Callum & Harper (21 page)

Cherry hugged me tightly and whispered in my ear. “A very good choice, Callum.”

I felt slightly guilty for the lies I was spewing but when I really thought about it, it didn’t feel like a lie. I truly wanted to marry Harper despite how crazy it seemed.

Unexpectedly, Sam stood in a rage.

    “
This is ridiculous, Callum! You cannot marry someone you just met! This is just stupid!” Sam yelled.
Harper shrunk into my side slightly, fisting her hands in my shirt, sending a slew of butterflies swarming around my insides. I gritted my teeth at Sam.

“
You’re too young!” She continued, the waterworks at full force. “This isn’t you! She did something to you! Why are you doing this?”   

    “
Enough!” We heard Charlie say behind us. “Sam, can I talk to you in the hall please?”
Sam’s face softened but not entirely as she followed Charlie out the door.
    A few minutes passed by and the awkwardness Sam had caused, seemed to have left with her. I was stunned at how everyone supported us. No one seemed to feel the same way Sam did. I was flabbergasted, to be honest. I expected more of an upset than this. I expected to spend a few hours convincing but instead Cherry popped a bottle of champagne and started to pouring it into glasses.
    Charlie entered the apartment once more with a tear soaked shirt and I felt badly for Sam for a moment but knew she would get over it eventually. Getting over things quickly was her specialty actually. Sam huffed over to the side table by the sofa and grabbed her purse and jacket.
    “Sam,” I said, grabbing her arm. “Don’t leave. Everything will be okay, you’ll see.”
    “No it won’t!” She threw harshly at me. “You’re making a huge mistake. I don’t know why you’re doing this but I can promise you, you’ll regret it.” Then she walked to the door and slammed it shut behind her.

I didn’t want to think about her any longer so I pushed my way through my friends toward my solitary stress reliever named Harper. She was talking and laughing with Charlie and Cherry and I stopped to watch her a bit. She was breathtaking to me. She’d decided to wear her striped dress again but went barefoot, her hair soft and wavy down her back, cascaded slightly off her shoulders. Her eyes struck me breathless, they were sparkling so under the lights of Charlie’s apartment. She caught me staring and smiled, extending her hand to me. I swiftly walked her direction and took it in mine.

    “
So when is the big day?” Cherry asked.
    “Saturday,” I said, tucking Harper deeper into my side, she leaned slightly back to get a good view of my face and smiled.
    “Saturday!” Cherry said, making everyone around her jump. “How are we going to throw a wedding in less than a week?!”
    “Oh, we’re just going to the courthouse. It’s not a big deal,” Harper said warmly.
    “Not a big deal! Just a minute, let me get the other girls over here.” She turned. “Kelly! Marty!” They were laughing while they came over to stand beside us.
    “What’s up?” Kelly asked.
    “Did you know that Harper and Callum are marrying this Saturday?”
    “What? Why?” Marty asked.
    “Because we just want to get it done and over with before school starts,” I said. Not a total lie.
    “Done and over with?” Cherry asked, disgust evident on her face. “Wait a minute! Did you even get her a ring, baby?”
    “Of course I did!”
Cherry grabbed Harper’s left hand and brought it toward her face. All three girls gasped loudly, cooing over how beautiful they found it.
    “Well, at least you did that right,” Cherry teased. “Fine. We got our work cut out for us ladies.” And with that, she stepped between Mary and Kelly, linking arms and lead them to the kitchen.
    “What in the world are they doing?” Harper asked before noticing Cherry stamp her foot near the end of the kitchen.
    “Uh, I believe that foot tap is for you, Harper,” Charlie said, laughing.
Harper sighed but couldn’t hide her smile. I stared as Harper retreated to the lion’s den. She peered over her shoulder, waiting for me to intervene but I raised my hands and shook my head. She stuck her tongue at me but joined the girls in a giant laugh.
    “Quite a big step from a few days ago,” Charlie said matter-of-factly.
    “I know it seems like we’re rushing and in all honesty we are a bit.”
    “A bit?” Charlie nearly yelled but his mile wide smile let me know he was only half-joking. “You’re not a stupid man, Callum. If you feel this is right for you than I trust you. We
all
trust you.”
His complete trust in me gave my stomach a sharp pain. I felt like we were duping them all and we were but it didn’t feel as dishonest as it really was. That scared me. I knew I should feel worse about it than I was but it felt natural to marry Harper, too natural.
    “It’s decided!” Cherry comes out. “Van agreed to barricade the The Bowery’s roof top Saturday night for free. We have a place to celebrate!” Everyone stood and cheered, much to my dismay. I was worried that Harper would feel badly about it but she looked happy from where I stood. I was grateful to Cherry for being so thoughtful.

Harper

   
I could not believe how amazing these three girls were being to me. It was a lovely testament to how much they loved Callum.
    “Okay, you,” Cherry said pointing to Marty. “Call Van and ask him to shut off the rooftop for this coming Saturday. Tell him it’s for Callum and Harper.”
    “On it,” Marty said cheerfully, skipping to Charlie’s wall phone.

Spritely Kelly jumped up and down giddily. “Oh, please, Cherry. Give me a task!”

“
Alright, call Benny at the theater and ask him if they still have those pretty string lights from the boat scene in
Roman Holiday
last year. You know, the one with large bulbs?”

“
Yup, I remember. Got it.”

    “
Okay, let’s see,” Cherry said, pinching her bottom lip between her fingers. She snapped. “The dress! Do you have a dress?”
    “No, but I don’t need one,” I said, feeling slightly embarrassed and very guilty.
All three girls turned to me, mouths agape.
    “No!” Cherry said, turning to Kelly. “You’re about Harper’s size. Still have that white silk slip dress from
The Great Gatsby
?”
    “I do!” She gasped. “Oh, that would be so perfect! What size shoe do you wear?”
    “Uh, a seven.”
    “Oh, phooey!” She said. “Oh well. We’ll work something out. I’ll search Costumes. They won’t even know.” She winked at me.
I couldn’t believe my ears. These women were throwing my fake wedding together in practically no time at all. If I wasn’t so amazed, I’d be ashamed.
    “You really don’t have to do all this,” I protested.
    Cherry furrowed her eyebrows. “Oh, hush, Harper!” She admonished before slapping me on the rear, making me yelp. “Okay! No veils. Let’s see. Oh! Do you guys remember that feather butterfly fascinator I wore for The Ivories’ photo shoot three years ago?”
    “Oh that’s
perfect
!” Marty exclaimed, hanging up the phone. “The Bowery is all ours for the night, by the way.”

“
So are the lights,” Kelly said dramatically, moving to lean against the counter, tossing her cell aside and theatrically placing her arms on either side of her in a very melodramatic pose.

“
Are you an actress?” I asked Kelly.

“
Of course, honey. It’s the only thing that can explain my odd behavior.”

I laughed into the back of my hand. She was so right and very cute.
    “Alright,” Cherry said, her eyes bright, rubbing her hands together conspiratorially. “Cross’s girlfriend, Linda, works at that bakery on Ninth. She’ll whip something up for us. She’s fantastic by the way,” Cherry said, turning to me. “Is there any flavor you’d prefer?”

“
I don’t care but I know that Callum’s favorite is lemon.”

All the girls smiled slowly at me. I’d surprised myself with that one, blushing a crimson red.
    “Okay, we’ll have to scrounge up a suit for Callum but that shouldn’t be too difficult. Can we think of anything else?” Cherry asked us.
    “Flowers?” I said without thinking. I slapped my hand over my mouth, making the girls burst out laughing.
    “Tie-Dye Tom has that one,” Marty said absently.
    “Seriously?” I asked.
    “Yeah, he works in the flower market mornings. That’s his day job. He’s really talented, too. I told him so once and he told me he’d kill me if I ever said anything like that out loud again. Oops.” Kelly giggled and we all followed suit.
    “Alright, good work girls. We’ve got a dress, cake, reception venue, pretty lights,” Cherry said, winking at Kelly, “flowers. Marty, who’s that photographer ex of yours again?”
    “Oh, Eric?”
    “Think you could...?”
    “Oh, he’s so there. We’re still friends.” I could also tell she wished it was still more.
    “The Bowery will provide the tunes,” she jested, elbowing me softly. “Do you have a song, Harper?”
    I was caught off guard to realize that we did. “
Please Don’t Go
by Barcelona.”
    “Oh yeah,” all three girls sighed before bursting into laughter again.
    “I’ll tell Van,” Marty said. “Gah! I almost forgot! Van said, as a wedding gift, he’d provide, and I quote, ‘a few morsels and some bubbly’.”

“
I almost forgot!” Kelly chimed in suddenly. “We’ll get Tom to play his acoustic for the processional.”

I almost cried at everyone’s generosity. I wanted to bolt from the room and tell Callum we couldn’t take advantage of them like that but knew it was what we had to do in order to live and for John never to be able to find me. I didn’t have a choice and my heartfelt oddly light and heavy all at the same time. What a riddle.   
    “What time is the ceremony?” Cherry asked
    “Three p.m. We’re the only marriage he has that day,” I said.
    “We’ll get the judge to meet us at The Bowery then.”
    “I doubt he’ll do that,” I said. “Why? Do you know someone who knows someone?”
They all laughed.
    “No,” Cherry said, “but never underestimate the power of a red head.” She winked devilishly and I couldn’t help but laugh.
    “I’d love to see you pull it off,” I teased.
    “What’s his name?” She asked.
    “Judge Ryder.”
    “Just let me handle it,” she said and somehow I believed she’d do it.
    “We’re done,” Cherry said, slapping her hands together in a swiping motion. “See? Harmless.”
    “You just planned my wedding in less than an hour,” I stated, flabbergasted. “And it didn’t cost a dime!”
    “I know!” Marty said, hugging herself. “It pays to know creatives, Harper. We may not be able to do your taxes but we can throw one
heck
of a wedding.”
I smiled, knowing this was probably going to be one of the best days of my sad, lonely life.
    Thursday rolled around and Cherry told me she got the judge to meet us at The Bowery and that Robert, yeah,
Robert
, and his wife Karol would be attending. I should have known that she’d be able to pull it off.

Friday came a little too quickly for my taste. Callum and I stayed our nights at The Hope House, working mornings and lunches earning roughly three hundred a day. Since Monday we’d saved fifteen hundred and that made us both feel a little bit more secure.

   
Friday night, Cherry insisted we have a girl’s sleepover at her house and watch wedding themed films. Callum would stay at Charlie’s. The whole thing was shockingly too much like a real wedding to me and I often found myself tamping down guilty feelings.

Not surprisingly, Sam wouldn’t be able to attend the slumber party or the wedding as she was ‘visiting family’ in Idaho over the weekend and couldn’t possibly reschedule. That was like music to my ears. I didn’t really want someone who believed we were making a mistake there. Even if we were, it was our mistake to make. Period.

Cherry made popcorn and she, Kelly, Marty and I dressed in pajamas and watched
The Princess Bride, The Wedding Singer, My Big Fat Greek Wedding
, (Cherry suggested Father Of The Bride but I turned that down for obvious reasons) and at my insistence
Corpse Bride.
They all scoffed at the last choice but none could disagree Callum was marrying the perfect bride, which made me squirm a little in my seat. We gave each other manicures and pedicures, talking and giggling all night. The other girls painted their nails wild colors to match their equally wild outfits but I wanted a natural look and only painted a pale, pale pink to mine.

The late morning sun woke me after a good six hours of sleep, from what I could tell which surprised me as I thought I wouldn’t be able to sleep at all. It seemed I was the last to wake up. I could hear their soft giggling from Cherry’s closet/dining area.

“
She’s perfect for him,” Marty whispered.

“
I know. It seems impulsive but I know my Callum. He’s made a most perfect choice,” Cherry chimed in.

“
I love her already,” Kelly said. “I’m so happy Callum found her. He was so lonely for so long.” Cherry and Marty mumbled in agreement. “It seemed no matter what we did to make him feel a part of our little family he never really committed to us the way we wanted. Harper has changed his confidence. I thought Callum was amazing before but now there’s not a thing in this world I can imagine that could possibly stop that boy from being extraordinary now that he’s with her.”