Silly Post-Script for Lost Treasure
Nov. 2nd, 2010 08:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kate_sherwoodSpoilery, I guess, for Lost Treasure
Lost & Found
“Okay, seriously - I think it’s going to rain.”
“It’s not going to rain.” Ryan smiled as sweetly as he had the first four times he’d tried to reassure Kyle. This time, though, he added, “You’re mental.”
“I’m not mental. Those are rain clouds – right there! You know what comes out of rain clouds? Rain!”
“They’re not rain clouds. They’re just clouds. And they’re way south – check which way the wind is blowing.” Ryan waited, but Kyle refused to respond. “Those clouds, which are not rain clouds anyway, are going to blow right by us.”
Kyle gave the clouds a dirty look as Sean trotted up the path from the lake. “Sean – look at those clouds. Do those look like rain clouds to you?”
Sean climbed up on the porch to join his father and Kyle, and to get a better view of the sky. “I don’t know – they don’t really look like rain clouds to me. I think – to me, it looks like it could be snow…”
“Yeah, maybe one of those freak August snowstorms,” Ryan agreed.
“Or frogs. Sometimes frogs just fall from the sky – I read about it.” Sean turned to look at Kyle, trying to keep his face straight. “Seriously, Kyle - I think maybe those are frog clouds.”
“You guys are not helpful. Or funny.” Kyle squinted, trying to determine which way the clouds were moving. “The winds at the upper layers of the atmosphere don’t necessarily move in the same direction as the winds down here. I think the upper winds are blowing those clouds right at us.”
Ryan shook his head. “You know just enough science to make yourself crazy.” He moved closer, snuggling in behind Kyle and wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “And it doesn’t matter anyway. Rain, snow, or frogs, we’re getting married today. Nothing’s going to get in the way of that.”
Sean was watching them closely, and a frown creased his forehead. “Not even frogs? I mean – they’d be everywhere.”
“Are the frogs alive, when they land? They wouldn’t be, would they?” Ryan asked. Kyle tried not to smile - Ryan’s natural curiosity was one of his best features. Well, one of his many, many excellent features.
“Sometimes. And sometimes they’re frozen solid. Or all shredded up.” Sean grinned widely, obviously pleased with his macabre knowledge.
Ryan turned his head enough to be able to see Kyle’s face. “Do we need a backup plan for this? If it rains frogs? I say, if they’re alive, we go right on with the ceremony. If they’re frozen or shredded, though – I think we should hide inside, and then assess the situation. And, honestly, if they’re injured – if there are maimed frogs, croaking in pain, crawling all over the place because they’re too beat up to hop – we might want to postpone. And call animal control.”
“If it rains frogs, I’m going to kick your asses, both of you. There is no reason for you to be giving me one more damn thing to worry about.”
Ryan shifted again, moving around so he could look his fiancé in the eye. “You’re not worried about the actual being married part, though, right? This is all just the ceremony and the party and stuff that you’re tense about? Or is it bigger than that?”
Kyle felt surprised, then apologetic, and he darted his head forward to give Ryan a quick, hard kiss. “No doubts about the being married part. At all.” Another quick kiss. “I would marry you in the rain, I would marry you on a train. I would marry you in a boat, I would marry you with a goat.”
“Those had better not be your actual wedding vows,” Ryan warned, but he smiled as he pulled away reluctantly. “You have first shower – I’ve got to finish getting the bonfire set up.”
Ryan headed towards the shore, with Sean trailing along beside him, and Kyle stood there and watched them go. He had things to do, but he wanted to capture as many of these moments as he could. It was an important day, and he wanted to be sure he appreciated every detail, good or bad. Although he really hoped there weren’t frogs.
***
“Casey? Are you dressed?” Ryan yelled as he stuck his head just inside the cabin door.
Kyle appeared at the railing of the loft, his linen suit crisp and freshly ironed. “Yeah, pretty much.”
Ryan smiled. “Damn. You look good.” He smiled that smile, the one that made Kyle’s knees go wobbly. Then he got back to business. “People are starting to get here. And our dads just backed their cars up into each other.”
Kyle wasn’t sure he’d heard right.. “Are you kidding me? Are they okay?”
“Yeah, man, it’s fine. It was at, like, two kilometres an hour. Barely dented either car. Your dad lost a tail light. And neither one’s being an asshole about it, so – everything’s fine. But, you know – if you could get down here and manage things so I can get cleaned up, that’d be good.”
“Yeah, okay.” Kyle took one last look in the mirror and started down the stairs. Ryan met him in the middle, and even though the staircase really wasn’t all that narrow, he managed to brush up against Kyle pretty firmly. His intentions were made crystal clear when he pivoted and Kyle found himself pinned, a wooden wall at his back and a tall, amorous carpenter at his front. There was no hesitation from either of them before their lips met. The kiss started off as simply affectionate, but the passion started to grow quickly, just as it always did between them. Neither one noticed the gentle knock on the cabin door, but they both jerked their heads around when they heard the voice.
“Alright, boys, knock it off. No nookie until after the ceremony!” William Ballard was tall and dignified looking, his grey hair carefully groomed, his shoulders straight, his taupe suit impeccably tailored. Their officiant would have been absolutely intimidating, if he could only stop grinning.
Ryan didn’t turn his head back towards Kyle, but he didn’t pull his body away, either. “What’s the definition of ‘nookie,’ exactly? What could I get away with, here?”
“It’s absolutely shocking that you’re even seeing each other before the ceremony. I’ve never heard of such a break from tradition! Marriage is a sacred institution…blah, blah, blah.” His arm-wave managed to be simultaneously vague and grandiose. “You get the idea. I’ll save my best stuff for a larger audience.” He looked at the couple more closely, apparently zeroing in on Ryan. “Is that what you’re planning to wear? I know it’s a dockside wedding, but jeans and a t-shirt? Really?”
That made Ryan move. “No, not really. I need to get dressed. I just got distracted, for a second there.”
“Well, Kyle, you look very nice. Why don’t you take me outside and introduce me to a few of your charming guests? Maybe Ryan will be able to get himself back on track without your influence.” As usual, the severity of the speech was totally lost because of the merry smile that played across the speaker’s lips.
Kyle reluctantly pulled himself away from Ryan. He made it down the stairs without looking back, but he half-turned at the door, and there Ryan was, smiling down at him. The only problem with the whole marriage thing was that it somehow didn’t seem like enough – Kyle wanted to tattoo Ryan’s name all over his body, wanted to compose a symphony of celebration, wanted to perform a heroic feat. Saying a few words, making a vow – that was nothing compared to the depth of Kyle’s feelings.
“Outside, outside,” William prompted.
Kyle made himself follow the man’s directions, even though what he really wanted to do was go back up the stairs and join Ryan in the shower. He made it out the door just as Steve and Hayley pulled in, and Sean ran to greet his other set of parents. He exchanged quick hugs, then waited impatiently as Steve fumbled around in the back seat.
“Hi, Megan,” Sean cooed over Steve’s shoulder. “Did you miss me? Am I still your favourite brother?”
“You’re still her only brother, Sean,” Kyle said, laying a gentle arm across the boy’s shoulder. He extended his other hand to Steve. “Thanks for coming, guys.”
“Wouldn’t have missed it,” Hayley said. “But, uh - there’s a bit of a problem.”
Kyle really didn’t want to hear those words. “What do you mean?”
“Well - you know how Ryan asked us to take care of the syrup labels?”
“Yeah...” Steve and Hayley had been part of the big maple syrup venture at the cabin that spring. When Ryan and Kyle had thought that they could give away little bottles as wedding favours, they’d decided to personalize the labels. All Hayley and Steve had been asked to do was to pick the labels up at the printer’s and stick them on the bottles. What could go wrong with that?
“Well, with the baby and all, we’ve been busy - so we didn’t go to get the labels until the end of the day yesterday.” Steve bounced Megan a little, as if demonstrating that they did, indeed, have a new baby. He sounded apologetic, but Kyle still didn’t know why.
“Okay...”
“Well - I guess maybe they misheard the order. Or something. And we didn’t bother to open the package until a couple hours ago, because, you know - how long would it take to stick a few labels on? And by then the printer was already closed for the weekend.” Hayley made a face. “Ryan took care of the ordering, right? He doesn’t usually mutter...”
Kyle tried to control himself. “Could I please see the labels?”
Steve nodded slowly. “Yeah. Okay. And, you know, we have a few options, here. We could go with them as they are, or we could make the changes - Hayley did one like that, so you could see it. Or we don’t have to put the labels on at all - the bottles look really pretty just clear.”
“Could I please see the labels?” Kyle tried to keep the threat out of his tone. This was a happy occasion. This was a happy occasion.
Sean had been watching the proceedings with fascination, and he dodged around Steve to look at the labelled bottle of syrup in his mother’s hand. When he looked back at Kyle, his eyes were wide, but there was a grin twitching at the corners of his mouth. A firm look from Steve suppressed the giggle that had been building.
Hayley finally extending the bottle, and Kyle reached for it and turned the label to face him. There was the picture of the dock, with the shore in the background, just as they had planned. And the lettering was there: Thank you for joining us on this special day. Love, Kayla and Ryan
“It’s not even the same number of syllables.” It was all Kyle could think of to say.
“We tried to fix it, on this one.” Hayley passed him another bottle. Kayla was whited out on this one, and Kyle was written it its place. But it was clearly an amateur job.
Kyle took a deep breath, and surprised himself with the loud laugh that came out when he exhaled. “Okay. This is not a tragedy. We can get the labels fixed and mail the syrup out, or we can hand it out in the clear bottles, or - we can pour the syrup in the fire and use the bottles as flasks for our whiskey. It doesn’t matter. This is fine.”
“We are SO sorry, Kyle.” Hayley sounded like she might actually cry.
Kyle gave her a hug. “Sweetie, it doesn’t matter, at all. You guys are here. Sean and Megan are here. That’s the important part. Seriously. Ryan’s just getting dressed and showered, and then he’ll be out here, and everything will be perfect. Syrup is - it’s nothing.”
“Besides, Kayla has bigger things to worry about - it’s probably going to start raining frogs any minute.” Sean smiled at his bewildered parents, then reached out towards the baby in Steve’s arms. “Here, Megan - I’ll introduce you to the animals.”
Steve handed his daughter over with only a few admonitions about watching her head, and Sean took her carefully, then started for the cabin. As he left, Steve turned to Kyle. “Frogs?”
“Don’t ask,” Kyle said, and he turned to watch the next carful of guests arrive.
***
Ryan checked himself in the mirror one more time. He wasn’t used to wearing a suit, and it felt strange. Not bad, necessarily. It was probably good - one more way to remind himself that this was a huge deal, that he was doing something special and important, and he should treat the occasion with the solemnity that it deserved. He just wished he wasn’t so sure that he was going to drip food on himself at the earliest possibility. Or maybe he’d brush up against something dirty. His suit was darker than Kyle’s but it was still on the pale side of brown, and it would absolutely show dirt. And Ryan would end up looking like the poor bumpkin that he was, nowhere near good enough for a sophisticated guy like Kyle.
It wasn’t like he was the only one who felt that way. Kyle’s mother had been only too eager to express her disgust with the possibility of Ryan as a son-in-law. Kyle had been quick to say that she was upset about Kyle marrying a man, not about Ryan specifically, but Ryan wasn’t sure about that. The woman had hated him since he was a teenager - it must have been extra-bitter for her to know that he was going to spend the rest of his life with her son. Bitter enough that she had refused to come to the wedding.
Which, if Ryan was being selfish, was great. He really didn’t need the stress of having her staring daggers at him all day. And Kyle’s dad was there, not entirely comfortable but at least making an effort, so Kyle seemed happy enough. They’d arranged the chairs so there was no clear division between the guests of one or the guests of the other, but that was largely because most of the people they’d invited were locals, and in the time that Kyle had been living there, they’d accepted him as one of their own. So most of the guests belonged to Kyle and Ryan equally. The few that didn’t were Kyle’s friends up from Chicago, and they’d come early and rented a cottage and made a week’s vacation of it, so Ryan felt like he knew them pretty well by now.
So everybody outside was a friend, and he needed to stop hiding in the cabin and get his ass out there. Kyle was waiting for him; that was the incentive he needed.
He resolutely headed down the stairs and out the door. Most of the guests were already there, and he felt bad for leaving Kyle to deal with them all by himself. But Kyle was good at that sort of thing - he wouldn’t mind it like Ryan would have. That was one of the great things about this whole marriage thing - they could rely on each other, and use each other’s strengths for the good of the partnership.
Sean bolted across the lawn towards him. “You should see the syrup labels! They say Kayla instead of Kyle!” He seemed to think it was hilarious, but Ryan wasn’t impressed. Was it some sort of homophobic slur from the printer, or was it just incompetence? And why the hell hadn’t Hayley and Steve caught the mistake?
Then Kyle was there, and he was smiling. “It’s not a big deal - stop frowning.”
“You wanted the syrup - you wanted to send it home with your Chicago friends.”
“So? I still can. It’s not a big deal.” Kyle looked at Ryan and shook his head. “Wow, what a role reversal. Usually I’m the one getting all worked up, and you’re the calming influence. What’s wrong with you?”
“I just - I want this to be perfect. I want you to be happy.”
“You know what makes me happy? You. Especially when you smile.”
They tried to ignore the gagging noises Sean made behind their backs, and Ryan leaned his head down for a kiss.
“No nookie!” William called from across the yard.
“Yeah, no nookie!” That was Ryan’s father.
“No nookie!” agreed Sean, and then there was a chorus of it coming from all over their small patch of lawn, Steve and Hayley, and Kyle’s friends from Chicago, the Oullettes, even Kyle’s dad, smiling gently at them.
Kyle didn’t seem affected by the attention, but as the chorus grew in volume Ryan had a harder time keeping his lips free for kissing instead of for laughing. Finally he surrendered and pulled away. “Alright, alright! No nookie - yet.”
William joined them, and grinned as he nodded toward the lake. “If all your guests are here, maybe we should get started?”
That seemed fast - maybe too fast. But Ryan couldn’t think of a reason to delay. So when Kyle nodded, he didn’t argue.
William sprang into action, beginning to herd everyone down toward the dock, and Kyle nodded at Ryan, indicating that he should go with him to the side of the house. Ryan obeyed, and when they arrived, Kyle reached into the wash barrel that they’d filled with ice and soft drinks and beer and pulled out a bottle of champagne. He gestured towards the nearby window sill, where Ryan saw two empty champagne flutes.
Ryan smiled as he retrieved the glasses. This was exactly what he needed, a quiet moment with Kyle, to regroup and get his nerves under control. Kyle carefully aimed the bottle away from their faces and twisted the cork, then made a face and twisted it harder. It came free with a pop that was followed almost immediately by a brittle crack, as the flying cork hit the window of the cabin.
Ryan and Kyle stared at the broken window. “It’s not a mirror, so it’s not bad luck,” Ryan rationalized.
“And Steve feels really bad about the label thing, so it’ll be easy to get him to fix it for us while we’re away,” Kyle added.
Ryan nodded. Everything was going to be okay. He held the glasses out. “Now that you’ve got it open...”
Kyle smiled and poured the glasses, then topped them up before setting the bottle down. “I love you,” he said.
It wasn’t exactly a traditional toast, but it was exactly what Ryan needed to hear. “I love you too.” They clinked their glasses together and drank. Kyle leaned his back against the wall of the cottage, and Ryan resisted the urge to press into him, front to front. Instead, he turned and leaned his own back against the wall, and they stood in companionable silence for a couple minutes, finishing their glasses. “You ready?” Ryan asked, and when Kyle nodded, they took each other’s hand and headed down to the lake.
***
Sean had always liked having two dads, and he was looking forward to officially having three. Three moms would have been great, too, but nobody seemed to be doing too much about getting him any more of those.
That said, the actual ‘wedding’ part of this whole ‘getting married’ thing was a bit of a bore. They were all sitting in chairs right by the lake, and that would have been okay except that it was hot out, and they were sitting in the sun, and the water was right there, just waiting for him to jump into it. There were people out on the lake in their boats, too, and that would be excellent, to go water skiing or wake boarding or even just tubing. Anything would be better than sitting there and listening to the weird smiling guy talk and talk and talk about love, and how great it was.
Things got a bit better when weird guy stopped talking and looked up the hill, and everybody turned around to see Ryan and Kyle waiting patiently for their turn. Everybody stood up, and that was alright, especially since Sean was still short enough that he could hide in people’s shade. Especially Steve’s - the guy cast a pretty big shadow. But then Steve was moving too, and Sean remembered that they were supposed to be a part of this.
His mom passed Megan off to Mrs. Oullette, and then she and Steve and Sean followed behind Kyle and Ryan as they walked out onto the old wooden dock. There had been some discussion about whether it was sturdy enough to hold all of them, but they’d tried it out, and it had been okay. It seemed even lower in the water today than it had in the past, though. Maybe one of the barrels that made it float had sprung a leak.
Then the weird guy was talking again, and Sean didn’t even really try to pay attention to him. Instead he watched his dad. He was always pretty calm, Sean’s dad, and he’d never really seemed unhappy. But he’d never seemed all that happy, either, not until Kyle came along. Came back, and that was weird to think about, that his dad and Kyle had known each other so long ago, and been such good friends, and then had somehow lost touch. It made the whole marriage thing make sense, though - if you were married to somebody, you couldn’t just wander off and forget about them for a while. And that was good, because Sean really didn’t want Kyle to do that again. Not when he made Sean’s dad smile like he was right now.
The weird guy finally stopped talking. It was Sean’s dad’s turn, and Sean made himself pay attention. “Kyle - You were gone too long, but you’re back now, and I plan to hold on tighter this time. We’ve been friends for all our lives, and it just seems right that now we’re more.” He paused, and Sean squinted to see if he was crying. Steve had said that people cried at weddings a lot. But Sean didn’t see any tears this time. “I promise to love, honour, and cherish you.” His dad reached into the breast pocket of his jacket and pulled out the ring. His mom had insisted that they spread a rug on the dock, so that if a ring was dropped it wouldn’t fall right through the cracks between the boards, and Sean was glad that she had. Not that his dad was going to drop the ring. But still, better safe than sorry. His dad took Kyle’s hand and carefully put the ring on his finger. He waited a moment for the roar of a passing ski boat to fade away, and then he said, loud enough for everyone to hear, “With this ring, I thee wed.”
Everyone’s attention, including Sean’s, turned to Kyle. He took a deep breath. “Ryan - you loved me, and it helped me be able to love myself. The best times in my life have been with you, and I look forward to spending so many more good times together, but I want us to be together, good or bad. I promise to love, honour, and cherish you.” Now it was his turn to reach into his pocket. Unfortunately, that was the exact moment that the waves from the ski boat hit the dock. Everyone shifted a bit as water splashed up through the spaces between the boards and the whole dock rocked. There was a moment when Kyle looked a little startled, and Sean thought that maybe he’d lost the ring, and then the look changed into absolute alarm.
Kyle’s arms started windmilling as he struggled to regain his balance, but the rug beneath his feet was sliding, and twisting, and then another wave hit and rocked the dock and that was it for Kyle’s balance.
He fell backwards, missing the edge of the dock and landing in the lake. There was a collective gasp as the audience stood in unison, and Sean swivelled to see his father’s reaction. Then he turned back to see Kyle’s head popping out of the water, staring up at them as if he wasn’t sure what to do.
“Do you still have the ring?” Sean’s dad asked.
Kyle lifted his hand, showing his tightly clenched fist. “I do,” he said.
“You said you didn’t want to include that line,” the weird guy started, but then he stopped talking as Sean’s dad stepped casually off the edge of the dock, splashing into the lake next to Kyle. They were both treading water, and both grinning at each other like absolute lunatics.
Sean was only a little startled to hear the splash as his mom jumped in as well, followed, of course, by Steve. And Sean had been wanting a swim since this whole thing started, so he didn’t have a tough decision to make. And the water felt cool and wonderful, even through his dress-up clothes.
The five of them clustered together in roughly the same positions as they’d had on the dock. Kyle reached for Sean’s dad, and they linked hands together as Kyle put the ring on Sean’s dad’s finger. “With this ring, I thee wed,” he said.
The weird guy was looking down at them like he was wondering whether to join them in the water. He apparently decided against it, and just spoke a little louder so they could all hear him. “In this beautiful natural setting, with your chosen witnesses nearby, and with the support of your gathered friends and family, I now pronounce you married. What we have joined together today, let no man put asunder.” He was already smiling, but somehow he made his grin even bigger as he said, “You may seal your vows with a kiss.”
And they did. They ducked underwater for part of it, and that was fine by Sean, because he’d seen enough of them making out to last him a lifetime. Maybe now that they were married they’d ease back a bit, but he kind of doubted it.
***
The bear was young, barely more than a cub, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew better than to mess with humans. They weren’t like the other animals in the forest, the ones that watched him quietly, or ran away if he roared. The humans would roar back, and they’d hurt his ears with their clanging, and startle him with the waving of sticks. He knew he didn’t want to get close to them.
He also knew that they almost always had delicious-smelling treats. And it was late summer - he was going to need a lot of food in his belly if he was going to make it through the long winter’s hibernation.
So he watched. The tame animal noticed him, and watched him from the branch of a nearby tree. That was alright - the humans never listened when the tame animal tried to tell them things. And it was no threat - not even the birds were afraid of it.
When the humans all went down towards the lake, the bear thought he’d found his chance, but then he noticed that there were two of them still there, by the cabin, standing by the bucket of ice. They made a loud noise, and he thought about running away, but they didn’t follow up with anything, so he stood his ground. And finally they left, as well, going down to follow the others.
This was the bear’s chance. He walked forward cautiously, pausing after each footstep to be sure the humans weren’t returning. He knew the food was stored inside the large boxes, and he’d seen the humans open them, but when he got to them, he had trouble figuring it out. He struggled, teeth and claws and strength, until finally the top moved, and he was able to work his muzzle inside. Then the top was gone, tipped off onto the ground, and he saw the feast.
He didn’t know where to begin! There was fish, and meat, and then another plastic container, this one filled with some sort of root vegetable in a creamy sauce. He gorged himself.
Everything was fresh and delicious, and so easy to get, once he’d figured out the system.
He was so engrossed in his feast that he almost didn’t notice the humans return. He heard a sound, and jerked his head up, and there they all were. The two in front, the two that he knew lived there, were dripping wet, staring at him with their eyes wide. He stared back, not sure what to do.
That was when the tame animal attacked. It leapt down from the tree branch, faster than he’d ever seen it move, and it hissed and snarled at him like a mother cougar protecting her young. He startled backwards, and the tame animal stepped after him, the fur on its back tall and bristling.
There was a shout from the humans, and the young one started forward, yelling "Pearson!" before being caught by one of the men who lived there.
“No, Sean!” the bear heard, but that was all he stuck around for. The tame animal, the young human, and all the back-up - it was too much. He whirled and lumbered off towards the trees as quickly as his full belly would let him.
He turned for one look back once he was far enough to feel safe. They were all still there, in the clearing. The young human was petting the tame animal, and the two wet men were standing with their arms around each other, their shoulders shaking, making that strange human noise.
The bear’s sight wasn’t good enough to see much else, but his hearing was excellent. The shorter human looked up at the other and said, “You know what? Bring on the frogs!”
And the taller one looked down at him and said, “Best day of my life,” and then their mouths were together.
The bear ambled off into the woods. He didn’t understand humans, but he appreciated their feasts. And they didn’t seem too upset by the loss, so he guessed it was an excellent day for everybody.
Lost & Found
“Okay, seriously - I think it’s going to rain.”
“It’s not going to rain.” Ryan smiled as sweetly as he had the first four times he’d tried to reassure Kyle. This time, though, he added, “You’re mental.”
“I’m not mental. Those are rain clouds – right there! You know what comes out of rain clouds? Rain!”
“They’re not rain clouds. They’re just clouds. And they’re way south – check which way the wind is blowing.” Ryan waited, but Kyle refused to respond. “Those clouds, which are not rain clouds anyway, are going to blow right by us.”
Kyle gave the clouds a dirty look as Sean trotted up the path from the lake. “Sean – look at those clouds. Do those look like rain clouds to you?”
Sean climbed up on the porch to join his father and Kyle, and to get a better view of the sky. “I don’t know – they don’t really look like rain clouds to me. I think – to me, it looks like it could be snow…”
“Yeah, maybe one of those freak August snowstorms,” Ryan agreed.
“Or frogs. Sometimes frogs just fall from the sky – I read about it.” Sean turned to look at Kyle, trying to keep his face straight. “Seriously, Kyle - I think maybe those are frog clouds.”
“You guys are not helpful. Or funny.” Kyle squinted, trying to determine which way the clouds were moving. “The winds at the upper layers of the atmosphere don’t necessarily move in the same direction as the winds down here. I think the upper winds are blowing those clouds right at us.”
Ryan shook his head. “You know just enough science to make yourself crazy.” He moved closer, snuggling in behind Kyle and wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “And it doesn’t matter anyway. Rain, snow, or frogs, we’re getting married today. Nothing’s going to get in the way of that.”
Sean was watching them closely, and a frown creased his forehead. “Not even frogs? I mean – they’d be everywhere.”
“Are the frogs alive, when they land? They wouldn’t be, would they?” Ryan asked. Kyle tried not to smile - Ryan’s natural curiosity was one of his best features. Well, one of his many, many excellent features.
“Sometimes. And sometimes they’re frozen solid. Or all shredded up.” Sean grinned widely, obviously pleased with his macabre knowledge.
Ryan turned his head enough to be able to see Kyle’s face. “Do we need a backup plan for this? If it rains frogs? I say, if they’re alive, we go right on with the ceremony. If they’re frozen or shredded, though – I think we should hide inside, and then assess the situation. And, honestly, if they’re injured – if there are maimed frogs, croaking in pain, crawling all over the place because they’re too beat up to hop – we might want to postpone. And call animal control.”
“If it rains frogs, I’m going to kick your asses, both of you. There is no reason for you to be giving me one more damn thing to worry about.”
Ryan shifted again, moving around so he could look his fiancé in the eye. “You’re not worried about the actual being married part, though, right? This is all just the ceremony and the party and stuff that you’re tense about? Or is it bigger than that?”
Kyle felt surprised, then apologetic, and he darted his head forward to give Ryan a quick, hard kiss. “No doubts about the being married part. At all.” Another quick kiss. “I would marry you in the rain, I would marry you on a train. I would marry you in a boat, I would marry you with a goat.”
“Those had better not be your actual wedding vows,” Ryan warned, but he smiled as he pulled away reluctantly. “You have first shower – I’ve got to finish getting the bonfire set up.”
Ryan headed towards the shore, with Sean trailing along beside him, and Kyle stood there and watched them go. He had things to do, but he wanted to capture as many of these moments as he could. It was an important day, and he wanted to be sure he appreciated every detail, good or bad. Although he really hoped there weren’t frogs.
***
“Casey? Are you dressed?” Ryan yelled as he stuck his head just inside the cabin door.
Kyle appeared at the railing of the loft, his linen suit crisp and freshly ironed. “Yeah, pretty much.”
Ryan smiled. “Damn. You look good.” He smiled that smile, the one that made Kyle’s knees go wobbly. Then he got back to business. “People are starting to get here. And our dads just backed their cars up into each other.”
Kyle wasn’t sure he’d heard right.. “Are you kidding me? Are they okay?”
“Yeah, man, it’s fine. It was at, like, two kilometres an hour. Barely dented either car. Your dad lost a tail light. And neither one’s being an asshole about it, so – everything’s fine. But, you know – if you could get down here and manage things so I can get cleaned up, that’d be good.”
“Yeah, okay.” Kyle took one last look in the mirror and started down the stairs. Ryan met him in the middle, and even though the staircase really wasn’t all that narrow, he managed to brush up against Kyle pretty firmly. His intentions were made crystal clear when he pivoted and Kyle found himself pinned, a wooden wall at his back and a tall, amorous carpenter at his front. There was no hesitation from either of them before their lips met. The kiss started off as simply affectionate, but the passion started to grow quickly, just as it always did between them. Neither one noticed the gentle knock on the cabin door, but they both jerked their heads around when they heard the voice.
“Alright, boys, knock it off. No nookie until after the ceremony!” William Ballard was tall and dignified looking, his grey hair carefully groomed, his shoulders straight, his taupe suit impeccably tailored. Their officiant would have been absolutely intimidating, if he could only stop grinning.
Ryan didn’t turn his head back towards Kyle, but he didn’t pull his body away, either. “What’s the definition of ‘nookie,’ exactly? What could I get away with, here?”
“It’s absolutely shocking that you’re even seeing each other before the ceremony. I’ve never heard of such a break from tradition! Marriage is a sacred institution…blah, blah, blah.” His arm-wave managed to be simultaneously vague and grandiose. “You get the idea. I’ll save my best stuff for a larger audience.” He looked at the couple more closely, apparently zeroing in on Ryan. “Is that what you’re planning to wear? I know it’s a dockside wedding, but jeans and a t-shirt? Really?”
That made Ryan move. “No, not really. I need to get dressed. I just got distracted, for a second there.”
“Well, Kyle, you look very nice. Why don’t you take me outside and introduce me to a few of your charming guests? Maybe Ryan will be able to get himself back on track without your influence.” As usual, the severity of the speech was totally lost because of the merry smile that played across the speaker’s lips.
Kyle reluctantly pulled himself away from Ryan. He made it down the stairs without looking back, but he half-turned at the door, and there Ryan was, smiling down at him. The only problem with the whole marriage thing was that it somehow didn’t seem like enough – Kyle wanted to tattoo Ryan’s name all over his body, wanted to compose a symphony of celebration, wanted to perform a heroic feat. Saying a few words, making a vow – that was nothing compared to the depth of Kyle’s feelings.
“Outside, outside,” William prompted.
Kyle made himself follow the man’s directions, even though what he really wanted to do was go back up the stairs and join Ryan in the shower. He made it out the door just as Steve and Hayley pulled in, and Sean ran to greet his other set of parents. He exchanged quick hugs, then waited impatiently as Steve fumbled around in the back seat.
“Hi, Megan,” Sean cooed over Steve’s shoulder. “Did you miss me? Am I still your favourite brother?”
“You’re still her only brother, Sean,” Kyle said, laying a gentle arm across the boy’s shoulder. He extended his other hand to Steve. “Thanks for coming, guys.”
“Wouldn’t have missed it,” Hayley said. “But, uh - there’s a bit of a problem.”
Kyle really didn’t want to hear those words. “What do you mean?”
“Well - you know how Ryan asked us to take care of the syrup labels?”
“Yeah...” Steve and Hayley had been part of the big maple syrup venture at the cabin that spring. When Ryan and Kyle had thought that they could give away little bottles as wedding favours, they’d decided to personalize the labels. All Hayley and Steve had been asked to do was to pick the labels up at the printer’s and stick them on the bottles. What could go wrong with that?
“Well, with the baby and all, we’ve been busy - so we didn’t go to get the labels until the end of the day yesterday.” Steve bounced Megan a little, as if demonstrating that they did, indeed, have a new baby. He sounded apologetic, but Kyle still didn’t know why.
“Okay...”
“Well - I guess maybe they misheard the order. Or something. And we didn’t bother to open the package until a couple hours ago, because, you know - how long would it take to stick a few labels on? And by then the printer was already closed for the weekend.” Hayley made a face. “Ryan took care of the ordering, right? He doesn’t usually mutter...”
Kyle tried to control himself. “Could I please see the labels?”
Steve nodded slowly. “Yeah. Okay. And, you know, we have a few options, here. We could go with them as they are, or we could make the changes - Hayley did one like that, so you could see it. Or we don’t have to put the labels on at all - the bottles look really pretty just clear.”
“Could I please see the labels?” Kyle tried to keep the threat out of his tone. This was a happy occasion. This was a happy occasion.
Sean had been watching the proceedings with fascination, and he dodged around Steve to look at the labelled bottle of syrup in his mother’s hand. When he looked back at Kyle, his eyes were wide, but there was a grin twitching at the corners of his mouth. A firm look from Steve suppressed the giggle that had been building.
Hayley finally extending the bottle, and Kyle reached for it and turned the label to face him. There was the picture of the dock, with the shore in the background, just as they had planned. And the lettering was there: Thank you for joining us on this special day. Love, Kayla and Ryan
“It’s not even the same number of syllables.” It was all Kyle could think of to say.
“We tried to fix it, on this one.” Hayley passed him another bottle. Kayla was whited out on this one, and Kyle was written it its place. But it was clearly an amateur job.
Kyle took a deep breath, and surprised himself with the loud laugh that came out when he exhaled. “Okay. This is not a tragedy. We can get the labels fixed and mail the syrup out, or we can hand it out in the clear bottles, or - we can pour the syrup in the fire and use the bottles as flasks for our whiskey. It doesn’t matter. This is fine.”
“We are SO sorry, Kyle.” Hayley sounded like she might actually cry.
Kyle gave her a hug. “Sweetie, it doesn’t matter, at all. You guys are here. Sean and Megan are here. That’s the important part. Seriously. Ryan’s just getting dressed and showered, and then he’ll be out here, and everything will be perfect. Syrup is - it’s nothing.”
“Besides, Kayla has bigger things to worry about - it’s probably going to start raining frogs any minute.” Sean smiled at his bewildered parents, then reached out towards the baby in Steve’s arms. “Here, Megan - I’ll introduce you to the animals.”
Steve handed his daughter over with only a few admonitions about watching her head, and Sean took her carefully, then started for the cabin. As he left, Steve turned to Kyle. “Frogs?”
“Don’t ask,” Kyle said, and he turned to watch the next carful of guests arrive.
***
Ryan checked himself in the mirror one more time. He wasn’t used to wearing a suit, and it felt strange. Not bad, necessarily. It was probably good - one more way to remind himself that this was a huge deal, that he was doing something special and important, and he should treat the occasion with the solemnity that it deserved. He just wished he wasn’t so sure that he was going to drip food on himself at the earliest possibility. Or maybe he’d brush up against something dirty. His suit was darker than Kyle’s but it was still on the pale side of brown, and it would absolutely show dirt. And Ryan would end up looking like the poor bumpkin that he was, nowhere near good enough for a sophisticated guy like Kyle.
It wasn’t like he was the only one who felt that way. Kyle’s mother had been only too eager to express her disgust with the possibility of Ryan as a son-in-law. Kyle had been quick to say that she was upset about Kyle marrying a man, not about Ryan specifically, but Ryan wasn’t sure about that. The woman had hated him since he was a teenager - it must have been extra-bitter for her to know that he was going to spend the rest of his life with her son. Bitter enough that she had refused to come to the wedding.
Which, if Ryan was being selfish, was great. He really didn’t need the stress of having her staring daggers at him all day. And Kyle’s dad was there, not entirely comfortable but at least making an effort, so Kyle seemed happy enough. They’d arranged the chairs so there was no clear division between the guests of one or the guests of the other, but that was largely because most of the people they’d invited were locals, and in the time that Kyle had been living there, they’d accepted him as one of their own. So most of the guests belonged to Kyle and Ryan equally. The few that didn’t were Kyle’s friends up from Chicago, and they’d come early and rented a cottage and made a week’s vacation of it, so Ryan felt like he knew them pretty well by now.
So everybody outside was a friend, and he needed to stop hiding in the cabin and get his ass out there. Kyle was waiting for him; that was the incentive he needed.
He resolutely headed down the stairs and out the door. Most of the guests were already there, and he felt bad for leaving Kyle to deal with them all by himself. But Kyle was good at that sort of thing - he wouldn’t mind it like Ryan would have. That was one of the great things about this whole marriage thing - they could rely on each other, and use each other’s strengths for the good of the partnership.
Sean bolted across the lawn towards him. “You should see the syrup labels! They say Kayla instead of Kyle!” He seemed to think it was hilarious, but Ryan wasn’t impressed. Was it some sort of homophobic slur from the printer, or was it just incompetence? And why the hell hadn’t Hayley and Steve caught the mistake?
Then Kyle was there, and he was smiling. “It’s not a big deal - stop frowning.”
“You wanted the syrup - you wanted to send it home with your Chicago friends.”
“So? I still can. It’s not a big deal.” Kyle looked at Ryan and shook his head. “Wow, what a role reversal. Usually I’m the one getting all worked up, and you’re the calming influence. What’s wrong with you?”
“I just - I want this to be perfect. I want you to be happy.”
“You know what makes me happy? You. Especially when you smile.”
They tried to ignore the gagging noises Sean made behind their backs, and Ryan leaned his head down for a kiss.
“No nookie!” William called from across the yard.
“Yeah, no nookie!” That was Ryan’s father.
“No nookie!” agreed Sean, and then there was a chorus of it coming from all over their small patch of lawn, Steve and Hayley, and Kyle’s friends from Chicago, the Oullettes, even Kyle’s dad, smiling gently at them.
Kyle didn’t seem affected by the attention, but as the chorus grew in volume Ryan had a harder time keeping his lips free for kissing instead of for laughing. Finally he surrendered and pulled away. “Alright, alright! No nookie - yet.”
William joined them, and grinned as he nodded toward the lake. “If all your guests are here, maybe we should get started?”
That seemed fast - maybe too fast. But Ryan couldn’t think of a reason to delay. So when Kyle nodded, he didn’t argue.
William sprang into action, beginning to herd everyone down toward the dock, and Kyle nodded at Ryan, indicating that he should go with him to the side of the house. Ryan obeyed, and when they arrived, Kyle reached into the wash barrel that they’d filled with ice and soft drinks and beer and pulled out a bottle of champagne. He gestured towards the nearby window sill, where Ryan saw two empty champagne flutes.
Ryan smiled as he retrieved the glasses. This was exactly what he needed, a quiet moment with Kyle, to regroup and get his nerves under control. Kyle carefully aimed the bottle away from their faces and twisted the cork, then made a face and twisted it harder. It came free with a pop that was followed almost immediately by a brittle crack, as the flying cork hit the window of the cabin.
Ryan and Kyle stared at the broken window. “It’s not a mirror, so it’s not bad luck,” Ryan rationalized.
“And Steve feels really bad about the label thing, so it’ll be easy to get him to fix it for us while we’re away,” Kyle added.
Ryan nodded. Everything was going to be okay. He held the glasses out. “Now that you’ve got it open...”
Kyle smiled and poured the glasses, then topped them up before setting the bottle down. “I love you,” he said.
It wasn’t exactly a traditional toast, but it was exactly what Ryan needed to hear. “I love you too.” They clinked their glasses together and drank. Kyle leaned his back against the wall of the cottage, and Ryan resisted the urge to press into him, front to front. Instead, he turned and leaned his own back against the wall, and they stood in companionable silence for a couple minutes, finishing their glasses. “You ready?” Ryan asked, and when Kyle nodded, they took each other’s hand and headed down to the lake.
***
Sean had always liked having two dads, and he was looking forward to officially having three. Three moms would have been great, too, but nobody seemed to be doing too much about getting him any more of those.
That said, the actual ‘wedding’ part of this whole ‘getting married’ thing was a bit of a bore. They were all sitting in chairs right by the lake, and that would have been okay except that it was hot out, and they were sitting in the sun, and the water was right there, just waiting for him to jump into it. There were people out on the lake in their boats, too, and that would be excellent, to go water skiing or wake boarding or even just tubing. Anything would be better than sitting there and listening to the weird smiling guy talk and talk and talk about love, and how great it was.
Things got a bit better when weird guy stopped talking and looked up the hill, and everybody turned around to see Ryan and Kyle waiting patiently for their turn. Everybody stood up, and that was alright, especially since Sean was still short enough that he could hide in people’s shade. Especially Steve’s - the guy cast a pretty big shadow. But then Steve was moving too, and Sean remembered that they were supposed to be a part of this.
His mom passed Megan off to Mrs. Oullette, and then she and Steve and Sean followed behind Kyle and Ryan as they walked out onto the old wooden dock. There had been some discussion about whether it was sturdy enough to hold all of them, but they’d tried it out, and it had been okay. It seemed even lower in the water today than it had in the past, though. Maybe one of the barrels that made it float had sprung a leak.
Then the weird guy was talking again, and Sean didn’t even really try to pay attention to him. Instead he watched his dad. He was always pretty calm, Sean’s dad, and he’d never really seemed unhappy. But he’d never seemed all that happy, either, not until Kyle came along. Came back, and that was weird to think about, that his dad and Kyle had known each other so long ago, and been such good friends, and then had somehow lost touch. It made the whole marriage thing make sense, though - if you were married to somebody, you couldn’t just wander off and forget about them for a while. And that was good, because Sean really didn’t want Kyle to do that again. Not when he made Sean’s dad smile like he was right now.
The weird guy finally stopped talking. It was Sean’s dad’s turn, and Sean made himself pay attention. “Kyle - You were gone too long, but you’re back now, and I plan to hold on tighter this time. We’ve been friends for all our lives, and it just seems right that now we’re more.” He paused, and Sean squinted to see if he was crying. Steve had said that people cried at weddings a lot. But Sean didn’t see any tears this time. “I promise to love, honour, and cherish you.” His dad reached into the breast pocket of his jacket and pulled out the ring. His mom had insisted that they spread a rug on the dock, so that if a ring was dropped it wouldn’t fall right through the cracks between the boards, and Sean was glad that she had. Not that his dad was going to drop the ring. But still, better safe than sorry. His dad took Kyle’s hand and carefully put the ring on his finger. He waited a moment for the roar of a passing ski boat to fade away, and then he said, loud enough for everyone to hear, “With this ring, I thee wed.”
Everyone’s attention, including Sean’s, turned to Kyle. He took a deep breath. “Ryan - you loved me, and it helped me be able to love myself. The best times in my life have been with you, and I look forward to spending so many more good times together, but I want us to be together, good or bad. I promise to love, honour, and cherish you.” Now it was his turn to reach into his pocket. Unfortunately, that was the exact moment that the waves from the ski boat hit the dock. Everyone shifted a bit as water splashed up through the spaces between the boards and the whole dock rocked. There was a moment when Kyle looked a little startled, and Sean thought that maybe he’d lost the ring, and then the look changed into absolute alarm.
Kyle’s arms started windmilling as he struggled to regain his balance, but the rug beneath his feet was sliding, and twisting, and then another wave hit and rocked the dock and that was it for Kyle’s balance.
He fell backwards, missing the edge of the dock and landing in the lake. There was a collective gasp as the audience stood in unison, and Sean swivelled to see his father’s reaction. Then he turned back to see Kyle’s head popping out of the water, staring up at them as if he wasn’t sure what to do.
“Do you still have the ring?” Sean’s dad asked.
Kyle lifted his hand, showing his tightly clenched fist. “I do,” he said.
“You said you didn’t want to include that line,” the weird guy started, but then he stopped talking as Sean’s dad stepped casually off the edge of the dock, splashing into the lake next to Kyle. They were both treading water, and both grinning at each other like absolute lunatics.
Sean was only a little startled to hear the splash as his mom jumped in as well, followed, of course, by Steve. And Sean had been wanting a swim since this whole thing started, so he didn’t have a tough decision to make. And the water felt cool and wonderful, even through his dress-up clothes.
The five of them clustered together in roughly the same positions as they’d had on the dock. Kyle reached for Sean’s dad, and they linked hands together as Kyle put the ring on Sean’s dad’s finger. “With this ring, I thee wed,” he said.
The weird guy was looking down at them like he was wondering whether to join them in the water. He apparently decided against it, and just spoke a little louder so they could all hear him. “In this beautiful natural setting, with your chosen witnesses nearby, and with the support of your gathered friends and family, I now pronounce you married. What we have joined together today, let no man put asunder.” He was already smiling, but somehow he made his grin even bigger as he said, “You may seal your vows with a kiss.”
And they did. They ducked underwater for part of it, and that was fine by Sean, because he’d seen enough of them making out to last him a lifetime. Maybe now that they were married they’d ease back a bit, but he kind of doubted it.
***
The bear was young, barely more than a cub, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew better than to mess with humans. They weren’t like the other animals in the forest, the ones that watched him quietly, or ran away if he roared. The humans would roar back, and they’d hurt his ears with their clanging, and startle him with the waving of sticks. He knew he didn’t want to get close to them.
He also knew that they almost always had delicious-smelling treats. And it was late summer - he was going to need a lot of food in his belly if he was going to make it through the long winter’s hibernation.
So he watched. The tame animal noticed him, and watched him from the branch of a nearby tree. That was alright - the humans never listened when the tame animal tried to tell them things. And it was no threat - not even the birds were afraid of it.
When the humans all went down towards the lake, the bear thought he’d found his chance, but then he noticed that there were two of them still there, by the cabin, standing by the bucket of ice. They made a loud noise, and he thought about running away, but they didn’t follow up with anything, so he stood his ground. And finally they left, as well, going down to follow the others.
This was the bear’s chance. He walked forward cautiously, pausing after each footstep to be sure the humans weren’t returning. He knew the food was stored inside the large boxes, and he’d seen the humans open them, but when he got to them, he had trouble figuring it out. He struggled, teeth and claws and strength, until finally the top moved, and he was able to work his muzzle inside. Then the top was gone, tipped off onto the ground, and he saw the feast.
He didn’t know where to begin! There was fish, and meat, and then another plastic container, this one filled with some sort of root vegetable in a creamy sauce. He gorged himself.
Everything was fresh and delicious, and so easy to get, once he’d figured out the system.
He was so engrossed in his feast that he almost didn’t notice the humans return. He heard a sound, and jerked his head up, and there they all were. The two in front, the two that he knew lived there, were dripping wet, staring at him with their eyes wide. He stared back, not sure what to do.
That was when the tame animal attacked. It leapt down from the tree branch, faster than he’d ever seen it move, and it hissed and snarled at him like a mother cougar protecting her young. He startled backwards, and the tame animal stepped after him, the fur on its back tall and bristling.
There was a shout from the humans, and the young one started forward, yelling "Pearson!" before being caught by one of the men who lived there.
“No, Sean!” the bear heard, but that was all he stuck around for. The tame animal, the young human, and all the back-up - it was too much. He whirled and lumbered off towards the trees as quickly as his full belly would let him.
He turned for one look back once he was far enough to feel safe. They were all still there, in the clearing. The young human was petting the tame animal, and the two wet men were standing with their arms around each other, their shoulders shaking, making that strange human noise.
The bear’s sight wasn’t good enough to see much else, but his hearing was excellent. The shorter human looked up at the other and said, “You know what? Bring on the frogs!”
And the taller one looked down at him and said, “Best day of my life,” and then their mouths were together.
The bear ambled off into the woods. He didn’t understand humans, but he appreciated their feasts. And they didn’t seem too upset by the loss, so he guessed it was an excellent day for everybody.
