My One & Only

Ch 43: Tying Knots

Nini smiled into the warm bed, loving the familiar comfort it granted her. She rolls a bit on it as she begins to wake up from her peaceful slumber, but then she notices the soft mattress didn't feel like a mattress anymore. She finally opened her eyes and was taken aback to see her face nuzzled into the chest of her best friend, who was still fast asleep. His arms were wrapped securely around her body, and she could tell he wouldn't be letting go anytime soon. Nini gasps when she discerns she must've rolled into his arms overnight and tried to escape his grasp without waking him.

She slowly began removing herself and realized there was no graceful way to release herself without disturbing his slumber. She abruptly sits up, causing him to groan. He wiped his eyes and looked up at the woman sitting on his lap, confused on why she was straddling him.

"Well, good morning to you too."

When he rests his hands on her thighs, she feels electricity run through her veins. That's when she registers how provocative her position was. She blushes as she rolls off of him, falling onto the floor.

"Ow."

Ricky glanced over the bed to see if she was okay. "Are you alright?"

She gives him a thumbs up. "I feel like a hundred bucks."

"Why're you all jittery?"

She stands up, smiling awkwardly at him. "Because it's your dad's big day! Speaking of that, you should really get dressed. We have a very busy day."

She grabs her dress and swiftly excuses herself to his bathroom, thinking about how that was the best sleep she'd had in months. Ricky just chuckled at her odd behavior.

"What a weirdo."

But damn, he couldn't help but adore her.

***

Mike scurried around his dressing room of the church like a mad man. Ricky came into the room with a checklist.

"Alright dad, everything is in order at the moment. Are you—what're you doing?"

Mike tossed some stuff in a drawer around. "I'm looking for my damned tie! I don't know how I lost it! I swore I packed it before I left. Oh my god, Jenn is gonna be so pissed. What if I forgot something else that was important at home? Holy shit, did I forget the rings? That's just unforgivable!"

Ricky rests his hands on his dad's shoulders. "Relax, dad. The rings are with Nini. You entrusted her with them, remember?"

Mike nods, calming down a bit. "Oh, right. Well, what about my tie? I can't get married without my tie! That's unheard of!"

"First of all, people get married without ties. Second, it's literally around your neck, dad."

Mike reached for his collar and sighed in relief when he saw it was there. He laughs at his stupidity. "Jesus Christ, I must be losing my mind."

Mike took a seat in front of the mirror, resting his face in his hands. Ricky sighs and walks over to his father. Ricky begins fixing up Mike's tie.

"Look dad, I know you're nervous since you haven't done this in over two decades—"

"And let's not forget to mention that my first wife bailed on me and my kid for no good reason."

"Well...yeah, that too. But Jenn is different. She's here to stay, and you two will get to live that happily ever after you both deserve."

Mike looked at himself in the mirror while Ricky fixed the wrinkles on Mike's tie. "I never thought I'd be doing this again."

Ricky smiles. "Life has a way of surprising us, huh?"