ChapterTwenty-One
Joyce
I look in the mirror and cannot believe I am here again, and it feels completely different than the first time. I was so young and starved for love and attention that I fell for Ellis hook, line and sinker. I was in the middle of the mess before I realized there even was a mess, and then it took him almost killing me to finally leave. But I do not feel the desperation and need this time around. Solo has not tried to minimize me at all. He has only encouraged me to grow and dream bigger. He has brought peace, serenity, and the family I have craved all my life and I cannot wait to be his wife. The possibility of him never being able to walk again does not even factor into our relationship at all, at least not for me. A lot of the times I forget he can’t walk since he is so larger than life.
“You look amazing, J! I am so happy to be able to share this day with you. I told you when you first met Joseph to let things flow naturally, and I am glad it finally worked out. It wasn’t a smooth ride, but bumpy or smooth you still got to the correct destination and that is all that counts. Are you ready?”
“Yes, I am ready to start my life with Solo as his wife.”
When I come out of my private dressing room to where the ladies are, they all come over with hugs telling me how beautiful I look in my dress and I return the favor. They look amazing in their aqua dresses with rose gold accessories. True, Savvy, Lennox, T’Aundra, Brooklyn, Megan, Mell, Bree, and Skai look like melanated goddesses; they are stunning.
“Didn’t we just do this?” True says and we laugh breaking the seriousness of the moment.
“Yeah, with Lennox and Peter’s wedding, but hopefully you won’t be flashing the gun I am sure you have on you to anyone this time,” Megan says, and we laugh again.
“I never leave home without it,” True replies, pulling the front of her dress down enough to show off the rose gold handled gun.
“Thank you for loving my brother. From the first time I met Seph, we had a connection and seeing him hurt really pissed me off. But whatever was going on between you two in the beginning has obviously been worked out. I have watched you love him regardless of his possibly permanent injury and if I questioned your commitment to him before, you have laid them all to rest. Welcome to the family, Joyce. I am so happy to be able to call you a sister,” Savvy says, and we embrace as we bond over our mutual love for Joseph.
“OK, OK we gotta stop this! We cannot ruin our make up before the ceremony, and the guys are waiting for us so let’s get this party started!” I say shaking my hands out to get rid of the nervousness and restless energy. Solo and I decided to have an intimate wedding with just our family at the beach house. There are less than thirty people here and it is perfect. The party planners did a magnificent job transforming the downstairs area, as well as the outdoor space. The extra-large gazebo and the party tent have been transformed into a magical wonderland. We planned the sunset wedding along the shoreline at the beach where Solo feels so connected to the water, and that same water brought him back to me. I stand to the side as everyone walks down the aisle to the beautiful half flower arch where Savvy’s dad is preparing to marry us. Solo said her dad married everyone else and he had to marry us too. So, we flew him out so he could preside over our ceremony. Momma B is making sure everyone gets down the aisle and everything goes without a hitch. But his father Hemi is actually walking me down the aisle. The music changes and Shepp and Saint begin singing All My Life by Kc&JoJo, and I begin the walk to Solo, who looks so handsome sitting in his new wheelchair that is the same color as his suit. He has on a cream suit with rose gold accessories to match my dress and the rest of the men are wearing cream suits with aqua and rose gold accessories.
Momma B:
I stay behind waiting until after Joyce is at the altar before I will slide in to sit in the back. Since the guest list is small and mostly a part of the wedding, I’ll still have a good view. I am preparing to sit down seeing that she has reached the altar and the bell rings. I wonder who that could be, since I thought everyone was already here. I answer the door to see a woman who looks similar to Joyce standing at the door.
“Can I help you?”
“Yes, I’m here for the wedding. I’m Jessica, Joyce’s mother,” she says as she tries to walk past me into the house. I step in front of her, blocking the entrance.
“I don’t believe you were invited.”
“I’m sure that was an oversight.” I look at her wondering if she is insane.
“No, it wasn’t. She hasn’t heard from you since she was nineteen years old, and you just pop up at her wedding? How did you even find out about the wedding anyways?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but a mutual friend told me, and I came to see her and celebrate my daughter’s wedding day with her.”
“Your daughter?”
“Yes, my daughter, my only child. I have been so worried about her, and I know she must have missed her mother.”
“Ok, I can’t deal with this anymore,” I tell her with a deep breath. “You abandoned your daughter when you dropped her off to college when she was eighteen years old and then turned her away when she needed your help. Even at her lowest point, she could not turn to her own mother and ended up in shelters working her ass off to get on her feet and you didn’t miss or worry about her then. And now you think you can just show up at her wedding to my son and play the loving, doting mother? Not on my watch, so you can go back to wherever you came from and stay there, because if I hear that you came near her again, I will make sure the hole you’ll be buried in will never be discovered. She’s MY daughter now. Now get out before I have you arrested for trespassing.” I see the fear in her face. She looks at me and tries to look behind me, obviously weighing her options, and does the smart thing and leaves. When I close the door, I call the security desk and tell them to make sure she leaves and to not let anyone else in for the ceremony. I head back outside where I see they have gotten to the vows portion of the wedding.
Solo
She is breathtaking and I flash back to the first time I saw her at McCurdy’s, and I knew then I had to have her. It was a hell of a journey and a lot stood in our way, but we finally made it to where we were supposed to be. When Savvy’s dad gets to the vows part she goes first.
“Solo, I never thought I would be back at the altar getting married and especially not to you. I ran as fast as I could from the possibility of what you could bring and who you are in my life. I ran out of fear, and I realized that I was giving too much power to someone who no longer deserved a place in my life. I thought that once I released that hold on me, I would have a hole in my life, a void that I would not be able to fill, and I waited for the ache to begin, but it never did. It never did because you were already there. You healed me when I didn’t even know I was hurt. You saved me when I didn’t know I was drowning, and you found me when I didn’t know I was lost. I thank God every day for bringing you into my life. Your love, your healing, your joy, your strength is not predicated on if you can walk, but on who you are as a man. So, as I stand here in front of the most important people in our lives, I tell you again that YOU. ARE. ENOUGH. I more than choose to stand by your side. I was born to be by your side and sleep in your arms and fight alongside with you. I will be the beat of your heart and the food for your soul. The joy that makes this life worth living, to complete and be completed with you, to discover all the joys of this life with you by my side as we get old and beyond. I love you, Joseph Solomon Gideon, and I am honored to have you as my husband.”
I can hardly see when she is done saying her vows, and I reach up and wipe away the tears from her face, and then it’s my turn to say my vows. I reach back and lock the wheels on my wheelchair, stare in her eyes and stand up. She screams out and then immediately starts crying and I hope her make-up is waterproof. She immediately drops her bouquet and comes willingly into my arms. For the first time in more months than I care to think about, I am standing up and holding the woman I love more than life itself. I embrace her tightly and cry with her, and before we realize it, we are being engulfed with hugs from the other women.
My brothers already knew I was walking. We worked hard to get me to this point. One morning after Joy left early for work, I woke up and knew something was different. When I realized what it was, I just sat there moving all of my toes, wiggling my feet and just enjoying being able to feel my lower half again. Brooklyn walked in and ran to the main part of the house and screamed for Aryan to come up. When he got there and saw me in bed moving everything, he called Lennox and I was taken to the hospital for tests. I swore Brooklyn to secrecy, and we worked like hell to get me ready to be able to stand, walk and dance for my wedding. Even though I had the feeling back, months of no use has made them weak.
“Joyce, I knew from the first time I saw you I wanted you, but you did not make that easy for me. That was a blow to my ego, but no matter how many times I thought about walking away, something kept me coming back and fighting harder. My brother also brought my ego down to size when he reminded me I have never had to work for anything in my life until you. I immediately thought of the story of Rachel in the Bible. Jacob loved her so much he worked fourteen years just to have her. No matter how much or how long you ran, I was coming for you. No matter the obstacles you placed in front of me, I would climb them because just like you have told me repeatedly YOU ARE WORTH IT! I promise to always fight for you, to challenge you to be everything I know you are, to never let circumstances weigh us down. I will be your greatest cheerleader, slay all your dragons and be every line of defense you will ever need in your life. Your love and your fierce devotion have made me want to be the best man for you that I can. Thank you, Joyce, for giving me the kind of love I saw in my parents’ marriage, my aunt and uncle’s marriage and my brothers’ marriages. I didn’t fall in love with you, I walked in love with you, I ran in love with you, and I did it willingly, with my eyes, arms and heart wide open. I cannot wait to begin this new journey with you by my side as my wife. I love you.”
We are all crying including Savvy’s dad, and he tells us to put the rings on each other, and once we do, he pronounces us husband and wife. So that is how I got married, holding my wife and our family holding us.
We get comfortable for dinner and dancing; sandals come out, jackets are off, and the bottom of the women’s dresses are detachable to allow them greater freedom of movement. We have an amazing dinner, overseen by Jaasiel of course, and Bree’s band has come to play for us as well. It is an amazing time, and the vibe is all love and chill. When it is time for our first dance Shepp sings Chris Stapleton’s version of Tennessee Whiskey and I take my wife in my arms and dance like I have been wanting to do since I woke up in the hospital. After that it was a free for all, but I sit back in my wheelchair, tired from standing, walking, and dancing. We party, talk and just hang out with each other well into the night. I couldn’t have asked for a better wedding and reception.