Glee: A Brand New Direction (first book of Glee series)

Chapter 16: The Wedding

Chapter 16: The Wedding

I wore a short, red dress to the wedding. Since we were all going, I ended up riding with John, Kitty, and Cory. It was all fun and everything- Mercedes was the singer which I loved- but the ceremony ran late. In fact, it ran way too late.

"You don't think she chickened out, do you?" I heard Quinn Fabray, who sat in front of us, ask Santana. I looked over at Cory. Brittany had found out the truth about her and Cory, so she was no longer faking her relationship with him. As we waited behind her, I noticed the way she looked at Quinn. Was she crushing on her?

After about twenty minutes of waiting for the bride, the ceremony finally started. But we received a great shock when it was Coach Sylvester and not Ms. Pillsbury.

Emma's gone. Everybody whispered it. She had ran away.

"So what about the reception?" a shrill-voiced, red-headed lady asked.

"Everybody can still party right?" someone else asked.

"We already paid," said the man who I assumed was Mr. Pillsbury. "So yes. Where's Will? Oh, who cares. Better make that reception!"

Everyone filed out and rushed to their cars. "I guess there's still a party," said Kitty. She grabbed John's hand and pulled him along, leaving the church. Mr. Schuester, who looked completely defeated, was soon joined by Finn at the front. When we were outside, I saw Cory tell Santana something. She rolled her eyes and then headed back inside.

"What was that?" I asked Cory before getting into John's car.

"Someone needed to tell Mr. Schue that the party's still happening," he told me. We got into the car and Cory fell asleep, so I felt like a third-wheel in the backseat as John and Kitty flirted and laughed.

At the party, I tried not to be with them. Instead, I hung out with Cory, who was kind of depressed that Santana was with Quinn all night, just watching Sam and Brittany dance the night away. While he was in the restroom, I caught sight of Jake and Ryder. The latter was giving the former a necklace. As Blaine and Kurt sang "Just Can't Get Enough" Jake approached Marley and gave her the necklace. I shook my head disbelievingly when Ryder took a seat at an empty table and watched the couple dance happily.

"So he's the one with all the ideas," I murmured. I stood up and joined Ryder. "So what's with you and helping Jake woo the girl you're obviously in love with?" He didn't answer, instead just looked down at his hands. "So it's true. I knew you were behind the first few but... It's been you all along..." Still no answer. "You know, Ryder, it's probably best if you talk to Marley directly. You know, tell her how you feel?"

"What, so you can have Jake all to yourself?" he finally spoke up.

I hesitated before saying, "Actually, I'm not really into Jake..."

"John?" he questioned.

"Him either," I said, realizing more than ever that it was true. There was a temporary illusion that something could happen between John and me but that had faded away.

I spotted Sam and Brittany dancing on the dance floor and had a sudden realization just as Ryder asked, "So then who is it that you sing so passionately about?"

I exhaled the air that I'd been holding in since laying eyes on Sam and told him, "I'll keep you posted."