Take My Hand



Rianna was pacing back and forth. Her hands shook. Her toes tingled. Was she really going to go through with it? Would Nick be her husband by the end of the night? How her hands shook more. What if she fell walking down the aisle? Even worse, what if she fell and her dress tore?

“Would you calm down? Nick’s the one who is supposed to have cold feet.” Kristen said, hypocritically. For she cried from nervousness before marrying Kevin. Kristen was big with child now, sitting in a chair conservatively while fixing Rianna’s veil. Her maternity bride's maid's dress fitting quite nicely.

Nick wasn’t nervous at all. Thoughts of their long honeymoon ahead calmed him. At some moments, his skin would turn beat red just imagining how his wife-to-be would look on the beach in one of her cute little bikinis.

When the time came, Marcy helped Rianna walk out of the room. They went to the sanctuary doors of the huge Catholic church and waited. Angel went in first alongside her twin. A stringed orchestra began playing, and Rianna was shocked to hear it.

“Where did they come from? I never planned for an orchestra to come!” Rianna said, tensing up.

“Relax. Nick did some planning of his own.” Marcy said to ease her sister’s nerves. Josh took Lesley’s arm and they walked in.

Rianna started breathing deep as BJ walked in with Damon by her side. Then Kristen with father-to-be, Kevin. Marcy was up. She smiled and kissed her sister’s cheek. AJ nudged Rianna on the arm and winked, letting her know everything would be ok. She watched her sister walk down the aisle, and she knew her time was near.

Brian took Lee’s hand. They looked at each other, probably thinking back on their wedding day. Rianna could see the love and happiness in their eyes. She wanted that with Nick. That perfect union that nothing could tear asunder. Her hands stopped shaking. She was calm at last.

The ring bearer, the son of one of Nick’s friends, headed toward the end of the aisle. The youngest member of Rianna’s dance classes, Natalie, twirled down after him, sprinkling white rose petals everywhere. Rianna was proud, having taught Natalie to twirl like that.

Vincent took his daughter’s hand. She looked up at him. She smiled, a tear in his eye. They entered the room.

Des’ree brought the microphone to her lips and began to sing “Kissing You”. It was unconventional, but it always made Rianna emotional in a good way. She couldn’t believe Nick remembered how much she loved that song. She also couldn’t believe he did all of this behind her back. She began to cry. The large crowd of guests stood and watched her enter. Nick came into view. He was wearing his chic silver-rimmed glassed that she liked so much. And he looks so handsome standing there in his tuxedo, waiting.

She wanted to run to him. To tell him how wonderful he was for making their wedding even more perfect.

Nick watched her. She was so beautiful in her dress. He didn’t want to cry in front of his friends. But he couldn’t help it. Silently, he thanked God for blessing him with such a gorgeous woman whom he loved and he knew loved him.

Vincent took his seat after letting his little girl go. He though back to when she was a baby and drooled all over his suit. Then when she was a school girl, front teeth missing. Her hair always in pigtails. He thought back to her first date and her first heartbreak. Ah, his little girl. As she took Nick’s hand, the priest asked who was to give her away.

“Give her away? My baby. Mi hija. How can I give her away?” He thought to himself. But she turned back to look at him. She looked exactly the way she looked when she was seven. Standing outside in the sun with the cutest grin. She was a woman now. And how lovely she was. He stood up.

“My wife and I give her away.” He said, proudly. The priest nodded and continued with his introduction.

As Rianna and Nick read their written vows to each other, Martín squirmed. He wanted so badly to speak up. But to ruin Rianna’s wedding would make her hate him. And he couldn’t live with that. They both lit a large white candle. Martín grew tense.

“....You may now kiss the bride.” was heard. Martín slowly got up and left quietly, not being noticed by anyone.

Nick leaned in and lifted Rianna’s veil. Their lips met and everyone clapped. Women wiped their eyes. Children mimicked the kiss. Nick and Rianna were husband and wife.

Later at the reception, Rianna noticed that Marcy and AJ were missing. She panicked and whispered her fears to Nick. He almost choked on his champagne.

“Come on! They wouldn’t do that now! They probably just went to get a drink or something out at the bar.” Rianna remembered that there was a bar and other refreshments outside of the ballroom they occupied. “It’s our wedding day...don’t worry about them.” Nick finished. The DJ stopped the music and made an announcement.

“We have a very special surprise for the bride. Rianna, your husband dedicates the next song to you.” She felt faint.

“Touch my skin and tell me what you’re thinking.
Take my hand and show me where you’re going.

Lie down next to me, look into my eyes...
And tell me, oh tell me what you’re seeing.
So sit on tip of the world and tell me how you’re feeling.
What you feel is what I feel for you.
Take my hand, and if I’m lying to you...
I’ll always be alone, if I’m lying to you....” The curtains parted and Dido was standing in the center of the stage. In the spotlight. There was a live band and the orchestra from earlier behind her.

“See my eyes, they carry your reflection.
Watch my lips, and hear the words I’m telling you.
Give your trust to me, and look into my heart.
And show me, and show me what you’re doing.
So sit on top of the world and tell me how you’re feeling.
What you feel is what I feel for you.
Take my hand, and I’m lying to you...
I’ll always be alone, if I’m lying to you...
Take your time, and if I’m lying to you...
I know you’ll find that you believe me, you’ll believe me, you’ll believe me. You’ll believe me.” Rianna couldn’t resist and pulled Nick out on the dance floor to dance.

“Feel the sun on you face,
And tell me what you’re thinking.
Catch the snow on your tongue,
And show me how it tastes....” The lights went to Marcy and AJ sitting next to each other on stools. Both with guitars in their laps. Both playing together. Rianna couldn’t believe how cute they looked together, so in tune with each other.

“Take your time...
Take my hand, and if I’m lying to you,
I’ll always be alone, if I’m lying to you.
Take your time, and if I’m lying to you,
I know you’ll find that you believe me.
Take my hand, and if I’m lying to you,
I’ll always be alone, if I’m lying to you.
Take your time, and if I’m lying to you,
I know you’ll find that you believe me...
You’ll believe me. You’ll believe me.
You’ll believe me. You’ll believe me.” As the song ended, Rianna turned to her husband.

"How on earth did you manage to get Dido and Des’ree here?” She questioned. Still baffled with it all.

“Connections.” was his simple reply. She rested her head on his chest and they danced as Dido started to sing another song. She took a deep breath and savored the beauty and perfection of their wedding.

The very next day, Nick and Rianna flew off to Fiji to honeymoon. Upon their return 2 weeks later, Rianna moved in with him... bringing her cat, fish, and all of her candles. AJ bought Rianna’s old house and gave it to Marcy as a gift so she’d live closer to him.

Nick and Rianna had to compromise with the furniture and decor of his house. Nick was a green fanatic. Everything had to be green in his house. Hunter, forest, jungle, puke— every kind of green you could think of, Nick loved.

Rianna, however, loved blue. Blue, silver, and black. She wanted everything to be blue. Baby blue, sky blue, midnight blue, navy, denim, any shade of blue known to man. To top it off, silver and black HAD to go with it.

Finally they decided to do the whole master bedroom and bathroom in Rianna’s colors. Nick wanted her happy in the room he knew they’d spend 98% of their time. To compensate for his kindness, Rianna transformed one of the guest rooms into a game room for Nick. Or a “boom-boom room” as some would call it.

The floors were carpeted to resemble a football field, miniature yards marked and everything. She got two large green leather recliners and sat them in front of a brand new 60" TV. Autographed posters of the Tampa Bay Bucs were mounted all over the walls, even though she was partial to the Ravens. There was a pool table, black top. A bar, stocked with liquor she knew Nick didn’t need but he would love to have there in case he wanted to get tipsy. The sound system in the room was to die for. There were speakers in each corner of the room and whenever a game was on, Nick felt like he was on the field with the players. She had all of his game consoles near the TV, as well as an expensive DVD player with several of his favorite movies.

AJ, Kevin, Brian, and Howie marveled at Rianna’s gift to her man. Brian secretly wondered why Lee never thought of something like it.

Their relationship was strong and filled with love. And it went on this way as the months passed.


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