Blandview High Musical

60. Bound To You

Before I knew it, the Spring Break week had ended. Nearly the entire week had been consumed with getting everything ready for my mom's wedding. I must've been so out of it that I hadn't realized all the planning was culminating into this wedding. Today was Sunday...also their wedding day. My mother was upstairs in her bedroom getting ready. Frank had been ushered away by my Uncle John, who explained to him that it was bad luck to see the bride before the wedding. My Aunt Darla was helping my mother get into her wedding dress. My grandmother was there as well. I was downstairs, shoving food into my mouth when the telephone rang. It was the landline. I walked over to it. " 'Ello?" I said, my mouth still crammed with food. "Hello? Is this the Demofonte residence?" A man's voice rang out from the other side. I nearly choked trying to swallow the food. "Grandpa?" I asked. "Ah! Gillian!" He said, happily. "Oh my gosh! How have you been? You never call!" I said. "Well, about a few weeks ago, when your grandmother was giving me a royal cussing about what a dirty son of a bitch I still am, she felt the need to inform me that your momma is getting married again." "She is! Today is their wedding!" I said. "Well, sugar, why don't you go fetch me your momma so I can talk to her?" He asked. Just then, my grandmother came around the corner.

She was holding a cut glass in her hand. Inside the glass, swished around brown liquid and ice. "Is that your fucking grandfather?" She asked, walking towards the phone. "Yes, he wants me to go get Mom." I said. She took the phone away from me. "Culver, you low down filthy fucking bastard—" I left the room before I could hear the rest, going up the stairs to my mother's bedroom. I knocked on the door and Aunt Darla answered. "Not now, Gill." She said, shortly. She tried to shut the door in my face. "Grandpa's on the phone and he wants to talk to you, Mom." I said. This caused Darla to halt shutting the door. My mom came forward. "He's on the phone?" She asked. "Yes." I said. She nearly pushed me down to go rushing out of the room. "Oh for god's sake, Val...let it go already. It just kills you that she's younger than you are, doesn't it?" Culver asked. "Is that Dad?" Janet asked. "I'm handling it, dear." She said. "Screw your personal shit, I wanna talk to Dad." She said, yanking the phone away from her mother. "Daddy?" She said. "Hi, sweetheart." He answered. "Oh my god, it's really you!" She was giddy like a kid again.

My grandmother was shoved out of the way. Discarded and left to her bourbon which was souring and watering down with every passing minute. Aunt Darla joined me at the kitchen entry. My mother was just yapping away on the phone to my grandfather. Aunt Darla scoffed, folding her arms over her chest. "What?" I asked. "Oh nothing. She was always Daddy's favorite. He never could be bothered to do anything with me, but if Janet wanted him to be late to work to push her down the drive on her bike, he'd do it." She said. "Sounds like you're bitter." I commented. "There's a difference between bitterness and anger. I don't think you've ever know either of those because you don't have siblings." She said, turning around and walking away from where I was standing. I rolled my eyes.

"I just wish you were here!" Janet said. "I know, sweetheart. Sandra and I didn't even know about the wedding until we had boarded the flight to Wyoming." He said. I sighed. "How is Sandra?" I asked. "She's doing good. We're here visiting her grandkids." Janet could hear the chattering growing in the background. "Listen honey, I've gotta get going. I love you and have a wonderful day." "Bye dad." She said, softly. She waited until the line disconnected from his end before painfully slipping the handset back into the cradle. She sighed. "Mom?" I said. She turned around, rubbing her fingers up under her eyes. "I'm coming, Gill." She said, quietly. She passed me to walk back up the stairs.

"Stop messing with it!" Jade snapped, slapping Shayne's hand from fooling with the collar on the lilac shirt. "Don't hit me." He growled back. She simply rolled her eyes, looking back in the mirror and adjusting her lipstick before fiddling with her earrings. "I'm nervous." Shayne said, softly. "Why are you nervous? You're not getting married." Jade said, turning around to face him. She sat down on the vanity stool and slipped her feet into the sandals. Shayne sighed gently as his eyes wandered across how she looked. "What?" She asked. "You just look...really nice." He said. She smiled, standing up and stepping towards him. Her lashes fluttered as she reached up to tighten the bowtie he was wearing. "You're teeming with baby fever." She said. Shayne's cheeks flushed red. "I can't help it. You just look so good." She patted her hand against his chest. "You shouldn't be looking at me." She leaned forward, kissing him on the cheek. Shayne liked this. That familiar softness that wasn't compounded by sexual tension. Where she could kiss him and all he could feel was love and tenderness.