It was a hot afternoon and there was no breeze whatsoever. Glenn held the paper loosely in one hand, fanning himself. He knew Stephanie would have liked to have saved it for a scrapbook or something, but it was folded now and keeping him from melting. He was sure she could probably call Beth in a few weeks and get another copy. It wouldn't be the copy they got today, but she should have gotten her own copy instead of just telling saying she'd share his. Or Beth and Derek should have picked a place with air conditioning.It felt like it must have been 100 degrees and Glenn felt himself drifting. He jerked himself awake to hear "...If any of you can show just cause why they may not lawfully be married, speak now; or else for ever hold your p---."
"Now hold on a minute, son," came a voice from the back of the church.
In an instant, everyone was roused and there was a lot of noise as the entire church turned to look towards the back of the church.
Now that, Glenn, surmised, was a man who was about to pass out. He raised his hand to his brow and wiped the sweat from his eyes with white handkerchief. Multiple rings adorned his pudgy fingers.
Murmurs began to arise and a few people laughed nervously.
Glenn swung around quickly to look at Beth and Derek. They were grinning, hardly able to contain themselves.
"Now, I hate to bring bad news to all you kind folks," Elvis drawled, "but these young'uns can't be married today."
The murmuring came to a halt and a few gasps were heard.
The jumpsuit must be straining at the seams and smell awful, Glenn thought. He wondered if it was a rental or if the fat man owned it.
Derek's father rose to his feet as Elvis strode towards the front of the church but Derek's mom grabbed his arm, practically yanking him back down. He looked troubled but she was smiling and patted his arm.
As Elvis reached the front, the pastor handed him a microphone. Glenn settled back in his seat. He had wondered how Derek and Beth were going to explain this. Elvis quickly explained that Derek and Beth had already been married, a few weeks prior, in Vegas. What was happening today was actually just a renewal of their vows, a way to make the commitment in front of their families that they had already made to each other. After three years of dating, why the Vegas wedding a few weeks earlier? Elvis said something kind and soothing, but Glenn knew. The families had been out of control, frantic. Beth and Derek had had enough and they had hopped a plane to Vegas, gotten married and turned around and flown back. It was the only way they had to maintain any sense of control on what was supposed to be their event. Glenn knew there was something different about them in the last few weeks leading up to it, a sense of calm as the madness swirled around them and wondered what they had up their sleeve.
But this, pure genius.
120 originally referred to creative writing that took 2 minutes (on a timer) but now refers to any creative writing I do on my blog.
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