AN: So, I really couldn't tell you where this idea came from because I dont know, but it's my first Adam/Rocky, so horray! I love this coupling I've decided, and I had to try my hand at it. I promise, it has a happy ending! Enjoy and pretty please, feed the author!
My Best Friends Wedding
I hate tuxedos. They're hot and uncomfortable, and too tight. But, seeing as this is one of the most important days of my life, I suppose I can make an exception.
I'm standing in a really beautiful hall, decorated with roses and ribbons and there are hundreds of people waiting for the bride, including myself. However, this isn't my wedding, and that's not my bride I'm waiting for.
Man, bow ties suck. I try not to grunt, annoyed as I shift mine again. I just keep remembering how important this day is to everyone. This is my best friends wedding, and everything has to be perfect.
And not just one of my best friends, either. Both of them. They're getting married to each other, after 3 years of dancing around each other and then 2 years of dating. Nobody could be happier for them than me.
But no matter how happy I am for them I can't help but be selfish for me, because after today I'll be the saddest man in the world. You see, while everyone could see how in love with each other they were, no one ever saw how in love I was. I guess it never really read as anything but friendship. I suppose I'm a better actor than I thought.
I've helped them plan every detail of this wedding with huge smiles and happy faces, even helping when something went wrong and Aisha had to have a nervous breakdown. I was the one with reassuring advice that everything would be alright. I've always been that one. The best friend to everyone, no matter how much I love them.
Standing here now, waiting for my beautiful best friend to walk down the isle, I wish I'd never met them at all. And I realize that I could be the one who ruins everything. I could stop this wedding anytime I want to, and tell everyone the truth. I'd never be able to face anyone in this room again, and while that would suck, it'd be better than standing here and never knowing what really was.
This is pathetic. It's obvious that even if I did make a fool out of myself, the object of my affections could never return them. My best friends are getting married. This is the happiest day of their lives. Inside, I feel like I'm dying.
And it's not even the bride I'm in love with.
No, that would be too cliché. I, Rocky Desantos, am not in love with Aisha Campbell. I, Rocky Desantos, am in love with Adam Park.
And soon, every dream I've ever had, the ones where he might possibly share my strange affection, are going to be thrown out the window when that lovely girl comes walking down the isle.
Speak of the devil, here she comes. The wedding march starts up and the bride's maids appear, one by one walking down the isle. Then there she is, my best friend and the one person who causes my nightmares. Aisha really is beautiful, and no one can blame Adam for loving her. Except me.
She strolls down the isle and into his arms, and she hands off her bouquet to Kat as the wedding march ends. They stand their, both smiling brightly, holding hands, and I start to get teary eyed. I can't help it. My entire life is going down the toilet, and for the first time, there's nothing I can do about it.
Over Adams shoulder, Aisha winks at me. I smile back at her, and hate myself for it. It is only with a silent nudge from Tommy that I remember to hand Adam the rings. People laugh at my forgetfulness, and I try to shrug it off.
Adam looks to me with a smile, and whispers. "Thanks, buddy." Last fatal words. I can't do this. I can't do this at all.
A tear roles down my cheek, and then it comes.
"If anyone here has good cause as to why these two should not be married, speak now, or forever hold your peace."
I take in a deep breath. If I do this, they will never speak to me again. If I don't do this, I will have to be god father to all their children and watch them for the rest of their lives. I think I know what I have to do.
The minister has waited long enough, and is ready to move on, so I close my eyes and clench my fists and blurt whatever comes to mind.
"I can't do this!" I say, very loudly. Very loudly, in a suddenly silent church. Adam turns around and he and Aisha shoot me identical looks of confusion. From behind them, Kat and Kim look as though they've seen a ghost. Daggers are being fired from the audience, and I don't even have the courage to look behind me at Tommy for his disapproval. If I couldn't take it as a ranger, I sure as hell can't take it now.
You know that thing they tell you about in health class? That fight or flight reflex? I don't think I've ever used the "flight" one until now. When my voice won't come, my legs begin to work on their own accord. And suddenly I'm backing down the isle, and then I turn and run, dodging hundreds of really pointy daggers.
I don't even know where I'm going. I just know I can't stay here.
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Standing there at the alter as Rocky backs away from me, I can't help but be hurt. What on earth is he thinking? I turn to Aisha, who looks back at me sadly.
"You'd better go after him. I don't know what's wrong, but we can't let him run off like that." She says quietly, though it doesn't matter, because everything is so quiet that everyone can hear. I look at her with a questioning glance.
"You sure?" I ask. She nods, and with a looks of apology I head off down the isle after him.
Can't have a wedding without a best man, after all.
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I burst through the double doors and onto the roof.
And then I scream.
As loud as I possibly can.
What did I just do? Why didn't I think that through? I've probably just ruined the greatest friendship I'll ever have, and I couldn't even get out what I wanted to say.
I'm going to rip off that stupid bow tie and throw it as far as I possibly can, but before I can get there I trip over these overly shiny shoes. Damn suit. Damn shoes. Stubbornly, I take off my shoe and send it flying with as much force as I can muster.
And just as I toss it, I notice another suit coming through the doors, and he narrowly dodges my shoe of death.
"Wow!" He says, as he watched the shoe tumble down the stairs. "You could kill someone doing that." Adam puts his hands on his hips and wonders towards me.
"Could not." I argue out of habit really.
"They've proven you could kill someone with a penny if you dropped it off of the empire state building. A shoe is a great deal bigger than a penny." He nods like he knows everything, and I have to remind myself that he probably does, or he's the best bull-shitter I've ever met.
"We're on top of a two story building Adam." I point out, unable to resist a smirk. "Anyone hit with my shoe will probably toss it back at me."
Adam smiles and heads towards me, and I can't for the life of me figure out what he's doing here. I just ruined his wedding. Shouldn't he be yelling or something?
"Aren't you supposed to be getting married?" I question uneasily.
"I would be, if my best man hadn't just run out of my wedding. What's going on man?" Adam asks me, placing a hand on my shoulder.
I stare at that hand there, burning through my jacket and my shirt, and onto my skin. I've got to tell him. And I know he won't understand. But I have to do it.
"I never should have said I'd be your best man." I blurt, still staring at his hand. His grip tightens noticeably, and so does his voice.
"What do you mean? Why?" He tries to shift his face into my vision, so I make it easy for him. I look up, straight at him, right into his eyes.
"Because I can't let you go." It's not everything I want to say, but it'll have to do. His eyes cloud over momentarily.
"Rocky, nothings going to change between you and me. We'll still be close, still be friends… like always." He doesn't understand.
I try to grin, but can't, and I swallow hard. "No Adam. That's not it." His eyes are so open, so ready for whatever I'm going to say. Or at least I hope they are. "I love you."
His jaw drops a little bit, but he catches it and closes his mouth. I swallow hard, and I can tell he's doing the same. His grip doesn't change on my shoulder though, and I take that as a good sign. I see him searching my face, his eyes darting back and forth between mine. He looks at my lips longer than necessary, and the urge to kiss him is stronger than ever. I only resist because that might jar him too far, and he might do something crazy. Like push me over the edge of the roof.
"You mean… like…" He can't finish, and his voice is so quiet it barely carries to my ears.
"Like yeah. Like that." I answer just as softly. His eyes grow wide for only a split second.
"Okay." He's trying to put things together in his head. My surprise at the engagement. The way I stayed with him at the bachelor party. My shocking interruption of his wedding. "Okay." And then his hand drops.
And I know I've lost. Because if I'd won, he'd be looking at my face right now instead of down at my half-clad feet.
"I know." I say, reaching up the scratch the back of my neck. "Believe me I know." And I find myself backing away again. I bump up against the ledge of the roof, and I turn to look over. I wonder suddenly if two stories is tall enough to kill me, or just break some bones. At this particular moment, anything is better than being trapped up here. "And that's exactly why I'm up here." I catch his attention as I step up onto the ledge.
"Rocky… get down." He commands, but Adam has never been very commanding, and it doesn't really work on me.
"No thanks." I'm getting a little dizzy up here. Starring straight down like that, at the pavement. I see someone across the road stop and look at me, pointing. They're probably going to call the police on me.
"Rocky. Stop that. Right now." His voice is a little stronger, and a little louder. But after 20 some years of friendship, I know how to ignore him.
I stare straight down, attempting to pick a target. I take my hands out of my pockets, and see a mailbox. That'll sting a bit. But I suppose it's better than the fire hydrant. I swallow hard, and then I hear Adam's footsteps. I feel myself loose my balance and my eyes grow wide.
For the longest second of my life, I think he's pushed me. It sunk in and he's disgusted. So he gave me that extra little push I needed.
But then I'm falling backwards, starring at the sky. And his arms are around my waist tightly. And I realize he didn't push me. He caught me.
I lay there for a moment, and Adams breathing is hard and scared. He shifts us around somehow so that he's over me. And then he smacks me. Really, really hard.
"What the hell was that?" He yells. I reach up to touch my face where he's probably just left a mark. "That was your master plan? Confess your feelings and then jump off the roof?" He's looking at me like I'm crazy.
I probably confirm his suspicions when I start to laugh.
"When you put it like that, it sounds stupid." I say quietly, through my giggles. I don't know why I'm laughing, but I know if I don't stop now, I'll be sobbing any minute.
"Shut up." Adam says harshly. "Just shut up. Don't ever do anything so stupidly stupid like that ever, ever again!" He yells at me, one hand shaking my shoulder, the other still resting under me somehow. "You can't just do that! You're so selfish." He tells me, and I stop laughing.
I am selfish. Because right now, I've just tried to commit suicide, and I don't care. All I care about it how dangerously close I am to Adam. And how he's not moving away. When I feel the wetness on my cheek, I realize it's not from me.
Finally looking up at Adam, I see he's trying very hard not to cry, but it isn't working, and a few tears leak out. They fall right onto my cheek.
"Promise me you won't ever do anything like that again. I know you're stupid, sometimes you're really stupid, but that's what I love about you! So don't go doing things like that." He tells me quietly, and I'm shocked by what he's showing me right now. I can't even explain it.
"Adam…" I don't know what to say.
"Promise me." He commands again, and I can do nothing else but obey.
"I promise." I whisper back. Then he hugs me so tight I can hardly breathe.
And I hug him back.
"Adam…" I say over his shoulder, not sure if he can hear me.
"What?" Comes his muffled response.
"I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said anything. I'm sorry." I can't help but apologize, because right now I feel terrible. He's a sobbing mess on his wedding day and it's all my fault.
He pulls away from me and we sit up. He attempts to wipe the tears from his eyes with his sleeve, and he looks at me with a grin. "Didn't I tell you to shut up?" He asks.
Then he does what I never would have expected. He reaches over and kisses me. Actually kisses me. With tongue. Why am I still thinking here?
This is the best moment of my life, I decide as he pulls away from me. He looks at me with a trademark shy-Adam look.
At this particular moment in time, I feel like maybe I really did jump off the roof, and this is heaven.
"I'm glad… that you said something Rocky. I just wish you'd have said it… well, anytime before this really." He mumbles, fidgeting with the cuff of his shirt.
"You don't… hate me?" I ask, staring at him unbelievingly.
Adam lets out a puff of amusement. "Not right now. But in a few minutes, when I go down there and tell Aisha and all of our wedding guests that I can't marry her, I might hate you then."
I can't believe what I'm hearing. Did he really just… he's going to… he wants me? This doesn't make any sense at all. "But you… and I… we… I… I'm so confused." I reply.
Adam looks over at me. "That makes two of us. All I know is, if there's any chance of making you and me work…" He slides a gold band off of his ring finger. "I'm not getting married for a long, long time." And he chucks the ring over the edge of the building.
I stand and stare down over the ledge at the final resting place of his ring, what could have been my mutilated self only minutes ago, and I can't honestly believe I'm living.
Adam stands behind me, and he steps up to the ledge and wraps his arms around my waist. "Not planning on jumping again, I hope?" He asks.
I smile the biggest smile of my life and turn around in his arms. "Made a promise, didn't I?" I ask. And then I lean in and do what I've wanted to do for as long as I can remember ever knowing Adam.
I kiss him like there's no tomorrow. And he kisses me back. And we're kissing, and nothing else matters. Nothing else could possibly matter.
Adam pulls away from me against my protest and looks at me sadly.
"Come on. Let's go stop my wedding." He says, and I cringe.
"Aisha will hate us." I tell him.
"One step at a time, Rocky." He kisses me quickly. "One step at a time."