All This Time // H.S. // A.U.

Chapter Seventy-Four

This is the second chapter in a double update. Please make sure to read Chapter 73 first!

Present Day

HARRY

Walking into the venue, I fixed my tux and fiddled with the cuffs as I looked around. I knew Riley and her whole family were getting ready, so I figured I wouldn't have anyone to talk to until the reception. A few familiar faces travelled through the crowd, but none that would really recognize me. Family friends. Relatives. Others that I figured were from the groom's side.

The venue was a large garden, flowers blooming all around, white chairs set up in rows facing a delicate arch. Green vines and white flowers decorated it, making it the perfect backdrop for vows. Over to the side sat tables and more chairs, a dance floor, and buffet table.

I smiled at the young boy handing out programs, flitting through it to see pictures of the two families. The front page had pictures of Carol and her fiancé. My heart squeezed as I saw how happy she looked and how enamored he seemed. A paragraph or two talked about how they met and got to where they were now.

The next page was all about their children. Riley and Micah on the left, and two others on the right. My eyes, of course, focused in on her, a picture of her laughing as her hair blew around her. She looked like she was at a beach up north, the water a little darker with a green tint as opposed to the nicer beaches down south. Micah looked just the same as he had all those years ago, except no longer sporting the military buzz cut he had to have.

I heard a dinging sound, looking up from the program to see the crowd starting to find seats. I had arrived early, but stayed in my car until it got closer to the ceremony time, not wanting to wander around without anyone to talk to. Making sure to find a seat in the back row, I sat down and took a deep breath.

It felt weird to be here. Carol was someone I thought I would never get to see again, and now that I was here at her wedding, I just couldn't believe it. Back when I was staying with them, I always wondered if Carol would ever date again. Her cancer hadn't come back, she was working and hanging out with her friends a lot, but she never dated. Not while Riley and me were in the house at least.

This Isaiah man she was marrying looked like a good guy. Everything that Riley had told me about him was good, and the most important thing was that Carol was happy.

I leaned back in my chair, waiting for everyone to sit. There was probably two hundred people here, making me smile. Carol really had gone all out for this. An older couple took their seats next to me, smiling and nodding politely. I greet them, then turn back to the front.

The guy in front of me rests his arm along the empty chair next to him, glancing over his shoulder. I blinked, "Brandon?"

I got a better view when he fully turned around. It took him a moment to place me, but eventually he says, "Holy shit, Harry?"

I grinned, raising my hand to meet his in that typical bro shake, "What's up, man? It's good to see you."

"How have you been?" He asks, "I can't believe you're here." Then he frowns, "Wait, does Riley know you're here?"

Breathing out a laugh, I say, "Yeah, she's the one who invited me."

Brandon raises an eyebrow at that, "Oh, really?"

"Yeah," I nod with a smug smile, "Carol doesn't know, though. I'm hoping to surprise her."

"That's cool. So, you and Riley, huh?" He grins, "How'd that happen?"

"Uh, I just moved down to the city a few months back and we ran into each other." I shrug, "We just kind of reconnected, I guess."

"Fuck, what a small world." He shakes his head, "What are you doing then?"