5 Things Riggs Never Told Lyla
Author's Note: This is my first story, be gentle with me. Please review and let me know how I did, again, gently. :)
Timothy Riggins was standing at a crossroads. He was getting married and the entire town of Dillon was watching, waiting for him to screw this up. "Do you Timothy Riggins, promise to love, honor, cherish, and share everything with this woman as your wife?" Tim thought back on all the things he never shared with Lyla.
5. She was the first girl he ever fell in love with.
After that night, you know, in the rain, when they first kissed, he knew he would love her forever. And he honestly believed that would be enough. The closest he ever came to telling her was saying he had a rush of emotion around her. And when she went back to Jason, and told him it was over, he drank so much he woke up the next morning still drunk.
4. She helped him realize the kind of person he should be.
Lyla once told him his drinking and carousing was just pathetic and gross. And she was right. Four years later, Tim is still trying to become that person, the best person he can be, for the woman standing next to him, but more for himself. He hit the 1-year sober mark 3 days ago.
3. He would have done anything for her.
Told Street, her parents, anyone. He would have been a boyfriend instead of his usual man-whorish self. He tried to go sober for her, which is just amazing and he tried, really tried in school (academia, yeah, he learned that word too).
2. He tried to save Street.
No, reallyhe did. That night he was so angry after finding out about them, you know, after Street's and Lyla's wedding, and Street got in the wrong car, the car that wasn't set up for a quad, Tim stole some guy's car and raced after him. Tim put his car in front of Jason's, and just sat there as Jason crashed into him. Sometimes, Tim still thinks it should have been him who died that night, and sometimes, he still has nightmares. His soon-to-be-wife tells him that it wasn't his fault when he wakes up in a cold sweat, that he'd done everything he could, but Tim still feels like he let down Lyla and Street. Lyla never believed him about what had gone down that night.
1. Goodbye.
It's been an uncomfortably long silence, and the preacher says his name, as does the woman standing next to him, "Tim?" Coach starts to stand, to find out what the hell is going on, but Tami pushes him back into his seat. And as Tim looks at his bride, the woman he never thought he would be good enough for, in his mind, just quickly (a passing thought that he'll never mention to anyone-ever), he says goodbye to Lyla Garrity, his past, and looks into the brown eyes of Julie Taylor, his future.
"I do."