White Tulips & Wedding Cake

by Jonathan Solomon

  Rosie looked appalled but steeled herself and joined the celebrant in sorting out the paperwork on a nearby makeshift table in the gazebo.

  Rosie signed all three certificates and was relieved to finally hear a music track for the recessional once Orchid finished signing the last certificate.

  Anthony grabbed Heath’s hands and they started to step down the stairs to the clapping crowd. The guests were throwing handfuls of multi-coloured petals as Mister and Mister walked down along the grassy aisle. Anthony and Heath were followed by Jonquil and Camille. Then the reverse order of the grooms-maids walked out, with Violet walking at the front and Rosie walking last.

  Chapter 40

  Saturday, 15 September – 3:36 pm

  “This can’t be happening. Tell me this is a bad dream,” said Daisy, taking deep breaths. “Did any of you see anything?”

  The cake remained crumbled on the ground.

  “I was here with Ollie preparing the flowers on the banquet tables. We were located at the back of the hall. We were nowhere near the cake,” said Iris. “We didn’t hear anyone come in.”

  “What a mess! I was only away for five minutes to store the cake box, and checking the food caterers in the kitchen. I confirm I only saw Iris and Ollie. It appears no-one came through the entrance side of the hall when I was walking towards the kitchen,” said Daisy. “It’s got to be one of you.”

  Daisy was now pointing to Anthony, Heath, the two mums, the six grooms-maids and the wedding photographer.

  “We’ve all just come back from having our photographs taken in the vineyard by the photographer, Jean-Paul,” said Anthony.

  “But then we, meaning me, Camille, the bridesmaids and the photographer left you to have a bit of privacy,” said Jonquil. “Camille and I were the last to walk in the hall as we’re not as nimble as the young ones.”

  “So, it’s one of the grooms-maids or Jean-Paul,” Daisy said. “All line up please!”

  The girls looked miffed amongst a noise of utterances and shocked looks at each other.

  “One of you did this and I want to know who. I am responsible for providing the most amazing wedding for Anthony and Heath. I am going to find the culprit,” said Daisy as she glared at the seven persons of interest in the line-up.

  “Well, if it’s any help, the five of us lagged behind,” said Orchid. “It was me, Yasmin, Gardenia, Blossom and Violet. Which leaves Rosie and Jean-Paul.”

  Daisy saw red. She had two suspects. Rosie in her red bridesmaid dress and the wedding photographer.

  “So, which one of you was it? I want answers,” said Daisy as she looked at the photographer and Rosie. “Wait a minute! What’s that in your hair, Jean-Paul? You also have something on your back. Turn around.”

  Jean-Paul turned around. And there on his back was a patch of icing about the size of a dinner plate.

  “It was you!” Daisy hollered at Jean-Paul.

  “Yes, it was me,” said Jean-Paul meekly. “It was an accident, I was preparing my camera for photographs against the wall behind the cake and I just kept taking steps backwards without looking where I was going, and then it was too late.”

  “You moron!” Daisy screamed at Jean-Paul. Daisy took another few breaths. “Well, at least now we know who caused this mess! First of all, the wedding reception doesn’t start for another two hours. We’ve got to stop the guests from coming inside the hall. We need to close the doors to the hall straight away.”

  “Well, the cake isn’t everything,” said Heath. “It’s only food. It’s not the end of the world.”

  “But the cake is important. It’s the symbolism. My job is to present the most amazing wedding and reception. And I am going to deliver. Jean-Paul, you start cleaning up the mess you caused. I will bring a few mops and bags over,” said Daisy and went running back to the hall’s kitchen.

  The bridesmaids now went over to close the rolling doors to the hall and waited outside the door.

  Iris witnessed the unfolding drama in front of her, and then an idea occurred to her. Iris looked at her phone. She dialled Malik’s number. Even amongst the confusion of her feelings, she felt the wedding cake situation could be salvaged. He answered after a few rings and Iris disclosed to Malik the plan for that afternoon. The call ended as Daisy brought the mop, bucket and plastic bags over to Jean-Paul. She looked like she was going to do something to Jean-Paul with the mop.

  “Daisy, I spoke to the cake maker. He said he can bring over a top-quality cake. It won’t be identical to the specially designed cake, but it is a beautiful cake, I can reassure you. Malik should be here in less than two hours,” said Iris.

  Daisy looked at Iris and said nothing. She simply walked over to Iris and gave her a hug. Daisy’s sobbing could faintly be heard.

  “Thank you, Iris,” Daisy mouthed.

  “Wow, you are super organised, Iris,” said Heath.

  “No worries, Heath,” said Iris.

  “That’s excellent news. So your wedding reception will still proceed, even with a small hitch,” said Daisy, to Heath and Anthony.

  “Yikes, Camille, that gave me a fright,” said Jonquil. “It looked like we had to do without a cake for a while.”

  “I totally agree, Jonquil, but on the other hand I do need to watch my weight,” said Camille. “Anyhow, I need something to drink.”

  “Well, a vineyard is a good place to start,” smiled Jonquil.

  “Let’s raid a few cellars, then,” said Camille. “The bar is a good place to start.”

  “And we can distract the guests from entering the hall until the cake gets here,” said Jonquil.

  Soon, the hall was quiet again. Jean-Paul and Daisy were busy cleaning up the last pieces of the cake. Iris was now giving Heath a tour of the floral arrangements around the banquet tables.

  Ollie stood quietly observing the cleaning process. Anthony walked quietly over to where Ollie was standing.

  “I got such a shock when I saw you earlier today,” said Anthony.

  “Me too. I didn’t expect to see you. How random is that?” said Ollie.

  “When I saw the cake on the ground, my first thought was that you pushed the cake over,” said Anthony.

  “Why I am not surprised you said that. You think I didn’t get over you?” Ollie said.

  “I’m not stupid, Ollie. Deep inside I knew I broke your heart,” Anthony said. “We always remember our first loves. By the way, Graham moved to the U.S. He’s there with his new boyfriend.”

  Ollie looked into Anthony’s eyes but something had changed. Ollie’s gut instinct was telling him that Anthony was not the man Ollie should spend the rest of his life with.

  “For the record, I didn’t cause the cake to fall. That’s where your first reaction was wrong. Yes, you and I had a past but it will stay in the past,” said Ollie, remembering something that Gregory had said. “I have to go and help Mum. I wish you and Heath a happy marriage. Congratulations.”

  Chapter 41

  Saturday, 15 September – 4:58 pm

  Iris was bringing back the gazebo flower arrangements to the van to be recycled for future orders. She was pushing the trolley with the last of the flower decorations when she saw Malik’s Fond of Fondant van arrive in the vineyard’s driveway. Malik stepped out of the van and was warmly greeted by Daisy who was hugging and sobbing at the same time. Iris felt incredibly jealous and then laughed at herself. Iris did take herself too seriously some times. She watched as she opened her van’s doors and saw Daisy guiding Malik, who was now pushing the wedding cake on a different trolley. Our wedding cake, thought Iris.

  Iris finished packing the gazebo decorations into the van and shut the van doors. Her job was done. She just had to wait for Ollie. He must still be inside. Iris walked towards the entrance and was not sure what to say to Malik. If she left now, she would have more time to think about what to say to Malik back in Paddington.

  Iris walked into the entrance and saw the bar was full of happy and intermingling guests. Sh
e heard snippets of conversations as she walked through.

  “What a beautiful ceremony. Simple and understated,” said a woman in her early forties.

  “I brought my adult children along and would you know they all turned out straight? And, I’m a gay parent! Doesn’t that tell you something?” said a man in his late fifties.

  “I loved the Best Mums! They looked very classy,” commented a woman in her seventies.

  “’To the exclusion of all others?’ That’s mad! I’d like a bit of flexibility thank you very much!” said a man in his late twenties.

  “This wedding can’t have been cheap, though. That’s why Neil and I decided to invest in a vacant block of land, on the outskirts of Sydney, rather than spend it on a wedding,” said a woman in her late twenties, who was wearing a confectionery-inspired fascinator.

  “I’m very thankful to live in a place like Australia. Gay people in other places have it so difficult,” commented a sporty man in his early seventies.

  Iris turned to her left and saw that the entrance to the hall was guarded by Jonquil and Camille, who appeared to be engaged in a topic of amusement.

  “Oh, Iris, the cake has arrived. All is saved,” rejoiced Jonquil.

  “Yes, that handsome cake maker saved the night,” said Camille. “They’re getting the cake ready. We’re just waiting for the go-ahead from Daisy. We’ll let you through, though.”

  Jonquil and Camille both stood aside for Iris to move into the hall.

  Iris could see that Daisy was holding the cake box and was admiring the cake.

  “It’s so beautiful, Malik!” said Daisy.

  “Thank you,” said Malik. He saw Iris and he lifted his arm to give a wave.

  “I will store this box in the kitchen as well and then we’re all set, the guests can now come in,” said Daisy, and she raced off to the kitchen with the box.

  Malik walked over to Iris. She felt butterflies in her stomach.

  “Iris and Malik!” It was Heath. “Thank goodness I found you both before you left. I just wanted to ask if you wanted to stay for the reception. Anthony and I really appreciate your teamwork and we are more than happy for you two and Ollie to join us for great food and dancing.”

  “Why not,” said Malik. “I’m happy to stay, if Iris is happy to stay of course.”

  Iris looked at Malik’s infectious smile.

  “I’d love to stay,” said Iris.

  “Great,” said Heath, putting his hands on each of Iris’s and Malik’s shoulders. “It’ll be a great night.” Heath advised Iris and Malik where they were to be seated.

  “Thank you for coming and bringing the cake,” said Iris.

  “Yes, at first I was shocked that one of my masterpieces had such an incident. At least I always take photos of my creations. It was a beautiful cake.”

  The guests were now gradually making their way into the hall, with necks stretched up to check out the high ceilings of the hall.

  Soon there was a crowd forming around the cake.

  “Hey, you there, young man! You’re standing too close. Get back,” said Daisy, as she stood near the cake, ensuring its security and safety before the allocated time in the reception schedule for its cutting. Under no circumstances was Daisy going to allow another cake to fall to the ground.

  “They’re all admiring your wedding cake,” said Iris.

  “Our wedding cake,” said Malik facing Iris and looking down into Iris’s eyes and smiled again.

  “Mum, are we ready to go?” said Ollie as he caught up with iris. “Hi Malik, what a relief you had a spare cake.”

  “Oh, Ollie. There’s been a change of plans. Heath said he wanted to thank us all and we have been given seats as part of the reception,” said Iris with anticipation, not sure how her son would cope being at a wedding reception for an ex-boyfriend, being married to someone else.

  “Oh,” said Ollie in surprise. “I guess I’m all right with that. Heath is a genuinely nice guy.”

  “Good on you, Ollie. You remind me so much of your father, Ollie. As long as you’re here I can never forget about Roddy,” said Iris to Ollie “Rightio, let’s all get to our seats!”

  Chapter 42

  Saturday, 15 September – 10:45 pm

  The wedding reception proceeded without a hitch. The speeches were given, delicious gourmet food was plated and served and the wedding cake was cut and distributed amongst the guests. Then the barrel and cake had disappeared and in its place, a dance floor took its place.

  The guests enjoyed watching Camille take Anthony for the first dance. Then the DJ started playing high-energy dance tracks and soon the dancefloor was pumping and rocking with happy guests.

  Ollie could see Iris and Malik dancing together and having a great time. It was like they were on a first date. Excited and very happy. Ollie was the wallflower, standing by the side.

  “Hello there. The flowers are beautiful,” said Rosie as she walked over to Ollie.

  “Thank you. I came here to help out my mum. It’s a beautiful venue, isn’t it,” said Ollie.

  “Yes, it is,” said Rosie. There was a pause. “Hi, my name is Rosie.”

  “Hi Rosie. I’m Ollie. You look lovely. The red eyeshadow makes you look fierce.”

  “You mean angry?” laughed Rosie then becoming silent. “I couldn’t help but notice you were in deep conversation with Anthony a few hours before. Did you previously know each other?”

  “Yes, we were boyfriends for about six months but it didn’t work out,” Ollie said. “I really enjoyed going to the Woolloomooloo unit he stayed in. He shared this unit with a female flatmate, though I never met her. But in the end the negatives outweighed the positives.”

  “When did you break up, Ollie?” asked Rosie.

  “Over three years ago,” said Ollie. “But you know what I’m so glad that relationship ended. Love makes you blind. As strange as it sounds while I was deeply in love, for the most part, I felt really unhappy being with Anthony. But he will always be my first love.”

  “The first cut is always the deepest isn’t it? Relationships are difficult,” said Rosie. I can tell you everything you need about relationship breakdowns. I got a divorce 10 months ago. We were together for ten years, five of those married.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry to hear,” Ollie said.

  “Don’t be. By the way, I’m Anthony’s ex-wife,” said Rosie. “I’ve really struggled through today but I’m so glad things have gone mostly to plan.”

  Ollie did a double-take and in slow motion realised that he had been with Anthony, when he was still a married man.

  “I’m only here because he still wanted me to be a part of his life. We’re still working to make this divorce as amicable as possible,” continued Rosie.

  Rosie then noticed Ollie’s reaction and put her hand on his arm.

  “Don’t be hard on yourself. I have a feeling you were one of many guys he was with. Heath was the person that made him decide he wanted a divorce. It was a tough time,” Rosie said gently. “But, I’ve coped really well over the last month. Last week my play ‘Catharsis’ was accepted by a theatre company as part of next year’s programming.”

  “Congratulations Rosie. ‘Catharsis’, now why does that ring a bell?” said Ollie.

  “Can I share a secret with you?” asked Rosie.

  “Sure. Go ahead,” Ollie said.

  3:34 pm that day

  The official wedding party photographs had taken place in the vineyard. The wedding photographer, Jean-Paul, wanted to see how the lighting in the Hall would fare so he went ahead to leave the wedding party to relax amongst the vines. Heath’s grooms-maids were all chatting to themselves. Anthony and Heath were staring lovingly into each other’s eyes. Jonquil and Camille were getting on like a house on fire.

  Rosie felt awkward standing by herself amongst such a social scene. She thought she might as well join the wedding photographer and see how he was going. She rubbed her jaw. All that forced smiling for the photographs h
ad caused her jaw to ache.

  Rosie walked up to Orchid and advised her she was heading off to the hall. Orchid nodded her head and returned to the social conversation between Heath’s friends.

  Rosie walked off towards the hall holding her bouquet in her left hand taking in the beautiful scenery.

  She soon came across the hall with its large side roller door open. To the left at the back of the hall she saw the florist and her assistant setting up flower arrangements. To the right she could see the wedding cake on the wine barrel. The wedding photographer was taking photos of the cake and stopped when he saw Rosie.

  “Hello, can I ask you to stand up against the front wall?” Jean-Paul asked, pointing to the front of the hall about ten metres behind the cake.

  “Sure,” said Rosie as she stood against the wall while the photographer checked the lighting.

  “Please keep standing there,” said Jean-Paul as he stepped a few steps backwards. “I just need to see if I can fit a group of people within the frame.”

  Rosie nodded becoming aware that the wedding photographer was continuing to take small steps backwards towards the wedding cake without looking or checking where he was going.

  “You look beautiful. The red colour really suits you,” said Jean-Paul looking up from the camera.

  “Thank you,” said Rosie out loud. Rosie could now see that the wedding photographer was just metres away from the cake and the photographer was totally unaware of the cake behind him. She should really say something now to stop him from knocking the beautiful cake over. An unbidden thought went into Rosie’s head, “Or you could keep silent”.

  “I’m just going to take a few steps back. And, oh! Fuck! No! This, the fuck, cannot be happening! Fuck!” exclaimed Jean-Paul as he collided with the soft mass of the cake before it fell to its untimely fate.

  “What!” said Ollie in shock.

  “It’s our secret, Ollie,” said Rosie, giving him the biggest smile. “C’mon, Ollie, let’s have a dance. I’ll dance with you.”