The Sun Will Rise | T Shelby

thirty seven

Angelina was stood on the steps of the church with her bouquet in her hands, breathing in and out slowly to try and calm her nerves.

"Lina," Lorenzo smiled at his little sister, putting both his hands on her shoulders, "Calm down. Everything is going to be perfect."

Angelina cracked a small yet anxious smile. She had spent months planning today and she had lost many nights of sleep worrying about it. All she wanted was for everything to run smoothly and to enjoy the day as much as she could.

The entrance to the church was lined with white roses with vines of ivy twisted through them. Angelina's dress was handmade from scratch by Agnes and Ada, who had spent hours with her designing her dream gown. It was a slender white satin dress with a plunge neckline and a three metre train with delicate beading around the chest. Angelina almost couldn't believe her eyes when she tried it on that morning, she rarely felt beautiful but when she saw herself, she knew she looked a million dollars.

Her hair was curled and pulled back into a bun, two strands framed her face at the front. Her eyes were stained with a silver glitter and her lips were a blush pink. It was the most makeup she had ever worn, but Charlotte had persuaded her to let her work her magic and have free reign over her face for the wedding.

Although Angelina had already experienced her wedding day, she felt different this time around. Her wedding with Clara's father had been warm and inviting, authentically Italian and homely. Though that day, on her second time around, she felt different. The sky was a bright blue that day, a rarity in Birmingham, and the sun was shining bright in the midday peak.

Angelina felt scared. Her previous marriage was easy, the family she joined loved her. They had the same cultural background and the same values, everybody was on the same page and Angelina felt at ease becoming a part of them. Though now, she wasn't joining another traditional Italian family. She was joining The Shelby family.

She glanced down at her right hand, the sun reflecting off the diamond on her engagement ring that was now sat on her other hand, making way for a new ring. She smiled, thinking back to the day Thomas gave it to her.

"Angelina! I need your help with the bags, darling!"

Thomas had been away for just under a week. He had been down in London, that's all Angelina knew. Thomas had told her that he would be more than one hundred percent honest with her about anything and everything in his life, but she still chose to not ask questions unless she felt like she needed to.

"It's pouring down Tommy, just run!" She shouted back as she stood in the doorway of their home, watching him pull suitcases from the car onto the gravel driveway.

"Come on sweetheart, give me a hand!"

Angelina rolled her eyes and made a quick run through the rain to Thomas. He grinned as she reached him, instinctively grabbing her and lifting her into the air, kissing her neck as he squeezed her tightly.

"I missed you so much." He said.

"I missed you too," Angelina replied with a smile, "Now come on, we're getting soaked."

She laughed and brushed her hair from her face as the rain continued to fall.

"Dance with me." Thomas said.

"What?"

"Dance with me, come on."

Angelina just laughed, smiling up at him as he took her hand and held her waist, the two of them swaying together underneath the grey sky with the sound of rain hitting the stones beneath their feet.