Going Nowhere At Full Speed

One Year Later

Ava stood in the back of the church, waiting to walk down the aisle to get married. This wasn’t how she had always imagined her wedding would be, with neither the parents of the groom or the bride there, but she wouldn’t change it for the world. She was marrying the man of her dreams, and she knew she couldn’t ask for a better husband. She turned around and saw her maid of honor, Chloe, standing there. “You ready to become Ava Seabrook?” Chloe smiled.

“More than you could ever imagine,” Ava told her honestly. “I guess the real question is if you’re ready for me to become your sister-in-law,” she laughed.

“Yeah, I think I can deal with that,” Chloe told her as the music started playing, and it was time for Chloe to walk down the aisle. “Good luck,” she whispered before holding the flowers out in front of her.

She saw Kris standing next to Brent at the front of the church, and she smiled at him. They had been together for the last year, and they were still going strong. She stood to the side as everyone in the church stood up and turned to watch Ava walk down the aisle.

Chloe watched on as Ava and Brent said their vows, and Ava officially became her sister-in-law. The next thing she knew, the priest was announcing that Brent could kiss the bride, and the wedding was over. Afterwards, Ava immediately engulfed Chloe in a hug before walking back down the aisle, hand-in-hand with Brent.

Chloe sat down at one of the outdoor tables at the reception. It was the perfect day for a wedding, with it being eighty degrees and sunny in Chicago. Chloe smiled to herself as Kris sat down next to her. “What are you smiling about?” he asked her.

“I’m just thinking that this is a perfect day for a wedding. Ava and Brent deserve this,” she answered. “I’m happy for them.”

“So, are you excited to be moving into your new apartment?” Kris asked.

“I’m moving next door!” Chloe exclaimed. Since Ava and Brent were obviously moving in together since they were married, Chloe had decided she was going to go ahead and move out. They had all decided that she would move into Ava’s old apartment.

“It’s still a new apartment for you,” Kris pointed out.

“Yes, it is,” Chloe smiled.

“Okay, it’s time for the bride to throw her bouquet!” someone yelled out, and Ava walked in between all of the tables where there was an open area.

“I guess you should go,” Kris said, giving Chloe a quick kiss.

“Was that for good luck?” she joked.

“Something like that,” he laughed as she walked to where all the other unmarried women were standing. She stood there, looking around her at all of the women who looked like they would kill for the bouquet. Chloe decided just to stand there, not about to fight for the flowers.

She watched as Ava threw the bouquet in the air, and they came soaring down straight at Chloe. All of the women stared at her, looking as if they were going to murder her. Suddenly, Ava came running up to her, laughing. “Congratulations,” she said, hugging her.

“Thanks,” Chloe told her. “But, I wasn’t even trying.”

“Looks like it was fate then,” she said as the two girls walked back towards the table where Kris and Brent were sitting. “Guess who caught the bouquet,” Ava said, sitting down next to Brent.

“Yeah, I saw. I guess you better get prepared,” he told Kris jokingly.

“Yeah, I don’t think I’m going to be getting married anytime soon,” Chloe announced, and they all looked at her. “What? I’m nineteen years old. I’d like to wait a couple of years before I turn into you, Ava,” she smiled.

“Yeah, yeah,” Ava told her.

“You know it’s kind of weird,” Chloe began, sitting down on Kris’s lap since there were no more chairs at the table.

“What?” Kris asked her.

“That a little over a year ago, I was still living with Dirk. You and I had never met. Ava, you were living next door to Brent, and you two were just friends. And, Brent, you were still dating Destiny,” Chloe told them.

“Don’t even mention her name,” Brent told her, still upset that Destiny had been the one who had told Dirk where Chloe was. Luckily, they hadn’t seen or heard from her since Chloe had come back.

“Still, just think how far we’ve all come since then,” Chloe said.

“Yeah, we’ve come a long way, haven’t we?” Brent asked, pulling Ava closer to him.

“Definitely,” Chloe smiled, leaning back into Kris.