Authors: Virginia Jewel
“If I can have everyone’s attention, please!” my dad stood up with his glass in hand. “I know that Josh and Mel requested that there be no speeches or sappy mess, but I am her father and damn it they can’t tell me what to do.”
Everyone laughed. Josh leaned back in his chair and put his arm around the back of mine. To everyone watching, we would have looked like a normal engaged couple.
“I will never forget the day I met Josh,” my dad started with a quick glance over at Josh. “My sixteen year old daughter had asked me for permission to attend an outdoor concert, located an hour away, with friends that she had only known for two weeks. I said no, of course, and a full day of pouting and an awkwardly silent dinner followed. The next day, while Mel and her mother were out shopping, my doorbell rang. I opened the door to find a mop-headed blonde boy standing on my doorstep.”
Everyone laughed and turned to Josh who gave them a wink and a smile.
My dad raised his voice and continued, “The blonde boy looked me square in the eye and said, ‘Hello Mr. Holden, my name is Josh Matthews and I’d like to talk to you about why you should let your daughter come to a concert with me.’” He lowered his eyes and gave everyone his mean father look.
More laughter erupted in the room. Josh grimaced and pretended to hide behind me.
My dad laughed a little, but continued, “What followed was a forty-five minute lecture on how the young man was a safe driver, a good student, a responsible person, and a reliable escort for my teenage daughter. He did everything short of showing me his report card in an attempt to prove his point.” He rolled his eyes causing more giggles.
“I have to admit, I admired his moxie. It takes a lot of courage to introduce yourself to a girl’s father by telling him he’s made a poor decision. I let her go, with a few conditions which he happily complied with.”
My dad gave Josh a stern look, but then a smile played across his face.
“Nevertheless, his little visit sparked a completely new set of worries for me. Any man in this room who is the father to a little girl, of any age, knows what I’m talking about. Josh’s visit was the first time I realized that my little girl wasn’t my little girl anymore.”
All the women in the room sighed. I watched my dad as he struggled to hold back a tear. My mom, who had given up the fight, was sobbing quietly into her napkin.
He turned towards us, “Josh, you and I have had many talks since that first one, but they’ve always had a recurring theme. You’ve always made it clear that you will stop at nothing to keep Melody safe and happy, and I have every confidence in the world that you will continue to do that every day for the rest of your life.” My dad raised his glass and everyone else followed suit. “To Josh and Mel, may you always keep each other safe and as happy as you are today!”
The room cheered and drank their champagne.
When the room was quiet again, my dad added with a glare at Josh, “However, Josh, just remember what I told you about that concert. She’s my little girl and if you hurt her, I will kill you.” He winked and started to sit down.
Everyone laughed and Josh got up to give my dad a handshake and hug. My mom rushed over to give me a hug. She squeezed me tightly and I could feel her shaking with sobs. She and my dad switched places and my dad pulled me in for a big embrace. After my dad let me go, Josh’s dad hugged me.
After that, the party pretty much died out. As we were walking to the parking lot, I asked Josh for the keys to his car.
“I can get your bag for you,” Josh offered before I could explain.
I got in the backseat of my parents’ car and waited for him to bring me my bag.
When he came back, he slid into the backseat next to me.
“What’s going on?”
“I asked your parents to give us some privacy, so they’re talking to my dad.” Josh said quietly.
“Oh.” I looked back at my mom and saw her watching us with a smile. I turned back around to stare out the windshield.
“So, I hope you have a good night. Sam said you had to be at the salon at six, right?” he rested his head against the back of the seat.
“Yes, I have to get my hair and makeup done, as well as get a manicure and pedicure. Then I have to be ready for pictures by nine, and it takes at least twenty minutes to get the dress on.”
“Well, then I won’t complain about my eight o’clock call time, as Sam referred to it.” Josh flashed me an apologetic look.
“Right, well, I guess I’ll see you in the morning.” I smiled at him weakly.
“I’ll be the one at the end of the aisle,” he winked at me as he slid towards the door.
“Wait!” I shouted as he opened the door to get out. He turned to look at me. “They’re probably watching.” I nudged my head in the direction of our parents.
Josh’s eyes wandered over and then back to me. “I suppose we should make it believable,” he said with a smile.
He slid back across the seat to within inches of me. He gently cupped my face in his hands and pulled me towards him. His eyes were locked on mine as we got closer. Uncontrollably, my eyes closed as I felt him press his lips against mine. His hand wrapped around my head and into my hair. He pulled me closer to him and my hands went up to rub against his face.
Our kiss deepened and Josh’s other hand wrapped around my waist and pulled me into his lap. Desperate for air, I broke the kiss. Josh’s mouth moved to my neck, and traced a path down and then back up again. I brought his head back up and pressed my mouth against his again. I could feel his heart beating against me and heard his ragged breath as we continued our kiss.
A knock on the window startled us both and I shot up from Josh’s lap hitting my head against the overhead light in the car.
“That’s enough, you two! There’ll be plenty of time for that after the wedding.” My dad grinned at us from the outside.
“Sorry, so sorry!” Josh said to me as he slid out of the backseat. He closed the door behind him and walked quickly to his own car.
17.
I tossed my bag onto my old bed. My bedroom at my parents’ house looked the same as it had in college. Pictures of me with my friends, posters from bands that had long lost their popularity hung on the wall, and old trophies lined the shelves. The only thing that was different was the wedding dress bulging out of the open closet doors.
A knock on the door made me jump.
“Can I come in?” my mom’s voice came through the door.
“Sure,” I said and collapsed down on the bed.
She opened the door slowly, poking her head in first. When she spotted me on the bed, she opened the door wider and proceeded into the room.
“Are you getting excited?” she sat down next to me on the bed.
I stared down at my feet as I spoke, “I’m not sure that excited is the right word to describe how I’m feeling right now.”
She wrapped an arm around me, “I told you before, honey, it’s normal to be nervous. This is a big commitment, but you’re making it with the right person.”
I turned to look at her, “How do you know? I mean, what makes you so sure about Josh?”
She smiled sweetly at me, “Sweetheart, Josh loves you. He’s always loved you, you know that.”
I shook my head, “But how do you know that we’re meant to be together?”
“Have you seen the way that boy looks at you?” she lowered her eyes and smiled at me. “There is nothing that he wouldn’t do for you.”
I sighed and leaned my head against her shoulder.
“Why are you so worried about this? I’ve never seen you act so strange.”
I decided to be mostly honest with her, “I guess it’s the wedding. It’s got me all messed up.”
She laughed, “Weddings do that to people. At least you two are getting it over with quickly. Most people take months or years to get through this process.”
I sighed, “Two weeks is long enough.”
She gave me a hug and a kiss on the top of the head then left me alone in my room. I put on my pajamas and curled up in the bed. I thought I’d fall asleep easily, but my mind was racing. I started flipping through my memories to look for what everyone else had seen.
In high school, our friends used to tease us for being such close friends. The girls would ask me if I liked him, but I’d always deny it. Even when I did have a little crush, I’d always told them I didn’t like him. The guys used to make jokes about us, but Josh always brushed them off.
When we both ended up at the same college, the questions got even louder. Having a best friend who was of the opposite sex, raised a lot of suspicion. Freshman year was the hardest, but after a full year of denying everything, our friends stopped asking.
At least they stopped asking me.
Despite all the denying, everyone seemed to know something I didn’t. For the past two weeks I’d heard everyone, from friends to family, talk about how much Josh loved me. Everyone else seemed to think it was obvious, yet I’d never seen it. I tried to go back to look for clues, but all I could think about were all the times he could have said something but didn’t.
If he was so in love with me then why wouldn’t he have said something at least once? Why hadn’t he mentioned it on any one of the long nights we’d spent talking? When I came home drunk from Carrie’s bachelorette party, why hadn’t he told me then? I’d kissed him, for crying out loud! Why wasn’t that a good time to tell me? If he was so damn in love with me that everyone else on the planet saw it, then why didn’t he just say it?
I could feel myself getting angrier as I thought about Josh. He was my best friend. He knew practically everything about me. He was the only person in the world that I could count on for anything, and yet he couldn’t tell me that he loved me.
I rolled over and caught a glimpse of an old photo sitting on the nightstand. It was of me and Josh standing in the courtyard in college. He was carrying me on his back and we had the biggest smiles on our faces. It was my favorite picture.
Suddenly, I replayed all the same memories from before, only this time I saw the clues. I saw the way Josh rubbed my back at night when we talked, the way he always called to check on me when he knew I was having a bad day, or the way he made up excuses to stay home with me when I wasn’t feeling well.
He had always been there for me and I’d never questioned why. I’d been satisfied just taking his kindness for granted. All the clues had been there, I was just too selfish and stupid to acknowledge them.
I jumped out of bed and dug through my bag for my cell phone. I dialed Josh’s number and chewed on my fingernails as I listened to it ringing. His voicemail picked up and I sat silent, not sure what to say. I hung up and dialed our home number.
“Hello?” Mr. Matthews picked up our home phone.
“Oh, um, hi Mr. Matthews, this is Mel. Is Josh there?”
He chuckled, “Yes he is, but he’s in the shower and I’ve been given strict orders from your mother not to let you talk to him.”
My face fell, “Right. That sounds like something she’d say.” I sighed dejectedly, “Well, then I guess I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”
“Good night, Mel.” Mr. Matthews said with a hint of a laugh.
“Wait!” I shouted before he could hang up.
“What?”
“Um, could you just tell him that I called to say good night?” I stumbled on my words. It wasn’t really what I wanted to say to Josh, but it was all I could think of in a hurry.