, lifting herself from her seat as I giggled.
"Have fun, Yue." I said as she left my table to go back to Ray and his family. A plate was sat in front of me as I saw some fried mackerel.
"It looked good. But I hope this is okay." Jack said, taking a seat next to me as I smiled.
"It's perfect." I replied as I took a bite.
"So, what were you and Yue talking about?" He asked as I swallowed my bite, turning towards him with a smile.
"Let's just say that things in Alvarna are taking a turn for the good."
