The Improbable (32 page)

I
was
officially on my own.

           
After I had said my goodbyes to my mother and best friends, I was off to the
gate all by myself. When I arrived at my gate, they instructed me to wait and for
that I was thankful, I needed time to get my thoughts together. I was nervous,
oh Lord I was so nervous! Such a big part of me wanted to turn around and run
into my mother’s arms and tell her I’m not ready to go off to live on my own
and leave her and daddy behind. Yet, I knew that life wasn’t meant to be lived
going backward. So forward I was going to go. I looked out the window at the
planes and sighed.

           
“Last boarding call for flight 260 to Montreal.” A voice announced.

           
My heart dropped to my stomach. It was time to go! I exhaled loudly, trying to
ease my nerves, and stood up to gather my bags. Looking around the airport, I
smiled to myself. Goodbye Illinois. Goodbye family and friends. Goodbye David.
Until next time.

           
“Passport and boarding pass please,” The gate agent held out her hand.

           
I handed her the papers.

           
“Enjoy the flight,” she smiled tightly as she handed them back to me.

           
“Thank you,” I nodded at her and began to make my way toward the plane. My
heart ached, I felt like I was leaving so much behind.
Are you really making
the right decision
? I thought to myself. Why did I have to pick that moment
to second guess my decisions!

           
“Eva!” I heard a voice in the far distance call.

           
My eyebrows furrowed and I paused abruptly. Was that…? It couldn’t be. There
was no way it was him. I believed my mind was playing tricks on me to get me to
stay.
I have to go
, I forced myself to turn around and keep walking.

           
“Eva!” The voice shouted again.

           
In that moment I knew my mind wasn’t fooling me. It was really him. It had to
be! “David,” I breathed.

Looking
toward the plane and back toward the gate, I thought maybe going backward just
that once would be worth it. I dropped my bags and bolted back toward where I
had just came from. Where was he?

“David!”
I called, looking around frantically.

“Eva!”
His voice came from somewhere behind me.

Instantaneously
I ran toward the sound of his voice. I was full-on sprinting throughout the
airport not caring about who I bumped into in the process, all I cared about
was getting to David! I pushed myself to run faster as I desperately searched
for his face in the crowd of moving people.

“David!”
I cried.

Once
I spotted him running toward me with just as much need in his stride, my eyes
didn’t let go of him. Not once. We closed the remaining distance between us and
embraced each other tightly like we’d hold on forever! I locked my arms around
his neck and he held onto me. As soon as my body came in contact with his, it
was as if I could breathe again. I closed my eyes as I breathed in the scent I
thought I would never smell again. As his strong arms held onto me, I savored
the feeling and remembered when I thought I’d never feel safe in anyone’s arms
again. David planted kisses on my forehead and on my cheek before pulling me
back to get a look at my face and bringing me in for an eager kiss on the lips.

“Oh
David, I missed you so much.” I breathed, looking at him with wide eyes.

           
“I’m so glad I caught you. I couldn’t let you go.” He said, out of breath and
looking at me with worried eyes.

           
“I’m glad you caught me too,” I said in a quiet voice.

           
“I called, I showed up at your door and I got nothing. Then today I finally get
your letter in the mail…telling me you’re
leaving
!” He said in
disbelief.

           
“I had to do it for me…I thought you’d never come back, David.” I told him.

           
David shook his head and set me down. “I told you, I’d never give up on you. I
meant that.”

           
“I’d never give up on you either and you know that. I told you what we have
would never die.” I assured him.

           
“And I plan on making that statement even truer today.” He said.

           
I furrowed my eyebrows. “You’ve got me. I’m staying, David what do you mean?”

           
“Eva, in these weeks without you I only made it harder on myself by turning
down your support. Even back when we first met I found it hard to think, I
found it hard to function without you. This time apart has only made it clear
that I
need
you in my life. It’s not possible for me to live without
you, that’d make as much sense as the world trying to survive without the sun.
It simply just….can’t…happen.” He was looking at me with awe in his eyes.

           
I smiled giddily like a little girl and looked down, extremely flattered by his
words. “I feel the same without you.”

“Eva,
the love between us,” He shook his head. “It’s stronger than anything I’ve ever
felt before. It was strong enough for us to take a chance and go against
society’s rules. It was strong enough for us to go against our own parents. It
was strong enough for us to see past each other’s faults. And now, I’m hoping –
I’m
praying
– it’s strong enough to last for a lifetime…and even past
the day we die.” David knelt down on one knee and presented a small white box
from his pocket.

           
My heart dropped to my stomach. I heard the gasps and squeals of my friends and
my mother who had just caught up. The moment was surreal, I had to blink
multiple times to make sure I wasn’t dreaming! “What’re you saying, David?” I
asked in a small voice.

           
A grand smile graced his handsome face. “Eva-Marie Noel Hutchinson, I’m asking
if you would want to spend the rest of your life with me. Will you marry me?”

           
The words dancing off of his tongue sounded as if they’d come straight from
heaven! A lump formed in my throat resulting in me only being able to nod my
head and croak the words, “Of course I will.”

           
David opened the box, revealing a beautiful, glistening ring. He took my hand
and slid the ring on my finger.

           
I covered my mouth, trying not to burst out sobbing even though I had tears
running down my cheeks! The tears weren’t falling because I was sad, my tears
were the product of the pure joy my body was radiating with! David and I had
come a truly long way and no matter what had come up against us, it was
heartwarming to know that we’d overcome it all.

           
David rose and planted a soft kiss on my lips before picking me up and spinning
me around. “You don’t know how much you mean to me,” He said against my lips.

           
I giggled and rested my forehead against his. “I think I have a good idea.”

           
He furrowed his eyebrows. “I just have one question.”

           
“
Mmhmm
?”

           
“Where in the hell were you going?” He asked.

           
I laughed at myself as I thought of where I would’ve been going to live.
“Canada.”

           
“Canada?”

           
“Canada.”

           
“Why?”

           
“You question the one you love?” I challenged with a teasing smile.

           
He rolled his eyes and set me down, kissing me on the forehead. “That’s my
girl.”

           
I looked up at him through my eyelashes. “As I always will be.”

May 1951

I
t
was the day before the wedding.

           
I hadn’t seen Eva much because she and Mary were always busy with anything
dealing with the wedding. Whenever I offered help…they ignored me. As a result,
I took it upon myself to make a list of things that I had to get in order
before the big day. Timmy tagged along with me to most of my pre-wedding
errands but the last task, I knew was something that had to be done alone. I
was going to speak to Percy.

           
Of course, I’d gone with Eva when she visited him and broke the news that we
were getting married. However, I’d never gone
alone
. I was a bit nervous
but I knew what I was going to do had to be done in order to make the wedding
the most special day of Eva-Marie’s life. Though Eva hadn’t spoke to me how she
felt about not being able to have her dad walk her down the aisle, I knew it
upset her. So while she was out with her mother and friends doing a last minute
dress fitting, I made my way downtown to the jail.

           
My palms grew sweaty as I waited for them to bring Percy out to the visitation room.
I had no idea why I was so nervous to be around my…father in-law. Then I
wondered if it could possibly be the fact that I was the one who threw him in
jail…
maybe
that was it. I rose when the door opened.

           
Percy relieved my thoughts of his secret hatred when he greeted me with a
smile. “David, my boy. It’s always nice to see you.”

           
I nodded at him. “A pleasure to see you as well, Percy.”

           
“Have a seat,” He instructed as he took his seat. “I thought it’d be Eva-Marie
comin
’ to visit me. I know she’s got to be nervous…she’d
just sit and talk my ear off.” Percy chuckled.

           
I laughed lightly through my nose. “She’s out at her last dress fitting before
tomorrow.”

           
“Ah,” He rubbed his chin. “Tomorrow’s the big day.”

           
I exhaled loudly, trying to keep my nerves from working themselves up. “That it
is.”

           
Percy nodded his head slowly. “Are you nervous, son?”

           
I shrugged. “Oh I’ll be alright, it’s not me I’m worried about.”

           
His eyebrows came together. “Then what’s the problem?”

           
“It’s Eva,” I sighed. “She doesn’t say anything but I know she’s devastated you
can’t be there.”

           
Percy pressed his lips into a straight line. “It breaks my heart every time I
think about it, son.” He reached into his pocket and placed a photo on the
desk. “I kept this from the time Ray came over to tell us who you really were.”

           
I leaned in to get a closer look at the photograph. It was picture taken of the
two of us from afar while I was in the water and she was speaking to me from
the boat. I remembered the day perfectly – it was the first time I told her I
loved her! The look of happiness in her eyes was irreplaceable. “I remember
that,” I mumbled.

           
“Now, son, I’ve never seen my daughter happier than the times she’s with you.”
He smiled at me and shook his head slowly. “And it hurts to know that I can’t
be there to hand her off to the new man of her life.”

           
“Well that’s why I came here today,” I sat up straight and looked him in the
eye. “I wanted to do you both a favor. I thought it was only right in my
position as Chief of Police…to have you released for the wedding tomorrow so
you can be there for her.”

           
Percy was quiet for a few moments. He looked at me with disbelief in his eyes.
“You would do that for me, son?”

           
I nodded. “Anything to make her happy, sir. The wedding wouldn’t be complete without
you.” I smiled. “So what do you say?”

           
He reached his hand over the desk to shake my hand. “Count me in.”

           
I grew excited, knowing Eva would be ecstatic to have her father at her
wedding. Though I was upset I didn’t have the option to have either of my
parents attend the wedding, I still felt peace about the situation. I didn’t
let that get to me because my happiness came solely from making
her
happy. She was my life now.

I
t
was the big day.

           
It was the day I was getting
married
! The night before, I could barely
sleep because my nerves were such a frazzled mess. In the past few days I
didn’t get the chance to eat a proper meal because I had been so busy. While my
hair and makeup was being done, Mama had set down a plate of cheese and
crackers but I’d barely touched it. I was about to agree to a relationship that
would last until the day I
die
. It was a bit much to process. Of course
I was ecstatic that it was David that I was spending the rest of my life with,
but it was still a lot to handle mentally.
Forever
.

           
Once my hair and makeup was done, the wedding coordinator came through the
doors, giving me no time to myself. “Okay Eva, honey, it’s almost time! We just
need to get you into your dress. Now there’s a car waiting right out front for
you, you’ll sit in the back and they’ll drive you up to the lawn at the main
entrance. Do you remember how to count when you’re walking down the aisle,
darling?” She raised her eyebrows at me expectantly.

           
I nodded, too nervous to speak.

           
She picked up a champagne flute and held it out to me. “The champagne will
surely calm your nerves.” She rubbed my shoulder.

           
“Thanks,” I mumbled and took the glass, throwing the whole drink down in record
time. She was right, the alcohol soothed me…only slightly. But I preferred that
over being on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

           
“I’ll see you there,” she winked at me before heading out.

           
“Eva how are you
doin
’ baby?” Mama slowly closed the
door to the grand powder room.

           
“I’m
makin
’ it…” I answered. “I’ve
gotta
get myself into this dress and then…I’m good to go.”

           
Mama took the wedding gown out of its bag and motioned for me to stand up.
“Take the robe off.”

           
“Thanks for the help, Mama.” I sighed as I untied my robe.

           
Mama smiled. “It’s no problem, baby. But…before you go out there, I just want
you to know
somethin
’.”

           
“What is it, Mama?” I asked, looking at her in the mirror.

           
She took a deep breath before explaining. “Eva…I just have to say I thank you
so much for not resenting me and your daddy for all the stuff we’ve put you
through all these years. I’m more so ashamed of how I forced Ray onto you;
that’s not how a mother should act whatsoever, I was just so afraid of our
lives falling apart…” Mama’s voice trailed off and she shook her head. “I don’t
know if I could ever forgive myself.”

           
“Well Mama, forgiveness may be one of the hardest characteristics to learn in
life but it surely is one of the most powerful traits any human can possess.
It’s what moves life forward. So whether you do or don’t forgive yourself…just
know that
I
forgive you. You’re my mother and I love you.” I turned
around and held her hand in mine, smiling warmly at her.

           
Mama reached up and perfected my veil. “Oh I admire you so much, dear.” She
pulled me in for a hug and held me out at arm’s length. “Absolutely
breathtaking. Take a look.” She spun me around to get a look in the mirror.

           
I gently gasped at the sight of myself.
Is that you
? My mind questioned,
taken aback by the beautiful being in the mirror. I wore a simple yet stunning
long bell-sleeve, scoop neck gown with intricate leaf and vine embroidered lace
that fit perfectly around my waist and hips. My hair had finger curls with a
low side chignon that complimented my flawless makeup. I couldn’t believe it
was me! Tears nearly welled up in my eyes as I thought of my daddy not being
able to see me on such a special day. The lump in my throat prevented me from
saying much.

           
“Baby, what’s wrong? Don’t you love it?” Mama eyed me with a confused
expression.

           
I nodded and took a deep breath, trying to keep myself from crying. “I love it,
Mama. It’s so beautiful, I wish daddy was here to see.”

           
“Oh darlin’,” She pulled me in for a hug and rubbed my back. “You have to trust
me when I say it’ll be alright. Now it’s time for me to go and time for you to
head out to the car.”

           
The jitters began returning to my bones. I knew seeing David at the altar would
calm me down. “You’re right, I don’t wanna miss my own wedding.” I laughed
slightly.

           
Mama grabbed my hand and began walking me to the door to exit the powder room.
“The car is waiting for you in the front. David mentioned he had a wedding
surprise for you, let me know if you like it. Good luck, baby, I’m so proud of
you!” She blew me a kiss before heading out the back door.

           
I blew her a kiss as well and took a deep breath once I was alone in the
building. Shutting my eyes, I decided to say a quick prayer in my head for
everything to go alright before I made my way out to the car. I could only hear
my breathing and the sound of my heels on the stone as I walked to the car.
Trying to rid myself of stress, I tightened my grip around the bouquet of
flowers in my hand. My driver stood with his back to me, wearing all black.
There was something familiar about his stance…

           
He turned slowly. “And what would a wedding be without a father to walk his one
and only daughter down the aisle?”

           
My eyes widened and my heart began rounds of backflips in my chest as I took in
the sight of my father! Joy overflowed from my heart, pushing tears out of my
eyes almost immediately. “Daddy!” I cried and picked my dress up, running to
him.

           
Daddy held his arms open for me to run into them with a grand smile on his
face. “My baby!” He kissed my forehead and rubbed my back.

           
“I thought you weren’t going to be here. Oh Daddy, I was so scared, I’m so glad
you’re here!” I sniffed.

           
“I wouldn’t miss this moment for a damn thing Eva-Marie. Even if I had to break
out of jail I was going to be here for you.” He pulled me back by the shoulders
and looked at me, smiling with furrowed eyebrows. “Oh Eva-Marie don’t cry,
you’re
gonna
mess up you’re pretty makeup, baby.” He
lifted the veil and carefully wiped my cheeks.

           
“I know, I know I’m sorry. I just love you so much, I can’t believe you’re
here.” I told him in a shaky voice.

           
He embraced me once more, wrapping his arms around me. “Oh I love you too, my
Eva-Marie. I love you too. Now what do you say we get you up there to that
lovely husband of yours? Huh?” Daddy peered down to look at my face.

           
I nodded with a smile. “I’m ready.”

           
Daddy turned and opened the back door of a white and black, 1928 Rolls-Royce
Phantom. “Nice choice of car, baby.”

           
I giggled. “You know I know how to pick ‘em Daddy.”

           
As I settled into the backseat, my nerves were finally at bay. I had my father
with me at my wedding! It was something I thought could never happen, but thanks
to David it was all possible. Daddy beeped twice before slowly driving up the
hill to the ceremony. I looked out the window at everyone proudly. I loved the
sight of my friends and family all dressed and spiffy, gathered together for
me! Kate, Sarah, Rita, and Yvonne looked gorgeous in their bridesmaid’s dresses
and Timmy looked very handsome in his tuxedo. I didn’t see David until Daddy
opened my door. The sight of him at the altar was enough to take my breath
away. He stood strong, confident, and still as if he was a chiseled Greek
statue waiting for a kiss to bring him to life.

“This
is it baby, I’m right here next to you.” Daddy whispered to me as he held his
hand out to me.

I
grabbed his hand and linked my arm into his once I was on my feet. The cue in
the music that the wedding coordinator had told me to listen for sounded and we
began to walk. I didn’t break eye contact with David once as we ascended up the
aisle. David eyed me with the look of absolute admiration; the first movement
he made was to wipe the silent tear that had escaped from his eye. In that
moment, any anxiety and any fears I had of forever were washed away. There had
been many other times when I knew David was the one for me, but none of them
beat the moment he cried tears of joy over me at the altar. I was in disbelief
over the fact that God had blessed me with someone so humanly perfect.

           
Once I made it to the altar, it took everything I had in me to not burst out
into tears of happiness. Oh I was a mess! However, keeping my eyes on David
kept me under control. I couldn’t keep from smiling as our pastor was saying
his part. As if my grinning was contagious, David smiled right back at me. The
moment made me want to laugh, it was almost as if we were speaking a silent
language that only we could understand. That’s how connected we were. Once
again, my tears got the best of me – and the rest of the crowd – when it was
time to say our vows. Though, all eyes were clear when it came time to say ‘I
do’. A sigh of relief escaped both mine and David’s mouths when everyone burst
into cheers and began clapping as we made our way down the aisle together,
waving to everyone with ecstatic smiles on our faces.

           
“We did it,” David swiftly leaned down to my ear as we walked.

           
From the ceremony, we walked straight to the main club house of the Chicago’s
Prestigious City Club for dinner. It brought me a great amount of bliss to see
my family and a small portion of David’s family getting along so well and
enjoying each other’s company. The sight of my parents together on such a
special day warmed my heart as I knew how much it hurt Mama to have Daddy away
for such a long time. I looked over to Kate and Timmy who were adorably trying
to feed each other but having a hard time getting it done and laughed along
with my friends as we watched their failed attempts.

           
Soon, it was time for David and
I
to head out.
Everyone gathered outside and formed a walkway to the car to see us off. We
looked at each other with warm smiles and locked hands before stepping out and
being greeted by another round of applause. I shyly leaned onto David’s arm and
waved at everyone before we descended down the stairs. The clapping continued
the whole time we walked through the crowd.

           
“I’m so happy for you!” Kate grabbed me and pulled me into a tight hug, with
Sarah, Rita, and Yvonne smothering me as well.

           
“Enjoy your honeymoon!” Yvonne exclaimed with a big smile.

           
“Don’t get too wild, and have fun.” Sarah winked.

           
“We love you!” Rita yelled as David and I continued walking.

           
I blew my friends a kiss. “
Muah
! I love you guys
too!”

           
Mama pulled me close next. “Enjoy yourself darlin’, if you need anything you
know how to get in contact with –”

           
“She’ll be alright, dear.” Daddy nodded at Mama and eyed me proudly. “You’ll be
alright, we love you.”

           
I hugged both of them tightly. “I love you both, I’ll write you!”

           
Timmy stopped David next. He pulled David in for a hug and looked at the two of
us before putting his hand on David’s shoulder. “My man. Both your mom and your
dad would be so proud. Chris as well.”

           
David placed his hand on Timmy’s shoulder. “I love you, brother.”

           
“I love you too!” Timmy exclaimed. “Wolf pack, never forget!” Timmy howled
after David, bursting into a fit of laughter.

           
David howled back and held his fist in the air, laughing.

           
A driver awaited us in a sleek black convertible. David opened the door and
stepped in, he then held his hand out to help me up onto the seat. We sat on
top of the seats so everyone could see us. More cheers erupted as the saw us
close the door, getting ready to leave. I turned and waved to all of my friends
and my parents.

           
“Can you believe this?” I asked David, still gazing out the crowd.

           
“Believe what?” David questioned.

           
“How far we’ve come. Who knew that the day you dove into the water to save me
would lead to this?” I laughed.

           
David nodded. “Funny how God works things out, isn’t it?”

           
“We’ve been through so much, I’m so proud of us, David.” I placed my hand on
his.

           
He turned his hand up and squeezed mine before leaning in for a kiss, making
the crowd go wild once more. “Words can’t explain how much joy you bring me.
Now I get to have you to myself, forever.”

           
“Forever?”

           
“Forever.”