Chapter Thirty-Eight

Chapter Thirty-Eight

I loved Rochelle, but after my wedding and now hers I couldn't wait for this day to both happen and end. I was so tired of weddings and thankfully if my brother wanted to renew his vows I would have time before that whole thing started.

Rochelle had lost quite a bit of the baby weight and we were doing fittings until we picked up the dress yesterday afternoon which was a whole new level of stress right there. Rochelle, Monica, Hillarie and I were staying at a hotel and would be heading to the venue soon and it was hard to keep so many secrets from her, especially about her own wedding but I managed to accomplish that and so when we went to the venue she would be completely surprised.

I threatened Scott not to tell her.

Rochelle's mom was still pissed off about the whole Kasey thing but Rochelle wasn't letting it bother her, this was her day. Kasey wouldn't give a penny or second of her time to actually be supportive of her and she didn't need that today, she was about to Marry an amazing man and the father of their son and I was happy for them both.

"Why are you crying?" Rochelle asked me and I wiped under my eyes and didn't realize I was actually crying.

"I'm happy for you. I can't remember a single day of my life where I didn't know you and I can't wait to stand beside you." she grabbed my hand and smiled at me.

"I love you Brylee." She leaned her head on my shoulder and I rested mine on hers. I couldn't wait to show her everything, to tell her, to be there for it all.

"We need to leave in the next hour; they'll do hair and everything at the venue." I needed to make sure make-up was done after we got there, if she cried then it would have to be redone.

We packed up and headed out after breakfast.

"Are you going to drink that?" Rochelle asked and I picked up my mimosa and she looked freaked out so I handed it to her.

"I think you need it more than I do." she snatched it eagerly and I just shook my head and laughed before going to pack my bag, The boys were in charge of getting the dresses all there.

Riley had three at home with Lina and Mia being the ring barres, Mine and Rochelle's were in my closet since Scott wasn't allowed to see it and then Scott had to make sure to bring Hillarie's and his brother would bring his daughter Serena's since she would be their flower girl.

We were in the car on the way to the venue and she was freaking out

"My aunt isn't coming, she left." Rochelle blurted out

"Good, you don't need that negativity today, everyone there is there because they love you and want to watch you get married, we're here to see you get your own happily ever after Rochelle and if they don't want to be here then fine, more cake for me." I said and she laughed and not just a little one, it's like she needed to release all the stress she's been feeling in this one laugh and none of us could help but laugh with her.

"I get your aunts piece, I think Brylee deserves Kasey's." Hillarie said and I nodded

"I'll even write her name on it before I cut it up and eat it."

"You can eat her piece but I'm writing her name on one and throwing it in the trash." Monica declared and she was probably the worst to her with her awful comments and I know Riley's been trying to take every opportunity to tell her how beautiful she is because her self-esteem is pretty shot at this point and the sad thing was the was incredibly beautiful.

Riley had girls trying to pretty much throw themselves at him all through high school and college and he had only ever had eyes for her. He dated in like ninth grade but those relationships are just there, he saw her and even when he could almost have his choice of girls, he never took that bait.

It took him months to get her to go on a date with him because she was never in the same crowd, we did go through school in the more of the popular crowd and she was content playing sports but not for the school studying and reading.

She was a smart girl and that's why it took Riley so damn long to get her to go out with him. I think the thing that did it for her was that he was smart as well. He made her think and could hold a conversation. Monica didn't give a damn who he was, the money, the popularity; she loved him because of his character and his mind, because of what he had to offer inside, not out.

I had been jealous of them and what they had as long as I could remember, Riley and I were close and I always wanted someone to look at me like that, to stand by me like he did with her. I wasn't envious of being a teen parents but I was on how well their relationship handled it, of how they adapted and grew together and it took me until, not even the night I slept with him but much longer to realize that what I had envied all those years was standing right beside me for all of them.

"Where the hell are we?" Rochelle seemed to catch on that she had no idea where we were

"What?" I asked playing dumb and she got pale

"Oh god, are they taking us the wrong place, what the fuck kind of driver is this! You're getting us lost, oh god, I'm not going to make it for my own wedding." She was about to burst into tears and in about three minutes she would.

"Calm down Rochelle, just breathe. It's fine, you know I always fix things, trust." I told her and she nodded. She wasn't doing well in a crisis and I had fixed every problem because I learned from Linda, Linda was the assertive on for me when things were going wrong and I had no problem handling her issues, even if it meant being a little bit of a bitch when they completely screw up the flowers or cake flavors.

"Okay."

"Close your eyes and count to a hundred, it will make you feel better. Don't talk, just breathe and count in your head." I told her and she nodded and did as I told her too, for one it really did help me and for two we were almost there and I wanted her to close her eyes without getting suspicious.

I watched her mouth the numbers as she counted and Monica was giddy with excitement for her to see this and so was I. She had her wedding planning binder, I knew what all her dream things were and this was the hardest for her to accept she couldn't have.

It was this huge mansion that had gardens out front and a private beach in the back, it felt like a castle and Rochelle was a girl who always wanted to be a princess on her wedding day.

"Okay, a hundred." She still had them closed as we drove down the drive

"Feel better?" I asked her and she nodded

"Yeah, thanks, I don't know what I would do without you; you've already made my wedding day perfect." She grabbed my hand and I grinned

"Not perfect enough yet." She wasn't even paying attention as I pulled her hand for us to get out and nudged her forward and she finally took a look around and when she did her hand flew up to cover her mouth and her eyes watered.

"Brylee, what are we doing here?" she asked and I wrapped my arm around her

"We're here so I can watch my best friend marry hers at the place she always dreamed of."

"Brylee it's too much." She was shaking

"Nothing is too much for you. You're family and you know we take care of family." After she's married I get to be the one to tell her about the money, I can't believe she seriously thought my parents wouldn't make sure she was taken care of, I mean they paid for all five of us to go to college, granted we all got scholarships to help but it was still a pretty penny. Paying for five kids in university isn't cheap, especially when it's all at the same time.

"It's sad to say but if he was still alive, I would have asked him to be the one to walk me down the aisle." Her parents loved her but they didn't want to raise her, they were practically strangers to her and the only evidence they were actually related was DNA, my parents raised her.

I don't think they've seen Michael more than three times; they're too busy living lives with no responsibility. I was bias though; I sat with her for hours and hours listening to her crying as a child, wondering why her parents don't love her.

"And he would have said yes."

"Did it ever bother you that I called him dad, or her mom?" she asked and Hillarie and Monica hung in the background as we walked into the grand building.

"Never." We dropped our stuff in the room and the flowers were waiting and I watched her cry continuously as I showed her around the room, surprised her with the cake, the arrangements.

"I can't believe you did all of this." she hugged me, clinging to me like she was about to fall over.

"And now you understand a little how I felt." I smiled and she nodded

"God I'm a mess."

"It's okay, so am I." I was crying with her for sure.

"Oh god, of course this would be how we are on our wedding days, same way we are every other day of our lives." A fucking mess, why would we actually think it could be any different

"At least this is a happy mess not everything going wrong kind." That was something at least.

"Well miracles do happen." She sighed and flopped down on the bed when we got to the suit we would be using to get ready today.

We had a half hour to relax before the photographer would be here, and hair and make-up would start. The girls would be here in probably an hour to hour and a half, having three little girls sit here waiting isn't their idea of fun.

"Sometimes." I rested my hands on my stomach to get comfortable and she put one of hers on top of mine and squeezed.

"It will happen." She told me and I smiled and nodded.

"I'll be back." I got up suddenly and headed to the corner of the room and I heard footsteps following me and I pushed the bathroom door open and Rochelle didn't skip a beat as she held my hair.

"Oh god, you didn't get food poising from breakfast or something did you." I shook my head as I threw up and she kept rambling on and on and I finally stopped and turned to face her, leaning against the wall and she just kept talking and I smiled at her. "Why the hell are you smiling, are you okay?" she asked and I nodded.

"I'm more than okay, though I do have a little bit of a bug, one that doesn't go away for about nine months." I told her and she halted all conversation and her eyes widened as did her smile

"No." she giggled a little and I nodded

"Yeah, doctor confirmed it two days ago, I'm pregnant. I didn't want to tell you until after the wedding though, sorry." I didn't want to try to take anything away from her day, it was just weird timing and I wasn't going to complain that this happened a few months early, I was happy.

"Oh fuck that, I'm so excited for you." she put her hands on my stomach and my eyes welled with tears, right now this wasn't anything but a moment between two best friends, she knew how hard losing that first one was for me and I'm glad that she's just happy for me, even if she found out today.

"What did Chase do? He freaked out didn't he?" she asked

"He doesn't know yet, just you." I told her

"What, why?" she asked

"I was going to tell him tonight, one thing at a time Ro. Today is about you, not me."

"It may be my wedding but this just makes this day so much better, you're going to be an amazing mom." She didn't mind that I needed to brush my teeth or I was just throwing up, she just sat beside me and was happy for me.

"Mom." I said softly, I got that little flip of nerves at that, I was going to be a mother and I was two months pregnant, I guess those jokes from my friends about how I was going to get pregnant on my honeymoon were very accurate.

"Yeah, a mom." She nudged me and she promised to keep my secret as I grabbed my tooth brush and brushed my teeth and we all sat down to get ready and Rochelle kept smiling at me, a secret smile, a smile that we've shared thousands of times in nearly twenty years.

A lot of people would be pissed if someone dropped this kind of news on their big day but Rochelle, to her it truly did make it more special because we were so close it felt like we were the same person sometimes.

Her pain was mine and my joy was hers and vice versa.

I felt like this was this bubble of light or something, like the room was glowing and this moment was, like I had never experienced anything more perfect, the never ending echoes of laughs rang in my head as I watched them put make-up on us and do our hair.

Next the garter and lingerie went on followed by lacing her up in her dress and then it was time for us to get dressed too and then there was the process of taking pictures.

Time was flying by and soon it was time for the reception and I was glad to see her parents showed up for it and Rochelle would get the moment she's been dreaming about since she was little, her father walking her down the aisle.

Who's excited about this turn of events?

<3