The Unexpected Knock

The day of the wedding arrived faster than I had anticipated. I groggily opened up my eyes as the rays of the sun snuck in through the curtains. Yawning widely, I opened up the curtains and did some quick yoga stretches to warm up my body. It seemed like only yesterday I had received the invitation in my inbox, the beautiful Taylor Swift music softly introducing the elaborate animation that could have been created by the groom. Although the sun’s rays were strong now, they were being obscured by sneaky gray clouds that slowly crept up. A quick thought entered my mind of whether the wedding would continue, but I remembered most of all the celebration would be indoors, a detail repeated several times by Kaitlyn. I wanted to reach out to her to see if she had woken up, but knowing Kaitlyn, she probably had an interesting night with the person she had met at the bar we had visited. 

I picked up the phone to text her anyway, smiling widely when I saw a text from her, asking if I had woken up. She had invited me to the wedding to give me a chance to relieve my mind of stress, since I had recently graduated and was ready to say hello to more fun instead of more reading. I responded to her text with a thumbs up and laughing face, then took a quick shower to strip myself of anything from last night. It was noon and I had roughly three hours to get ready for the festivities, forcing me to create a fabulous makeup face with quick precision, though my eyelids kept getting changed until the perfect shadow was applied, especially one that would complement the emerald dress I would be wearing. 

I took it out and smoothed the silk, feeling its soft bodice and its beautiful neckline. I smiled widely, proud of this being my first designer purchase. My mother had told me growing up that “a woman’s two happiest days are when she buys her first designer dress and when she divorces her second husband.” Wonderful thought for the day, after all. As I pulled up the zipper, a knock at the door drew my attention. 

Forgetting to look through the peephole, I finished zipping up my dress as I opened the door, greeted by a handsome man with green eyes, perfectly coiffed hair, and a clean shaven beard with his hand held in a fist mid-knock, a perplexed look on his face. 

“You’re not David,” he said, his eyes wandering. 

“No, unfortunately,” I answered. “I’m Lacy.”

“Lacy…—Lacy, I think we might be going to the same wedding festivities. I mean, going by your dress, I think that’s where you’re going. I’m sorry for bothering you, but I hope I see you there, and I’m not making an idiot of myself for the second time.”

“Not at all,” I said, crossing my arms. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Lu—”

“Hey, Luis! We’re over here, you asshole.”

The people who were also staying in the hotel and walking by with their small children shot who I could only assume was David a dirty look. I smiled at Luis and waved him goodbye. I didn’t miss the small glance back at me, and I didn’t realize how red my cheeks had gotten until I had come back inside and looked in the mirror. Once everything was to my liking, I texted Kaitlyn and ensured important things were put in my clutch before heading down to the lobby, where most of the guests would be meeting. 

Kaitlyn stood by the bar, her curvaceous body more highlighted by the tight royal purple dress. We gave each other air kisses to not mess up our lipsticks but ended up hugging closely regardless, some of our foundation smudging. We spoke about what she had done last night, who the man was, and how it went. Although the story itself was lukewarm, the man had ended up gifting her a beautiful diamond necklace that she wore, proving once again Kaitlyn’s prowess and power, two things I always admired in her. As we spoke, I kept peeking over her shoulder, our height difference allowing me to hide behind her, but which made it more obvious I wasn’t paying attention at times. 

She looked back over her shoulder one of the times I peeked and then looked back at me, smiling. 

“Who is it?”

“His name is Luis,” I said. “He had knocked on my door by mistake.”

“Luis, huh? I think I might know him.”

My heart sank. “He wasn’t—”

She shook her head, shooting back what was left of her complimentary champagne, quickly grabbing another glass as the waiter walked around. 

“No, I slept with David. Not Luis.”

“David is the friend he had been looking for.”

“I met him at the bar after you had come back to the hotel. Which by the way, don’t ever do that again. You know how dangerous it is.”

I nodded. “Won’t happen again,” I made a cross over my chest, a gesture outliving our childhood. 

“Luis is a sweet guy, maybe a little virginal, like you!”

I punched her arm. “Kaitlyn!”

She giggled and let me know she was going to go around schmoozing the other guests before the doors opened to the reception. I watched her walk away, shaking my head at her audacity.

“I’m only half virginal,” a voice said. 

I jumped, some of my champagne splashing out. I laughed and looked at Luis straight in the eyes. 

“Hi again,” he said softly, handing me a napkin. “I wanted to tell you earlier but…you’re gorgeous in this color…—” he gawked. “Not that I know much about color!”

I laughed. “It’s okay. Thank you.”

“So you’re Lacy, I’m Luis, I think we’re a match made in heaven. Are you here on the bride or groom’s side?”

I looked over to where Kaitlyn was, her glamorous body language having attracted a big group, mostly men. “My friend Kaitlyn is one of the bride’s good friends. I’m her plus one.”

“Gotcha,” Luis said, nodding. “David is my brother, and he is the groom’s best man.”

We talked about many mundane things, though there were moments our eyes caught in a trap that held the untold story of a future we might or might not have, and I couldn’t help my mind wandering through a hallmark movie. Before we could continue, the doors opened and we were ushered into the reception room, a wave of beautiful dresses and suits shuffling like soldiers into the beautifully decorated room with soft music and the delicious smell of food in the air. 

Luis and I separated as we went to our respective tables. I was with Kaitlyn and some of the other family members and friends, who welcomed me as if they had known me for years. Despite the interesting conversations we had, I kept glancing towards Luis, only to find him looking over at me as well. Kaitlyn made playful jabs and said out loud “I think another wedding might be possible after this one.” This drew several minutes of laughter as the others took jabs at me too. 

The day turned into night as we celebrated the ever-lasting love of the bride and groom. We laughed as the husband shoved cake in his wife’s mouth, and we cried when the father-daughter and mother-son dances occurred. Luis and I slow-danced several times, and the room often felt empty when we did, as if we were the ones married. When the bride threw the bouquet, I had caught it almost by mistake, time slowing down and everybody cheering as Luis gave me a quick grin.

“Let’s leave together,” I whispered to him during our last slow-dance of the night.

And we did.

***

“Mom,” the woman over my bed said, smoothing my hair. I didn’t know who she was, and my mind was a channel no longer on the air. The static felt too loud, too long, and too colorless. 

“Who are you?” I said.

“Mom,” the woman repeated. Was I her mother? “Mom, it’s me. Rebecca.”

Her tears fell on my bedsheets and I took a deep breath. 

“Where is Luis? Where is my husband?”

The woman continued crying, another one inside the room changing some of the things inside it, the covers being tucked in. The other woman, who appeared younger, smiled over me, like an angel. 

“Your husband is coming soon, Ms. Lacy. Is it okay if I speak with Rebecca?”

I watched as the two women left the room. I was ready to see Luis again. I wanted to tell him all about my day. I wanted to slow dance with him again. I wanted to tell him how the kids had learned a hard lesson in school and were singled out to be the most intelligent and kindest. I heard a knock a few minutes later, and saw him, looking as angelic as ever even after a long day at work, and I reached out to touch his face, to smooth out under his eyes. He took my hand and kissed it, something he never forgot to do. 

“Let’s leave together, my love,” he said. 

And we did.