Black Castle 🖤 E. Mikaelson

Chapter Twenty•Two. Marriage & Morgues

Chapter Twenty•Two. Marriage & Morgues
ELIJAH
{Memories by Shawn Mendes}

🖤
Let's write our story
And let's sing our songs
Let's hang our pictures on the wall
All these precious moments
That we carved in stone
Are only memories after all
🖤

"It's time." Niklaus stood in the doorway to the room that once belonged to Hayley and Hope, and watched her look herself over in the mirror, thinking over and over whether or not she was doing the right thing. They weren't necessarily on good terms due to Niklaus' actions the day before but he was still going to be there for her no matter what. Hayley understood that.
Hayley hadn't gotten dressed yet, and Niklaus noticed, but Freya was happy to help her with her hair and makeup. To the left, on top of the closet, two different wedding dresses were hanging and Hayley wondered where they came from. She wondered if Rebekah had chosen them for her since she was the one who had planned her wedding. It was her wedding day, the happiest day of her life, and for some reason all she felt was doubt. Was she doing the right thing? She also wondered what Elijah thought about it although they were pretty much not speaking to one another also, but she thought maybe he'd make an exception for the day.
In all honesty; Elijah didn't really care about the wedding, and that was what he would tell her if she asked him. All he wanted really, was to know where Arabella was, and where she disappeared to the night before even if she did say she was going home. She wasn't answering her phone and she wasn't at home when he went to go check on her. So all in all he thought she needed her space and that was what he was going to give her whether he wanted to or not. After all, nothing went well when it came to Arabella meeting Gia at Rousseau's.
Niklaus watched Hayley when she scanned over both dresses before choosing the one she liked the most, and after two minutes she chose the one on the left. Turning around and letting Niklaus see the way it looked.
"I'm going to need a minute." She turned back to the mirror and held the dress up so she could see what it would look like before she slid into it. When her eyes connected with Niklaus again through the mirror, he was preparing to leave her when he stopped to what she said next. "If you see Elijah, could you tell him I need to speak with him?"
"Of course." He smirked and then closed the door behind him. Behind the door, his smirk dropped and he walked down the hall. The entire compound was decorated, the walls were lined with lace and flowers and lights brightening up the entire estate. Arabella had seriously outdone herself when it came to making Hayley and Jackson's wedding perfect. He didn't understand why she would go out of her way for someone she disliked so much but that wasn't any of his business. He figured Arabella needed to occupy herself since there was no one else to kill for the time being.
But Arabella had yet to show up for the wedding, especially since the guests were beginning to arrive, and Elijah patiently waited for the moment where she made a dramatic entrance, earpiece in her ear telling people what to do and where to go, with a clipboard in her arms checking off everything as she went along. But she was nowhere in sight. She was supposed to be his plus one too, but maybe she thought it would be best to stay away for at least a day. And maybe that was best. She wasn't going to take credit for Hayley's special day, and she probably wanted to stay away because wedding days were a weak spot for her. That wasn't the case, but Elijah would not have known that.
Elijah made his way up to Hayley's old bedroom and he knocked on the door, then he waited for her to answer. When she opened the door, she sighed heavily and then walked back to the mirror and looked over her dress.
"You wished to speak to me?" He asked with disinterest, he didn't move into the room, instead, he leaned against the door frame.
"Yes, I needed to ask you something." She turned to him even though the moment she did, her heart raised in her throat, and she became stuck. Elijah was godly. Elijah crossed over the threshold as he entered the room, hands automatically going into his pockets while he walked forward. His slow blink from the floor to her proved he was only there for one reason and that reason was not to tell Hayley not to marry Jackson.
"What is it you need to ask me?" He raised his eyebrow just a bit, trying to show that he cared, but not enough that it would make him choose Hayley all over again. Or give her the wrong idea. She made her choice in marrying Jackson, so she should make sure she kept that same energy when she walked up to the altar with him on her arm.
"Do you think I'm making a mistake in marrying Jackson?" She asked in a rush. Her hands were shaking with nerves, and the look in her eyes made her seem like she was going to cry. All the emotions she was feeling were supposed to be for the wedding but instead, they were directed toward Elijah. And he wasn't really sure he wanted her feeling those types of feelings toward him at all. He didn't want to answer that question, he felt he wasn't the right person to ask considering their history, and the fact they were once in love with one another.
"Come on, Elijah. For once in your immortal life, can you just not be so noble?" She stepped closer, and he stood in place. He wasn't going to engage in whatever she wanted to get across. He had better things to do than to give her advice on her marrying someone that wasn't him. It didn't sound right when he thought of it like that, but he meant it in a different light. If Arabella hadn't been alive, Hayley would have still gone along to marry Jackson, despite Elijah's efforts, so whatever Elijah said at that point didn't really matter. His opinions, his feelings, and his love toward her was irrelevant. So whatever she wanted to say, he felt that she could say it to someone else.
"What would you have me do?" He asked. Elijah blinked slowly to show his disinterest again, though he didn't want to come off as rude.
"I told you that I'm betrothed according to some backwater arrangement by people that I never knew," She grew emotional when Elijah showed that he really didn't care, so she tried harder to get an answer out of him. "Tell me betrothals are stupid!"
Elijah was very old, and he didn't think betrothals were stupid, but he did think that everyone had a choice especially now since it was a new day and age, so he didn't want to engage in answering that part of her question either. It was different now, he was ready to build his life with Arabella and there wasn't any room for Hayley to be in it. It was his turn to be happy, and nothing nor anyone was going to stand in his way to get what he deserves.
If Arabella wasn't in the picture and she had never come back to New Orleans, he would think there was a future for him and Hayley and that he would have done everything in his power to be with Hayley no matter who tried to stand in their way. He would have laced his hand into her hair and pushed his lips into hers and tell her how much she meant to him, he would have loved her the way that she deserved, he would have given her the life that she had always dreamt of, and he would have answered her question. He would have told her that betrothals were in fact the most ridiculous thing he ever heard of and that he didn't believe in them. They would have been happy and they would have been together. But none of that was going to come out of his mouth. Because none of that was true anymore.
He backed away from her, and he looked sorry when he did. But Hayley had to understand that wasn't in the cards for him anymore. What he saw in his future was Arabella, and he needed her to understand that carefully. And Hayley needed Elijah to understand Elijah was her epic love story, and she wanted that happy ending with him. And if he did choose her then she wouldn't think twice to end things with Jackson. That wasn't an option for Elijah. Hayley agreed to marry Jackson despite her feelings for Elijah and she pushed him aside like he didn't matter. Then Arabella made her way home and things had fallen where they needed to. He was happy, he was content. Even while Arabella was upset with him, he was always going to choose her, he was going to prove that to be true despite his many mistakes. Hayley needed to get it through her head that it was too late to try and win him back because it wasn't going to work.
Elijah turned away from her, but before he disappeared entirely he turned his head a little bit so he could see her over his shoulder, and he would let her know one thing, not that it would matter to her after letting her down in the most gentle way he could. He still needed to tell her. "You will always have a choice."
Then he was gone. And Hayley was left alone to swallow hard on his rejection.