Driven to Distraction

Mr. Morrison found himself standing in the middle of a back room in Foothills Baptist Church. He watched silently with tears pooling in his eyes, as his only daughter did a small spin in her beautiful, princess-like wedding dress. He could hardly believe that she was no longer his little girl, but now a gorgeous twenty-four-year old woman. It seemed like only yesterday when he was picking her crying figure up from the sidewalk after she had fallen off her Barbie bicycle. His chest tightened as he realized today - today he would have to give her away to another man. Oh, how it pained him to do so.

Ketely stared at herself in the mirror, smiling as her eyes scanned over her dress. It was a stunning one, no doubt about that. It was strapless, and the top hugged her curves quite perfectly. The material around her stomach was decorated with gold designs, before it billowed out from her waist down. It was a fairy tale dress and she had the perfect gold glitter heels to go along with it. The sides of her chestnut locks had been pulled back and put in loose curls. Light pink blush adorned the apples of her cheeks, whilst black eyeliner lined her lids and eyes. Black mascara coated her lashes, making them curl beautifully over her eyelids, and pink gloss donned her lips. She was quite a vision, really.

Kelsi and Bree, her only bridesmaids, with the former being her maid of honor, wore a strapless, satin burnt orange dress that reached their feet. It showed off both of their curves and went well with their complexions. Their hair had been done into an intricate updo with braids and curls, whilst one long curl lined the left side of their faces. Their makeup was also done lightly, with bronzer and blush, eyeliner and mascara, and a pink lip gloss to finish. Simple, yet elegant lightly gold heels adorned their feet to give them each just a boost of height.

A light knock came on the door and all four turned around, seeing Danny's face poking into room.

“Hey, Kelsi and Bree, it’s time to line up,” he stated.

Both girls nodded their heads before turning to look at their friend.

“You look beautiful, K,” Bree told her, giving her a hug.

“John’s a lucky man,” Kelsi added, giving Ketely a hug as well.

“Thanks, guys,” she smiled, trying to hold back her tears as reality was beginning to set in for her. “I love you both.”

“And we love you,” Bree winked before her and Kelsi walked out of the room.

“It’s almost time, daddy,” Ketely breathed, looking at her father who looked as nervous as she felt.

“You do look very beautiful, pumpkin,” he told her, his deep voice wavering.

Ketely tried to laugh but it came out as an unsteady breath. “Thank you,” she smiled.

Mr. Morrison walked toward his daughter, wrapping his arms around her. “Oh, Ketely,” he sighed, feeling the salty tears finally escape down his cheeks.

“Daddy, it’s going to be okay,” she tried to assure him, although tears were falling down her own cheeks at this point. “You know I’ll always be your little girl.”

A hearty chuckle fell from his lips as he pulled away, taking his daughter’s face in his hands. “John better be prepared to give you the world because I will not accept anything less.”

It was her turn to laugh this time. “He will, dad.”

“Your mother would be so proud of you, baby girl. You’ve grown to be the beautiful, smart woman we always knew you would be.” His words caused even more tears to fall from Ketely’s brown eyes and he wiped them away, careful of her makeup. “No more crying, Ketely Jewel. For either of us,” he added, both of them giving a light laugh.

They could hear the violins and cellos beginning to play, a rendition of Coldplay’s Yellow coming from the strings. She turned to her father who nodded his head, and she grabbed her bouquet, which consisted of white and orange roses with orange orchids. Together, they walked out of the small room and towards the open doors of the sanctuary, where she and John’s family and friends were all seated.

She could just see the back of Bree going down the aisle and she had to intake a deep breath of air, her nerves now deciding to get the best of her. She shifted anxiously back and forth on her feet, much to her father’s amusement.

“Oh, I remember that feeling,” he laughed.

Once the second verse of the song began being played, she heard the preacher ask everyone to stand, and that was her cue to begin walking down the aisle. Her left arm hooked with her father’s right, and she tried her best to smile, despite her feeling uncomfortable with so many eyes on her. She could hear sniffles and “oh, she looks so beautiful” come from up and down the pews. She nodded her head here and there at everyone, but as she reached the front of the church, her eyes stayed casted on John, who looked extremely handsome in his sharp white suit and burnt orange vest and tie. His sandy hair was short and slicked back, a 100-watt smile plastered goofily on his face.

Kelsi and Bree stood on the left side of the church, holding their bouquets and smiling, trying not to cry. Ross and Kennedy stood a little behind John on the right side of the building, donned in black suits and matching burnt orange vests and ties. When John had proposed the thought of wearing a white suit, Ketely couldn’t help but to laugh, cracking jokes at him every now and then. But now, seeing him standing there, he looked completely perfect in the bright color.

Mr. Morrison watched as John’s green eyes locked with his daughter’s brown ones, and he could tell that the love they had was just as true as he and his Danielle’s had been. He could still see his late wife in her puffy, typical eighties style dress, wild, voluminous hair and all. He could remember thinking that there was no other woman more beautiful on the planet, but sure enough, when Ketely had been born, he had decided that there could be one exception.

“Who gives this woman to be married to this man?” the preacher asked, holding the Holy Bible between his linked hands.

“Her brother and I do,” Mr. Morrison stated, letting go of his daughter’s hand. John leaned in to give him a hug and he willingly returned the gesture. “Please take care of her,” he choked out, patting John’s back.

John nodded his head. “I will,” he stated, knowing how hard this was for the man before him.

Mr. Morrison turned and gave his daughter a kiss on the cheek before telling her “I love you” and taking his seat in the front pew of the left side of the church.

“You look so beautiful, love,” John whispered to her as they took their places in the front of the church. Ketely blushed and he chuckled at how his words still had such an effect on her.

All eyes locked in on them as the preacher repeated verses from the bible and as Ketely and John stated their vows, promising to love each other through sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, for better or for worse, in sadness and in joy, bestowing their hearts to only each other, and forsaking all others.

When it was all said and done, Ketely had joyous tears glistening down her cheeks and her and John shared a quick, church-appropriate kiss as cheers filled the building.

“It’s time to part-ay!” Garrett yelled loudly, causing everyone to laugh, including the preacher.

Rice was thrown on them as her and John made their way to Rosie, his cherished white pickup. The words ‘Just Married’ were written on the back windshield, streamers hanging down into the bed. John waited until she was seated in the truck before going around and getting in on the driver's side.

“You have rice right there,” he laughed, picking a few grains from her hair.

She laughed sheepishly. “Whose idea was it to throw rice again?”

“I believe Pat’s.”

She snorted. “We should never listen to him again.”

John chuckled and caught his wife’s chin in his hand. “I love you, Mrs. O’Callaghan.”

“And I love you, Mr. O’Callaghan,” Ketely smiled, meaning those words more than ever before.

The reception hall was a fairly big one, with a large wooden dance floor. The lighting was relatively dim, complimenting the color scheme Ketely had chosen. Tables of six were spread throughout the room, adorned in white cloth, with a vase of beautiful white and orange orchids as the centerpiece. The chairs were also covered with white linen, a burnt orange bow tied around the midsection.

The table at the front of the room was set for Ketely and John to sit center, whilst Kelsi, Bree, Kennedy and Ross sat on either sides of them. Champagne glasses and empty plates were aligned down the table, and throughout each course, various people would stand up, giving nostalgic speeches.

Every once in awhile someone would clink their knife to their glass, meaning Ketely and John had to share a kiss. Whilst at first it had been a little embarrassing for her, after awhile, having a couple of glasses of champagne in her body, it became much easier to do. Once everyone was done eating, it came time for the dancing and the DJ announced that Mr. and Mrs. O’Callaghan would be sharing their first dance together as husband and wife.

And as terribly cliché and overused as it was, I Will Follow You Into the Dark by Death Cab for Cutie began playing as John laid one hand on Ketely’s waist, taking her other hand to hold in the air, whilst she laid her free hand on his shoulder.

“Love of mine, someday you will die, but I’ll be close behind. I’ll follow you into the dark. No blinding light, or tunnels to gates of white, just our hands clasped so tight, waiting for the hint of a spark.”

“Can you believe we actually did it?” Ketely whispered softly, gazing into the beautiful green orbs of her husband.

“What? You want to back out now?” he joked, laughing quietly.

She rolled her eyes playfully and shook her head. “Not a chance, babe. You’re mine forever, no matter what other pretty girl comes along.”

“I find it hilarious how you think I would want anything else but that,” he told her genuinely.

“If Heaven and Hell decide that they both are satisfied, illuminate the no’s on their vacancy signs, if there’s no one beside you, when your soul embarks, then I’ll follow you into the dark.”

“And to think this all started when you teased me when we were little,” she laughed.

“Well, to be fair, you were being a little cry baby.”

“My best friend was gone and I had no one else to talk to,” she said, defending herself.

“I’m still surprised at how you two have been friends for this long.”

Glancing over at the blue-eyed girl, she smiled. “It’s lasted so long because she’s an amazing friend.”

“In Catholic school, as vicious as Roman rule, I got my knuckles bruised, by a lady in black. And I held my tongue, as she told me ‘son, fear is the heart of love’, so I never went back. If Heaven and Hell decide that they both are satisfied, illuminate the no’s on their vacancy signs, if there’s no one beside you, when your soul embarks, then I’ll follow you into the dark.”

“I have something serious to tell you,” John said.

“And what would that be?”

“I want us to have a baby, Key. I mean, I know that in another month or so, the guys and I are going on tour, but I want us to try and have one. I can’t wait to see you glowing with our baby inside you. I can’t wait to wake up and hear their little feet running to our room. I can’t wait to come home to a family,” he told her, a dead-serious expression on his face.

The confession had made Ketely’s heart beat ten times faster and had caused tears to hoard her eyes. She had never heard John speak with such passion. She had to clear her throat before she replied.

“And I can’t wait to have all of that with you,” she told him, her voice filled with nothing but love.

“You and me, have seen everything to see, from Bangkok to Calgary. And the soles of our shoes are all worn down, the time for sleep is now. There’s nothing to cry about, ‘cause we’ll hold each other soon, in the blackest of rooms. If Heaven and Hell decide that they both are satisfied, illuminate the no’s on their vacancy signs, if there’s no one beside you, when your soul embarks, then I’ll follow you into the dark.”

“Then I’ll follow you into the dark,” they both sang together as the song came to an end.

“So then, we can start trying tonight when we consummate our marriage,” John smirked, wriggling his eyebrows up and down.

Ketely laughed. “There’s the John I know.”

The rest of the evening had gone as perfect as anyone could have hoped. Everyone, including John’s blunt nana and a distant wacky uncle from Ketely's side of the family, had danced to at least one song. The open bar was used frequently and thankfully, no one had gotten so drunk as to cause a disturbance. Ketely shared a dance with her father and John a dance with his mother, both causing everyone in the room to become emotional.

Ketely couldn’t have asked for anything more. She had a best friend in her husband, who she loved with everything in her. She had great friends who cared deeply for her. She had a father and brother who would always think the world of her. She had gained a new family, who welcomed her with open arms. She had a mother, who she believed was her angel, watching down on her.

And despite the trying times that led to this night, she couldn’t imagine being any happier than she was now.

Wiping a bit of white frosting onto the tip of her husband’s nose and laughing so hard her stomach ached as cameras flashed, Ketely knew that this was how it was supposed to be for her.

This was the life that most only dreamed of, and here she was living it. There could never be anything better.