It Shoulda Been Me!

This week's Prompt: Wedding Day Blues.

I woke up at five thirty. It was the day of my best friend Dave’s Stag Do, the day before he got married. Well, I do say, my best friend, I was chosen to be the best man. And yes, I know, having a Stag Do the day before your wedding is not ideal.

I knocked on his bedroom door. Bang—Bang—Bang. “Come on, sleepyhead, it's time to get you out. We have lots to do.” (Rather than stay at his house, not a hundred yards away, we booked into the local pub, which was lucky for us—they do B&B, and his ex-girlfriend’s dad owns the pub.)

A groan came from the other side of the door. “Leave me alone, I don't want to play your silly games… I..., not like some people I know have grown up.”

“No silly game, mate. Just a pub crawl through the village, so come on, get your glad rags on. Time's a-wastin’.”

“Jeez, Joe, it’s not six in the morning, and we’re staying at the only pub in the village, so how does that constitute a pub crawl?”

“Well, OK, I’ve got a few other… small… things added to our day. Oh, and Tomo, Beano, and Jacko will be here at eight.” I tapped on the door again. “So come on, Jenny said she’d have breakfast ready for six forty-five.”

“Okay, okay, I'm coming… I thought Tomo was ill. Hang on, you said Jenny… Jenny is here?”

“Yeah, her dad owns the bloody pub, remember. Where else would she be?”

“I thought she was in Ireland for the summer.”

“Yeah, she came back. Now, come on.”

Walking into the dining room, a chime sounded over the door, and both lads took the only table set for two. A voice came from the kitchen. “With you in a minute. Help yourselves to juice, tea, or coffee.”

“That was Jenny. I know her voice anywhere.”

“You lived in each other's pockets for sixteen years, I guess you would know her voice.” Joe took a glass of apple juice and sat down.

In the kitchen,

“I can't go out, Dad. That’s Dave. I know his voice anywhere,” Jenny said, flipping some bacon in the frying pan.

“Look, just go out, ask him what he wants, then come back.”

With a huff, Jenny walked into the dining room. Notepad in hand, she stopped at their table. “What do you want?” she asked sternly, with a glare.

“And it's nice to see you, Jenny,” Joe said, standing to hug her. “So, how have things been? I believe you've been in Ireland.” Dave stayed seated, studying the breakfast menu.

“Errm, yes, yes, but I'm home to stay. Mum's not so well, and Dad needs help here.” She gestured around the room, emphasising she meant the pub.

Dave said, “Hi Jenny”

With her hand on her hips, “You have a nerve, it's been nine months and nothing, then I hear you're marrying a hippy that lives in the woods”

“Hang on, we never said we would get married” Dave stood up, “It was all just a pipe dream, things that kids do… Dream”  

Joe stood between the couple, with his hands apart, waiting for them to start throwing blows at each other.

Jenny shouted, “It should have been me.”

This is where I give you some background.

Dave and Jenny were born on the same day in the same hospital. Their mums attended all the same classes; the two were inseparable, growing up and going through nursery, infant school, junior school, and then onto high school. Each night, they would stand in their bedroom windows and flick the light on and off to say goodnight.

When they were about ten, Dave’s dad, a carpenter. He built a secret gate in the fence that separated their houses, saving twenty seconds compared to going round to the front doors. Jenny's parents owned the only pub in the village. In the pub's back garden, there was a large oak tree, so both fathers built a tree house. During the holidays, they ate, slept, and lived in the tree house. On the walls inside were maps, pictures, and magazine cuttings; this was where the duo did their planning—travelling the world, walking the Great Wall of China, climbing the pyramids in Egypt, feeding orangutans in Borneo. They had their lives planned out… Until Dave said he was going to a residential college in the nearby town, doing carpentry following in his dad's profession, he would be there for three months. Jenny was distraught; she had plans, her life was mapped out, and now it was shattered.

Jenny was truly in love with Dave, but she never knew how he felt.

After Dave left for the residential college, Jenny stayed in her bedroom. Her mum was instructed to take down all the pictures and maps from the treehouse. A month later, she went to Ireland to stay with an aunt.

                                        =========

While on the course, Dave met Cindy, a free spirit, whose parents lived off-grid. She had so much energy; she had done things Dave had never even contemplated; he was in awe of her. For the first time, he was not thinking about Jenny. He had forgotten about all the plans they had made; he was now living in the moment, not some faraway dream world.

When the first part of the course ended, rather than going home, he went with Cindy to the homestead where her parents lived. Ten minutes of being there, he knew this was the life for him, living in the woods, living off the land. If you want a new shed, you chop some trees and make one. Dave felt like a new man.

While Dave was staying on the homestead, his dad came to visit and stayed a few days. During one of their late-night conversations, his dad told him that Jenny had gone to live in Ireland.

After the next college term had finished, Dave went back to the homestead with Cindy on the first night. He asked her father if he could take his daughter's hand in marriage. He said yes on one condition: they got married on the homestead. Dave agreed and went to find Cindy.

Back to the Pub

Dave and Jenny sat at the table, and Joe walked off so they could chat.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to hurt you,” Dave said, still looking at the menu.

“Hurt me, Hurt me… I felt dead inside when I was told…”

“I am….”

“If you say you're sorry one more time, I’ll…” Jenny stood up. “Just go, Dave. And please don’t come back”

Dave stood up and walked towards the door. “Hey,” Jenny shouted with her hand out, “You won’t be needing that” She snatched the menu out of his hand, turned and walked back into the kitchen to the arms of her dad.