Thunder and Lightening
Chapter 41
By
Lazlo Zalezac
Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004

Standing outside the church, Jerry held hands with Jenny while 
they waited for his parents to arrive. It had been more than 
eighteen years since he had talked to them and he was dreading 
this moment. The last time he had seen them was a few weeks after 
he had graduated high school. After a huge fight with his father, 
Jerry had left home and cut all ties to his parents. He hadn't even 
invited them to his first wedding.

Smiling over at Jerry, Jenny could see the tension in his 
expression. In a soft voice, she said, "Don't be so worried."

"You don't know them the way that I do," growled Jerry. Once his 
father had decided that Jerry was never going to stop fighting in 
school, he had given up on his son. They started fighting and the 
fights often got very heated. Jerry hadn't hit him, but had come 
very close on a number of occasions. His father, a much smaller 
man than he, hadn't had the same degree of restraint.

He glanced at his watch and wondered if they were going to show 
up. A car pulled up to the parking lot of the church and an elderly 
couple got out. Jerry glanced at them and turned back to look for 
his parents. Jenny squeezed his hand and said, "Jerry, I think that 
might be them."

Jerry looked around, but didn't see anyone except the elderly 
couple. He looked at them a second time. His stomach fluttered 
when he realized the old man and woman were his parents. 
Somehow, he had remembered his father as being much bigger 
than the man now approaching him was. His mother had been a 
vibrant woman and the gray haired woman on his father's arm 
barely resembled the mother he remembered. Unable to help 
himself, he said, "My God, they're old."

His comment brought a smile to Jenny's face. She knew that he had 
been dreading this moment ever since she told him about having 
sent them an invitation to the wedding. With a light caress of his 
hand, she said, "Let's go meet them."

Shocked at how small and frail his father looked, Jerry numbly 
walked to meet them halfway on their trek to the front door of the 
church. He stopped a few steps away and said, "Hello, Mom. 
Hello, Dad."

His mother, glowing with happiness at seeing her son once again, 
immediately stepped to Jerry and hugged him. She stepped back, 
holding him at arm's length and said, "It's so good to see you 
again."

Carl Smith looked at his son unable to believe that he was so large. 
Seeing Jerry reminded him of his father who had been just as big. 
The memories invoked were not entirely positive and he looked at 
his son with trepidation. With greater calm in his voice than he felt, 
Carl said, "Hello, Jerry."

Turning to Jenny, Jerry said, "Mom. Dad. I'd like you to meet 
Jenny. Jenny these are my parents, Carl and Alice Smith."

Smiling at the parents of the man she was about to marry, Jenny 
wanted to make a good impression. Nervous, she said, "It's a 
pleasure to meet you."

Alice turned to look at Jenny with a very large smile. She knew 
who was responsible for the invitation to the wedding. She went 
over and hugged the younger woman. Her voice cracked as she 
said, "Oh, you're such a lovely young woman."

As Alice and Jenny talked in soft voices, Carl and Jerry remained 
facing each other without moving an inch. Neither man spoke as 
they each sized up the other. Painful memories writhed in each 
man's mind, forcing them to relive past tensions, fights, and words 
that should never have been said.  Finally, one memory forced its 
way to Jerry's attention.  After taking a deep breath, he said, "My 
son and I go fishing occasionally. It reminds me of when you and I 
used to fish."

His father faltered at the statement and then realized a key piece of 
information had been given him. Frowning in uncertainty that he 
had understood Jerry correctly, he asked, "I have a grandson?"

"And a granddaughter," answered Jerry. "They are waiting inside 
the church to meet you."

His father turned to Alice and, with real excitement in his voice, 
said, "Did you hear that? We have grandkids."

"Really?" asked Alice with surprise. 

Proud of the children as if they were hers, Jenny answered, "Yes. 
They are such great kids. I know you're going to love them as 
much as I do. Bill is a strapping young man. I'm sure that he'll 
grow up to be as big as his father is. Melissa is an attractive young 
woman."

Relaxing a little, Jerry said, "Come in and meet them. They're 
anxious to meet you."

Inside the church, Bill and Melissa waited with trepidation. Both of 
the children were nervous about meeting their grandparents for the 
first time. Bill wondered if his new grandmother would be like his 
first grandmother. Nervous, Bill asked, "Are you ready to meet 
them?"

"How's my hair look?" asked Melissa worried about making a 
good first impression. 

After a slight pause, a grinning Bill answered, "It's a perfect mess. 
Looks like you stuck your finger in a wall socket. All frizzed up 
and everything."

Her hands flew to her hair to check it out. Frowning as she 
considered the cheerful timbre in his answer, Melissa looked at 
him and saw his smile. She ran her fingers through her hair trying 
to assure herself that her hair was in place. She charged, "You’re 
kidding me, aren't you?"

"You bet," answered Bill with an unrepentant grin.

"You've been around Abe too much," answered his sister with a 
roll of her eyes.

The opening of the door cut off his laughter. Together the kids 
stood to face the door. An elderly couple stepped through the door 
followed by Jenny and then Jerry. The children shifted nervously 
from one foot to the other as they studied their grandparents. They 
didn't know what to say. 

Jerry said, "Kids, I want you to meet your grandparents. This is my 
mother, Alice, and my father, Carl. Mom and Dad, these are your 
grandchildren, Melissa and Bill."

Carl stepped forward and looked over Bill with a nod. Judging by 
the size of the young man, he wondered if he was just as much of a 
troublemaker as Jerry had been at that age. In a near whisper, he 
said, "You're big like your father."

"Yeah, I know," said Bill looking over at his father with a grin. 
The idea of growing up as big and strong as his father was a source 
of pride, not dread, for the young man. Together, the two of them 
had come to accept their size. He flexed his arms to look even 
bigger without noticing the frown that flashed across his 
grandfather's face. 

There was a low rumbling noise from inside the chapel. After a 
moment, Henry's laughter echoed through the vestibule. He stuck 
his head out the door and said, "Hey you guys, the preacher says it 
is time for the rehearsal."

"We're still waiting for Jenny's parents to show up. Can't have the 
rehearsal without her father to practice walking down the aisle with 
her," replied Jerry with a grin. 

Nodding his head, Henry asked, "Will I have to practice holding 
you up through the ceremony?"

"Probably," replied Jerry. The laughter of the two big men echoed 
in the small room. Still laughing, Henry went back into the chapel 
to let the Reverend know that they had to wait a little longer.

Eyebrows raised in shock at the size of the big man, Carl wondered 
if Henry worked at the church or if he was a friend. He asked, 
"Who's that?"

Gesturing in the direction of the chapel, Jerry answered, "Ah, that's 
Henry. The little fella is my best friend and is the best man in our 
wedding."

"He's your best man?" asked Carl wondering if all of Jerry's friends 
were that big. He had accepted a long time ago that his son was a 
violent man. It had been his hope that Jerry would change when he 
grew older, but after seeing Henry, he had a very good idea of 
what his son was doing for a living. All he knew was that it would 
scare the hell out of him if both of those guys were to show up at 
his house late at night.

"Yeah, we have a little business together," said Jerry. 

As far as Carl was concerned, that clinched it. There was no doubt 
in his mind that they were in the business of roughing up people. 
He glanced over at his wife to see if she was ready to leave.

Carl turned in time to see Jenny's mother and father enter the 
church. The man was almost as big as Jerry and despite his age, 
looked as if he could tow a car without a truck. He decided the 
man had to be the ringleader of the gang with Jerry and Henry as 
the enforcers. He shook his head in disgust.

When her parents entered the room, an excited Jenny ran over to 
great them. She threw herself at her father. The man picked her up 
and spun her in the air with relative ease. She shouted, "Oh daddy. 
It's so good to see you again. I want you to meet my fiancee."

The fact that Jenny was going to introduce Jerry to her father 
puzzled Carl. He watched in confusion as the introductions were 
made. From the way that everyone acted, it was clear that Jerry had 
never met his future father-in-law prior to that day.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Coltrain."

"Call me Tom, Jerry," replied the big man in a friendly voice. He 
was impressed with the size of the man standing across from him. 
His little girl had always brought home big men, but Jerry had to 
be the biggest of them all. He was also a little older than he had 
expected.

Jenny's mother said, "You can call me Sherry."

"Alright, Tom, Sherry" said Jerry liking the big guy immediately. 
He hadn't really believed Jenny when she had said that her father 
was a big man. He gestured to his mother and father performed the 
introductions.

Carl shuffled forward half-afraid of shaking hands with the man. 
He figured that the guy would crush his hand. The firm handshake 
was a surprise in the sense that it wasn't overly strong. He 
mumbled, "Nice to meet you."

Tom compared the two men standing before him and wondered 
how Jerry could be the son of such an average sized man. He 
turned to Jerry and said, "So you're marrying my little girl."
 
"Yes, sir," answered Jerry. "I'm still trying to figure out why she 
agreed to it. She's the most beautiful woman that I've ever seen. 
She's got a gentle soul and a caring nature. And smart. She's the 
smartest person I've ever met. Yep, it's a real mystery to me why 
she's marrying me."

Pushing against him with little effect, Jenny said, "Ah, come on. 
Aren't we supposed to be practicing getting married?"

Bill was about to pipe up with a comment about them already 
practicing the honeymoon, but Melissa hit him in the shoulder 
before he was able to say a word. He'd already made that joke too 
many times for it to be funny anymore. 

Jerry said, "Mom and Dad, the kids wanted a chance to get to 
know you. I hope you don't mind."

Giving her son a big smile, Alice replied, "That would be lovely."

Before going into the chapel with Jenny and her parents, Jerry 
suggested, "Why don't you go somewhere with the kids and talk 
with them in private while we are practicing? We can meet up at 
the buffet for the recital dinner at seven."

"Sounds like a plan," replied Carl. He figured that with the kids 
away from their father, he'd find out the truth about his son. So far, 
he was convinced that his son was some sort of enforcer for a 
crime family. 

Brightening at the idea of going somewhere, Melissa suggested, 
"Why don't we go to our big house?"

"Your big house?" asked Alice.

"Yeah. We've got two houses. The big house and then the house in 
the slums," answered Bill.

"The slums?" asked Carl wondering what they were talking about. 

"Well, that was the house that Dad moved into when he left the 
bitch," answered Bill. There was real venom in his voice when he 
mentioned his mother. 

"Dad bought the house after it was proved that the landlord was 
selling drugs and using the houses that he owned in a money 
laundering scheme," said Melissa. 

"Your Dad is mixed up with drugs?" asked Carl horrified at the 
idea of what his son had become.

"Dad? Mixed up in drugs? Nope. Mr. Atkins went down the street 
to tell the drug dealers to move out of our neighborhood. Dad went 
with him and ended up getting shot four times. He nearly died, but 
he protected Mr. Atkins. He killed a couple of the drug dealers and 
put the rest in the hospital," answered Bill somewhat confused by 
his grandfather's question.

"You do know what your Dad does for a living, don't you?" asked 
Carl seeking further proof that his son was some sort of 
underworld enforcer.

"Sure. He's the manager of the Auto Parts House on Main Street," 
answered Bill.

"He's the manager of an Auto Parts store," echoed Carl nodding his 
head sagely. He decided that an auto parts store would be a perfect 
front company for a criminal organization. He figured they sold 
parts that had been stripped off of stolen cars. He asked, "So Henry 
is a partner in that business?"

"No. We have a small company that makes indoor waterfalls," 
answered Bill.

"They are interior water sculptures," corrected Melissa shooting a 
look of feminine superiority in his direction. 

Bill shrugged off his sister's correction and added, "We just got an 
order for one that is going to be eight feet tall and twelve feet long. 
We're getting paid fifty thousand dollars for it. They're purchasing 
it for some office building up in Chicago."

Carl looked at his grandson for a minute trying to figure out what 
he was talking about. He asked, "So Henry has another job?"

"Yeah. He's a trash man for the city," answered Bill knowing that it 
wouldn't be long before Henry was making more money with the 
waterfalls than from his day job. The men talked while working on 
the waterfalls and Bill was smart enough to listen. He was learning 
things about being an adult that none of the other kids in school 
even dreamed about. 

"Sanitary engineer," corrected Melissa.

"Henry says that he's a trash man. If you don't like that, take it up 
with him," countered Bill eliciting rolled eyes from Melissa.

Alice steered the conversation back to the houses and asked, "So 
the big house is Jenny's?"

Melissa shook her head and said, "No. We call Jenny's house, 
Jenny's house. The big house is the house that we grew up in. Dad 
got it back when he got divorced."

"What were the grounds for divorce?" asked Carl.

"Spouse abuse," answered Melissa, "or at least it should have 
been."

On hearing that, Carl was ready to grab the kids and run out of 
there. He'd had a low opinion of Jerry and this was just the icing on 
the cake. He may not have known about his grandchildren until 
this minute, but he wasn't going to let them stay with an abusive 
father even if that man was his son. He asked, "Why aren't you 
living with her?"

"Shit," scoffed Bill, "She's the one who was doing the abusing. 
Fuck her. We don't talk about the bitch."

"Besides, the bitch is dead," added Melissa. 

Looking at the two kids, Carl was convinced they were hiding 
something. He didn't appreciate the language the kids were using. 
Bill looked at Carl for a minute with a puzzled expression. It 
dawned on him that his grandfather didn't have a very good 
opinion of his father. In order to confirm that suspicion, he asked, 
"You thought Dad was hurting us?"

"Well, he's always been a violent man," answered Carl even as his 
wife tensed by his side. She had listened to everything the kids had 
said and thought her son was doing great.  

Angry, Bill replied, "Dad's the best. He protected Melissa and me 
when the bitch tried to shoot us. He'd have been killed if the police 
hadn't shot and killed her. He helped me at school when the kids 
were picking on me because I was big. Now, I don't get into fights 
anymore. I'm a good student and on the honor roll."

"Dad's helped lots of people in our neighborhood. He's taught a 
bunch of them how to fix cars, earn a living, and get along with 
each other. Don't you dare say bad things about my Daddy," 
shouted Melissa surprising herself with her defense of her father 
and her claim about the neighborhood. 

Alice interrupted, "Kids, let's go to the big house. I'd like to hear 
some more about my son. He sounds like a great dad."

Inside the chapel, the Reverend was showing Jerry and Henry 
where they were supposed to stand at the beginning of the 
ceremony. There were little masking tape crosses on the floor to 
indicate the proper location. Grinning, Henry looked over the spot 
carefully and announced, "Now if he faints face first, he'll fall that 
way. If he faints ass backwards, he'll fall this way. Let's see, 
standing here I should be able to catch him in either case."

Sharon quipped, "Look who's talking about fainting - the big man, 
himself. Everyone was betting on which direction you were going 
to fall during our wedding. Lot's of folks are still mad at Jerry for 
catching you so many times."

Jenny giggled while Henry had the grace to blush. Coming to his 
friend's defense, Jerry said, "Hey, it's best to be prepared. Of 
course, I probably should have found a bigger guy to be my best 
man. Henry looks a little weak to me."

"For a scrawny fellow like you? Hah!"

While the Reverend tried to get control over the situation, Tom 
turned to Sharon and asked, "Are they always like that?"

She smiled at the question. Shaking her head, she said, "If you 
couldn't see them and overheard them talking, you'd swear that 
they were both ninety-five pound weaklings who get sand kicked 
in their faces. Sometimes I get the feeling that the only time they 
are comfortable with being so big is when they are together."

The big man nodded and said, "I can understand that."

"I bet you can. You aren't exactly the runt of the litter yourself," 
commented Sharon with a wink. 

Jenny sidled up to her father and whispered, "You're going to like 
Jerry. He's a good man, just like you."

Grinning at her daughter, Sherry ran a hand over her husband's 
shoulders as she said, "I bet he can pick you up and carry you 
around the house like this barbarian does with me."

Jenny giggled knowing that her mother loved that as much as she 
did. There was something earthy about it that started her juices 
flowing. As if she was sharing a great secret, she said, "He can and 
he does."

"You've got to feel sorry for big women married to little men. 
They've got no idea what it's like when a man picks you up and 
carries you off," said Sharon looking over at Henry. She licked her 
lips and added, "Half the time, that's all the foreplay I need."

The three women laughed while Tom blushed. It was the women's 
turn to blush while Tom laughed when they realized that the 
Reverend had been standing next to Jenny listening to the 
discussion. The Reverend shook his head thinking that most people 
approached the wedding with a little more seriousness than this 
couple. He cleared his throat and said, "If the bride, her father, and 
the maid of honor will come with me, I'll show you what you are 
supposed to do."

While the four of them went to the back of the church, Sherry 
came over to Henry and Jerry. Looking over both of them, she 
said, "My, you are big men."

Henry grinned and said, "Your husband's not that small."

"Sharon, Jenny, and I all know about having a big man around the 
house. It's never dull," said Sherry with a wink. 

"Jenny's an amazing woman," said Jerry with a sigh. He still 
couldn't believe how giving she was.

"You're going to protect and take care of her, aren't you?"

"Ma'am, anyone or anything that wants to hurt her is going to have 
to go through me to do it. I assure you that's not easy," said Jerry. 
Looking to the back of the church at his bride to be, he added, 
"She's going to have the best life of anyone on this planet. I'm 
going to do everything in my power to make sure that everyday is 
better than the day before."

"You meant that, didn't you?" asked Sherry surprised at the 
emotion in his voice when he had answered her question.

"He does, ma'am," answered Henry on behalf of his friend. 

Sherry smiled and pointed to the aisle where Sharon was marching 
along in a stately pace. She said, "I think we are supposed to watch 
this part."

Jerry turned in time to see Jenny going through the step-pause 
walk down the aisle. In a reverent tone of voice, he found himself 
saying, "She's so beautiful. I never thought that such a beautiful 
woman existed until I met her."

Putting her hand to her face, Sherry discovered tears were running 
down her cheek. She wasn't sure if it was the sight of her daughter 
marching down the aisle or the words Jerry had said, but she was 
suddenly feeling very emotional. She dug a tissue from her purse 
and dabbed her eyes. She moved over to the pew and sat down 
thinking that there was a good reason that the mother of the bride 
sat through the ceremony. 

Henry watched Sharon walk down the aisle. Despite the fact she 
was wearing plain clothes, in his mind's eye he was seeing his 
bride in her wedding dress. He was tempted to run over to her and 
hug her. When she reached her place to stand, they looked at each 
other with love in their hearts. Henry wondered why he had ever 
been nervous about marrying such a wonderful woman. 

It took the Reverend several minutes to get everyone's attention so 
that he could step them through the next part of the ceremony. 
After they finished the ceremony proper, he told them, "You will 
then kiss the bride and then turn to face everyone while I introduce 
you as Mr. and Mrs. Jerald Smith."

Seated beside her husband, Sherry piped up, "Then you pick her up 
and carry her down the aisle growling like a barbarian who's 
claimed his woman."

"Am I supposed to carry her in both arms or throw her over the 
shoulder?" asked Jerry in as serious of a voice as he could manage. 
It was a rhetorical question. He knew Jenny preferred the over-the-
shoulder carry because he could rub her ass while carrying her. She 
could kick her legs and beat his back with her arms without fear of 
being dropped.

Tom slapped his thigh as he burst out in laughter. He liked his 
future son in law. The Reverend rolled his eyes wondering how 
long this rehearsal was going to take. Sherry grinned and 
answered, "Both arms. You will be in public after all and we must 
keep up appearances."

The Reverend interrupted and explained that they were to walk 
down the aisle so that everyone could admire the bride. Winking at 
her mother, Jenny interrupted, "I'd rather be carried so that 
everyone is jealous of me."

"Uh, let's do it the traditional way," suggested the Reverend. He 
turned to face Henry and said, "You and the bride's maid will 
follow them down the aisle."

Grinning, Sharon asked, "Can he carry me?"

Realizing that they were joking, the Reverend laughed and said, 
"Just do what they do."

Shrugging, Henry said, "If you say so."

"Are there any questions?" asked the Reverend. 

Jenny shook her head and looked around at everyone else. They all 
looked satisfied. She answered, "No questions here."

Stepping over to Jenny, Jerry put his arms around her with a smile. 
He leaned down and kissed her. After breaking the kiss, he said, "I 
love you so much."

A very nervous Jerry made another circuit around the room. He 
fidgeted with the sleeves of his suit as he walked. It had been 
tailored to fit properly and didn't bind or gap, despite his large size. 
He glanced at his watch and saw that there was still another ten 
minutes before the ceremony was to start. Only a minute had 
passed since the last time he had checked. Time seemed to run like 
molasses in winter. He groaned at the eternity that appeared to face 
him. He asked, "Is it hot in here?"

"No," answered Henry with a grin. Watching his friend pace 
around the room, Henry chuckled and asked, "Not so easy when 
you're the groom, is it?"

"I don't have any second thoughts," said Jerry sounding a little 
defensive. He recalled how Henry had been getting sick in the 
toilet while waiting. He stopped and faced his friend with a smile. 
He added, "I just want to get the show on the road."

"Ah," commented Henry, "no butterflies in the stomach?"

"None," answered Jerry. He resumed pacing and then said, "Okay, 
I've got a few butterflies but they're all small."

"They'd have to be the size of condors for you to consider them 
normal sized." Henry laughed and went over to the mirror to check 
out the fit of his suit. It was the same suit that he had worn at his 
wedding. 

Jerry felt a sudden need to empty his bladder. His eyes flicked to 
the bathroom as he considered what to do. After checking his 
watch and seeing that he had plenty of time, he went into the 
bathroom. His urge was brought on by nervousness rather than 
need. It was a very unsatisfying piss.

"Be a man and throw up. A little piss? Give me a break," Henry 
said. 

"You're just jealous, little man," Jerry quipped. He glanced at his 
watch and moaned upon seeing that only two minutes had passed.

"Little?" asked Henry. There was only one person in this world 
that made fun of his size with such impunity. Grinning at Jerry, he 
asked, "Am I going to have to hold you up during the ceremony?"

Before Jerry had a chance to answer, there was a knock on the 
door. Jerry headed over to the door, but Henry waved him back 
thinking that it was the preacher. With a few long strides, Henry 
went over to get it. Instead of the preacher, he found Abe standing 
there with a worried look on his face. Abe said, "Ah, good. You're 
here."

Concerned by the worried expression on Abe's face, Henry asked, 
"What's the matter?"

Abe looked around nervously before he asked, "Can I come in? 
I've got something important to tell Jerry."

Starting to get worried, Henry said, "Come on in."

Entering the room, Abe looked back at the hallway and said, 
"Close the door. I've got some bad news."

Hearing something about bad news, Jerry wondered if there was 
something wrong with Jenny. All of his fears and doubts surged to 
the surface. Had she decided to cancel the wedding? Was she ill? 
He had to know. He raced over to Abe and asked, "What's the 
matter?"

"There's some guy out there who claims that he and Jenny are 
married," answered Abe as he gestured to some undefined space 
behind him.
 
