Five Years Later
I was so happy and nervous at the same time, and I really hated that feeling. I didn’t even know how I was supposed to feel! Definitely happy, but was I supposed to be this scared and nervous? It sure didn’t seem like I was supposed to be…
I was happy. That was all I was supposed to be… I was just supposed to be happy… But my stomach was doing flips and I felt like I was going to puke all over.
“Are you scared?”
I looked up at my friends, unsure how I was supposed to answer this question. Of course I was scared, but was I supposed to be? Would they think that I didn’t want to do it if I told them that I was scared? I was just nervous, I still wanted to do it!
“A little, I guess,” I admitted, picking at my nails as I continued to sit on my bed. My four friends continued to sit on the floor with their legs crossed, waiting for me to continue on with what I was saying. “I mean… tomorrow’s a big day. It’s the big day… A lot of things will be changing tomorrow…”
“Don’t worry, Delilah,” Julie smiled, her hands folding in her lap. “Everything will be fine! You and River are meant to be together! I bet the whole wedding is going to be absolutely perfect! I assure you!”
“It’s going to be the wedding of the century,” Alice assured with a nod, smiling brightly as she did so. “I get that you’re nervous, but it’s really great! You’re going to have the time of your life!”
I couldn’t help but smile at the ring around Alice’s finger. Rex had gotten the guts to actually ask her to marry him and they’d gotten married a few months earlier. And what do you know, Rex really had it in him, Alice was pregnant! She was five months along and barely showing, but it was still obvious that she had a baby inside her stomach, which I just couldn’t get enough of…
Even though Rex still acted like a kid himself, I knew that he was definitely ready to be a father.
Man, I was sure Rex’s kid was going to be just like him…
That thought really scared me.
They were having a boy, so that scared me even more.
I knew we said that River and I were going to get married a week after we graduated, but my family really wasn’t happy about that. So after a stern talk between our parents, they finally decided that we would get married on the day we originally planned, after we had graduated from college.
So far the only one of us who hadn’t gotten married or engaged yet was Marnie, but I seemed to be the only one to tell that Seth was planning on it. He was acting weird, and not the same kind of weird he had acted when he broke up with her for me…
Bekka and Avery were engaged, and then Julie and Tanner had gotten married the year before. We were all set, but I could tell Marnie was freaking out just a little. She had found out why Seth had broken up with her back in high school a few years before, and I knew she was always afraid in the back of her mind about whether or not Seth still loved me or not.
Even my brother had gotten married. Much to my dislike, he had married Arianna and her last name was now unfortunately Shafer. Not only that, but she was seven months pregnant, her stomach was round, and it was obvious that she was carrying a baby.
They didn’t live that far away from my mother’s house, but I didn’t really keep in touch. I spoke to my brother every once in a while, but I never spoke to Arianna. I knew that they were coming to my wedding, but I wasn’t really looking forward to that…
“Is Jay coming to your wedding?” Bekka had to ask, fiddling with the ring on her finger. “Do you guys ever talk anymore?”
I nodded. “Yeah, we talk a lot. He’s busy filming and everything a lot, so he usually calls me… But yeah, he’s coming to the wedding.”
“It’s hard to believe that he actually tried to get you and River to break up,” Marnie informed us, her toes squishing into the carpet a little as she painted her toenails. “I mean, you guys are just such good friends now and everything that you wouldn’t think he had a crush on you.”
“Well, he got shot because of me,” I reminded her flatly, not wanting to remember that horrible night all those years ago. The only good part about that night was that it was the last time that I had ever seen Kendra. I didn’t know where she was now, but I honestly didn’t care at all. As long as she was far away from River and me, that was all I cared about. “I wasn’t about to be a bitch and be ungrateful.”
“It’s not going to bother River that he’s there, is it?” Julie now asked me, pulling her knees up to her chin as she sat next to Marnie on the carpet. “I mean, he did know that Jay had a crush on you…”
“The better question is whether or not there’s going to be paparazzi or not,” Alice interrupted before I could answer Julie. “I mean, Jay’s still pretty popular even though it’s been years since he got famous. The wedding’s at your house, so what happens if it gets swarmed by paparazzi?”
“We’re screwed?” Bekka guessed, and I couldn’t help but laugh at this. “Unless Jay has bodyguards or something, there really isn’t anything we can do about that. The last time we all had anything to do with cops, it was with Delilah and that Higginson guy.”
I grimaced. “Jeez, don’t remind me of him. The most important day of my life is tomorrow and you’re terrifying me with thoughts of the past.”
Bekka smiled apologetically. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” I shrugged, letting out a deep breath that I didn’t even realize I had been holding. I was so nervous about getting married, and thinking about Mr. Higginson didn’t help me out at all. I hadn’t heard from him since Mr. Ridgeway and Ms. Vierra’s wedding, and that was definitely a good thing. I also hadn’t heard from Keith, and I couldn’t help but wonder how things were going with him. Unfortunately, I didn’t think I would ever hear from Keith again.
“Is not seeing River since yesterday just driving you insane?” Marnie asked me with a sly grin, and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at her. “I mean, you guys are so inseparable that it’s like he’s inside of you!”
“Gross,” Bekka commented, not even looking up at her nails that she was inspecting.
Marnie’s eyes widened, and her face turned bright red. “I… I didn’t mean it in that way!”
Alice winked at her. “Sure you didn’t.”
Marnie buried her face in her hands, waiting until her cheeks cooled down to look back up at us. I understood what she had been saying, but I couldn’t help but laugh when everyone else took it dirtily. I definitely did love my friends more than anything…
“But I think River is probably having a worse time without Delilah,” Bekka voiced her opinion, still not looking up from her nails. “He’s like Delilah’s little puppy or something.”
“He is not,” I defended, pulling my knees to my chin now. Wow, we still sounded like we were in high school. “River just loves me, that’s all.”
“And Avery loves me, but he’s nowhere near as devoted as River is to you,” Bekka informed me, pointing the nail file at me when she finally looked up from her nails. “It’s a compliment, dude.”
When there was a knock on my bedroom door, I was the only one that jumped in surprise. I still wasn’t good with those kinds of things, and I didn’t think that I ever would be. After everything that happened with Mr. Higginson, I was probably the most jumpy person on the planet.
“Delilah,” my mother’s voice rang out through my room as she opened the door. “I have a favor to ask of you…”
“Yeah?” I asked, sitting up straight now and dropping my knees from my chin. “What do you need?”
“Well, Arianna really wanted to be a part of your guys’ little slumber party…” my mother began, moving out of the way to show the pregnant redhead that she had just mentioned. “And I told her that she could join you…”
I stared at my mother as if she was insane, and I was pretty sure she was. She knew what had happened between Arianna and me, and she also knew what Arianna had paid Gabe to do to me, but did she even care? Apparently not! She had let her son marry her, and then now she was forcing her into my party right before my wedding!
“Sure,” I smiled, even though all I really wanted to do was yell at her. “Arianna can join.”
The evil redhead walked inside the room, my mom smiling at me gratefully before shutting the door. I knew that my mom wanted me to get along with Arianna since she was my brother’s wife, but I really didn’t want to. Even though I had considered her my friend at one point, that didn’t erase everything that she had done to me.
“Look,” Arianna began sharply, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked at all of us snottily. “I understand that I’m not exactly you’re favorite person, but I’ve come here to do something important.”
“Important?” I questioned flatly, crossing my arms over my chest as I stared pointedly. “What’s so important that you have to come and crash my party?”
“I’m here to… apologize,” she said, spitting out the last word as if it had burned her tongue. “I’m here to apologize for everything that I did when we were younger.”
“You’re just going to apologize and you think that’s going to make everything better?” Bekka asked, crossing her arms over her chest as well as she glared at the girl that stood before us. “It doesn’t work like that, sweetheart. It’s not like we’re going to just forgive you and go on with our lives.”
“Do you have anything to do with this?” Arianna snapped, placing her hands on her hips.
Bekka’s eyes narrowed at Arianna. “You bet I do.”
“I forgive you,” I blurted before either of them could say anything else, and now everyone was looking at me as if I was insane, even Arianna. I knew she didn’t expect me to forgive her so easily. “I’m not going to live the rest of my life hating anyone except for Mr. Higginson. I’d even forgive Kendra Harris if she came here and begged for my forgiveness. And since you’re my brother’s wife, I guess I’m stuck with you. And since there isn’t anything I can do to get rid of you…”
Arianna smiled wryly at me. “I don’t really know if I accept you accepting my apology that way…”
I rolled my eyes at her. “Just shut up and sit down. We’re painting our nails for tomorrow.”
*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~*
June 10th, 2017
“Deli Sandwich!”
Twenty-two years old and that boy still called me by that stupid nickname.
But I couldn’t help but love him even more for it.
“You’re supposed to be getting ready to walk Alice down the aisle,” I told him, doing my best to pry him off of my shoulders without messing up my hair or my dress. “Will you let go of me before you mess everything up?”
“Oh, sorry,” he chuckled, letting go of me and rubbing the back of my head. “Just force of habit, that’s all!”
“No duh,” I couldn’t help but grumble, turning back toward the mirror to make sure that he hadn’t messed anything that was on me up. “Why are you even here anyway? Why aren’t you with Alice?”
“I just wanted to say break a leg!” he grinned, looking at me through the mirror now.
“That’s not a good thing to say when I’m in a dress like this,” I informed him flatly, motioning to the flowing white dress that hit the floor. “Knowing me, I really will break a leg.”
“Okay then, good luck!” he chirped, draping an arm around my shoulder now. I only rolled my eyes, not even caring if he messed anything up anymore. He was going to touch me no matter what I said. “Not that you’re going to need it or anything. You and River are perfect!”
“Go to your pregnant wife,” I told him, poking him in the side so he’d finally let go of me. “You’re going to have to walk her down the aisle soon. So hurry up and shoo.”
“Fine, fine, fine, I’m going,” he sighed, rolling his eyes at me as he dropped his arm from my shoulder. “But just remember! If River ever does anything to make you cry, just tell me and I’ll beat him up!”
I rolled my eyes at him now. “Uh-huh, okay.”
“Wow, it hurts how you don’t believe in me.”
I could only roll my eyes at him again. “You know River won’t ever do anything to hurt me,” I told him, pushing him toward the door now. “Now go to Alice before she starts freaking out, you doofus. Go on.”
When he finally left, I let out a sigh and turned back toward the mirror. I looked at myself and smiled, still not really believing that today was really the day. I was going to be Delilah Daniels.
Words couldn’t even describe how excited I was.
“It’s your big day!” Marnie grinned, practically running around me in circles to make sure my dress looked absolutely perfect. “Can you believe it? You’re finally getting married, Delilah! It feels like yesterday it was the dance at Bentwood where we first met!”
“That does seem like yesterday…” I murmured happily, smiling down at the white dress I was wearing, heat rising to my cheeks just a little. Today was finally the day that River and I were getting married. After six years of knowing him, we were finally getting married…
“This is such an exciting day!” Marnie gushed even more.
“After waiting for so long, it’s finally here,” I breathed as I stared at myself in the mirror. My hair was curled to my shoulders, my makeup perfectly done around my eyes. I couldn’t believe that I was finally getting married after all this time… I just couldn’t believe that I was getting married.
“I think it’s better that you’re getting married now at twenty-three and not eighteen,” Marnie informed me as she continued to fix my veil. “I think it would be hard to get through college being married. Just be glad you’re through it now.”
My mother always wanted grandchildren, but I didn’t know when River and I were going to have kids yet. I wanted them soon, but I didn’t know about him. My mother was ecstatic when she found out that Arianna was pregnant…
I had spent so much time worrying about the fact that Arianna had married my brother that I didn’t even get that excited over the fact that I was going to have a nephew. They knew the gender of the baby and they had known for a while, but Arianna had always pissed me off so much that I didn’t celebrate with everyone else…
“This is so exciting!” Marnie continued to gush, clasping her hands together a she looked at me in the mirror. “You’re just so pretty! Today is going to be the best day of your life, Delilah! I can’t believe that you’re finally going to get married!”
I could tell by the tone of her voice that she wasn’t just happy, but she was upset. I knew that she loved Seth with all her heart, and yet he hadn’t even hinted at the fact that he wanted to marry her. I knew it bothered her a lot, but she was too nice and patient to say anything to him. She was afraid that he would leave her again if she bothered him about it.
She wanted to get married. She wanted to get married more than any of us, I knew. But Seth was the kind of guy that didn’t do something until he was sure, and he must not have been sure about Marnie yet…
Now I was getting kind of angry. Marnie was a great girl, and yet Seth had gone off after me years before, even though I was going out with his best friend. He had to be planning on asking her to marry him soon, right? He’d be a huge idiot if he wasn’t…
“Marnie, don’t worry,” I smiled, not even looking at her as I continued to smooth my dress in the mirror. “Everything’s going to work out, okay?”
She blinked at me, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
I finally looked at her, and I continued to smile. “You’ll see soon enough, I’m sure.”
“Knock, knock,” a new voice said as we heard a knock on the door. We both looked over so see Jay sticking his head into the room, a wide grin on his face, as usual. “And I see this is the blushing bride’s room.”
We were having the wedding at my house in the backyard, just like we had with my mother’s when she married Nick, so we really were in my room. At least, it was my room when I was living at home. It was so weird to be back when I had been living with River in New York in his apartment.
“Jay!” I squealed, jumping up and wrapping my arms around his neck in a hug. “I’ve missed you! How’s that movie coming along? The trailer looks really cool.”
Jay shrugged at me when I finally let him go. “It’s the same as always,” he told me with a wave of his head, acting like a total movie star in that uncaring way of his. “Nothing special.”
“Do you have bodyguards here or anything?” I couldn’t help but ask him now as I remembered what the girls had been saying the night before about how Jay would have paparazzi swarm my house if he didn’t have bodyguards or something. “I mean, it’s not like you have to or anything, but…”
“You’re afraid paparazzi are going to crash the wedding,” Jay grinned, cutting me off and finishing my sentence as if he had read my mind. He shook his head, still smiling as he continued, “Nah, no one knows that I’m here. I have a bodyguard of mine downstairs just in case, but I don’t think we’re going to need him.”
I let out a sigh of relief. “Good.”
“I should probably get downstairs to get a seat,” Jay told me now, smiling at Marnie to quickly greet her before turning back toward me. “Good luck, Delilah.”
I couldn’t help but roll my eyes, but I still smiled. “Everyone’s saying that to me.”
Jay shrugged. “Well, you don’t really need it.”
When Jay left the room, Marnie and I turned back toward the mirror. We were only able to stay that way for a few seconds until something else was interrupting us.
“Delilah,” a new voice said, and the two of us looked over to see my father pop his head into the room. He smiled at me, and I could tell he couldn’t really believe that his little girl was actually getting married. “We’re starting in a few minutes. We’re going to need Marnie to walk down the aisle with Seth before you, so she should…”
“Right, right!” she giggled, giving me a quick hug before turning toward the door and starting to run out. “Good luck, Delilah!”
My father walked into the room, and I finally stepped away from the mirror and toward him. I tried my best not to trip over the long dress as my father helped pull the veil over my face. He handed me the bouquet of flowers and just stared at me for a moment.
“I can’t believe you’re getting married,” he told me with a small smile evident on his face. “I was kind of hoping that you’d stay a little girl forever, but here you are. All dressed in white and everything.”
I grinned at him. “You’ve known this day was coming ever since I was seventeen, Dad.”
“Yeah, but… years pass by quickly,” he told me with a nod, wiping at his eyes only a little. I knew that he didn’t want me to think he was crying, so I didn’t say anything about it. “I was gone for ten years of your life. I missed you growing up. And now, here you are, getting married…”
“Come on, Dad,” I breathed, clutching onto his hand tightly and smiling at him after I had glanced at the clock. “It’s time. But remember, I’ll always be your little girl.”
My dad smiled right back at me. “That’s great to hear.”
I leaned forward, hugging him tightly with him hugging me back even tighter. We both then walked through the empty house, but I knew that everyone was right outside in the backyard. River’s family, my family, and our friends were going to be there. I was just glad that we had a big backyard…
I heard the music start, and everyone that was supposed to go before us slowly made their way down the aisle. Marnie and Seth, Rex and Alice, and then Gabe and Anna. Gabe and Anna had actually gotten back together a little after my last run-in with Mr. Higginson, and they were now happily engaged.
Everything was turning out great for everyone. I was getting married, and so was everyone else. And then there was Seth and Marnie… I could tell something was up with Seth, but it wasn’t like how something was up with him when he liked me. It was different, but I couldn’t really tell…
When the music that I was supposed to walk down the aisle to started playing, I felt my stomach clench. I was so nervous about messing up… But I wasn’t going to. If I just stayed calm, I wasn’t going to mess up… I was going to be perfectly fine…
I slipped my arm into my father’s and he slowly pulled me down the aisle. I had to remind myself not to trip over my dress as I finally made eye contact with River after over twenty-four house of not seeing him. Even though I had my veil over my face, I could still see how handsome he was.
He had Rex and Seth standing next to him as his best men, and I had Marnie, Alice, and Julie standing beside me as well. I couldn’t believe that we were actually doing this…
When my father had gotten me up to River, he slid his arm out of mine and sat down next to my mother. River took my hands, and we stood right in front of each other after I had handed Marnie my bouquet. The priest smiled at us, and I held my breath for a few seconds before letting it out slowly.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join River Christopher Daniels and Delilah May Shafer in holy matrimony,” the priest smiled brightly, and I couldn’t help but grin at River from under my veil. “We’ll be starting off with the vows that River and Delilah have written to each other…”
I had never been good at memorizing, but I had been reading what I had wrote every single night before I went to bed. If I didn’t know it, then I was the stupidest person on the history of the planet.
“Delilah,” River started, his smile never leaving his face. I couldn’t remember a time when River had smiled like this, even in front of me. He always either smirked or had that half smile on his face… “I’ve known you for six years, but it feels like I’ve known you for so much longer. You’re my other half, and there’s no way I’d be able to survive without you. You’ve saved my life so many times, and if it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t be here anymore. I want to thank you for that, Delilah, and I want you to know that I love you more than anything. Ending this with the thing that started it all, the only thing I have to say now is… je t’aime.”
“River,” I breathed, biting the inside of my lip as I continued to smile. I swear, I was sure my face would get stuck like that. “You were there for me when I needed someone the most. You were the first one out of everyone who knew why I really went to Bentwood and all the problems I was having. I don’t care if you don’t look like you used to when you were younger, and I wouldn’t care if you were to change yourself all over again. Because I love you for who you are on the inside, not the outside. And that will never change. And we must me a lot alike, because I was planning on ending this with the same thing you did… Je t’aime.”
The priest said a few more things, but honestly I wasn’t really listening. I was too overjoyed with the fact that I was actually finally marrying River after all this time…
“River,” the priest began, “will you take Delilah to be your wife, your partner in life and your one true love? Will you cherish her friendship and love her today, tomorrow and forever? Will you trust and honor her, laugh with her and cry with her? Will you be faithful through good times and bad, in sickness and in health as long as you both shall live?”
River smiled at me, squeezing my hands tightly. “I do.”
“Delilah,” the priest began again, “will you take River to be your husband, your partner in life and your one true love? Will you cherish his friendship and love him today, tomorrow and forever? Will you trust and honor him, laugh with him and cry with him? Will you be faithful through good times and bad, in sickness and in health as long as you both shall live?”
I couldn’t help but smile widely, teeth and all. This was it. I was getting married to the boy of my dreams, and no one was going to get in between us this time. Not Kendra, not Seth, and definitely not Mr. Higginson. Everything in my life was perfect, and it all started right when I said those two words.
“I do.”
“If there is anyone here who doesn’t believe that these two should wed, please speak now or forever hold your peace,” the priest now spoke to the crowd.
I looked over at Seth, who smiled warmly at me and gave me a little nod. I smiled right back at him, and then looked back at Rex to see him giving me a thumbs up.
I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing as I now looked out into the crowd to see if anyone looked like they were going to say anything. Jay grinned, both of my parents and even Jake looked happy, and I could tell that River’s mother wasn’t exactly the happiest person on the planet, but she was going to deal with this. His father looked happy though, and it made me almost forget about what he had done in the past.
Tanner grinned at me, and it was hard to believe that he had tried to hit on me the first time I had ever met him. He was such a good friend of mine now, and it didn’t seem like he ever wanted to get into my pants.
Gabe looked so happy to be with Anna, and even though I wasn’t great friends with her, I could tell she was happy to be with him as well. Avery was even here with Bekka, and both of them actually looked happy for us. Even though I had made up with Bekka and now she was one of my best friends, it was still a little weird around Avery… Even if he did kind of make up with Seth as well…
Mr. Ridgway and Ms. Vierra were in the crowd as well, and they were still happily married as they sat there grinning at me. I hoped to have a marriage like theirs, one that I knew would last forever.
Everyone in the crowd just looked so happy, happy for River and me and happy just to be alive, and no one looked like they were about to ruin River and my happiness.
Only one person rose their hand, and they stood up all the way from the back. This person had messy blonde hair and blue eyes that I had feared for the longest time. He stood up tall and straight, his hand raised high in the air as he smirked right at me.
I smirked right back at him, turning back toward River with a smile on my face now. I knew that no one was going to listen to the man raising his hand in the back, because the only person that could see him was me. When I looked back over to where this person had been standing he was gone, and I knew he had disappeared into the back of my head, where I knew he would be for a while.
“I now pronounce you man and wife,” the priest announced with his usual big smile. “You may now kiss the bride!”
River lifted my veil, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me in. He smirked at me for a few moments, just looking at my face for a moment, before finally leaning in and pressing his lips to mind. I wrapped my arms around his neck as everyone in the crowd cheered and clapped, and I couldn’t believe that this was actually happening.
I was actually Delilah Daniels.
I was finally, finally Delilah Daniels.
Marnie handed me back my bouquet and River and I walked down the aisle together as the crowd continued clapping. So many people were crying, and it made me want to cry as well. I was surprised that I hadn’t yet, but I was sure that I would
At the reception, River and I had our first dance as man and wife. It was as amazing as I thought it would be, and soon everyone else joined in to dance. I danced with my father, Seth, Rex, and pretty much anyone else who wanted to dance with me. I was in such a good mood, I didn’t think I’d care who I danced with!
When it was time for the best man speech, or should I say best men, since it was both Seth and Rex, I was actually a little nervous. I was afraid that they were going to say something stupid or embarrassing like they always did, and then River and I were going to have to beat them up or something after. I guess all I could have done was hope…
“We both met River when we were in sixth grade,” Rex began into the microphone, smiling over at the two of us as Seth did the same. “And believe me, he’s a lot different than he is now. He doesn’t even look like the same person anymore!”
“I remember when fighting with River about putting the top down in my car because he didn’t want to mess up his hair,” Seth grinned into his microphone, and I couldn’t help but laugh with everyone else when I remembered that happening. I was actually in the car with them, but I was sure they had had more fights like that without me in the car. That had been so long ago… It happened like right after I had met them. “I never really understood why his hair was so important to him. He always acted like such a girl when it came to his hair…”
“Well, Delilah, congratulations… You’ve married a very lovely lady,” Rex grinned, and this time I burst out laughing along with everyone else. River’s cheeks turned bright red, but I never found him cuter. “Just kidding, Rivy.”
“And we met Delilah when we were juniors in high school,” Seth now continued on. “She was a really troublesome girl… She always needed one of us to protect her. But honestly, none of us really minded that at all. We were happy to protect her, because she’s our best friend and we’re willing to do anything for each other.”
“Deli Sandwich was the only girl to ever attend Bentwood,” Rex now took over. I rolled my eyes at the nickname that I’d never get enough of. “She caught our attention immediately. But you could tell that she had a different effect on River. He changed immediately once she got there. He got quieter and more distant because he was nervous, and then after they started being friends he changed even more. He’d talk and laugh and smile just like he did when we were in middle school. And then when he started liking Delilah, she was actually going out with someone else…”
When Rex pointed to Avery, I let out a groan and sunk into my seat a little. Was he seriously going to mention him like an idiot?
“She was going out with Avery, this guy here,” Rex grinned as he continued pointed at the aforementioned boy. Bekka rolled her eyes as she squeezed his hand, but Avery didn’t look bothered by it at all, which surprised me just a little. “River was obviously upset about this, and he got all distant again. But then they started going out, and things were great again!”
“Okay, Rex, I think you’ve embarrassed the hell out of River enough,” Seth informed him, elbowing him in the side.
“No, I have more,” Rex continued on, obviously not understanding that Seth was trying to tell him to shut his mouth. “One time, in eighth grade, River--”
“Alrighty,” Seth interrupted, shoving Rex to the side as lightly as he could have without pushing him off the stage. “Who wants cake?”
We cut the cake, and after River and I had cleaned up from smashing it in each other’s faces, it was time for me to throw the bouquet. This had always been my favorite part when it came to weddings, but I didn’t really know who was going to be able to catch it. The only single people I knew that were at the wedding were little kids, and I knew it wasn’t exactly going to be fun to watch little girls attack each other for flowers…
For some reason, the girls had somehow gotten Marnie to go up to catch to bouquet. She wasn’t single, but then again she wasn’t engaged or married yet. I thought Seth would have a problem with Marnie going up there, but he didn’t seem to care at all.
Something was definitely up with him. He was the type of guy that would care if his girlfriend was going into a group with single women.
Most of the group was little girls, but then there were Marnie and a few older women as well. I let out a breath before turning around, counting to three before tossing the bouquet behind me.
I spun around, my eyes wide when I saw the bouquet land perfectly in Marnie’s outstretched arms. The little girls pouted and the older women looked jealous, but all Marnie could do was stare down at the bouquet in complete shock, obviously not expecting this to happen.
I smiled at her, about to walk over to talk to her until Seth beat me to it. I couldn’t hear what they were saying at first, but when I saw Seth get down on one knee and pull something out of his pocket, my eyes widened in shock and I made my way closer.
“Marnie, will you marry me?” he asked, and tears were forming in Marnie’s eyes in a matter of seconds. This was all she wanted, and now she finally got it. Seth was actually asking her to marry him…
“Yes, of course!” she cried, wrapping her arms around his neck and squeezing him tightly. “Of course I’ll marry you, Seth! Of course I will!”
When Marnie saw me, she squealed and hugged me just as tightly. I smiled at Seth over her shoulder, giving him a nod that showed him he did the right thing. He shrugged at me, but he couldn’t stop smiling either.
When Marnie and Seth went off to dance, all I did was sit back down and watch them. So things ended up working out for everyone, even though it didn’t seem like it would have all those years before. I thought that I was going to get stalked forever, and I thought everyone I ever cared about was going to get hurt because of me. But here we were, everyone I ever cared about, right in my backyard.
“Well, Mrs. Daniels,” a new voice said, and suddenly I felt lips brush against mine before River sat down in the seat next to me. “Can you really believe that we’re married?”
“I can hardly believe it,” I giggled, reaching over and taking his hand in mine. “It seems like yesterday Mr. Ridgeway was forcing me into his room… All three of you were there, just minding your own business, and here we are now… Six years later, and all three of us are inseparable…”
I leaned forward, pressing my lips to my husband’s once again.
My husband.
River Daniels was actually my husband…
I just loved saying that.
“Deli Sandwich!” Rex smiled, running over to us now with Seth lazily trailing right behind him, like usual. Rex was clutching onto the photographer’s wrist, so I knew what he what was coming. “Deli Sandwich, it’s time for us to take pictures!”
I groaned. “I don’t want to take pictures yet.”
Rex plopped down in my lap. “Too bad.”
“Get off me! You’re heavy!”
Rex grinned but got off me anyway. For a fit guy, he sure was heavy… I had known him for six years and I didn’t even know that he was that heavy! And I was sure that he had at least sat on me before…
Reluctantly, I took a few pictures with them and then some with other friends and family. Some of these picture would be great for the scrapbook, which we were just about finishing…
But we’d make a new scrapbook, I was sure. Because we were going to need a new one when we had a family, and then probably even more than one when our kids grew up. All the possibilities were endless, and I hadn’t ever felt so young before in my life.
Mr. Higginson had ruined high school for me. I could never feel like a kid because I was always worrying whether or not I was going to get killed or kidnapped. But now, since Mr. Higginson was rotting behind bars where he belonged, I could actually live my life.
I never told Alice that Mr. Higginson had been cellmates with her father. I knew that she didn’t want to hear about him, so I wasn’t about to upset her with news about him.
When the wedding reception was over, River and I got into the car that would take us to the airport. Just like I had planned all the way back since high school, we were going to go to France. I was actually good at the language now, and River had always been good so we didn’t have to worry about him.
But as we were driven to the airport, I couldn’t help but think about the future. How many kids were we going to have, and what were we going to name them? Who knew how long it would be until I got pregnant? Anything could happen now…
I was free. After four years of being stalked, I was actually free. Mr. Higginson couldn’t bother me anymore. The only thing that could haunt me were the memories that he burned into my brain, but I could live with that since I had River and my friends by my side.
Things were amazing now. It didn’t seem like they were going to be from the start, but they definitely were. Who would have ever thought that I was going to marry someone like River? I definitely didn’t. Before I met him, I wondered if I’d never be able to get married at all. But obviously I could, since I was sitting right next to my husband…
I just still couldn’t believe that we were finally married. We had been waiting for so long…
“I love you,” I whispered, cuddling into his side comfortably. He wrapped his arm around me like he never ever wanted to let me go.
“I love you, too,” he whispered right back.
“Why do you have to be so amazing?” I asked, but I didn’t really except an answer from him.
“It’s what you do to me, Delilah,” River breathed, pulling me in closer to him and burying his face into my hair. “It’s what you do to me…”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The official end of Hey There, Delilah. After nine long months... :'(
But what better day to end it than on my one year anniversary on Wattpad? :D?
Thank you so much for reading and sticking with this story all the way up to the very end. It means a lot to me. <3 I love you guys. :)
Please COMMENT, VOTE, and FAN! :')