Stay Gold

three

chapter three ~ the one with a crying bride
Heather's POV

Joey and I were in complete bliss, it was like we had just started dating again and we were back in the honeymoon phase as all we could do was smile at each other and steal kisses, even when there were other people around us; we couldn't keep our hands off each other. Living together was working much better than I could have ever imagined and the doubts that had been in the back of my mind, had vanished because this was pure bliss. Sure, there were things that we both had to adapt to, like how messy Joey was and how organised I was but I wouldn't change it for the world. Getting to wake up every morning, with my head resting on his chest and his strong arms wrapped around me was just what I had dreamed of; and I still couldn't believe it was real. Even doing mundane things such as washing the dishes or making the bed became fun because I was doing them with Joey. I couldn't imagine doing this with anyone else and then our perfect world came crashing down, in the form of an invitation.

It had been hard to forget that Melissa and Nick were getting married because it was being shoved down my throat all the time. I was the Maid of Honour, even though I wasn't thrilled with that role and it had been my job to organise the bachelorette party; however, because of how controlling Melissa was, she had practically organised the whole thing herself. Not that I was complaining because it took a lot of the stress off me, but it still wasn't massively fun to be introduced as her best friend to a bunch of women that I had never met before and would hopefully never have to see again after the wedding. The only good thing about this, was that I hadn't had to encounter Nick because he was never present to the bridal meetings that I had gone to with Melissa. Of course, I had forgotten to tell her that I had moved apartments and for the last week, I had some peace and quiet but she must have clocked on and now the invitation arrived at our apartment; addressed to both me and Joey.

"Isn't this weird for you?" Joey whispered as we walked into the venue, my arm wrapped tightly around his own because of how on edge I was about the whole event. "I mean, you're the Maid of Honour at your ex-boyfriend's wedding."

"It's definitely weird but I'm here for Melissa, not Nick. Besides, Ross was able to go to Carol's wedding and they were actually married, so that means this should be easy."

Joey stopped walking and moved us into a quieter hall so that no one could bother us. "Hey, if you're not okay with this then we can go. No one is going to blame you for being overwhelmed."

I shook my head, planting a swift kiss on his cheek. "I'll be fine, thank you for caring though."

We headed towards the main hall where the wedding was taking place, as much as I hated to admit it, the venue was beautiful and it seemed like Nick's money was really being put to good use for this event. There were bouquets of flowers everywhere and large chandeliers hung from the ceilings. The bridal party hadn't arrived yet but there were some other guests dotted around the room, because we still had about half an hour before the ceremony was supposed to start. Just before the ceremony would start, I would have to leave Joey and head into the foyer to be part of the entrances with the other bridesmaids but whilst we were waiting for Melissa to arrive; I was going to sit with the only person that I knew. Of course, I was avoiding the stares of Nick's parents, who were sat on the other side of the aisle because I would hate to have a conversation with them during this unusual day. Just as I was calming down, I heard someone call me and when I looked, it was Nick gesturing me to follow him into the foyer. "Heather! Quick there's an emergency!"