We Took the Fall

82: Today

“Are you doing OK?”

Catalina, who’d been staring out of the car window, startled at the sound of Santiago’s voice before she lifted her head, offering him a half-hearted smile. It hadn’t been long, after her conversation with her mother, less than an hour had passed, but still it obviously played on Catalina’s mind, something which had led to her being slightly quieter than Santiago had been expecting. He wasn’t overly surprised, the idea that Marisol had shown up on the morning of Catalina’s wedding wasn’t one which had caught the older man entirely off guard, but still it irked him. It was supposed to be about Catalina and Fernando, that day was one which the two of them had been looking forwards to for a while, and Santiago didn’t want to see it spoiled. He merely wanted his daughter to get the day that she deserved.

“I’m alright” she murmured.

“Are you sure?” Santiago posed “Because you’ve been quiet. Are you sure that there’s nothing you want to talk about?” he added as he reached his hand out, gently squeezing hers which fiddled nervously with the side of her dress.

Catalina spared a soft glance down towards their hands, allowing his question to hang in the air for a moment, before she shrugged her shoulders. “It surprised me” she murmured, messing with his fingers “I mean, as stupid as it seems, a small part of me wanted her to show up, but now that she’s going to be there, I’ve got an awful knot in my stomach and I can’t seem to shake it. I don’t want any problems today, papa, that’s why I invited her. It seemed to be the lesser of two evils” she added, her voice soft and timid.

Santiago noticed the softness in her voice before her offered her hand another squeeze, something which made Catalina shake her head. “I just want it to be perfect, papa” she murmured as she shuffled a little closer to him, gently resting her head against his shoulder.

Santiago smiled a little, slightly surprised by the embrace, before he shifted his arm, offering her a slight squeeze. “I know you do” Santiago mused quietly “And I am going to do everything in my power to make sure that that’s what you get, sweetheart. Your madre, your sister, they’re not important today. You are, and Fernando too, and that’s what I want you to focus on. You’re getting married, Catalina, and that’s more important than anything else” he insisted warmly.

Catalina merely spared him a soft look, something which caused him to lean down, kissing the top of her head. “You don’t have a thing to be worried about, Catalina” he mumbled “Between me, Esther and Fernando’s family, we’re not going to let this day be spoiled for you, so stop worrying and put a smile back on your face. You’re getting married, sweetheart” he insisted, offering her another light squeeze. He could see that she was worried, since they’d left her home, she had been quiet and distant, and he wanted to try and buoy her spirits, even if he was certain that he couldn’t get rid of the knot in her stomach entirely. He wanted to refocus her on the most exciting part of that day.

Catalina’s lips twitched into a small smile before she shook her head, causing Santiago to offer her another light hug. “You’ll be fine, sweetheart” he insisted quietly as the car pulled to a stop.

~#~
Carefully adjusting the tie which had been placed around his neck, Fernando shifted his feet, pacing the same spot of ground that he had been pacing for the last ten minutes. He knew that they were getting close, a phone call from Esther to Sergio had confirmed that it wouldn’t be too much longer before Catalina arrived, but still he couldn’t stand still, even if it had led to some teasing from Sergio and his brother. He couldn’t stop himself.

Adjusting the tie’s knot, he pushed it a little closer to his collar before he felt a slight nudge against his shoulder, something which caused him to lift his head, his dark eyes settling on his mother who stood ahead of him, a slightly concerned frown on her face. “Madre?” he posed.

“Catalina’s mother is here” Flori mused, sparing a brief glance towards Marisol who was sat a little away from them, staring at something in her lap.

Fernando followed the line of his mother’s stare, glancing at Marisol for a moment, before he shook his head, a soft sigh falling out of his mouth. He wasn’t surprised to see her, when Esther had called Sergio to let them know that they were on their way, she had mentioned that Marisol had paid a visit to Catalina, and whilst he didn’t like the idea of the other woman being there, he knew that he had to go along with it, even if it was just for Catalina’s sake. He had little intention to upsetting her on that day.

“Did you know that she was going to be here?” Flori posed.

Fernando shrugged. “Esther mentioned that she showed up at our place this morning to speak to Lina” he noted “So I am not overly surprised to see her, but I am wary. She’s not a nice woman, mama, and the last thing I want is for her to do something that upsets Catalina today” he added, shifting his stare back down towards his own feet.

Flori nodded. “I’ll keep an eye on her” she murmured.

“Mama...”

“Fernando, this is your day” Flori interrupted “And I’m not going to watch someone spoil it for you or your fiancée. I’ll keep an eye on her” she added before she took a pace towards him, gently adjusting the tie which he had managed to skew to one side.

Fernando smiled a little at her motherly fussing before the sound of someone clearing their throat reached his ears, causing him to look up, offering Sergio a curious look. The defender smirked at the look on the striker’s face before he stepped towards him, taking the place at his side. “Catalina’s outside” he noted “You ready to get this over with?” he teased.

Fernando rolled his eyes, mumbling a small comment beneath his breath, before his mother pushed herself up onto her toes, pressing a soft kiss against his cheek. “Congratulations, Fernando” she mused proudly before she stepped away, taking her seat beside her husband.

Fernando watched her step away from him before he dropped his head, scanning his appearance quickly as the sound of the piano reached his ears. Taking in a deep breath, he smoothed out his shirt and tie once more before he hesitantly lifted his head, his dark eyes widening as they landed on Catalina who had just stepped into the room, her hands clinging nervously to her father’s arm. Blinking a few times, he allowed his eyes to look her up and down before he smiled to himself, not able to shift his stare away from her as she shyly padded up the aisle, coming to a halt ahead of him.

Taking half a step forwards, he gently extended his hand towards her before he knotted their fingers together, something which made Catalina smile up at him shyly. It’d been a long time coming, the moment that they got married had been a long time in the making, and both of them wanted to lose themselves in it, even if it did mean ignoring a few elephants in the room. It was their moment and they wanted to make the most of it.
♠ ♠ ♠
Thanks to mslou1 for the comment :)