Disclaimer: Daria and all related characters are the property of MTV and Viacom productions.

Note: This story is the next in the Unseen Phenomenon Series... it takes place eight months after "Which Ever Way the Wind Blows".


For Just a Moment
By
Wildgoose


An engagement had come and gone... months had lapsed into a short number of years... and finally after long and grueling preparations the moment long awaited had finally come. It started out in such a hustle... rushing to the hair dresser and then back home to fit into a dress. It was so hectic... especially since every time she turned around a photographer shoved a camera into her face. I can only imagine what that must have looked like to Maria... she'd only had those retinal implants for about a month and even then they only gave her the visual acuity of shapes and shadows. From what she'd described when she first took her first look around ever, everyone looked like some sort of silhouette to her and as such looked all the same. Sunlight was overwhelming to her so she still had to wear a lighter version of her old dark glasses... but for the sake of having the perfect moment she took them off for the ceremony. And if sunlight was overwhelming then those camera flashes must have been pure hell for her.

We all, and by all I mean the entire bridal party. Let everybody else get their own damned ride... the limo's mine. Anyway... we all piled into the limo and made way for the church. Maria's mother was using tissues by the box the whole way over... hell she'd started from the moment the gown was pulled out of the plastic cover and hadn't stopped since. For a while there I thought there was the possibility that we'd all drown in the limousine en route to the church. My god... what a glorious headline that would have made for the next mornings paper. But never the less the bridal party made it in one piece and CPR turned out to be unnecessary after all.

The ceremony itself was nothing short of interesting... Maria still needing assistance to find her way so she had her father escorting her by one arm and Cheyenne by the other. That dogs been everywhere and back with that girl... it came as no surprise that she wanted her canine companion to participate no matter how much everyone objected. Trent didn't seem to mind though... in fact he welcomed it. Whatever made the day the most special for her than that was what that boy was going to do, and so it should be. The rest of the ceremony was a blur as far as I could tell... I was a bridesmaid for the second time in my life and I still didn't catch the bouquet. Not that I really tried for that matter... in fact I distinctly recall ducking to avoid another woman who had mistaken the toss of the bridal bouquet as a game of tackle football. I found myself waiting to see if this person was going to spike the flowers when, as I could tell it was meant to be, she finally succeeded in capturing the bouquet after bowling over Jane. She didn't spike them however, much to my disappointment but then that's life I guess. What did worry me was the fact that when Trent tossed the garter, in the complete opposite direction of all of the eligible bachelors I might add. I presumed this to be an accident worthy of Trent's notable stature in life... it somehow found it's way to me and landed very neatly on my head. Duncan got a roaring laugh out of this but however funny he deemed it to be... I've determined it to mean that I'm destined to end up with another woman. So I've decided to hole up in my apartment after the reception for the rest of my life... Duncan will just have to bring me everything that I need.

Maria was surprisingly a good dancer... sure she was limited to only the slow dances but she didn't step on Trent's feet once. I on the other hand was exactly the opposite... I think Duncan will need one of his feet amputated after tonight. But I improved none the less... he taught me as we went and I actually was able to work my way up to one of the slightly more advanced dances... still stepping on his feet every now and again of coarse. But after a while I think he actually began to enjoy the dull ache of my dress shoes digging into his. I could tell by the way he would grit his teeth slightly when it happened.

The night really did seem so memorable as opposed to any of the other weddings that I've either taken part in or just simply attended against my will. There was an almost mystical quality to the air... and to my utter amazement I really did enjoy myself. The band seemed top shelf... a rare quality indeed as they indulged all of my requests at their earliest convenience and with the upmost courtesy despite a little sarcasm I may have dished their way at first. It may not have been my moment in the spotlight but there were times that night when I wished time itself could just stand still, specifically when Duncan and I were dancing and it had been a good long time since I had stepped on his feet last. Especially so when during the last dance Duncan whispered into my ear that someday soon he would give me all this and more if it was what I wanted... I knew that this was an indirect proposal and I also knew that the someday soon part really meant that there was some stuff he wanted to do with his life before settling down... I could live with that. But what also occurred to me was that he'd had a little bit to drink tonight and his libido might have been the one doing the talking in order to gain access to my underwear. What a shame... if we didn't have to travel to our room for the night up on he third floor it might have worked. But I knew by the time we got up there I would have regained my senses so I dismissed the thought and continued dancing with him.

Maria and Trent looked so happy as the night came to a close and they wished everyone well as the guests left in varying levels of intoxication. Cheyenne was busy sniffing all of the gifts and giving away their contents with a different sounding bark for specific items... a low grunt for money, I caught onto that one real quick. I'll have to have that dog at my wedding someday... that way I can just throw out all the rest of the junk without even opening it and just keep the money. Speaking of money, Jane and Tim gave them the biggest gift of all I found out later. It seems that Tim was extremely well off due to an inheritance, unbeknownst to Jane until seven months into their marriage. Anyway... they gave the newlyweds a five year CD worth one million dollars. "Emergency money... not to be touched otherwise" as Tim so eloquently put it. Damn... I hope they're just as generous to me when my day comes. But getting back to wherever it was that I left off... it seemed that if for just one magical moment in time. They WERE the perfect couple.

Daria dated the entry, closed her diary... and shoved it into her overnight bag before turning out the lights and climbing into bed with Duncan. She paused for a moment to look out their hotel window on the third floor... it had started to snow.

The End...

Comments are always welcome... I may be reached at wildgoose81@hotmail.com