On the edge

Chapter 13: Merman

The first two weeks, neither James nor Sue could believe that they really got married one spontaneous Sunday morning. Reverend Collins had made them swear, besides their weddings vows, that they wouldn't tell anyone. Not in the next five years or so.
"We're a small community; people will definitely remember not remembering your banners being read!" he had coaxed.
"I'll note them down as read, yes, don't you worry," the priest had reassured Sue, as soon as the young woman had opened her mouth, "But, you know, just keep the rumours to a minimum, please."
Of course, they two young people had agreed. What other choice would they have had anyway? James terminated his tenancy agreement and moved into Sue's flat. Of course, people began to speculate. They were seen together, publicly, more and more often, and after the baker's youngest had seen James enter Sue's flat, the beans had been spilt.
"Do you mind?" the blond had asked his wife, who still had a bit of difficulty to get used to her newly acquired title; Misses Winter.
"Let them talk, they'll soon get sick of it," the red-haired dismissed the matter.
"And even if not, I wouldn't worry," she added, "If every couple that lives together were married, there'd surely be even more divorces than there already are. Nobody should suspect anything."

James puckered his face into a slight frown, but he nodded without a word of complaint and hugged Sue tightly.
"We won't divorce," he said reassuringly, "We'll live happily ever after."

And Sue wanted to believe that, very much.
What helped greatly with realising that their wedding had indeed been very real, was Nicholas dropping by, about three weeks after they had gotten married.

"Did I not explicitly ask you to invite me to your wedding if it were to take place on solid ground??" were his first words when he got off the train.

"Oh lord," Sue sighed, "Why did I agree to come with you again?"
Joanna grinned awkwardly as she suggested, "Because I didn't complain about your weirdo, so now you do the same for me?"
Her friend rolled her eyes and mumbled something about how Nicholas and James were hardly comparable.

"Sue!" the black-haired continued his rant, "How do you justify that?!"

"What?" the, so she felt, challenged young woman wanted to know, a question which seemed to offend the visitor immensely.
"Uh, not inviting me to your wedding?!" he replied with pretended indignity.
"It's been a very last-minute kind of thing..." Sue tried to justify the situation, but Nicholas continued to reason that London was but a two hours train journey away.
"How last-minute can it possibly have been?" he asked.
"Like, he asked me at half-past four in the morning if I wanted to marry him, and by quarter-to-seven we were pronounced husband and wife," the red-haired countered.
Nicholas narrowed his eyes and formed his lips to a slight pout. He seemed to reflect on her word for a moment, thinking about whether or not that was a valid excuse.
"How did you get married without having your banners read?" he inquired further.
"Details," Sue tried to put him off, but Joanna squealed something about James bribing Reverend Collins, in the background.
"He didn't bribe the Reverend!" Sue tried to defend her husband.
"He's doing refurbishment for free," Joanna said, very quickly, and of course Nicholas agreed with her that that was definitely bribing the priest.
"I'm positively surprised," the dark-haired added, "I wouldn't have thought that Jimmy-boy has a... Dark side."
He playfully lifted his eyebrows twice, as he liked to do very much, apparently, and smirked at Sue stupidly.
"You like it a bit rough around the edges, huh?" he teased her.
Sue rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands before looking through her fingers.
"I swear, Nicholas, it's a wonder nobody's at least attempted to murder you yet," she said.
"Now that you mention it, there once was a dude," Nicholas remembered, "I'm actually quite sure he tried to push me in front of a bus."
"And I will finish his work if you don't shut the hell up!" Sue promised.
"Next time, when you have a very stupid thing to say; don't. Just swallow, take a deep breath, go on with life, and keep your mouth shut," she suggested.
Instead of intimidating him, Sue's words amused Nicholas; probably much more than they should.
"Oh Susie, don't be so grumpy!" he replied cheerfully, "I know that, in fact, that you love me. Very much."
Sue only widened her eyes, turned to her right to look at Joanna, and her face alone said enough; she didn't even have to speak.
"Did he just call me Susie?!" she screamed silently.
"Anyway!" Nicholas exclaimed, grabbing his backpack.
"Where's Jimmy?" he wanted to know.
"Minding the shop," Joanna said.
James had agreed to take care of Sue's shop while she and Joanna would go pick up Nicholas at the train station. His own business was closed on weekends, he didn't have anywhere to be that day, and he also didn't insist on joining the two women. It wasn't as if James didn't like Nicholas. Everyone did – even Sue, although she had a hard time admitting it. But he was in high spirits at all times; probably even when he slept. And so, for a rather quiet introvert like James, a complete battery drainage.
"I'll need to mentally prepare myself," he had joked.
"So, what's the plan?" Nicholas asked, "Dinner at the Mermaid pub?"