heyyyyy. look at me with these fast updates, haha. just to clarify, at the end when it says Brooklyn 2 - Liam 0 the first point for Brooklyn was last chapter when she was like 'hah, looks like i am part of the family succkkkaah' xD i just thought it would be an appropriate way to end the chapter , and it's kind of a one-time thing.
oh and like when i was planning this story, i wasn't in love with one direction so this whole liam thing is a coincidence. really, it is.
picture is of him (liam) , btw.
enjoy!
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I pushed my mom's veil into place, taking extra care not to ruin her perfect bun. I stepped back and wiped a few tears away from my eyes, hoping my makeup wouldn't get smudged.
"Mom, you look beautiful. Jeff won't know what to say when he sees you."
My mom smiled at me, then caught her reflection in the mirror. I noticed her face glowing, and I felt so happy for her. She really deserved this. A second chance with a great guy.
"Can you check if he's there already?" my mom asked me in a small tone, biting her lips in anticipation. She clutched the flowers nervously in her hands, looking herself over again.
I nodded, walking out of the room as quickly as my heels would allow. I peered down the aisle and noticed that the priest was already there, as were all the guests.
"You look beautiful!"
I turned on my heel and saw my grandfather beaming at me.
"Hey grandpa!" I murmured, hugging him tightly. "Have you seen Jeff?"
He smiled down at me and nodded. "He's about to start down the aisle. Where's your mother?"
"Oh, let me show you. She's in the bride's room." I grabbed his hand, but he stopped. "No, you stay here. Wouldn't want the maid of honor to get lost, now would we?"
I blushed and smiled, pushing my curls back. My grandfather walked away, preparing to lead my mother down the aisle for the second time. Jeff passed by me, giving me a quick peck on the cheek.
"You look gorgeous, Brooklyn. I'm so lucky to have a beautiful daughter like you," he murmured into my ear, pulling me into a tight hug.
"My mom looks even prettier," I whispered into his ear, laughing softly.
He smiled and stepped away, straightening his tie. I could tell his was nervous too, but then again, who wouldn't be?
Behind him stood the best man: Liam. I hated to admit because of his jackass attitude, but he looked really nice in that black suit. His brown hair was tousled in a neat but effortless way, just making him look that much cuter. But just by the expression on his face, I could tell that he wanted to be anywhere but at this wedding. His eyes flickered towards me, and I noticed, just for a split second, a reaction towards me. And it wasn't negative to the least, because I watched his eyes quickly scan me up and down. Maybe I should've been creeped out that my soon to be step brother was checking me out, but he didn't seem to even want to have any family ties with me.
They started to move down the aisle, and I looked around, wondering where I was supposed to go. Some lady that I recognized as the wedding organizer pushed me in between my mom's friends, and Brenda, our flower girl. The men reached the altar, all taking their appropriate spaces, and Brenda began to hobble down the carpet, spreading out pedals as she walked. I glanced back quickly and saw my mom coming out of the room, arm in arm with my grandpa. Smiling at her one last time, I followed after Brenda acknowledging some of my friends and relatives along the way. Once I reached the altar, I stepped up to my spot among the stairs and waited.
To be honest, the rest of the precession was just a blur to me. My mom and Jeff exchanged their vows, slipped on their rings, and just like that were married. I stayed behind as they walked out of the church, not wanting to get caught up in the huge mob. Since I was one of the last to leave the church, I looked behind and noticed that Liam was still there, talking to some girl. She had that kind of shiny black hair that looked like it had a blue tinge to it. My eyes narrowed as she hugged him, rubbing his back as if consoling him.
"Get over yourself," I muttered under my breath, walking away.
"Brooklyn!"
Startled, I threw my head to the left and saw the wedding organizer stiffly walking over to me. Her heels looked to be around 7 inches high, and I marveled how she could even take a step in them, much less do that hurried walk.
"You and Liam need to get over to the venue. Cocktail hour is starting very soon, and guests are leaving already!"
She threw a paper in my direction, which was a map to the place Mom had chosen to host her after party. From what I remembered, it was very elegant, very classy, and very spacious. Before I even got a chance to tuck the paper away, the organizer grabbed my hand, shouting Liam's name. She led me to the parking lot and handed me keys.
"It's Jeff's car," she explained, pointing to a black Mercedes that barely stood out. "Now where is that son of his?" she muttered, walking back to find Liam.
Sighing, I uncreased the wrinkles that had formed during the small endeavor. Staring down at the keys, I laughed – I couldn't even drive!
"Alright! Your sister has the directions. Get there as quickly as you can!"
Liam strode out beside me, harshly grabbing the keys and paper out of my hand. "She's not my sister," I heard him quietly breath under his breath. Since the dinner when Jeff proposed, which had been around 5 weeks ago, I'd learn to deal with Liam. We stayed out of each other's way and really didn't bother the other. It was clear he wasn't fond of me, and I wasn't exactly fond of him, but it almost hurt that he had to be so rude.
Trying to keep a solid pace behind him was difficult in my tall heels. At one point, Liam was already in the car and had it started up. I was prepared for him to drive away, but thankfully he waited.
We drove in silence. It was one of those awkward ones too, where no one even bothered to start up a conversation. So, I reached over to the radio, flipping through the radio stations until I reached a familiar Katy Perry song.
This is the part of me, that you're never ganna ever take away fr-
My eyes narrowed at Liam, who was placing his hand back on the steering wheel.
"Since you're moving in," he muttered; more like hissed. "I think now would be a great time to set some ground rules. Here's the first: NO KATY PERRY."
"Okay, here's the second: NO COMING INTO MY ROOM WHILE I'M LISTENING TO KATY PERRY!" I retorted, finishing with a cheeky smile.
We pulled to a stop at a red light and Liam hit his head against the headrest. He squeezed his eyes shut for a few moments, and for a few moments, I felt almost bad for him. There was definitely something else going on in his life; something that pained him. I wanted to reach out and touch his arm comfortingly, but instead my lips curled into a small smile.
"We take a left here," I said quietly. My soft reaction must've surprised him because he looked at me. Sure there was spite in his eyes, and his lips were pursed, but it was a start.
"You have dimples," he said, his tone matching mine. His expression was unreadable, and his hazel eyes blankly drifted over me. "Like Mo-. Nevermind."
And just like that we slipped into another silence.
Thankfully, the venue was right in front of us. Liam stopped in front of it, motioning for me to get out.
"I'll park and meet you inside," he said in an unwavering tone. I sighed, stepping out of the car and walking towards the double doors. They were glass, and you could see the beautifully decorated hall from outside. Two doormen pulled them apart for me, and I was greeted with a cold burst of air after that. All the flora added to the beautiful fragrance inside, which was almost overwhelming. Not that it bothered me, as I really loved lavender.
I walked over to a small desk where a receptionist smiled at me warmly.
"Hello Miss. Name please?" She asked in a overly-polite voice that was mandatory to all receptionists.
"Martins."
"Yes, you're straight down the hall. Orchid room."
"Thanks!" I replied cheerfully, setting off down towards the hallway. Liam had gone in through some back door, so he was already there waiting for me. The doors to the ballroom were open, and we were slightly unsure of what to do as nobody had arrived yet. So, it ended up him texting away and me message my friends, begging them to come ASAP.
The familiar click-clack of heels drew my attention to the door.
"What are you kids doing? Up! Up! You have to greet the guests."
Rolling my eyes, I stood up and smoothed out my dress, adhering to that annoying organizer's commands. However, she was right because people started to pour in. I barely recognized any of them, but they somehow knew me. Every time I greeted someone with a 'hello', they would come back with a 'my Brooklyn! Look how much you've grown!"
Liam was opposite of me, dealing with his own distant family members.
Then I saw that girl again. The one I had seen before. Her pin-straight, black hair was now plaited and I noticed that she was really short, and really tan. She someone slinked her way into Liam's arms, quickly pecking him. For the first time ever, I witnessed him smile. As in, an actual smile.
I was suddenly brought out of my thoughts as my best friends, Sabrina and McKenzie attacked me.
"Awe! Brooklyn! Look how pretty you look!"
The next few minutes were spent on us doting on each other's outfits, and how pretty we all looked.
"McKenzie! Am I almost as tall as Brooke?" Sabrina asked, shuffling next to me so McKenzie could compare out heights.
"Uhm... I can't really te-"
I watched her pupils widen and turned around to see what had diverted her attention. Stepping back next to McKenzie, I watched in bliss as the food was brought out. Ditching my job as greeter, I scrambled to get first pick at the appetizers. There was so much to chose from, but I finally decided on some fruit. And that was only because Sabrina had talked me into it.
"For the diet, Brooke. No calamari. Healthy things."
"Please, Sabs. If you lose another pound Brooke, I won't be able to see you."
I laughed as my friends argued. Quickly my attention shifted elsewhere as my eyes searched for my mom around the room. She was surrounded by so many people, I decided to go talk to her later.
"Let's go find a table, girls," I suggested, speaking over the loud chatter in the room. We quickly picked up our plates, making our way over to an empty table that was numbered with a '6'. After us, everyone else started to file into their tables, sitting with people they knew. My mom sat next to Jeff at the table up front, right next to the big cake.
We all took turns pointing out people that caught our attention, and I had quickly forgotten the awkward car ride before. I could always count on my friends to cheer me up.
"Oh my God, I can't even! Look at the girl over there. Someone should tell her that this is a formal event, not some club!" McKenzie sneered, pointing to some girl across the room. My eyes followed her finger, and I quickly noticed who she was talking about – none other than that girl who I presumed was Liam's girl friend. My eyes widened as I realized how slutty her dress really was. It barely stretched mid-thigh, and it clung to her body like a second skin.
"But look at that guy next to her. He is fine," Sabrina said in a low, surprised voice. "Like, tumblr status. Tell me not?"
McKenzie agreed with a nod of her head. The both of them looked towards me, expecting my input.
"That's Liam. He's my step-brother."
Sabrina gaped at me in a mixture of shock and jealousy. McKenzie, who had taken a sip of her soda, coughed wildly. Finally, she caught her breath and stared at me too. After a few moments of awed silence, Sabrina spoke up.
"Uhm, Brooklyn. How come you never filled us in about that little slice of heaven?" she said slowly, motioning with her head in Liam's direction.
Now it was my turn to cough up my drink. Little slice of heaven?! Liam was the exact opposite.
"I hate him. It would've been irrelevant anyways. You guys never asked."
"Mentioning your super hot brother would totally have been relevant, Brooklyn!" McKenzie protested, clutching her fork angrily.
Setting my napkin down, I smiled sweetly at them. Fluttering my eyelashes, I muttered, "Hey guys. So my mom is marrying this guy and his son is so cute it's almost unfair," in a faux polite voice.
"Good enough," Sabrina sighed, looking towards his table again. "That girl is so not good enough for him."
"Tell me not!" McKenzie voiced, glaring at her angrily. "You should go tell her something!"
I looked at McKenzie incredulously. "I should say something? Please. Liam's so rude to me. And my opinion won't change a thing. He's such a problem child, I swear." I glared towards his table too, but it wasn't the black haired girl I was staring at. My gaze was focused at Liam, and I really hoped he would turn around and notice my venomous expression.
He didn't.
"Awe! That's so sweet. He's like one of those lost puppies. He just needs a great girlfriend to help him find his way!" Sabrina decided in a slightly dreamy tone. I rolled my eyes and shifted my attention to the main buffet, which was just coming out.
"Did you invite any guys?" McKenzie asked me, her gaze shifting to the five empty seats at our table.
"I did, but Court and Kyle have some soccer tournament so they couldn't come, so Justin didn't want to be the only guy so he ditched," I told them.
"Losers," Sabrina muttered, pushing her chair out. "Let's go get some food. I'm still hungry."
The three of us agreed on that statement, so we all got up and breezed over to the food. A line had already formed, and I noticed my mom at the front, talking to a few of her guests.
"Guys, save me a spot. I'll be right back."
With that I headed over to my mom. Her eyes lit up when she saw me, and she smiled.
"I haven't seen you at all, Brooklyn. Are you enjoying yourself?"
I nodded, smoothing out a piece of material on her cream dress that was sticking out. She smiled at me in an affectionate, motherly way, pulling on of my curls so that it draped over my shoulder. I had taken it out of my bun as soon as I got of the car because I loved the feeling of soft curls tumbling down my back.
"I'll catch you later, mom," I called, heading back to my spot in line. Sabrina and McKenzie looked frozen in place. Their eyes were wide and then said something to me but I couldn't catch it over the music.
"What's wrong?" I asked once I had stepped in front of them. Sabrina motioned with her head behind us, and I finally spotted what they were talking about. It was just Liam and his girlfriend, so I didn't know what they were freaking out about.
"And...?" I questioned, grabbing a plate and scooping up some pasta.
"Nothing. She's just kind of scaring us," McKenzie replied, turning around quickly to catch her steely gaze.
"She's coming over here. Crap!" Sabrina whispered, ducking her head and suddenly taking much care to picking out the best pieces of steak. McKenzie huddled next to her, leaving me to deal with that girl. Her gaze was cold and unwavering, and her thick, arched eyebrows added to the aggressive air that surrounded her. She was definitely one of those girls everybody knew and nobody messed with.
"Is there a reason you and your friends can't keep their eyes off of my man?" she barked, staring me down.
"Girl, that's actually my step brother...." I replied calmly, setting my plate down.
"Oh please, I saw the look the three of you were giving him. So in case you wanted to know, he's not interested."
"I mean...Neither am I," I replied, starting to laugh at the ridiculousness of the entire situation.
"Rachel, babe, leave them alone. Not many girls can't resist this charm," Liam purred, wrapping his arms around her waist. My eyes rolled without me even having to think about it. Arrogant jerk.
"Aw, I know sweetie. Some girls don't understand that you're taken though," she purred back. Turning her attention back to me, she added, "Liam here is the groom's son. So he could dismiss you any second. I wouldn't start trouble if I were you."
Appalled at her attitude, I tried my best to contain myself but it didn't work. "Well, I'm the bride's daughter. So in case you didn't hear me right the first time, that makes me his step sister. And that means I could dismiss you any second. Oh, and since we're going at each other, I thought I should mention that this is a wedding so next time, try and make an effort to not look like you just came back from working the corner." With a cheeky smile, I raised my hands and then lifted my plate again. Rachel didn't respond, so I smirked confidently, happy that I had one less problem to deal with.
"Please, you just wish you could pull that dress off."
My whole body froze at Liam's sneer, and my friends stopped next to me as well. If this had been a cafeteria at school, you would've been able to hear a pin drop. But it wasn't, so everybody continued to mill around, unaware of what he had just said to me. Turning my head back to face him, I really had to contain my feelings so I wouldn't hurl my food at him.
"At least I don't pretend that I can," I countered, rudely staring both of them down before moving away.
Brooklyn 2 – Liam 0