One More Night

October 31, 2012

The almost empty bottle of Jack was tipped over on the coffee table with letters and pictures sprawled across the table. He picked up the bottle as he moved from the couch to the window overlooking the city. He pressed the cool bottle to his lips and took a swig of the amber liquid; the warmth started in his stomach but didn’t reach anywhere. He’d been rereading the letters for hours; the bottle was getting emptier but the memories weren’t fading.

“Fuck you!” he yelled as he threw the bottle across the room against the black painted wall. He turned back around to the wide window and looked out wishing he were with her. The glass of the window was firm under his hands that held his body against the glass. This week had gone from full of hope to absolute shit for him.

He pounded the glass hoping he might fall through, land 10 floors down, and not have to deal with the memory of her anymore. He walked away from the glass knowing he wouldn’t be able to forget her if he kept looking out the window. The couch still held the warmth his body had produced from sitting there for hours. He looked back down at the table his eyes landing on the invitation.

The phone that was beside the invitation was waiting for him to pick up and call her. He reached out to the phone letting his long slender fingers dial the number that he had known since he was a child. He waited five rings before he heard the voice he knew would help him.

“Hello?”

“Mom, I don’t know what to do.” He held the wedding invitation in his hand as he tried to find a way to deal with the fact that she had not chosen him.

“You got the invitation didn’t you? I told her not to send one to—”

“Why would you tell her not to send one to me?” he was starting to get frustrated. He stood and walked by the broken bottle and found another one sitting on the counter. He smiled as he poured half of the bottle into a plastic bottle so he didn’t accidently throw it while on the phone with his mother.

He listened to her shuffling around before she spoke, “I knew you would be upset by hearing that she had stayed with him. She had told me about the choice you gave her, and how you are still waiting for her out there.”

He swore he would never get over her he’d wait for her as long as it took her to decide. He hadn’t had sex with a woman since that night he got on the plane. He tipped the new bottle of Jack back as he let he liquid slide down the familiar path and hoped it’d take the edge off the bomb his mom just dropped.

“Does she actually want me there?” The hope was evident in his voice as he moved back to a room that he used as his home office. He pulled up the airports website and set to ordering a ticket regardless of his mother’s answer. The flight he picked would leave in two hours, which gave him enough time to get packed, and on a plane.

“I’m not sure, I think she assumed you wouldn’t show.” He was disappointed in her for not believing in the one man she had said she loved.

“Mom I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you later. Her wedding is still tomorrow right?” He couldn’t believe he was actually going to go through with this. He started throwing his small things into the bottom of his bag and hung the suit he would wear tomorrow in the bag as he put on a suit just in case one of his layovers was delayed and he got there late.

He folded the garment bag in half and ran out into the living room to grab his cell phone and the keys to his front door. He ran back to his room to grab the bag as he looked one last time at his apartment swearing he would leave it all behind if that meant he could have her in his life. He pushed the door to his home closed and ran down the stairs of the apartment building rather than wait for the busy elevator.

He saw the door attendant and hollered at him to hail a cab. Immediately after running through the door, he was pushing himself into a cab as he shouted the airport hoping the driver would quickly take him there.

The moments before landing back on the east coast were blurry. He grabbed his garment bag from the baggage claim and ran to the car rentals; he had rented a truck and quickly found it in the lot. He started the engine and drove straight into town, if he didn’t get to the church in twenty minutes he would be too late. He sped down the streets thankful that he was from a small town. All of the cops would be at the church at her wedding considering he was a cop. He would no longer be on their good list if he broke up this marriage but he couldn’t help it.

He watched the church roll up to find cars everywhere. He parked right outside of the church and left the car running. He noted that it was ten minutes after the start time and he should be just in time to object. He pulled the door open and walked the familiar path to the sanctuary.

“Are there any who object to this matrimony?” He heard the preacher’s voice.

“I do.” He stood still in the isle of the church as all eyes turned to him.

“Parker” She turned to look at him, which gave him a full view of her. She had changed, filled out and had a glow about her now.

“Yes, I can’t let you do this. I thought you’d come back. That you would go to school, call me and move with me. I think about you, and the way I would lay and waste the day with you. We went our separate ways, but no one can love you the way I do. I’d give it all up just to have you for myself. Don’t do this; I’ll seriously give it all up.”

She stepped down the aisle and came at him. Her hand reared back and came across his freshly shaven cheek. “You left me standing all alone,” She leaned closer to whisper to him, “You left me pregnant.”

He remembered they took each other’s virginity the night before he left, promising they would come back for each other. He looked back to see a small little girl standing beside his mother. “Does she know about me?”

She nodded her head and looked up at the preacher and the man she was supposed to marry. He came down the aisle toward me and I got nervous. “Parker, I could never compete with you. She’s loved you all along,” He paused as he got closer and I could see that he wasn’t as mad as I thought, “I was just here until you came back. Thanks for saving me some heart ache down the line. No hard feelings?” he stuck his arm out for Parker to shake.

Parker was so scared that he looked at the crowd and realized he had to do it. “Jim, can I marry her here, I’ll pay you for everything you’ve put into this. I need her, please?” He asked with hope in his eyes.

“I won’t do it Parker?” She looked at him.

“Bella, please, I love you, I’ve been kicking myself over this for the past three years, and I haven’t even looked at another girl. Please marry me I love you more than anything else.”

He saw the fight leave her eyes as she turned to her mother who nodded her head that she approved then over at my mother who nodded her head in approval as well. “Fine, but screw up once and the divorce papers will be written up immediately.”

“Thank you. Get back up there we’re going to do this right.” He said as he walked over to his daughter and looked at her, “Hi, want to come up with mommy and me to get married?” She eagerly took his hand and stood beside her parents.

“Do You Parker Meador take Bella Mcintosh to be your wife?”

“I do” He said proudly looking at the daughter whose name he had yet to learn.

“Do you Bella Mcintosh take Parker Meador to be your husband?”

“I do.” She said with tears rolling down her cheek, she had waited for this day for years and she finally got her wish to be married to him.

Parker knew he had to keep the past in mind, she was his now.