a/n: hope the formatting comes out okay. i put this up on tumblr (heathcliffhodges) based on a convo misha (absense on FF/somemidnightsunshine on tumblr) and i had and i kinda felt the need to publish it here too. hope you enjoy!

So far, so good, Ruby thought to herself, rubbing the satin of her white gown between her fingers as she sat at the front of the room. The ceremony had went surprisingly well— none of her relatives had started screaming at each other or attempting bloody murder, so that was a relief. And now it was only the reception she had to worry about— and really, how bad could it be? It was just a few short speeches by the best man and maid of honor—

Except that Matilda Choi was the maid of honor. And Matilda Choi did not do speeches. Especially not emotional, nostalgic, boo-hoo-pass-me-the-hanky speeches. Especially not sappy speeches about the bonds of friendship and the sisterly relationship she and Ruby shared. And especially not speeches that were not quite accurate in saying that their relationship had been completely sisterly.

Not that Ruby was going to mention that, of course.

She watched now as Matilda picked up a small packet of paper and shuffled up to the microphone.

"Um. Hi there. I'm Matilda—"

"HI MATILDA!" cried Flinch— Julio, she had to remember; he was a grown man now, and they were far past middle school nicknames now— and Matilda offered an awkward smile at him.

"—and, uh, I'm the maid of honor, which is really cool, I guess, and—"

"Stick to the speech!" Duncan hissed. Ruby would have found the desperation— it was clear he'd written the speech for her— in his facial expressions amusing if this wasn't her own wedding. Instead, she clenched her fists even more around her dress. Heathcliff quietly reached over and took her hand.

Matilda glared at Duncan, but cleared her throat nonetheless and began in a monotous tone. "I have known Ruby Peet since we were in the fourth grade. Ruby is one of my very best friends and I am so pleased that I have gotten the chance to know such a lovely woman. I am sure…"

Ruby groaned internally. The speech screamed Duncan with every mechanical sentence. As kind as her gadget-savvy friend was, writing interesting speeches was not his strong suit either.

"…are like sisters, except for that time in junior year when we kissed in the hallway— wait, what?"

Ruby choked, and Matilda was spluttering as well from where she stood with the microphone. In the crowd, she could see Jackson with tears in eyes, and Mindy slapping his shoulder. Duncan was staring at Matilda, seemingly horrified, and Ruby's relatives appeared to be equally confused.

Meanwhile, Matilda had regained her ability to form (semi)coherent sentences, and now screeched, "JACKSON!"

The blond quickly stood up and faced the guests. "It— it was a joke! I thought it'd be funny if I just added that little bit in," he said, blinking several times and smiling in that lopsided, unsure way that he always did when he was nervous, but Matilda was now shouting, "You said you wouldn't tell anyone!"

There was silence.

"That was a joke, too," Ruby deadpanned.

Next to her, Heathcliff fell out of his chair.

a/n: i hope you enjoyed reading this as much as i enjoyed writing it. because i really enjoyed writing this.