Gen 2- Chapter 6: Cherry Blossom

After Mom and Dad passed on. It took a little while for life to get back to normal. Partly because we had to adjust to their absence and partly due to the noise. None of us had a clue about the plans Mom had ordered on the house. So it was a big surprise when a gigantic crane and team of construction workers showed up one morning. They built a whole new kitchen and turned the old kitchen into a dining room.

That was just the beginning, she also ordered brand new bedrooms to be built for the whole family. We would no longer have to share rooms. I got our old room and brand new queen size bed to go in it. She also ordered not 1 but 2 new bathrooms one for each side of the house! You can just imagine all the hammering and banging we had to listen to.

But enough about all that, I know what you really want to hear about…

It was a gorgeous summer afternoon. The temperature was just right. I held Mango in a warm hug. I was so elated. She was about to become Mrs. Mango Chiffon. Carmine and Mango had opted for a small wedding. They didn’t really want a large group of people around, so it ended up just being Tea Rose, Misty, Peche and myself. I did her hair up just like before, and she looked so beautiful.

Tea Rose played a beautiful number on her guitar as they said their Vows.

It was so neat to see the look on Carmines face. I had never seen him look happier. Standing their watching took me back to all those funny little attempts we had tried to get Carmine to notice her, and now here we were watching them vow their lives to one another.

“I do.”

“I do.”

Their first kiss as man and wife, was so sweet. I must be a really romantic soul at heart, because seeing them there just made me want to cry. The joy mixed with the disappointment knowing that mom and dad were missing such a beautiful moment. I smiled as I wiped one stray tear off my cheek.

After the ceremony, Peche took my hands in his.

“We are going to be next Cherree. Are you ready?”

I didn’t even hesitate with my response. “Yes my love.” I knew in my heart of hearts he was the one.

Mango was so adorable. After the wedding she kept looking at her hand and gushing. I played along and we ooed and awwed all over the place.

Later that night the two excused themselves to their room and *ahem* Well I think you know what happened from there.

The morning of the wedding Peche and I separated ourselves to opposite sides of the house. We knew it was bad luck to see each other before the wedding. He spent most of his time in the bathroom, I think he was practicing his English for the vows. I thought his English was fine, but he wanted it to be just perfect.

Unlike Mango, I was going to be having a big wedding! Like a lot of little girls, I had been preparing and planning for this day since I was old enough to play with barbies. The dress, the hair everything was just as I had always dreamt it would be. As I stood there gazing into the mirror, I could feel moms presence. I never felt so beautiful.

The Chapel was even meticulously planned. Yes it was in fact The Cherry Blossom Chapel. Peche took my hand and slid the ring on my finger. I could feel that redness return to my cheeks just like that first fateful night.

I was so nervous that I almost dropped his ring on the floor. I gripped it a little tighter, and then successfully placed it on his hand. He looked at me, those gorgeous eyes staring straight into my soul. In that moment everyone else in the room disappeared.

Luckily for me he was OK with the idea being a Chiffon. I would have gladly became an Eclair, but he said he understood and if my family meant that much to me, then that was a family he wanted to be a part of.

“I love you Cherree.”

“I love you.”

Everyone in attendance watched with that AWWW look on their face. Yes it was a wonderful day for all.

Except for poor Mango. Almost the moment we stepped on the Chapel Grounds, she started to feel sick. The poor thing had to run to the bathroom every 20 minutes or so.  She was grateful for the lull that coincided with the actual ceremony, so she didn’t miss much. I felt so bad for her. I told her at one point to go home and rest, but she refused.

“I am not going to miss my best friends wedding because of a little queasy stomach.”

Even though we had been sleeping in the same bed for months, we stuck to our guns and waited to experience that incredible first night together as husband and wife. It was indeed incredible!

The next morning Mango came to talk to me about her problem. It seemed she was still sick and she was starting to get concerned. Neither of us had any clue about these sorts of things so I told her about the free clinic offered at the Wildberry Medical Center. They only accepted walk-ins, which in this case was good thing. She went down right away to get an exam.

Now if I knew then what I know now, I could have saved her a trip to the doctors, but seeing that I was terribly clueless. It was not until she received the phone call later that night, she found out she was pregnant! She rushed out of the bedroom and straight to me.

I was in the living room doing my Walk Away the Pounds video, when she came in. I flipped the TV off and I could tell what ever it was, was good news!

“Oh Cherree! Carmine and I are going to be having a baby!”

My eyes lit up and I smiled so hard my cheeks ached.

Later that night she told Carmine the good news and he was beaming from ear to ear, but he had news of his own. He had been looking at houses and was pretty sure he had found the perfect one.

They went that night to look. Even though poor Mango was still sick as sick, she loved the house. I was going to miss having her so close, but across town was much closer than across the world!