Call Me Ghost ✔️

Chapter Thirty-One

"Are you nervous?" Ghost's hand is on my thigh as he drives us nearer to the reception hall.

I cast him a worried frown and retort, "Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?"

"You know I'm never nervous." He boasts with a shrug, moving his hand from my thigh to readjust his tie around his neck.

I take a moment to shamelessly gawk at my boyfriend's appearance for the hundredth time today. My boyfriend. It feels surreal to refer to him as that. I mean, it only happened last night, so I am still getting used to it. But I couldn't be happier knowing that we're finally together.

Last night we ate our pizza by the cliff— after picking the slices apart— and by the time we got back to Ghost's place I was half asleep from exhaustion. So nothing else really happened once we got in bed. And this morning was a flurry of activity going to my early classes and rushing back to my dorm to get dressed for the wedding, and now driving over two hours to the town where my dad grew up where the wedding is taking place. 

We missed the ceremony, but we'll get there just in time for the start of the reception. The closer we get, the more I'm starting to regret my decision to come. I haven't seen any of my dad's family in years. I'm not looking forward to answering all their questions about what I've been up to in life.

As usual, Ghost can sense my hesitancy as we reach the destination of our long road trip. Once he parks the car in the already full parking lot, he turns to me with a reassuring smile, "Rose, it'll be alright. If it's too much at any time just tell me and we can leave."

I wordlessly nod my head and flash him a weak smile. We get out of the car and walk hand in hand towards the entrance. We follow the signs inside that point us in the direction of the "Whitaker/Rose Wedding" and step inside the large, beautifully decorated ballroom.

Pale pink uplights set the tone with a live band playing softly on a raised stage. Tables with elaborate centerpieces are dispersed across the outer edge of the room, with the center left wide open for dancing. The head table sits at the far end of the room, where I spot my smiling Aunt Lillian sitting beside who I presume to be her new husband. They smile and talk with a couple of people standing in front of them.

I nod in their direction and suggest to Ghost, "Let's go say hi before we find a place to sit."

He just nods and lets me lead the way. We pass vaguely familiar faces, whom I mostly just smile politely to as we continue forward. We reach the table just as the people they were talking to walk off. I step forward and smile widely at my Aunt.

"Hi, Aunt Lillian. Congratulations!"

She lets out a loud gasp at seeing me and quickly shoots up out of her seat and rounds the table. The breath is squeezed out of me when she pulls me into a tight embrace and squeals in my ear, "Oh my god! Emerson, I'm so glad you made it. Your mom told me you were coming and I was so happy to hear that! Wow, you're such a grown young woman now, I can hardly believe it."

She says all of this in the same breath, rocking us side to side with excitement. She pulls away, keeping me at arms length as she looks me over with a proud grin.

"I'm happy to see you too." I tell her, "You look beautiful."

"So do you." She pats me lovingly on the cheek before turning back towards the table, "Oh, this is Henry, my new husband. Henry, this is my niece, Emerson, and this is her..."

Her words die off as she turns to Ghost with a confused expression. She clearly was expecting Brody to be at my side, but when she doesn't recognize Ghost, she draws a blank.