17–Joey
“And 1, Jacob Kazumi, take you, Phoebe Louise Fitzgerald as my lawfully wedded wife.”
Jake’s words speared through me, striking right at my heart and I felt it shatter into a million pieces.
Apain
For what seemed to be the hundredth time since Jake and Phoebe had become engaged.
My eyes closed and I fought back tears as Jake finished his vow to his fiancée, then it was Phoebe’s turn, and my stomach threatened to void itself of the single piece of toast and shot of whiskey I’d managed to choke down since this morning. With her part done, the priest took over the ceremony and I knew there wasn’t very much longer before it was all over. “If there is anyone here, who objects to this union, speak now, or forever hold their peace.”
My gaze moved through the crowd, willing someone, anyone… to stand up and say something.
Just a simple по
All I wanted was someone to say something, so I could wake up tomorrow and have my best friend back and chalk this all up to a bad nightmare.
That was all. It was such a simple wish…
I wanted Jake and I to go back to what we had.
Our gross takeaway food and shitty horror movies. The days spent talking trash about celebrities on TV.
My gaze moved through the crowd, trying to see if someone would say something. But everyone else was doing the same thing looking around the crowd to see if anyone would object and 1 almost burst into tears with the realization everyone here was fine with this happening. Even Pa Kazumi didn’t utter a word and that was saying something. I knew he didn’t like Phoebe.
1 bit the inside of my lips together and moved my gaze through the crowd one last time.
Sitting in the front row of chairs, alongside his and Jake’s mom, Alex stared right back at me, his dark gaze intense. He raised an eyebrow, a smirk coming to his lips, as if goading me to be the one to make a move, to speak my mind, to tell Jake what I really thought.
But I’d never been one for confrontations or being the center of attention, so I did the same thing I always did. I dropped my gaze and said nothing.
My lip trembled and I swallowed the lump in my throat as the priest spoke again. “So be it. In the name of the father, the son and the holy ghost, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss your bride.”
The crowd erupted in cheers and wolf whistles, and I turned away, not wanting to see Jake and Phoebe seal their vows with a kiss. I tried to keep the tears at bay, by concentrating on anything else I could.
A stray flower fluttering in the breeze.
The spiderweb tucked in the edge of the concrete garden railing.
The feeling of someone’s g
gaze on me.
My gaze slipped to Alex again, who had crossed his arms over his chest and was still staring at me. His gaze softened a little when he realized I was looking at him, but when his brother and new wife stepped away from the priest, and made their way down the aisle, Alex’s gaze followed them and changed to one of anger.
Why?
He and Jake hadn’t spoken in ten years, so what was there to be angry about?
Waiting for the bridal party to step in behind the now–married couple, I sighed to myself and fell into the back of the procession, my head down and tried to remain as calm as possible. My stomach hurt, my eyes burned and all I wanted to do was escape back to my apartment, crawl into bed and cry until I couldn’t anymore, and my heart was stone.
Everything I had dreamed of with Jake, had been taken by another woman. And I knew even though I should have spoken up earlier and said something to him… I still blamed Phoebe for the predicament I was in now.
Deep down I knew I was the one to blame, I just couldn’t bring myself to
lay it al
at my own feet.
17–Jocy
Not just yet.
We walked through the stunning gardens, full of beautiful flowers, heady and sweet, but my broken heart dulled their scent and brightness.
It seemed like now; all I saw was black and grey.
Everyone stood in the garden for photos, and I tried to smile and be happy, I really did. I hoped I hadn’t stuffed up the photos for them, because even though my heart was broken, I didn’t want to completely ruin something which I couldn’t change.
Jake came up to me, wrapping his arms around me and he hugged me to his chest. “Aww, come on. Joey. Be happy for me.”
I buried my face against his chest, holding onto him for dear life, and fought back tears. “I am happy for you. Jake. So happy.”
I just wasn’t happy for me.
He kissed the top of my hair and stepped back, kissing my forehead and returned to Phoebe, who shot daggers toward me
as her bridesmaids fixed her hair and the train of her dress, ready for the next set of photos.
She could do that. I didn’t care anymore. Their vows had been set in stone now and her words from earlier bounced around inside my head.
You’re not going to be seeing him very often.
I believed her, every single word of it.
There was no chance in hell I was ever going to be seeing Jake without her being there.
The time we had been friends, had practically been wiped away.
Stolen by Phoebe.
I looked at the woman who now owned my best friend’s heart and couldn’t even muster enough anger to flip her off. The sight of me being so broken must have satisfied her, because she lifted her chin, looking down at me, as she smirked and wrapped herself around Jake.
I turned away from the sight, left the gardens and fell
apart.
