Fire & Ice - Chapter 39: Chapter 39

After the proposal, there was this new light in mom. This new found peace and happiness that chase away the last lingering thoughts of PJ's passing. Mom continued to see Doctor Gamble bi-weekly and she has really been improving. Since I've been home, mom and I have been to a few sessions together to work through the things that happened during that time. It helped mom finally start to let go of the guilt she has held inside this entire time after we got out from under PJ. While I see Doctor Gamble for our group sessions, I still have individual virtual sessions with Doctor Ellis. He has already helped me through so much at school, I wanted to continue to have sessions with him over the summer.
Since the proposal I talked it over with mom and Alyssa and they both wanted to get married soon. They didn't want to wait or have this big grand wedding. So they thought of having it weekend after the 4th of July party. Most of everyone we wanted to invite would still be in town from the 4th party. What they decided on was to get married at the court house and then have a little ceremony at the reception. With so little time, we didn't have much luck finding a place to hold the reception.
But in the midst of trying to plan things out, I posted a picture of mom and Alyssa on Instagram showing off mom's new ring and wishing them congratulations. That's when I got a phone call from mom's sister with a venue. Turns out she works for Westbury Manor a traditional Victorian mansion with formal English gardens that would be perfect for a summer wedding. She was able to pull some strings and booked mom's wedding for the weekend after the 4th. During the phone call, mom was concerned about how expensive this reception just got but my grandfather got on the phone and told us that everything is going to be covered. There was a bit of fighting back and forth about that, but he wouldn't back down. He is going to be paying for this wedding no matter what mom said.
With all of the venue stuff now taken care of, Aunt Rosie got to work to get everything else ready for the wedding while I hopped onto a flight to visit Cassie. Getting caught up in all of the wedding planning almost made me forget about my trip to see my girlfriend. Though when I got to the airport for my flight out to Wisconsin, I did change my return flight home by shortening my trip. What was supposed to be ten days turned into six so I could help with the rest of the planning.
Seeing Cassie waiting for me at the airport was a sight for sore eyes. I missed my girl so much and I was happy to be able to still see her. At first I thought I might have to cancel the trip to see her. Cassie told me that helping to plan my mothers wedding was more important then the visit, but I still insisted on coming to see her. And I made it work. I wanted to make sure that I put the effort into coming and see her after being away for so long, even if I shorten the trip.
We spent our days together mostly in her backyard enjoying the warm weather. Chad joined us for some of it and even blew up a small inflatable pool for us to dunk into. Sunny had a lot of fun in the water and it made me want to get a pool like this one for my own home to see if Frank was a water dog.
On a particularly warm day Cassie took me to out to Lake Koshkonong to enjoy the sun by the water. The lake was definitely different from the ocean but we had a nice time together. We hiked around one side of the lake to a little sand area that didn't any other people around and made a little camp for the day. Cassie surprised me and pulled off her yoga pants to relieve a pair of small tight swim trunks then pulled off her tank top to show off a bikini top before running off the little dock and jumping into the water. Her good mood was infectious as I stripped down to my own bathing suit and followed her into the water. We spend the whole day in and out of the lake and having a picnic.
That night it just so happened that Chad was out at a party and Willa and Marshall went out with friends to a show, so we had the house to ourselves. After having dinner and taking a shower to wash the lake off of us, we ended our night together in bed naked. It was definitely my favorite day with her while I was in Wisconsin.
In a blink of an eye, my trip came to an end and I was on the flight back home to Boston with a promise to see Cassie in a short week. Travis picked me up from the airport when I landed as both Alyssa and mom were working. Both of them were working a lot in June to make up for basically taking most of the month of July off for the 4th of July party and the wedding. With Aunt Rosie's help, they almost managed to book a week in Martha's Vineyard as a honeymoon.
On the drive back to my house, Travis told me he broke the news to Dawn and Malcolm about his plans to drop out of college to pursue music. At first they were both not okay with the plan, they didn't think that it was a good idea. They wanted him to finish school and get a degree first. Travis let them think about it for a few days but didn't have the heart to tell them that he already signed the record deal with the band. Finally they started to come around and Travis told them to just watch the band play our party and if they didn't think it was a good idea, then he would go back to school. I told Travis is was a risky plan but he already put all of his eggs in this basket and wasn't going to give up this dream. I told Travis if he needed any back up to let me know and I'll try to smooth some things out with Dawn and Malcolm as we pulled into my driveway. He just smiled his Travis smile and told me everything will work out in the end.
I waved bye from the front porch and watched Travis drive away. Later that night when mom and Alyssa came home they filled me in on everything that they had already booked and worked on while I was away. One major change was that they were gong to have the actual wedding ceremony at Westbury Manor and not at the courthouse. They said it turns out more people then they anticipated wanted to see them tie the knot. It made me smile and I pulled both of them into a hug.
They also made up a list of things that they still needed to get in order before the ceremony. That was going to be my project along with getting everything ready for the 4th of July party. I just rolled with it and started to make a list of things that needed to be done for that party and I had a lot of work to get down before the next weekend.
One thing that quickly became a problem was my lack of a car. After two days taking ubers around town because mom and Alyssa were both working or running errands themselves and Travis was busy, I brought it up to mom that I thought it was time I got a car for myself. We still have the money from PJ that we have barely used and mom thought it would be a good idea. So the next morning we went to a Jeep dealer and mom talked the salesman into a great deal for me. Mom co-signed the car with me because I don't have that much financial credit and we called up the insurance to get me my own policy for the new car. I ended up getting a new Jeep Grand Cherokee with a few extra's in it like heated steering wheel and heated sets. When we got the final price of the car we left the dealer and went to the bank and got a bank check to pay for the car in full.
We went back to the dealer later that night and picked up my new car after basically signing my life away. When I got the keys and started it up for the first time I almost cried. Mom just took my hand in hers and held onto it as I drove away from the dealer and brought it home. Alyssa was waiting in the driveway with a bottle of champagne in hand to celebrate with.
The day after we got my car, mom and I went dress shopping. Since she didn't have time to get it altered, she didn't think she was going to find anything she liked. We went to a few different stores and mom was about ready to give up on finding something when I pulled her into one last store. We spent about an hour combing through racks before I found a few I thought she might like before pushing her into the changing room to try them on.
The first two were both a hard no, they didn't fit. Then the third dress she tried on made me do a double take. The white knee length dress hugged mom's body perfectly. Three metal clasps accented both sides of the dress at her ribs, pulling the fabric just a tad and the inch thick straps holding the dress up fit moms height perfectly. I didn't say anything for a few moments, I couldn't, there were no words. Mom cried when she looked in the mirror and didn't bother trying on any other dresses. This was the dress.
As we finished up at the dress shop and got into my car to drive back home, mom stopped me from putting it into gear. I looked at her and she gave me a smile.
"You have been the most important person to me since you were born McKenna. There isn't anyone else I would want to give me away and stand by my side when I married the second most important person in my life." Mom said and I got a rush of goosebumps up and down my arms. I pulled her into a hug and accepted the new roll she wanted me to take, one that I would do in a heartbeat.
I was even more excited for wedding now. The day after Mom and I went dress shopping, Alyssa took me out with her brother to get a suit. We went to a nice shop and were able to get her a white suit for the big day that they were able to have tailored in time. Under the white jacket she is going to be wearing, Alyssa got a lacy tank top. Once she was taken care of, Austin and I got fitted for new black suits.
The rest of the week was full of planning for the 4th of July party. But before I knew it, Becca was pulling into my driveway. The drive down from Portland, Maine was just about 2 hours. I pulled my friend into a tight hug and helped her bring her bag inside. Stacey and Cassie actually are taking the same flight out here to Boston. Turns out it was easier for Stacey to get a flight to Boston by connecting through Wisconsin. It also made it easier on me as I was still running around trying to get everything in order for the party and the wedding.
We had pretty much all day to kill until Stacey and Cassie's flight comes in later so Becca helped me start organizing the food and drinks we already got for the party. Once everything was in a bit more order it made it easier to see what was missing and make a list. When that was done, Becca and I just took a seat on the deck chairs out back and relaxed for a bit and caught up on what we have been missing. Its been weird not having her right down the hall from me anymore. I've come to miss her banging down my door to get me to hurry up and to let her inside. I'm just happy she is going to be here for this party and the wedding.
As it got later in the day, we hit road to get to the airport. Both of us were really excited to see our girlfriends. When I pulled into the parking lot at the airport, Becca practically pushed herself out of my car before I even got it into park. Becca didn't make it far though; she didn't know where we needed to go so she double backed for me. She pulled me along trying to get me to walk faster but I didn't let her.
Finally we got to the right baggage claim area and I looked around. I didn't have to look to long because all of a sudden Becca was running and I found the two blondes she was aiming for. Cassie almost 6 inches taller then Stacey but an amused smile on her face at something Stacey said. But then all of a sudden, Becca jumped onto Stacey's back and both girls jumped. That's when Cassie turned around and looked in the direction Becca came from and found me. She gave me a smile as I took a few large steps to get over to her.
I pulled my girl into a hug and I heard her let out a breath of relief. It put a smile on my face as I just held onto her for a few extra moments before pulling away to give her a kiss. When we broke away I looked over at my friends and saw them still clinging to each other. It made me pause for a few moments. Becca and Stacey really seemed to care about each other and I think that thought finally clicked for me. That this isn't some fling like I thought it might have been over the course of the season.
Cassie took my hand in hers and pulled me over to help her get her bags. I also grabbed Stacey's as they came down with Cassie's as the other two still haven't let go of each other yet. They finally broke apart when I yelled at them to help with the bags. With Cassie using her cane and her other hand in mine, I only had one hand to pull Cassie's bag only. Stacey needed to get her own.
Finally we got everything together and made our way out of the airport and loaded up my car. Cassie was so excited to see it in person for the first time and she took the passenger seat as I loaded the trunk. On the way back to the house I stopped and we picked up dinner at my favorite Italian place. When I walked inside the owner Carmella pulled me into a hug and took two of our meals off the check. It put a smile on my face and she told me that her and her husband will be stopping by for the party.
When we got back to the house, Alyssa and mom were already home and were curled up almost asleep on the couch when we came through the front door. They woke up right away with all the noise and the smell of the takeout and joined us at the table. When I came home from school in May, it was one of the major purchases I saw. The large mahogany table has five chairs and then a bench on one side of the table. We all sat down and dove right into our food, all of us pretty hungry.
After dinner mom and Alyssa both retreated to there room for the night. We all took that as our cue to have a quiet night and we went upstairs. The four of us took turns in the bathroom getting cleaned up for bed before settling down for the night in our rooms. The other room that was upstairs, Mom and Alyssa actually turned it into a guest room for now which has been helpful. On the nights when card games went way into the early morning hours, the guest room has been a helpful hideaway for those too tired or drunk to drive home.
The rest of the week was spent getting the final touches together for the 4th of July party. All of the food was bought along with a lot of alcohol, mainly beer, wine and hard seltzers. Mom always stayed away from hard liquor, being as it brought up too many memories from PJ. Becca, Stacey, Cassie and I were put in charge of decorating the backyard and we had some fun with balloons and streamers. Next we put up a bunch of tables and chairs while Travis and Elliot set up a stage towards the back end of the yard. They ran all of the electric for the amps they were using and since there is no rain in the forecast it made setting everything up easier.
Finally the 4th of July came and I was happy to not have to worry about any more planning today. Today was reserved for fun only. Cassie and I woke up late and didn't move out of bed until Becca pounded on my door. I couldn't help but smile at the notion and slowly Cassie and I got out of bed. Cassie stayed in her shorts and threw on a tee-shirt and we walked downstairs behind a rowdy Becca and Stacey.
When we made it down the stairs mom and Alyssa were both already awake and working on breakfast in the kitchen. Cassie started on coffee while I took stock of what mom was already cooking. Alyssa pulled out a pan full of pancakes from the oven and she nodded towards the table. I brought them over to my friends and Cassie followed behind me with utensils and plates. Alyssa brought up the rear with a carafe of coffee and mugs while mom brought the milk and sugar.
Breakfast all together was a nice quiet affair, all of us too hungry and still a bit asleep to chat. Just as we were finishing Cassie got a phone call and went out back with Frank to take it.
"McKenna, is her whole leg like that?" Mom asked looking like she was about to cry.
"Her lower legs is worse, but yea it goes all the way up around her hip too." I said and focused on the door.
"How were they able to save her leg? That much burn damage just looks like the only option would have been to amputate." Alyssa asked looking concerned.
"I don't know, like I told you guys before, this isn't something she likes to talk about in the first place. She hasn't even talked about what happened again since she told me about the fire the first time." I said and sighed turning my attention to them.
"The burn unit she was in must have been a great one." Alyssa mused and sipped the last of her coffee.
"It was." Cassie said from behind us.
My head snapped back to the door and Cassie was standing just inside. Frank sat just by her side, sensing the tension. Cassie didn't say anything as she came and sat back down next to me at the table. I didn't say anything as I just took her hand in mine and gave her a smile.
"If the EMTs working the fire that night didn't divert the ambulance to St. Mary's Burn Unit, I would have woken up without a leg. But because they knew that they had a specialized burn unit, they brought me there instead of just the nearest hospital." Cassie said and ran a hand through her still short hair.
"I lost count of how many surgeries I had on it. There were so many drugs, still, are so many drugs for when things don't feel right. I'm still convinced sometimes that when my leg falls asleep and I lose feeling in it, that it's actually gone. It's just the new normal I have gotten used too." Cassie said and I couldn't help but wish she didn't have to go through that.
"I'm going to get dressed, you coming?" Cassie asked and looked at me. I just clenched my jaw and nodded.
Our hands stay intertwined all the way up to my room. When I walked in behind Cassie I made sure the door was shut before I pulled her into a hug. My arms wrapped around her stomach and just held her to me. I kissed the back of Cassie's head and just rested my forehead against her neck.
"I'm sorry about them. I was trying to get them to drop it but they just kept talking." I said quietly.
"Hey, you don't have to apologize for that. I forget sometimes that they haven't really seen it. I'm so used to you being around when I'm wearing much less and you don't bat an eyelash to it, you never had. Other people are always curious. Don't think I didn't see Becca and Stacey eyeing my leg as well. I try to not let it bother me so much anymore but it's still hard. It's going to be hot out today and I want to wear shorts and not think about people looking at my leg. All I want is to be your girlfriend." Cassie said still facing away from me.
"You'll always be my girlfriend Cass." I said.
"Always?" Cassie asked and turned in my arms to face me.
"Well, maybe one day girlfriend will be replaced with wife, but for now, you'll always be my girl." I said.
Cassie swallowed hard and her eyes started to water. It won't be any time soon, but I do see myself being with Cassie forever. She's it for me, my perfect pair. The love I always hoped to find. I leaned in to seal that promise with a kiss. When we broke apart Cassie and I got dressed for the day. Cassie put on a white Tommy Hilfiger tee-shirt with black shorts that come mid-thigh. I went with a black cut off tank top over a black and white bikini top with neon yellow swim trunks. I had a feeling before the day was over I'll end up wet.
Before we went downstairs I made sure to tell Cassie if she wasn't comfortable or someone was staring at her leg to tell me. I wanted her to be comfortable here and if that involved kicking someone out, then I'll do it without hesitation. With a few kisses in thanks, Cassie and I made our way downstairs.
Becca and Stacey were already waiting for us when we got there and we went to work putting the final touches on the backyard. Mom and Alyssa were setting up food and drinks on the tables outside while Frank kept trying and failing at getting a hotdog out of the cooler they were resting in.
Slowly but surely people started to roll into the backyard. First to arrive was Travis and the band with his parents following closely behind. Dawn and Malcolm went to help Mom and Alyssa with any last-minute things that popped up while my friends and I took a break and sat out on some lawn chairs to watch Travis and Elliot finish setting up.
One second it felt like it was only just us in the backyard, then I went inside to grab a few things to come back and find the place filled with people. As my eyes roamed around the yard I could recognize pretty much everyone back here and my smile grew. Finally, mom and I have a community to support us.
In the beginning of the party, I got to meet a lot of Mom and Alyssa's work friends. Some of them I knew from my own stays in the hospital and others from my trips there to visit. All of them raved about mom and how great she is at her job, how much they enjoyed getting to work with her because they knew with her around, their nights would be better. My face hurt from smiling so much.
I got to introduce Cassie to my family and they all loved her like I thought they would. It also put me at ease that throughout the conversation they never once said anything about Cassie's scaring. I could tell that it put Cassie at ease as she got to know my aunt and my cousins.
Travis introduced me to his manager that they signed with and it put me a little bit at ease to know that he wasn't a dirt bag who was going to screw them over. He wanted to come out to see the small show in person to get a feel for the band live and not just through a video that was posted on the internet. It made me smile to know that Travis is going to be in good hands with him and the band for once.
The party was going so well it was only natural that someone was going to come along and ruin it. I just grabbed another round for Becca, Stacey, Cassie and myself when I heard someone yell my name. I looked towards the voice and saw Alyssa pointing towards the gate. I whipped my head around and saw Tatianna McMichael stroll into my backyard and I almost dropped the beers in my hand.
Carefully, I put them all back into the cooler and walked quickly over to her to cut her off from going deeper into the crowd. The last thing I need is for someone else to see her. When Tatianna's eyes saw mine she looked relieved and walked right over to me.
"McMichael, what're you doing here?" I asked.
"I heard about the party; hell half the town knows about it. Thought I would come check it out for myself." Tatianna said and put her hands into the back pockets of her shorts.
"Yup, it turned out to a bigger production then my mom and I thought it would be. So, what really brings you by?" I asked and turned a bit towards the yard to find Cassie's eyes find mine like a lazar beam.
"I know we got a chance to talk on the ice after the season ended to clear some of the air between us but I wanted to try to have an actual conversation with you about everything that happened between us, if you're willing. I tried going by your old house but when I knocked there were new owners there." Tatianna said.
"Yea we moved after my mom got serious with her girlfriend. We also just needed to get out of that house finally." I said and clenched my jaw not giving Tatianna an answer just yet.
"That was another thing I wanted to say when I saw you. I know your father is a complicate subject for you but I do want to offer my condolences about his passing. My dad was on one of the fire trucks who got to the scene of the accident. He told me about it when I got home from school." Tatianna said and my eyes started to water.
"Uhm yea thanks. What's your number?" I asked and pulled my phone out of my pocket. Tatianna looked surprised but gave it to me anyway. Once I entered the new information into contacts I sent her a text with my number so she has it.
"I'm home until the second week of August when I go back to school. Text me and we'll set up a day to meet up. For now, do you want to stay? Travis' band is about to go on and this will probably be the only time you'll be able to see them before they blow up. They just signed with a manager." I said.
"Uhm okay, sure. He isn't in the shirt band anymore?" Tatianna asked and I couldn't help but laugh.
"God no. Now come on, my girlfriend is about two second away from coming over here and is probably only barely holding back Becca and Stacey from wanting to tackle you. If we bring them alcohol they my stay your execution for now." I said and nodded my head towards the coolers that I dumped our beers back into before seeing Tatianna.
Tatianna only nodded and followed my lead. We went back to my friends with the beers and they were pretty icy at first. The alcohol definitely helped them warm up to Tatianna a little bit before Dad Without Child came onto the stage for their show. Though they were only playing for my backyard of people, it still felt like we were in a packed bar with everyone dancing around and yelling their songs back at them.
The rest of the party was a huge success. Tatianna only stayed for the show and left right after they ended their set. Dawn and Malcolm had tears in their eyes when they met the bands manager for the first time and he gushed at how great the band was. Travis was beaming the whole time. Mom and Alyssa enjoyed the show a lot as well and pulled him into a hug thanking him for playing before they were pulled into another direction with their friends. Becca being the social butterfly she is found herself in the middle of a few different groups of people, Stacey standing resolute at her side. Cassie and I made our way through the crowds of people during the night, never staying anywhere for too long. When the fireworks started to go off by our neighbors we were pleasantly drunk and happily laying beside each other in the grass to watch them explode.