Chapter 19- Dream On
White flowers surrounded Casie. She shifted her eyes around at her surroundings. She soon realized that she was at Joe and Danielle's wedding; she wondered where all the time went from the last day. She was standing in front of two big sections of seats, with a hundred people in each section; Danielle's being the closest to Casie. To her left stood Leila and then Kate, Danielle's Maid of Honor, with Cara standing a little behind her on her right. It was a very serene setting. Casie looked up at Danielle, who was hand in hand with Joe; and both were staring at the Preacher in front of them. Every few seconds, Danielle would glance over at Joe, her eyes sparkling. Joe would flash a brilliant smile in her direction. It was then that Casie realized how cute Joe was. They made such a cute couple. But as the two said their "I do's", everything went black. Casie was swirling around in darkness.
Light and a new scene formed in front of her eyes. It was a wedding, but the two standing at the altar was not Joe and Danielle. Instead, Danielle was behind Casie this time and Leila was in front of her. Joe was behind Pete, who stood first next to the groom, with Andy behind him. Casie looked around confusedly. She was just at Joe's wedding and didn't know what was going on. Standing right next to Pete was little Micah; dressed in an outfit matching the man next to the bride. Casie then focused her attention on the two getting married. It was Cara and Patrick. She didn't even know they were engaged. Cara's face was glowing and Patrick was looking fondly at her. Right as the Preacher told the two to kiss, everything went dark again; feeling the same swirling feeling.
When everything came to, the scenery had changed again. Now Casie was right next to the bride, and Cara and Danielle were standing behind her. She looked to the groomsmen. The first in line was Patrick, then it was Andy and Joe with Andrew Wentz bringing up the rear. She looked to the audience and saw a dark haired lady sitting next to an older man with a graying moustache. The lady had tears rolling down her face and a sob escaped her every so often. Casie looked wildly to the bride and groom. The groom was a dark headed man with a shorter stature and the bride was a dark headed woman with her hair pulled out of her face to see her shimmering green eyes. She knew Leila would have told her that she was getting married, but here stood Leila and Pete, exchanging vows. Casie tore her eyes away and looked into the crowd. What she saw made her heart stop. Parker sat in the front row of the Wentz's side. And there next to him was a tall leggy blonde with brown eyes. She knew nothing of her, but saw them holding hands; and upon the blonde's left hand was a solid diamond rock perched onto a gold plated band. Parker realized that she was staring at him. He gave a malicious glance and kissed the blonde's hand. And again, the darkness overcame her.
When the ground came solid under her feet, she looked around; thankful that she was not in a church, attending a wedding that wasn't her own. She walked to the couch, and on the way passed a mirror. Casie did a double take and stared at herself. She had a gray hair, which was pulled back into a loose bun at the base of her neck. Her eyes were surrounded by wrinkles and crow's feet. She had no clue how old she was, but all at once she felt her age. Her back ached and her hands gave her fits; from years of painting, she assumed. She looked down at her hands, which bore no rings of any kind. Surely she must be married by now. She walked to the mantle above the fireplace. Rows and rows of dusty pictures sat upon it. There were plenty of Pete and Leila, and what looked like their kids. She noticed the same thing about the pictures of Cara and Patrick, and Joe and Danielle. A senior portrait of Micah sat next to a family portrait of the Stumps', which held Micah along with two others; a younger boy and an infant girl. Casie felt her breathe quicken at the thought of being alone for all this time. She could hear her heart beat in her ears. Her knees felt weak. She was going to die alone; she felt herself falling to the floor.
Casie shot up straight, sweat rolling down her face. She was engulfed in complete darkness. As she waited for her eyes to adjust, she felt her face; which felt smooth to the touch. She stretched her fingers and felt no pain. Once her eyes had focused in the dark room, she realized that she was in the guest bedroom of Joe's place. The events of the dream scrolled across her eyes. The sweat that was on her face was joined by tears. Fearful tears; that she would die alone, when all her friends had someone. She shakily stood up from the bed and huffed to the kitchen, pouring her a shot of vodka.
oo
"Oh my gosh, Danielle! You look absolutely stunning in that dress!" Leila exclaimed, admiring the wedding dress that she had on. It was a white, off the shoulder satin A-line gown with beaded embroidered metallic bodice and inverted V Empire with a Cathedral train. It was absolutely stunning.
Danielle eyed herself in the floor length mirror in the small wedding dress shop. She had tried on many dresses within the last two weeks and had yet to find something that was perfect. However, as she stared at herself in the mirror, she knew that this dress was the dress.
"I love it!" she said finally. The girls all let out sighs of relief. None of them knew how much more they could take; going from shop to shop, searching for a dress. Danielle was so caught up in finding her own dress that she hadn't picked out any for the brides maids. Danielle stepped off the seamstress's stool and went to change out of the gown. Leila looked to Casie, making a funny face at her. They all loved Danielle, but she was becoming at bit crazy over the wedding. But they all figured that their time was coming, to be "bride-zillas". In reality, Danielle wasn't that bad at all, just a little OCD. Danielle came out from the dressing room with her dress bagged up.
"Now that is over with, we can focus on getting you all brides' maids' dresses," Danielle said, setting her gown on a nearby lounge chair. She walked up a row of colorful dresses, surveying each one. The girls exchanged worried glances when Danielle picked out a bright hideous orange creamsicle color with ruffles all the way around. Leila was about to speak up and say that there was no way that she was wearing that atrocity, when Danielle began to laugh.
"You do know I'm joking?" she laughed at the girls' faces. "This is my wedding too, and I don't want a row of creamsicles standing next to me."
They left out a sigh of relief and they started to really look for a good dress. About half an hour later, Danielle picked up this solid navy dress. It was strapless and fell to about the knee; with a thick baby blue ribbon around the middle. She held it up to the others, for their opinion.
"You know I'm going to like it!" Casie exclaimed; blue was her favorite color. She was trying her best to act normal after her unnerving dream.
"I don't really care about the style, just the color," Leila said. They girls looked at her funny. "I need to know what color to get my cast changed too," Leila stated, wishing that she could take the itchy thing off. It was driving her nuts.
The girls all really like the dress and it was another hour before they had finished getting fitted for their right size. After they had finished, they decided to go to a local bar and talk more about the wedding over drinks. After about Casie's third vodka and Sprites, while the other girls were just finishing their first, Leila looked to her.
"Are you okay?" Leila asked Casie in undertones, so no one else would hear them.
"I'm fine," Casie said, being very vague. She downed the rest of her third drink.
oo
"So, Joe, what are you planning for the big party?" Pete asked, referring to his Bachelor's Party.
"It's up to Andy. He said he'd take care of everything, so we're in good hands," Joe said, referring the level head that Andy had on his shoulders. Andy knew when to not do something crazy; something the rest of their friends were struggling with, including Pete.
"When are the guys getting here?" Pete asked again, peering at Joe over his bass guitar magazine.
"Next week. And I can't' wait!" Joe practically yelled. Whenever "the guys" came over, it meant fun times had by all. "The guys" consisted of Chris, which influenced the song "Grenade Jumper", and Joe Barker, otherwise known as "Chaves". The biggest laugh that was coming was a man they all referred to as "Dirty". He got his nickname from doing totally crazy things, and some happen to be "dirty".
oo
Leila ran into the dark. She was scared to death, not knowing where she was running to. The only thing she knew at that moment was to get away from the man that was chasing her. She was in a small suburban house, with no extremely great hiding places. Leila found the staircase and scrambled up to the second floor. She opened the first door she came to and closed it quickly, locking it behind her. Amidst her panting, she heard another sound, another gasping sound. Leila spun around to see her cousin, Marie, crouched in the corner. Leila rushed to her side, thankful to see someone she knew. Marie looked up at her with terrified eyes.
"Why is he d-doing this?" Marie stuttered out in a whisper.
"I-I don't know, but we have got to get out of here," Leila rushed, hearing a noise from the hall.
Marie began to panic and scuffle around. "I don't think I can run anymore. I'm so tired and I twisted my ankle," Marie said a little too loudly. The noise from the hall stopped right in front of the door. The door knob began twisting, in attempt to open. Marie's eyes bugged out and Leila's heart began to race faster.
"Listen to me, Marie. I'm not leaving here without you, now get up and get out that window!" Leila demanded in a whisper. "I'll go first and I'll try and catch you on your way down," Leila spoke softly, the door knob jiggling more fiercely.
Leila ran to the window and shoved it open. She threw one leg out and her foot it the roof. She rushed a little too quickly and slipped. Leila fell head first, rolling off the roof and dropped to the ground below. She landed in a huge bush, semi-breaking her fall. However she heard a spine-tingling crack and knew she had broken her arm. She tried to hurry and climb out of the hedge and look up to Marie, but her shirt got caught on a branch in the bush. Marie was waiting by the window, shooting worried glances at the door behind her. Leila heard the door slam open and bang into the wall. She untangled herself and jumped out of the shrubbery.
"Jump now Marie!" Leila screamed, not worried about him hearing her now. Marie nodded quickly and put one foot out on the roof. She was taking too long.
"Hurry Marie!" Leila yelled.
But as Marie was pulling herself out of the window, two hands grabbed her neck, yanking her back. Marie's horrified scream filled the air. Leila couldn't find her voice; she watched on in terror. The curtains had fallen across the window, but the profiles of Marie and the man were clear. He had his hands wrapped about her neck, choking her. Leila could hear her gasping for air. All of a sudden he let go of her and she dropped to the floor with a soft moan. Leila's eyes followed his arm as he brought it up, holding a knife.
"NO!" Leila screamed as the knife came flying down. She started crying. He had just killed her cousin. The curtains were thrust back and the outline of tall masked man became clear. He was still holding his knife, which was dripping in a thick red liquid. Leila stared up at him, with tears rolling down her face. He disappeared. Leila's breathe quickened, and took off running down the baron street. At the end of the corner, she turned around to look and see if she was following her.
A tall silhouette shined in the orange street lamp light. Leila spun around and took off running again. It wasn't until she reached the church and flung open the doors that she stopped running. She hid under the second pew to the front. She crawled in a ball, silently crying. She softly gasped as the doors creaked open. Why wouldn't he leave her alone? Leila heard soft footsteps getting closer to her pew. She clasped her hand over her mouth to silence the sound of hurried breathing. The footsteps stopped right at her pew. Leila was so scared that she left out a small whimper, and as soon as she did a hand came flying under the pew grabbing her hair. She let out an ear-splitting scream.
"Leila!" Pete said, shaking her gently. She was screaming and thrashing around. He was sure that she had woken up the whole house. "Leila, wake up, you're okay!"
Leila's eyes flew open. The first thing she saw was Pete, looking at her with worry and concern; she flung her arms around him and gasped into his neck. He tightened his grip on her. Her heart was beating so hard that Pete could feel it on his chest. There was a knock on the door and muffled voice floated through.
"What's going on? Is Leila okay?" Andrew asked, stifling a yawn.
"She's fine," Pete spoke up to the closed, locked door. "She just had a nightmare."
He heard footsteps going soft and soon they didn't exist. Leila's grip had not let up on him since she woke up. Her heart a slowed a bit, but she was still panting. Pete wondered what could have caused her to be so scared. He held on to her as long as she needed him too.
oo
"Dude! I dare you too!" Pete laughed, wiping away the tears of laughter from his eyes, smearing what little eyeliner he had on.
"No way man!" Chris said, holding his hands in surrender. He was surrounded by all his friends, laughing at the dare Pete just suggested.
"Man, you're so lame!" Pete grumbled. "I bet Dirty will do it," Pete looked over at Dirty. "Dude, you going to do it? I'll pay for it," Pete said, smirking at him.
Dirty thought about it for a second, and laughed, "Yeah dude, I'll do it."
"That's why you're my favorite person!" Pete shouted, slapping him on the shoulder.
"Don't let Leila hear you say that," Dirty said in a seductive voice, throwing his leg across Pete's waist. Pete laughed and threw his leg off of him, causing him to fall over. Joe's party was going along pretty great and the guys decided to make someone get a crazy tattoo on their butt. Dirty, who was willing to do anything, was up for it. They all piled into a car and looked around for the nearest tattoo parlor. They found one two blocks away from the bar they had been drinking at. Most of them were out of their mind drunk, most but Pete. He had laid off the liquor since the night Casie and he had kissed. He couldn't afford to do that again. He didn't think Leila would forgive him twice.
Pete, being the designated driver, parked the car outside the parlor and they all walked in the small shop. Pete spoke up first.
"This one wants "Your Face Here" tattooed on his arse," Pete laughed. The man behind the counter, noticing who they were but not saying anything, laughed and agreed.
An hour later, Dirty had a new tattoo and a sore bottom. Pete took it upon himself to smack him on his fresh tattoo, sending a wave of hurt through Dirty's body. Dirty let out a loud curse word and bit his lip in pain. Pete doubled over laughing, trying to catch his breath.
"Alright Pete, your turn!" Dirty said, wiping tears of pain away.
"I don't have that much room left on me, and Leila would kill me if I got something tattooed on my arse," Pete said, shuttering at the thought.
Dirty went into a coughing spell that sounded an awful like "whipped". Pete didn't miss the word and smirked at him.
"Proud of it," he said, smiling. "But I will get one on my hand."
Soon, they all had a new tattoo, all except Patrick.
oo
"Do it girl!" Leila laughed at Danielle. She was taking her fifth shot of tequila, and was getting very tipsy with every down.
"This is your night girl, live it up!" Kate blurted out from behind her mug of beer. Danielle eyed the small clear glass of golden liquid; she dashed on salt on her left hand and got the wedge of lime ready. In three swift movements, the glass was empty and the salt gone off her hand and the lime wedge was in her mouth. The small group of girls that was surrounding her laughed loudly. Danielle blinked slowly, staring around at everyone. A smile slowly crept on her lips, which still had a trace of tequila left on them.
The Bachelorette party was in full swing. The whole bar kept buying them all drinks because it was obvious what they were celebrating. Danielle had a foux veil on; being held in place but a plastic tiara with had all kinds of shower decorations around her. A smile seemed to have been painted on her face, for it had not left since they arrived; but that also might have something to do with amount of alcohol she was consuming. Casie, Cara, Leila and Kate were circled around her, all of them ordering drinks by the round. It was a night of laughter and jokes. It was, of course, one of the last nights Danielle would ever party single. Casie was the one who was taking advantage of the bar above the rest. It seemed like every five minutes that she was up and buying a new drink; it didn't help that guys kept buying them for her, so she wouldn't have to pay. Leila, who was taking the drinks more slowly than the others, kept watching her. After about Casie's fifth full size drink within fifteen minutes, she pulled her aside.
"Casie, don't you think you should slow down?" Leila asked her in concern.
"Don't be a party crasher, Leila," Casie said, her words slurring together. She went to walk off, and Leila grabbed her arm. Casie spun around with an angry look on her face.
"Look, last time I checked, you were not my mother!" she yelled in Leila's face. It was so loud in the bar that no one heard, but Leila most definitely did. It stung her heart and she released Casie's arm as if it was red hot. Casie huffed and stalked back to the table, taking a big gulp of her new drink. Leila watched her with sad eyes. Even though she had said something very hurtful, she knew Casie didn't mean it. And there was no way that she was going to abandon her best friend in her time of need. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She found the name she was looking for and pressed send.
oo
Pete was sitting on the couch, flipping through the TV channels, finding nothing that really appealed to him. They had got back just half an hour ago from Joe's big party, and the guys went back out to grab some alcohol; Andrew drove, seeing as he only had two mugs of beer and was the most sober. Pete had just turned it on "Rock Of Love 2: with Brett Michaels" when his phone rang; realizing it was Leila calling from her personalized ringtone "Promise" by Matchbook Romance. It always made him smile to himself when he heard that song, knowing it was Leila on the other line.
"Hey babe," Pete said, answering the phone. Pete frowned slightly hearing the distress in her voice. It never made him comfortable hearing her upset.
"Yeah, we'll be there in a few minutes," Pete stated, closing his phone. Just at that moment, the guys walked in. Pete looked up at them, seeing them carrying cases of beer and a few brown paper bags.
"Put that stuff in the refrigerator," Pete said, standing up from the couch. "We need to go get the girls."
Joe stopped in his tracks, turning to face Pete; worry etched on his face.
"They're fine, but they have had too much to drink and need a ride home," Pete assured Joe, who visibly relaxed. Chris looked up at Pete in annoyance.
"Can't they just call a cab? Why do we have to go get them," Chris spat out. Pete flashed his eyes at him, the anger apparent in them; Chris backed down.
"Because they want us too! If you forgot, your girlfriend is with them too, Chris," Pete said in a low menacing voice. Chris didn't say another word, but just got some beers for the car.
On the way to the bar, more beers were consumed than when they were at the bar. Andrew was getting progressively drunk with every chugged bottle. Chaves and Dirty had decided to wait for them at the house, to give the girls more room to sit in Pete's mother's van. Pete pulled up in front of the bar Leila had said they were at, and the guys piled out. Andrew and Chris actually fell out and hit the pavement, laughing the whole time.
Pete laughed at them and rolled his eyes, heading straight for the door with Joe at his heels. The bar was foggy with smoke and smelt of liquor. Pete squinted his eyes in search for the girls table. But it didn't take long, for there was a loud commotion from the back and heard Kate burst into laughter. Pete walked to the back and spotted Leila. She looked up and saw him and went to him, taking hold of his hand. He knew that something was wrong that she wasn't telling him. Joe was instantly at Danielle's side and she was had flung herself into his arms, spouting off incoherent words of love to him. Chris was next to Kate, their arms around each other, on the verge of falling over because Kate had all her weight leaning on Chris and wasn't that stable. Andrew was behind Pete, with a drink that he just ordered from the bar, staring at the girls. He recognized Leila and Cara, but the other he knew nothing about. Casie looked up at the new arrivals and focused on Pete, and then her eyes found Andrew. She looked back and forth between Pete and Andrew, blinking rapidly.
"Whoa, I'm seeing double!" Casie said, laughing almost falling out of her seat. Andrew rushed to the table catching her before she slid off the stool. Casie looked at him and laughed her arms around his neck.
"No problem," he slurred at her.
Pete looked down at Leila, and she was staring at Casie with a worried look. He was worried about her too. He couldn't even begin to guess on how many drinks Casie had drank, but he was assuming it was high. The guys helped get together all the girls items and pack them away in the back of the van. Leila stayed close to Pete, but kept her eyes on Casie; who hadn't separated from Andrew this whole time. They were walking in close proximity to each other and laughing arm in arm. Leila crawled into the front seat of the van, and the rest piled into the back, coupled up. Pete locked his seatbelt and cranked the van. Leila didn't say anything the whole way back to Pete's house. She just stared straight ahead at the yellow lines passing on the street. She didn't know how to help Casie, but she must find some way. It hurt her to see her drinking her pain away. She didn't even know what was messing with her. Casie had not said anything to her, and got angry with her for trying to help.
Pete pulled into the drive-way and rolled to a stop. Leila turned around to the rest of the van, and what she saw surprised her. Cara and Patrick were holding hands and making eyes at each other, in the middle seat. Kate and Chris were lip-locked in the very back, and next to them were Joe and Danielle doing the exact same thing; that did shock her, it was what was in front of them in the middle seat next to Patrick and Cara that threw her for a loop. Andrew and Casie were making out, in a tight embrace. Leila stared at them for a second, unable to look at anything else. Tearing her eyes away from them, she jerked the door open and stalked inside, slamming the door behind her.
-note from the author- Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Sorry it took so long.. the computer's I've been writing it on have been screwy!