Sweet Lantern

Chapter 24

Darry

"Thirty minutes, son", my dad informs me through the door of my bedroom. Thirty minutes left til I'm marrying my best friend, the most beautiful girl I've ever seen in my life. Sitting here on the edge of my bed, pulling on my fancy black dress shoes, I can't help but wonder what's she's over there doing? Is she ready? Is her heart beating as fast as mine is? Is she having second thoughts?? No... no, she wouldn't. I try to shake the anxiety off me and stand up to cross the room, looking at my reflection in the mirror on my dresser. I have to smile at myself, standing here in this penguin suit. I'm a t-shirt and jeans kind of guy, this doesn't even look like me. I brush my fingers through my messy brown hair, pulling it back off my forehead and straighten the vest under my jacket.

"Daryl? Are you ready?" I hear my mom's sweet, soft voice at my door. "I think we should go ahead and walk over, son, don't you?" I open the door and feel my eyes go wide. "Mom, you... look... amazing!" I tell the gorgeous woman standing in front of me. My mom is shorter than me, she's only about 5'7" and she's a petite woman. Her long brownish red hair is fixed into loose curls that frame her slender face and she's wearing makeup, which she rarely does. Her shimmery gold, floor length dress makes her look much younger than her forty-five years. It's the kind of dress that wraps around at the stomach and the sleeves just kind of drape down her arms. It's very pretty on her.

She blushes at my blurted compliment and turns her head down, unsure of herself. "No, mom, seriously, you look stunning." I assure her, turning to step out of the door and putting my arm out for her to slide hers through. We walk over to the Wilson farm, arm in arm. Her head is held high as she struts down the red carpeted aisle. Her confidence screaming at everyone to look at her as she walks by them. I don't remember the last time I saw her like this. I'm suddenly very proud that this is my mom. We reach where my dad is seated, and I let her go to sit next to him. He catches my eye and nods his head at me, winking as I turn away to go stand up front with Pastor Rainey.

He leans in, whispering, "Any minute now", and my stomach starts to do flips. I'm looking at all the faces in the seats, from my own family to Mrs. Wilson and Robby, to all of my friends sitting in the second row behind my parents and Beth. Alice and I decided we didn't want anyone standing up with us, we just wanted it to be us and Pastor Rainey.

The tent is packed, but there's a very clear aisle where Alice will be walking to come join me any time now. At the back of the tent is a sheer white curtain, blocking my view of what or who is just beyond it. I look up and I can see her silhouette through the curtain. She's arm-in-arm with her dad.

When the Bridal Chorus starts, I stand up straight, my eyes locked on her silhouette and that curtain. When they pull it back to reveal her standing there, I suck in my breath and smile at her, her eyes locked onto mine. I feel the tears welling up in my eyes and I can't get my thoughts to slow down. The loudest and most clear thought is how incredibly lucky I am and how beautiful she is. Right now, in this moment, everyone else has disappeared. We are no longer surrounded by 200 people, it's just me and Alice.

Her dad walks her down the aisle, every step bringing her closer and closer to me. He lifts her hand and puts it into mine. Nodding at me, I can see the tears in his eyes too. He turns to sit down and now it's just me and her. I know I'm not supposed to, but I can't help it, I raise her tiny hand to my lips and kiss it. The audience oohs and awes, and Alice smiles the sweetest smile at me. "Sorry, couldn't help myself", I whisper to her, feeling the grin creep across my face. She turns to face Pastor Rainey and I know I'm supposed to be looking at him too and listening, but I can't force my head to turn, my eyes are glued to her. She's like an angel, standing here next to me, ready to commit herself, her life and her love to me. How? I have no clue how I was the one to win her heart, but I'm not gonna try and change her mind!

She's looking at me now; it's time for our vows. I'm suddenly very aware that all eyes are on us and I shift in my shoes. She squeezes my hand, reassuring me that she's here with me and I feel the tension fall away.

Pastor Rainey asks, "Do you, Daryl Norman Williams, take this woman, Alice Renee Wilson, to be your lawfully wedded wife?" Without skipping a beat, I reply, "Oh yes, yes sir, I do. Absolutely", and she giggles along with the audience beside us.

He asks Alice, "Do you, Alice Renee Wilson, take this man, Daryl Norman Williams, to be your lawfully wedded husband?" And my girl responds with a big joyful smile on her face, "How could I not? Yes. Yes, I do." My heart flutters and my blood goes warm through my whole body. I feel the tingling in my head and before he can say "Kiss the bride", I've pulled her in and am kissing her lips.

When I come back to the now, I hear clapping and whistling. I turn to look, and everyone is on their feet, clapping and celebrating. The electricity in the air makes the hair on my arms and the back of my neck stand up. Pastor Rainey declares us husband and wife and I can't contain myself any longer. I turn to the crowd and with a huge smile plastered to my face, holding her hand still, I raise my arms in the air over my head in victory, screaming, "Wooooohoooo!! Yeah baby!", pointing to her, I say, "That's my wife, y'all!" And bend down pulling her into me to kiss her again. The clapping and wooohoooing continues as we walk down the red carpet.

I stop at the back of the tent and turn to face our guests, "We're gonna go change into something more comfortable, but y'all can head on over to my parents' house where we're gonna have one heck of a party! Hope y'all brought your dancing shoes and empty bellies. Let's go celebrate!"

We run to our house, stopping at the front porch, I grab her and lift her into my arms. "You are not stepping over that threshold, Mrs. Williams." I carry her into our new home, kissing her all the way to the bedroom. I drop her onto our bed, and she laughs at my silliness. I get down over her on all fours and start bouncing her tiny little body under me. "You're all mine now, girl. All mine!" I say and we both laugh. She grabs me by the back of my head, wrapping her fingers into my hair, pulling me down to kiss her. "No, honey. You're all mine."

We change into t-shirts and jeans and head back to our guests. When we break through the trees, she doesn't say a word, her eyes get wide and she covers her hand with her mouth. She smacks my chest and then hugs me and kisses my cheek. "I can't believe you, Daryl Williams! That is the best thing ever! A bouncy reception? You are too much!" She screams as she's running barefoot across my parents' front yard, throwing herself into the giant princess bouncy house.

I see the castle moving like crazy as my beautiful, fun, young bride is inside jumping like a carefree 10-year-old. The guests are still coming into the tent by my parents' house, sitting at the tables, waiting for dinner to be served. Not wanting to keep my bride waiting, I kick off my tennis shoes and run to meet her inside the bouncy house. "How long do we have this, Darry?" she asks me, her face already flushed from jumping. "Til tomorrow afternoon." I inform her, hooking my arm around her waist and pulling her into me. She kisses me, our tongues swimming around each other, she pulls back and I can see her eyes glowing. "This, this right here is why I married you, Darry. You know me so well, better than anyone else. And you love me better than anyone ever could. I love you so much."

We jump for a few more minutes, until Kevin sticks his head in the little entrance and says, "Hey guys, I think they're all looking for you two."

"Alright, man, thanks. Tell everyone we're coming." I get out first and grab her hand to help her out of the little hole that is the door.

When we walk over to the reception tent everyone stands and claps for us. We walk over and sit at the long table at the front of the tent where our families are seated; our seats in the middle of our parents. Alice reaches over and puts her hand over mine, leaning in, she nuzzles my neck and I kiss the top of her hair.

We're married. I can't believe it... Mr. and Mrs. Williams.