And We Meet Again

37. Making The Choice

Chapter - 37 (Not even proof-read, please bear the mistakes)

MAKING THE CHOICE

For the tenth time in the last half an hour, I tried to adjust the bow tie. But no matter how much I tried, it seemed to have a crush on the left side as it was bending to that side again and again.

Stupid f*cking bow tie!

With clenched jaw, I stared in the mirror at myself and gave up. Yes, I couldn't do it anymore.

"I can't believe you're getting married!" I turned to look at my mother when I heard her shocked voice. Though there was nothing shocking about it. It wasn't like getting married was a last moment decision; she had been a part of all the preparation since the beginning. But, this was my mother and over-reacting to everything was in her basic nature.

"Surprise!" I said, showing her my teeth in a fake grin. I was in a mood of complete sarcasm on my own wedding day. Things couldn't get any better. Great, sarcasm again!

Mom rolled her eyes at my response and stepped towards me with a light smile on her face. She kept her hand on my shoulder and looked at me with happiness in her eyes. Just as she opened her mouth to say something, Hailey entered the room. "Hey groom!"

Mom and I both looked at her with smiles on our faces. But, Mom's attention was soon diverted towards Adrian, Hailey's son who too was dressed in a tux. Forgetting me, Mom picked him up and started showering him with kisses which he tried his best to avoid by making whiny and irritated noises. But, Mom was not the one to be stopped by this as she continued with kissing her only grandson spree.

Hailey came in between my view of my nephew and mother. "You ready?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

I wanted to laugh at her question. I wasn't even able to adjust my bow tie and tying my own shoes laces had been a strenuous task today which took me a good fifteen minutes. I was nervous and had feet as cold as Antarctica. Of course, I wasn't ready for what was going to happen in merely half an hour.

But, maybe this was what people always meant by saying having a cold feet on your own wedding day. I was suffering from wedding blues.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I muttered sarcastically.

Hailey chuckled at my response and patted my back soothingly. "Don't worry. You're doing a lot better than most men do. Remember Chandler Bing?"

I laughed at her Friends TV show reference. I definitely remembered that. "I just hope that Veronica is not pregnant," I added with a smirk, adding my input to the reference.

Hailey giggled at my reply and said, "Your dahlin' fiancée is too career oriented to have kids now."

"I know that," I told her, trying to put a full stop to this conversation.

Hailey and Veronica got along nicely but not great. Hailey liked her for the person she was but she always told me that she was not perfect for me. But, she was happy because I was happy. Was I really?

She understood my mood and changed the topic. "Is Kim going to come?" A slight caution could be easily detected in her voice.

This just multiplied my bad mood by a thousand and I told her, "I had invited Josh, her fiancé. She might be his plus one." I turned back to face the mirror and tried to adjust the sh*t piece of bow tie again. All I wanted to do was snatch it away from my collar and throw it in the nearby dustbin of the hotel room.

Feeling frustrated, I closed my eyes and took deep breaths. Feeling a pair of hands on my collar, I snapped open my eyes and saw Hailey looking at me with a smile on her face as she tried to adjust the irritating small piece of cloth. "Calm down," she whispered, looking straight in my eyes. "I know whatever you're going to do is right. I trust you, Keith." I nodded my head slightly and shot her a grateful smile even though my nerves were still not at ease.