, she did not think it had anything to do with a mid-life crisis, but more with the fact that in their younger years her parents were not able to afford such an exotic trip . T here were simply too many things to worry about: getting their accounting business off the ground, making the mortgage payments, saving for Annabel's college tuition, saving away for their own retirement , and helping out with the medical bills of their own elderly parents. But now the house mortgage was finally paid off , and their accounting practice had grown to the point where they had to hire two employees . F inally, for the first time in their lives, her parents were able to relax and enjoy themselves a bit.
“ Oh, I don't know . I t sounds so far away. Why go all the way there when we've got perfectly good beaches right here ? W e could always sail along the Jersey s hore. And I don't even want to think about how much it's going to cost . W e've been saving for the wedding... ” Mrs. Green covered her mouth with her hand, but it was too late. “ Oh, Annabel, I'm so sorry . I don't know what I was thinking. For a moment , it completely slipped from my mind. I'm so sorry, h oney . I feel like a real idiot.”
To Annabel's surprise , her mom's lapse did not bring on another wave of tears . C ould it be that she would actually manage to get through this somehow without falling apart every five minutes? “ It's okay , Mom. I know exactly what you mean . I t doesn't feel real to me either. I mean , yesterday morning I was still engaged to Jeremy, planning the wedding , and today the whole thing is history. It's surreal . E very now and then , I catch myself thinking that I am in a dream and I'm going to wake up any second, but unfortunately , that's not going to happen. ”
“ It will get better, Ann. I promise. ” Mrs. Green got up to retrieve the grilled cheese sandwiches from the skillet and placed two plates on the table.
Annabel took a bite to appease her mother and was surprised to find the taste of food welcome.
“ In a way , it's a good thing that you brought it up . W e might as well talk about all the cancellations that will have to be made. Good thing that we never did get around to sending out those invitations, ” she added bitterly.
“ Don't worry about that now. I'll take care of all of that. And we don't have to tell the family right away . W e can wait as long as you want. You know that you don't owe anyone any explanations, right? ”
“ Thanks, Mom. ” But despite her mother's brave front, Annabel knew full well that she was as apprehensive about this gruesome ordeal as she was. Annabel shuddered as she imagined the pitiful glances and sorrowful remarks the announcement would elicit. Thank God , I don't have that many relatives , she thought. Still, even having to make the announcement to her aunts and uncles would be a painful task . Aunt Edwina, her mom's sister and Meredith's mother, was bound to be the worst. For as long as Annabel could remember, Aunt Edwina was forever comparing the fortunes of the two households: Aunt Edwina's husband, Uncle Roby, made more money than Annabel's dad, and their house was twice as big as that of Annabel's parents . B ut Aunt Edwina’s biggest triumph that she never failed to rub in was that Meredith got married at twenty- two and already had two kids by the time she was Annabel's current age. Of course , it did not matter that both Aunt Edwina's and Meredith's marriages were fraught with philandering husbands while Annabel's parents were happily married . Aunt Edwina always chose to omit this important detail. Annabel could already visualize the knowing, pitying glance Aunt Edwina would bestow on her during family functions going forward. For years Aunt Edwina had been prodding her about when Jeremy was going to pop the question, and when he finally did, she seemed somewhat leery of the announcement , as though she had expected Annabel and Jeremy to break up instead of getting
“ Oh, I don't know . I t sounds so far away. Why go all the way there when we've got perfectly good beaches right here ? W e could always sail along the Jersey s hore. And I don't even want to think about how much it's going to cost . W e've been saving for the wedding... ” Mrs. Green covered her mouth with her hand, but it was too late. “ Oh, Annabel, I'm so sorry . I don't know what I was thinking. For a moment , it completely slipped from my mind. I'm so sorry, h oney . I feel like a real idiot.”
To Annabel's surprise , her mom's lapse did not bring on another wave of tears . C ould it be that she would actually manage to get through this somehow without falling apart every five minutes? “ It's okay , Mom. I know exactly what you mean . I t doesn't feel real to me either. I mean , yesterday morning I was still engaged to Jeremy, planning the wedding , and today the whole thing is history. It's surreal . E very now and then , I catch myself thinking that I am in a dream and I'm going to wake up any second, but unfortunately , that's not going to happen. ”
“ It will get better, Ann. I promise. ” Mrs. Green got up to retrieve the grilled cheese sandwiches from the skillet and placed two plates on the table.
Annabel took a bite to appease her mother and was surprised to find the taste of food welcome.
“ In a way , it's a good thing that you brought it up . W e might as well talk about all the cancellations that will have to be made. Good thing that we never did get around to sending out those invitations, ” she added bitterly.
“ Don't worry about that now. I'll take care of all of that. And we don't have to tell the family right away . W e can wait as long as you want. You know that you don't owe anyone any explanations, right? ”
“ Thanks, Mom. ” But despite her mother's brave front, Annabel knew full well that she was as apprehensive about this gruesome ordeal as she was. Annabel shuddered as she imagined the pitiful glances and sorrowful remarks the announcement would elicit. Thank God , I don't have that many relatives , she thought. Still, even having to make the announcement to her aunts and uncles would be a painful task . Aunt Edwina, her mom's sister and Meredith's mother, was bound to be the worst. For as long as Annabel could remember, Aunt Edwina was forever comparing the fortunes of the two households: Aunt Edwina's husband, Uncle Roby, made more money than Annabel's dad, and their house was twice as big as that of Annabel's parents . B ut Aunt Edwina’s biggest triumph that she never failed to rub in was that Meredith got married at twenty- two and already had two kids by the time she was Annabel's current age. Of course , it did not matter that both Aunt Edwina's and Meredith's marriages were fraught with philandering husbands while Annabel's parents were happily married . Aunt Edwina always chose to omit this important detail. Annabel could already visualize the knowing, pitying glance Aunt Edwina would bestow on her during family functions going forward. For years Aunt Edwina had been prodding her about when Jeremy was going to pop the question, and when he finally did, she seemed somewhat leery of the announcement , as though she had expected Annabel and Jeremy to break up instead of getting
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