The CAP Epilogue, Pt. 2: Jackie's Big Day
by Ladybug
“Wait a minute, wait a minute!” Bluetopaz interrupted her. “You got married
and you didn’t even call me? I would have thrown a shower...and a
party...and...”
“Quiet!” all the other Debs said. “We wanna hear the rest of the
story!” They all had tears in their eyes from the romantic tale.
Bluetopaz grumbled and settled back in her chair. “All right, go on,” she
sighed.
“Anyway, we went to the casino that night,” Jackie continued.
***************
Jackie stood in the vestibule, holding a large bouquet of flowers. She began to doubt her
rash decision. None of her friends or relatives were here, for one thing. She’d
always wanted their presence and support (and gifts) if she ever tied the knot. And then
there was Delphus. He was a wonderful man. But marriage? She barely knew him. How could
she decide to spend her life with him? And what about Deb U? Would she ever return? Could
she be happy away from the debauchery she’d grown to love?
Just then her intended groom came around the corner. At the sight of his eyes sparkling
with love for her, all insecurities vanished. Her butterflies calmed and she became sure
that this was the right thing to do. She loved him. There was nothing else in the world
that was so right.
“I have something for you,” he said, one hand behind his back. “A wedding
gift from me.” He brought out a delicate tiara glittering with jewels and placed it
on her head. “For the queen of my life,” he explained.
Tears welled in Jackie’s eyes. She put her hand to his cheek and could only smile at
this kind man who had found a place in her heart. Just then the music started, and she
took his arm.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
“Absolutely,” she said, and the opened the doors to a ballroom that was golden
with lights, flowers and decorations. Potted trees glittered with tiny lights and
sparkling birds. Flowers lined the aisles and the makeshift altar. Their sweet smell
filled the air, and Jackie was amazed at how elaborate it was. He must have had hundreds
of people hurrying to put this all together in a matter of hours. And all for her.
She was radiant as she walked down the aisle in her white dress. It was slightly
off-the-shoulder, and at her neck was a simple but elegant diamond necklace that had
belonged to Delphus’ mother. The linen hugged her curves and fell with only the
slightest flounce to the floor, where she walked with silver slippers fit for a princess.
The room was filled with Delphus’ friends and colleagues, and the ceremony was short
but lovely. The couple pledged to love and care for each other as long as they lived, with
friendship, communication and trust as the foundations for their marriage. When he kissed
her, the whole world faded away and she felt only warmth from his lips and his arms around
her.
The party afterward was a joyous revelry, with food and drink overflowing. Jackie
couldn’t stop smiling. So this was true love. So this was what the poets and the
bards were talking about. And they couldn’t ever, ever do it justice. She was the
happiest she’d ever been in her whole life.
Someone stepped up to the microphone to give a toast. “I’d like to congratulate
Delphus and Jackie on this happy occasion,” he said. “May they live their lives
together as much in love as they look tonight!” (Applause, applause.) “And
Jackie may not realize this, but we’re all as happy for Delphus as can be.
You’re a lovely lady, and you’ve rescued him from becoming a hermit.” His
friends laughed in acknowledgement. Delphus smirked; it was obvious they’d kidded him
about it before. “He’s a hard man to get close to, and many have tried and
failed. Now he has the happiness we know he deserves. To celebrate, we have a song for you
from Delphus.” He motioned a woman up to the front, and the orchestra began to play.
“This song is called ‘Something So Right,’” she said, and sang this
song.
You’ve got the cool waters
When the fever runs high
You’ve got the look of love right in your eyes
And I was in a crazy motion
Til you calmed me down
It took a little time, but you calmed me down
Some people never say the words I love you
It’s not their style, to be so bold
Some people never say the words I love you
But like a child, they’re longing to be told
They’ve got a wall in China
It’s a thousand miles long
To keep out the foreigners that made them strong
And I’ve got a wall around me
That you can’t even see
It took a little time to get next to me
When something goes wrong
I’m the first to admit it
The first to admit it, the last one to know
When something goes right
It’s like it eludes me
It’s apt to confuse me
Because it’s such an unusual sight
I can’t get used to something so right
To something so right
Some people never say the words I love you
It’s not their style, to be so bold
Some people never say the words I love you
But like a child, I’m longing to be told
And they’ve got wall in China
And I’ve got a wall around me
It took a little time to get next to me.
...As the music faded there was the light, soft sound of wind chimes, and Delphus squeezed
Jackie’s hand. She saw that he was struggling to keep back his emotions, and she
kissed him tenderly.
Everyone applauded and they all danced through the night. It was like a fairy tale.
Jackie woke up with the morning light in her eyes. For a moment she couldn’t remember
where she was; and then she realized it must have all been a dream. It had to have been.
She sighed and closed her eyes again. She supposed it was time to get the
chancellors’ bodies back home and get back to reality.
But then she heard something, and when she looked over, there was Delphus, asleep next to
her. She was in his mansion--now their home--and it hadn’t been a dream at all. She
sat straight up. It was all real, indeed. He had carried her into the bedroom after the
party last night, called her his wife, kissed her all over, been the most tender and
considerate lover she’d ever known.
“Delphus,” Jackie said, shaking him. “Wake up. Honey!”
“Hmmm,” he said, opening one eye and squinting. “Whassamatter.”
“Let’s run away to Hawaiius,” she urged. “Let’s go and lie on the
beach and do whatever we please. Take me away, my dahling,” she said dramatically.
He smiled at her. “Whatever you want, my love,” he said, and picked up the
phone, instructing his butler to get the transportation ready right away and get the maids
on the task of packing their things.
She hugged him and sighed happily. “Even if we were beggars on the street, I’d
still love you,” she said.
He chuckled. “You’re the first person to ever say that to me that I
believed,” he said, and kissed her. And he kissed her again. And again. And again,
longer and with more pressure.
“Darling!” she said with surprise, feeling his affection growing.
He laughed as he continued to surprise her still more with his passion, making love to her
there in the sunshine. Jackie held him tight, thankful that it was all real, and he was
hers.
Later that day they arrived in Hawaiius. Jackie closed her eyes and smelled the sea air.
It was heavenly. She’d always wanted to go someplace tropical on her honeymoon, and
here she was. After they unpacked she suggested they go out. “I want one of those
pineapple drinks with the little umbrellas,” she said.
Delphus laughed. “You’re so much fun,” he said. “I feel like I’m
20 years younger when I’m with you.”
She punched him in the arm. “You’re not even close to old,” she said.
“Now let’s go.”
They asked at the desk where to go, and the concierge told them that the Blue Parrot was a
popular spot, just down the road. When they walked in, the tiki torches flickered at them
and a waitress put flower leis around their necks before seating them.
“Let me get you a drink,” Delphus said.
“No, no, I’ll go to the bar,” she said. “I want to see what’s up
there and have them make me the biggest, yummiest drink they can think of.” So she
went up to the bar and waited. The bartender turned around, and she was shocked.
“Omar!” she gasped.
The android’s eyes went wide as he heard his name. He made as though he was going to
run for his life, but she stopped him.
“Wait, wait, it’s all right, I’m not here for you,” she said, and he
paused.
“Why are you here?” he asked, puzzled. “How did you know where to find
us?”
“Us?” she asked. Omar pointed to the other side of the room, where Rose sat
doing bookwork at a table in the corner. “Oh my goodness, that’s right.”
Jackie shook her head. “Well, I’m here on my honeymoon.”
“You got married?”
“Yup. To that handsome guy over there.” She pointed at Delphus, who waved,
looking a little curious as to why she was carrying on such a long conversation with the
bartender.
“That’s wonderful news. Ladybug and I are married too.” He was proud.
“You and...you’re married?” Her mind raced. Didn’t he know yet that
she wasn’t the real Ladybug?
“We are. We ran off together with some of the grant money, but it wasn’t enough
to sustain us indefinitely, so we started working here, and then we invested in the place.
We’re part owners now. I’ve made investments in quite a few nightclubs in the
area, actually.”
Always the logical android, thought Jackie. “Well, don’t worry about me. I
won’t tell on you,” she promised. He looked immensely relieved. “I would
like a couple of house specials, though.”
“Coming right up. I’ve concocted a delicious drink with equal parts of fruit
juices and flavored liquers, with just a touch of--”
“Sounds great. I’ll take it.” Jackie cut him off. She was thirsty and
wanted to get back to her husband.
********************
“And that’s how I met up with Rose and Omar,” Jackie said. “Would you
like to take over at this point?”
“I suppose I should,” said Rose. “You’ll have to finish your part, but
that doesn’t come until later.”
“So you got married too?” Ladybug asked her. “What was it like?”
“Let me start from the time we left Lost Wages,” Rose said. “As Jackie
said, we knew that the money we’d taken with us wasn’t going to last us forever,
so we had to find work. The Blue Parrot was looking for both a bartender and a hula girl,
so we applied for the jobs.”
“Hula girl?” Bird asked. “How did you learn to hula?”
“It’s part of our Ethnic Cultures class at my Deb U,” she said.
“Don’t you have it?”
“No, but let me make a note of that,” Bird said, scribbling it down.
“Anyway, so there we were, Omar making drinks and me in the spotlight....”
****************************
Tune in next time for Rose's continuation of the saga!
By the way, the version of the song I used here is on Annie Lennox's album
"Medusa," if you wanna check it out. Great song, and the title was so fitting,
considering our origins.
Hope you're enjoying it so far, gang..
Posted on Dec 07 1999 03:19 PM |