Chapter 106
Early in the afternoon, Ron drove back to his apartment to get changed. He was wearing a grey morning coat, dark grey slacks, a light grey vest, a carnation and a cravat. He pulled on the short silk grey gloves that matched the vest. His stomach was quivering as he looked at himself in the mirror. He felt like he was ready for the wedding and hoped that he was ready for marriage. If he wasn’t ready now, when would he ever be?
He met Chris at the church. The day had just grown colder and was overcast. Ron was chain smoking. Somewhere in his mind he worried if she would show up. Father Tom Orecchio was smoking with him and smiling and telling him that it was going to be alright. Chris Calvin laid a hand on his shoulder and said, “The Church is filling up.”
Ron lit another cigarette. The minister, Peter Fiesley, smiled at Ron from in back of his steel framed glasses. “I’ve practiced the poem that you selected, but I’m sure that I don’t read it as well as you.”
Ron smiled and said “You’ll do fine.”
Fiesley grinned back at him, “So will you.” He walked off to check on the bride’s arrival.
The Church was lit by candles that were on long thin poles down the center aisle. Ron and Celeste had been careful to order non drip candles at the request of Fiesley, but the wax was running down the sides and onto the red carpet.
Fiesley came back to them with a smile and clapped his hands together. “I think we’re all ready.”
Ron blurted, “She’s here?”
They all chuckled at him. Father Tom Orecchio said, “Yeah Ronnie, she wouldn’t take my advice. She showed up.”
This was Orecchio’s first ecumenical ceremony. He and Fiesley had worked through who would say what. They were both professionals. With Orecchio’s help, Celeste had gotten the annulment of her second marriage. Since Ron never mentioned the first one, which hadn’t taken place in a church anyway, he was free to bless the ceremony.
Ron went out with Chris and stood on the altar. He smiled his best dimpled grin and looked out at the gathering. Music from the pipe organ began. Angel truly looked like an angel as she walked down the aisle with her Aunt Tina. There were ahhs and ohhs from the bride’s side of the church. The first chords of “Here Comes the Bride” brought the people to their feet. Tina held Angel’s hand and looked a bit intimidated by the music and all the people.
When Ron saw her, he felt humbled. Her smile was huge. He hair hung perfectly curled down passed her shoulders. Mario looked debonair in his tux. But Ron never really made eye contact with him. His eyes were wide open. She carried a bouquet of white red and pink roses. There was a sparkle in her eyes and a beautiful cameo at her throat. She wore white open toes shoes with a thin strap at the ankle. She seemed to glide down the aisle.
When she reached Ron and they took each other’s hands, they felt lost and locked in their gaze. It was just then that Marjorie began to wail. These were not the soft tears of joy that someone hears at a wedding. They were more the piteous howls of grief that a person hears at the funeral of someone unexpectedly deceased.
As Fiesley began to speak the wailing grew louder. He raised his voice so that he could be heard. Celeste could hear it. She knew what it was. She knew who was doing it. She knew that each wail represented trouble in her future, but she could not turn away from his face and was pretty sure that he couldn’t hear anything.
Ron stood there mesmerized at the sight of her and the realization that she was going to be his wife. She was smiling back at him, confident and sure and frightened. Ron silently vowed to make her fears disappear.
Fiesley began to read, “Let me not admit impediments,” he paused and began again, “To the marriage of true minds, let me not admit impediments…”
The minister slaughtered the sonnet, but Ron didn’t hear it. He felt enveloped in the cocoon of warmth that shone out of her eyes.
The ceremony continued, as did the wailing. Anna heard it and while a part of her was offended by its implications, she respected its strength and simplicity. Tina heard it. She loved her older sister but hated being a maid of honor and now she was doing it for the third time. The first time she’d dreamed that Greg was hers. The second time, she understood what her sister was doing and accepted it. Now, she was more than skeptical. How many chances did you get? How many times could you put your family through this? Ron Tuck was not a factor in her thinking. She’d allowed herself to feel nothing from him.
George struggled with the urge to take Marjorie outside. He somehow knew that would make it worse. Harry Tuck heard her crying. He’d heard her crying like this just twice before. The first time was when she lost their first child. The next time was when she learned that he had been sleeping with one of her friends. Harry looked at his son and saw the blend of Marjorie and himself. It was still there. The distance mixed with the warmth. The brain mixed with the physical desire. If this was who he wanted, this was who Harry wanted for him. It was as simple as that.
Janine thought the wailing curious. She wondered what it meant and where it came from. She gazed at the solid figure of her husband and then over to her son and daughter and felt secure and safe.
Chis was fighting the urge to giggle. The enduring quality of the wailing was admirable. He could see that Ron didn’t hear it and thought that was a bit of a miracle.
Quimpy felt a pang in his chest. Celeste should have been his and now Ron had stolen her.
Fiesley said, “Ron, do you have words for Celeste?”
Ron looked into her eyes and grasped her cold hands. For the first time, he realized how nervous she was. He tried to exude the warmth that he felt in his heart through his hands and his eyes and then his words. “I promise to love who you are, not who I want you to be. I promise to be there for you no matter what happens. I promise to trust you and not doubt your love or your actions. I promise that I will never leave you. I promise to protect you and to protect Angel.” He saw her eyes open a little wider. Angel had not been in the original version of the vows that they created. “I promise to make our lives as full and rich as they can be.” They were simple promises and Ron knew that each and every word was a vow. He wasn’t sure that he’d ever understood a vow before, but now that he was taking one, he knew beyond doubt that he would live up to it or die trying. It had been a very long time since he felt unstoppable, but he felt that way now.
Fiesley turned to Celeste. “Do you have words for Ronald?”
Celeste said, “I love who you are won’t try to change you. I love with my whole heart that you want me and know that I want you just as much. I know that some people may think that we are crazy, and we are, and I know for the first time in my life that it doesn’t matter as long as we continue to love and support each other.”
People say lots of things at weddings. Sometimes they say them to sound good. Sometimes they say what other people have told them to say. Sometimes they just say what the priest and minister want them to say. Ron and Celeste’s vows were not identical, but they were the same.
Harry didn’t listen to the words that closely. Words were ok, but they didn’t really mean that much. Marjorie felt like the words stuck into her like knives. Her wailing had reduced to whimpers. The words were beautiful but in her heart she still thought that they were being said to the wrong person. It should have been Julie. She could have loved and embraced Julie. It could have been worse. He could be up there saying them with Robin, but she would have learned to accept Robin, eventually. The mouse would have been easy. No, he never would have accepted a girl that she introduced him to. But why did it have to be this one who already had a child?
The pictures went on endlessly. Ron had never posed for so many photos in his life and his face hurt from smiling. He was sure that he had closed his eyes for at least half of the photographs. It had always been an effort for him not to blink and he could do it some of the time, but not for all of this.
There were pictures with Celeste. Pictures with his father. Pictures with his mother. Pictures with Anna who never looked at him once. Then there were the group pictures. Every combination of people imaginable. The photographer and the camera seemed insatiable.
Celeste had to stand for even more pictures than he did. Ron thought, she better at this than I am. She’s better at a lot of things than I am. But she’s mine now. It felt so strange to have someone say that they wanted you and would love who you were, not who you could be or who that person wanted you to be.
Chris drove Ron, Celeste and Tina to the reception. It was cold and everyone except Chris wanted a cigarette. Ron and Celeste sat in the back seat holding hands. The grinned at each other. “The hard part is over now,” said Ron. “Now it’s just the party.”
He had just said that when Tina set fire to the car. She dropped a lit match onto some papers on the front seat and the started smoking and then a shot of flame flickered. Ron remembered the apartment that had caught fire while he was asleep and thought that the fire had come to his wedding. The candles had dripped when they weren’t supposed to and now this. Chris pulled the car to the side of the parkway. Tina opened the door and jumped out before her dress got singed. Chris came around and stomped and then got rid of the smoking papers.
Back in the car, Chris said, “Well that was exciting.”
Tina said, “I’m really sorry.”
“Did it get anything important?” said Ron.
“What could be that important?” said Chris.
Tina turned around to Celeste. “I’m really sorry.”
“You didn’t mean it,” said Celeste.
Chris said, “Are you sure that we are supposed to make a left here?”
“No, it’s a right,” said Ron.
“Directions say left,” said Chris.
Ron looked at Celeste. Celeste winced. One of the things that she hadn’t gotten around to telling Ron was that she didn’t have the best sense of direction when it came to writing them down. She could get there but sometimes left and right got mixed up in her head. They found their way to the Women’s club.
People who had chosen to skip the church were more successful than those who tried to follow the directions. The people from Bergen County had a basic idea of where it was. Ron’s Essex County people were totally lost, except for Harry who had driven the route yesterday and seen the mistake. He hadn’t bothered mentioning it to anyone else.
When they went inside the club they saw about 30 people sitting in a cold room huddled in their coats. They did not smile at the bride and groom. Ron went looking for Mr. Miller and found him in his overcoat.
“Mr. Miller, the room is freezing.”
Roy Miller smiled at the groom who had not hired him to coordinate the reception. “Some people likes it warm and some people likes it cooler.”
“They’re freezing in there. Could you please turn the heat on?”
“Are you sure that you wouldn’t rather do that yourself?” said Miller.
It was then that Ron understood. “No, I’d prefer that you did it. I’m really supposed to be greetings people and such.”
“Alight, I’ll make it warmer.” Miller went to the thermostat and turned it up to 85 degrees.
When Ron came back downstairs, he saw Celeste looking troubled and worried. “What’s wrong?”
“Everything,” said Clare.
“What do you mean?”
“Let’s see, everyone is lost. The room is freezing and the bartender just left.”
“What do you mean he left?”
“He got beeped and told Bottles that he was sorry and that he had to go.”
Ron sighed and said, “Ok, what do we do now?”
“Bottles said that he would tend bar.”
It wasn’t what either of them wanted. Bottles was a good friend to Celeste and they had wanted him there as a guest, not an employee. “That’s really nice of him.”
“There’s something else.”
“Roger said that two of the waiters they hired didn’t show up and that they will have to serve buffet style.”
“That’s not so bad,” said Ron.
“Rita said that the kitchen is not what she thought it was going to be and that it’s going to take a lot longer than she thought.”
Ron felt the tension starting to build inside of him. “Ok, tell Bottles to make the drinks strong. If they can’t eat, let’s get them warm and drunk.”
It was then that Ron saw Marjorie and George come through the door. Marjorie looked at him like she wanted to spit. “How could you do this to me?”
“Do what?” said Ron.
“It took us an hour and a half to find this place and it’s freezing in here. Look at those people shivering in their coats!”
“The heat’s on now.”
“Well isn’t that nice. Usually you turn the heat on before the people arrive.”
“Mom, it’s my wedding,” said Ron.
“If that’s what you want to call it. I call it a disaster.”
Ron felt slapped. “I’ll do the best that I can.”
“Yeah,” said Marjorie with a disgusted grimace.
Ron looked over at the long line at the bar and saw Bottles working feverishly. Part of him wanted to go over and help, but he wouldn’t have known what he was doing and that kind of a move might actually drive Marjorie over the edge.
The room seemed to be getting warmer. Except for the older women who still sat in their coats and appeared to be shivering, other people had taken off their coats and were moving around in relative comfort.
It was then that Ron saw Anna and Mario come through the door carrying Angel. Anna was moving more quickly than Ron had seen her move before. She marched up to Celeste and gesticulated and said something that made Celeste shrink. Ron watched from a distance.
When Anna saw where she was seated, she turned at glared at the bridal table from the other side of the room. Marjorie hadn’t made her way to her table yet and didn’t realize. When Ron had moved the bridal table, he’d neglected to rearrange any of the other tables. As a result, both his family and Celeste’s family were seated in the rear of the room and the friends that were supposed to be there were now up front.
It was just then that Pipes waddled out carrying a milk box that would help him to reach the keys on the piano. When Ron walked over to shake hands with Pipes, he realized that his fingers were webbed. He wanted to ask how he managed to play the piano but he guessed that he would soon see.
Ron and Celeste found themselves explaining to the guests that there was a mistake in the directions for the next hour. Those of them that knew Celeste, looked at Ron and said, “You let her do the directions?”
Ron felt her blushing next to him and realized that he felt more badly for her than he did for the guests. When he saw Harry, he said, “Did you have any trouble getting here, Dad?”
Harry Tuck smiled his impish grin. “Not a bit.”
Celeste physically relaxed next to him. He could almost feel the tension go out of her body. Harry added, “I made the drive yesterday, figured it out.”
That was his dad. He was never going to get caught being lost. If he did get lost it would be on his own so that no one would ever know.
Marjorie said, “Why are we sitting way back here?”
“That’s my fault,” said Ron.
Marjorie frowned. “Well I guess that shows how important I am in your life.”
“It wasn’t like that. Because of the extra guests they had to remove the dance floor. Originally the curtain were supposed to be closed and we were supposed to be at this end of the room. When I told them to put us on the stage, I didn’t tell them to rearrange the tables.”
“What a mess,” said Marjorie and walked off.
At ninety minutes into the reception, no food had yet been served but the room was now very warm and people had all been drinking. Roger and Rita, served the wedding table first but neither Ron nor Celeste felt much like eating. They had made their way around the room for the first time and people had begun to give them envelopes of money.
Quimpy took Ron off to the side and handed a bag stuffed with two ounces of the finest golden pot he’d ever seen. “Congratulations,”
Ron stuffed the bag into the inside pocket of his jacket. It bulged too much. He tried his pants pocket. It still stuck out. He walked back into the room where Celeste had hung her white fur coat and found that if he wrapped inside of the coat that it couldn’t really be seen. He just had to remember to tell her that it was there.
Pipes came over and said, “When do you want me to start playing?”
Ron said, “Now would be good.”
Ron and Celeste began to dance as the dwarf played Imagine. In the background they could hear the waiter saying, “Table Five, we’re ready to have you eat now.”
Pipes belted out, “Imagine no religion…” and Ron found himself drawn to look at the priest and minister who didn’t seem to notice. Ron held Celeste close and they swayed slowly to the song. It was the first time that they had danced together and she moved so smoothly while he felt himself to be awkward and tentative.
To Ron’s surprise there was applause when the song ended. Maybe everything was going to be ok. Most of the people had food now. The room was warm, maybe too hot, but Ron wasn’t going to encounter Mr. Miller again if he could avoid it.
Quimpy was looking around and seeing if anyone had noticed that he had slipped away. He had his eye on an antique chair that he saw in the vestibule. Quietly, he dragged the chair closer to the door. He took another surreptitious look around the room and quickly picked the chair up and was out the door. He loaded it into the backseat of his pink Cadillac and returned to the party. He made sure to lock the door because he didn’t really trust the neighborhood.
It was about two and a half hours into the party that the people who ate the undercooked chicken began to get sick. Mostly it was women and they blamed it on too much alcohol and not enough food at first. Then someone said that her chicken had been bloody inside. Ron closed his eyes and just wanted to disappear with Celeste.
He looked over at her with a stupid grin and said, “How long do we have to stay?”
Celeste’s eyes widened and she giggled. “They’d kill us if we left.”
“They’re going to kill us anyway,” said Ron.
Warren Lashly made his way over to Ron and Celeste. “Do you mind if I borrow your bride for a moment?” he drawled.
“Sure,” said Ron.
“Let’s go for a little walk,” said Warren.
“I’ll just get my coat,” said Celeste. When she found the pot tucked inside of it, she called Chris over and said, “Can you hold on to this for me?”
Chris grinned. “Absolutely, but I don’t think we should smoke it here.”
Celeste smiled and stroked his cheek. “I’m sure that Ron wouldn’t mind if you smoked one.”
“Marjorie might,” said Chris.
It was very cold outside when she and Warren got out the door. “You aren’t anything like I thought you’d be,” said Warren.
“What did you think I’d be?” said Celeste.
“Shorter and cold,” said Warren. “But you’re warm and friendly.”
Celeste felt his arm slide around her waist. “Thank you.” She realized that he was a little drunk.
“You know Ron and I were very close.”
“I know that he admires you.”
“We share everything,” said Warren.
He drew Celeste to him and kissed her. When he tried to make the kiss passionate and opened his mouth, Celeste pushed against his chest and said, “I’d better get back inside.” She turned and walked away. She wasn’t sure if she should tell Ron or not.
He was over at the table with Paula DeFreio and Herman Horvack and Anthony Fiangelo. Ron grimaced when he looked at their plates and saw that Horvack and DeFreio had chicken that was leaking blood. He took a deep breath.
“I’m really happy that you guys could make it.”
“I couldn’t resist meeting the beautiful woman who tamed your spirit,” said DeFreio.
Celeste and Lashly came up next to them. “And here she is,” said Fiangelo.
“I don’t want to tame him,” said Celeste.
“She just wants him all to herself,” said Lashly.
Ron made introductions. Lashly and DeFreio seemed to size each other up from a distance. Ron had told each about the other and he somehow thought that their mutual interest in him would create a bond. It did not. There was some slightly awkward chit chat and then Ron took Celeste’s elbow and led her off.
Ron whispered in her ear. “That was weird. I thought they’d like each other.”
“They just don’t know each other,” said Celeste.
Ron thought about that. In his naiveté he’d expected them all to hit it off. He liked them and somehow he thought that would translate into them liking each other. It hadn’t.
The people came up to them with gifts. Envelope after envelope was delivered as they sat at the bridal table in front of the meal that they hadn’t touched.
Ron embraced his great aunt Anita. Tears were in his eyes as he could see his Aunt Dottie, his Uncle Mike, his great grandmother Mina who taught him how to read and recite from the bible. He held Anita’s hands. “You gave me a lot by just staying alive to be here.”
She looked up from her white face and silver hair. “I love you. I have always loved you. Your Uncle Mike loved you. I’m sorry that I’m not your Aunt Dottie.” Celeste heard this exchange and wanted to cry for them both. It must be so hard to be the last of your generation and to be forgotten.
Jimmy and Janine came over and slipped Celeste an envelope. Janine whispered into her ear. “I hope that he’s an animal with you.” Celeste felt heat on her cheeks.
Jimmy shook Ron’s hand and said, “Good luck coach.”
Ron looked into eyes that had seen more football than he ever would. The game had taken its toll on Jimmy and left him proud but bitter. Ron wondered why he wasn’t bitter about it. Was it because it ended so early? What was the dream like when you almost made it to the highest level? Was there anything more that you could draw from the game after that? Ron wanted to know Jimmy better.
Paulo DeFreio was well manicured, formal and warm. He grasped Celeste’s hands and said, “Thank you for inviting me. I think that he will be a good man for you.”
Herman Horvack was more cautious with Ron’s women after Robin had bitten him. He was polite but did not touch her and hid his hands. Herman smiled at Ron. “Where to now?”
“Jamaica,” said Ron.
Herman was teaching as well. He’d stopped writing. He did translations only now.
Ron looked over at Angel and felt the need to hold her. She meant so much and had only a small part in the day. She was in pajamas now. Ron walked from the stage and gathered her up into his arms. He whispered, “Are you sleepy?”
Angel wrapped her arms around his neck and said, “No, I’m lonely.”
“You know that your mom and I are going away for a few days?”
“They told me.”
“I’ll miss you.”
“Why can’t I come?”
“We’ll be back soon.”
Angel didn’t respond. She just held him. In that instant Ron wanted all of this to be over and for them to be back in their basement and for her to be fresh from her bath. He gave her back to the teacher who they’d hired to be her companion for the day.
Celeste felt herself beginning to breathe again. It was almost over.
As the reception drew to a close, Ron and Celeste thanked everyone for coming. They tried to do it individually but some people left before they could get to them.
Mr. Roy Miller approached them as they were about to leave. “I wish you many happy years.”
Celeste said, “Thank you.”
Mr. Miller said, “There’s just one thing. It seems that something is missing.”
Ron looked confused and said, “What?”
“A chair that one of your guests was observed loading into the back of his pink Cadillac.”
Ron and Celeste felt a simultaneous wave of embarrassment. “I’ll make sure that it’s returned and I’m sorry. We should have hired you. We made a mistake.”
“People need to learn from their mistakes,” said Mr. Miller.
Chapter 107
They sat in the plane together and Celeste held his hand. Ron gripped hers tightly as the plane took off. It was only the second time in his life that he’d been on an airplane and the first time as an adult that he’d been on vacation. Celeste was an experienced traveler and assured him that everything would go fine.
Celeste had taken any money that she had and paid for this honeymoon. It was insurance money that she’d gotten from being injured in a car accident when she was run off the road and broke her collarbone. She knew that they would never have much money and she knew that Ron’s life was about to change in ways that he could not possibly imagine. At least they would have this.
Montego Bay was hot. Ron began to sweat almost instantly when they got off the plane. The resort was beautiful and Ron felt that glowing lightness inside of him that caused him to smile continuously.
The air conditioner in their room had been turned on and as soon as they put down their bags, they made love and then they made love again. After their third round of lovemaking Ron fell asleep.
Celeste quietly unpacked their clothes and put them away. She watched him as he slept and thought that he looked like a little boy. She ordered five pina coladas from room service and when they arrived she gently woke him up. The sat on their screened in porch and sipped them and played gin rummy while a steel drum band walked along the courtyard playing When the Saints Come Marching In. Then they had dinner under the stars and they felt like they were in a temporary heaven.
It was at the front desk that Ron heard the desk clerk say, “How can I help you, Mrs. Tuck?”
The words hit him like a jolt. This beautiful woman was his and it was his responsibility to care for her and make her happy for the rest of his life. Ron grinned.
The breeze was a teasing and delicate stimulation. They’d come farther than they realized with absolutely no idea how long the road really was. His palm was pressed to the small of her back. Almost involuntarily, it caused her hips to roll. Her skin was scented with jasmine. Her hair hung down naturally soft. The breeze didn’t lift it, but Ron’s fingers did. He held her hair to his face and inhaled. The smile was deep and satisfied.
Celeste and Ron didn’t speak of their wedding day very much at all. They journeyed into the mountains of Jamaica. Their smiles were so genuine and open and enthusiastic that they brought out the best in the people that they met. Except for at the hotel’s outdoor café.
They watched in horror as an American tourist called an old man boy and castigated him for a mistake that the tourist had made and would not own. Their bodies tensed. They felt the old man’s humiliation. Celeste went to him and hugged him and gave him some money. Ron glared at the Texan tourist. His fists balled. And then Celeste was at his side again and he said, “How do people live without respect?”
“That’s a great question,” said Celeste, “and I don’t know the answer.”
“I don’t like disrespect. I used to. I think I was foolish.”
She gazed at him in wonder of the cynicism and innocence that he displayed. She’d never seen the two mix quite this way. It intoxicated her. It provided her with something that she hadn’t known that she needed. She wanted to make love with him and took his hand.