Scenes From a Soap Opera

Teriah's Wedding

May 13, 2022- Mariah and Tessa's Wedding Day

Mariah Copeland was nervously pacing in her mother's living room. In approximately two hours she would be marrying the love of her life. No big deal, right? She still couldn't believe that she of all people was getting married. Back when she was living in the cult, she would never have thought that this was possible for her. Mariah and Tessa had been through hell and back and the redhead could not wait to finally begin the next chapter of their lives together.

A flash of guilt hit her. Here she was starting a new happy chapter, while her mother was entering a new sad one. Rey had died two weeks ago and his absence from what supposed to be the happiest day of her life was glaring. Rey had been so involved in the planning and had been so happy for them, the fact that he wouldn't get to see it was devastating. Mariah felt guilty being so happy while Sharon was so sad. Sharon told her that she had nothing to feel guilty about; Sharon didn't want that and neither would Rey.

"Mariah, sweetheart? Are you okay?" Mariah turned around to see Sharon standing behind her looking worried. Sharon had seen her daughter standing in the living room staring blankly into space. She sincerely hoped that it was just nerves and not second thoughts that were plaguing the young redhead.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just nervous. Sorry for scaring you mom." The jittery bride explained, " Is Faith back with my dress?" she asked as a quick subject change. Faith had volunteered to get her dress from the dressmaker. Her little sister had really stepped up the past couple of weeks between the wedding prep and Rey's death. Honestly, the young girl liked helping her family and she could really use the distraction. Mariah and Tessa had been waiting for this moment for so long, nothing would go wrong on her watch. As if she was being summoned, Faith walked through the door carrying multiple garment bags.

Mariah jumped on the chance to avoid talking about her feelings and ran to her sister. Sharon noticed this immediately, but because it was her wedding day, she let it slide. She smiled as she watched her daughters fawn over the dresses; she felt a pang of sadness hit her when Cassie crossed her mind. The Crimson Lights owner missed her daughter every day, but on special days like this one, the pain of her absence was overwhelming. Cassie should be here celebrating her twin's wedding. How often had she wondered what Cassie would be up to if she was still here?

"Mom?" Sharon heard Mariah calling her and refocused her attention on the bride. Mariah was staring at her with concerned eyes, Faith matching her in the background.

"I'm coming. You are going to be a stunning bride. I'm so happy for you and Tessa" And she meant every word of it. She and Tessa had come a long way in their relationship, and she was thrilled to be gaining her as a daughter. All three women had tears in their eyes.

"Thanks mom. Now stop making me cry. No crying before the wedding." Mariah snarked while drying her eyes. Sharon playfully rolled her eyes but complied with her daughter's request. This was supposed to be a happy day, people didn't cry on happy days. The redhead had never been a sap before she wasn't going to become one now. She started to walk up the stairs calling for Sharon and Faith to follow her. She had a wedding to get to.

The Wedding

Tessa Porter was anxiously waiting for her wedding to start. In a few short moments, she would walk out of this room and into the beginning of the rest of her life. The singer heard her name being called and looked up to her sister smiling at her. Crystal the ultimate wedding present courtesy of one Rey Rosales. It killed the young musician that she would never be able to thank Rey in person for returning her sister to her. The man was so thoughtful and caring and in her opinion the world was a little less bright now that he was gone.

"Tessa, are you ready?" Crystal asked for the hundredth time.

"1,000%" Tessa replied. "I just want to see Mariah."

The wedding planner told the girls that it was show time. Crystal gave her big sister a hug before walking out to start the wedding. Tessa took a deep breath then followed her sister out of the room. Sharon would be giving her away to Mariah and she would never be able to thank her enough for agreeing. Her nerves were crippling her until she met Mariah's eyes. Both brides instantly felt at peace the moment their eyes connected. They were looking their future in the eyes and couldn't wait for it to begin.

The ceremony flew by in a blur for both brides. Mariah tried her best to focus on the beautiful words that Kyle was saying but she couldn't help but stare at her soon to be wife. Tessa was the most stunning bride in the history of brides in her humble opinion. Of course, Tessa was thinking the exact same thing about Mariah. The two women said their vows, the love in their voices clear as day. Before they knew it Kyle had declared them wife and wife and told them to make out. The newly married couple happily complied and gave each other the best kiss of their life as the crowd cheered for them.

The Reception

The reception was in full swing, and the partygoers were having a great time. After hearing two heartfelt speeches the brides were ready to celebrate and led the guests to the dance floor. Sharon had accepted many hugs tonight as mother of the bride. Chance whispered in her ear that answers would be coming soon as he and Abby left her and Nick to go to the dance floor. She froze at the mention of Rey, she didn't want to think about Rey tonight. The blonde was afraid if she thought about Rey she would start crying and she wanted Mariah's day to be a happy one. Crimson Light's owner knew that her family was worried about her, and she desperately wanted all the focus to be on the brides.

Nick had been watching Sharon all night. He volunteered for the job saying that everyone else had more important things to focus on. Besides, he hoped that Sharon would confide in him, knowing that she wouldn't want to be a 'burden' to her children. Nicholas admired how Sharon held herself together, she always persevered. She was a rock, his rock even when they weren't together. Now it was his turn, he would be her rock, the way he should have been all those years ago when they lost Cassie.

Cassie was front and center on both of their minds tonight. They both missed their daughter every day and seeing her twin sister get married was a painful reminder that this day would never come for her. Not, in Nick's opinion, that any guy would be good enough for her. Hell, he was just starting to like Kyle for Summer. He looked over to see Sharon watching the happy couple with tears in her eyes. They had been there for a few hours now and he could see that she was slowly losing her steam.

"You want to get out of here?" Nick whispered in Sharon's ear.

Sharon turned to face Nick, thinking about his question. She was so tired and just wanted to get to bed. "Yeah, sounds good. Let me just make sure that Noah can take Faith home." Nick nodded and the former couple walked over to their son. Upon seeing his mother's face, Noah quickly agreed to her request. The two then walked over to Mariah and Tessa to give them their best wishes. The brides gave them both a giant hug and thanked them again for giving them away.

Sharon turned to Nick and said, "Take me home." Nick smiled and walked Sharon out of the party. To anyone not in the know, they looked like the parents of one of the brides; a happy couple exhausted by the day's proceedings. Their children watched them leave thinking about how good they looked together; they just fit. Each sighed and scolded themselves for thinking that way. Blaming it on being caught up in the wedding bliss, all four of them dismissed those thoughts, Nick and Sharon would never be reuniting. Well, never say never.