After weeks of tailors measuring me, people asking me questions about what I think of things, and the occasional day off reading the many books in his father's library, I had finally worked out my way around the huge place I now call home.
One thing still eluded me though; I couldn't work out why Keith's room seemed most comfortable. I had given up on finding that out though. Every time I felt as though I was getting close, someone would interrupt me.
Right now, I'm back in the wedding planning stuff. It sucks and takes ages, but I did agree to it. Even if it was only for my sister. The strangest part about today's planning was that it was only Keith and I doing it. Usually there was a bunch of people giving advice and managing to get on my nerves.
"What kinds of flowers do you like?" he asked as he took a look in one of the plans that I was uninterested in.
"I don't know. I don't know my flowers too well" I muttered as he handed me a list of the ones that would go with 'my' dress. I looked over the list; tulips, lavender, violets, forget-me-nots, hibiscus, lilies and so many others were listed, most of them I didn't know even existed.
"Did they even give you a say in the dress?" he asked as I put down the list. I shook my head and wondered if it was smart to go with the wedding and against getting fired. He sighed. "I haven't exactly been getting a say either" he muttered.
"That's what happens when you hire thirty-odd people to plan one event. I've seen it happen many times. I'm waiting for a fight to break out amongst them about a decision we didn't make" I said, "You're the one with the power to fire them, and the only way you'll get a say in the whole thing is if you do it" I looked over to him and he sighed.
"Well we're being ignored, and we're the ones getting married... nothing for it then" he muttered as he walked away. I picked up one of the plans he was looking at and immediately found three things I had said I detested. Strangely they were circled. I looked amongst the other things to find more things circled. He seemed more interested in this then I was, but this meant he got an entire company. I got up, taking a few of the plans with me and found where he had gathered all the planners.
"Hey sweetie, before you tell them, could I have a sec?" I asked, trying not to cringe when I called him 'sweetie'.
"What's the problem?" he whispered as I showed him the plans.
"These circles, are they things you don't like?" I said just as quietly and he nodded, "Ok, thanks" I said giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before he grabbed me around the waist. I realised how much taller than me he was and sighed; I'm so short. Everyone in the room had started to argue about what the main feature should be and I realised that to them, we were just the dolls. "I told you, arguing about a decision we didn't make" I muttered. He seemed to smile directly at me, not as part as the charade but an actual smile.
"People, there won't be a centre piece if none of you shut up and actually listen to me!" he yelled, obviously annoyed, "I've been going through the plans for the wedding and I hate them. All of them. You haven't been listening to either of us. Sarah didn't even choose her own dress. You're all fired, we're going to do it our way" he explained to them. A woman who I recognised as the head of the tailors stood up and walked over to me.
"When did I not give you a say?" she spat. I looked at her in disbelief.
"Where should I begin? There was the colour, the fabric, the style, the embellishments, the accessories, my hairstyle, my makeup. Basically anything I put on YOU chose" I stated.
"Not true, I asked if you liked the colour and you said you did!" she defended.
"Yeah, you asked. One of your underlings answered before me and you thought it was my answer" I stated, somehow remaining calm. She looked to the other tailors, they all stood, and followed her leave as did the other planners. "Now all we have to do is sort this out between ourselves..." I sighed. He pulled me in close to him.
"We can do it" he said just before he kissed me. I didn't bother to pull away or move this time; I just let him. We went back to the dining hall where I'd left the other plans.
After hours of flicking through a variety of magazines, photos and other supposed 'inspirational materials' we had nothing. I threw down the last magazine and he looked at me in surprise.
"You seem to be... disappointed" he stated, his voice seemed to be woven with awe.
"I am, why do you seem surprised by that?" I asked. I don't see what's so surprising about a girl being disappointed by the inspiring being so uninspiring. He put a hand on my head and smiled.
"Usually when you're told to sit through this stuff you get bored, that's all" he looked me over as he took his hand off my head. He seemed to shake something off as he did and I looked at him suspiciously. "Growing up, did you ever have a dream wedding?" he asked.
"Suppose I did at one stage... I wanted it to be small and outdoors, on pavement so no women's shoes sank. Surrounded by rose bushes that have really dark leaves and are climbing up walls like ivy. In the evening, so no one misses work or school, and it also means that it'd be cooling down so no one would overheat.
I didn't want bridesmaids or groomsmen, that way it seemed more..." I stopped and saw that Keith was taking notes of what I was saying. He looked up at me and seemed to want the next word. "I... I think that's enough planning for today" I stuttered as I stood and walked away.
"If you won't say it to me, can you write it down? Just the basics of it?" he sounded as though he was practically begging. I nodded from the doorway as I studied the rooms and halls that led to 'our' bedroom. The moment I opened the door I realised what was different about the room. It felt lived in. It wasn't overly spacious, it had what a bedroom needed plus little extras here and there, there wasn't any dust, every day one of the books was missing just to return and be swapped with another.
The rest of the house was lonely and I could always find dust or cobwebs somewhere. The house seemed like no-one had lived in it for years, then you walked into this bedroom and you could tell that someone had been there recently. I sat on the bed and admired the room knowing the difference before falling asleep.
