A Short Story

It was a perfect day for a wedding. The sun was up, the sky was clear. Despite hints of Alzheimer’s, his dad seemed to be in a good mood smiling with his mom in tow. He scanned the rest of the small chapel and was quite pleased with the turn up of guests — not too much people, just right… All the important ones were present.

His eyes moved back to the aisle, and his mouth unintentionally took a sharp breath. There she was — glowing in her flowing dress, hair tied up, smile that drives him insane. He suddenly found himself fighting back tears. 

It wasn’t too long ago when he first met Tania. She was a cute girl, but didn’t seem to worry too much about her looks. She had her hair up in a pony tail and was sporting faded jeans, a statement shirt, and Sketchers. Her shirt said “You Know Nothing, John Snow.” Definitely a Game of Thrones fan.

But more than her looks, one would be mystified by her endless smile and bubbly demeanor. They had been working at the same company for almost 3 years, and had crossed paths once or twice for projects, but had never been formally introduced. 

Then one rainy day, as he was trying to squeeze a smoke or two in between endless meetings, she walked up to him and said hi. 

“You’re Ben, right? I’m Tania.”

And for the next fifteen minutes, she was able to establish that he was single — not married, not in a relationship, living with a roommate, and maybe interested in dating someone who’s not interested in commitment. He didn’t understand what made him warm up to her that soon, with private information about himself that even his best friend had to pry out of him for years. He took one last puff from his cigarette and shook his head. Maybe the weather’s making him friendly.

On this day, however, there was not a rain cloud in sight. The slits on the church’s windows allowed the bright rays of the sun graze the guests’ skins. Even the priest’s forehead reflects a bit of that light as if it truly was a blessed day.

The choir was playing exceptionally loud though, or so he thought. He looked over to his cousins and no one seems to be bothered by the sound. Doesn’t seem to be an issue with the speakers. Maybe he should look for someone to check that out. He wasn’t particularly fond of classical music, in fact he hated it — it gets to his nerve.

Tania had a weird taste in music — among other things — but she’s never been a fan of this instruments-only, no-vocals, made-for-loonies noise too. She used to call it “Rich Kid Music” when they chanced upon it once during a long drive. 

Rich kid. That was what she really was. Tania was an heiress to a local celebrity-turned-business man who was smart enough with his money before he even got married. She was actually set for life for all the inheritance she would eventually get once she gets orphaned. But he only learned about it months into their friendship. It’s not that she wasn’t classy to be mistaken as rich, she’s just… funny. And that might sound weird, but he knew his friends would agree. Laughter was a poor man’s respite. Tania was too funny to be rich.

The sound of her laughter broke his reverie. He glanced towards the direction of her gaze and saw what made her laugh. His friends, huge men, were making their way to the front of the church and they were dressed. Like Men In Black, but in Nikes. He let himself a bemused smile. Men whose wardrobe only composed of  basketball shorts for most of their lives (or so he thought) were right here dressed to the nines just to witness his send off to husbandhood. 

It was such a treat to see his closest friends join him in this life-changing event. They had always pushed him to settle down and give up his bachelor life. And he remembered how shocked all of them were when they heard the news.

“I asked her to get married.”

Silence.

Laughter.

Cheers.

He had never seen their faces go thru confusion then shock then amusement and finally happiness all in a span of a minute. He was the last of them to get married, and they almost already gave up on the idea. He almost gave up on the idea.

The church bells started to ring. The music stopped, and the set of heavy doors were closed. The entire church fell into a bit of darkness and silence.

This is it.

No turning back.

The church doors started opening, letting in the wonderful sunshine. The music started again and the familiar notes of the wedding march caressed his ears.

There she was, in pristine white dress with the intricately designed veil over her head. Tears started flowing down Ben’s face as his bride walked so gracefully towards the altar.

This is the start. And the end.

He took her hand in his.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union of Ben and Karla in holy matrimony…”