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Lydia
My mom’s comment is embarrassing, to say the least.
But I guess I should have expected something like that. My mom isn’t one to mince words. And I should probably just be grateful that she and my dad bought the fake relationship so easily.
As soon as I’m able to, I pull Hunter away and we meld into the crowd. But we don’t make it far before an aunt of mine stops us and demands to be introduced to Hunter. After chatting with her for a few minutes, we only make it a little ways further before another relative does the same thing.
Not that I expected anything different to happen.
After the fourth or fifth encounter, I lean into Hunter’s ear—which is more accessible to me since I’m wearing heels for once—and ask him if he’s doing okay. I know this whole thing can’t be that enjoyable for the poor guy.
“I’m fine,” he says. “You don’t have to worry about me, Lydia.”
“I’m really going to owe you, aren’t I?” I say.
“Oh, big time,” he says, grinning.
Another relative of mine approaches us. But our conversation is cut short by a woman announcing that the ceremony is about to start. Everyone starts filing into an adjacent room, where rows of chairs are set up and a beautiful arrangement of flowers fills the front of the room. Hunter and I take seats a few rows from the front. As soon as everyone gets settled, my soon-to-be brother-in-law takes his place at the front of the room, looking full of both excitement and nerves.
My sister looks absolutely stunning when she and my dad appear at the back of the room and start walking down the aisle. As soon as I see her, I immediately think back to the times when the two of us played ‘pretend wedding’ in our living room as kids.
Since she was the older one, and also the one more obsessed with weddings, she would always play the bride—and I would play all the other parts, aside from the make-believe groom. I’d be the flower girl, the maid of honor, the officiant. I hated my sister bossing me around, but I also loved our game.
Now, as she walks down the aisle, our eyes meet and she grins at me, and I’m so happy that she’s getting to have all of this for real.
The ceremony is short and sweet. When my sister and her fiancé say their vows, I tear up. You can see how much they love each other, and it’s really touching.
As the two of them start to walk back up the aisle and the rest of us stand up and hoot and cheer for them, I look over my shoulder at Hunter and say, “Wasn’t that sweet?”
He nods. And it’s a genuine nod. There’s even a little dampness in his normally-steady eyes.
“Whoa,” I say, a grin spreading across my lips. “You were actually moved by it, weren’t you?”
“I never said I thought getting married was stupid,” he says. “I just don’t like weddings.”
“You are going to dance with me later, though, right?” I ask.
“Uh…no,” he says. “I’m not dancing. Sorry.”
I groan. “What? Seriously? Hunter…”
“I don’t dance. I’ll watch you dance, but…nope. That’s a hard no from me.”
I’m about to tell him that I’m going to get him out on that dance floor later whether he likes it or not, but then I realize that everyone’s moving, so I just turn around and follow the crowd. We make our way into yet another area of the venue, where a seating chart is set up telling everyone where to sit.
Hunter and I end up at a table with my parents, an aunt and uncle, and a cousin of mine. I quickly introduce Hunter as my boyfriend and hope the conversation doesn’t linger on our relationship.
“Nice to meet you, Hunter,” says my cousin, who’s sitting on Hunter’s other side. On the other side of my cousin is an empty chair. “My wife was supposed to come, too, but her morning sickness—her ‘all-day sickness,’ as she likes to call it—got the best of her, and she decided to stay home.”
“I didn’t realize she was pregnant,” I say, leaning forward to smile at my cousin. “Congrats.”
My cousin smiles back and nods. “Yeah. Thanks. I feel bad for her, though. It’s been hard on her physically. I almost didn’t come tonight, because I felt so guilty leaving her. But she insisted I come.”
“Well, we should toast to her,” I say, holding up my glass.
My cousin laughs. He raises his glass and clinks mine. “I’ll tell her we did that. She’ll get a kick out of it.” He takes a sip, then splits a look between Hunter and me.
“I know you two are just dating right now, but can I give you a piece of advice?”
