Chapter 11- THE BIG DAY

'Do it for your mother, do it for your mother" Leonardo repeated to himself as he looked at his reflection in the mirror, hoping that by saying those words repeatedly, it would somehow make things better for him but it did not.

He had always heard that the mind was a powerful tool but now that he tried convincing himself, it felt as though his mind was not that powerful at all. Dressed in his designer suit, readying himself for a lifelong commitment with a total stranger, drained the last of the happiness inside of him. One that not even a designer suit could.

His best friend, Ricardo had called him earlier to wish him the best of luck even though they both knew that there was nothing lucky about this union.

The knocking on Leonardo's door steered his attention away from his reflection in the mirror.

'Come in" he answered, his mother peered her face into the room, smiling at him. Knowing that he could not display his unhappiness in front of his mother after her fall the previous day, Leonardo smiled.

'You look handsome" his mother complimented him but he could see a tear in her eye as she walked towards him, to fix his tie.

'Thank you mother"

'You know, I never thought that this day would come. I remember giving birth to you and to see you grow up has been the greatest gift of my life" she looked him in the eyes and read him. 'I know that you are not happy about this marriage but pretty soon you will learn to love her" His mother reassured him but not even that was enough for Leonardo to feel at peace.

'When will that time come, mother?" Worried appeared on his mother's face but like the professional that she was, in a second, the worried expression on her face disappeared and she smiled.

'Do not worry, that time will come. My marriage with your father was also an arranged marriage and look how we turned out"

'Yeah, you look so happy with him" Leonardo told his mother sarcastically. For years he had watched his mother's health deteriorate and her marriage become unhappier as the years went by.

'Your marriage will be nothing like mine and your father's" Signora Carina told her son as she continued fixing his tie.

'How do you know this mother?"

'I just know! Why are you making this difficult for me?" Leonardo looked away from his mother and stared out the window, as he bit the lining of his mouth out of sheer frustration.

'I am not making anything difficult for anyone, I am just—"

'Enough! You made your father a promise sixteen years ago and the least you can do it keep it. There, it's done. Meet me downstairs, we are leaving soon" his mother ordered him, she walked away without hearing a word that her son had wanted to say.

**

'Where are the rest of the flowers?"

'The cake is not here yet!" Aurora walked around the rest of the house as every single employee scrambled to get the last of the decorations on before the grooms family arrived. She had left Avena in her room as she was showering and getting ready for the new day.

'Aurora!" she turned around, only to see that it was signora Meta that was calling her and the older woman did not seem too happy.

'Si, signora Meta" Aurora answered.

'Where is Avena, the groom's family is here and her makeup has not been applied yet" Signora Meta fumed.

'I will call her right now, she is the shower. I am afraid she overslept" Aurora explained, hoping that the older woman would calm down.

'Of course she is sleeping, even as she is about to become a married woman she sleeps"

'It is okay Signora Meta, you get everything ready whilst I go and call her—oh! Carolina, come here" Aurora called out to the makeup artist.

'Si" she answered.

'Please follow me upstairs" Aurora informed the makeup artist who followed Aurora to Avena's room.
**
Her feet walked faster than it has ever walked, beads of sweat falling down her brow as she ran down the steps. Her mouth trembled as she searched for senora Meta but she was nowhere to be found. She needed to tell signora Meta that Avena was missing.

Dear Aurora

I am very sorry for breaking my promise once again but I cannot go through with this wedding because I am truly in love with Tommasa.
Please tell my parents that I have left and I will not be coming back any time soon.

A. Russo


The letter that Avena had left on her bed had rocked Aurora's body as she thought of the implications of Avena eloping with her lover. This wedding had to take place no matter what, otherwise every employees job was at risk of being lost.


**
Leonardo looked at his watch for what seemed like the hundredth time and still she was not here, further proving that Avena Russo cared about no one else's time but her own time.

'She will be here soon" his mother moved from her seat to that of Leonardo, to reassure him.

'When would that be if I may ask?"

'Just relax, she is probably getting her hair done or something" his mother's response had done nothing to calm him down. Leonardo was already at the altar, along with the priest and other people that Leonardo did not know, while his father sat in his seat as though nothing was bothersome.
Signora Carina walked back to her seat as she was deep in thought.


*Flashback*

Both signora Carina and Signora Mia walked out of the private living area and made their way away from their husbands and Leonardo. Meeting each other after a long time was what they needed.

'Can you believe that when we were younger we told one another that our children would marry each other" Signora Carina joked and both women laughed as they walked through the hallway.

'Is your daughter okay with this marriage?" Signora Carina asked her best friend who stopped smiling as the question was asked.

'If I told you that she was, I would be lying. But I have a triumph card up my sleeve"

'And that card is?"

'I have a maid, Aurora, she is very close to my daughter and I know that she can convince my daughter to change her mind" Signora Mia told her best friend.

'That is good to hear. Can I at least see a picture of your daughter"?" Signora Carina asked her friend.

'No, you will only see my beautiful daughter on their wedding day and trust me, they would look so beautiful together"

'I believe you Mia, cheers, to our children staring their lives together" they both cheered and had a fill of their wine, only the best sourced from the Romano wine estate.

*flashback ends*

'All rise" everyone stood up and looked behind them, Signora Carina placed her hand over her heart as her heart rate slowed down. Finally, the wedding was to take place, another battle won.

Leonardo felt a knot of his stomach as he realized that the moment had finally arrived when he would be giving his life away to some spoilt heiress.

Even as she was dressed in a white satin mermaid wedding dress and veil covering her face, Leonardo knew that no amount of pure whiteness would ever make Avena Russo pure with her stinking attitude. The song played and Leonardo looked towards the priest, afraid to look at the woman walking down the aisle who was to be his wife.

'Who gives this young woman?" the priest asked.

'I, signora Meta Maltin"

'And who gives this young man?"

'I, signora Carina Romano" Leonardo's mother answered enthusiastically, wanting to make it known that indeed she was the mother of the groom.

'I know that you are both shy but can you two face one another" the priest asked and the crowd laughed, all except Leonardo who was not thrilled that he was about to throw his life away.

'Dearly beloved we are gathered here to witness the wedding of Leonardo Romano and Avena Russo in holy matrimony" Leonardo listened to the priest rant about what love truly meant whilst he looked elsewhere rather than at his soon to be bride.

'Leonardo Romano, do you take this woman to be your wife, to live together in holy matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her and to keep?" The priest asked, Leonardo looked at his mother from the corner of his eye, the crowd waited for him to say answer but nothing, until Leonardo shut his eyes.

'I do" the crowd cheered, the cheers was nothing more than an insult to Leonardo.

"Avena Russo, do you take this man to be your husband, to live together in holy matrimony, to love him, to honor him, to comfort him, and to keep him in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?"

'I do" she replied.

'I will now say a few words and you two have to repeat after me" the priest told them.

'I, Leonardo Romano , take you Avena Russo, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part."
Leonardo said his vows, knowing that deep down, someone like Avena Russo would never love a poor man.

'Now, Avena it is your turn"

"I, Avena Russo, take you Leonardo Romano, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part."
Once more the crowd cheered, although she had her eyes shut the entire time, she was sure that she had heard this voice before although she could not figure out where.

'Please can we have the rings?" signora Carina walked towards the priest and handed the rings over to the priest. 'Leonardo repeat after me"

'Avena Russo, I give you this ring as a token and pledge of our constant faith and abiding love." He put the ring on her soft fingers and jolt of electricity traveled through his body, a feeling that Leonardo had never felt before.

The priest then turned to the bride, smiling down at her and handed her the ring, this too as her eyes shut beneath her veil and using only her hand to fell the hands of the man that she was to be married to.

"Leonardo Romano, I give you this ring as a token and pledge of our constant faith and abiding love." Aurora placed the ring onto Leonardo's finger.

"By virtue of the authority vested in me under the laws of the Sicily, I now pronounce you husband and wife. 'You may kiss the bride." The priest told them, now was the time that Leonardo dreaded the most, kissing a complete stranger that was his wife.

He turned his head to look at his mother, and she nodded at him to kiss her. Turning his head back to his now wife. Leonardo raised his hand to remove the veil. His heart stopped and dropped, the woman in front of him was none other than the woman that he had met at the Russo household and the very same one that had accused him of stalking her at his suit fitting.