So, I know I told you about two weeks ago that this chapter would be up in a couple days. I was wrong I guess, but I don't really feel bad. This is the longest chapter I've ever written in my life! 3,033 words, nine pages size fourteen font (I have really crappy eyesight. Like 10/20. I really need to remember to wear my glasses next time. So yeah, enjoy this really long chapter! I'm not really asking for reviews, but I will give you a preview of the next chapter if you do happen to shoot me a review or a PM. I don't know when I'll update next, I just wrote the preview so far.
Sorry if the name Shane is mixed up with Bryan's at one place or another. I was finding that I mixed them up often in this chapter. I think I coght most of them, but then aain, it's 10:30 at night, and I'm on cough syrup with codine now, so I may have missed one or two. If you think you found where I made an oopsie, just let me know in a review or a PM and I'll fix that right up!
So, I really need to go to bed, even though my mom said I could stay home from school tomorrow. Off to sleepy time for me!
As always, read Review and enjoy!
Love ya'!
~BroadwayGlory
All in White
Kait's POV
I was sitting in my mom's old bed, reading, the night before my wedding day. I had promised Alice that I would stay over in the big house tonight. I was trying to concentrate on nothing but the story line right now because I would go into jitters if I let my thoughts drift to the wedding.
There was a knock on the door frame. I looked up to see exactly the person I was trying to forget. Shane was standing in the doorway holding a bouquet of lilies. He walked into the room "Can I come in?" he asked quietly.
"Do I really have a choice?" I snapped. He seemed taken aback, but I didn't care. He wasn't about to hurt me anymore and he was most definitely not going to hurt Gabby.
"I… uh, I brought you these." He fidgeted with the corner of his shirt after he gave them to me. I took them and set them on the table by the bed. I wouldn't tell him, I would just hope he saw them in the trash. I hated lilies, and I hated him even more right now. "I just wanted to say, good luck for tomorrow. I guess I'll be leaving now though, I'm clearly not wanted here."
"You're right, you're not." I shot after him as he walked out of the room silently. Bryan appeared in the door a few seconds later, a crease in between his eyebrows. I shook my head and stood to meet him. He had reached me before I could take a step, wrapping me tightly in his arms. "What was that?"
"Nothing," I replied, looking away, out the window wall.
"That didn't sound like nothing," he replied, gently peppering my exposed neck with kisses. "I know how to get you to talk Kait."
I sighed deeply and turned my face back to him. "Do you remember our conversation a few months ago? When I told you that I loved you more than could ever love Shane?" I asked looking up at him.
"Yeah, why?" he asked.
"We think he heard us. One thing I know about Shane is that when he hears something he doesn't like, he fights like hell to get it taken back. We think he's trying to get me back." I confessed.
"That son of a bitch…" Bryan muttered, heading for the door, his fists clenched.
"Bryan!" I shouted, putting my hand on his shoulder and turning him to face me. "I would never take him back, even if I wasn't marrying you tomorrow. Don't forget, I am marrying you tomorrow. I am making a commitment, and I won't let you or myself down. Not Again"
"I love you," he sighed against my lips.
"I love you too," I replied. "I truly can't wait until tomorrow, can't wait to be Mrs. Bryan Rivera, and I can't wait to be yours." I kissed him firmly on the lips before holding his face and looking into his eyes. "You have nothing to worry about Bryan. I'm not going anywhere." I hugged him hard.
"Time for him to go," Alice said popping her head in the door. "You need to get to sleep Kait." She shooed Bryan out the room before tucking me in.
I looked over to her as she exited the room. "Aunt Alice?" I murmured sleepily.
"Yes?" she paused in the doorway and looked over her shoulder.
"Thank you," I said. "For everything. I love you."
"I love you too. You'll always be my Katie bear." She said exiting my room and closing the door silently behind her.
I lay there staring at the dark, flat ceiling. I wanted to sleep, but the butterflies in my stomach had different ideas. I could only stare at the ceiling. What seemed like about an hour passed when I heard a knock on my door. "Come in," I said quietly knowing whoever was there would hear it.
Bella came to sit on the edge of the bed, gently moving a strand of hair out of my face. She seemed grandmotherly as she did that, though she was practically a second mother throughout my short life.
"Hi Grandma," I whispered, closing my eyes as she stroked my face.
"Hi sweetheart," she whispered back, still stroking my face. "Are you sure you're ready for this? You are only a few years old. I know your mother doesn't feel rushed, because she isn't much older, but I just wanted to be sure you were comfortable with this?" she seemed even more grandmotherly in this moment. Concerned and gentle, as she made sure I was making the right decision for me.
"I've never been so sure about anything mama. I love him so much it hurts. I just want to be his." I was hesitant to say the next part to her, but I knew nobody could hear us because they were all busy and we both had her shield around us. "I want him to make me his. I want to be married when we do that, and I don't think I would have been able to hold off much longer."
"You're not just doing it because of that though? You really do want to marry him?" She kept stroking my face and my hair while she held my other hand.
"More than anything." I was positive and I answered right away. She seemed content with that answer and she smiled at me through the dark.
"I love you so much petite-fille." She called me her nickname for me. It meant granddaughter in French. She had picked up some of the language when the Voltiri came for my mother almost ten years ago. Apparently there were some French nomads on our side then.
"I love you too grand-mère" I replied back with the French word for grandmother.
"Be happy," she said, "make tomorrow your fondest memory. I know it's mine. That's why I want to give you this." She held out a beautiful sapphire pin in her hand. "Something old, something borrowed, and something blue. Killing three birds with one stone, don't you think? I wore it on my wedding day, your mom wore it on hers, and now I want you to wear it." She prodded me with her fingers to take it. I held it in my hand and turned on the lamp.
The silver pin was heavy and cool in my hand. I studied my grandmother's smiling face before throwing my arms around her shoulders, pin still in hand. "Thank you mama." I whispered tearfully into her shoulder. I let her go and she smiled at me and gave my shoulders a squeeze before walking swiftly and silently out the door, shutting it behind her.
I fell into a nice deep sleep soon after.
I was awoken by Alice shaking me awake and jumping on the bed yelling "Time to get up Kait! You're getting married today!" I groaned sleepily, rolling over and opening my eyes, only to find Alice's Pixy face slightly too close to my own.
"Alice, just give me a few minutes. I'll be up soon." I stretched and groaned, until all the traces of recent sleep were out of my body. I jumped out of my bed, to be promptly dragged by Alice to her enormous, recently updated bathroom. Today was going to be wedding hell.
She spent hours prepping me, for the hair and makeup. I thought Alice may be slightly crazy. I wondered if she had had one too many shock treatments in the horrible insane asylum she was living in before she was turned.
I felt her hands working on my hair, while Rosalie did my makeup lightly. After a day of "pampering" I was deemed ready to get married by my aunts. They slid the satin dress over my skin and zipped me up while my father came in the door.
When he looked at me, I swear I saw the glimmer of a tear in his eyes. He came close and hugged me. "I love you so much Kaitlyn, you are truly the picture of beauty today." I smiled gently at him.
"I love you too daddy. It seems like just yesterday, we were home alone, having takeout Chinese and watching "Full House" reruns." I joked. That had been yesterday.
"God, you are so young. I wish I didn't have to let you go so soon, but you are grown up now my daughter."
"Alright people!" Leave it to Alice to butt in on our nice conversation. "I have the finishing touches to put on you, and then we can get this show on the road!" She bounced into the room in her green dress, a box in her hands. He quickly put my shoes on my feet. She fastened my pearls, and slid the hairpin into place. She bent under my dress and yanked a frothy white garter into place on my thigh, not noticing my light blush.
I hadn't noticed the whole female wedding party filing into Alice's room until I looked up at them. My mom, Rosalie, Esme and my grandmother all stood in a line, wearing matching green dresses. My sister came in in her long Green and white dress last, looking stunning as always. I was excited to get this show on the road as I stood up and took my father's arm.
I heard my grandfather begin to play the piano and we set off down the aisle. It seemed to take everyone forever to get down the aisle, so I took the time to whisper to my father. "I love you daddy."
He smiled back at me "I love you too darling." He wrapped his warm arms around me in a tight hug. He hugged me like this until I was sweating in the heat of his arms. He let me go when we heard our cue.
It was now our turn to walk down the aisle. I looked up and saw Bryan's face. Suddenly, all of the lingering confusion was gone. I knew, the second my eyes met his gorgeous, blue ones, that Bryan was the one for me. To hell with Shane. I had no reason to be confused. This wonderful man was mine. I had hoped this would happen today.
The white fabric of the aisle seemed to go on for miles. Bryan's face inched closer to mine with every step. After what seemed like a lifetime, I reached the alter. My father smiled at Bryan and kissed my cheek gently. He placed my hand in Bryan's. He smiled at me, but I felt a sinking feeling. It was not Bryan I was looking at, but the cocky, grinning face of Shane. I felt repulsed. I wanted to snatch my hand out of his big hot one, but for some reason, I didn't.
Soon enough, the illusion went away, and I was, once again, staring at the face of my beloved. I felt much better, and I realized that my dream had only lasted a second. I was glad to be back in the real, sane(ish) world. We walked the last few steps to Marcus, acting as the minister toda. He took a breath and began, facing the guests.
"Dear family and friends, on behalf of Kaitlyn and Bryan, I welcome you for this marriage celebration. We are here today to encourage, celebrate and support the covenant of these two people, Kaitlyn and Shane, beloved to us, now make and to share that joy that Kaitlyn and Bryan are feeling as they pledge their commitment and love to each other that brings us here today." The minister moved on, facing Bryan.
"Bryan, The woman who stands by your side is going to be your wife. She will look at you for love, for understanding, for encouragement, for comfort, for support, and for protection. You must always stand by her side for good or for ill, and you must never take her for granted. Do you promise to do that?"
Bryan looked into my eyes. "I promise, in presence of family, friends and God.
"Kaitlyn, The man who stands by your side," Marcus faced me, "is going to be our husband. He will look at you for love, for understanding, for encouragement, fir comfort, for support, and for protection. You must always stand by his side for good or for ill, and you must never take him for granted. Do you promise?"
"I promise," I said in barely above a whisper. Marcus nodded and continued.
"In the Bible, Paul wrote beautifully about the power of love in his 1st book of letters to the Corinthians, Chapter 13.
"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For our knowledge is imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect; but when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away.
When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood.
So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love."
He spoke to both of us now. "Since it is your intention to marry, join your right hands and declare your consent." He turned to Bryan. "Do you, Bryan, take Kaitlyn to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and behold from this day forward, for better and for worse, in sickness and in health for as long as you both shall live?"
Bryan squeezed my hand. "I do," he declared, his eyes shining with sincerity.
Marcus turned to me. "Do you, Kaitlyn, take Bryan to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to behold from this day forward, for better and for worse, in sickness and in health for as long as you both shall live?"
I felt tears prickle in my eyes. "I do." I whispered, smiling through the tears.
Marcus nodded and turned to the wedding rings, picking them up and giving them to us. "These rings symbolize unity, a circle unbroken, without a beginning or an end. And today Kaitlyn and Bryan exchange these rings as confirmation of their vows to join their lives, to work at all times to create a life that is complete and unbroken, and to love each other without end. May the lord bless these rings which you give to each other as a symbol of your love and fidelity.
He turned to Bryan "Place your ring on her finger, and state your pledge to her, repeating after me. With this ring I thee wed"
"With this ring, I thee wed,"
"I offer you my hand and my heart, as I know they will be safe with you."
"I offer you my hand and my heart, as I know they will be safe with you."
"All that I am I give to you, and all that I have, I share with you."
"All that I am I give to you, and all that I have, I share with you." Bryan gently pushed the ring onto my finger and gave it a little squeeze.
Marcus turned to me now. "Place your ring on his finger, and state your pledge to him, repeating after me. With this ring I thee wed."
"With this ring, I thee wed,"
"I offer you my hand and my heart, as I know they will be safe with you."
"I offer you my hand and my heart, as I know they will be safe with you."
"All that I am I give to you, and all that I have, I share with you."
"All that I am I give to you, and all that I have, I share with you." I pushed the ring onto his warm hands and smiled up at him.
Marcus spoke his final part. "Kaitlyn and Bryan you have given and pledged your promises to each other, and you have declared your everlasting love by exchanging rings. You may have spoken your vows in minutes, but your promises will last until you take your last breath. You have pledged yourselves to meet sorrow and happiness as one family before god and this community of friends. I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."
Bryan gently, as if I would break if he touched me too roughly, grabbed my face and kissed me. We broke apart after a few seconds, knowing people were watching. I knew I must have had the biggest smile on my face, because Bryan had one.
Marcus spoke once more. "Let me be the first to present Mr. and Mrs. Rivera!" Everyone stood and clapped. I could also hear the wolves and probably Emmett, whooping in the background.
I turned to the audience, and saw Shane clapping slowly, looking defeated. I figured he would finally stop worrying over me. I turned to Bran and kissed him firmly.
I knew this was where I belonged. I basked in that feeling for a few seconds before I heard a distant howl. I turned to the guests, to see Gabby looking distraught, and Shane looking invisible.
He was gone.
