Eli
May 19, 2018
Pop adjusts my tie. “You clean up well, Striker.” He takes my cheek in his hand, like he used to do when I was a kid. “Your mom is very proud of you today.” He pauses. “You made the right choice with Alex. She’s a keeper.”
We look in the mirror together, and I’m the spitting image of him but younger.
“You raised Mer and me right, Pop. I hope you know that. Despite what you might think sometimes, you raised us with integrity. Raised us to be honest. To own up to our mistakes. You taught us that being happy is far better than being right.”
Pop has tears in his eyes. I’ve never seen my dad cry.
“Fate, son. Fate. You got right-headed. The rest followed.”
Merit pops her head in the room. She’s in her pink bridesmaid dress. Ryan, Ethan, and Aaron come in through the back door of the room we’re getting ready in.
“We’re on in five, little brother.” Before she shuts the door, she pops her head around again. “Oh, and you clean up well, boys.” Merit catches Ryan’s eye on the way out.
Alex was definitely in the media’s eye, but everyone treated them like human beings, not celebrities—though they did get some special treatment. At Oceanside Deli—now a deli in town where Hello, Good-Pie used to be—a special was added to the menu—the Alli Burger. And the description says, Inspired by Alex and Eli, a Granite Harbor love story that keeps living—with extra lettuce. I’m not quite sure where they learned about the ongoing inside joke.
Alex chose to get married in Granite Harbor. She said there were too many memories in Belle’s Hollow. She wanted something new. Something fresh. A new beginning. I respect that, but I would have married her in a courthouse. I would have married her anywhere.
We chose springtime to get married—the quicker, the better. We didn’t want to waste another day apart.
I stand next to the pastor. Ryan is next to me, then Aaron, and Ethan. Rookie is sitting at my feet, his ears at attention. Half of the Maine Warden Service is sitting in the audience with their wives and husbands. Hell, most of Granite Harbor is here. I’m almost positive, if you walk down Main Street right now, you’ll see signs that say, Closed. Be back in an hour. Attending the Young wedding.
Ryan leans in. “You ready? I have a car waiting in back if you panic.” He gives a slow chuckle as he leans back into standing position.
Bryce, Merit, and Lydia are standing on the opposite side, impatiently waiting for Alex, just like I am.
I haven’t seen her since last night.
We chose to get married in a bed-and-breakfast. Alex fell in love with The Harbor Inn.
The music stops, and everyone stands and looks back toward the inn.
There are defining moments in our lives. Moments we flash to that make us stronger, wiser, braver. That give us courage. There are moments that bring us to our knees. This is one of them.
Alex’s hair is up off her neck, and Philip’s jean jacket is over her white dress. I feel my heart start to pick up pace with each step she takes toward me, toward our future. I feel the knot that begins to form in my throat because I’ve never seen anything as perfect or as beautiful as the woman moving toward me. Everyone in the audience has disappeared, and it’s just Alex and me.
The space around us grows quiet, and the pastor says, “Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”
“Her father and I do,” Meredith says.
Philip passed not long after I asked him for his daughter’s hand in marriage. Meredith packed her belongings, sold the house, and moved out here with us. Meredith doesn’t have to lean in and tell me to take care of their daughter. She knows I’ll always put Alex first. Always keep her heart well. Love her. Give her what she needs. Give her room to grow. Be independent. Bring her soup when she’s sick. Help heal old wounds.
Rookie groans quietly, and it brings me back to the crowd of people. He puts his paw up toward Alex.
“Yeah, me, too, boy.”
She bends at her waist and gives him a kiss on the head. “You’ve got a beautifully handsome dad, Rookie.” She only says it to where I can hear it.
I take her hand and gently pull her up. I stare into her eyes. Before the pastor begins, I lean in and whisper, “A thousand times I do. I will. Always. Forever.”
Before he says, You may kiss the bride, he says, “And, Eli, will you promise to love and cherish the Golden State Warriors for as long as you both shall live?”
I laugh, as does everyone else. “Absolutely. If that’s what it takes.” I look at Alex, who’s laughing. “Well played, Mrs. Young. Well played.”
She leans in and pulls my hands around her hips, and she holds my cheeks in her hands. “Kiss me, husband.”
“I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Eli Young.”