Wedding Flowers [Completed]

8.

One day before wedding...

"Truth or dare?" Ryder asks taking a sip from his wine glass. We are both sitting cross legged in the center of the giant bed.

He has a smirk on his face and I decide to play along, "dare."

I'm more drunk than I realize. The room is littered with an empty wine bottle and Mcdonald's wrappers. We still have some leftovers in between us that we occasionally eat. Boomer is sleeping peacefully on the couch.

"I dare you to run down the hallway in your underwear." Ryder can barely get the words out since he is laughing so much.

"That is how you're going to get me out of my clothes? You know there's an easier, more fun way." I wink and begin taking off my jeans.

I'm actually pretty excited to be taking off the denim torture chamber, better knowns as pants.

Ryder is still giggling like a little girl when I remove my shirt and all that's left is my underwear and bra.

I open the door and Ryder follows.

"1...2..." I take a deep breath, "3."

And I sprint down the brightly lit hallways screaming. Just screaming and probably waking up everyone.

I get to the end of the corridor and see Ryder laying in the middle of the hallway laughing hysterically. He is clutching his stomach and causing more of a ruckus than I just did.

I run towards him jumping over his body and almost make it to the door before another door opens. The door that Ryder is leaning against.

He falls back into the doorway and Graham peeks his head out. I'm too far away from them to read the expression on his face.

"What is going on?" He asks looking from Ryder to me.

"We're playing truth or dare," Ryder says like it is the most obvious answer in the world.

Graham is now looking at me and I swear I see his eyes travel down my body but that could be the wine talking.

"I thought you were on the fifth floor. That's the button you pushed on the elevator before." I say walking over to the two of them.

"Maybe you should get some clothes on?" Graham asks and that sends Ryder into more hysterics.

"If I want to stand here naked, I will. If I want to come to your fucking wedding naked, I will!"

I say my chest heaving. I am eye to eye with Graham with Ryder on the floor between us. If anyone else decides to open their door this would be an interesting site to see.

"Why are you on this floor?" I ask again.

"Leah is on the fifth floor. It's bad luck to see each other the night before the wedding." Graham explains.

"Nah, the only unlucky thing is Leah having to marry you. Ready Addison?" Ryder asks.

I nod and try to hold back my laughter until we are safely inside our room.

I start clapping and I bow to Ryder, "you are my hero."

"Truth or dare?" He asks.

"That's not how the game works, Ryder. Now it's my turn to ask you."

"I'm the hero here so I make the rules," Ryder says sitting on the bed.

"Truth," I say, "because I'm still catching my breath. Fuck, maybe I should start working out. Running is hard."

"Why him?" He asks, "he doesn't seem like someone you could be with."

I shrug and then realize I am still only in my underwear so I go to find a t-shirt. Once I'm covered I sit down with Ryder.

"It was just automatic. It was so easy until it wasn't." That is the only explanation I can come up with. I've thought about this before and I can never come up with a reason why we fit for so long.

"Automatic?" Ryder repeats and I nod.

"Do you think that's how it's supposed to be?" He asks.

"What do you mean?"

"Love. Shouldn't it be hard and shouldn't it be work? A job that you look forward to going to every morning and a job that is rewarding and challenging but it's yours."

"You don't think it should be easy?" I ask.

"Anything that's easy is easy to let go of too," he answers.

"Was it easy with your ex?" I ask.

He nods, "so easy."

"That's why you think it didn't work?"

"Yeah. I never missed her and I never thought about my future with her or without her. I just assumed she'd be there."

"That's how it was with Graham. We just were and then we weren't," I say thinking back to the last couple months of our relationship.

I never thought about it ending just like I never thought about it beginning.

We are silent for a few minutes. We have abandoned our wine glasses and now we are looking at each other.

I look at his colorful tattoos that line both his arms then to his eyes.

"Hey, Ryder?" I ask.

"Hm?"

"Truth or dare?"

He smiles a mischievous glint in his eyes, "dare."

"I dare you to kiss me."

And he does.