Chapter 2-4: Going to the Chapel

                Shane stretched as he woke, trying to remember why he felt like he had been beaten in the head with a dozen hammers. Oh my God! No,”  he screamed internally, the bachelor party and the drinking and the wedding finally all coming to him at once. 

                “What time is it, what time is it,” he exclaimed, fumbling for his phone.

                “Hey brother, what’s up,” Tanner said as he sauntered into the foyer, which, at the moment was the living/sleeping room.

                “What’s up? You’re grounded. End of story,” Shane roared as he discovered that it was 3:45pm. His wedding was in 15 minutes.

                “Whoa, what are you talking about,” Tanner griped, arms crossed.

                “I am getting married in 15 minutes and you didn’t even bother to wake me up,” Shane was on a roll now and might just have an aneurysm if he didn’t calm down.

                “Shane, Carrie called while you were asleep. She said that Father Thomas called and said that the church had an electrical problem. Apparently the contractors who built the new fellowship center shorted something out. They’re moving the wedding to tomorrow. She said she and her mother had already called all the guests to let them know.”

                “Oh thank God. Okay, you’re off the hook. Sorry I freaked out,” Shane apologized as Tanner waved a hand forgivingly and headed to work.

                Shane spent the evening cleaning up the house and tending to the garden. He had been lucky with the electrical work and now wanted to make the best of it. The house should be sparkling when he brought his new wife home for the first time. He went to sleep that night, finally able to rest easy and just allow his excitement to wash over him.

                The following morning, he woke early. Pre-wedding jitters he supposed. He noticed he had a voicemail. A friend had recommended him to the business office to work on their accounts books. Though no accountant by any means, Shane certainly had an eye for numbers and figured that he would head over there early to see if he could help out. After some number crunching, he finally got everything in order and was even compensated for his time. His phone rang, just as he was leaving for the hospital.

                “Shane, Dr. Coddle-Prudence here,” she responded curtly.

                They were still friends but she had risen through the ranks at the hospital faster than he had and was now his boss. She was determined to keep their office relationship strictly business and never allowed their long friendship to influence her managing style or workload. He admired her for that but sometimes she tried a little too hard to be “the boss”.

                “Hey Jeannie, what’s up,” he asked lightly.

                “Dr…oh never mind. We’re running a vaccination clinic at the Town Center today. I need you to head it up. I’ve got some things going on here that need to be taken care of,” and with that, she hung up.

                Luckily Shane was in the area and only needed to head across the street. He’d never done live vaccinations before and was worried about the outcome but he knew he couldn’t let Jeannie down. Plus, this just might be another notch in his belt on his way to becoming a surgeon.

                “Alright Mr. Greenwood, this shouldn’t hurt a bit,” Shane soothed the old man’s concerns.

                “What? You don’t look like no doctor to me,” he yelped, trying to pull away. Shane was faster though and managed to vaccinate him successfully.

                “Oh, that wasn’t so bad,” Shark admitted as he went back to his chess game.

                After that, the clinic seemed to speed by. Shane lost track of how many people he vaccinated and when it was all over, he still had to head to the hospital. As soon as he got back, Jeannie called him into her office.

                “Shane, sit, please,” she instructed.

                “Yes, Dr. Coddle-Prudence?” He usually would have called her Jeannie but she sounded serious so he figured caution was the way to proceed for the moment.

                “I hear you did a great job at Town Center today. 10 vaccinations, which is fantastic for your first clinic. I am hereby promoting you to medical intern. Now, go get married. I’ll see you in a few hours,” she said with a wink and smile.

                He headed to St. Simmin’s church to get ready for the wedding, making sure to have Tanner scout out the way ahead to make sure he didn’t see Carrie before their moment. After they finished getting ready, they decided to play some foosball while they waited for the ceremony to start.

                “Are you ready for this,” Tanner asked.

                “What do you mean, of course I am,” Shane responded with a smile and a goal.

                “I just mean that you’re just getting started at the hospital and, of course, I still live with you. I just imagine that it’s going to be tough.”

                “Yes I’m ready. Don’t bring this up. I’ve just convinced myself that everything will be fine,” Shane responded, trying not to think any more on how to make this work.

                In the next room, Carrie was preparing herself for her walk down the aisle. She knew that it would be a tough day. What she had failed to mention to Tanner during the phone call yesterday was that her mother had passed in her sleep on the day that should have been her wedding. She didn’t want Shane freaking out and postponing the wedding indefinitely but she hadn’t wanted those 2 events to occur on the same day. In her mind, they would always be linked but the separate days would go a long way in making the occasions distinct from each other. She would tell Shane at the reception where he was sure to notice her mother’s absence along with her siblings. Dorothy was busy explaining things to her kids, Quiana and Fernando were too distraught to attend a joyous event. Carrie was sure they didn’t even understand how she could go through with it. She knew that it was the best decision though.

                As she walked down the aisle, Shane’s eyes were only on his beautiful bride. He couldn’t believe that, by the end of the night, they would be married and sharing the rest of their lives together. He was ecstatic and, for once, all of his nerves had abandoned him. He heard Carrie whisper to Goodwin just before she stepped up to him but her words were lost in the timeless sound of the wedding march.

                “Are you sure you’ll be okay Daddy,” she whispered to her father, worried that losing her and her mother so close would devastate hime.

                “Baby, I couldn’t be happier,” he smiled through tears. “Now, get up there and get married.”

                The vows were read, the rings exchanged and before she knew it, she was Mrs. Avendale, kissing her husband in front of God and their friends and family.

               

                Shane and Carrie headed into the reception hall, ready to eat and celebrate and dance. After everyone had been given the opportunity to eat, Goodwin sat down with the newlyweds.

                “I know it isn’t much, but your mother and I prepared for each of your future’s. We want to give you §5,000 to help start your lives together.”

                “Oh daddy! That’s too generous,” Carrie exclaimed.

                “Just please. Take it and cherish each other and take care of your family. It’s the most important thing we’ve got.”

                Shane stood and shook his father-in-law’s hand. He couldn’t believe that Carrie’s parents were willing to give them so much as a wedding present, especially after planning and preparing for the whole affair as well.

                “Sir, we will use it wisely. Thank you so much.”

               

                “I can’t believe your parents,” Shane confided in Carrie as they greeted guests. “Where is your mother by the way. I haven’t seen her all evening.”

                “Shane, let’s talk about this later.”

                “Carrie, what’s wrong? You look like you’re about to cry.”

                “Shane, mom passed away Saturday night. That’s really why we didn’t get married yesterday. I couldn’t bear to do it. Father Thomas was more than understanding and quickly made the arrangements to postpone for a day.”

                Instead of being mad, as she had thought he would be, Shane did the unexpected. He pulled her into his arms and just held her closely, not saying a word. When he pulled back, he just smiled and led her onto the dance floor.

                As their first dance ended, Shane leaned over to his new bride.

                “How about we head home Mrs. Avendale? Get some much needed rest, after such a long day,” he suggested with a hint of playfulness and surreptitious wink.

                “Sounds good to me,” she replied with a wink of her own.

                Though not the first to leave, the newlyweds left many people dancing and having fun behind.

                Shortly after arrviving back at the house, Shane and Carrie had their first disagreement as husband and wife.

                “No bed? How have you been living like this,” Carrie cried out.

                “Carrie, we aren’t exactly rolling in money, like some people. We’ve been doing the best we could. Better not look through the rest of the house,” he sneered, his pride wounded.

                “First thing tomorrow, we ARE buying furniture. Now c’mon,” she said as she headed down the hall.

                ‘Where are we going,” Shane asked, puzzled when they ended up in the bathroom. “Um, what are we doing in here?”

                “Arguing is not the way to spend our wedding night. And bed or no bed, we’re going to make this marriage official,” she jokingly replied.

                Still puzzled, Shane just stood there. Carrie stripped down and quickly hopped in the shower.

                “Oh that’s what you mean,” Shane said with a grin and hopped in with her.

                The next day, after Tanner had left for school, Carrie and Shane went furniture shopping.

                “What about this one,” Carrie asked.

                “Ugh, all you need is a princess crown and some hot pink to accessorize and we’d be all set,” Shane replied, wrinkling his nose. “This one would be fine.”

                “Shane! That is barely fit for a house. I think it’s what the cheap motels might use,” Carrie rejected the simple brass bed with barely a glance.

                “I think I may need something for this headache,” Shane grimaced.

                “Oh shush you big baby. Okay, what about this one,” she said, stopping in front of a wooden frame. “It’s not too feminine and it looks really comfortable.”

                Shane agreed to it. Before they left, they also chose a bed for Tanner as well. It was time he had his own room and bed as well. The beds were to be delivered that night so no more sleeping in the foyer in sleeping bags.

                On their way home, Carrie wanted to stop in one more place.

                “What are we doing here,” Shane asked.

                “Just give me a minute, okay,” she answered, going inside.

                “Hi, my name is Carrie. I was wondering if you had any open positions,” Carrie asked the older woman in the salon.

                “Well, we do, but that decision is up to Brett. Go talk to him,” she said, pointing to a man outside. “I’m Daisy, by the way.”

                Carrie went outside and spoke with Brett for a few minutes, animatedly. She had always been interested in fashion and saw it now as an opportunity for her family.

                “It won’t be glamorous but if you think you can handle the pressure, you start now. Make sure to get a good idea about fashion because I’m not sure you have what it takes,” he said, looking her up and down before he headed inside.

                “Shane, I got the job,” she exclaimed.

                “Congratulations honey! C’mon, I’m taking you out to lunch,” he said, pulling her along.

                After they had sat down, he started asking her questions about what she would be doing and what her goals were. Whether she had thought it completely through or not, he was proud of her and knew that this was something she would be good at. She even started chatting fashion with some of the other customers at the restaurant.

                “Honey, look, look," Carrie exclaimed later that week after checking the mail. “We got wedding presents!”

                She had already hung the odd assortment of paintings on the wall and made a place for the food processor on the empty counter.

                “Um, they’re…nice,” Shane replied not very enthused about the satyr, weird pink woman, and panda plaque.

                “They’re lovely. Though sitting next to each other they look rather weird.”

                “Who are they from?”

                “Um, the satyr is from Jeannie, the processor from Emil, the pandas from Hubert, and the pink woman is from, from, hmm, let me look at the card. Oh yes, the Greenwood-Rackets. Was lovely for everyone to send gifts. Now I just need to write some thank-yous.”

                “Carrie, not to be overly critical, but those aren’t really what you have in mind for decorations for the home, do you?

                “Well, no, but as gifts, they’re nice.”

                “Why not sell the paintings and still write the thank you cards?”

                “Oh Shane, that would be so tacky! What would we do if one of them came over?”

                “Tell the truth? We could certainly use a bit more money to get things we actually need.”

                “Yes, I suppose you are right,” Carrie pouted though willing to be admit his logic. “I guess I’ll get started on the thank you cards and we can take these to an art dealer tomorrow.”

                The satyr painting alone turned out to be worth over §7,000 so, along with the generous gift from Goodwin, Shane and Carrie were able to start making their house more like a home, including a full kitchen. Carrie, coming from a wealthy family, chose the best of the best in counters and appliances so the recent simoleans did not extend much past the kitchen though. 

                Shane realized that he was going to have to really put forth more than his best effort at work to keep his lovely bride happy. He sighed and went to bed, thinking about tomorrow and hopefully a promotion, again.

Chapter 2.3                                                                                                                                           Chapter 2.5