A shout out to Curious Girl for your sweet review. Sorry for my absence everyone, I'm back at University now. Here we are. ^^
Just kidding. Here's the chapter in the new year. Happy New Year guys! There is only one way to fight writer's block, and that is with words. Enjoy these words. Also, the song I'm Not That Girl from the musical Wicked will be used in this chapter! You know the usual sign to look for (***). Also, I'm going to be adding my note copy (or my "MV" copy, as I like to call it) because this one was tricky with timing. Enjoy!
About a month later, Taylor stood at her trusty office whiteboard as she engaged in another meeting with her favorite bride and groom. Though, they weren't actually her 'favorite' couple, she was thrilled that things had been running a lot smoother for their upcoming wedding.
"So you've decided that you want to host the reception at The Viridian?" Taylor smiled at her clients.
"Indeed we have!" Shaylah sang with a smile as she gave her fiance's arm a light squeeze. He smiled back at her as she continued, "It just fit so well. The establishment means so much to my family and well, I'd love for it to be a part of our special day. It's also convenient that it works as a reservation area for our out of town guests." She smirked.
"That is convenient. Excellent plan, Shaylah." Taylor grinned, briefly pointing her marker and saying, "You'd kill it at this job!"
"I could never handle it as well as you." Shaylah laughed. A kind smile graced her lips. "We got my dress just in time!"
"You did?" Chad asked, turning to look at her with a curious smirk.
Shaylah nodded giddily, "I did! I can't wait for you to see it. But not too soon, or it's bad luck." She playfully tapped his nose, eliciting a laugh from the group.
"It was almost sold out for the rest of the year!" Taylor remarked as she crossed 'dress shopping' off the list that Troy had given her. She looked over her shoulder at Chad, "But really, Chad, you're going to love it. It looks absolutely gorgeous on her."
Shaylah placed a hand over her heart with a soft gasp, "Aw! Thank you, Taylor…"
"I'm happy to hear that." Chad smiled warmly at her before moving his gaze to Shaylah, "Though, I'm sure you look gorgeous in everything."
When he pressed a soft kiss to her hand, Shaylah giggled and gave him a playful push. "Oh, stop it!"
"Nope. You accepted my proposal. You're stuck with this for the rest of your life." He teased, pressing a kiss to her cheek.
Taylor's writing slightly faltered as she heard them. Luckily, they didn't notice and she snapped out of her sudden daze. What was that about? She thought things had been getting better since Dylan had reentered her life. Why did she suddenly feel so...sad? Surely this was a mere relapse of rejection, or perhaps frustration attraction. It didn't actually mean that she was hurt. She was happy for Chad. She was! And being happy for Chad meant being happy for-
"Taylor?" Shaylah called, bringing Taylor out of her thoughts once more.
She turned around with a kind and professional smile, "Yes?"
"I thought I'd lost you!" Shaylah joked, "I was just asking about the gift registry and website."
"Oh, yes!" Taylor snapped her fingers, "Thank you for reminding me. You two are all registered at your desired places, so that's taken care of. Your website is almost done, but I'm not quite there yet. I just need to add the photos that the visual department sent me the other day and it's all good to go!"
"Perfect. Thanks so much, Tay." Chad replied. His brown eyes shone with appreciation as they met hers. She gave a polite nod in return.
"Of course." Taylor said, looking at a nearby clock, "It's 11:00 right now. I can have it done by noon, and we can go over it together today if you guys want to take a quick break?" She offered with a point to the grass area outside her window.
"That does sound nice." Shaylah admitted. She turned to look at Chad, "What do you think, darling?"
"I'm down if you are?" Chad replied with a smile, "It would be nice to get some air. It's a nice day out." He stood and offered his hand to her. Once she took it, he looked to Taylor once again.
"Meet you back here at noon?" He asked.
"Sounds like a plan." Taylor replied with a smile. Chad smiled back and headed to the yard with Shaylah. Taylor opened her laptop as the door shut and she quickly logged into her email. After all, she had about an hour. She didn't waste any time opening the visual department's message attachment and looking through the pictures from the couple's photoshoot that would be used for the website. Taylor just had to pick which ones she thought would fit in the slots best.
"Alright, McKessie...let's see what we're working with." She muttered to herself before clicking the first photo.
Both of them wore white, but they were having a very colorful picnic. Cute. The next photo was of them lying next to each other and looking up at the sky. In this case, the 'sky' was the camera, and the viewpoint had Chad 'upside down' beside Shaylah while she was in a 'regular' position. This was Taylor's first choice.
As time passed, she continued clicking through the photos and making her final choices for the web page. It had been almost an hour. She only had to pick the final few pictures for the home page and she would be ready to present at noon. Taylor stretched a little and looked around her office. She could afford to take a small breather of her own for a moment.
"Wonder how those two are doing…" Taylor wondered aloud, looking out her window. She wouldn't have to wonder long at all. Right outside were Chad and Shaylah. They seemed to be having a calm conversation as Chad gently pushed her on a swing set. Shaylah stopped speaking for a moment to look up at her future husband and give him a loving smile. Chad returned it warmly before playfully pushing her higher, to which she responded with a startled squeal. What a cute couple…
That was the kind of photo Taylor needed to pick for their homepage. Back to work. Focus, Taylor. Focus.
*** She began looking over a picture of Chad and Shaylah holding hands on a walk. This really was a beautiful photoshoot. They were truly lucky to have found each other.
So...why did she feel a bit sad?
"Hands touch," Taylor sang softly, she clicked again to one of a loving gaze between the two, "eyes meet. Sudden silence, sudden heat.." A picture of them smiling at each other through a gate. "Hearts leap in a giddy whirl." She sighed and shrugged lightly, "He could be that boy...but I'm not that girl." Taylor closed her laptop and slid her chair out.
She stood and walked around her desk. "Don't dream...too far. Don't lose sight of, who you are."
Taylor reminded herself as she looked in the mirror behind her door and adjusted her blazer. "Don't remember that rush of joy." Still, she couldn't help but let a small smile begin to sneak across her lips as she allowed herself to be lost in thought.
"He could be that boy…" She walked over to the window, looking at her lovestruck clients once again. "I'm not that girl..." She sang with a shake of her head before spinning away from the window. "Every so often we long to steal, to the land of what-might-have-been…" Taylor looked over her list from Troy with a sad smile. "But that doesn't soften the ache we feel, when reality sets back in…"
Drawn to the window again, Taylor observed Chad's fiancee as she got off of her swing.
"Blithe smile, lithe limb. She who's winsome, she wins him." Taylor shrugged with a sigh. "Gold hair with a gentle curl…" Shaylah gave Chad a charming smile that he seemed to melt over. "That's the girl he chose…" A loving kiss was shared. "And heaven knows..." Taylor looked away, feeling a tight pain in her chest. "I'm not that girl…" She sang sadly.
So it was back to her desk, and back to her laptop. Wasn't that always where she ended up? She was always known to be the busybody after all. Right?
'But if things had been different…'
"Don't wish." She closed her eyes and clenched her hands lightly, cutting off that thought. "Don't start. Wishing only wounds the heart…" Taylor opened her laptop one again, typing her password in. "I wasn't born for the rose and the pearl." It opened to a beautiful picture of Shaylah, smiling in a white dress. "There's a girl I know… He loves her so." She sang with a sad smile before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "I'm not, that girl..." Once she opened her eyes again, Taylor clicked 'upload'.
A moment or so later, two knocks sounded on her door.
"Come in." Taylor replied, softly clearing her throat afterwards.
Chad peeked in with a small smile, "Hey, Tay. It's noon." He said, coming into the room, hand and hand with his lady. "Are you ready for us?"
Taylor nodded. "Yeah. Have a seat."
Hope you enjoyed that guys! I'm uploading the 'MV' copy in just a few moments! I believe it should have a brief parallel flashback of the old Chad and Taylor that I couldn't fit. Stay tuned! ^^