“Hey, sis!” Annie waved and pulled Brianne into a firm hug. “And who’s this?” she asked, pulling away.
“My girlfriend, Margie,” said Brianne, smiling widely.
It was nice to feel like I was being shown off—like someone was proud of me, and proud to be seen with me.
“It’s great to meet you, Margie,” said Annie, shaking my hand. “And you’re a Beasley student as well?”
“That’s right,” I said.
“How did you two meet?” asked Annie.
Brianne paused, and I remembered when I’d cut her off, saying that we’d met each other randomly instead of me spilling a latte on her.
“I spilled coffee on her by accident, when I bumped into her,” I said. “And then I asked her to lunch and it went from there.”
I didn’t feel embarrassed about this story anymore. It was now the funny, cute tale of how we met. A real life meet-cute.
“That’s a good story,” said Annie, nodding.
The sisters launched into a brief discussion about Marcy—the lady whose wedding this was—and other family members. I listened with some interest, partially because it was simply an opportunity to learn more about Brianne.
After we finished speaking to Annie, we wandered to the outskirts of the barn and people watched for a while. I was feeling more comfortable than I’d expected, but I was still eager to get a drink later on.
Now, it was time to sit for the ceremony, though, and we found Brianne’s parents and sat with them.
The ceremony itself was lovely. There was a string quartet, and the acoustics in the barn were actually pretty good. Seeing the violinist just reminded me of watching Brianne play the other day and how magical it had been. She was really amazing—the way she closed her eyes and got completely sucked into the music was mesmerizing. Her passion was obvious.
The bride walked up the aisle, in a simple white dress, two flower girls in front throwing rose petals. I watched as the priest spoke the sacred words and the bride and groom spoke their vows. When they kissed, everyone cheered.
I found myself deeply affected by watching this. The bizarre thing was that I even started tearing up—though I managed to blink it back. I never before thought I’d be the person to cry at a wedding, but the pomp of the ceremony had touched something deep inside me.
Maybe it was because I was in love for the first time.
I hadn’t before considered that I was in love. I knew I liked Brianne a whole lot, but love? I wasn’t totally sure how to identify it. But now that I’d put the word to my feelings, I was sure that was what it was.
And now I finally knew what the big deal was about weddings. I knew what love felt like, why people made these grand gestures and celebrations for it. I could even, just maybe, imagine myself getting married. It was hard to think so far in the future, but the idea of spending the rest of my life with Brianne… Something about it was pretty pleasant.
There was a reception outside, and I saw that staff was changing out the furniture in the barn so we could eat dinner there. I followed Brianne straight to the open bar and we snagged ourselves glasses of wine.
I wanted to tell Brianne I loved her, but I felt inhibited. I didn’t feel like I could really say how I felt right now.
But there was no hurry. I could wait.
I followed Brianne as she said hello and made small talk with various family members, introducing me to them. Somehow, I was able to impress them. They hadn’t been half as snooty as I’d expected, and even Brianne said that she was surprised at their behavior.
“I don’t normally get along so well with my extended family,” said Brianne.
“Maybe everyone’s in a good mood because it’s a happy occasion,” I suggested.
“It’s possible.” She shrugged.
I thought about telling Brianne how the ceremony had made me feel, but decided against it. It wasn’t something to be shared now, around all these people, and all these distractions. It was something for a quiet night curled up together, when we were all alone, in our little world.
But it was hard to sit on it. Acknowledging how I felt had made me feel a little freer to take Brianne’s hand, touch her shoulder, sit close to her. I felt happier than I could remember feeling in a long time.
My life had completely changed.
We sat down to dinner at a table with Annie and Brianne’s parents. Annie’s boyfriend was with us as well, and he and I bonded over not knowing anyone here. It was a remarkably smooth evening.