Memories Ch. 07

Chris joined his father, Larissa, and Donnie Arnosky at court bright and early the next morning. He could tell Larissa was nervous, but knew she was also eager to put this chapter of her life behind her.

The man, her former boss Yuri, had absolutely no shame. In front of the judge, he did everything in his power to make it seem like he was just protecting his business and that he was in the right...Including blatantly lying under oath about how many days Larissa had requested off and her work ethic, amongst other things. Just for that, the judge ended up tacking on $100,000 to the fine Larissa was to be awarded, which added up to $200,000 altogether.

"Oi, what a meshuggeneh!" Donnie Arnosky exclaimed as they all exited the courtroom. "I've seen my fair share of idiots, but I think Mr.Grigoryan might take the cake!"

"I'm just glad it's over with," Larissa looked visibly relieved. "Thank you so much," she shook Donnie's hand. "Now, who wants to go celebrate over some brunch? Mr.Arnosky, will you join us?"

"Oh, thank you, my dear, but I've got to start getting my 11 o'clock case ready." He turned to Chris and his dad. "Robert, Christopher, it was good seeing you again. Take care," Donnie excused himself and walked the opposite direction down the hall.

"Thank you both so much for coming," Larissa hugged Robert and Chris, giving the latter an extra peck on the cheek, still embarrassed to kiss him on the mouth in front of his father.

"Of course," they replied in unison. "I'm just glad you don't have to deal with that dick anymore," Chris grabbed the side of her head, pulling her to him for a kiss on the temple.

"Me too," Larissa drug out. "Now, where do you guys want to eat? My treat."

Larissa spread her arms out and flopped against the couch when they got home that afternoon.

"So, what do you want to do today?" Chris chuckled, already having a good idea.

'Be lazy," she closed her eyes and smiled.

"That's fine, but..." he drug out the last word.

"But what?" Larissa asked, unmoving.

"I have an early Christmas present for you."

"You're as bad as a kid," she laughed, eyes still closed.

"No, no. I have a good reason. It's time-sensitive," he insisted. "Stay there. I'll be right back." Chris felt eyes on him as he walked to the kitchen and pulled open a drawer, pulling two tickets out.

"Chris, what are those?" Larissa's face grew serious as he held them out to her. She took them and studied them for a long second.

"Chris, why are we flying into Omaha in three days?" her eyes grew wide.

"Come on, Lars. What other reason would I have to fly us out to the middle of nowhere, especially right before Christmas?"

"Chris, are you serious?" tears began to form at the corners of her eyes.

"Yah, babe. I didn't really know what to get you. I thought it would be the perfect gift."

"It is," she whispered as she hugged him. "I haven't seen my parents in over a year," Larissa gave a short laugh as she swiped at her tears. "Sorry," she pulled away from Chris and fanned her face.

"Don't be sorry," he hugged her again. "I'm glad we could do this."

"Oh my God! I was so caught up in my own excitement to see my parents, I didn't even think about this being the first time you've met them! Chris, I'm so excited!" she grabbed his hands and jumped up and down. He couldn't help but laugh.

"I don't think I've ever seen you so excited about anything."

"Oh," she drew out. "I was pretty excited to meet Alan Rickman and Bill Pullman."

"What about when I proposed?" Chris grew incredulous.

"That was ok too," Larissa teased. "So how long are we staying?"

"Well, that's where it gets kind of complicated. I have to be back to work the day after Christmas..."

"Awww," Larissa groaned with a sneer.

"I know. I'm just trying to be happy JJ's at least giving us a break over Christmas."

'Yah, me too. So what's the deal? We have to fly back Christmas afternoon or night?"

"I do. You don't."

"Chris..." she tried to argue, but he put a finger to her lips to shush her.

"You're staying as long as you want. I insist."

"But then you'll be home all by yourself. Plus, what if I never come back? What if I decide I've had enough of LA and want to stay in Iowa forever?"

Chris lowered his eyes at her. "I'm a big boy. And I would like to think you love me enough to come home," he emphasized the last word. "Even if you did stay, I would hunt you down, you know. Don't underestimate me. I have resources." They both laughed. "Enjoy this time off...Just not too much. We have a wedding to plan when you get home, you know." Chris winked.

"Um, awkward question," Chris asked on the plane as they neared Eppley Airfield in Omaha. "I know you and your mom talk a lot, but have you told her about..." he touched Larissa's necklace. Even he didn't like saying the word "miscarriage". It was such an ugly word. It made him uncomfortable saying "baby" too. It made it that much more real what happened and what they were missing out together; more painful.

Larissa touched Chris' finger that was still lingering on her necklace. "Yah, I did," she paused. "I didn't go into too much detail, though. It was hard enough for me to tell her at all."

"Why?" Chris blurted without thinking about how his question may have come off. "I thought you guys talked about everything?"

"We do...normally. But," she rubbed her hands together. "Let's just say that they're a bit more...Reserved? Old-fashioned? I mean, it is the Midwest."

"Ah," he understood. Larissa's parents would have been none-too-thrilled about their out-of-wedlock baby.

"Don't get me wrong," she held her hands up. "Mom was very sympathetic. It's in her nature. But I'm not sure if she even told my dad. He's not as open-minded as she is."

"Even though we were already planning on getting married?"

"Yep. Doesn't matter. He would have been really disappointed in me. It's probably better if mom didn't tell him. I don't want to see that look on his face."

"Seeing your parents' disappointment in their face is the worst, isn't it?" Chris tried to relate with Larissa, though he was growing increasingly concerned that he would do or say something he shouldn't in front of her parents over the next five days.

"Why didn't you warn me sooner? You know how I am. I have a tendency to just say what I'm thinking. I'm kind of freaking out now."

"Why?" Larissa's brow furrowed.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm not very 'reserved'. What if I do something I'm supposed to? Am I even allowed to hold your hand?"

Larissa couldn't help but laugh at how the tables had turned from their norm. She wasn't used to Chris worrying about what anyone thought. Well, except for her and his parents, anyways.

"Hand-holding is fine. But..."

"But?" he waited.

"Don't be surprised if we have to sleep in different rooms."

"Seriously?" Chris raised his eyebrows.

"Seriously," Larissa tried to hide a smirk. "I know it seems crazy, but it's only five days. Do you think you can handle it?"

"Yah. Sure," he mumbled his reply, but he was already deep in thought. More like "deep in worry". What he thought was going to be a good time meeting Larissa's parents was already sounding like a nightmare of walking on eggshells. His trance was broken by something rubbing between his eyes.

"What are you doing?" he asked, looking up at Larissa, who was rubbing firmly between his eyes with her thumb.

"Stop worrying. It's going to be fine!"

The week was interesting, but went off without a hitch, for the most part. Chris could tell Larissa's father wasn't crazy about him or his little girl being actors.

"Too unstable of a profession," he declared. Couldn't argue that point. Chris tried his best to reassure George nonetheless.

Naturally, the court date came up in conversation. He was surprised to find himself relieved when Larissa and her mother, Martha, lied and said that she had been fired for having a bad case of food poisoning. Normally Chris didn't condone lying, but it seemed like the best thing in this case after what Larissa had said on the plane.

He and Larissa really had ended up having to sleep in separate rooms during their stay. She had tried to insist that he take the more comfortable bed in her old room, but he ended up taking the lumpy sleeper sofa. By the end of the week, Chris couldn't remember the last time he felt so sleep deprived. But he loved every minute of it, nervous or not.

He was filled with an extra warm feeling seeing Larissa and her mother together, especially as their talk grew animated as they looked over wedding magazines. He couldn't put his finger on it at the time, but seeing the relationship she had with her parents and how happy they all were to be together made him want to marry her that much more.

He must have sensed their time was running short, because on Christmas Eve, as Martha and Larissa cleaned up dinner in the kitchen, George attempted a heart to heart with Chris. Even more interesting, George had had a drink or two of whiskey already.

"I really appreciate you bringing my little girl to visit," they both continued to stare at the fire roaring in the fireplace.

"You're welcome. It was my pleasure, sir. No one should have to be away from their family for that long. Likewise, it was my pleasure getting to meet you and Mrs.Olsen," Chris put on his best charm without trying to be too obvious. He was going for "I am just this polite" as opposed to "I'm just buttering you up". Several minutes passed before either of them spoke.

"Care for a drink, Christopher?" George shook his half-empty glass in the air.

"No thank you, sir. I'm good," he tried to decline politely.

"Ah, come on, boy," he slapped Chris' knee as he stood. "One drink ain't gonna kill ya," George made his way to the bar and began pouring a drink for Chris.

"Alright," he chuckled, trying to hide the nervousness in his voice. "Just one, though. Hate to be hungover for my flight tomorrow."

"Speaking of which," George didn't miss a beat,"What's this movie about I hear you're in?"

"Uuuhh," Chris faltered. He highly doubted George Olsen was interested in space movies. "It's a sci-fi movie," was all he offered.

"Oh? Anything interesting or 'just paying the bills', as Lars like to say?" Chris thought it was both funny and disconcerting that, as far as he knew, he and Larissa's father were the only two people on the planet who called her "Lars" for short.

"Um, a little of both," Chris laughed as he took a drink of whiskey. "It's a remake of a classic. The director's quite popular nowadays, but this movie could go either way since the original show has such a huge, loyal fan base."

"Oh, a sci-fi tv show? What is it?"

"Honestly? I've already told you more than I'm supposed to or that I've even told Larissa at this point," Chris laughed and took another sip. "The director is real weird about keeping it a secret, for some reason."

"Come on, son. Just tell me what it is," George insisted.

"Well...It's a Star Trek remake," Chris waited for his future father-in-law to make some sort of face of disdain, but instead, his face actually brightened.

"Really? I loved Star Trek. One of my favorite shows back in the day."

"Really? That's great, sir. I've been watching a bunch of old episodes lately so I know what I"m getting myself into," they both laughed.

"Please, call me George," he raised a hand. "I get it and I appreciate the gesture of respect, politeness, whatever it is you're going for, but please. Just call me George. After all, we're going to be related in less than half a year, right?"

"Absolutely, s—George," Chris corrected himself as he took another swig from his glass.

"So you're really serious about this?"

"About marrying your daughter? Of course! I've never been more sure of anything in my life."

George pondered that for a moment. "I suppose you wouldn't have flown my daughter all the way out here AND came yourself if you didn't mean it," George winked at him.

"No, sir," Chris didn't bother to correct his self this time. "I was hoping to meet you guys before we became in-laws. This was the perfect opportunity." There was a pause in the conversation. "I want you to know how excited Larissa is to have you guys there. For the wedding, I mean. And if she's happy, I'm happy," Chris looked down at his cup, trying to hide the goofy smile on his face, but it must not have gone unnoticed.

"It seems like you really love her," George confessed.

"I do, sir."

"Save that talk for the wedding day. Well, minus the 'sir'," they both laughed. "I'm glad you found her. Maybe she was meant to move all the way out there for a reason after all," it was George's turn to look down at his drink. Were those tears in the corners of his eyes? Chris wondered and hoped he wasn't squinting for a better view. "Take good care of her."

"I will, George. Always."

Christmas came and went and the next several months flew by, due partly to the fact that Chris ended up spending much more time filming the first Star Trek than he had hoped or originally thought. Not that he hadn't helped Larissa with wedding plans when he could, but he felt absolutely horrible that he hadn't been able to spend more one on one time with her beforehand. Their wedding was a mere month away when he was finally home for good.

Larissa, the trooper that she was, didn't seem to mind too much and, if she did, did a spectacular job of hiding it. Much to his relief, she had gotten back to her normal self fully during that time. Chris wasn't sure if it was from the therapy, keeping busy with planning, or a combination thereof. Whatever it was, he was glad to have happy Larissa back.

He liked to believe his parents played a large part in her recovery. Though he was home from the set every night, Larissa had spent many an afternoon and evening at his parents' house during the months leading up to their nuptials, whether it be to get his mother's input on something or just for the company. It warmed his heart to see her grow closer and more comfortable with his parents.

"Can you believe we're getting married one week from today?" Larissa asked as they sat lazing together on the couch, as they usually did, one Saturday early in May that year.

"Can you believe that that's at least the third time you've asked me that today?" Chris joked and chuckled.

"Sorry," Larissa laughed too. "It's just...hard to believe. Don't you think so too?" she looked at him expectantly.

"What's hard to believe?" he asked. "You're not getting cold feet, are you?" he teased.

"No!" Larissa insisted. "It's just been a weird, hard year, but it's gone by so fast. I can't believe it's already time. That's all."

'You're right. It has gone by fast. Too fast. Where are we, anyway? Any last-minute preparations we need to think about?"

"No, not really..." she paused. "But thank you for asking," Larissa smiled and kissed him on the lips.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here more," Chris apologized.

"You were here plenty," she insisted.

"You know what I mean," he lowered his eyes at her.

"Chris, you did what you could," she reached out and took his hand. "You helped more than I ever could have dreamed. Honest." Larissa began rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb. "I mean, Christ. You were working 18 hour days there for a while." There was a pause, both of them looking down at their hands. "Thank you," Larissa looked up at him sincerely.

"No. Thank you. For putting up with me." And with that, he kissed her on the lips.

Chris grew nervous at the altar, waiting for the music to cue Larissa's entrance. Not that he was afraid she was going to runaway at the last minute or because he was afraid of getting married. Those definitely weren't the cases. It was the feeling of being put on display that made him uneasy. Sure, he had done stage plays back in the day, not so long ago, but that was different. That was acting. This was real life and Chris never had done well with being the center of attention in front of a large group. Luckily, before he started fidgeting too much, "The Wedding March" started up and everyone turned towards the entryway to the outside venue, as eager to get a look at Larissa as he was.

He and Larissa had found the truly perfect place for them to hold their wedding. It took her some convincing, of course, ever-worried about costs, that she was. But she eventually caved when even his mother tried talking her into it.

"You only get married once, sweetheart," Gwynne spoke to Larissa. "We can tell from the way you've talked about it that you loved the place. The pictures looked gorgeous. Go for it," she insisted.

The Pacific Bluffs, as the venue was called, was aptly named. Resting atop a long length of shear-sided cliffs, there was a view of the Pacific Ocean from just about every spot at the place. The best vantage points, of course, were from the altar and dance floor farther away on the plateau. It was breathtaking watching the sun sink lower and lower towards the horizon next to them as they made the biggest commitment you can to each other.

Speaking of breathtaking, Chris' breath caught as Larissa made her way down the aisle, arm-in-arm with her father, George. He couldn't have forced off the goofy smile plastered on his face if he had tried. She looked like royalty. After several seconds of staring, he noticed Larissa's expression mirrored his own.

Her dress was fancier than he expected, for some reason, but perfect for her. Then again, anything would have looked perfect on Larissa. She insisted he not see it at all until the wedding. She even insisted on keeping it at his parents' house in one of their guest bedroom's closet so that he wouldn't accidentally see it or go snooping.

The small, see-through sleeves, embellished with some kind of sparkly something or others, rested just off of her shoulders. The neckline curved in a wide, tasteful V as opposed to a plunging one. The skirt of the dress was full, but not so puffy it looked ridiculous and barely had a train. The whole thing was embellished with rhinestones, or something of the like, here and there.

He wasn't sure how it was possible, but Chris felt as if the silly grin on his face grew even more ridiculous as Larissa neared, as did hers. He felt...giddy, and completely forgot about their friends and family staring at them. Chris did notice tears glistening in the corners of George's eyes as he gave his only daughter away and Mrs.Olsen was dabbing at her eyes profusely with a handkerchief in the front row. He glanced at his own smiling parents, his father giving him a wink, before turning his full attention back to Larissa. And the officiator, to some degree. Mostly so he wouldn't mess his "lines" up and look a fool.

"Hi," Chris spoke low, staring at Larissa as she joined him.

'Hi," she whispered back, smiles still glued to their faces. Chris worried his face would start hurting after much longer, but he couldn't help himself.

"You look beautiful."

"Thank you," she blushed slightly. They quieted down as the officiator, a brown-haired, jovial-seeming woman in her mid-50's began the ceremony.

Chris got lost in thought briefly during this time, trying to imagine what their future together would be like, as he continued gazing at Larissa. He almost missed his cue to read the vows that he had written.

"Larissa, I knew I was going to marry you the minute I laid eyes on you. I know you're going to roll your eyes, but I wouldn't be saying this in front of all our family and friends if it weren't true. I've told you before, but I can't wait to spend the rest of our lives together and show you just how much I love you and how much you mean to me. I often catch myself wondering what on Earth I was doing before I met you. But nowadays, I enjoy imagining what life will be like with you in the future. And I can't imagine it any other way," Chris squeezed Larissa's hands as he finished. He noticed she was bowing her head more now, trying to hide the happy tears gliding down her cheeks. The officiator turned and asked Larissa to read her vows.