Kelly's Wedding, Part 6

Kelly's Wedding
by Gray Haze

Part 6 - June 30th - Kelly's Wedding Day

Kelly woke up early at six, coughing up a storm.  Her cough had gotten worse
over the last few months as her smoking totally spiraled out of control.  

"Shut the hell up," she said to her crying lungs.  "Here are your two fucking
bottles," she said as she lit up two cigarettes simultaneously.  Kelly lay in
bed quietly as she deeply inhaled the smoke.  Today was the day.   The day
she dreamed about since she was a little girl.  The day that she as worked so
hard to plan.  The first day of a lifetime spent with the man she loved.
That is, until she caught Jim with another woman six weeks ago.

As Kelly lay in bed devouring one puff after another, she started to cry.  It
had been six weeks of hell,  cancelling this and cancelling that.  Wedding
invitations had to be rescinded.  She was humiliated and depressed.  She
couldn't get this day out of her mind.  She laid thinking as she crushed out
her cigarettes in the overflowing ashtray and lit two more.  

It all happened one Sunday morning.  She and her friends went out for her
bachelorette party the night before.  They had a great time, but Kelly's mind
was where it always was, on Jim.   Even though they stayed out late, she
awoke early that Sunday morning and wanted to see Jim, so she got out of her
bed, chained a few customary cigarettes then headed to his condo 20 minutes
away.  During the trip there she had it all planned out.  She would unlock
his front door and enter quietly.  Once inside, she would quietly strip,
light up a cigar and slide into bed next to him.

The plan was perfect.  It was her way of saying how much she loved him.  It
was something she never did before.  Kelly was always so predictable, so he
would never expect it.  

She arrived at his condo at around seven.  Certainly he would still be in bed
since Jim liked sleeping in on Sunday.  She then slowly placed the keys into
the lock to the front door and quietly opened the door.  She slowly walked
into his kitchen, and there before his eyes was a gorgeous tall blond,
smoking a cigarette and wearing nothing but one of Jim's dress shirts.

"Who are you?" Kelly asked with rage building up.

"I'm Kim," the blond said as she exhaled her smoke from her cigarette.  "Who
are you, James' sister?"

Jim then came in and a war erupted.  He tried to explain, but Kelly was in no
mode to hear it.  She left angry and broken hearted.  He called her time and
again, but she wouldn't answer.  Finally, he went to her apartment to beg
forgiveness, but it was too late.  There was no way Kelly could marry him
after this.

Kelly finished her second set of cigarettes and then slowly got out of bed.
She grabbed her cigarettes and headed to the kitchen.  She went over to the
coffee maker, turned it on, and lit another cigarette while she waited for
her coffee.  Once the coffee was ready, she poured herself a cup, lit another
cigarette and sat down at the kitchen table.  She quietly sipped her coffee
and smoked her cigarette while looking around at the rest of the apartment.
It was quiet and depressing, it hadn't been cleaned since the breakup with
Jim.  Empty beer and vodka bottles littered her kitchen counter top.  The
sink was filled with dirty dishes and there were pizza boxes on the floor.
In her living room, her coffee and end tables had dirty dishes, more beer
bottles and empty Chinese boxes.  And of course, there was over flowing
ashtrays all over the place.

Kelly sat for the next two hours sipping her coffee and chain smoking another
dozen cigarettes.  She was still crying most of the time and was having
difficulty dealing with the pain.  At eight, her mother called.  She knew
what day it was and wanted to make sure that Kelly was alright.  At the end
of the conversation, she told Kelly that she was welcome to come back to
Milwaukee to live at home again.  Kelly told her that she would think about
it.

Kelly spent the rest of the morning sitting on the couch, chain smoking and
watching TV.  At noon, she opened her third pack cigarettes of the day and
she got an 8 oz glass and a bottle of vodka.  She poured it two-thirds full
and drank it down.  She then opened up a beer, made herself a sandwich and
went back to the couch to watch TV.  At one, with a nice buzz on, she fell
asleep.

Kelly was awoken at four by the sound of her doorbell.  She opened it to find
Holly, Becky and Jen standing in front of her.

"Hey Kelly, what's up, we just stopped by to say hello," Jen said just after
Kelly opened the door.

"Come on in, make yourself at home," Kelly said in a low voice as she headed
back to the couch.  Kelly then lit a cigarette and said, "Sorry for the mess,
I need to do some housework tomorrow."

"Oh my God Kelly, are you OK?" Holly said as she looked around the wrecked
apartment.

Kelly didn't say anything, but instead started to cry.  The three girls knew
why and spent the next hour trying to console her.  Finally, Becky decided
that she has saw enough and said,

"You know Kelly, fuck him, let's go out and have a good time tonight."

"No, I don't want to," Kelly said as she opened another beer.  "You guys go
ahead.  I just want to be alone."

"Kelly, you're going," Becky said with conviction.  "You go hop in the shower
and we will clean up around here.  I won't take no for an answer."

Becky was always able to get Kelly to do what she wanted, and after ten
minutes of arguing, Kelly reluctantly agreed.  While Kelly was in the shower
the three women went about cleaning up her apartment.

"I don't know where to start," Holly said as she started clearing the coffee
tables of bottles.  "She has always kept her apartment in such an immaculate
shape."

"Yeah, I don't think she's done anything except drink and smoke since Jim
left her," Becky responded.  "She certainly hasn't cleaned, that's for sure."

"I can't say I blame her for being down after what that bastard did to her,"
Jen chimed in.  "I think I would have killed myself if it happened to me."

"Yeah, I have been worried about her lately," Holly added.  "I have been
calling her a couple times a week since what happened.  I guess I should have
made a bigger effort to come here and be with her."

"Well, let's show her a good time tonight, maybe that will help cheer her
up," Becky added.  "But you're right, we all need to be with her more through
these tough times."

Kelly took a long 20 minute shower.  It was her first in days and she really
needed it.  After she got out, she immediately lit a cigarette and started
drying off.  She then went to her room to get ready.  Kelly didn't really
want to go, but she felt she had to.  She took her time as she slowly picked
out what to wear, and chained through a couple more cigarettes.  She finished
up her hair and make-up, which all together took her a little over an hour.
She then went out to join her friends who were almost done cleaning up.

"Say guys, thanks for cleaning up for me," Kelly said as she extracted a
cigarette out of her pack.  "I guess I've been a little down lately, and
haven't done much of anything to the apartment."  Kelly then lit her
cigarette, sat down and started to cry.  Becky and Holly sat down next to her
to try to console her.

"I love him so much," Kelly said while crying.  "Why would he do this to me?"

This was the first real personal contact that Kelly had had in six weeks and
she was letting it all out.  After about ten minutes she slowly stopped
crying.

"What do you say we get going, Kelly," Becky finally said.  "Let's try to
forget him for one evening and have a good time instead."

Kelly then got up, grabbed two packs of cigarettes from her carton and placed
them in her purse.  They then headed to Duluth to go out to dinner.  Dinner
was good as the four girls ate, drank wine and of course smoked.  After
dinner they went to a local nightclub to drink and have some fun.  Kelly
wasn't into it though and she spent most of the time just drinking, chain
smoking and trying to listen to the others talk and laugh.  Around midnight,
the four women were sitting at a table when Becky saw the cutest guy standing
up at the bar.

"Hey, is that Chris Olsen standing over there by the bar?" Becky said as she
extracted a VS 100 from the pack sitting on the table in front of her.

"Yeah, it is," replied Holly.  "My cousin dated him once, and I remember her
pointing him out to me."

"Wow, is he cute," Jen said through a talking exhale.

Kelly sat quietly, oblivious to the conversation.  She had hardly said
anything the whole night.  Besides, every guy was cute according to Jen.  The
bar was toward Kelly's back, so it was hardly worth the effort of turning
around to see who they were talking about.  

"Does anybody need a drink?" Kelly finally spoke up while placing her empty
bottle on the table.

"Wow Kelly, you're pounding the beers tonight," Holly said with a laugh.

"I'll take a rum and coke," chimed in Jen.

Kelly grabbed her purse and headed toward the bar.  She was starting to get
quite drunk, and was determined to get much drunker.  She sat down at the
nearest available bar stool and took a ten dollar bill out of her purse.  She
held it in front of her trying to get the attention of a bartender, but it
was quite busy, and she wasn't having much success getting anyone's
attention.

"Be patient, they are a little slow tonight," a voice next to Kelly said.
"It won't be long before a bartender notices someone as pretty as you."

Kelly looked to her left at the man, and her heart suddenly skipped a beat.
He was absolutely gorgeous.  She momentarily just stared at him, not knowing
quite what to say.  She certainly didn't want to say something stupid, but
she knew she had to say something.

"Well, maybe if I was as tall as you, they would see me," Kelly finally
chimed in with a seductive look on her face.

"Let me give it a shot," said the man as he lifted his hand up toward the
bartender.

Sure enough, the bartender noticed him, and headed over.

"What will it be?" asked the bartender.

"A rum and coke and a bud light," Kelly said to the bartender.

The two continued to talk while the bartender fixed the drinks.  When he
returned the man insisted on paying for it.  

"Oh by the way, I'm Chris Olsen," the man finally divulged his name.

"Kelly O'Neil," Kelly responded back.  "Thank you for the drinks."

"A nice Irish name," Chris responded.  "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"A nice Swedish name," Kelly replied.  "It is a pleasure to meet you."

For the next ten minutes the two continued to talk.  This did not get
un-noticed by Kelly's three friends sitting at the table.  They couldn't
believe that Kelly was talking with this incredible hunk.  After all that
happened to Kelly with Jim, they were thrilled.

"You know, unfortunately I have to leave now," Chris said as he got up off
the bar stool.  "Do you think I can call you sometime, and maybe we can get
together for diner or something?"

"Please do," responded Kelly.  "Let me give you my number."

Kelly reached in her purse and pulled out an old business card and a pen.
She then proceeded to write a number on the back of the card.

"Call me at home, I quit my job a few months ago so my work number doesn't
mean anything," Kelly said has she handed him her card.

"OK, you take care of yourself, and it was nice to meet you," Chris said just
prior to walking away.

Kelly went back to the table where her friends were sitting.  She immediately
lit up a cigarette and handed Jen her drink. Gone was the down girl who had
to be dragged out by her friends.  For the first time, the thought of Jim had
left her mind.

"Oh my god Kelly, you were talking to Chris Olsen," Jen said as Kelly handed
Jen her drink.

"Yes, and I found him to be quite nice," Kelly said with a dreamy smile on
her face.

Kelly then proceeded to tell the girls all about what just happened.

"And he even asked for my phone number!" Kelly said excitedly.  "I think he
is going to ask me out on a date."

"Oh Kelly, I'm so happy for you," Becky said.  "I'm sure he is much more of a
man than Jim was."

"Jim who?" Kelly said, laughing.

"Wow, and he doesn't mind that you smoke," Holly said as she flicked her
lighter.

"What do you mean by that?" Kelly said looking at Holly.

"Does he know that you smoke?" Holly said just after lighting her cigarette.

"The subject didn't come up," Kelly responded.

"Well, Chris Olsen doesn't smoke at all, and he told my cousin after their
second date, that he preferred not going out with women who smoke, and thus
didn't want to see her again," Holly told Kelly.

"Say Becky, are you as good at teaching people how to quit smoking as you are
at teaching them how to smoke?" Kelly said, laughing as she looked at Becky.
"I guess I might need your help again."

"Sorry Kelly, can't help you on this one. I've tried once to quit myself, and
as you can see, I didn't succeed," Becky said as she pointed toward her lit
cigarette.  "Maybe you can try a hypnotist."

"I think not," Kelly said as she crushed her cigarette out in the ashtray,
and immediately lit another one.  "I'm not quitting these for anyone.  No man
is worth that!"

Kelly cheered up significantly after talking to Chris.  Although she didn't
think that she would go out with him because of her smoking, she at least was
happy to know that other guys were still attracted to her.  Kelly was only 26
and still had plenty of time to find her man.

Kelly got back home at about 2:30 am.  She climbed into bed minutes after
getting home.  As she was feeding her lungs their customary bottles of smoke
she laid there and thought about her future.  It was time to get back on her
feet again.  Jim wasn't worth feeling sorry for herself anymore.  She needed
a job, and was wondering whether it was time to move back home to Milwaukee.
When the cigarettes were smoked, she turned out the lights and went to sleep.

At 9:30 am, Kelly awoke to the sound of her screaming lungs.  "Good morning
my babies," she said to her lungs as she reached over for her cigarettes.  "I
see you are real hungry this morning, so here are your bottles."  Kelly
finished those two cigarettes, and seeing that her lungs were still hungry,
chained into two more.  Finally satisfied, she grabbed her pack and headed
for the kitchen.  She turned on the coffee maker, lit another cigarette and
waited for the coffee to finish while she stood and smoked.  When it was
finally done, she poured herself a cup of coffee and then sat down at the
table and started to read the paper.

At 10:00, the phone rang. 

"Hello," Kelly said as she answered the phone.

"Kelly, this is Chris Olsen," Chris responded back.  "Do you remember me from
last night?"

"Yes, hi, how are you!" Kelly answered .  "Of course I remember you.  You are
that really nice guy I met at the bar.  Thank you again for the drinks."

"I'm sorry I called so early, but I just was dying to talk to you again,"
Chris said with excitement.

The two continued to talk for the next two hours.  It was kind of a
get-to-know-each-other chat.  It was amazing how easy Kelly found it to talk
with Chris.  They had so much in common.  Kelly smoked constantly throughout
the conversation, not much worried whether he noticed or not.

"Say Kelly, I know it is Sunday, but how would you like to go out with me to
dinner and maybe a movie tonight?" Chris finally got the courage up to ask.
"Say about seven o'clock."

"I would love to," Kelly said as she got ready to light another cigarette.
"But I forgot to ask you, do you smoke?  Because I do, and I really don't go
out with anybody else that doesn't smoke.  In fact, not only do I smoke, but
I smoke a whole lot and I prefer heavy smoking men as well.  The last
non-smoker I dated nagged me so much about it that I vowed never to date a
non-smoker again."

Momentary silence hit the phone.  Chris didn't smoke, but he desperately
wanted to go out with this babe.  He didn't care if Kelly smoked, and he only
told Holly's cousin that he didn't go out with smokers, not because she
smoked, but because she was a nagging bitch and he was just trying to be
nice.

"Ah, well, yes I do," Chris said while lying.  "I've been smoking for years."

"One more thing Chris," Kelly continued on, "I don't really do movies
anymore.  I have enough trouble going 15 minutes without a cigarette let
alone the 2 hours I'd have to go without during a movie."

"Me too," Chris said lying in a panicky voice.  "Maybe we can go out for
drinks instead?"

"Oh that sounds good then," Kelly responded back, "I will see you at seven."

"Oh shoot!" Chris said with emphasis.  "I forgot, I promised my grandmother
that I would take her shopping tonight.  I'm sorry, but I can't make it
tonight."

"That's OK Chris, I understand," Kelly said while smiling.  "How about next
Saturday?"

"No, that won't work either," Chris said in a panicky voice.  "But how about
the Saturday after that?"

"Sounds good, I will see you at seven in two Saturdays," Kelly responded
while trying not to laugh.  "Can't wait to see you!"

The two hung up, and Kelly started to laugh uncontrollably.  "Oh Chrisy boy,
maybe I should have given you Becky's phone number so that she can teach you
how to smoke in two weeks," she said to herself as she continued to laugh.
"Believe me, you're going to need all the help that you can get!"

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