The Boy Next Door

Chapter 22

⠀⠀⠀Hayden stands in front of the majority of the town plus some Conways and Emmets from out of town on the side of a gazebo, watching as Jessie gets walked down the aisle by her father. She passes the rows of chairs filled with friends and relatives set up in the grass of a local flower garden, not even looking at any of them. Her eyes are focused on Dustin at the end of the carpet placed on top of the grass and lined with flower petals. Her dress is long and lacy and beautiful.

⠀⠀⠀Jessie reaches the gazebo, and her dad lets her go, Dustin taking her hands.

⠀⠀⠀As the priest goes through the ceremony, Hayden tries to focus on her best friend. She tries to smile and laugh at the appropriate moments, but she finds herself focused instead on the boy on the groom's side. She can't take her eyes off the best man, Wyatt, looking great in a white dress shirt and black vest, a tie the same shade of yellow as her bridesmaid dress around his neck.

⠀⠀⠀He's looking at her too. Every time one looks over at the other, the other looks away to make it seem as if they aren't staring.

⠀⠀⠀Hayden snaps out of her gaze when she realizes the vows are over. She completely missed them. Jessie bounces up and down just slightly enough for it to be noticeable, anticipating the next part.

⠀⠀⠀"You may now kiss the bride," the priest says. The sentence doesn't even seem to be over when Dustin pulls his new wife towards him and kisses her.

~ ~ ~

⠀⠀⠀After the wedding party, bride, and groom take photos for what seems like forever throughout the garden, they join the rest of the guests in an indoor reception area inside the house.

⠀⠀⠀The bridesmaids and groomsmen take their seats at a table off to the side of the dance floor at the front of the room. There are only two seats between Wyatt and Hayden, one for Jessie and the other for Dustin.

⠀⠀⠀The newly weds make their grand entrance into the reception, and the song they chose for their first dance, Marry Me by Train, blares through the speakers. Dustin places his hands on Jessie's waist as hers wrap around the back of his neck.

⠀⠀⠀After the majority of the song is over, the DJ announces, "We welcome everyone to join the happy couple on the dance floor."

⠀⠀⠀Guests from all the tables flock to the dance floor, but Hayden stays seated, not in the mood for dancing.

⠀⠀⠀"Wanna dance?" someone asks from behind her. She knows the voice like it's her own, so she's not surprised to turn around and see Wyatt standing there looking sheepish, his hands shoved into the pockets of his pants.

⠀⠀⠀Hayden nods and stands up, following him to the dance floor where they take classic slow dance position.

⠀⠀⠀"You having fun so far?" he asks awkwardly.

⠀⠀⠀She shrugs. "Not really."

⠀⠀⠀"Why not?" he continues, asking the question she was praying he wouldn't.

⠀⠀⠀"Because my boyfriend just broke up with me two weeks ago, so I'm an emotional mess, and all I can think about is us getting married someday, but that's not going to happen now," she explains, saying much more than she wishes she had in a much angrier tone than she'd anticipated.

⠀⠀⠀"You think I'm not upset too?" he asks. "Dammit, Hay, I think I fell in love with you the first time we met because I thought you were absolutely hilarious for wearing those expensive shoes on a farm. That's why I was always so nice to you when you were awful to me. I wanna marry you someday more than I want anything."

⠀⠀⠀"You won't be a burden to me in college," she whispers. "I know you think that you will be, but you won't."

⠀⠀⠀"You know that I will be, even if you don't want to admit it," he replies.

⠀⠀⠀"So what's your grand plan?" Hayden asks. "You're going to stay here for four years and hope that I come back once I graduate? What if I don't?"

⠀⠀⠀"If you do come back, I'll probably propose to you with the ring I have already in my dresser," he says. "If you don't, I'll probably get really drunk every day for a while, and then I'll have to move on."

⠀⠀⠀Luckily for the both of them, the song ends, and it is announced that the best man will give his speech before the real dancing begins. Hayden stumbles back to her seat, shocked and even more confused than before by Wyatt's revelation, while a microphone is handed to him.

⠀⠀⠀"In first grade, Dustin asked me to find out who Jessie had a crush on. When I asked him why, he told me it was because he liked her and wanted to know if she liked him back. I laughed in his face. He was this goofy little kid, and she was the prettiest girl in the grade. I'm pretty sure I told him to lower his standards because it was never going to happen. I was a little off with that one. You two are absolutely perfect for each other, and I'm lucky to have been able to be around such a great love for my whole life. Hopefully we all find someone who will love us like you to love each other." He raises his glass, and the rest of the room follows suit, toasting to the couple and drinking whatever is in their cup.

⠀⠀⠀He looks over at Hayden and is overcome by regret. She is his Jessie, and he knows it. He knows that he's hurting her by doing this, and he knows that telling her about the ring only made everything worse for her. He's just trying to do what's best for her because he knows what'll happen if they try. She'll resent him for holding her back. She doesn't think so, but he knows it.

⠀⠀⠀He just has to hope that she comes back or else he doesn't know what he'll do.