Silver Bell Wish 8
by Peregrine

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Copyright © 2023 Peregrine
All rights reserved.
Disclaimer:
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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Chapter 8

Cast Party

“We already had our chance.”

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Rian didn’t hear a word her sister was saying as they left the foundation. It didn’t take long for Renee to realize there was something wrong.

“You have heard nothing I’ve said, have you?” said Renee from the back seat. “What happened?”

“Nothing happened.” The car drifted into the on-coming traffic lane a bit. The driver honked at Rian, who corrected her position.

“Hey! I’d like to get there alive, please. I’m sure Bubbles does too,” said Renee.

“Sorry.” Rian returned her concentration to the road. Renee thought it best not to say anything until they arrived at the hospital. Rian parked the car.

“Are you going to tell me what’s going on, or do I have to get Bubbles to lick your face?”

“He doesn’t want to get back together,” said Rian somberly.

“He… you mean Alex?”

“I asked him if we could get a second chance and he said he wasn’t ready.”

“You asked him already? You weren’t supposed to do that until you were at the party.”

“Now you tell me.”

“We can fix this.”

“No, we can’t. He doesn’t want to get back together. He’s made that clear.”

“But…”

“I know you want to help, but we have to face it. He’s not interested.” She found a tissue in her purse and dried a tear that managed to escape from her eye.

“Why don’t you go home? I can take Bubbles around. I’ll call you when I’m done,” said Renee.

“Thanks, sis.” Rian took a deep breath. “I’m an actor. I’ll act happy even though I’m not. Keep Bubbles ready to lick my face in case I slip up.”

~~0~~

Visiting the children helped Rian stop feeling sorry for herself. At the end of their visiting time, the sisters made their last stop to see Ellen. As usual, Ellen was happy to see the two elves and Bubbles. Today, Ellen seemed happier, as did the mood in the room.

“Renee, Rian, did you hear? I’m gonna be going home!” The sisters made a fuss over Ellen. As Ellen began playing with Bubbles, Rian went to Ellen’s mother.

“That is good news,” said Rian.

“It’s even better than that. Her last PET scan showed no trace of the disease. She will still be here on Christmas, but she’ll be home the day after. My husband has brought presents for the children who will be here on Christmas. All of us are going to bring them to the children who are here on Christmas day.”

“That is so nice.”

“My husband and I want to thank you and your sister. You have been so kind to Ellen. Is there anything we can do for you and your sister?”

“Oh, no. It’s been a privilege to help this week.”

“Let me give you my number. Can I have your phone?” Rian handed her phone to Ellen’s mother. “If you need anything, do not hesitate to call.”

Rian took her phone back and looked at the contact. She saw Ellen’s mother’s name was Nancy. “Hit call so I can get your number.” Rian hit the call button and Nancy saw Rian’s name pop up.

“Is Rian your stage name?”

“It’s my real name. It’s short for Rhiannon.”

Nancy put her phone away and looked at Rian. “That’s a powerful name. In Celtic Literature, Rhiannon is one of the great female personalities," she said. "There is nobody quite like her. She is intelligent, beautiful, and famed for her generosity. All traits I see in you.”

Rian blushed. “Thank you.”

“You have my number. Please keep in touch.”

“I will.”

~~0~~

Rian brought Renee to the foundation and drove off without seeing Alex. Renee finished with Bubbles and went to Alex’s office. He saw her as she got to his door.

“How did it go today?”

“It was fine. Bubbles was great. The kids love her.”

“I guess I need to get you to a store. What are you shopping for?”

“I need a dress for the cast party tonight. So does Rian. I’m picking it out for her.”

“Alright, give me about fifteen minutes, then we can go.”

“Take your time. I have to make a couple of calls.”

Renee went to the hallway to make her phone calls. Alex heard her invite Grady to the party before she walked out of range.

Alex finished and went to find Renee. “Ready to go.”

“Sure.” They walked out to the car, and Alex used the remote to unlock the doors. They got in and left the parking lot.

“Where are we going?”

“To the dress shop on Main Street,” Renee said matter-of-factly.

“I think I know where that is.” Alex made a turn toward the shop.

You could almost feel the chill as they traveled in icy silence. It hung in the air before Renee decided to break it. “I know you and Rian have been through a lot, breaking up and all. She told me she asked you about getting back together and that you said no.” Renee thought about what to say. “I know she’s hurting right now. She cares about you. Look at how she has tried to help you with the foundation.”

“Hey, I care about her, too. The time isn’t right.”

“I believe you care. Anyone can see how much you two mean to each other. I’ve been able to watch you two this past week. The both of you are good together. That’s why I think you should give her a second chance.”

He glanced over at Renee. “A second chance, huh?”

"Yeah," Renee said firmly. "I'm not saying it’s going to be easy, and I'm not saying you won't have your problems. But you two have something special, something worth fighting for. Rian deserves to be happy. So do you. I think you make each other happy."

Alex sighed. “Maybe I was hasty. Maybe I made a mistake. I don’t know if she’ll want to get back together now.”

"People make mistakes. But people also forgive and try to give love another chance. Rian still loves you, and I can see that you still love her. Don't let fear or pride or whatever stand in the way of something beautiful."

"So you think I should give us another shot?"

Renee nodded. "Yes, I think you should. Come to the party tonight. Talk to her, and see if you can rebuild what you had together. Life's too short to let love slip through your fingers."

He sighed, a mixture of emotions playing across his face. "I'll think about it."

"That's all I ask. Just think about it. Rian deserves a second chance, and so do you."

Alex smiled. “When did you get so smart?”

“I always have been.” Renee sat back, hoping her words would help start a new beginning, a second chance for her sister and her sister's ex-boyfriend.

Alex parked at the dress shop, and Renee got out of the car. She motioned for Alex to lower the window. “I forgot to tell you,” said Renee. “While I was waiting for you, I called my mother. She’s going to meet me here to help pick out Rian’s dress. You would think after I did such a good job the last time, she would have some faith in me. I hope I see you at the party,” she said before heading off to the dress shop.

~~0~~

Rian sat in her parked car, thinking. She stared at the building housing the theater. A thought popped into her head: All the world’s a stage. That’s what this experience has felt like. It’s as if she had dropped into the middle of a play without a script. She looked down and noticed the skirt of her costume. It seemed she had been wearing her costume non-stop since waking up here. Between the play and the hospital visits, there had been very few times she was not in costume. Her costume. The costume was the reason she was here. She would never have wished for a different life if they had ordered the right costume. This life. It wasn’t extremely different from her previous life. Sure, she was a girl in this life. That certainly was different. She had a family, a mother, and a father who loved her. That wasn’t different. Her healthy sister was a welcomed difference. Alex’s not being in her life was a difference she didn’t like. That was the reason she had agreed to try Renee’s plan. The plan had been working until she screwed it up. She was at a loss for what to do. Her purse on the passenger’s seat caught her eye. Reaching over to pick it up, she opened it. She searched through the bag. Finding the bell, she held it in front of her. She argued with herself about ringing it. Closing her eyes, she rang the bell.

She opened her eyes as the ringing receded. Nothing had changed. She was still in her car, and holding the bell. Putting the bell back in her purse, she shook her head and closed her bag. A sudden knocking on her window startled her.

“You better get moving. You don’t want to miss your call time.” Rian looked up and saw the janitor outside her door. She opened the door and got out. “Are you enjoying your different life?” he asked.

“I screwed up. You’ve got to tell me what to do. Please help me.”

“I’m sorry. I can’t tell you what to do. It’s your life,” said the janitor.

“But I messed up.”

“So you messed up. Everyone messes up from time to time. You need to look at all the good you’ve done.”

“The good I’ve done? I screwed up. What good could I have possibly done?”

“Well, let’s see.” He took a notebook from his pocket and began paging through it. “You have helped bring joy to children who would not have been able to see Bubbles had you not stepped in to help. How about the joy you saw on the face of Ellen whenever you visited? You’ve helped delay the shutdown of the animal therapy program for the hospital. Renee needed confidence to put her plan into action with Grady. Seeing her plan work for you, she’s inviting Grady to the party tonight.”

“But it didn’t work. Alex doesn’t want to get back together.”

“The night’s still young. Here, put this on the Christmas tree after the play.” He tossed a red and green Christmas ornament into the air over Rian’s head. She followed it with her eyes and, at the last moment, reaching out, she caught it.

“That could have broken if missed it.” He was gone when she looked for him. She sighed. Putting the ornament in her purse, she went to the theater.

~~0~~

The play went well. Rian didn’t think about the janitor or Alex until Renee brought Bubbles on stage during her speech. During intermission, Rian was backstage when Renee came back without Bubbles.

“Where’s Bubbles?”

“Alex took Bubbles back right after we finished collecting,” said Renee, who saw a look of disappointment on her sister’s face. “Did you see the dresses I found for the party?” She pointed to the garment bags hanging by Rian.

Rian smiled. “No, I haven’t. Let’s see what you bought.”

Renee unzipped the bag containing her dress. It was a shift mini dress with black mesh cap sleeves and a V-neck. The color was a gradient red, from dark maroon at the shoulders to Christmas red to the hem covered with silver sequins from the waist down.

“This is gorgeous!”

“Do you think Grady will like it? I invited him to the party, and he said he would come.”

“He is going to love it, especially with you wearing it.”

Renee hung the dress back up, trying to hide her blushing. She opened the next bag to show her sister. It was a carmine midi length, mesh-short-sleeved, ruched, V-neck dress dotted with silver sequins.

“Renee, this is perfect!” She hugged her sister. “Thank you.”

“And don’t worry, I didn’t break the bank buying these. Besides, Mom paid for them.”

“Mom was with you? I thought…”

“Alex dropped me off and Mom met me at the store. She wanted to make sure I picked out something nice.”

“I think you did great. Thank you.” She hugged her sister again.

“Five minutes, people.” They heard someone with a clipboard say.

“I have to get ready.”

“I’m going to change while you’re on stage. Can I use some of your makeup? I didn’t bring mine.”

“Of course you can. I’ll see you after the play and you can help me get ready.”

~~0~~

With the play over, the cast was eager to get to the party. Just walking into the Davenport Pavilion was enough to get the sisters in the Christmas spirit. Everyone was dressed in their Christmas finery, including Santa hats and candy cane necklaces. Renee stayed close to her sister as Rian greeted her cast mates and teachers. They got themselves some punch and enjoyed the spectacle. Rian noticed Renee seemed preoccupied and kept looking towards the door.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah. I don’t want to miss Grady. He doesn’t know anyone here. I don’t want him to feel out of place.”

“Of course, it wouldn’t be right to let him wander by himself,” said Rian, smiling.

“You should look for Alex.”

Rian sighed. “I doubt he is going to come.”

“There he is!” said Renee, excitedly. Rian looked in the direction Renee was pointing. “Grady! Hey Grady.” Renee left and made her way to accompany Grady.

Rian took a sip of her punch. For a moment, she had a sliver of hope that Alex had shown up. Admitting their relationship was in the past was hard. She decided to enjoy the party and even danced with Carlos and Jordan. She sat at her table, watching the surrounding merriment, when she felt someone caress her shoulder.

“Is this seat taken?”

She looked up to see Alex standing behind her. She smiled.

“I don’t know. Are you on the guest list?”

“I believe I am. That is if I’m still your plus one.”

“You are,” said Rian. Alex sat next to her. “I’m glad you came.”

“I almost didn’t though, but someone gave me a lecture about second chances.”

“Anyone I know?”

“Just some squirt I know. She was very convincing.” Rian smiled, knowing it must have been Renee. “I’m glad I came as well.” The DJ played a slow song. “Would you like to dance?” Alex stood, then held out his hand.

“I’d love to,” said Rian. They walked to the dance floor. Rian put her arms around Alex’s neck.

“Rian, I haven’t stopped thinking about you all day. Your sister made me realize I was hasty. You make me happy. We are good together. Look at what we did for the foundation.”

“It wasn’t much.”

“You don’t know how much you helped. It is enough to give me more time to find a new donor. Thinking about us showed me I made a mistake. I would like to give us a second chance if you want to.”

“Yes, I would like that.”

The kiss they enjoyed seemed to last a lifetime.

The music stopped, and a microphone squealed as it was handed to the hospital’s Activities Director.

“Can you hear me? Okay. I hope everyone is having a good time.”

Cheers came from the crowd.

“The hospital wants to thank you all for coming. We want to especially thank the cast, stage crew, director, and anyone else I missed from the play that benefited the hospital. I want you all to know that the funds that were raised are being matched by the man whose name appears above the door of this pavilion. Give a round of applause for Mr. Darrin Davenport.” The crowd responded. “Can we get Mr. Davenport and his wife to come up here?” The crowd applauded as Mr. and Mrs. Davenport took the stage.

“I know her,” said Rian.

“Who?” asked Alex.

“Mrs. Davenport.”

“My wife and I want to thank you all. You did a great job with the play. I know my daughter loved it. You also did a good job raising funds to keep the therapy dog program going. It’s another thing my daughter loved.” He paused. “For those who don’t know, my daughter has been a patient here. We recently received news that her last scan showed no sign of the disease. She will be going home.” People applauded.

“In celebration, I will donate to the school’s theater program to keep these benefit plays going.” The crowd cheered. Alex hugged Rian. “I will also fund a grant to keep the source of the therapy dogs, Animal Antics Foundation, going for the foreseeable future.”

Rian hugged Alex. “You did it!” said Rian.

“We did it,” said Alex as they kissed again.

Mr. Davenport handed the microphone to his wife. “On the table by the entrance are poinsettia plants for each of you to take home.”

“Last thing, said Mr. Davenport,” taking the microphone back. “Would the CFO of Animal Antics, I think his name is Alex, and the elf who saved Christmas…”

“Her name is Rian,” said Mrs. Davenport into the microphone. The crowd laughed.

“Yes, would Alex and Rian meet us at the Poinsettia table? Enjoy the rest of the party.”

Rian looked at Alex. “I guess we better get to the table,” said Rian.

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Thanks for reading. Comments welcome.

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Cover picture Credits:
Photo Created with AI using Gencraft (after many tries)
Photo Composite by Peregrine