Chapter 36: Pre-wedding Jitters.

A few months later, I was sitting in the green room of a beautiful wedding venue in Rose Bay, overlooking the Sydney Harbour. I was stressed and frustrated with my wedding planner, but not for the usual reasons. My frustration was because my wedding planner kept bugging me with insignificant details for months on end. The banquet menu, wedding decors, which companies we should buy the wedding flowers from, where to get the cake, etc. I had assumed that hiring a wedding planner and giving her a million-dollar budget would be enough to run a smooth wedding, but I was mistaken.

What frustrated me more than my finicky wedding planner, was that I couldn't get my wedding gift for Alex to work. I knew that by the 23rd century, the oceans would be cleaned up by self-replicating fusion-powered marine robots, but I couldn't get the team of engineers that I had hired, to build a working prototype. The technology simply didn't exist yet.

But I wanted to give Alex something meaningful as a gift, as I knew that he really wanted the oceans to be clean of plastic and polluted water, so I had settled for constructing a solar-powered marine prototype. The machine couldn't self-replicate but was achievable with the current technology. The machines wouldn't be enough to clean up the oceans, but at least they would be a start that inspired hope.

There was a knock on the door, and much to my dismay, it wasn't the delivery of my prototype, but my wedding planner. I could tell from the anxious look on her face that something had happened. "Sabina, I have unwelcome news, " she started.

I struggled to hide my irritation and gave her an empathic answer: "Tell me, Amanda."

"The Florist crashed her van, and the wedding flowers were destroyed," Amanda replied.

"Oh no! Is Jenny okay?" I asked.

"She got some bruises and a minor concussion," Amanda replied, close to tears.

"Okay. I am glad that it is not any worse. You can go see Jenny in the hospital if you want. Tell her I can't make it today, I have to be at the wedding venue, "I said and tried to lighten up the mood with a smile.

"But… What about the flowers?" Amanda asked with a shrilling and panicky voice.

I decided to use my empath powers to calm Amanda down. I had my own worries, and I couldn't afford to focus on minor things such as Jenny's minor injuries, or the absence of flowers at my wedding ceremony. I grabbed Amanda's hand and looked into her eyes. Then I spoke soothingly to her: "Do not worry about the flowers. We'll be fine without them. Now visit Jenny in the hospital and come back when you are feeling better."

I noticed how Amanda's facial expression changed, and she looked more at peace than I had ever seen her before. "Okay, I'll visit Jenny in the hospital," Amanda replied, and wiped her crocodile tears.

"Good. Tell Jenny to focus on her recovery. I'll pay for the flowers regardless, so she doesn't need to worry about that," I replied.

"Thank you, Sabina. I'll go see her at once," Amanda said, and she left the room.

After Amanda had left the room, I wondered why I hadn't used my powers to calm her down a long time ago. My last few months would have been a lot easier if I didn't have to deal with her panicky and stressful nature. But then I realised that I wasn't bestowed with these supernatural powers to stay clear of every inconvenience in my daily life. The True Maker gave me these powers to fulfil a purpose, not to always have smooth sailing through life.

There was a knock on the door again, and this time, it was better news. My chief scientist had arrived with a prototype for my ocean clean-up project. I looked at the prototype. "Dr Tony Phillips, is the prototype working now?" I asked him.

"Yes, but it is still in the pilot stages," He replied.

"That's fine. Have you prepared the presentation slides and speech notes?" I asked him with a concerned voice

"Yes, but shouldn't you be the one who present the subject, as you are giving this as a present to Alex? I just built the prototype you asked for. I'm not a good public speaker," Tony responded nervously.

"Well, it lends more credibility when a senior Marine Scientist presents the topic to the public, rather than me presenting it. Besides, I am the bride at the wedding. People expect me to be beautiful and prepped up. I'm not going to present on a serious topic wearing a wedding dress. Sometimes you'll have to give society what they expect" I replied calmly.

"Wait, so the wedding is today? "Tony asked in bewilderment.

I smiled, realising how much I had baffled Tony. "Yes, the Ocean Clean-Up Project is my wedding gift to Alex, and I would like you to present it to all of the guests." I replied

As the confused Dr Tony Phillips left the room, I was filled with excitement. This would be a wedding to remember, and today would be an important turning point for our beautiful marine life.