GOING TO THE CHAPEL

Daniel stood in front of his bathroom mirror, dressed in a black suit with a white button up shirt. He fumbled with the red bowtie around his neck.

"C'mon, you bastard.” He cursed the bowtie when he messed up the knot. Giving up, he ripped it from his neck and tossed it aside.

Deciding not to use the bowtie, he unbuttoned the top two buttons on his shirt before stepping back to look at himself in the mirror. He ran his hands on his cheeks and felt his stubble. He thought about shaving but decided against it. The wedding was in less than an hour and he was running late.

‘KNOCK KNOCK’

"Who is it?"

"Yo, I need to get in there." said Jett on the other side of the bathroom door. "Think you can hurry it up? I have to take a piss."

Daniel opened the door. Jett quickly grabbed him by the jacket and shoved him out into the hallway, slamming the door behind him. Daniel adjusted his jacket and walked to the end of the hallway to enter the living room. Rico, Deandre, and Scotty were gathered on the couch watching television.

"Look, I'm trusting you to behave while I'm gone. Please don't do anything stupid," said Daniel while pointing his index finger at each of them.

"Yeah, yeah," said Rico waving his hand.

"I'm serious. Stay here and watch TV. Read a book. Have an orgy. I don't care. Just don't leave this house."

"We won't go anywhere, man," said Deandre. "Besides, what’s the worst that can happen?"

“I’m afraid to think of the possibilities,” sighed Daniel.

Rico stood up from the couch. “Dude, you’ve really gotta lighten up. It’s just one night,” he said, putting his hands on Daniel’s shoulders. His attention was soon diverted. Something behind Daniel had him entranced. “Woah,” he said.

Daniel turned around. Woah. He swallowed hard. Lauren stood before him, hugged in elegant purple silk which seemed to cling to her curves for dear life. Daniel’s jaw slowly dropped. He searched over her body. Everything from the curvature of her long legs to her luxurious hips to her valiant bosom all together seemed to render him speechless.

Kitsie and Ava appeared behind her. Both of them crossed their arms. “Yep, I’d say we did a good job,” said Kitsie.

“I knew it,” said Ava with a small amount of contempt. “We made her too beautiful.” She gestured to the men. “I think she broke ‘em.”

Lauren rolled her eyes. “You ready to go?” she asked Daniel.

Daniel shook his head to bring him back to reality. “Yeah,” he coughed. He didn’t realize he’d stopped breathing. “We’ll be back later,” he said, turning back to the others.

The men didn’t respond right away. They stood quietly staring at Lauren, awe written all over their faces. Jett returned from the restroom and took stance behind his comrades. He tipped his cowboy hat to Lauren. “Hurry back, ma’am,” he insisted.

Scotty nodded in agreement. “Yeah…hurry back,” he said with a breath, his eyes fixated on Lauren.

Ava walked to Scotty’s side. “You two better get out of here before he needs CPR again.”

Daniel gave her a knowing nod. “Watch the place while we’re gone?”

“You got it,” replied Ava.

Daniel smiled and grabbed his keys before following Lauren outside to the driveway. When they reached his car, he opened the passenger door for her to get in. She grinned at the gesture.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Don’t mention it,” he said, her smile sending a rush of excitement flashing through him. He waited until she pulled her legs into the cabin and shut the door. He pulled out his phone to check the time. “Shit,” he said under his breath. They were late.

Daniel jogged to the driver’s side. Inside the car, Lauren leaned over the center console and pulled the door handle. She pushed the door open before he had a chance to do it himself.

“Thank you,” he told her while climbing into the driver seat.

“Don’t mention it,” she said happily.

Daniel turned the engine over, put the car in reverse, and pulled away. They had a good thirty minutes before reaching the chapel, so he decided to turn on the radio. He forgot he had set it to a classic rock station. An 80’s rock tune blared through the speakers. The two of them jumped. Daniel also forgot how loud he had set the volume.

“Sorry about that,” said Daniel, turning the volume knob down. He proceeded to switch the station.

“It’s okay.” Lauren reached for his hand to stop him. “You can leave it.”

Daniel smiled. “Okay.” He returned his attention to the road as they neared an onramp to the interstate. After merging into traffic, Daniel leaned his elbow on an armrest above the center console of the car and soon found himself sitting in silence aside from the hum of the radio. He cleared his throat and said the only thing he could think of to break the quiet. “You…you look very nice,” he said glancing at her through the side of his eye.

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“You do too.” She smiled and turned to look out the window.

“Yeah. A real smooth talker I am,” thought Daniel when the cabin grew silent again. He soon felt something brush against him on the armrest. It was Lauren’s arm, resting next to his. “Does she need more room? Should I move my arm?” He took a peep at her. She was still looking out the window but pressed her arm closer to his. It sent a wave of goosebumps cascading over his skin. He cleared his throat again to break the welling tension inside of him and lifted his arm from the armrest. Lauren turned her head, slightly peering down at the armrest before crossing her arms over her chest.

The chapel appeared in the distance and Daniel took the nearest exit. He soon pulled into the chapel parking lot. A young valet was there to meet them. The valet opened the door for Lauren to get out. His jaw dropped as Lauren stepped onto the curb.

“Has the ceremony already started?” asked Daniel, taking note of the lack of people outside.

“Y-yeah,” choked the valet. “It’s…already…” he said trailing off. He was completely mesmerized by Lauren. Daniel didn’t blame him.

“Thanks,” said Daniel before handing the valet the keys.

“No problem,” breathed the valet.

Daniel hovered his hand over the small of Lauren’s back and led her to the chapel entrance. The sound of the Priest’s opening words echoed into the vestibule.

“We’re gathered here today to celebrate the special love between Gwen Petersen and Owen Mathers,” said the Priest as Daniel opened the doors to nave. He stopped talking as Daniel and Lauren entered.

Daniel’s Aunt Gwen, his uncle to be, Owen, and the rest of the wedding party turned to see what had caught the Priest’s attention. Daniel and Lauren continued down the aisle. They searched for an empty pew, his family’s eyes following them every step of the way. Whispers of “Who is that woman?” echoed through the large hall as they walked.

“Over here, sweetheart,” said Marie motioning for him to come sit by her.

Daniel gestured to Lauren to make her way over. He followed close behind her until she slid into the pew. “Sorry, we’re late,” he said and slid in after her.

“Ahem,” coughed The Priest to get the attention back on the matter at hand. “Where was I?” he asked himself. He shook his head as if to clear his thoughts. “Oh, yes. Thank you for joining us as we bind Gwen and Owen in holy matrimony.”

“Nice of you to finally join us, son,” muttered Arthur leaning over Marie. “What kept you?”

“I just lost track of time,” replied Daniel.

Arthur smiled. “I bet you did,” he said with a wink. He nodded at Lauren. “You look lovely,” he told her.

“Thank you,” said Lauren.

Lewis leaned forward and put up the “okay” symbol with his hand. He then proceeded to put his index finger into the ‘o’ and make faces at his brother. Marie slapped the back of his head.

“We’re in a chapel,” she said in stern voice. “A house of God. Act like it.”

“Since when are we religious?” asked Lewis rubbing his head.

“Doesn’t matter. We are Catholic for the next thirty minutes,” interrupted Arthur. “Or, however long this damn thing lasts.”

“Quiet,” shushed Marie. “Gwen’s saying her vows.”

Daniel leaned back in his seat to watch the service. His Aunt Gwen had already started to cry before she even had a chance to start. This wasn’t something he was particularly comfortable watching. He felt awkward just sitting there watching her cry, even if she was happy. Instead, he looked down at his hands and twiddled his thumbs. Small sniffles soon sounded next to him. They were from Lauren. He looked over at her to see a silver streak glistening down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away and bowed her head. Daniel watched her for a moment, wondering why he felt the need to. He wasn’t good at handling other people’s emotions. Hell, he could barely handle his own. But he hated seeing her cry and not in the same way as with his aunt. Even if she was happy crying, he still felt the need to comfort her. But how? Without thinking, Daniel reached for her hand. He clasped it gently in an effort to offer her some form of reassurance. “You okay?” he asked, trying to ignore how soft her skin was.

Lauren answered him by giving his hand a short squeeze before quickly taking her hand away. She placed it over her heart and a curious look overtook her. The look was short lived as the Priest called for the groom to kiss the bride and everyone in the hall stood up to cheer. Daniel and Lauren were the last to stand. He glanced at her from the side of his eye, her curious look had returned no sooner than it had left. She placed a hand over her heart again and drew in a breath.

“Well, that’s that,” said Arthur stretching his arms. “Time to get to the reception hall. I need a drink.” He turned to Daniel. “You two following us there?” he asked.

Daniel didn’t answer. He was too focused on Lauren, wondering if she was emotional over the wedding, or if something else was wrong.

Arthur asked again. “Danny? You two following us there?”

“We’ll meet you there,” said Daniel, never breaking his focus from Lauren. She was miles away from him. He placed a gentle hand on the small of her back causing her to jump. She dropped her hand from her chest and looked at him. “It’s time to go,” he said while gesturing to the others filing outside.

“Oh,” she said quietly. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

They made their way out of the chapel to see the valet already waiting for them with Daniel’s car. He smiled and opened the door for Lauren before she was halfway to the vehicle.

“M’lady,” the valet said while holding the door open. She forced a smile and climbed inside. The valet closed the door then turned to Daniel. “Dude, that chick is unreal. Please tell me what it’s like to be with her.”

Daniel walked to the driver’s side. “It’s unreal,” he said getting into the car.

The cars filled with his family, both old and new, pulled out of the parking lot and on to their next destination. Daniel followed the wedding party for a few minutes before he realized Lauren hadn’t said much since they left the chapel.

“So, what’d you think?” he asked.

Lauren furrowed her brow. “What?” she asked as if she hadn’t heard him.

“What’d you think of the wedding?”

“Oh,” Lauren said softly. “It was nice.”

The car filled with silence again. Daniel looked at Lauren to find her anxiously playing with a strand of her hair. She twirled it in her fingers while staring out the window in thought. She was miles away again.

“Are you okay?” asked Daniel.

Lauren looked away from the window and stopped playing with her hair. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she said with a weak smile.

Daniel held a gaze on her, unconvinced by her answer. She must have felt him staring because she turned her head to look at him. They locked eyes for a moment before the sound of a horn brought him back to the road. He stared at the line of cars in front of him, traveling to a reception that he was sure would end in a drunken fight or argument. Most family gatherings of his ended that way. Not only that, but Daniel was also certain that Lauren would be the main point of conversation. He pictured himself being bombarded with questions asking if they were together, how they met, or if they too planned on getting married. This wasn’t something he was ready to deal with and he was sure Lauren wouldn’t have a good time as a result. Something was already bothering her. He didn’t want to add to it, but also didn’t want their night to end prematurely. “You know what? I’m not really in the mood for a reception,” he said wanting to avoid it all together. “Are you up for doing something else?”

“Won’t your family be wondering where you are?” asked Lauren in reply.

Daniel smiled. “They’ll be fine without me.”