All of Me

“It’s not ruined,” Diana told him, her brow furrowed. “Babe, any farmer will tell you that plowing the land up every few years makes the soil healthier for growing.”

Marty stared at her. “But the vines destroyed will have to be replanted if we plan to sell. Do you have any idea how much that will cost?”

“Why would we replant? The guy told us the loss of this section won’t be a big deal, that the rest of the vineyard will still produce plenty of grapes. We’re creating a lovely seating area as well as a path.”

“A buyer who is serious about growing vines and making wines won’t give a sh*t about a lovely seating area and a path,” he replied.

“Are you mocking me?” Diana asked, her lips tightening into a thin line.

“No, I am not mocking you. I’m telling you that this is absolutely not what we discussed. I have no intention of living here forever, but I don’t want to spend a ton of money repairing the damage caused so we can throw a party.” Marty’s hands were on his hips, the stance he took when his anger was trying to control him.

“Excuse me, a party?” Diana snapped, her fiery anger drifting to the surface. “We are not throwing a party. We are getting married.”

“Don’t use that argument with me, and don’t change the topic,” Marty growled. “Your planning has ruined the vines.”

“The vines aren’t ruined!” she yelled, her temper exploding when he spoke to her as if she were stupid. “There are plenty of vines left to grow the fu*king grapes. And I’ve never agreed to leaving this place. I love it here!”

“Diana, come on. You don’t want to live out in the middle of nowhere,” Marty scoffed as he turned away from her to stare at the area around the gazebo. He shook his head and murmured, “What the fu*k?”

Diana stared at the back of his head. “Marty, there’s nothing we can do now.”

“Yes, the damage has been done.” Marty slowly turned to face his wife. “I have to be honest. I have never liked the idea of having the wedding here, and this,” he gestured to the ruined ground, “solidifies my belief that this was a terrible idea.”

“You don’t want to get married here?” Diana asked, stunned. He had expressed concerns but hadn’t been adamant about it until today. “So what do you want to do?”

“Let’s just go to the courthouse next week and do it,” Marty suggested. Diana’s eyes sparked with fire, and he realized his mistake.

“Are you out of your fu*king mind?” Diana hissed. “I am not getting married at the courthouse by some tired old Justice of the Peace.”

“What’s wrong with the JP? Lots of people do it!”

“Well, I don’t! I’m not some pregnant chick who needs a shotgun wedding!”

“That’s not why people go to the JP, Diana.”

“I’m not going to the JP, Marty. We’ve hired the caterer, your brother has been ordained so he can perform the ceremony, and before you got home, and I had started on the invitations. I’ve worked too hard on this to go to the JP.”

“Bad idea, sorry,” Marty said. She had made several points he agreed with. But… “What if we just eloped? We’ve had nothing but problems since we got engaged. We’re fighting over stupid sh*t like soil, for God’s sake.”

Diana chuckled. “You’re right. But babe, I don’t want to elope. I’ve only just found the dress, and we’ve started on the renovations anyway. We change what has already happened.”

Marty sighed, glanced at the vines, and said, “You’re right, too. But if this is going to continue, we have to make a new deal.”

“What’s that?” Diana asked warily.

“I want to be here when anything is changed.” He pointed at the man on the tractor. “Did you even speak to him before he started?”

“Yes, Marty,” Diana answered, exasperation in her voice. “He knocked on the door, I walked out here with him to make sure he knew what area to work on, then I went back inside. I’m not stupid.”

“I didn’t say you were,” Marty grumbled. “Regardless, I want to be here. I would have known the tractor with a plow was the wrong way to go.”

“What would have been the right way to go?” Diana asked sarcastically.

“Not a fu*king tractor,” he replied hotly. She opened her mouth to reply, and he held up a hand. “Sorry, sorry. I’m just upset.”

Diana sighed. “Me too. Sorry.” She took his hand in hers. “I’ll tell Rena to schedule everything when you can be at home. To let us know so you can make arrangements to be here. Fair?”

Marty nodded. “Thank you. I’m sorry I’m angry about this. I pictured something entirely different in my head.”

“I guess I should have been clearer about the plans,” she said by way of apology, though in her mind she was sure she had. She kept that thought to herself. No need to continue an argument that has pretty much ended, she thought.

They stood in silence, staring at the gazebo, each with different scenes in their head. Diana saw the finished preparations for the wedding, while Marty saw the look on a prospective buyer’s face. Compromise, Marty, he told himself. That’s how marriage works.

The man on the tractor interrupted them with a clearing of his throat. They turned simultaneously. “Should I finish the job?” he asked gruffly. He had witnessed their argument, though he hadn’t been able to hear them.

Diana looked at Marty. The picture of the chairs around the gazebo changed a little to accommodate the smaller space, and she told the man, “I think that’s enough for what we have in mind.”

“Is that enough room for all the chairs?” Marty asked, and Diana remembered why she loved him so much.

“I’ll tell Rena to make it work,” Diana replied with a smile for her handsome fiancé. With a smaller smile for the worker, she said, “Thank you. You’ve done a great job.”

“You’re welcome. Hope your wedding is beautiful,” the man called as he returned to his tractor to load it on his trailer.

“Thanks!” Marty called. The man raised a hand as he turned the ignition on the tractor. “Man of few words, I guess.”

“Yeah. He mostly just listened when I walked out here with him,” Diana explained. Hand in hand, they walked to the house, talking about unimportant information about their day.

*****

Diana and Marty enjoyed an hour of down time together, with a couple flutes of champagne, before Marty announced he had a few things to do for work. Diana asked him about his list of invited, which was very short.