Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 74450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
The song soon transitioned to their male vocalist singing Gerald Levert’s, ‘Made To Love Ya.’ He briefly lowered his head then smiled when he heard Legend singing the lyrics to the song offkey.
The music changed yet again to the haunting melody of Ibeyi’s ‘River.’ It played as dancers clad in gold and green flooded the space, moving in a slow African dance. Zap Mama’s, ‘My Own Zero’ followed and at this the dancers paused, then became electrified, dancing faster, spinning and moving, amping the crowd as their guests applauded and whistled to their performance of the Lamban Griotic African Dance of Mali.
‘I loooove you like you are… Love me like I am…’ The lyrics filled the church and him with emotions he’d left dormant. Now he knew why his bride had wanted this song played. Wanted these dancers. Wanted a day full of white feathers, along with beautiful shades of purple and green.
Once the dancers were finished, the back doors closed once again. The lights dimmed, several more candles were lit, and then the back doors opened. ‘Candy’ by Cameo began to play, causing an outburst of laughter.
There was Axel’s daughter, with English holding her tiny hand. The little toddler wore a light purple dress with a green sash, her hair flowing in thick, shiny curls. She had a little purple basket and tossed white feathers here and there, along with pieces of taffy, pink bubble gum, and green apple Jolly Ranchers—Mrs. Florence’s favorite candy was taffy, Mama loved bubble gum, and Legend’s deceased brother’s favorite candy was green apple Jolly Ranchers. Caspian wanted to give honor to the dead, to those they loved who had passed on.
People clapped and hooted, taking pictures and giving the small, adorable child compliments as she bounced down the aisle with her lovely mother at her side. Once they reached the altar, English leaned over, kissed Caspian on the cheek, then disappeared with her child in tow to have a seat next to her mother. The back doors closed.
The female vocalist took the microphone and began to sing Kiana Ledé’s, ‘I Choose You.’ After a few moments, the doors slowly opened again, revealing the whispers and laughter of his heart. The voice of his silent soul…
Azure.
She stood there for a spell, then started to walk down the aisle, a beautiful smile on her gorgeous face. People looked frozen. Her beauty was unmatched. A mirage. Her father walked by her side and then, she paused. She extended her arms, and her father and the wedding coordinator removed her petticoat, placing it gently on a nearby pew. The coordinator then stood behind her, undoing some sort of ribbon or thread, and the crowd oohed and ahhed when a long, lovely lace train fell softly behind her. Her clear slippers stepped gingerly on the long purple runner covered in candies and white feathers.
When she reached him, his heart was so full it ran over, in the form of tears down his face. He covered his eyes with his hands… feeling so silly. The pastor gently patted his shoulder, then gave him a hug. Caspian quickly pulled himself together, certain he looked red in the face. He stood next to Azure, trying to not stare at her, but it was damn near impossible not to.
Pastor Abraham motioned for Caspian to begin.
Caspian picked up a glass of red water. Pastor Abraham nodded at Azure. She leaned forward and picked up the blue glass of water. At the count of three, they poured both of them into an empty vessel.
“This symbolizes our union. The two of us coming together as one. Making something new and beautiful.”
Pastor Abraham took their glasses and set them aside. After saying a prayer for the couple, he explained that they were going to do a knot-tying ceremony.
“…And the fisherman’s knot flourishes stronger with burden and pressure,” he explained, then motioned to Caspian again.
“I, Caspian Emory, commit myself to you, Azure Quill, as your husband, to learn and grow with you, to explore and have adventures with you, to respect you and treat you as an equal partner, in the foreknowledge of joy and pain, strength and exhaustion, clear direction and ambiguous doubt, for all the risings and settings of the sun. We pour these libations and tie these knots to symbolize our connection to one another. They represent our trust in each other and our combined strength. We are one.”
Azure then repeated the same vows.
“Azure, would you like to share a few words with Caspian?”
She nodded. He could tell she’d been crying. After blinking a few times, she cleared her throat and took his hands in hers.
“Caspian, there’s so much about you that I love and admire. The fact that I’m standing here and marrying my best friend beats all.” He smiled at her words. “I met you during a time in your life when you’d lost someone you loved. Your Aunt Angel. You met me at a time in my life when I was convinced I would walk this road alone. Instead, God had other plans. For both of us. I want to thank you for loving my hard edges and my soft curves. For never tryin’ to change me, water me down, or make me be someone I am not. I want to thank you for loving my art, truly, and being such a strong supporter and confidant. You were my biggest cheerleader when I’d need pep talks about my work, and deals I was trying to make. You were my biggest supporter when I confided in you the most personal of things, and you helped me find my way out of that maze by shining a light down on me…