Weddings sucked.

Even with swollen ankle, black eye, and two hours of sleep, I managed to walk down the aisle with the rest of the bridesmaids and a smile plastered on my face. All the guests were giggling as we strode down; I must've seen about twenty cameras pointed towards us, making sure our moment of embarrassment was captured on tape forever.

Currently, I was rocking back and forth on my heels as the town priest concluded the ceremony. Hunter and Evalyn, grinning at each other like idiots, slowly pronounced their vows. As they slid on each other's rings, I could see how happy they were. Although I strongly opposed their decision, I knew that they belonged together.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. Hunter, you may kiss your lovely--"

Before the priest could even finish the last line, Hunter grabbed Evalyn into an embrace and crashed their lips together. Her arms slithered around his neck, closing any space left between them. How could they just make out shamelessly in front of a crowd of people? After a minute, I planted my arms around the bride's waist, pulling her free from Hunter's grasp.

"Woah, there, Mrs. Turner. Let's save some of the kissing for the honeymoon," I joked while gesturing for them to continue the ceremony.

Evalyn nodded, and I handed her back the bouquet of flowers. The newly married couple then proceeded to turn towards the crowd, intertwine hands, and run down the aisle. The girls and I followed, clapping as we stepped. I could faintly see Nick cheering and smiling at me as I passed the middle row of chairs. 

I couldn't help but smile back.

**

I crossed my arms, gazing at the barn proudly. Before, it was an unkempt, unused storehouse that we only used to park cars when we had company. To save money, Evalyn begged us to use this as the reception area for her wedding; she even promised to clean it out and decorate it. As her Maid of Honor, it actually mean that I had to clean and decorate it. 

It took about a week of pain, blood, and sweat to transform the barn into a luxurious ballroom. After scrubbing it, I rented thirty or forty circular white tables and chairs; luckily for me, Evalyn's mother worked at the craft store, so we got glittery white fabric for free. The fabric, draped all over the walls, made the room shine like a star. Bright pink roses, placed in glass vases with the bride's and groom's initials, were scattered throughout the whole reception hall.

"Nice dress, cowgirl," Nick chuckled as he appeared next to me. My eyes flickered to him, and a smile made its way onto my face. He was wearing a white linen shirt, black trousers, and a pink tie. 

"Thanks." A fierce blush crept onto my face. My hand pushed a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

"No problem," he replied as he gazed down at me. When he looked up, the sides of his rosy lips tilted downwards. "Who's that?"

I scanned the room to see who Nick was staring at. Through the large crowd of people, my eyes found a blond-haired man glaring as he talked to Evalyn. His grip tightened on the champagne glass he was holding, and I gulped, realizing how awkward this situation was.

Ash.

"That guy? Oh, he's....he's...." I trailed off, not being able to find a proper label for our relationship. My teeth bit my bottom lip as I saw that Ash began maneuvering through the crowd to get towards us. 

"Looks like he's jealous." A smirk slithered up Nick's face, and a hint of amusement flickered across his eyes. As my jealous friend neared us, Nick flung his left arm around my shoulders, forcing us closer together.

"Hey, Belle, glad to see you're back," Ash said harshly. He refused to acknowledge Nick or give me eye contact; his eyes were firmly set on the arm slung over me. His lips set in a firm line before he took another sip from his glass. "I didn't know you brought a...friend."

My body involuntarily shivered; to hear Nick's name and the word, friend, in the same sentence nearly made me puke. My cheeks heated up even more as I felt the tension rise in the atmosphere. Gulping, I choked out, "Friend? He's not my--"

"I'm not her friend," Nick interrupted quickly. 

Oh, thank the Lord. I didn't need to continue that sentence. Maybe Nick was being nice and trying to help me out. Maybe he was actually a good-hearted guy.

"I'm her boyfriend."

Or maybe Nick was an asshole! 

My eyes widened when I took in the words that he just said. Ash's glare intensified, and he brought his lips back down onto the glass. Taking another large sip, he swallowed the rest of the fancy drink. "That's...wonderful."

"We're not together," I hesitated while I shot Nick a death glare. "We're not even--"

The husky, obnoxious voice interrupted me once again. "Oh, honey. Don't be shy of our undying, passionate love. We were together last night under the mistletoe."

Say what?! Lies, lies, lies. Nick was being a pain in the ass, and I wanted to kick him in the balls. Hell, I wanted to kick myself for being a loser; I didn't even stick up for myself! 

"We didn't kiss under the mistletoe," I hissed, shrugging off his disgusting arm from my body. My teeth gritted together, remembering the night in the hospital.

"She's Ginny, and I'm Harry Potter. We're the perfect pair." He winked towards me and then grinned widely at Ash, who shook his head angrily. "We have magic together."

"Say one more word, and I'll rip your wand off, if you know what I mean," I threatened under my breath, smacking him in the abs. I closed my eyes as I felt pain rush from my ankle to the rest of my body. 

The bastard ignored my comment and continued to eye Ash. After looking him up and down, he turned his head, making his brown locks cascade perfectly down his forehead. His blue eyes sparkled as he spoke. "Baby, don't act like you don't like me. You didn't mind it when I explored your Chamber of Secrets while we were at school."

The loud crash, formed by the impact of glass hitting the ground, caused me to jump backwards. Once I regained my composure, my eyes danced from the broken champagne glass in front of Ash's shoes to the shocked look on my blond-haired friend's face. His eyes drooped with worry; his skin's color faded. 

"Well, I'm going to get a drink. I'll be right back, beautiful," Nick stated confidently, obviously happy with the reaction he forced out of Ash. His lips smushed into my right cheek for two seconds, making me gag. Disgusting.

I was speechless for the first time in my life. Even after I puked in front of the whole freshman class, I was able to babble an alibi. Now, nothing but air came out of my mouth. Ash just stood there with his hands in his pockets, swaying back and forth. He obviously was waiting for an explanation.

An explanation I couldn't give him.

Why did Nick have to get Ash all riled up? If he just kept his Harry Potter jokes to himself, none of this would've happened.

"What was that?" Ash questioned, his hands balling into fists. His blue orbs connected with mine, and chills ran up and down my spine from the eye contact.

Some people were staring now; Ash seemed like he was about to either yell at me or punch a wall. I took a few steps backwards and put my hands up in front of me defensively. "He's being a douchebag. Nothing he said is true. We're not even friends; we're just project partners. We hate each other."

He rolled his eyes. "He doesn't look at you like he hates you."

"Yes, he does. Trust--"

"And you look at him like you like him. Is he the reason that we can't be together?"

"I hate him, too. And, no. You know I don't want to be in a relationship right now. Hell, I don't even know what to think about love!"

His left hand ran through his knotty hair, making it even messier than it was before. Sighing, he leaned back on his heels. His eyebrows furrowed, and I could tell that he had something to say. Something important.

"Look, Belle. When I try to put my arm around you in public, you always bitch about it afterwards. Or you use me for some crazy revenge scheme of yours. He was all over you, and you said nothing." 

My ear could barely hear his soft and shaky voice. My mouth gaped open at him, but nothing came out as usual. My mind was hazy, and I could barely think of a response. After a few seconds of silence, Ash's lips set in a firm line, and he stormed away into the crowd.

My feet began to scurry after him, but a giddy voice from behind prevented me to do so. I paused, turning around to see Evalyn, wearing her white, strapless reception sundress that fell right above her knee. The whole dress was made of lace, and the the skirt jutted out of the bodice.

"Having fun?" she enquired cheerfully with a huge ear-to-ear smile on her face. She was positively glowing; even without the makeup, she would look radiant. 

"Yeah," I choked out, "best party ever."

**

TO BE CONTINUED IN NEXT CHAPTA. Aww Ash :/ This wasn't funny, but the next one will be! The wedding continues in the next chapter.

What do you think of the Harry Potter jokes? I couldn't resist putting them in!

Remember: Random commenter gets a dedication. :) Oh, and huge thanks to Bramble Briar--she made the banner on the side! Isn't it lovely? ;)

By the way, Southern Belle made it to #11 Humor!!!!! Hooray! 

Limit: 50 likes?! (Maybe lower ;)

Peace out! <3.