Constant Companions
Chapter Nine
~Sarah~
The wedding was over. I could barely believe it. The ceremony was over and done with, and now I was married to Justin. Now I was at the reception for my own wedding, sitting next to my husband while our friends gave speeches, taking innocent jibes at us to elicit laughter from the crowd.
Matt's speech was amazingly written. He had the advantage of knowing both the bride and groom very well, and his delicate balance between making fun of our downfalls and highlighting our gifts had the entire crowd in a good mood. By the end, I could no longer hold back my tears, and my mascara was running down my face, but one of my bridesmaids was quick in finding a napkin for me. Even someone as nervous as me could see that everything was going perfectly.
When the speeches were done, Justin and I had to have our first dance, and it was easy to see that we were both dreading this part. It was the part of the reception that coupled too much attention with the need for talent.
The dance was unavoidable though. It was the only thing that all of the parents insisted on. They all wanted to have those special photos of Justin and I having our first dance, looking awkward and desperate to get away. So we had to dance.
As the music started, Justin and I clung to each other, as if we were hoping we could disappear through sheer will. But, as the music continued we began to relax as we realized that we could both be stepping on each other's feet and falling all over the place, and the crowd around us would still think it was adorable.
With this idea in mind, I began to feel myself relax, and, by the end, I was even beginning to take a few chanced glances around the room, at the people who were attending our reception. Most of the people had moved in closer, either to take pictures, or just so they were able to see what was going on. One woman though, was still back in the sea of tables, seemingly uninterested in what was going on. In fact, she even looked a bit disgruntled.
Frowning at her for a moment, I tried to place her face. When I couldn't though, I assumed she was someone's date and turned my attention back to the moment at hand. The first song had faded into the next, and now our wedding party had flooded the dance floor, along with Justin's daughter, who was excited for all of the attention she was getting.
Now that the camera flashes had been cut back, and more bodies surrounded us on the dance floor, Justin and I both relaxed, laughing as we danced in a sort of circle with Mia, no longer paying any attention to how good we were at dancing. Children didn't care about talent.
Antonia was standing at the edge of the crowd, watching while we had our dance with Mia. I could tell that she was trying her hardest to look happy at this moment, but I wasn't stupid. No matter how over her relationship with Justin she may be, no one wants to see their child dancing with their ex-husband and his new wife. I thought about inviting her in to the dance — I wanted to spend some time with my bridesmaids anyway — but one look at Justin told me it was a bad idea. He was looking at Antonia too, but, just like me, he did not seem to be able to think of anything that would improve the situation. All of our guests would be expecting us to dance with Mia to show how we were now a family, while we both knew how much it must hurt Antonia to watch it.
As the song moved toward its second half though, the rest of the guests at the reception began to flood the dance floor, and everything became a bit more unorganized. The time for Justin and I to be obligated to be on the dance floor was now over, and we could now blend in with the crowd more.
I gave Mia a warm hug then sent her back over to her mother, and turned to Justin. He gave me an almost terrified smile, then took my hand as we turned toward the crowd. Both of our parents were already almost upon us, all smiles and tears, and the next half an hour was a blur of hugs and warm wishes.
When I finally came out the other side, I found myself in great need of a bit more calm, and I quickly told Justin I was going to find someone who could get me a bottle of water, before making my way toward the less crowded end of the room.
As I glanced around, I could see couples who looked impatient to leave and families with small children, all beginning to peter out after the long day spent in a church, in cars, and finally in a hot room filled with too many people. I smiled as one girl in particular began to droop in her father's arms. For the first time in my life, I could actually see myself as part of a family like that, even if the daughter would be my step daughter. I adored Mia, and I knew that Antonia was a good woman. Our family wouldn't be normal, but I was still excited.
I moved over to the bar and asked for a water, then turned to survey the crowd again. A woman I didn't know seemed to be in light conversation with Josh. Whatever they were talking about, they were both forcing smiles, as if their conversation was only light because they were determined to keep it that way.
The woman I had seen at the back of the crowd when the dance first started was still on the fringes, looking fed up with the whole situation, and I considered going to talk with her to see what was wrong. As soon as the thought entered my mind though, something else told me to stay away. I didn't know who she was, but she was setting off every warning in my mind. Instead, I picked up my water as the bar tender set it on the bar for me, and I moved back into the crowd of loving family, seeing one of my aunts already headed my way.
We still had most of the night ahead of us, and many more family members to speak with. We would be expected to have some sort of conversation with all of our guests, and I was quite sure that if we didn't talk to everyone, someone would hold it against us.
As I reached Justin again, he was talking to an aunt and uncle of mine, and by the paleness of his face, I could tell they were making him nervous. I sidled up to him with a broad smile already planted on my face, and took his hand as I intervened into the conversation, doing my best to pull the attention off of him as much as possible.
Justin was doing his best to put up with the awkwardness of the night, but I knew it would wear on him. If I could just take some of the attention off of him for a while, it would make the whole night more enjoyable for him.
Again, the reception turned into a blur of smiling faces around me, and I rushed out the same answers to the same questions from everyone I spoke to. Part of me wished something out of the ordinary would happen so that I could break this redundancy. But, the rest of me was glad that I could just keep giving the same answers without any thought. My mind was already set onto the honeymoon that would come after this. I was excited for a week away from everyone and everything, with only Justin to keep me company. It would be bliss after this night.
The wedding was over. I could barely believe it. The ceremony was over and done with, and now I was married to Justin. Now I was at the reception for my own wedding, sitting next to my husband while our friends gave speeches, taking innocent jibes at us to elicit laughter from the crowd.
Matt's speech was amazingly written. He had the advantage of knowing both the bride and groom very well, and his delicate balance between making fun of our downfalls and highlighting our gifts had the entire crowd in a good mood. By the end, I could no longer hold back my tears, and my mascara was running down my face, but one of my bridesmaids was quick in finding a napkin for me. Even someone as nervous as me could see that everything was going perfectly.
When the speeches were done, Justin and I had to have our first dance, and it was easy to see that we were both dreading this part. It was the part of the reception that coupled too much attention with the need for talent.
The dance was unavoidable though. It was the only thing that all of the parents insisted on. They all wanted to have those special photos of Justin and I having our first dance, looking awkward and desperate to get away. So we had to dance.
As the music started, Justin and I clung to each other, as if we were hoping we could disappear through sheer will. But, as the music continued we began to relax as we realized that we could both be stepping on each other's feet and falling all over the place, and the crowd around us would still think it was adorable.
With this idea in mind, I began to feel myself relax, and, by the end, I was even beginning to take a few chanced glances around the room, at the people who were attending our reception. Most of the people had moved in closer, either to take pictures, or just so they were able to see what was going on. One woman though, was still back in the sea of tables, seemingly uninterested in what was going on. In fact, she even looked a bit disgruntled.
Frowning at her for a moment, I tried to place her face. When I couldn't though, I assumed she was someone's date and turned my attention back to the moment at hand. The first song had faded into the next, and now our wedding party had flooded the dance floor, along with Justin's daughter, who was excited for all of the attention she was getting.
Now that the camera flashes had been cut back, and more bodies surrounded us on the dance floor, Justin and I both relaxed, laughing as we danced in a sort of circle with Mia, no longer paying any attention to how good we were at dancing. Children didn't care about talent.
Antonia was standing at the edge of the crowd, watching while we had our dance with Mia. I could tell that she was trying her hardest to look happy at this moment, but I wasn't stupid. No matter how over her relationship with Justin she may be, no one wants to see their child dancing with their ex-husband and his new wife. I thought about inviting her in to the dance — I wanted to spend some time with my bridesmaids anyway — but one look at Justin told me it was a bad idea. He was looking at Antonia too, but, just like me, he did not seem to be able to think of anything that would improve the situation. All of our guests would be expecting us to dance with Mia to show how we were now a family, while we both knew how much it must hurt Antonia to watch it.
As the song moved toward its second half though, the rest of the guests at the reception began to flood the dance floor, and everything became a bit more unorganized. The time for Justin and I to be obligated to be on the dance floor was now over, and we could now blend in with the crowd more.
I gave Mia a warm hug then sent her back over to her mother, and turned to Justin. He gave me an almost terrified smile, then took my hand as we turned toward the crowd. Both of our parents were already almost upon us, all smiles and tears, and the next half an hour was a blur of hugs and warm wishes.
When I finally came out the other side, I found myself in great need of a bit more calm, and I quickly told Justin I was going to find someone who could get me a bottle of water, before making my way toward the less crowded end of the room.
As I glanced around, I could see couples who looked impatient to leave and families with small children, all beginning to peter out after the long day spent in a church, in cars, and finally in a hot room filled with too many people. I smiled as one girl in particular began to droop in her father's arms. For the first time in my life, I could actually see myself as part of a family like that, even if the daughter would be my step daughter. I adored Mia, and I knew that Antonia was a good woman. Our family wouldn't be normal, but I was still excited.
I moved over to the bar and asked for a water, then turned to survey the crowd again. A woman I didn't know seemed to be in light conversation with Josh. Whatever they were talking about, they were both forcing smiles, as if their conversation was only light because they were determined to keep it that way.
The woman I had seen at the back of the crowd when the dance first started was still on the fringes, looking fed up with the whole situation, and I considered going to talk with her to see what was wrong. As soon as the thought entered my mind though, something else told me to stay away. I didn't know who she was, but she was setting off every warning in my mind. Instead, I picked up my water as the bar tender set it on the bar for me, and I moved back into the crowd of loving family, seeing one of my aunts already headed my way.
We still had most of the night ahead of us, and many more family members to speak with. We would be expected to have some sort of conversation with all of our guests, and I was quite sure that if we didn't talk to everyone, someone would hold it against us.
As I reached Justin again, he was talking to an aunt and uncle of mine, and by the paleness of his face, I could tell they were making him nervous. I sidled up to him with a broad smile already planted on my face, and took his hand as I intervened into the conversation, doing my best to pull the attention off of him as much as possible.
Justin was doing his best to put up with the awkwardness of the night, but I knew it would wear on him. If I could just take some of the attention off of him for a while, it would make the whole night more enjoyable for him.
Again, the reception turned into a blur of smiling faces around me, and I rushed out the same answers to the same questions from everyone I spoke to. Part of me wished something out of the ordinary would happen so that I could break this redundancy. But, the rest of me was glad that I could just keep giving the same answers without any thought. My mind was already set onto the honeymoon that would come after this. I was excited for a week away from everyone and everything, with only Justin to keep me company. It would be bliss after this night.