Winning Her Back

Chapter Twenty Nine

Tatum's POV

"Only three weeks left, are you getting excited?" The wedding caterer, Bill, eagerly asked as we piled into the catering hall.

"Getting excited? I've been excited since this guy got down on one knee months ago!" Willow replied, clutching Zach's arm even tighter than she was before. 

"Of course you have! Heck, I've been excited for this wedding for months! Why don't we get right to it then?" Bill said, leading us into the kitchen where a table for 8 was set up.

The wedding day was getting closer and closer; practically everything was settled. Everything but the menu. I'm not sure why, but the couple just couldn't pick out what food they wanted at the reception. So, three weeks to go and here I sit with both Willow and Zach's families to create the menu. 

"So, what were you thinking? What type of food? Asian, Greek, Tai, Italian, Mexican-" As Bill went on and on with the different options, I became fidgety with Ryan's obvious star towards me.

Ever since I hung up on him a couple weeks ago, he's been calling me nonstop and texting me like there was no tomorrow. He's even showed up at my house a couple of times, much to my dismay. And of course my parents let him in because nobody could be on my side of this situation. We spent a good hour crying on opposite sides of my room until I told Ryan to leave.

The whole car ride today was a complete disaster. Zach was driving the four of us in Willow's car- more preferably called my dream car- and despite my pleads for Willow to sit in the back with me, I was left with Ryan and a view of Zach's hand on Willow's thigh in the front seat. A constant "Tatum, we need to talk this through." and "Tatum, please." came from the boy next to me, though I kept my gaze out the window and focused on the newly leaved trees in the suburbs of New York.

"I think we wanted a mix of everything. Tacos here, sesame chicken there. Just, everything." Willow said, indiscreetly clutching Zach's hand under the table.

"I definitely want a pasta station." Michelle Rydes said looking at her daughter for approve, which she got with a lick of the lips.

"Oh, and a sushi bar." Zach grinned.

In any other situation I would have loved the idea of having unlimited sushi at my disposal, but with Ryan sitting next to me I felt like hiding all the sticky rice and seaweed in the world. I shouldn't feel this way at the mere mention of the food we ate on our first date, though here I was chocking on the water I was just sipping.

"What's wrong with Tatum?" Carmen Carter whispered to Ryan, interrupting my thoughts. There were tears rolling down my cheeks and I was hacking up a storm. 

"Sorry. My, um, my water went down the wrong pipe. I just, I need some fresh air." I said after clearing my throat. I saw Willow hesitate to get up, but I stopped her. "Stay. Continue with the menu, I just need to step outside for a bit." I shot everyone, well almost everyone a small smile before retreating from the room and making my way outside.

"God, how could I be so stupid." I muttered to myself, bracing the banaster on the front porch. I have to stop letting Ryan and I's past get to me. We were simply a high school fling, something that lasts only one out of like ten times.

Maybe you can be that one. I simply pushed away that thought as the door I just came out of opened again.

I was expecting to see Willow rushing out, demanding an explantion for whatever that was. However, I was surprised to see Ryan approaching me slowly.

"Will I get slapped if I move any closer?" He asked, planting his feet about 5 feet away from me.

"There's a good posibility." Despite my serious resonse, Ryan chuckled and continued moving forward. "I wasn't kid-"