(Sunday, return flight)
"Ladies and gentlemen, we will be arriving in Columbus in about an hour." The captain continues his spiel as I look out the airplane window, continuing to reflect on the last weekend. I just wonder how I'm going to forget about everything that happened.
I should explain. I'm getting married in six days, and meeting Marilyn and falling in love with her has always been the best thing that's ever happened to me. This coming Saturday, we're making it official and getting married - at least we should be. The woman I spent all of college with...and now I just don't know.
I met her during freshman orientation at college, and we dated for two years until I asked her to marry me after spring finals of our sophomore year. I had saved my overage checks to buy an engagement ring, and we set a date almost immediately for this Saturday, just a month after graduation. For me, the timing couldn't be any more perfect.
I never listened to people who tell us that we're too young to get married. When you know, you know, and Marilyn and I have always known. Our families support us one hundred percent, and her father is even hiring me to be an accountant at his firm. I start next Monday, just two days after the wedding. Maybe Marilyn and I will take a honeymoon next year; I don't know.
I'm still figuring things out, though. At this point, my mind is racing, and I'm praying that Marilyn doesn't find out. After all, I need to hold onto this secret for as long as possible, or everything goes to hell - the wedding, my job, everything I've worked for.
But on the other hand, is that really the worst thing in the world? I put my head in my hands and think to myself as the plane descends. I guess it's time to get back to my life after a weekend of fantasy. After all, that's pretty much what a bachelor party is. I can't let it run my life.
(Friday, noon)
My three best friends and I grab our bags, climb off the airport shuttle, and head to the ticket counter, although I'm still not sure why we're here. They're the ones who had me set aside this weekend for my bachelor party, but we're only going to Cleveland; it's just two hours away and it seems easier to drive.
I made sure to ask them to keep it simple - no drunken orgies, no strippers, nothing that could get me in trouble - and they seem to be honoring that, although with a wild man like my friend Chaz in the picture, it's hard to imagine what he has set up.
Thankfully, Marilyn's here to see me off. She's really the best thing that's happened to me, and I'm thankful she's been in my life since I started college. I never had a girlfriend in high school, but when I saw Marilyn, I knew there was a connection, and so did she.
We dated throughout our first two years, and during that time, she's helped me immensely. My grades improved from high school to college, I never went to wild parties, and I have a job lined up after graduation. Chaz may call me a loser for being so into Marilyn's clean-living philosophy, but it's really been the best thing for me.
And now here she is at the airport, seeing me off to my bachelor party. She had her bachelorette party last weekend, and it looked like a lot of fun. I'm sure this weekend will be just as exciting, but I'm more looking forward to the wedding next Saturday.
She tags along with us all the way to the security check-in, drawing a sneer from Chaz and a snotty remark: "Just buy a ticket and follow us there, why don't you?" Marilyn avoids fighting back, just giving him her world-famous death stare, and the subject is dropped.
I kiss her goodbye, and out of the corner of my eye, I see her watching me the whole way as she heads out. I mindlessly meander through security, following behind Chaz, who has all of our boarding passes, and everything goes without incident as I hear the TSA agent give me my gate assignment. I don't really pay too much attention; as usual, I just follow Chaz, who has everything planned out.
I soon realize I should have listened to my gut and that something was wrong. It figures; I should never have trusted Chaz to plan a bachelor party. Unfortunately, I don't find out until we're about to arrive at the gate, and my choices consist either of going along - and praying I stay out of trouble - or walking away.
"I guess now's the time to tell you, Dave," Chaz begins, appearing to hold back laughter. "We're not going to Cleveland." I should have guessed that by the fact that we're flying and the fact that we'll be incommunicado for over four hours, a fact that displeases Marilyn greatly. He hands out the boarding passes, and I look over it. Immediately my heart sinks - no way am I staying out of trouble this weekend. Not with Chaz on the loose - in Las Vegas.
"We board in forty-five minutes. Let's go," Chaz commands, as I stop in my tracks and hand him back the boarding pass.
"I'm out," I state, firmly.
"Come on, dude," he belts back, with my other friends chiming in. "You only get to do this once."
"I said, I'm out," but he refuses to take the boarding pass. "I'm calling Marilyn and going home."
"What the hell?" shouts back Chaz. "I put in a lot of work for this weekend, and-"
"And I hope you enjoy it," I scold. "I won't be going."
"Not cool," he fires back. "Now I didn't say you have to go out to Vegas and fuck the first woman you see. Just have some fun. For all I know, it's the last fucking time you'll be able to after Marilyn gets you on lockdown."
"Lockdown?" I shout. "You don't know anything about Marilyn if you think she's keeping me on lockdown."
"Fine." The word of defeat evident. "If you really want out, I'll take your boarding pass. Go fuck off home and we'll have fun. But it's the last damn thing I ever do for you." I look at the boarding pass in my hand. Back at Chaz. Then back at the pass, thinking it over. "Or you can come to Vegas and actually do something fun instead of this bullshit Marilyn makes you do. You're a free man for another week. If I were you, I'd enjoy it."
I hold the boarding pass in my hands, looking sternly at Chaz while he returns the stare. I can end this. I can go home, tell Marilyn everything, and feel good about what I did. Or I could go with Chaz and see how life is on the other side of things.
(Friday, airport)
Well, here we are - Las Vegas. All is said and done, We're off the plane, we have our luggage, and we're on our way to the hotel. Chaz, never one to skimp, got us rooms at the Planet Hollywood, if for no other reason than the dealers who wear lingerie. Not my thing, but whatever does it for him.
It's a whole lot of hell convincing Marilyn that we were incommunicado for four hours because of a problem with our luggage, but I think she buys it. I know she has an itinerary from Chaz - fake, of course, including a baseball game and some comedy club - but the only itinerary for me this weekend is staying out of trouble. Frankly, though, if Chaz pisses me off, I'm more than happy to spend the weekend in my room watching free cable and eating granola bars while the rest of them go out and do stupid shit.
After I get over the initial shock of seeing slot machines at the airport, we catch a cab and check into our hotel room, where I shove my bag into a corner and plop down on the bed exhausted. I take a look out the window - at least it's a nice view of the Strip - and turn on the television, figuring I can at least watch the game we planned on attending on TV.
