"hello, dear" mrs. carter greets in her british accent. "were your flights okay?"
she's seems nice... but i still get a weird vibe from her.
"both were fine, mother" juliet responds blandly. "this is jack and aria. my boyfr-"
"boyfriend and his sister! i know who you both are" juliet's mom says calmly. "it's so nice to finally meet you, jack."
wow fuck you too then i guess.
it's always a pleasure to meet me. we have beef already and it's been less than 30 seconds.
but she's so fine-
"lovely to meet you too, mrs. carter" jack says, grinning ear to ear.
he definitely got that word from jules. 'lovely.' she says it all the time.
mrs. carter laughs lavishly.
jesus christ even her laugh screams rich person.
"you can just call me eleanor, dear."
of course her name is eleanor.
juliet's face twists as she adjusts herself on the stool. "i thought you usually like younger people calling you mrs. carter though?"
"he's family now, isn't he?" she smiles again, looking directly at jack, then at me. "same with you, miss aria."
a mix of both names. i like it. not just aria, and not including my last name.
gold star.
"i appreciate it, eleanor" i thank, mindlessly swinging my legs from the stool.
she glances down to my feet for a split second and smiles, then walks over to jack and mr. carter.
don't hold this against me, but i think that smile looked forced as fuck.
"the salad looks delicious so far!" eleanor praises, inspecting the salad.
i just know jack is wagging his tail and giggling in his head from that.
"anyways," she continues, "i'm going to get changed. would you mind calling me down when dinner is ready, love?"
mr. carter nods, looking up from the steak. "of course, honey."
i watch eleanor make her way to the stairs and eventually disappear.
***
"first time having dinner with her parents, how do you feel?" i ask jack as we enter my room together.
juliet is taking a quick shower, so jack and i are just chilling here until she's done. it's sibling gossip time now.
"i'm feeling okay about it... do you think it went well?"
i hum happily and nod. "you did great. was i okay?"
next, he hums, but not happily. "at the end of your meal you were sipping with your straw to get like every last drop of water, and all you were doing was making that obnoxious bubbly sound."
i scoff. "is that a tip to help me behave better? or are you actually turning into them already?"
jack lightly yanks on my pony tail as i'm trying to wipe my makeup off, which makes me swear under my breath. "you're the one that asked for my opinion. and no, i'm not turning into them. i just don't want her parents to dislike you, that's all."
sure. like i'm supposed to care what a freakish, fancy, top class, rich business woman thinks of me, a normal first year college student who grew up on hand-me-downs and lunchables.
i shove him away and continue removing the minimal amount of makeup i had on. basically just mascara, and some highlighter on my nose
"okay, fine. but did you see that nice ass pool in the back yard? we should ask ju-"
"with what bathing suits?" he interrupts, already knowing what i would ask. "neither of us brought one, and there's no way in hell one of juliet's swim tops will fit you."
that's true. juliet is probably like, a b cup, and i'm a high d... we can swim another time. maybe.
as i finish up my skin care, i let my hair loose and open up my bag. "whatever. anywho, how do you feel about her dad? i think his name is weird."
"Archibald?"
i nod and pull my pajamas out of my bag. "yeah! why doesn't he go by archie or something?"
jack puts a blanket over his head so i can change. "you could be a little quieter" he hisses, "but yeah, it is kinda weird."
we quietly break down laughing together mischievously, then i respond.
"i guess it's a professional thing. maybe he doesn't want to sound juvenile with the nickname or some shit" i mention, throwing a big t-shirt over my head.
once i have my pajamas on, i take the blanket off jack's head and begin to lay it out on the bed. then, i slide myself under both that and the comforter.
after another couple minutes of discussion, the door opens and both of us jump to attention. but we then both relax as soon as we see juliet walk in.
her hair is still wet and she's wearing a silky two piece pajama set, consisting of pants and a loose cami top.
"are you going to bed, aria?" she asks.
i turn onto my side to face her directly and nod. "i think so."
"jack?"
he shrugs. "i'm staying up if you're staying up."
"i'm going to bed" she laughs. "big day tomorrow, you should get a good sleep."
jack stands up from my bed, stretches, and walks over to juliet.
"can you wake me up in the morning?" he asks, looking slightly down at her.
"i'm already getting aria up anyway, so sure" she replies, then looks to me. "goodnight!"
"goodnight" i mumble, curling into a ball.
"and goodnight to you too, my love" she smiles to jack before giving him a kiss and exiting.
"night, ar."
again, i mumble a goodnight.
and then i'm out.
***
i can't believe i'm awake and dressed up by 9:00am. i already need a nap.
but at least i look decent in my little wedding outfit. i don't have my tits out as much as usual, so i think that's a good enough attempt at dressing for a wedding.
i must admit,
i may or may not have forgot to pack a dress. hopefully jules won't get up my ass for wearing jeans.
but to be fair, i was more focused on trying to pack nice outfits that cooperated with the freezing weather at home.
once i'm done triple checking my look, i wander into jack's room to check on him.
i knock on his door twice before letting myself in, and i see him stressfully walking around the room.
"hey?" i greet, closing the door slowly.
jack looks at me, then goes back to the mirror to examine himself.
"do you think i look okay? is it too much? or too little? oh my god, don't even try to lie about my hair, i just ca-"
"jack!" i cut him off, "you look perfect. i mean, look at me! i'm wearing jeans to a fancy people wedding!" i say, laughing at myself ridiculously.
i'm probably not supposed to be wearing white either, but the blue flowers should make it slide.
he laughs back, then adjusts his hair for probably the 50th time by now.
"i'll probably be able to relax when juliet sees me. as long as she agrees with you, anyway."
speak of the devil, or more like angel, the door swings up to reveal a dressed up juliet.
"seriously?" i whine, "did i miss a green and white theme or something?"
"aria?" she says quietly.
uh oh.
"you look great, jules! i love your hair like that!" i grin nervously.
she chuckles once and tucks her hair behind her ears. "you didn't bring a dress?"
i bet jack feels really fucking good about himself right now.
i chew the inside of my cheek and shake my head, shifting my weight to my left side.
"that's... that's okay" she breathes out. "you still look, uh, formal enough. besides, it's not like they can sue you for wearing jeans."
i have a feeling the old juliet wouldn't be so lenient.
college juliet lives life like a normal person, for the most part. she gets to dress however she wants and act however she pleases.
to be fair, she still acts like an angel. just an angel that lets loose a bit more.
my point is, juliet doesn't want to force anyone to live like she did, and still sorta does when she's home.
"do i look okay? and are these shoes okay to wear?" jack asks, clearly still nervous.
juliet walks up to jack and grabs onto the collar of his outfit. "what would be wrong with your shoes?"
"i don't know... i just wanna make sure i won't mess anything up that i could easily avoid."
bless his heart. this has to be way too much pressure on him.
although i guess it was about time he meets juliet's family in person.
but again, as for me, i'm only here because i care about her and jack. and maybe because i'm kinda nosy to see what it's like living like this.
other than that, i'd rather crack open a corona seltzer and kick my feet up on the recliner to watch crime shows.
juliet smiles warmly and walks away from jack, motioning both of us to the door.
"my mom is ready, make sure you have everything so we can get going in about 20."
it's time.
***
"you know, pierre," juliet says, taking pierre's hand as he assists her getting out of the car, "you didn't have to agree to be a chauffeur for us. being our butler around the house is plenty enough help."
he smiles and shuts her door for her. "it was my idea, actually." then, he whispers, "since your mother is paying me extra for it, and i'm saving up for a lambo."
god, i love pierre.
as we approach the venue, i don't really know why i wasn't expecting this country club to be so grand.
it looks like they'll be getting married on the golf course and then the after stuff happens in here.
i've only been to one wedding, so i'm following juliet like my life depends on it.
pierre walks us to a table covered in a white cloth with a candle in the center. there's name tags in front of each seat, reading one member of our group's names on each one.
there's four seats, one on each side of the table.
but there's only three of us.
unless... is pierre eating with us?
"i'll be back after the wedding, miss juliet" he says softly before turning around.
"bye, pierre" juliet smiles.
okay but who the fuck is sitting in the empty seat across from me?
i guess it wouldn't hurt to just-
"aria" juliet aggressively whispers, "don't lean over the table like that."
literally no one is looking at us right now, but i sink back into my seat anyways.
"i just wanted to check the name tag" i mumble. "also, are we gonna gonna be served alcohol here? i wanna try fancy people wine!"
jack stomps on my foot under the table like we always do to scold eachother, but juliet is quick to react.
"jack."
oh shit he's in trouble too. she didn't even use a pet name. she usually at least says 'babe.'
before anything else can be said, a slightly familiar face sits down across from m-
wait. what?
i'm imagining things. for sure.
we are at a fancy people wedding in california, i have to be bugging right now.
"hello, guys! how are y... aria?"
holy. shit.
isaac.
juliet's head snaps to face me, and my jaw is literally on the fucking floor.
this is the same isaac that was my uber driver months ago. but... how?
"you know him??" juliet asks in disbelief.
barely, but sure. so i nod.
"why the fuck are you here?" i say a little too loudly.
"aria. the swearing" juliet whispers.
isaac sits down all the way and scoots his chair in. "because the bride is my aunt."
"but i thought she was juliet's aunt?"
"she is" juliet confirms.
what? there's... no way?
"wait... you're not- i mean-"
"absolutely not" she says quickly.
isaac laughs. "we aren't siblings, juliet's mom has two sisters. the other sister is my mom."
since when??
this is too fucking much for my brain. i guess i really didn't know shit about this family.
i look isaac up and down, trying to make any sense out of this shit.
we catch eye contact, and an entertained smile forms on his face.
"really?" i ask juliet. that's all i can even think to say.
"mhm" she hums. "my mom has two sisters. one of them is the bride, and the other is isaac's mom. so yeah, he is my cousin."
who would've guessed?
isaac is a damn carter.
accidentally changing the subject, i turn back to isaac. "why did you ask for my snap and then never snap me? that's weird, so what was the point?"
"i wanted to give you some space instead of hitting you up immediately. didn't wanna creep you out or anything."
was he trying to make it up to me for taking advantage of me while i was drunk or some shit? trying to act like a nice guy?
"well you did creep me out!" i snap.
jack sighs loudly, covering his face with his hand.
"aria..." he grumbles.
"you wouldn't leave me alone when you were my uber driver that one night!" i continue. "but that's nothing compared to what you did to me at that party. remember? while i was drunk, and what you did?" i glare, "and what you tried to do?"
and what the hell is he doing being an uber driver anyway? doesn't his mom give him a $10k allowance every month or something?
isaac smiles nervously, glancing left and right. "but your boyfriend at the time came and stopped us before we could make any more drunk decisions, remember? we didn't end up doing any-"
jack nearly snaps his neck turning to face me as quickly as he did. "boyfriend?"
oh. right. asher told isaac he was my boyfriend right after he punched him in the face...
"we? are you fucking serious?" i laugh, ignoring the boyfriend thing. "you were trying to fuck me while i was-"
"aria! can you please watch your language?" juliet says harshly.
is she serious?
this is enough. my anxiety is going through the fucking roof.
but i can't let anyone see me weak. i try to not let that side show.
so i stand up, and decide to find my way to the bathroom.
trying my best not to be a nuisance, i swiftly swerve past people and occasionally give a quick 'excuse me, sorry' until i finally make it to my destination.
i lock myself in a stall and pull out my phone to call the one person who understands the unbearable tension of this situation.
i slide down the wall all the way down to the floor and hug my knees up to my chest, impatiently waiting for my call to be answered.
"aria? you okay?"
"hi big man, and no" i respond, suddenly aware of my eyes becoming glossy.
"wait, what? what's wrong?" he asks quickly, worry filling his eyes.
i take a deep breath and look up at the ceiling before starting.
"it's way too much to explain how, but isaac is here. long story short, he's juliet's cousin. the table-"
"who the hell is isaac?" he snaps, completely grazing past the fact that someone i already know is somehow here.
"um... remember that party? my first party at college?" i say quietly.
"yeah?"
"and- and, uh, that guy who..." i take another deep breath and beginning tapping my foot on the floor. "who was really, uh... handsy? and... fuck, and he tried-"
"that piece of shit? are you fucking serious?"
asher's eyes darken and his eyes brows furrow.
i nod. "mhm. he's at the same table as me."
next thing i know, the camera is facing the ceiling and i hear shuffling from the other end of the call.
then, the sound of something smashing onto the ground. not just falling, there was definitely force to that landing.
i knew he'd understand.
"well did you tell anyone?" he asks, aggravated, and still not in view of the camera.
"i told juliet back when it happened, but what are these people gonna do? believe me? he's an entitled rich white boy backed up by his whole family. all that'll do is cause problems on the most special day of the bride's life."
and he goes silent.
i notice my feet shakily squirming in place, and a single tear falls down my cheek.
"i may speak my mind all the time, but i'd never ruin someone's wedding" i sigh. "i'll just deal with it."
"that's fucked up, aria."
"well what do you want me to do? nothing is gonna-" i start, but stop myself when i hear the door open. "hold on. give me a second" i say, lowering both my voice and the volume on my phone.
"aria? are you in here, dear?"
juliet's mom?
fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck-
"yes, ma'am" i respond, ending the call and walking out of the stall.
i see eleanor standing up straight with one hand in her pocket, and the other holding a clutch.
she's still so hot.
"a bathroom isn't a great place to hide, you know" she smiles. "it's a bit dirty."
i chew my lip and nod. "yeah, sorry. i wasn't trying to hide, just had to take a quick phone call."
"walk outside with me."
***
eleanor and i walk along a path outside, lined up with beautiful vibrant rose bushes.
"my daught- juliet told me what happened" she starts calmly.
"...how much did she tell you?" i ask quietly.
she hums, and continues the conversation. "i understand why you're so upset. see, young isaac's mother was always the problematic sister, and her husband is, don't mind my language, but he's an asshole."
hearing eleanor swear in her expensive, elegant, british accented voice is really reassuring for some reason. just for a second, it makes her sound like a normal person.
"i mean, he wasn't even invited to the wedding" she laughs. "so i'm not surprised their boy ended up that way. but what i wanted to say is that i believe you."
she fucking believes me? but i didn't even say anything yet?
i nearly trip and fall as we walk, but thankfully i manage to catch myself.
"you... you do?"
"i do" she nods composedly. "growing up the way i did, i've unfortunately been through similar situations. no one believed me, or really cared at all, and i'd hate for a young woman like yourself to experience the same thing."
holy shit.
is this even the same woman i ate dinner with last night? the same woman who raised juliet? it can't be.
"i'm so sorry..."
"it's fine, darling. i know i'm very strict with juliet, but respectfully, you aren't like us. i can't force you to keep your chin up, or just forget about it for the night. i mean, i don't think i would even make juliet do that. this just isn't the right environment for you to be stuck around young isaac after what he put you through."
a soothing gust of wind blows against us as eleanor puts her sunglasses on the top of her head, and i adjust my shirt just because i'm fidgety right now.
"what are you saying?" i ask.
"i have pierre on the way to pick you up. he's gonna take you back to the house."
i stop walking, and so does eleanor. she turns around to look at me and smiles reassuringly.
"are you sure? i really don't mean to cause any-"
"i'm not changing my mind."
oh. okay.
this isn't how i expected this to go. like, at all.
i guess i'm not complaining.
"right. thank you, ma'am."
we walk down the rest of the path in silence, no words needing to be said.
it's nice.
"i'll also have pierre leave a bottle of wine for you."
i take it back. those words were definitely needed.
"actually?" i ask cautiously.
"you're 19, aren't you?" she asks. i nod. "then it's fine. drinking is legal at 18 where i'm from."
for once, i love the way she thinks.
fuck it. i kinda like eleanor.
for now, anyway.
maybe somehow, deep down, she wondered what it would be like raising a daughter the way most people would. maybe she just wants to bask in that alternative reality for a second.
she was raised the way she raised jules. she didn't get to live a normal childhood, and she didn't get to provide a normal childhood to her daughter. it's completely foreign to her.
it would make sense, but maybe i'm just making shit up.
***
hi guys...
this probably isn't how you were expecting the wedding to go but uh
plot twist!
anyways i'll make it up to you in literally the beginning of next chapter
i won't spoil anything but
spicy
also i kinda wanna make the chapter titles more than one word to make them more interesting but it would ruin the aesthetic and there's already so many chapters UGH
we'll figure it out
edit: i changed the titles
OKAY BYE THANK U FOR READING
#bringbackpip