'Yeah, I feel okay. It was a bit of a tumble. I think I was just shocked when you first got here.'
Colin nodded. 'It happened literally just before I got here?'
'Yep. I can’t believe I did it. I was so focused on the gate and how I was going to get it open without ruining the dress that I completely forgot about the moss on those steps. I should’ve got it off ages ago. It’s been on my to-do list since I moved in. You know how it is.'
Colin nodded and looked at the bodice of the dress that he’d already wiped with about four clean towels. 'Well, it looks like the dress is okay. I’m not so sure about your chin, though. It’s a miracle you’re not worse off.'
Nina held out her palms and shook her head at the sight of them. They were red and angry, and she could see that there were still little bits of grit in them despite what Colin had done.
'Well, we’ve got two choices, really,' Colin said, looking at his watch. 'You either put up with it and we go now, or you call ahead and tell them that we’re delayed and that you’re not going to make it.'
Nina shook her head. 'The thing is, there were no more slots at the registry office. Especially not today, but also not for weeks, maybe even more. It was so booked up. You know what it’s like. Everyone and his dog wants to get married at this time of year.'
Colin nodded. He pointed to the flannel on Nina’s chin. 'How is it under there now?'
Nina pulled the flannel away and Colin nodded. 'There is one thing. I’ve got some Steri-Strips in the first aid kit in the boot of my car, I think. I could try and put one of those on.'
Nina winced. 'I’m going turn up at my wedding with a Steri-Strip on my chin?'
'Don’t really know what else to suggest,' Colin replied, throwing his hands up as if to say he wasn’t sure. 'Stay there for a minute. I’ll go in and get the first aid kit out of the car and see what I can find in there.'
Nina chuckled. 'I’m not going anywhere, that’s for sure.'
A couple of minutes later, Colin was back with a small black plastic first aid kit. 'Look at you being all organised,' Nina laughed.
'I can’t believe you're laughing.’
'I know, me either. You’ve got to look at the funny side of it. My mum is going to say, "I told you so". She said I shouldn’t have got ready on my own. She was probably right. I didn’t think it through properly. Best laid plans and all that.'
'No, she probably is right,' Colin replied. He started to rifle through the first aid box and then held up packets of whitebandages. 'Plenty of plasters and bandages in here. I don’t think this thing has ever even been opened.' He pulled out a syringe in plastic wrapping. 'Can sort you out with a syringe, too,' he chuckled.
'Luckily, I don’t need any of those. Not yet, at least.’
‘We’ll save that for later.’ Colin pulled out a packet of Steri-Strips. 'This is what I was talking about. I used similar on my son's forehead many moons ago. If I just put a tiny bit on, it might hold it together.'
‘I guess it’s about the only choice I’ve got,’ Nina said with a sigh.
Colin went and washed his hands, came back, opened the Steri-Strips, and very carefully picked them up. Nina was surprised to see how carefully he handled them.
'You know what you're doing,' Nina noted.
'Not just a pretty face, you know,' Colin laughed. 'I've done this a few times with my children. That was a few years ago now, though.’
‘I’m in your capable hands.’
Colin laughed. 'Right, what are we going to do? Are we going to text ahead and tell everyone what's happened or what?'
Nina shook her head. 'No, we've got plenty of time. I've factored in a good forty-five minutes for anything to go wrong, so we'll still be more than on time. And if I text ahead, my mum will panic,' Nina explained.
'So you're just going to turn up like this?'
'All I've got are some grazes on my palms, a throbbing elbow, and a Steri-Strip on my chin.’
'True, good point,' Colin noted as he put the remainder of the Steri-Strips into their case, put that back into the first aid box, and closed the lid. 'Right, well, as long as you're good to go, let's get on with it.'
48
After fussing with her dress for a bit and realising that the fact it wasn't showing any marks from her fall was because the weather had been dry and the yard had recently been swept, Nina thanked her lucky stars that the fall hadn't ended up a lot worse. It wasn't great, for sure, plus she had a Steri-strip on her chin, searing pain in her elbow, and her palms stung from the antiseptic cream Colin had so carefully administered. She was, however, overall fine and realised that it could have been a lot worse.
