Imperfectly Beautiful

* Three Months Later *

The smell of the fresh paint and new hardwood floors filled my nose as I reached for the light switch that was on the wall next to me. Flicking the switch, I watched as each spotlight shined down on it’s paired photograph. Some pictures were mine, most were Peyton’s, and even some were pictures that she had taken when she was still working with Harmony.

Slowly making my way up and down the room, I glanced over the pictures, adjusting the frames that needed to be straightened, second guessing a photo’s placement, and even dusting off a few frames that had already gathered dust.

My feet instantly planted themselves onto the hardwood floor when I came across one picture. Personally, it was my favorite of the entire selection.

It was located right between the picture of Peyton on the beach with her jeans rolled up to her knees as she stood in the water, and the first picture I had ever seen of Peyton’s-Forgotten Paradise.

Peyton’s lips were upturned into a half smile, and her eyes had a certain gleam in them that I hadn’t noticed before. Her hair was a mess and pressed flat up against her face, but in my eyes, she couldn’t have looked any more beautiful. I remembered that morning like it was only yesterday. It was the first time that Camilla hadn’t crossed my mind in years.

Without thinking, I let my fingers graze softly against the smooth glass, right above where the title of the photo was placed.

“Imperfectly beautiful…” I murmured, reading off of the tab that was placed underneath the photo.

With a smile on my face, I left the room, making sure to turn off the lights behind
me, and walked into the front room, where both mine and Peyton’s family and friends would be waiting to see what Peyton and I had been working at immensely for the past three months.

I adjusted a stack of fliers that were set up on a coffee table in the sitting area. A New Focus. It was a name that Peyton had had picked out for years when her and Harmony had first begun their dream of opening a photography studio.

Although Harmony was still leaving for L.A to pursue the job that she had been offered, she would still help out at A New Focus as often as she could.

“Joe?” Peyton’s small voice echoed off of the empty walls. Making my way toward the large arch that led into the studio, I waited for Peyton to find me in the small maze.

Like it had for the last three months, my breath hitched in my throat as she made her way around the corner of the staircase that led up to a loft that we had been using as an office.

Her long, curly, hair bounced off of her shoulders as she skimmed through a pile of paperwork once more before handing it over to me.

“Everything upstairs is set,” she said, blinking her eyes once before glancing up at me. I smiled down at her and nodded my head serenely before she gave me a strange look.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I watched as one of her tiny hands instinctively retreated back to the small baby bump that was hidden behind her purple dress.

Peyton and I had both agreed that- since my parent’s hadn’t taken mine and Camilla’s break-up well, and only knew of Peyton through Nick and Kevin- it wasn’t the best idea to mention the pregnancy just yet. Peyton’s parents obviously wouldn’t be too fond of the idea, either.

I leaned down swiftly and kissed Peyton, something I still hadn’t gotten used to doing so openly for the past three months.

Wrapping my arms around her body, I felt her sink into the kiss as she took her hands off of her belly and instead pressed them against my chest.

Pulling away, I watched as Peyton’s eyes stayed closed, as if she was taking in the moment like I had been only a few moments earlier.

“This is really happening.” she said, continuing to keep her eyes shut. She buried her face into my chest as I stroked the top of her head gently.

“This is really happening,” I agreed, squeezing her gently before pulling away at the sound of tapping on the glass door.

Turning around, I smiled at the sight of my family waiting behind the glass doors. Although my mom was questionably looking at Peyton and I, I put a huge smile on my face and jogged my way toward the door.

Almost as soon as I pulled the door open, everyone came piling in. Nick before Kevin, who was dragging Danielle behind him. My mom and dad came in after that, and Frankie came in last, making sure to close the door behind him.

Since mine and Camilla’s break-up, I hadn’t seen much of my family. And even though I bitched about Nick’s non-stop teasing and Kevin’s brotherly advice, there was a part of me that missed it.

“A New Focus?” Nick asked, looking up at me with raised eyebrows. “Isn’t that a little corny for a photography studio?”

I glanced behind me at Peyton, who had grown used to Nicks attitude by now, and teasing shot a look at her.

“Peyton picked it out,” I informed Nick, watching as his face fell slightly. Kevin rolled his eyes before crossing his arms over his chest.

“Typical Nick,” He muttered beneath his breath. Our parents glanced uncomfortably at each other before my mom stepped forward and smiled.

“Well, I like it.” She said, holding her arms out to me before embracing me in a tight hug. “I’ve missed you, Joe.”

“I’ve missed you, too.” I answered, feeling my mom’s arms unravel around mine. She stepped around me and smiled warmly at Peyton.

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” she said. Peyton’s cheeks turned a dark crimson, something that always happened when she felt flattered. “I have heard so much about you.”

Peyton accepted my mom’s hug and caught my eye, smirking gently. I watched as Peyton’s hand instinctively found its way to her stomach. She caught herself and awkwardly pretended to be flattening out her dress.

“Well, I think we should wait for Peyton’s family to get here before we show the first tour of the studio, don’t you think?” I asked.

Peyton shook her head in disagreement and shrugged her shoulders. “It’s fine, Joe. I’ll show everyone around, if that’s’ alright? And you can wait out here for everyone else to arrive?”

I smiled at Peyton, although being left alone with Peyton’s family frightened me a little, but nodded my head.

“Sounds good with me,” I said. Peyton nodded her head and glanced over at my family before leading them through the archway that led to the main room of the studio.

Nick, not all that surprisingly, hadn’t followed the rest of the group.

“So, you’re telling everyone about you and Peyton tonight, right?” I glanced up at my younger brother and fell down onto a sofa. He sat down next to me, his eyes unwavering.

“What do you mean?” I asked nervously. Had it been that obvious that something was different with Peyton? Were we not hiding her pregnancy well enough?

“Our parents aren’t stupid, Joe. They’re going to find out that the two of you are dating someday. I mean, if you really wanted to hide the fact…you shouldn’t have been looking at her like that. Talking about awkward-”

“Oh, yeah.” I replied, “Yeah, we’re telling everyone about our relationship tonight. I thought you were talking-” I bit my lip, “-talking about something else.”

Nick glanced at me with a weird expression, but shrugged it off. Even though I knew how conniving and judgmental Nick could be at times, there was a part of me that wanted to tell Nick about Peyton being pregnant. That way, someone else would know what it was like trying to hide something so crucial to the people who meant the most to you in your life.

“Are you okay, man?” Nick asked with a tinge of worry in his voice. I hadn’t realized that I had been staring off into nothing.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I answered, “Just tired, you know?”

“That bad?” Nick questioned. I looked up at him in confusion and he just smirked shortly before leaning back into the couch.

“In case you have forgotten, there used to be a time when we spent every waking moment with each other. We used to share the same tour bus, dude. I can tell when my own brother isn’t telling me something.”

I sighed before resting my elbows on my knees and cradling my head in my hands. Although Peyton and I had promised each other that we wouldn’t tell anyone about the pregnancy until both of us were comfortable, I felt like I couldn’t keep something like this from Nick.

“I’m about to tell you something, Nick. And I swear to God, if you tell anyone about it before I tell you it’s okay, I will never trust you with anything in my entire life. And you have to be serious about this.”

I could tell by the way the side of Nick’s mouth twitched that he wanted to say something he shouldn’t, but he kept it in. Instead, he nodded his head without another word.

“Peyton had a legitimate reason for wanting to get away from me and moving to Pennsylvania for a while. It was because I lied to her, and I led her on to a certain extent, but it was much more than that, too.”

Nick sat looking impatiently at me as I continued. “Because the truth is…a few months ago, she found out that she was pregnant. And that I’m obviously the father.”

At first, the only noise was the sound of Peyton’s voice somewhere far away striking up conversation with one of my family members. My stomach rolled around nervously as Nick averted his eyes away from me and instead glanced down at the wood floor.

“While you were engaged to Camilla.” He stated matter-of-factly.

“…Yes.”

“You and Peyton had sex, while you were engaged to another person.”

“Nick, please don’t do that.”

“Joe, that’s….that’s wrong.”

“Of all people, I would expect you to understand. You knew how I felt about Peyton more than anyone else.”

Nick seemed to consider this as he furrowed his eyebrows. “Yeah, I did.” He agreed.

I glanced at him guiltily. “Please don’t judge me, and remember that you promised me that you would tell no one about this.”

“I’m not going to judge you, you know that you made the right decision now. And I’m glad that you trust me with anything as serious as this, Joe. I would never tell anyone unless you were comfortable with it.”

I nodded, believing what Nick was telling me. We sat in silence, not looking at each other, not talking to each other.

* * *

“My parents really like you,” Peyton mumbled quietly, crossing her arms over her chest as we continued to look up at a collection of photographs.

“Yeah?” I asked, smiling lightly. “Well, my parents really like you, too.” I glanced over my shoulder and watched as our families and friends continued to talk to each other. Nick, who was trying to hold a conversation with Harmony, kept glancing our way.

“Then it will make telling everyone about us easier, right?” I asked, turning back around to look at Peyton. She tugged at her dress uncomfortably and shrugged her shoulders.

“I really hope so, but who knows with my family.” Peyton muttered, tearing her eyes away from the photograph and smiling up at me.

“Or with mine.”

“Well,” Peyton smiled wider, “I guess there’s only one way to find out, right?” She took a hold of my hand and walked towards the front of the crowd, clearing her throat to get the attention of everyone.

“Hi guys,” She said nervously, “I just want to start off by thanking all of you for coming to the opening of our studio, and hopefully you guys will consider us if you ever need someone to take pictures of events and what not. But there is another reason we called you all here today.” She glanced over at me and smiled anxiously as I reached out for her hand.

“Peyton and I have been seeing each other for the past few months, and with the press following me around lately, we wanted to make sure that you guys heard it from us and not from somebody else.”

Everyone surprisingly took it better than we expected. Of course our parents were a little taken aback, but the looks on their faces showed that they were accepting.

As everyone turned their attention away from Peyton and I, I finally took hold of Peyton’s hand in front of everybody and squeezed it encouragingly.

It felt good to be in a relationship that I could be open about. It felt better to be able to pull Peyton into a hug, in front of my friends, in front of my family, in front of her family. But it felt best to think that this was only the beginning.

* * *

The guests were long gone. Empty wine glasses were bordering the perimeter of many of the coffee tables, and I had just picked up another glass when I felt a pair of hands slither their way around my torso.

Turning around, I watched as Peyton closed the open space between us and pressed her body up against mine as close as it would go. She pressed her face into the crook of my neck, where it fit perfectly.

Her lips skimmed the top layer of my skin, my jaw line, and finally met my lips.

“Joe?” She asked, pulling too soon away from my lips. I leaned my forehead up against hers and let my hands find their way to her hips.

“Peyton?” I replied, watching as her lips upturned into a quiet smile.
As I let my hands wander to her growing stomach, Peyton didn’t say anything.

Instead, she watched my every move until I finally paused right above her stomach.

It was still surreal to think that in only a few days, I would be able to once again see my own child in an ultrasound picture. In a few weeks, I would be able to feel her (or him) move when I put my hand on Peyton’s stomach. In a few months, I would be able to hold our child in my arms.

I had been daydreaming about the day where I would finally become a father that I almost didn’t hear Peyton speak.

“I love you,” She whispered, before pressing her lips against mine once again.

I smiled at her touch and tangled my hands into her blonde hair before pulling back.

“I love you, too.” I replied, pressing my body closer to hers as she ran her hands up and down the length of my chest.

Peyton pulled away suddenly and turned around, glancing over at me with a teasing smile. The bright lights of the studio hurt my eyes as I walked across the room to close the final room of the studio, the same room I had been in before.

The same picture caught my eye, and it was the last thing I saw before the entire room got enveloped in the darkness.

Walking out of the doorway, I glanced around the front lobby and realized that Peyton had already walked out of the studio.

Making my way in that direction, I turned off the rest of the lights and walked out the front door, making sure to lock it behind me.

Peyton patiently waited only a few paces away from the studio. I watched as a hot wind ran through the streets of Texas and blew her hair out of her face gracefully. Like it had since the day I first saw her at Rupture, my heart began to accelerate at the smile that began to grow on her face.

“Are you coming?” She called, comfortably resting her hand on her belly. I smiled and nodded my head, glancing once more at A New Focus.

I shoved my keys into my front pocket as I walked toward Peyton, instantly lacing my fingers in hers as we made our way down the sidewalk.

A relationship doesn’t have to be worry-free to be everlasting. A family doesn’t
always have to be happy to be caring for one another. A song doesn’t have to be a hit to be appreciated. A photograph doesn’t have to be edited to be breathtaking. Because in this world where everything is so perfect, revealing the imperfections in something can be quite beautiful. That way, life is more enjoyable. Because you learn to love those moments when you are with the person you want to spend the rest of your life with, even if it’s just sitting on the couch and watching television. You learn to accept your family for who they are and love them even more for that reason. You learn to savor those moments when you’re on top and it feels like nothing can bring you down, because believe it or not…there is always a force stronger than yours. When you learn to accept the imperfections in a relationship, in a family, in a song, and in a photograph, it will amaze you when you finally take the time to look through the lens and see what’s right in front of you.