#got a break! planning on working/studying tomorrow but my parents were like…stop…rest…it’s a fucking sunday

[quinttyz]

me and the boys boutta storm Raedric’s stronghold (it’s just us three and only one is actually decently armored)

[demivampirew]

So we meet again.

Henry x Reader

Summary: A recent graduate recounters someone from her past with who things did not exactly ended up in great terms. She holds a grudge on him for that and still has unanswered questions about what happened.

This will have another part soon.

Masterlist

Triggers: talking about losing a parent; drinking; ghosting.

It's been an exhausting journey, but you finally made it. You graduated from University College of London and got your PhD in Linguistics. Now you were ready for the new chapter of your life. You wanted to teach Linguistics but also write books. One of your firsts topics in mind was to write a book about the topic of language acquisition, discussing the different views of famous linguistics such a Noam Chomsky, Edward Sapir, Eve Clark, Steven Pinker, among others. You also wanted to write books about the best methods of learning more languages. It excited you to know how limitless was the things that you could do with all your knowledge and how anxious you were to investigate even further. But that would have to wait because today your focus was on celebrating all your hard work. After the commencement ceremony, you went home to change and went to a pub to celebrate your achievement with your girls. The bar was pretty exclusive and usually wealthy people hung out there, mostly because when celebrities were in London, went to the pub looking for a place to drink without being bothered. You weren't rich, exactly, but money wasn't a problem for you. But definitely, you wouldn't qualify to get in the said club, the only reason you were allowed to be there was that the place was owned by your uncle/godfather. You were dancing to some song playing in the pub with your friends Kate and Emma. It felt so good to be out, truly partying without worrying about upcoming exams or books to read for class. You were finally free to rest and just have fun for once. You went to the bar to get the next round of drinks for you and your friends when you got a text. You grabbed your phone from your jean pocket and read the lovely message that your aunt Judy sent you. She couldn't be in the commencement because she lived in The USA, but she wanted to let you know how proud of you she was. You were walking towards the bar with your eyes set on your phone screen when accidentally collided with someone. You immediately apologized for being distracted and not looking where you were walking. The other person did the same as you, for him was distracted as well. You look at his face and froze. "What is he doing here?" You thought, then remembered that he always used to hang out there. That was after all the place where you met a few years back, one summer that you worked as a bartender to gain some money for the upcoming spring break; he helped you make the drink that he wanted since you didn't know how to do it for you were new in the job and he used to have the same job when he was twenty. It's been almost two years since the last time you two spoke to each other, before he ghosted you out of the blue, without any explanation. You used to be really close, he was your best friend in the entire world. You trusted him more than anyone else in the entire world. He was always there for you, even when he was away filming some movie. He would do everything he could to make you feel better on your shitty days. But, again, one day he stopped responding your messages, changed his number, moved out and didn't try to reach for you to let you know that he was moving or why he did not want to be your friend anymore. He just vanished. You knew that he was ok because he continued doing movies and you recently saw a trailer from a movie starring him and Armie Hammer that was about to be released soon. You could see in his eyes that he was as shocked to see you as you were to see him and how immediately he put together that the pub was owned by your uncle, so it wasn't uncommon for you to be there. You broke the silence, saying "I'm sorry, sir. I'll be more careful next time.", offering a sympathetic smile and walking away, pretending not to know him. You asked your friend Mark, the bartender, to prepare you three margaritas, and then went back to your friends. You chatted with your friends, although your mind was somewhere else. You discretely check the entire room, looking for him. You saw him with hanging out with two guys that you didn't know. They were laughing and taking pictures while drinking beer. "Stop looking at him and enjoy your night," you told yourself. You try hard to focus on the conversation with your friends. - I can't believe that you're leaving me alone in my night. It's only eleven p.m. - you told your friends after some time. - I'm truly sorry, but I have to work tomorrow.- Emma apologized - Tomorrow is Sunday! - you prompted - I know, but I still have to work in the hospital. - she explained - Yeah, and I'm a mother, I don't have free days - Kate added.- So technically, I also have to work tomorrow and I should go. You sighed and said goodbye to your friends. Then you went to sit by the bar. - Your friends left? - asked Mark surprised - Yep. One has a kid and the other has a shift in the hospital where she works tomorrow, so they both left early. -Bomer. Well, I guess you'll continue your celebration with me.- he said smiling. - I guess so. Hey, do you need some help? - you asked him - No, don't worry, Charlotte and I have everything cover. Just enjoy your night. - How is George? - He's great. He got promoted, now he's the bank's manager. - he informed excited. - Great! Congratulate him on my behalf. - I will. And I'm sure he will ask me to tell you the same. - Thanks. Are you going to New York for vacations as you planned? - We're still not sure. We were also thinking about going to Las Vegas. - That sounds fun as well. - Yes. I promise you to bring you something from our trip. - he said winking - Please, don't waste your money on me. Buy things for you two. - Nonsense, I want to bring you a present. We met thanks to you. - A simple thank you is enough for cupid, a.k.a me. - you replied winking and with a smirk on your face. - There she is! My little genius! - said a man approaching you from behind. You recognized immediately the voice and stood up to hug your godfather. - Hi, uncle John! - you greeted him while hugging him. - Hi princess! Congratulations! You're a star! - he saluted you while praising you. - Thanks! And thank you for letting me celebrate here! - you thanked him - No need to thank me, and besides, your dad help me built this place, so technically is part yours too. - he said winking. - He'd be so proud of you, honey. -he assured you. It's been a year since your father passed due to a heart attack. Since then, your mother, who was a college professor, and your big sister, a surgeon, have been taking care of you, so you wouldn't have to quit studying. You could always count with your uncle too; you didn't like to ask for money, even though you knew that he would be happy to help if you needed it, so if you require some money for things like clothes, hang out with your friend, etc, you would always ask him to work in the pub. You would cover shifts and during college breaks, you would work regularly there. - Everyone, can I have your attention for a moment - said your uncle aloud, while everyone in the pub turned to him - For those who don't know me, I'm the owner of this place and this is my gorgeous niece. - he said while grabbing your shoulder - She graduated from the University College of London today! - he announced proudly - So, in her honour, everyone gets a drink on the house.- he said and people cheered. Your uncle kissed your temple and went into the back of the place. You continued drinking, while people came to claim their free drink, congratulating you while doing so. Apparently, Henry asked his friend to bring him the drink, because he never reached the bar. You gave a hand to Mark and Charlotte, who now were more than busy handing out drinks. When the clock announced that it was 1:30 a.m, you decided to head home. You could keep partying, but you were bored. Mark tried to keep you entertained, but he was busy now that the pub was getting more and more clouded with rich kids looking to get wasted. You said goodbye to him and Charlotte and went to salute your godfather before leaving. He offered to take you home, but you assured him that a taxi would be more than fine and that you would let him know as soon as you were in your house. The night was so beautiful that you decided to walk. Your place was not that far away and the streets were packed with youngsters looking for places to hang out, so you felt safe. You were halfway to your home when you notice a shadow walking not so far from yours. Someone was walking behind you, although judging from the shape of the shadow, it was a few meters away. You weren't a scaredy-cat and you're even tougher when you have some drinks on you, so you turned around to face the person. It was him. - What the hell are you doing following me? - you said angrily - I saw you leave alone and I wanted to make sure you made it safe - Henry explained - Oh, so now you remember that I exist? - you questioned, furious. - I wonder where was that concern for me like two years ago when you erase me from your life without notice. A little heads up would've been nice, you know. - you reproached him and he looked away. - So, like when you ghosted me, it seems like I still don't get an explanation from you. - you told him while rolling your eyes - I needed you a year ago, not now. - What happened a year ago? - he asked surprised - I lost my dad. You've known if you were there for me like you always did, but apparently, I stopped being important for you, sir. So now you can fuck off. Don't worry about me, I'll take care of myself, as always. Goodbye. -you said and turned around and starting to walk away. - I was in love with you.- he said loudly enough for you to hear him. You stopped immediately and stood there, without turning around. - I loved you and I couldn't stand the fact that once again you forgave that asshole Steven for cheating on you once more. I couldn't be around you any more, it hurt, so I left. - That asshole reached for me to see how I was doing after my father passed. You didn't. And yes, I've made the same mistake plenty of times, but in the end, I learned my lesson. I might have done things differently if I'd have known that you had feelings for me. - you said, turning around to face him - I had a crush on you when we met and grew stronger and stronger, and then my heart broke when you started dating Gina. You were so happy together, that's when I realized that I'd never had a chance with you. So I started dating Steven. I've always known that he'd cheat on me sooner or later, he was a womanizer, a party boy, but at least he was nice to me. I needed that to make feel better and to concentrate on other things that weren't my feelings for you. - I didn't know. - he commented. - I stopped talking to you because I had hopes that if I wasn't around you my feelings would go away and I would fall again for Gina, but that didn't happen. She realized that my heart now belonged to someone else and left me. I saw online that you broke up with him and I wanted to reach you, but I was ashamed for cutting you out of my life without speaking to you, that I simply could not do it. I really wish I would have had the guts to ask you to forgive me, then I'd have been by your side when your dad passed. I'm so sorry. I know you two were close and that must hurt. You don't know how sorry I am. - You can apologize for all your want, it doesn't change a single thing, Henry. - you were about to continue your way, but stopped for one moment - Thank you for ruining my graduation day by reminding me how not only you neglected our friendship, leaving me alone without a single word, but also for letting me know that we might have something nice if instead of disappearing you would have told me how you felt. - you finished and walked away.

[anonfanfic]

If you want a prompt for small town AU, what about clexa getting out of town for a day and either taking a road trip or heading to a city close by? That way they can have some time to themselves

Clarke woke up to a beam of warm golden sun hitting her face. She closed her eyes tightly and stretched her stiff muscles. She breathed a deep sigh of relief out of her nose as her fuzzy mind remembered it was Saturday and she didn’t have to rush off to school. 

She rolled over and grabbed her phone from her nightstand, unplugging the charging cord and trying to get her bleary eyes to focus on the much too bright screen. 

Lexa’s name appeared in a text notification and Clarke sat up in bed, a rush of adrenaline coursing to each of her limbs as she unlocked her phone and read the waiting message.

‘I need to drive into the city to pick up a part for my truck. Can you come???’

Clarke felt an extra surge of energy pulse in the pit of her stomach as she thought about a full day away from everyone, but Lexa. She pulled back her blankets and nearly toppled out of her bed as she started getting ready for the day. She threw her pajamas somewhere near her hamper as she thought of what lies to tell her mom to let her go into the city for the day.

She finished dressing and looked at herself in the mirror. Clarke wanted to look cute, but not like she was trying too hard just for a trip into the city.

Clarke ran down the stairs two at a time and had to slow herself before she walked into the kitchen. She worked hard to keep her face neutral as she did a quick scan of the room, but only saw her dad sitting at the table sipping a cup of coffee and looking over some sort of playbook. No doubt trying to plan some sort of offense for the big football game the coming Sunday.

“Where’s-uh-where’s mom?” Clarke tried to sound as casual as possible while she walked over and grabbed a glass from the cupboard next to the fridge. 

“She’s in appointments all day today. She mentioned us ordering pizza, so you know it’ll be a long day.” Jake Griffin didn’t really look up from the page he was taking in. So he missed the grin that pulled at Clarke’s lips hearing that her mother would be gone for the entire day. 

“Do you think you’d be okay on your own?” Clarke opened the fridge and grabbed the orange juice, turning around to see Jake was no longer looking at the papers in front of him. He only had eyes for his daughter.

“Why? What do you have planned?” Jake reached down without looking and grabbed his coffee cup to take a sip without breaking eye contact. 

“A couple friends were talking about going into the city. I was going to see if I could go with them.” Clarke poured the orange juice and gave a shrug of indifference as she finished speaking. She didn’t want her dad to know she was dying to go. She hoped he would think she didn’t mind either way. 

Clarke put the jug of juice back in the fridge and turned to see that her dad was once again looking down at his papers.

“Will you be back before curfew?” He asked, reaching over and taking a long sip of coffee.

Clarke almost choked on the mouthful of orange juice she had just taken in with her excitement to respond.

“Yeah-yes. I’ll be back way before curfew. I swear.” Clarke tried to cover her sputtering cough with her sleeve. 

“Fine, leave me by my lonesome.” Jake joked, waving his daughter off to go have fun.

Clarke downed the rest of her juice and laughed. “Yeah, like you won’t be locked in your study going over game tape for tomorrow.” Clarke felt like she was floating as she walked back toward the stairs to go tell Lexa she could go out.

“Hey!” Jake called, right as she got to the doorway. Clarke’s heart stopped and she turned to look at her dad who was looking at her with disappointment. “Who raised you?” He asked, pointing to the glass Clarke had left on the counter.

“Oh, sorry dad.” Clarke felt a rush of relief wash over her as she walked over to grab her glass and rinse it in the sink.

“Have fun, see you later tonight,” Jake smiled, as Clarke walked by and out of the kitchen.

Less than 20 minutes later and Clarke was driving down the main freeway out of their town and to the city. It was like Clarke could finally breathe once they left the town’s limits. 

Clarke felt pressure on her thigh and looked down to see Lexa’s hand resting there. She smiled, looking out the window at the long stretch of nothing that was between them and the city. It was the most peaceful she had felt in months. The town had become so suffocating and home was no different. There was no escape from the walls as they kept closing in on her.

“Whatcha thinking about?” Lexa asked, giving Clarke’s leg a squeeze.

“How damn good it feels to be out of that fucking town.” Clarke moved her hand on top of Lexa’s and laced their fingers together.

Lexa smiled and picked up their intertwined hands and brought them to her lips, placing a kiss on Clarke’s hand. 

“I’m glad you came.” 

Clarke moved over as far as her seatbelt would allow and rested her head on Lexa’s shoulder. She closed her eyes and listened to the soft sounds coming from the radio and Lexa’s rhythmic breathing just above her. If she could bottle this moment and live it whenever she wanted to, she’d do it in a second.

“You gonna fall asleep on me?” Lexa chuckled, moving her shoulder to make Clarke’s head bop a bit.

“No, no.” Clarke opened her eyes and smiled moving back to her seat and squeezing Lexa’s hand. “We just don’t get many moments like this. When we can feel…”

“Normal?” Lexa finished Clarke’s sentence. 

Clarke hadn’t really let it hit her until she heard Lexa say it. They weren’t allowed to be themselves in their town. They were always hiding and forced to be ashamed of loving each other. Clarke didn’t want to feel that way, it wasn’t fair to not feel comfortable in your home. 

“Yeah...it sucks.” Clarke’s mood shifted and she felt like she was being dragged down a mountain hitting trees and rocks all the way down.

“Hey, don’t let those fuckers get in your head today.” Lexa reached over and grabbed Clarke’s thigh again. “They don’t get to have today, it’s ours.” 

Clarke gave her head a shake and tried to push those thoughts out of her head. Lexa was right, they didn’t get to ruin their day. 

“I’m back. Let’s have a good day.” Clarke looked over and smiled at her girlfriend.

They drove for a little while in peaceful silence. Clarke played with the fingers on Lexa’s free hand as the city came into view on the horizon.

Lexa parked the car on a side street just off the main drag of the city.

“I need coffee before we do anything else.” Lexa hopped out of the car and reached for Clarke’s hand. She instinctively pulled back, looking around to see that no one around them was even paying attention. 

“Sorry,” Clarke looked back to Lexa who still had her hand outstretched. “Force of habit.” 

Clarke reached out and took Lexa’s hand, feeling her heart flutter as they started toward the coffee shop. It was a freeing feeling to walk down the street, their hands intertwined swinging between them and no one giving them a second look. They could be invisible here, just blend in with the crowd. 

They grabbed coffee and sipped it as they walked around on the beautiful, sunny Saturday.

Lexa found a park a few blocks away from the coffee shop and they decided to spend some time together out in the warm sun. It was just on the verge of fall so the air had just a little bite to it. Clarke loved this type of weather.

Clarke leaned over and pressed a kiss to Lexa’s cheek. “Can we just stay here?” 

Lexa reached over and put her arm around Clarke’s waist, moving her closer as they sat on the grass. 

“You mean live here...in this park?” Lexa laughed. “I mean it may not be great once winter hits, but if you’re here then I’m here.” Lexa kissed Clarke’s lips, lingering for a long moment before pulling away.

“Listen, I’ve wanted to ask you something for a while now. I’m just not sure how you’ll feel about it.” Lexa adjusted her position so she was looking directly at Clarke.

For some reason, Clarke felt her heartbeat start to pick up. She had no idea what Lexa was about to ask her, but her brain was thinking of all the worst case scenarios.

“O-Okay.” Clarke’s voice caught in her throat. Her mouth was suddenly painfully dry.

“I know it’s a long way off,” Lexa started, reaching down and starting to pull out blades of grass. “But with it being so close to the end of the school year....and we were already both accepted to college...I was thinking maybe we could go to prom together.” 

Clarke’s jaw went slack as Lexa finished speaking. She hadn’t even thought about prom. There was still nearly a full school year to get through before prom. 

Clarke let herself imagine getting to go to prom with Lexa. Picking out their outfits, taking pictures out by the lake, dancing together in the gym with stupid decorations hanging around them. It would be amazing, but not possible. It would be too easy for people to talk and if word got back to her parents, they’d find a way to keep her out of college. They’d find a way to lock her in her room and away from Lexa forever. 

“I don’t know…” Clarke pursed her lips together, trying to push the happy images from her mind. Her only goal was getting out of their town so she could finally be with Lexa and her parents wouldn’t be able to stop her. 

“Nevermind..” Lexa cleared her throat and tossed the clump of grass she had pulled out next to her. “It was a stupid idea, forget I mentioned it.”

Clarke saw a few red splotches appear on Lexa’s cheeks. It had been hard for Lexa to ask her about prom. She knew the risks just like Clarke did. Maybe it wouldn’t matter once it was time for prom. 

“No, no. Don’t say that. It’s not stupid.” Clarke took both of Lexa’s hands and waited until her girlfriend looked up and locked eyes with her. “I want to go to prom with you. I just don’t want to risk our future for one night. You know what my mom is capable of and I don’t want her fucking this up for us.” 

Lexa relaxed a little as Clarke spoke. She wasn’t shooting down Lexa’s idea, she just wanted to be safe about what they did while they were still in town.

“Let’s say if we think it seems like a good idea at the time we do it. If not, we have our own afterparty on prom night.” Clarke wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. 

Lexa laughed and Clarke watched the rest of her hesitation melt away. 

“Deal.” Lexa reached over and kissed Clarke. “But I’m getting you flowers either way.” 

Clarke smiled against Lexa’s lips. “Deal.”

[13-reasons-ideas]

Marry Me

A/N: I decided to take a stab at doing a songfic. It is MontyxOC and I hope you guy’s like it. I based it off of Thomas Rhett’s Marry Me. This part is from the bride’s perspective. For this part, I recommend listening to the bride’s perspective linked below. There will be another part from Monty’s perspective coming soon. This is a long one. I hope you like it as much as I do. As always, much love. Word Count: 7963

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqxEYUcW-cU

My fiancé, Evan, and I finally made it to San Fran International Airport, after a long day of traveling from Atlanta. I managed to get some more wedding planning done on the plane from Dallas. My parents were throwing us a second engagement party at home, so we made the trip out early on after he popped the question. Once we had left baggage claim with our bags, I led him through the airport to pickups.

He insisted on holding the bags while I looked for Scott. My parents weren’t able to get off work, so he had kindly offered to pick us up in San Francisco. I searched the crowd and spotted him standing off to the side, near a vending machine. “Scott!” I called as I waved and broke into a run towards him. He caught me in his arms and twirled me around.

“There she is.” He muttered into my hair as he put me down. I felt Evan put his hand on my back and I leaned into him. “You must be the one who stole her heart. I’m Scott.” He said, sticking his hand out.

“Evan.” He replied, shaking his hand firmly.

“So, let’s see the ring.” I smiled brightly at him and showed him my round two carat pave ring. He whistled when he saw it. “That’s nice. It suits you. Did she pick it?”

“No, I looked at her Pinterest.”

“Smart man.” Scott said as he picked up my bag and walked us out to the car, Evan’s hand firmly in mine the whole time.

On the way back into town, Scott shared stories of all the trouble I used to get my friends in and out of in high school. “There was this one time none of us had studied for a midterm coming up and so Ellie here called us all over to her place, and sat us down with colour coded notes, charts, the whole thing and spent the whole weekend tutoring us.”

“Only because you all had to pass that exam to stay on the team.” I interjected.

“El, it’s not like they would have kicked the whole team off the team. We were all pretty antsy by the end of the weekend.”

“But they could have cancelled the rest of your season. How happy would you have been then, hmmm?”

“Fine, fine. You win. But what about that time Monty and Bryce decided to climb in that old treehouse in Bryce’s backyard and you had to call the fire department?”

“You mean the time they almost fell out a tree? Yeah, I remember that. I also remember not speaking to either of them for like three days afterwards.”

“Oh, don’t think I forgot that detail. Monty wouldn’t shut up about it until you finally talked to him again.”

“Not my fault genius one and genius two climbed into a treehouse they hadn’t been in since they were like eighty pounds lighter. Bryce cried, Scott.”

“You didn’t talk to them because they went in a treehouse?” Evan asked.

“No babe. I didn’t talk to them because they got stuck in a treehouse. And I couldn’t climb up there to save their genius butts because any more weight would have sent the whole thing tumbling to the ground. And then Coach would have had my ass for breaking them.”

“I’m guessing there was alcohol involved in these shenanigans?”

“Oh yes.” Scott laughed, “they were drunk off their asses. Monty hugged one of the firefighters.”

“Ellie mentioned something about him not being a hugger.”

“He isn’t. Took him like 4 years to hug me. And I’m his best friend. We had food poisoning together when we were younger, and he still wouldn’t do it.” I shuddered at the memory.

“Lovely.”

“Yeah, but anywho. They barely made it into the pool house before they passed out.”

“We don’t call her Mom for nothing.”

“Okay designated Dad friend.”

“At least when we hung out after homecoming we didn’t-” Scott started. My eyes widened. Are you serious Scott?!

“Trip and fall flat on our faces in front of the whole school?” I cut him off quickly.

He gave me a weird look in the rear view. Thankfully, Evan was looking out the window as we were getting closer to town. I gave him a what the fuck look back. “Uh, yeah. That was pretty funny actually. Matt and Garrison were so excited we won that they tripped over their own feet and faceplanted.”

Evan didn’t appear to be listening anymore. Scott drove the rest of the way and when we got into town, I texted Monty. Hey you. I just got into town with Evan for the weekend. Are you free tonight?

He texted me back a few minutes later, yeah I’m free. What’s up?

“Don’t worry about showing him the noteworthy spots. We are going to look around after church on Sunday.” I mentioned to Scott, not looking up from my phone. I replied to Montgomery swiftly, drinks or coffee? Just you and me. My parents are going over some details for tomorrow with Evan that they don’t want me around for.

Sure. Meet you at Monet’s at six?

I’ll save you a seat. Usual order?

You know I don’t change things Elliebear. I smiled affectionately at the nickname and put my phone away. Scott had pulled up in front of my parent’s house.

“See you tomorrow Scotty.” I told him, reaching around the driver’s seat to rub his hair.

“El, not the hair. I’ll see you. It was nice meeting you Evan.”

“You too, Scott. Have a good night.”

The door opened as soon as we set foot on the front walk and my mom poked her head out. “Hey Mom. I’ve missed you.”

“Oh, come here and let me look at you.” She cooed, pulling and prodding me to get a good look.

“Mom, relax. I haven’t changed that much since the last time I saw you.”

“Hello Mrs. Davis. How are you?” Evan asked her as he pulled me closer to him to stop her examining.

“I’m lovely dear. Robert set up the guest room for you. Ellie, you’ll be in your own room.”

“I know Mom. Wasn’t expecting anything less.”

As we walked into the living room, dad looked up from his newspaper, “hey sweetheart, Evan.” “Mr. Davis.” Evan greeted and shook his hand firmly.

“Now now, what have we told you? You will be family soon enough. It’s Robert or Dad.”

“And Jillian or Mom.” My mom added.

“I know. Habit.”

“Well Ellie-muffin, what did you want to do tonight for your first night back in town?”

“I thought you had to talk to Evan about stuff. And I understood from mom that I wasn’t supposed to be there. So, I kind of already made plans….”

“That’s right. I told you about it last week Rob. We have to go over stuff for tomorrow.”

Dad thought for a moment, trying to remember the conversation, “that’s right. Sorry Jill, I’ve been busy with work and stuff that it must have slipped my mind.”

“What are you doing tonight, beautiful?”

“Just going to get a coffee with Monty now that I’m back in town.” I told him, casually. It’s just coffee and catching up with a friend.

“That sounds like fun. Let him know I’m looking forward to meeting him tomorrow.”

“I will. I’m going to run upstairs and change. You guys have fun down here.”

“What about dinner, Ellie?”

“It’s okay mom, I’ll just grab some soup or something at Monet’s.”

At about twenty to six, I decided to head out. I chose a cute, casual ensemble. I had thrown on one of Monty’s old baseball shirts, that I stole in the ninth grade or something with some jeans and sneakers. It was comfortable and he never asked for it back, so I kept it. Sometimes I wore it to run errands or when I was running late to class in college. “Bye guys. Love you Evan.” I called from the door. My family had holed themselves up in my dad’s office to talk about the party tomorrow, and I had strict instructions not to disturb them. I heard a chorus of ‘bye’s from the house as I left.

I beat Monty to the café but that wasn’t surprising really since I had left so early.

“Hey, what can I get you this evening?”

“Can I get a-”

“She’ll get a skinny vanilla bean latte with only one pump of vanilla, a dash of cinnamon, and extra foam in a for here cup. I’ll get a regular black coffee. And she’ll also have the chicken and spinach sandwich.” I heard Monty say behind me. The barista looked at me, unsure if she should ring it in or not. I nodded at her and turned around to face him. Before he had a chance to say anything, I jumped into his arms for a hug. I did manage to salvage some dignity and not screech in his ear.

“Hey Elliebear.” He said after grunting from the impact.

“I missed you.”

“I missed you too.”

Our orders were finished quickly as it was surprisingly slow for a Friday night. Luckily, that meant our table was free. We sat down and conversation flowed easily. It was almost like we had never been apart.

“The ring is nice. It suits you. Bigger than I thought you would like but it’s nice.”

“It is nice, yeah. That reminds me, Evan said he’s looking forward to meeting you tomorrow.”

“So am I. See who finally caught your interest.”

“I was interested in other people before Evan.” I told him, scandalously.

“Ellie. That guy from drama class doesn’t count. And neither does your chemistry partner.”

“I was not interested in Adam. And Zach was my chemistry partner. I can assure you I was not into him.”

“Please, enlighten me as to these people you were interested in before Evan.”

“There was,” I paused. You. “Dylan from sophomore English was cute. Ian. Couple other guys in high school. Peter from my first year anthropology class was… very attractive, and smart.” I’ll just leave out that Peter was the professor.

“One guy aside from Evan? University of Georgia is a big school. There’s no way you only had eyes for two people.”

“I was busy. I practically lived in the library when I wasn’t in class or my dorm. What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Is there a girl I should be hearing about? Or should have heard about?”

“Nah. Nothing important or anything to write home about. I was busy.”

“Oh please Monty, you played ball at OSU. You honestly expect me to believe there was no girl in your life?”

“No, no. There were girls. Just nothing really serious.”

“Uh, huh.” I replied, sarcastically. When I reached for my cup, he reached for his, and our hands brushed. I was immediately transported back to the day of homecoming in senior year.

Flashback

“Remember students. The homecoming game is tonight at 6:30. You’ll want to be there early as our Liberty Tigers take on the Hildebrandt Mustangs if you want good seats. It’s sure to be a nail biter.” Principal Bolan’s voice boomed from the intercom during the morning announcements.

“In order for it to be a nail biter, our team would actually have to have a chance at winning.” Alex muttered to Clay and me.

“They are playing Hildebrandt. We could literally not show up and still win.” I told him, as I adjusted my bag on our walk from Alex’s locker to mine, where Zach was meeting me before chemistry.

“Maybe they got good over the summer. Didn’t Bryce spend the summer in Greece or something? Relaxing and drinking poolside?”

“I think it was somewhere in Italy, actually.”

“Either way, I don’t think he spent his summer bulking up and practicing for the season.”

“I mean, they have Monty.”

“And? What did he spend his summer doing Ellie?”

“When I wasn’t at camp, we spent the summer together. There was no poolside drinking. When I was at camp he hung out with Scott and did boy stuff. They also worked out a lot.”

“How was camp by the way?” Clay asked.

“It was good. Learned a lot from my campers. They learned a lot from me. Only one incident of blood. It was pretty good.”

We had made it to my locker, and I was arranging my books when I felt myself being pulled into someone’s arms and lifted off the ground. “Montgomery, put me down!” I laughed, feeling my whole body shake.

“Never.” He laughed, evilly.

“I have to grab my chem book. And go to chemistry.”

“I’ve got it.” Zach’s voice drifted over to me, “you carrying her to class today?”

“Nah, I thought about it but since I had to come find her this morning, I figure she can make it there on her own.”

“I was running late. My alarm didn’t go off when it was supposed to.”

“Excuses, excuses.” Monty replied, putting me down and shaking his head. I turned my attention back to my other friends.

“I’ll see you guys later? Zach and I are running late.”

“Sure. Justin said if I don’t go to the game tonight, he’d tell mom and dad about Ani. And I don’t want to deal with that.”

“Someone has to keep Clay company, so I have to go too.” Alex said, pushing clay lightly.

“Great. I’ll see you then. See you at lunch Monty.”

Lunch seemed to take forever and a half to arrive. I knew sleeping in would mess with my day. The guys were already at their usual table when I arrived and sat next to Monty, no closer than we usually did. “Ellie, think you could pray for us to not lose this game tonight?” Bryce sniggered from the end of the table. I only rolled my eyes in response.

“Hey, quit being a dick.” Monty told him. Bryce responded by chucking a grape at him.

“It’s fine Monty. Not like he hasn’t done it before.” I didn’t have to look up from my lunch to know he was sporting a displeased face. “It’s going to take a lot more than God to help you win if you don’t learn to throw better than that in the next six hours. But sure.” I made a show of getting myself ready to pray verbally, but not with intention, “Lord, please help the guys win tonight. Give them the ability to not trip over themselves when they make plays. And God, please show Bryce how to make the ball go where it’s supposed to and not hit some poor kid in the head again. Maybe, just maybe, then he will get laid tonight and we all know that’s really why he asked me to pray.”

The boys laughed hysterically around me as I smirked at Bryce.

“You need to quit hanging out with Monty, he’s rubbing off on you too much. And I was serious.”

“I know. I’ll do it for real after lunch. You can sit with me if you want.” I offered but knew he would decline.

I ran home to change after school for the game. “Mom, have you seen my baseball shirt?” I called, searching my room for Monty’s shirt.

“The last I saw it, it was on your dresser.” I dug around on my dresser for a bit until I found it.

“Thanks Mom.” I called, shrugging it on. I quickly fixed my hair and grabbed a sweater before bolting back out the door to meet Alex before the game.

I met him in the school parking lot, at about six. “Hey Lex.”

“Hey El. Clay should be here soon and we can go find a seat.”

“That’s good.” We made small talk for a few minutes before Clay pulled up in one of the Priuses. Pri-i?

“Hey guys. Ready to go watch us get our asses handed to us on the field?”

“Your brother is playing Clay. Have a little faith.”

“I guess you’re right. I can’t say he isn’t a good player. But even still. Justin and Monty can’t carry the whole team all night.”

“Scott and Charlie help. Zach is good.”

“Oh goody. Five of forty-seven players are good. That makes me feel so much prouder of them.” Alex joked as we found a decent seat in the middle of the stands at the beginning of the row.

“Well, just think, if we do win tonight, then the team will be too busy celebrating to give anyone a hard time for a few days.”

“Now that you mention celebrating Ellie, if they win are you going to go with Monty after the game?” Clay asked

“I told him I would meet him at Monet’s with the rest of them whether we win or lose.”

“Okay. Can you keep an eye on Justin? I don’t really feel like going out with the football team for the evening.”

“No problem. Is everything alright?”

“I think he’s just trying to figure out where he fits now that he’s doing better and on the team. I don’t think he thought he would get this far.”

“That’s fair. I’ll make sure he sits with us for a bit. See if I can make Monty play nice.”

“See if you can? Ellie. He would jump off a cliff if you asked him to. I don’t like him, but I know he likes you.” Alex argued. Likes me? I mean sure, as his friend. Right? I brushed off the thoughts and where they could lead and have occasionally led in the past.

“He doesn’t really like heights. But I guess you’re right. He’s my best friend.”

“Sure. Best friend.” Alex said, shaking his head. I watched him share a look with Clay.

“I’m going to go grab a water, you guys want anything?”

“No, I’m good thanks.” Clay said, his eyes scanning the crowd of arriving students, likely for Ani.

“Nah. Mom sent me with some kind of weird protein thing. It doesn’t taste half bad, so I’ll just have that.” Alex said, shaking a bottle. I nodded and ran down the bleachers to the concession.

After getting a bottle of cold water, I ran back up just before the game started. The teams had just gotten on the field and had lined up. As expected, the game was in our favour most of the first half. I waved at Monty occasionally when he was on the sidelines and he looked over at me. He smiled and waved back. During the second half Hildebrandt seemed to find their groove and the game was at least interesting. It wasn’t really much of a nail biter as Principal Bolan had promised this morning, but it wasn’t really boring either. Everyone knew that regardless of how we played, we would probably win. The game ended and the team and the crowd were excited. Matt and Garrison were so excited by the win, they tripped over their own feet and faceplanted on the sidelines. The excitement died down for a moment until they shot up and went on celebrating. As the team filtered off the field, students began leaving. “See you Monday Ellie.” Alex said as we hugged goodbye.

“See you. Have a good weekend guys. I have to go catch up with Monty.”

I spotted him waiting for me by the locker room, gym bag on his shoulder. “Good game.” I said as I walked up to him.

“Of course, it was. I was on the field.”

“Modest as ever I see.”

“Do you expect anything else at this point Elliebear?” “Not really. But I can hope, maybe one day.”

“Maybe, but not likely.”

“Oh hey, while I’m thinking about it, Clay asked me to keep an eye on Justin tonight.”

“Is everything okay?”

“I think so. Clay said something about him having issues adjusting and stuff. Do you think you can play nice with him for a while?”

“I suppose, since he is your friend, I can try and be nice for a while. But not all night. I want some Ellie time.”

“And you’ll get your Ellie time. After you make nice with Justin.”

He sighed and was about to respond when Bryce called us, “are you two going to stand there and chit chat all night or are we going to celebrate?”

“We’re coming. Give us a minute asshole.” Monty called back to him. Bryce waved him off and walked away, leaving us alone.

He turned his back to me, “hop on”, he told me as he bent down slightly. Once I was secure against his body, he began to walk us out to the parking lot. Because he wasn’t paying attention, it was the perfect time to steal his hat. Plucking it off his head, I placed it on mine. It was slightly too big, but I didn’t mind.

“That’s my hat El.”

“I know. I happen to like it though, so I’m wearing it.”

“I’m not getting it back tonight, am I?”

“Nope. It is now mine. Might even write my name in it.”

“You do that Ellie. I won’t care when I steal it back who’s name it has in it.”

“Fine. Then I’ll readjust it.” I smirked.

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh, I would.”

He laughed as we arrived at our cars and he set me down. “No, you wouldn’t.” He shook his head for emphasis, calling my bluff. I pushed him lightly and rolled my eyes.

“Whatever. I’ll see you at Monet’s in a few with your precious hat.”

True to my word, I arrived at Monet’s a few minutes later, Monty’s hat placed firmly on my head. The place was packed with students celebrating the win. I went to the counter and greeted Skye, placing our usual orders and adding whatever Justin usually got. Once placed, I turned to look for a table. Luckily most students knew where Montgomery and I sat so our table was clear. Making a couple of trips, I placed the drinks on the table and pulled out my phone. I texted Justin quickly, hey Justin. I grabbed you a coffee. Feel free to sit with Monty and I when you get here. Don’t worry, he agreed to be nice. He replied with a thumbs up. The sound of a chair scraping the floor next to me startled me. “I see you told the truth. Can I have it back now?”

“No. I think it looks quite fetching on me, if I do say so myself.” I spoke regally, swiveling my head to show him from multiple angles.

“Fetching?”

“Yes. Do you disagree?”

“No, I think it looks good on you.”

“That’s what I thought.”

Monty and I chatted quietly before Justin showed up. “Hey guys.” He said, standing slightly awkwardly to the side of the table.

“Justin! You made it.” I exclaimed, smiling. Monty shot me a tone it down look. He smiled back at me as I stood and moved next to Monty. “Make room.”

“Can do sweetheart.” He charmed, patting the chair next to me. I rolled my eyes and tried to ignore the flutter in my stomach when he called me sweetheart, before sitting down.

“Thanks for the coffee Ellie.” Justin told me, taking a sip.

“No problem.” The three of us chatted idly for a while. Monty was nice to Justin and even laughed a few times at one thing or another he said.

Somewhere along the line of our conversation, our hands drifted towards each other under the table. I felt his hand wrap around mine and I felt my cheeks flame. The flutters were back, and I looked at him from the corner of my eye. He acted like he hadn’t noticed that we were holding hands. “Hey Justin, come over here and look at this.” Charlie called over to our table. He was looking at something on Garrisons’ phone. Justin waved to him and stood up, taking his coffee with him. I wonder if he noticed we are holding hands. Maybe he’s leaving us alone for a reason. Maybe….

“And then there were two.” Monty spoke, pulling me from my thoughts before they could go any further.

“Then there were two.” I echoed.

“That shirt looks good on you. It’s pretty familiar too.”

“Oh, yeah. There may be a reason for that.”

“Need to go talk to Mike?”

“Not if you don’t have a problem with it. I think he would agree it was simply borrowing, rather than stealing. No need to involve Jesus.”

“I am. So now you’ve got my shirt and my hat. Anything else you intend on taking of mine?”

“Possibly. Depends what else you’re willing to offer.” I flirted slightly, moving my hair behind my ear.

“I think there’s a thing or two I could offer you Ellie.” He flirted back, leaning in slightly. Oh my goodness. He’s going to kiss me. My thoughts immediately began flashing forward at a rapid pace. Us going for innocent coffee dates. Introducing him to dad as my boyfriend. The possibility of church on Sundays. Introducing him to Pastor Mike. Our first fight. Making up from said fight. Getting accepted to the same college. Graduation. College. A ring. Coming home and getting married in the little white church just out of town. Marriage. Kids. Sitting on our porch when we are old and grey. Before he could kiss me, Bryce called him from across the room. He stopped just short of my lips and looked over at him, “what?”

“My place, half an hour.” He called back. Monty nodded in response and turned back to me. I was smiling at him, trying to hide the fact that I was mildly hurt he stopped short of kissing me. Or that I was annoyed that my mind had gone so far once again. I chuckled and took a drink of my coffee. I looked at my watch and saw that even though it wasn’t necessarily late late, it was late enough that I could get away with leaving on account of the time.

“Shoot. Is that really the time? I have plans with my mom in the morning. I should get going.” I said, getting up and grabbing my bag.

“Oh, okay. Are we still on for waffles Sunday afternoon?”

“Yeah. Be at my place around one? I need to talk to Pastor Mike about a few things after service.”

“I’ll be there. Text me when you get home.”

“I will.” I said, trying to keep the hurried tone out of my voice. I just want to get out of here. I took my cup back to the counter and made my way to the door, trying to keep an even pace. I didn’t look back as I left the café.

End Flashback

Shaking the memory from my mind, I pried some more. “What about the blonde girl you told me about briefly?”

“Sara?”

“Yeah.”

“She was nice. Very peppy and chipper though.”

“Ah yes. Need to keep up that stoic exterior. Can’t have someone too chipper, lest people think you have a soul or something.”

“Exactly.” He laughed. He took a long sip from his cooled coffee. “Can you imagine if I brought her home?”

“Well, knowing your mother, I would probably be attending your engagement party tomorrow instead of the other way around.”

“Oh probably.”

“How is your mom doing, by the way?” “She’s doing okay. After dad died, she was pretty out of it for a few months. She’s gotten better with time though. Really started to come into her own and forge her own path.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“Not going to ask how I’m doing Ellie?”

“No. I know how you’re doing.”

“Oh really?”

“Montgomery. I am your best friend. Your dad was never a parent. DNA doesn’t make someone your family. You’re doing the same as you did the day you left and vowed to never speak to him again.”

He looked surprised at me. “Sometimes I forget how well you know me.”

“I know. That’s why I have to remind you all the time.”

“Yeah, yeah. How did Evan react to Scott on the way from the airport?”

“I’m not totally sure. I don’t think he realized how things worked at Liberty and exactly what you and I being friends meant. Scott told him about the treehouse.”

“Oh no. Ellie. I need to look the guy in the eye tomorrow.”

“I know you do. Don’t worry. He didn’t seem upset or anything. I think he found it amusing actually.”

“Did he tell him anything else?”

“About you?”

“Yeah.”

“No, mentioned how you guys fucked up and didn’t study for midterms and I singlehandedly kept you all on the team. And how Matt and Garrison managed to keep themselves above their feet until after homecoming senior year.”

“Of course, he did.”

“Don’t worry. Evan will like you.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I like you. And even though you think you are, you really aren’t a bad guy.” We talked for about another hour or so, just catching up, before we decided to call it a night.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Three o’clock sharp.”

“Good.” I said squeezing him in a hug. When we pulled apart he looked down at me, seeming to finally notice my shirt.

“Is that my shirt?”

“Yes it is.”

“I thought I lost that years ago.”

“You never asked for it back. We agreed that I technically borrowed it, remember?”

“Yeah but I also thought you would have given it back by now.”

“I mean, I can give it back to you tomorrow if you want it.” I offered.

“No, no. You keep it. You seem comfortable in it.” I smiled at him in response before he hugged me again and we said goodbye.

The next morning was somewhat hectic in the Davis household. My mom was up at a time God himself would shake his head at, doing last minute cleaning. My dad was up shortly after, making sure the yard hadn’t disappeared overnight or something. I woke up around ten and before I could even get a sip of coffee in me, I was already being bombarded with questions about what I was wearing or how I was doing my hair by my mom. Jeez Louise, if the engagement party is like this, what will the wedding day be like? “I have a white dress with flowers I was going to wear. It’s strapless and cute. Dressy enough for a party.”

“Strapless?”

“Yes Mom. It is strapless. I brought a cardigan to wear with it before you have a coronary.”

“Well I suppose that is alright then. And your hair?”

“A simple curled high ponytail. I have an elastic with a bow on it to use. I have thought about this you know.”

“I know dear. It’s just all so exciting, isn’t it? My only daughter is getting married.”

“Very exciting, yes.” I grumbled. “Now will you please let me go get a cup of coffee?”

“Can’t that wait darling? We have so much to do.”

“She will be much more of a help after a coffee Jillian.” Evan spoke from the hall upstairs. “Give her a few minutes to wake up and she will be ready to go, won’t you El?”

“Yes, I will.” I replied, moving towards the kitchen in search of the rich black liquid. Evan came down and grabbed the milk from the fridge to steam for my latte. “Thank you, I appreciate that you did that.” I whispered to him, gratefully.

“Of course, Buttercup.” He muttered into the top of my head and measuring out the perfect amount of milk into the pitcher, before half emptying a packet of Splenda into my mug. I set to work grinding and packing the espresso powder. I enjoyed my latte over my Bible while Evan got ready for the day’s events.

Shortly after I had gotten dressed, the caterers arrived, and it became even more hectic. They were finishing various dishes and trying to make room in the fridge. I watched on from the sidelines and tried to stay out of the way as much as possible. Evan came over to me and placed his arm around my waist. “You look beautiful.”

“You look great too, handsome.” I blushed, placing my arm around his waist too. Finally, around 2:30, the caterers had finished all of the food and set up. Cupcakes had been delivered and were set out on cake stands. Balloons were up and fairy lights lined the crown moulding around the living room. The room looked perfect.

Guests began arriving just before three. Justin and his girlfriend Sasha were the first to arrive. Justin and Jessica had broken up halfway through their first year of college, the strain of long distance becoming too much for them. They were still amicable in social situations though.

“Hey Justin. Hello Sasha. How are you guys?” I greeted them, warmly.

“We are good.” Justin replied, his hand firmly placed in hers.

“Hey guys.” Evan greeted them. The pair waved in acknowledgement.

“Let’s see the ring Ellie.” Sasha gushed. I held out my hand while she examined and fawned over the ring. I caught Evan and Justin share a look. Oh boy. This could get interesting for the man.

We continued greeting guests, accepting congratulations and gifts, and smiling as they arrived. Monty showed up right at three, as promised. “Hey you.” I greeted, beaming at him.

“Hey Elliebear.” He said, pulling me into a quick hug. Evan stood to the side, giving us a moment. I pulled away and turned towards Evan.

“Evan, this is Monty. Monty, this is Evan.” I motioned. They shook hands.

“So, you found the way to Ellie’s heart, huh?”

“Yeah. She is something special. I thank God every day that she decided to give me a chance.”

“Don’t I know it?” Monty replied, almost whistfully.

My mom called me over and I decided it would be a good idea to perhaps not leave the boys alone together. “Coming Mom. Scott is over there by the cupcakes.” I said, pointing him out. “Try to keep him from eating himself to a sugar high?”

Monty laughed, “can do Ellie. It was nice meeting you Evan. Congratulations.”

“You too Monty. Enjoy the party.”

I watched as he walked over and greeted Scott, taking a glass of champagne and a cupcake for himself. My mom called me over again and I ran over to see what she wanted. The party went off without a hitch. The only thing that concerned me was the way my eyes sought out Montgomery all afternoon and not my fiancé. Not to mention the all too familiar fluttering in my belly whenever I was near him or made eye contact with him.

**

The day had finally arrived. After a year of meticulous planning, it was finally my wedding day. All of the stress and details and late-night crying had all led up to this one day. The church was beginning to fill with guests. The loving memory sign was placed near the altar. I thought of how my granddad would have been the one to preach the service if he was still with us when I decided on the placement. My bridesmaids had already left the room to line up to walk down the aisle. Evan would be at the altar by now. I stared at my reflection in the mirror. I couldn’t shake the feeling of fear that was becoming harder and harder to ignore.

My off-white wedding dress was on, my veil in place on my head, and my makeup and hair looked flawless. Everything was perfect. Almost everything. I shook in the bridal room, waiting for the planner to call for me. You can do this Ellie. I fiddled with my engagement ring for a moment before I heard Melissa knock on the door, “we are ready for you Ellie.” Forcing a big smile on my face, I nodded to her and walked out of the room where my dad was waiting to walk me down the aisle.

“You look beautiful sweetheart.” He told me as I handed him my engagement ring for safe keeping and took his arm. The chapel doors opened, and Evan turned to look at me from the altar. I could tell his eyes were wet with unshed tears and when he saw me, he covered his mouth and looked up, trying to hold the tears back. The crowd was standing watching our reactions. My bridesmaids smiles beamed from the altar, brightly. I trained my eyes on him as my dad walked me down the aisle. My dad gave me to Evan and Pastor Mike began the service.

“We are gathered here today, before God and those closest to Ellie and Evan to join them in in celebrating their love and commitment to one another.” He continued speaking, “when Ellie called me to announce her engagement, I was thrilled for her. By the time they got around to coming back to Evergreen County from their home in Atlanta, and they asked me to officiate, I knew my answer would be a resounding yes. Getting to know Evan and see these two together over the last number of months, has opened my eyes to how these two help each other in their journey to seek to know and have a relationship with the Lord. Ellie mentioned early on in planning to me, that her favourite verse in the Bible is 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 and expressed the importance of including it on this special day. I would like to read you that verse now.  4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

8 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages[a] and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever!”

Pastor Mike continued speaking, but my eyes had begun to scan the crowd. They swept from one side of the church to the other. Near the back on the right side, next to the door, I spotted some of my friends. I saw Scott and Justin, along with Sasha, sitting with Charlie and Zach. Bryce surprised me and RSVP’d yes, even if part of me knew he knew I only invited him out of politeness. He was sitting next to Charlie, sandwiched next to Clay and Alex. As my eyes continued to scan the room, I didn’t see him. When they landed on Scott and I maintained eye contact for a moment, he shrugged, and frowned slightly. He isn’t here. He didn’t come. Tears filled my eyes and I turned back to Evan, my hand still resting in his. I made sure to smile so it appeared that I was merely overwhelmed with joy and not feeling my heart be crushed with despair. “Evan Andrew Taylor, do you take Ellie Marie Davis to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part, according to God's holy ordinance?”

“I do.” Evan replied, wholeheartedly.

“And do you Ellie Marie Davis, take Evan Andrew Taylor to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part, according to God's holy ordinance?”

I took on last look at the crowd gathered around us and made eye contact with Scott before turning back to Evan, “I can’t. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” I spoke quietly, letting go of his hand. I looked back at Scott and nodded to him. He turned to Justin and Zach, as the crowd gasped. I stepped down from the altar and it seemed to kick my friend’s butts into gear.

“Shi-” Scott started before realizing he was in a church. “Shoot.” He amended, quickly. He stood up and met me at the end of the aisle as my friends joined me in running out of the church. To our surprise, Bryce tossed Scott his keys and Zach picked me up to carry me to the car. “Zach drives.” He said, giving me a thumbs up.

We were in Bryce’s car before Scott spoke again, “did that really just happen?”

“Yeah. Yeah it did.” I was still in shock.

“Why?” Justin asked as we drove away from the church.

“He wasn’t there.” I said simply, staring out the window. “I couldn’t marry Evan knowing that I was in love with someone else. I couldn’t stand up there and say I do to him when I was praying for someone to stand up and object. Or to be up there with me instead.”

The boys were silent for a while as we drove around. Scott was in the front, looking for Montgomery’s car in every lot we passed. Justin was holding my hand tightly, trying his best to soothe me.

“You should know that he was. There.” Zach advised, “he wanted to be, but he couldn’t mess things up for you and he couldn’t sit and watch you get married to someone that wasn’t him.”

I didn’t respond, I merely tried to absorb the information I was being given. He was there. Why didn’t he come and tell me anything? Why didn’t he mess things up? I was pulled from my thoughts when my phone vibrated, alerting me I had a text. It was from Bryce. Monet’s. Your table. I never thought I would see the day where I would honestly thank Bryce Walker and mean it once, let alone twice. “He’s at Monet’s.”

“How do you know?” Zach asked, glancing in the rear view to make a lane change and turn us around.

“Surprisingly, Bryce.” I watched as my friend’s brows all raised. They couldn’t believe it either.

I was silent as Zach drove the rest of the way and parked across the street from the coffee shop. I scanned the building quickly, searching for any sign of him. I spotted him in the window, at our table, just like Bryce had said. Monet’s had become licensed a couple of years back, so they could serve alcohol. Monty was sitting alone, in his black suit, nursing what appeared to be a tall bourbon, neat.  “Go get him El.” Scott encouraged me. I nodded and checked for traffic before opening the door and stepping out of the car. Damning laws at this point, since the street was clear, I half ran across and yanked open the door. The few patrons and baristas looked up and appeared slightly annoyed at the sudden, rude intrusion, before they took note of my attire. White dress, veil, hair and makeup applied. It became clear that I was here on a mission and it wasn’t only coffee or a quick shot of liquid courage. Picking up my dress slightly so I didn’t trip on the stairs, I walked over to his table. “Is this seat taken?” I asked, softly.

He looked up at me, his eyes widening in surprise and full of unspoken questions.

“I couldn’t do it if you weren’t there. You’re my best friend Monty.”

He scoffed quietly before replying, “it’s not taken, no. Sit if you want,” and taking another drink from his glass, not looking at me.

“Hey,” I started, reaching for his hand. He looked at my hand and after a pause let me take it, “I mean it. I couldn’t marry him.”

“Why not?”

I was quiet while I thought over how to explain my feelings. Noticing he had about fingers width of bourbon left in his glass, I grabbed it, downing the rest of it.

“Hey. I was drinking that.” He protested. That was all the courage I needed.

“I couldn’t marry Evan because he wasn’t you. And you weren’t there to say anything by the time I walked down the aisle. You were just going to give me away and live the rest of our lives wondering what if.” I told him while I stared into the bottom of the now empty glass, too afraid to look him in the eye.

“You- really? How did you know…?”

“Zach told me.”

“I know I wasn’t there Ellie. I just. I couldn’t sit there in that church and watch you marry him. And I knew I was and would be too much of a coward to stand up and say something when I saw you standing up there with him. I had to let you be happy.”

“Don’t you get it Montgomery? I wouldn’t have been happy. Not really. Or at least not for long. Not with Evan.”

“So why did you agree to marry him?”

“Because I thought it would be easier? My friends liked him, my family liked him, I liked him. I just thought that it would be easier to ignore my feelings. I could marry him, officially move to Atlanta, come home a couple of times a year, have a couple of kids. It all seemed easier than admitting to myself that I was in love with my best friend and if I really, truly wanted to be happy, I would need to be with him instead. And that admitting that would change everything. But I’ve learned over the past year that easy doesn’t always mean happy. And sometimes what we think is easy in the short term, isn’t always easy in the long term.”

He chuckled lowly, “took you long enough.”

I furrowed my brow at him, “what is that supposed to mean? I just confessed my love for you, and that’s all you have to say?”

“Yeah. It took you long enough to come to that conclusion. You were what? Half-way through the ceremony before you put a stop to it?”

“Not exactly. I knew a while ago. I spent the whole morning shaking and waiting for you to come and tell me that I was making a mistake. When you didn’t come, I thought… that you either didn’t feel the same way, or that you were going to do the kind thing for once and not say anything, but I thought at least you would be there. When I saw that you weren’t, I knew I couldn’t marry him. Even if it was the easy choice.” When he didn’t say anything I added, “you picked a great time to do the kind thing.”

“Yeah, well. You knew it would happen sometime. You owe me another shot by the way.”

“Oh please. There was barely a fingers width in your glass.” I told him, sighing dramatically.

He looked at me through his impossibly long eyelashes, “they won’t serve you that small an amount.” I rolled my eyes and stood up to go order him another shot. You owe me another shot… men. I was surprised when he grabbed my wrist to stop me, before pulling me into his lap, rather gracefully given the fit of my dress, and kissing me deeply. Monty pulled away first and turned to look out the window. Our friends had gotten out of the car and were clapping and high fiving each other. 

“How about that shot now?” Monty smirked.

[softytom]

Accepted [1] - T. H

plot: Tom Holland and Grace Moon have been enemies since the first year of school, and now this year being their last they have to come to terms of a truce, for the sake of their friends and their school play. 

pairing: tom holland x oc

warnings: mentions of sex, language and are ultimate favorite fuckboy!tom

word count: 1.5k

Diamonds Court Academy, was the most elite schools in London; for the young gifted. Dancing, acting, writing and singing. Only a few selected were elected and those who couldn’t buy their way in, had to work ten times harder than the rich students. This was Grace Moon’s case, she was here on a scholarship and she was truly honored, she had to audition three times to get in. She had to prove she could do at least three things out of the four gifts to get in. It was a great school, they helped you polish your gifts and you come out a better version of the person who come in. 

Grace was sitting on the stage of the theater room, waiting for the rest of her class to show up. She was reading the book for the new end of the year play. Cinderella. Pathetic, she thought. She already knew who has going to get the prince charming part. And speaking of the devil; she saw her worst nightmare come in, her nemesis, her personal demon, god, she hated him.

Everybody went up the stage and sat in a semi-circle, making sure to leave Mr. Aldrin in the middle of it, Tom sat behind her and followed by his new girl of the week, Olivia Mas. She rolled her eyes when the giggles and the whispers stared between Olivia and her best friend, Mandy. The girls were truly idiots; they’ll do anything to spend a night in Tom Holland’s bed. The hottest guy, the king of Diamonds Court, the richest of them all and the most air head of them all.

Olivia couldn’t shut up on how good Tom was last night. “For fuck sakes, keep your mouth shut” She turn around and glared at the pair of brunette’s. Olivia was about to talk back to her when tom leaned in.

“Classiest as always Moon” He moves to sit next to her. He put his arms around her

“Please stay away from me” She grabbed his hand and pushed it off her. “I’m not one your hoes” He smirked, Grace wanted nothing more than to punch his perfect teeth in.

“You could be one” This boy was the bane of her existence. She looked at him, and she’s aware of how good looking he was, she heard it everywhere she went. But something made her forget what she was mad about right now. The voice of her professor startled both of them. How long were they looking at each other?.

“Holland, Moon. I’m sure whatever it is you two are fighting about today can wait. Since all of you know Cinderella is going to be the end of the year play. So we have about six months, not counting Christmas break, to prepare for it, Yes Mas?”

“When will the auditions be?” Of course, her heart was set on being Cinderella, and she will probably get it. She was the most beautiful girl in her acting class, hell, I think the whole school. If it wasn’t for her annoying and her lack of dignity when it comes to Tom, Grace would have tried being friends with her.

“Two weeks, Myself and Vice principal Hans will hold the auditions. Here’s each character, write down next to their names which character will you like to audition for and by Tuesday morning I’ll have the scripts ready for you to pick up.” He handed the paper to Dylan Dunne, and he passed it to the person next to him.

“Who are you going to play, kitten?” He leaned in into her ear.

“If I’m lucky enough, I’ll play the character that doesn’t have to be around you. Like the fairy godmother” He laughed. He looked gorgeous.

The paper reached Tom hands, he grabbed the pencil she had tugged in behind her ear, she totally forgot that was even there. She saw him put his name name next to the prince charming section, her phone beeped and looked at it. It was from her brother, Joe. He was coming into town so he planned a dinner for them. Thank god tomorrow is Friday. You weren’t allowed to leave school premises within school days. Only Friday’s at 3 in the afternoon if your parents or legal guardian were here to pick you up. But Saturday and Sunday’s you were allowed to be free as you want.

Grace put her phone away sending a quick “Can’t wait” text. She was about to grab the paper from Tom’s hands when she saw him on his phone. “Where’s the paper Thomas?” Tom rolled his eyes, he hated that she used his full name. It reminded him being scolded by his dad.

“Don’t worry, Grace. I already put your name down. You seemed a little to entertain with whoever was texting you” She didn’t like it that he, what it their standards was consider nice.

“Thank you, I guess” He put his phone away

“Whatever”

He made his way back to Olivia. She hated his bipolar behavior towards her. She hated him, period. Whenever Grace thinks of them even in the possibility of calling a truce on their childish war, he always says the most insensitive asshole thing he can think of. “Beggar” “Pauper”. She remembers the first time her hatred for him started. “Why don’t you go back to your family street and start begging again for little coins”. He was an asshole, he still an asshole. Grace didn’t come from a lot of money. She lived in the south, deepest part of London. Far away from the city and more into the country. It’s true, her dad struggled with money but her father always thought her the most important things than money; family, being good at heart, all the clichés you can think of, that was Grace way of living until Tom came into her life, making her insecure and embarrassed of her way of living.

“Why do you even bother talking to her?” Grace could hear Olivia ask Tom, she was clearly jealous. Or what seemed like jealousy.

“It’s fun to mess with her” Tom said. And the feeling of wanting to punch his teeth in came back as fast as it went. 

Grace was in her bed studying for her biology test. I’m sure the living organism and their DNA would be important while I put wigs for a living, she thought. Diamonds Court, wanted the best so they also gave the best education in case you don’t make it in the future with one of your gifts. A large sound coming from the end of the wall snapped Grace out of her concentration. Fucking Thomas.

She walked all the way down to his room, knocking the door to match the music. “There’s other people living here too!” She yelled behind the door. She could ear Drake’s new song playing. ‘She says ‘Do you love me’ I tell her only party, I only love my bed and my momma, I’m sorry’ what a fuckboy, she rolled her eyes and kept knocking but she could feel the music getting louder.

“Thomas!”

She saw a few people passing by, giving her weird looks. Nobody really cared that Tom was playing loud music. They probably did, but they couldn’t do much. He was the king of the school. He had a room all to himself, remolded to his own comfort. While the other’s got stuck with two other people.

The door opened, and he was wearing nothing but red and blue boxers. Grace tried her best to keep her eyes on his face, but she couldn’t help to look down at his abs. For a 17 year old, he kept himself in a very good shape.

“Well, well. I didn’t expect you to knock on my door at this time. I do have high standards but I’ll make an exception for you” He winked at her, opening the door a little more so she could come in.

Disgusting. “What? You insensible prick I’m here so you can turn your music off. You know I live down the hall, I have a big test tomorrow” Grace could have sworn he look more disappointed than angry.

“Well you are the only one complaining”

“I swear Thomas, if you don’t turn the music off I’m calling security

“Come on kitten, have a little fun” His voice disgusted her. Talking to her like she was one his girl, like his voice was going to hypnotize her and just spread her legs for him.

“Or even better I’ll just burn down your speakers” She was angry, this wasn’t about her studying anymore, this was about her trying to win a fight with Tom Holland for once, to show him that she will never be at his mercy.

He looked frustrated now, he just nodded with a fake smile and slammed the door at her face. She didn’t know if she won this fight, but she couldn’t help but smile as she walked but to her room. She never had the last word, It was her always walking away from him, it excited her that it was his turn to turn away with nothing to say.

Once she reached her room, she put her books away and getting ready for bed. Her roommates were already asleep. Thank god. Z and Laura hated seeing Grace fight with Tom, since they all got along. After a few minutes the music stops and Grace smile to herself. She had won.

[hwisaacs]

LOCATION: Various / Travelers Rest, SC DATE: March 31st TIME: Various  TRIGGERS: abuse, homophobia (implied - there’s like one sentence about his dad and then the last paragraph where he’s ‘talking’ to his sister.) MENTIONS: @jackfuckingmonday CLOSED

         Henry should have cancelled on his parents when he had the chance. The last few days had been hectic, and he was exhausted. Classes started back up tomorrow; he was not ready for them after a long weekend of flights, games, and celebrations. He had already promised his mom he would be back, and he knew that his dad would have been annoyed at him for cancelling plans last minute. Henry would find an excuse to get back to Palmetto as quickly as possible, even if he had to fake an emergency. At least all his homework was finished, so that was one less thing he needed to worry about. Henry hadn’t actually thought about the consequences of his actions on Friday night and what it might mean for Sunday church with his parents, but now it was a problem he needed to be handled. Well, Friday was fun, if nothing else; maybe not the flight and losing the match, everything else was though. He wasn’t exactly complaining, at least.

         Sitting in his car, he looked at his reflection once more. There were obvious lines where the concealer was, but he couldn’t help that. Henry grabbed the scarf in the seat beside him and put it around his neck. Technically, it was too warm to wear it, he didn’t have a choice though. God, this was so obvious what he was trying to do. Henry hoped his parents were stupid enough to not ask. He walked up to his house, a deep feeling of anxiousness boiling up in him. He saw his mom at the door, she ran out, barefooted, to greet him—as if she didn’t live less than an hour away and couldn’t visit him if she wanted to. He bit back the bitter feeling about his mom away and gave her a hug. He knew this was all show for the neighbors anyway. It always was.

         “How was your break?” she asked, arm around his shoulders. Henry fought the urge to panic.

         “Busy. Professors like to give homework over break. So, I worked on that, then had practice every day, and then the game was on Friday. It feels less like a break and more like a small vacation from seeing the rest of the students at the school. How was yours?” he questioned.

         “Oh, the same as ever. Got some planning for events at the church done, went to the movies with my friends, worked on grading some papers and lesson plans. The usual break stuff. I cooked breakfast for you, if you’re hungry. We missed having you here for break.”

         Henry knew that could only be partially true, though he smiled anyway. He hugged his mom again. Some days he wondered how someone so kind could be married to a monster. Then other days he thought she was just as much of a monster for letting her husband treat his children so poorly. Sometimes his moods about his mom shifted practically within seconds and he still didn’t understand why that happened. He stepped into the house and he could practically feel his father’s foul mood from the doorway. Walking towards the kitchen, he tried to be as quiet as possible, so he wouldn’t piss off his dad more.

         “Henry,” the man spat, as he took a seat at the table.

         “Good morning, sir,” he said.

         “Take off the damned scarf. You’re indoors.”

         Henry did as he was told, putting the scarf on the back of the chair and praying to god that his dad didn’t notice the makeup. Luckily, he didn’t seem to, and he relaxed a bit as his mom put the food on the table. The rest of breakfast went by without a problem. He made small talk with his mom and let his dad lecture him about how he should be focusing on his studies instead of playing Exy—as if Henry was failing his classes, as if his dad was paying close enough attention. Finally, it was time to leave for church and his family piled in the car. The drive always felt either too long or too short. Today it was too long. He’d always hated being trapped in a car with his dad. Too much time for his dad to critique his looks or whatever else he was in the mood to have a problem with. It happened to be his hair and outfit choice today, which apparently was all wrong. Henry couldn’t tune him out, because the conversations always required more than a simple yes or no, sir. Eventually, they made it to the church; Henry flung himself from the car. The church was crowded today—and Henry went off to find any familiar face. Today that face happened to be Monica Browning, his high school coach.

         “Henry!” she exclaimed, a smile on her face as she walked over. Sometimes small towns weren’t the absolute worst.

         “Hey, coach,” he responded, matching her enthusiasm, even if it was fake.

         “I watched the last game. Congratulations on making it through. How’s your head?”

         “Thank you! My head is fine. I was given the all clear and it seems to be alright now. How is your team looking this year? I haven’t been able to keep up. Any potential Foxes?”

         “Oh, with you gone, the team hasn’t done very well. And I don’t think there are any potential Foxes. But I’ll keep an eye out for them. Why don’t you sit with me today?”

         “I’d love to, but I have to head back practically as soon as I get home, so I should really spend the time with mom and dad. But we’ll talk soon. You have my number. I’ll have mom invite you for dinner next time I can stay longer.”

         “Sounds like a plan. It was good seeing you.” She gave him a hug and he went off to find his parents.

         For the most part the ceremony wasn’t too boring, and he was able to pay attention to it the whole time. Henry didn’t hate church; he just hated this one. Everyone was too catty, talking about everyone else behind their backs. There were some things that were hateful. It’s saving grace was the youth program, which Monica ran, meaning it wasn’t the worst it could have been. Growing up, that had always been one thing he and Holland looked forward to at church. In almost no time, the people started clearing out, heading out to talk or staying in the chapel to chatter.

         “Oh, Henry, you have a smudge. Let me…” his mom looked over at him, grabbing her water bottle and dipping a tissue into it.

         “Mom, no,” Henry tried to move away, but couldn’t get away in time. She wiped off what little makeup was still there covering up the bruise. Just at the same time his father looked over—and Henry saw the dark look on his face.

         “Henry William, is that a hickey?” she gasped, moving back.

         “Marilyn,” he said slowly, “I just remembered something I have to do at home with Henry. If you could catch a ride with someone, I’d appreciate it. Henry, go to the car. Now.”

         Henry really should have stayed in Palmetto, but he listened to his dad, knowing what would happen if he didn’t. There were photos of he and Jack online from after the game and at the airport. Surely his dad hadn’t seen them. William had never taken an interest in his son’s life. As soon as the car started and they were out of the church parking lot, Henry spoke.

         “Dad, I—” he started.

         “How dare you make a fool out of me. Showing up to church of all places, looking like you do. Do you know that this entire town looks at us as a family? You’re way more trouble than you are worth. I have to deal with you and the crushing disappointment you’ve always been. And don’t get me started with your sister. What the fuck did I do to deserve you as a child?” William was shouting, though at least he seemed too angry to reach out and grab Henry. He kept going; Henry tuned him out. All of his dad’s speeches sounded the exact same. “I hope to god you’re not at that school slutting around. I won’t hesitate to cut you off if I even catch wind of you causing trouble.” So, he didn’t know who Henry was kissing. “Is she your girlfriend? Who is this woman you’re kissing? I deserve to meet her. Next Sunday.”

         “I can’t next Sun—”

         “You’ll do as I say. Now get in the fucking house.” Henry hadn’t even realized they were home already.

         “I really should be getting back to school soon.”

         “Get in the house.”

         Henry listened, his heart growing heavy with every step. The second he walked in, Wednesday was at his side. He gave her a pet on the head and told her to go to his room. He’d be fine; it wasn’t like his dad hadn’t been angry before. The black dog whined, then gave Henry’s hand a lick, and walked out of the room. His dad made quick work of the punishment and stormed off to his office to grab a drink. Which meant Henry had less than a half an hour to get out of here. He went up to his room, giving Wednesday some more pets on the head, wishing that he could take her back with him more than anything. Maybe he could talk to Betsy about that, since the only reason he had the dog in the first place was so he’d stop sleeping in his sister’s room when he was still in eight grade. Henry grabbed a few books and headed down the hallway, to the door at the end that was never open anymore. The pink and black H on the door contrasted to the blue and white one on his own door. He opened it and stepped inside.

         It was almost like stepping into a time machine. Back to junior year. The posters of bands and shows Holland was obsessing at the time covering the walls. CDs strung about, with clothing. He was surprised that his dad hadn’t gotten rid of this stuff already. Then again, it was a reminder of his failure or a reminder to Henry not to mess up. Getting rid of it meant that he had to admit his failure. Maybe he was hoping Holland would come back, admit he was right, and things would go back to normal. Henry used to think that too. When the pain of her departure was fresh. She’ll be back in a few days, he’d thought at the time. He’d been wrong. Dust collected on every surface. He looked back, but Wednesday sat at the doorway, not coming inside the room. She missed Hol too. For the first time all day, he let himself cry. He missed his sister so much. Even as happy as he was at Palmetto, playing Exy, learning, hanging with Jack, none of it would ever fill the void that was left in his chest when she left. Henry wasn’t sure seeing Hol again would even fix that. Holland leaving left a deep scar. For a little bit, he stood and cried. Then he wiped his tears, looked around once more—spotting something that he’d never noticed before. On her bookshelf, there was a rainbow flag pin. He crossed the room and picked it up, putting it in his pocket. He searched the room again, finding a few more pride themed things and taking them as well.

         “I miss you,” he whispered. “But why did you make me feel ashamed for something you were too? I was twelve. I felt so alone. And you told me to hide it, that it was better to not feel that way at all. You told me to be normal. Hol, I am normal.” Henry wiped another tear away. “You’d like Jack. They make me feel like you did, except I don’t feel like I have to hide any part of who I am.” For a moment he let the words linger in the air, as if he was talking to a ghost. “I’m going to find you.”