Ryan gave a startled cry and said, “Huh? Me? Karl said that to rush you and Anna to get married!”
Everyone was deafeningly quiet. Emily looked at Ryan as if he were a moron.
Anna and Wayne exchanged glances and burst out laughing. Anna said, “But we’ve already got married!”
When everyone heard this, they froze.
Anna smiled as she took the marriage license from her bag, saying, “The day after Wayne was discharged from the hospital, we went to get married. We’re legally a couple now, so you don’t have to be worried about us.”
Everyone then passed around their marriage license. Peace sighed with relief as the last person handed it back to Anna. She exclaimed, “After all these years, you’ve been through a lot. What makes me happy is that you are finally married! We finally don’t have to worry about you guys anymore.”
Karl said with a nod, “Right! My wife will no longer have to keep anything from me for Anna.”
“So we’re not the next couple to marry. And you two might need to speed up,” Anna looked at Ryan and Emily thoughtfully.
“What can I say? I didn’t see it coming at all,” Ryan exchanged glances with Emily and said.
Although Anna thought having a marriage license was sufficient and there was no need for Wayne and her to hold a wedding, Peter insisted on throwing them a grand wedding. Furthermore, he said that he would handle everything for Anna and Wayne so that they would have nothing to worry about. All they had to do was attend their wedding.
“Wayne, Anna, you don’t have to worry about anything because Henry will take care of everything,” Peter said. He was very glad about that and appeared to be in good spirits.
Taking advantage of the situation, Anna said, “Grandpa, how about this? If Wayne and I agree to your proposal, will you consider having the surgery?”
“What?” Peter froze, and his smile disappeared.
Seeing that Peter froze and was even frowning, Anna sighed before saying, “Actually, I spoke with your doctor the other day. Your health has been deteriorating, and you need to have the surgery. Otherwise, the consequence will be… Well, you know what I mean. The point is, Wayne and I would love to have you witness our wedding. Also, Tammy and Matthew would like to see you get well. Could you please say yes to having the surgery for the sake of us?”
Peter gradually became serious. “I can do the surgery,” he said after a brief pause, “but it will have to wait until after you hold the wedding.”
Anna was about to persuade him once more when Peter interrupted her, “I am aware that all surgeries have risks. Don’t tell me it’s not a big risk because I’m not a fool. I don’t want to die before seeing you and Wayne’s wedding. Anna, you and Wayne have been through so much together over the years, and my heart goes with you. If I can be at your wedding, I would be relieved. And after attending your wedding, even if the operation fails, I will be able to rest in peace. If the surgery goes well, that will be the best.”
Hearing his words, everyone was sad, and some of them even cried.
“Okay, Wayne and I will hold the wedding as you want, Grandpa. You have my word,” Anna wiped her tears away, her voice choking with sobs. Wayne hugged Anna tightly and gently patted her back, trying to comfort her. Although he could remember very little of the past, seeing her cry was heartbreaking. And he knew that what Anna needed most at the moment was a hug.
And everyone fell into silence.
“Why don’t we talk about something else? Like, what gifts do you hope to receive at your wedding, Anna, Wayne?” Peace said cheerfully, breaking the ice.
“Well, actually, I haven’t thought about this before since Wayne and I didn’t plan to hold a wedding until Peter persuaded us,” Anna took a sip of the drink before answering Peace. Then she switched her gaze from Peace to Wayne, seemingly looking for an answer from Wayne.
Noticing her gaze, Wayne thought for a while before saying, “Anything is fine, to be honest. Even if you guys attend my wedding empty-handed, it’s alright. It’s the heart that matters most, after all.”
Surprised, Peace continued the topic, “Kudos to Wayne! Now, I’m finally relieved. You’re finally qualified to marry Anna.”
“What do you mean? Do you mean that I once treated Anna badly in the past?” Wayne asked with his brows furrowing in confusion.
“You can put it that way. Now that you two have come this far, I’ll be frank with you. Anna did put up with a lot when being with you, Wayne. Sometimes, you can be very unreasonable and difficult, Wayne. Anna has already suffered a lot before because of you, and I really hope that you can treasure her and be good to her wholeheartedly.”
Raising his eyebrows, Wayne turned his head and looked at Anna in astonishment. Then he asked her in a low voice, “Anna, is what Peace said true? Did you suffer a lot because of me? How come you seldom mentioned that to me before?”
“It’s a long and complicated story, Wayne. And truth to be told, I also put you through a lot in the past, so we’re kind of even now. Let’s not dwell on the past too much, okay? We need to move on and look forward to the presence and the future.”
Sensing that the atmosphere became somewhat awkward, Karl said to lighten everyone’s mood, “Alright, guys. I would like to make a toast to Wayne and Anna. Wayne, Anna, congratulations! We all know how difficult it is for you two to get to this point, and I’m more than glad that you two are finally married,” Lowering his voice, Karl said while coughing slightly, “Also, I know you guys want to have more kids in the future. Just a kind reminder, Wayne, you’d better be there with Anna all the time when she gets pregnant again. You know how the saying goes, ‘Happy wife, happy life’. ”
Hearing Karl’s words, Anna thought to herself, Karl, you did change a lot. It seems that being a parent does help you grow up in a short period of time. Alas! How time flies! In the blink of an eye, Tammy and Matthew have already become teenagers now. I still remember clearly how it felt like the first time I held Tammy in my arms, and I still remember what it was like the first time I met Matthew as if it just happened yesterday…
***
“Now, cheers to Wayne and Anna!”
“Cheers!”
After the party was over, Wayne and Anna returned to their bedroom, feeling happy and exhausted at the same time.
When Anna was removing her makeup in front of the mirror, Wayne, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, looked her in the eye and said, “Anna, I’m still thinking about what Peace said to me during the party. As you know, I still have difficulty in remembering things. So, I hope that you can tell me what has actually happened between us in the past?”
“Are you sure you want to hear it now?” Anna asked while wiping her eyebrows.
“Yes, I’m sure. I want to hear it from you instead of others.”
“Here it goes. Long story short. Years ago, before we nearly got married, I got kidnapped and broke up with you after I was rescued because back then, you made me feel insecure.”
“Okay,” Wayne frowned, motioning for Anna to continue.
“And later on, I left England with Tammy. And then I went to France for medical school, and I didn’t come back for you and Matthew until five years later.”
“What?! Five years?!” Wayne stood up all of a sudden, exclaiming, “Why did you…”
“Shh… Wayne, we have talked this matter through before and I really don’t wanna go through it again right now. You just told me that you started to remember things bit by bit, and you will recall the conversation sooner or later. And if you really can’t recall it and want to talk to me about it, I’ll explain everything to you in the future. But not now, Wayne. Please, you have to understand me. I’m doing this for your own good,” Anna interrupted him, her hands trembling slightly at the moment.
“Okay, I believe you,” After a short pause, Wayne replied. Then he walked to Anna, leaning near her and resting his chin on her head.
“That’s it? I thought you would have tons of questions for me,” Looking at him in the mirror, Anna asked in surprise.
“I do have tons of questions for you, but I’m not pouring them out all at once today. Anna, I believe you. I really do. Also, we have tons of time for you to answer my tons of questions in the future. Am I right?” Wayne hugged her from behind tightly, nuzzling her cheeks with his nose.
“Yeah, you’re right. Thank you for having faith in me, honey.”
“You’re welcome.”
***
They both knew it was the most important thing for them for the time being, so Anna and Wayne started planning their wedding the next day.
Anna had to work every day and was always on the go, so she didn’t get much time off. As a result, Wayne helped Peter in planning the wedding.
Because Anna didn’t have time to try on wedding gowns, Wayne brought the designer directly to the hospital office. During her lunch break, they measured her size and let her choose the style, making everyone in the office jealous of Anna.
Every day, Wayne drove her to and from work, and even heavy rain couldn’t stop him.
One day, Anna temporarily switched shifts with someone else. She was supposed to get off work in the evening, but it was changed to the next day’s early morning. When she left work, she noticed that Wayne’s car was still parked in front of the building. She opened the door and was surprised to find him sleeping inside.
“How come you’re still here?” She asked.
“You’re off work?” Wayne asked as he opened his eyes.
“I told you I worked on another shift and couldn’t leave until my colleague came to the office in the morning. You’ve been here all night, haven’t you?”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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