Epilogue
MARISSA
Sitting around the table are all of my favorite people. If you had told me a year ago that I would be here at the rehearsal dinner for my wedding surrounded by the Ewigherz gang or that Alex and I would be getting married, I would have called you delusional. From the moment we met, there were obstacles thrown at us purposely designed to keep us apart. Yet, here we are in a beautiful banquet hall, wearing stunning clothes, having a spectacular wedding tomorrow.
The room is decorated in soft pinks and white, pink tablecloths with white accents. Vases of pink peonies and baby’s breath sit on each table. String lights hang from the vaulted ceiling, giving the room a warm glow that makes everything feel cozy and intimate. Having everyone gathered here fills my heart with such joy.
We decided to have the wedding here in Germany because there are far more people we care about here than back in the States. Alex hasn’t really made many friends, and the ones he has made, he insists he isn’t close enough with to invite them to our wedding. For me, I only really have Amanda, Dave, and my mom, so it seemed much easier to have three people fly to Germany than to have everyone here fly to the States.
“I think this is the part where we’re supposed to say something.” Alex nudges me, bringing me out of my thoughts.
“Oh, right.” I wipe my sweaty palms on the skirt of my dress and take hold of my glass of champagne, raising it to everyone. It’s just a toast. I’m not sure why this is making me so nervous or why I’m getting choked up. I talk to these people almost all day every day, but this is different. “First of all, I want to thank you all for being here. Your support means so much to both of us. Freedom, Jennifer.” I point my glass to each of them. “I am incredibly lucky to have you in my life. I couldn’t imagine having anyone else standing beside me on my wedding day. To my lovely sister, thank you for loving and supporting me through everything. Freedom, Matt— you guys are next.” Everyone laughs, but Freedom and Matt are so oblivious it might take them another decade, but I am determined to see them end up together.
Dom, Jennifer’s brother, strolls into the room, kneels at the table between Matt and Dave and whispers something to them. Matt’s smile grows wider and he nods before him and Dave gets up and follows Dom out. I try not to think too hard about what they are scheming about.
“So, yeah thank you all for being here and for supporting us through everything.” I finish my speech.
I nudge Alex’s side.
“Oh, umm.” He sits up in his seat. “Ditto everything she said.” This gets another laugh out of everyone, and I can’t help but roll my eyes. “We love you all; we’re so glad you’re here. You’re all dismissed, I guess.” He shrugs. “Oh, and remember, the bride is the only one allowed to be late tomorrow.” He gives me a knowing smile and finishes off his drink.
As we are finishing up our meal there is a commotion at the back of the venue. Matt, carrying a toilet bowl over his shoulder makes his way between the tables the guests are sitting at to the table Alex, and I are at. Dave and Dom pull the tables away from us so that there is nothing but empty space in front of us.
Matt throws the toilet on the ground in front of us breaking it into a million pieces and everyone starts cheering. Horrified, I jump up and start to yell at him when Alex stops me.
“It’s called a Polterabend, it’s tradition, the shards bring good luck.” Porcelain dishes are thrown at our feet causing Alex to laugh. “Enjoy it.”
“What about the venue?” I’m suddenly very afraid we will get kicked out and we won’t get to have our wedding.
“It’s tradition. They’re used to it and they’re totally okay with it as long as we clean everything up.” Alex cheers as more things are broken.
My eyes grow wide in horror when I notice the pile has gotten much bigger. “I’m not cleaning this up!”
“Not alone. I have to help you. Cleaning this up is a symbol of the suffering and hardships we will have to endure as a couple in our lives together.” He waves his hands around to all of the commotion. “You wanted a German wedding. This is a part of it.”
Everyone is going crazy smashing things. Amanda hands me a clay pot to smash before smashing one of her own. I throw the pot as hard as I can at the ground and she does the same. I look over at Alex and see the pure joy on his face as he smashes plates with his sisters.
Dave gets the side eye from the staff as he smashes a whole sink on the ground. Minutes later another toilet bowl is destroyed at the hands of Dom. I can’t help the laugh that escapes me when I notice Grace’s judging glare as she watches the chaos unfold.
I pick up a couple of porcelain bowls and make my way over to Grace. “Here, smash this.” I hand her one and she takes it hesitantly. “It’s a German tradition. This is normal here.” I barely get the words out of my mouth before she is smashing the bowl on the ground.
Once everyone realized the destruction of property is supposed to happen everyone had a great time. Even my mother joined in on the fun.
Once there is nothing left to smash Alex and I clean up the mess that was made and the group starts saying goodbye and going their separate ways. Matt and Dave pull Alex out of the room before I even have a chance to say anything. Freedom and Jennifer have insisted that I stay with them tonight. They let me know they have a few things to take care of before we can leave, and then they disappear. Soon, Amanda and I are the only ones left.
“Well, I guess it’s just me and you, sister.” I link my arm through hers and lead us out of the room and through the main hall. Even out here, everything is decorated with the same color scheme and flowers for tomorrow. “I can’t believe I am less than twenty-four hours away from becoming Mrs. Alex Schwartz.”
“Well, it’s about damn time. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy; I can’t think of anyone who deserves this more than you.” She leans her head on my shoulder as we walk.
Before we can reach the exit Dom steps in front of us, blocking our path. “You know, love, I always thought it would be you and me.”He takes a sip from the whiskey glass in his hand. He must have come from the bar on the other side of the venue.
“Oh Dom…” I shake my head disapprovingly.
“Yes, love?” He winks at me and brings my hand to his lips.
“You never stood a chance.” I quickly pull my hand back.
“Ouch, that hurts.” He slaps his hand on his chest. “Right here.”
“We both know there’s nothing there to hurt.” This time, I wink at him.
I link my arm back through Amanda’s and head through the door. We walk down another hallway that makes this place feel like a maze.
“Damn. What’s the story there?” she asks once we are out of earshot.
“No,” I deadpan, she is not going to go there.
“What? Accent, check.” She makes a check mark in the air with her finger. “Tattoos, check. He’s almost perfect. I’m just trying to figure out if there are any red flags.”
“That man has too many red flags. It would be impossible for even someone like you to ignore them. Please don’t,” I plead with her with sincerity.
“Oh, come on, he can’t be that bad.” She turns toward me and crosses her arms as if she’s waiting for me to elaborate, but I don’t.
“If you were to look up the definition of a red flag in the dictionary, it would have a picture of his face.”
“Just the way I like them.” She bites her lip and looks back in the direction we just came from.
“Just because a man is good for your hole doesn’t mean he’s good for your soul.” I laugh and roll my eyes at her.
“Hey, my soul and my hole happen to be connected. Thank you very much.” She laughs, and I give her the side-eye. “What? You’ve never heard that saying the way to a woman’s soul is through her hole?”
“That is not a saying!” I force myself to be serious and not laugh.
“Well, it should be. Now, if you’ll excuse me, my soul needs some attention.” She saunters off the way we just came from.
I’m so thankful they live in separate countries because those two together are a disaster waiting to happen. For a moment, I contemplate following her and trying to keep her out of trouble, but before I can, Freedom walks in the door she just walked out of.
“Umm.” She motions over her shoulder. “Did you even warn her about him?” Freedom looks amused.
“Ugh,” I groan and slap my hand on my forehead. “I tried, but when she hears red flags, she doesn’t see it as a warning. She sees it as a carnival full of all kinds of fun rides.”
“Oh, well, speaking from experience, he’s definitely a fun ride. I just hope she doesn’t expect anything more from him.” She puts her arm and pulls me toward the door that leads to the parking lot.
“Wait.” I stop in my tracks when her words finally register. “Did you and him…”
“I’m pretty sure there isn’t a woman in this town who hasn’t ridden that. But it was right after the whole Kevin thing. I needed a distraction, which he was more than happy to provide. It was a one-time thing, and we agreed never to speak of it again. Don’t tell Jen; she’ll never let me live it down.”
“Your secret’s safe with me.” I pull my finger across my lips like I am locking them and throwing away the key. “Now, I need to find where Matt and Dave took my husband-to-be.”
“Nope. You’re marrying him tomorrow; you don’t need to see him for the rest of the night.” She makes another attempt at pulling me toward the exit, but I pull back. “I just want to tell him goodnight.”
“Fine, they’re upstairs.” She walks toward a staircase at the opposite end of the hall.
We go up the winding wooden staircase and down another long hallway. At the end, there is a room with pool tables, which is where we find the three men laughing and shooting pool. “Hey, guys. Mind if I steal Alex away for a moment?” I crook my finger at Alex for him to follow me out of the room and around the corner—more importantly, out of sight of everyone else.
“What’s up?” He looks at me with concern written all over his face. “Everything okay?”
I drop my head to his chest and inhale the woodsy scent of his cologne, which always relaxes me. I’m exhausted after all of the wedding preparations, and all I want to do is go home and curl up in bed next to him. “Tell your sister to stop being mean and let me go home with you tonight,” I try but fail not to sound too whiny.
“Hey.” He pulls me away from his chest and cups my face with his hands, forcing me to look at him. “It’s one night. Plus, you’re going to need the rest for what I have planned for our wedding night.” He winks at me, leaving me under no illusions that we will be awake late tomorrow.
“Or, we could…” I drape my arms over his shoulders. Instinctively, he places his hands on my hips and drags me closer. “Sneak off and have a little fun before they force us to spend the night apart.” I reach down and stroke him through the front of his pants, and he instantly hardens.
“Fuck,” he groans and cages me against the wall. He leans in and captures my lips in a searing kiss.
“I swear I can’t leave you two alone for five minutes!” Freedom yells at us as she walks around the corner. She places her hand on her hips and looks between us with a scowl.
“I was just saying goodnight.” I laugh and give Alex one final peck on the lips before gently moving him away.
Jen turns the corner, sees us, and storms up to us. “There you are! We need to get home and go to bed so we can be well-rested for tomorrow.” She takes my wrist and pulls me away.
“I really don’t like you guys,” I mumble under my breath and reluctantly follow them.
ALEX
Today is the day I’ve been dreaming of since Marissa walked back into my life—our wedding day. The day I get to make her my wife.
Everything is decorated in various shades of pink and white. Beautiful flowers and drapery line the walls and staircases. I’m hidden away in the men’s dressing room upstairs. I can’t help pacing back and forth, trying to get rid of some of this energy. I’m not nervous about marrying her. I’m nervous I’m going to say or do the wrong thing. What if I try to put the ring on the wrong finger or mess up my words and sound like a complete idiot?
Everyone is afraid of me getting a glimpse of Marissa before the ceremony, so I’m not supposed to leave this area. Everyone else is busy, and I just need a small drink to calm my nerves. Slipping past the people at the end of the hall, I sneak downstairs. I get to the bar and successfully order myself a double shot of whiskey. I drink it in one go and make my way back to the other side of the venue. At the bottom of the stairs, I find Grace standing with her arms crossed over her chest.
“You’re in big trouble, mister.” She taps her foot.
“You look so beautiful, baby girl.” I try not to tear up seeing her in her pink bridesmaid dress. “That dress makes you look so grown up. Let’s burn it.” I laugh at my Dad joke.
“Kids do grow up, you know, Dad,” she scoffs and rolls her eyes.
“Too fast.” I nod, stick my hands in my pocket, and rock back on my heels. “I need to get upstairs before anyone else finds out I left.”
“Please, do what you’re told before you ruin this whole thing.” She grabs me and pushes me up the stairs.
“I’m not going to ruin anything.” I shrug out of her grip, turn around, and pull her into a hug. “Now, go bug your mother and make sure she’s doing what she’s supposed to.” I step around her up the stairs and then continue my pacing.
“Hey man, you nervous?” Matt calls out.
“Little bit.” I shrug, trying to play it off, scrubbing my hand down my face. “Yes. What if I screw it all up and forget everything I’m supposed to do when I get up there?”
“I’m sure you wouldn’t be the first or the last person to look like an idiot on their big day.” He laughs and slaps me on the back. “Oh, hey, I have a letter for you. Marissa might have threatened my life if this didn’t get to you safely.” He takes a folded-up piece of paper out of his suit pocket and hands it to me. “She wanted me to make sure you know it’s important that you read it before you head down.”
I unfold the note and carefully read it. I can’t stop myself from smiling like an idiot as I read the words she’s so neatly written on this sheet of paper. I love this girl with every fiber of my being, but I can’t marry her here today. Today was supposed to be my wedding day, but I guess life has other plans.
“All right, it’s time to head down, you coming?” Matt asks. I look up from the paper and nod before folding it neatly and slipping it into my suit pocket.
“Yeah, go ahead. I’ll be right behind you.” I wait until he’s gone, and I slip down the hallway. Instead of heading to the main stairs that lead to the ceremony, where everyone is waiting, I turn and head to the back of the building. I rush down the stairs to the main floor and slip out the back door, where there’s a getaway car waiting for me.
Let the adventure begin.