… Still Four
I took the first seat I saw. Nicole walked by, fully dressed but without shoes, stomping as she went. I could hear them talking somewhere nearby, maybe a few rows away or in another room, but I didn’t pay attention. I grabbed my phone and texted my mom and dad to let them know I was running late and not to worry.
Nothing came back, and I wasn’t surprised. They were most likely asleep already. I pulled up David’s feed to see if he made it home tonight. And the answer was yes. Mom made shepherd’s pie, served with a fresh microgreen salad and roasted green beans and asparagus. Honestly, it looked really good. As I was about to put my phone away, it buzzed with an incoming text.
Joshua, can you please bring home some orange juice? At least two cartons, and real orange juice, not an orange drink. Mom texted me.
Ok I answered back.
There was no answering or closing text from her, not that one was needed. I looked up when I heard footsteps. They were getting louder, and they sounded barefooted.
“Do you need to leave now?” Dennis asked as he turned a corner and came into view. He was still wearing just the towel. “Nicole interrupted my shower. I’m not even half clean,” he complained and stated at the same time.
“I have time,” I said casually, thinking about how I might pass the time while waiting for him. I was just about to open YouTube when his feet appeared in my line of sight. As I began to look up, Dennis removed the towel, set it on the bench beside me, and gently took the phone from my relaxed grip. He placed it on the towel before helping me to my feet.
“You are far too dressed to help scrub my back,” he whispered across my lips. I may have laughed, but definitely grinned before I pressed us into a kiss. One minute Dennis was holding me close as we shared the same breath, body heat, and possibly the same point in space. The next I was helping him undress me when I understood why he was pulling at my clothes.
We did not use the second compartment from the center. We didn’t make it further than the first corner stall. Its grab bars lived up to their names. We were not quiet as we made demands, grunted out answers, or cried out in sweet defeat. Eventually I got around to scrubbing his back, and he returned the favor.
“I will never look at those safety bars the same way again,” Dennis said as we finally entered the parking tower. We were both parked in the same tower today, but we were on different levels. I was on level three, and Dennis was on level four. We looked at each other as we took the elevator up to level four. I knew he was thinking about molding our bodies together again, because that was what I was thinking. But it was late, and we had to get home. Not stumble our way into a messy humping session in the elevator. Or against a railing. Or against his car. I shook the images from my head and reached out to hold his hand. He gave me a warm smile before wrapping me in a hug. I snuggled into him and smiled while enjoying his nearness for the next forty-eight seconds.
Dennis then held my hand again as he pulled me out of the elevator and towards his car. It felt comforting as I slid into the passenger seat. We sat there for about a minute while Dennis warmed up the engine. We then curved our way down one level and rolled over to the corner where I had parked my car so many hours ago. I had my fingers poised to open the door when Dennis reached out and grabbed my sleeve.
“A kiss goodnight?” he asked. I looked at him. “Just a kiss,” he insisted.
“Anything more than kissing and we are sleeping here,” I told him as I felt the pull of exhaustion. But his lips were so tempting that I didn’t want to be talked out of it either. I reached out, and we slowly came together. It was a slow form of talking where nothing was decided besides our next position. We got lazy and slow, but we stayed connected. Occasionally, we paused to nibble and lick before going back to pressing our lips together or touching tongues. As I began to wonder if I still had that pillow in my back seat, Dennis officially brought our kissing session to an end.
“Three,” he said before I even opened my eyes. I furrowed my brows, then caught sight of his smile, and my mind slowly kicked back into gear. I looked to his dashboard. The clock blinked over to 12:01.
Two
“I’m not late,” I shouted as I ran through the front door and straight to my room. I didn’t know who was there to see me; I just knew that at least two people were. I tossed everything in my hands onto the bed and undressed as I headed to the shower. I stood under the showerhead, letting the water pour over me for ten seconds until I was completely drenched. I grabbed the Head & Shoulders and lathered up my hair. I then left it in place as I reached for the body wash and did a quick scrub down my body, spending the most time on my armpits and ass crack. Then I was under the shower for thirty seconds this time as I washed all the suds from my hair and skin.
Since I wasn’t trying to fall on my ass, I stood on my bathroom rug as I first dried myself off and then reached for my mouthwash and bare toothbrush. After making sure I brushed every tooth twice, I rinsed my mouth out with tap water and dashed into the bedroom on mostly dried feet. My clothes had been hanging outside my closet since I left the house this morning. I grabbed a fresh pair of boxer briefs and socks, slipped them on, and then turned to the outfit. It wasn’t my suit—that was hanging next to it and wouldn’t be worn until tomorrow.
I pulled on my cleanest pair of sneakers as I exited my room, then turned back around. I dug through my things until I had my car keys and phone in hand.
“Ready!” I shouted as I jumped down the last two steps. I looked around; no one was looking at me, never mind moving. This was wrong. I checked my phone for the time.
“Why aren’t we leaving?” I asked as I took another step towards the front door but stopped when no one else moved.
“There was a scheduling issue. They accidentally double-booked,” David said without raising his head.
“The wedding was double-booked?” I asked anyone.
“Yeah, for now,” Mom replied. “Adam’s over there with Jamie, sorting things out.”
“Are we having a rehearsal at all tonight?” I once again asked the room. There was no answer. "Okay," I said, nodding my head. I walked upstairs to put on deodorant. I realized I hadn’t put any on as I stepped out of my bedroom for the second time. At the time, I didn’t think I had time to go back. Well, now I did.
I was sitting in the kitchen eating the last bit of the two-day-old shepherd’s pie when we all got a text from Adam. We had a change of venue. I clicked the address to pull up my map app while I put what was left back into the fridge. I was the last one out, right behind Dad, and everyone piled into my car.
“Do you sleep in the car, or is this pillow for your butt?” Dad asked as he moved the pillow from the backseat to under the rear window. I didn’t answer as I started the car and pressed play for the directions. We ended up in Lincoln at a farm named South 40 Events. We arrived at a buzzing beehive of activity as the wedding planner’s team unloaded vans, transferring everything from the old location to the new one under outdoor lights that glowed warmly in the darkness.
Mom approached someone on a ladder, hooking fabric that was part of the color scheme into branches arching over the pathway leading to a large barn.
“They’re in the barn,” Mom shouted back at us as she walked off with Dad at her side. The property was large; it was a farm, after all, but beyond the lights still going up around the sides of the barn, I couldn’t make out much detail.
It took us a while to find anyone we knew once we were inside because the barn had two levels. I saw no less than seven ladders around the space as staff members hung colors in an alternating pattern to create a canopy along the whole space. As I watched them, I heard David asking about Adam. I looked around and saw that I wasn’t the only one taking in the slow transformation of the space. We went up a second set of stairs and saw Adam among a small group up on a loft at one end of the room. We made our way over to them and up another set of stairs. After a normal amount of greetings and introductions for those that needed it, I leaned against the railing and looked down as tables and chairs were being arranged.
“Are we having the ceromny and the reception in here?” I asked no one in particular. The barn was more than big enough to accommodate both. It might even be too big, I thought. Our side wasn’t contributing many people to the occasion, but Jamie’s side was in constant flux. At the lowest possible count, it would be about twenty people, but you always plan for more. I guess with this much space they could allow more party crashers.
“We were thinking of having the ceremony outside, then come inside for the reception,” Jamie said, “But we aren’t sure of the bug situation, so currently we’re having everything inside.” He ended.
“Currently meaning for the next hour,” Adam interjected. Currently nothing. They were using staples to put up the decor on both floors.
“Father Johnson has arrived, so we need a decision on how the ceremony is to take place so we can plan the run-through,” Marleen, their wedding planner, said as she ended a call.
“Scratch that. For the next ten minutes,” Adam amended as he tapped his head on the back of Jamie’s neck before turning to leave with Jamie right behind him and Marleen right behind them. We looked down as Adam and Jamie shook hands with a man who I believed to be Father Johnson, even though he looked younger than I expected.
“He’s young,” I heard Mr. Cromwell say to his wife. At that moment, I realized that I might have to start calling them something other than Mr and Mrs Cromwell. They are practically my in-laws now. But when I glanced his way, I dismissed the thought. He would always be Mr. Cromwell.
“They’re here,” Ms. Cromwell said a few minutes later. I glanced down at the lower floor to see who she meant. A group of adults of various ages and a young girl, around eight years old, were walking toward the group I had been watching. They greeted each other before we were called down to meet them. They were the rest of the Cromwells who were part of the ceremony.
“We are only missing Matt and Sonia now,” Jamie said. “Let’s wait for them downstairs,” he said before turning towards the doorway. As we filed into the first floor, we looked at the fully transformed room with rows of chairs, flowing fabric, L.E.D. lights glowing among flowers and along the ceiling. Of course, the stage had been decorated as well, but not as much as you would expect. Most of the wood was still seen. It appeared as though we would be the decoration tomorrow. I was heading toward the flower pots lining the stage when two more people showed up. Adam jogged over and hugged them in turn before bringing them over.
“This is Matt Sands and Sonia Lord,” Adam said as he introduced them to all of us.
In the end, we had a typical wedding run. The only difference was that it took place up on a stage instead of at the end of an aisle. And the answer to your question is yes, and no. They did kiss, but Jamie was smart enough to turn his face, so Adam’s lips landed on his cheek, and Adam was smart enough not to push for what he wanted then.
We did it again two more times. The first time, Father Johnson said, was to teach. The second time was to recall. The third was to remember. By the time we left, only the wedding planner and the property owners were still there, waiting to lock up the barn.
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