Page 3 of 3 Daddies to Go

“The music will change when Kendall gets to the front. Trudy, you’ll count to five and then walk in. Everyone will be standing and waiting to see how beautiful you look. Does everyone understand? Need me to go over it again?”

“We’ve got it,” I say, desperate to get this over with.

Trudy nods happily.

“Thank you so much. I think we’re ready to begin!”

The wedding planner claps again. I really should ask for her name, but I feel like it’s too late at this point. I manage a wan smile and try to look happy. The wedding planner is practically shaking with excitement now.

“I’ll go alert the organist to start playing then. See you all in there!”

She slips back into the church, and I turn to face Trudy. My friend looks ecstatic, which makes me happy. All that I care about is that she has the wedding she deserves, and I hope she forgets all the drama as soon as the music starts, for her sake as well as mine.

Except as soon as the organ music floats through the closed doors, Trudy’s face falls.

“What the hell is that?”

I look around. “What are you talking about?”

“That MUSIC? It’s terrible! Are you hearing this?”

“It’s not bad, Trudy. It sounds like wedding music.”

Her face is beginning to turn red and mottled.

“It sounds like average wedding music,” she hisses. “I hired the best organ player in Georgia. I had to pay an arm and a leg to get him out to Boone, and I get this? What the hell?”

I glance at the two ushers poised to open the doors at any second.

“Don’t open those until I tell you to,” I warn. They look confused, but nod.

“Trudy, the music is fine. No one even pays attention to the music. You’re just under a lot of stress.”

A tear rolls down her cheek.

“This is not stress! It’s mywedding. I don’t want crappy music playing as I walk down the aisle!”

I listen again, and honestly, I kind of agree. The organ doesn’t sound as beautiful as it usually does in TV weddings. In fact, it sounds a little out of tune, but what can we do at this late stage? I smile again.

“It’s okay, Trudy. Let’s just live with it okay? Your future husband is waiting for you.”

But my friend is inconsolable.

“No! It’s not okay!”

Her face starts gets even more red, which means Trudy is quickly heading towards full meltdown. Uh oh.

“Do you want me to go ask them to play music from the stereo system? I could give them my phone and have them play the wedding march that way.”

A tear begins to drop down Trudy’s cheek. Her makeup is waterproof, but I don’t want to test just how strong it is because it might not survive a full sob fest. Frankly, I might not survive that either.

“I can’t walk down the aisle to music played from a phone, Kendall! How can you even suggest that? That’s so cheesy and cheap.”

I take a deep breath.

“I’m just trying to help solve the problem, Trudy.”

At this point, another bridesmaid butts in.