Happiness Exploded

In her memory, the resort had been a luxurious, private world all its own. Her family usually pinched pennies, not keeping up with some of their more sophisticated relations, but this location had been their yearly splurge, a break from the monotony of the leaden days of winter. But they had not been here in at least a decade as their parents had been unwilling to cause them to miss a week of school as they got older. When the family had decided to reunite at their old retreat for a weekend, Jenna’s feelings had been mixed. She desperately wanted to revisit the memories of that period and introduce her boyfriend Alex to that remote part of herself. Perhaps it would help him better understand her focus on practical necessities while still reaching for something elite.

And yet when they arrived, everything was not as she remembered. The price was still extravagant, but they no longer served ice cream between meals to cleanse the palate. There were no longer finger bowls or a lot of the other little details that had lived in her memory. Everything seemed a little time worn and smaller than it had in her memory. Clearly the hotel, like the family, had adapted, focusing more on essentials than unnecessary opulence. 

And yet she was glad they had come. The hotel would be inextricably tied to the next chapter in her life and would always be connected to a new memory. Last night, after dinner with her family, Alex and she had roamed the hotel and explored its various facilities. It was in the Great Room, in front of the vast fireplace that he had proposed. She had divulged the news with her parents at breakfast and they had shared their congratulations, but her sister had slept in and so she was going to share the news with her at their spa appointment. yet another indulgence, she normally couldn’t justify.

Arriving a few minutes early, Jenna took in her surroundings. Although the spa had also clearly aged, it felt small and sophisticated. It wasn’t trendy, but the people who frequented this establishment were not parvenus While she was absorbing her surroundings, her sister bustled in, full of energy, and immediately started talking about what they should do during the rest of their stay, scheduling every minute for the remainder of their stay. Jenna couldn’t get a word in edgewise and soon both she and Gabby were called back for their massages.

It wasn’t until later that day when they were in the sauna that Jenna had a moment to speak to her sister. It was hot and quiet and Jenna wasn’t sure how to start. She focused on breathing through her mouth so the dry air wouldn’t give her a nosebleed.

“Alex proposed last night.” 

“Really? I had begun to think he would never get around to it. How did he do it?”

“After dinner we explored. And when we were in the Great Room, he went down on one knee. Honestly, I didn’t hear a word he said because the visual of him on one knee stunned me so much that I didn’t hear anything that came out of his mouth. After he finished speaking, I said yes, and then made him say it again so I could actually hear the speech he had prepared.”

“That sounds just like you.” Gabby laughed, then stood up and exited the sauna. They returned to the chaises where they had left their towels. “So when is the big day? Where do you want to get married?”

“Mom asked the same thing at breakfast, but we really haven’t gotten that far.” 

“What style dress do you think you will get? Do you want to go shopping next weekend? As your maid of honor, I will, of course, need to offer my insights. I could fit you in Saturday afternoon.”

Jenna froze. She hadn’t had much time to plan this since last night, but when she had daydreamed about her wedding, it had not been her sister giving the speech. It had been her best friend, Mia.

It wasn’t that she didn’t love her sister. Of course she did. But they didn’t share that closeness that some siblings had. When they were little, Gabby would dart around outside while Jenna curled up on her window seat with a book. In high school they were both so involved in extracurriculars that neither was ever home. When she left for college, Jenna chose the south, a place that had always soothed her with its gentility, while Gabby went west and never moved back. They saw each other at holidays, but when Jenna needed to vent to someone about frustrations at work or relationship hiccups, it was Mia she called, not Gabby.

But how could she mitigate the damage of her sister’s presumption? And why hadn’t she prepared for it? She should have known Gabby would assume this. Her mother probably had as well. Family is always the first priority. 

Gabby continued asking questions about the wedding and the reception and started planning for the bachelorette party as she inspected her nails. Jenna tried to coherently answer the questions as she tried to figure out how to proceed. The conversation continued through lunch, which Jenna escaped as soon as possible, saying she wanted to go for a walk to a nearby waterfall. Her father wanted to accompany her, but she said she needed some alone time and he allowed her to decamp. When she was out of sight of the resort, she pulled out her cell phone and called Mia. Mia answered on the second ring and Jenna related the details of the engagement to her.

“Congratulations. About time. I was about to pull him aside and issue an ultimatum.”

“You were not.” But Jenna wouldn’t really have been surprised if she had. And she wasn’t at all sure how Mia would handle the news she was about to share. It was good there was some distance between them right now. “I also have a problem. I wanted you to be my maid of honor, but Gabby just assumed the role was hers.”

“Well, tell her it isn’t. I earned that role. She is never around and certainly not worried about anyone but herself!”

“I know, but if I do that I’ll be creating a rift between us. And mom will probably have a fit as well.”

There was a momentary silence and Jenna could tell Mia was trying to control her anger and frustration. “So what are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. What if I let her be the maid of honor and make you a bridesmaid. You know that if it were up to me I would chose you, but . . . .”

“It is up to you.”

“You know what I mean.” But there was no response from Mia and after a pause, Jenna checked her phone and discovered the call had been dropped because she had no signal. She paused, debating whether to continue her walk or return. She was about to return and try to call Mia back, but she heard the waterfall in the distance and so continued on.

The waterfall was farther away than the sound had suggested. She continued for probably another half a mile before the waterfall came into view. The sight was beautiful and overwhelming, but also chilling as the spray coming off of it formed a cold mist. And the sound was deafening, driving all thoughts from Jenna’s head. She was reluctant to turn her back on the powerful spectacle, but within 15 minutes her face had numbed and she hurried back to the lodge.

Alex had clearly been waiting for her in their room as his lithe figure nearly bounded off the bed when she opened the door. “So what was that with your sister?”

“Nice to see you too.” Jenna took off her coat, but was unable to stall any further as Alex stood there with his powerful arms crossed and his haze; eyes locked on her insistently. She sat on the bed and shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean I should have known, but I guess I just didn’t think of it.”

“What do you mean you didn’t think of it? She says she is the maid of honor. Doesn’t that mean you asked her? Why didn’t you talk to me about that? I figured you would ask Mia, but if we are doing family, my sister is going to be upset that you didn’t ask her. You spend more time with her anyway.”

“I know, and she can be a bridesmaid. And I didn’t ask Gabby, she just assumed and I didn’t know what to say. . .  and now I think it is just too late. Mom and Gabby would never forgive me.”

“Your sister is such a spoiled brat. And you are as bad as the rest, unable to tell her no.”

“Please don’t get started, I want to be happy right now, not fight.”

“Well, sometimes you need to fight. You need to learn to stand up to them.” Alex continued his rant against her entitled family and their rigid adherence to traditions. Jenna felt a migraine starting in the back of her head and she tried to mentally muffle his voice while she soothingly spoke words of appeasement. She hoped whoever was in the room next door would not hear them. The resort was so quiet, but Alex was not adjusting his volume to his surroundings. As he continued, she rubbed her temples and thought back to Gabby’s planning. If they hurried, they might be able to book the wedding for this summer. It would be a stressful six months, but she could survive six months of this, right? And then the maid of honor issue would be a thing of the past, as long as she stayed with Gabby. Mia would get over it, but Gabby and their mother would not. It wasn’t what she wanted, but she could live through it. Life has plenty of trials. This was just another one. It would be short-lived and then equilibrium would be restored.