'Til Death Do Us Part

The shrill tone of Clarissa’s alarm clock beeped at a high frequency. She was groggy from the night before.

Damn, I shouldn’t have had so many wine coolers, or taken all of those shots.

Before Clarissa could even begin to fully wake, the door next to the bed flew open.

“It’s wedding day, it’s wedding day, hey hey hey!” shouted Kiara in a jubilant tone. “Time to get up bride-to-be” she happily teased, while yanking the covers off of Clarissa.

“I want to sleep” Clarissa groaned. “Tell Jeff that the wedding can wait another two hours so I can catch some more shut-eye.” With that, Clarissa grumpily pulled a nearby pillow over her head.

Kiara gently sat down beside Clarissa on the bed, putting her hands on her back and rubbing her shoulders.

“Alright, I’ll get up boo” Clarissa reluctantly agreed. “You’re just like Jeff. Any time I have an attitude it can almost always be massaged out of me.”

Clarissa slowly stood up, and immediately took a look at herself in the full-length mirror. Her hair looked like she had stepped in a puddle with a toaster.

“Hey that’s nothing Jared can’t fix!” Kiara reassured her. “He should be here any minute.”

By major coincidence, there was a knock at the door. Clarissa opened it, still not fully adjusted to the fact it was day time. Jared’s exuberant face was the one on the other side.

“Hi doll!” he squeaked in excitement. “Oh sugar we are gonna make you into a goddess on yo’ weddin’ day, okay? Let’s get you seated in front of that big ol’ mirror.”

Clarissa took a seat in the cheap office chair by the giant doorway mirror. Jared crouched down to rustle through the contents of his bag, while happily humming.

“Okay here we go,” he said. “That still has some battery life in it.” Jared took the flatiron and set it down on the nearby bed. “First we gotta brush yo’ hair darling. We gotta try and get all them knots out.”

Then ensued the repetitive and moderately painful task of detangling a 25 year-old woman’s thick, curly hair. After several ow’s and fuck’s were uttered, Jared had finally managed to completely brush out Clarissa’s hair. He next took the flat iron and began smoothing out all of those luscious, curly locks.

“I envy that natural curliness darling,” Jared told Clarissa. “It makes you look gorgeous. And today you are going to look even more gorgeous than that.”

Jared continued to flatiron the rest of Clarissa’s hair. “What are we gonna do on your do today honey?” he asked.

“Nothing too crazy. I want a French braid coming from the one side of my head that ends in a bun on the back. Oh and you know how I like hair accessories that sparkle!” Clarissa was sure to add.

“There we go, that’s the last strand of hair to straighten. This up do shouldn’t take too long.” Jared’s soft, nimble fingers took strands of Clarissa’s hair, weaving them into a French braid on the left side of her head. He was able to fashion the end of the braid along with the rest of her hair into a voluminous bun.

“There we are, presto!” Jared shouted. “Oh, and how could I forget darling, sparkle sparkle sparkle you pretty bitch!” He retrieved from his bag an exquisite hair pin, covered in shiny rhinestones.

“This is for you darling, I want you to keep it” Jared said.

“Aw Jared, thank you," Clarissa said with a tear in her eye.

“It’s my pleasure sweetheart, you’re such an amazing person, and I know you’re gonna make a good wife for Jeff.” Jared then hugged Clarissa for a few seconds. “Now it’s time for makeup!” Jared exclaimed. “What were we thinking? First date, or Instagram model?”

“How about somewhere in between?” Clarissa asked.

“You got it girl,” Jared replied in the sassiest tone. He worked like Monet with paint, first starting with an even-tone foundation before contouring the face. Jared knew Clarissa wanted makeup that was fabulous without being too flashy, so he was careful to not be dramatic. He chose red eyeshadow to match the bride’s dress.

Ah yes, red for a wedding dress. Clarissa was the kind of person who always sought death for traditional ways. She picked out a floor-length red dress that had a sweetheart cut at the top. Tulle was worked into the bottom half, and the top half was shiny and shimmery with glitter. It may have looked more like a prom dress but for Clarissa it was perfect.

Kiara helped with lowering the dress over Clarissa, careful to not mess up her makeup.

“Take a look darling,” Jared begged.

Clarissa took a long look at herself in the mirror. Normally she struggled with self-esteem issues and didn’t feel like she looked good, but for the first time in years she actually felt beautiful.

“Oh Jared, you’ve done wonderful, thank you so much,” Clarissa cried while giving Jared another big hug.

“Alright darling, we gotta get you to the ceremony, everyone’s waiting!” Jared exclaimed. Out of the room everyone went, cheering happily all the way to the venue, which was located just behind the farmhouse.

The old oak barn stood tall and mighty, even though it had for sure seen better years. Most of the red paint had chipped away from the wood, leaving a rustic vibe in its path. For the other 364 days of the year, it was used as storage for the Hendrickson family, who so graciously allowed for the use of the property on Clarissa’s special day. And for the remaining one day, it contained a simple yet charming scene.

Several bales of hay were purchased and then scattered about so the cement ground was completely covered. Twenty white, wooden chairs were perfectly lined up in rows of five. Clarissa never understood the need for big, fancy weddings with droves of people in attendance, so this was perfect for her.

Kiara put her arm in Clarissa’s.

“You know your parents would both be here if they could. They would be so happy for you.” Kiara reassured.

Clarissa briefly lowered her head before bringing it up again. This was to be a joyous occasion. She believed somewhere, somehow her parents were watching over her.

“Oh, trust me,” Kiara whispered softly into Clarissa’s ear. “If you marry Jeff today, you will see your parents.”

Alarm and confusion immediately rose into the forefront of Clarissa’s mind before she felt the sharp, intense pain of a knife into her back.

“It’s a good thing your dress is red,” Kiara whispered. “That way Jeff won’t see you bleeding.”

“My love for Jeff won’t end over a jealous friend.”

“Oh you think this is jealousy?” Kiara whispered while the two began making their way down the aisle. “Jeff and I fucked once a few weeks ago, but then he realized his mistake and immediately came home to you. Stupid boy. The only mistake he ever made was being with you instead of me.” Kiara then twisted the knife in circles, relishing in Clarissa’s groans of anguish with light giggles.

“Here’s what’s gonna happen,” Kiara threatened. “You’re not gonna make a scene. Everything is gonna go like it’s supposed to, and when you guys get to the I do’s, you are gonna turn that man down and say he deserves to be with me.”

“And if I don’t?” Clarissa asked.

“I’m going to take this knife and finish slicing you in half like a sandwich. And then, I’m gonna kill your fiancé.” Kiara warned.

The two finally reached the front. Clarissa was finally released from Kiara’s arm and stood face-to-face with Jeff. The man she loved. She couldn’t stand the thought of neither him nor her dying. Kiara was watching her closely like a hawk, disguising her true self with smiles and flirty eyes.

Somehow, I have to signal Jeff that we are in danger.

Once it was time to exchange vows, Clarissa looked at Jeff wide-eyed before uttering her vows.

“Jeffrey Moran Schmidt, I vow to never stab you in the back. You are the only one for me, and I know that no one in this room, not even someone like Kiara, could end our relationship.” Clarissa had made sure to especially enunciate the words stab and Kiara.

Jeff looked at her with a bewildered expression. “Dear, is everything alright?” he asked in a concerning voice.

The wound on Clarissa’s back grew into an immense amount of pain. She began coughing as more blood came rushing out.

“You little…” Kiara began before a loud metal clang broke through the silence. Not only had the knife fallen onto the floor, but a 9 mm pistol as well.

“Someone get Kiara!” Jeff shouted, while Clarissa dropped into his arms. Kiara ran fiercely towards the exit until one pair of hands managed to snag her. It was Jared. That man was as strong with his hands as he was fierce with makeup. In his free hand he was able to call 911.

Meanwhile Clarissa was getting weaker by the minute, until she finally began losing consciousness. Jeff screamed “We need an ambulance right away!”

The last thing Clarissa could remember was the faint sound of an ambulance in the distance before blacking out.

Everything was happening so fast that Jeff felt like the world was spinning. All he could do was worry at the thought of Clarissa dying. His heart rate stayed elevated on the ambulance ride, and he knew he had to 100% be by Clarissa's side. He would not leave that gurney until Clarissa had emergency surgery.

The worst part was the waiting. Waiting for her to come out of surgery. Waiting for her to possibly wake up. Waiting for what felt like an eternity, to learn whether or not Jeff would even have a wife at the end of the day.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of constant tension, Clarissa began to finally wake.

“Oh honey, I’m so glad you’re alive. If we’d waited another second, we would’ve lost you.” Jeff said through tears.

“How long have you been here with me?” Clarissa asked.

“It’s been 10 hours,” Jeff said.

“10 whole hours?” Clarissa gasped. "Sweetheart you didn’t have to stay this entire time.”

“I know I didn’t have to, but I love you and couldn’t go on until I knew you were going to be okay. I love you, and…” Jeff trailed while letting the wedding officiator step into the room.

“Til death do us part,” Jeff finished.

“Til death do us part,” Clarissa repeated.

“I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Schmidt. You may kiss the bride,” the officiator whispered.

Clarissa would no doubt have a long road to recovery with healing from a gash so large, but now she could do so with her new husband in this new chapter of her life.