The Natives

Meredith looked at herself in the mirror. I smiled at her, and I wrapped my arms around her shoulders. It hadn't been her idea to do a wedding so soon. Surprisingly, it had been Dillon that wanted to do it today. He'd never struck me as one to want to get married, but here we were.

Meredith smiled at me, and she turned around. I could see her happiness was boiling over, and I saw a tear slide down her cheek.

"This is the best day of my life," she said.

"I know, Mer," I said. "I know, and I couldn't be happier for you."

"Can I ask you something?" she said, sitting down.

I sat down beside her and said, "Of course."

"When you introduced me to Dill, did you think it was gonna last?" she asked.

I was caught off-guard. I honestly didn't think Dillon would stay with her for this long, but I had hoped he would. I didn't want to tell her that I thought he'd get rid of her after a month, at most. I also didn't want to lie to her, though, and she was looking at me rather anxiously. I smiled, finally.

"I didn't know what was gonna go down," I said. "Every day I kept hoping you guys would stay together, and every day I saw you guys grow together."

Meredith hugged me, and I patted her shoulder. This was the day she'd waited for forever. I couldn't imagine a day she had been happier, but I knew there hadn't been a day like that.

There were three sharp knocks on the door, and I stood and opened it a crack. Jordan stood in the hallway. He grinned at me when I opened the rest of the way and let him in. He cracked his knuckles and sat down in the chair across from Meredith.

"I had to escape Dillon," he said. "That dude is on the verge of singing Snow White songs, that how happy he is."

"Really?" Meredith said, sitting up.

"I wouldn't lie to you," Jordan sighed. "He was suffocating me."

"Are we pretty close?" I asked.

"Are you kidding? Dill's been ready for hours," Jordan replied. "We could be done by now."

"Then let's get you finished up, Mer," I said. "Jordan, you mind?"

"Not at all," Jordan said, leaning back in his chair.

I stared at him for a second, and he stared back at me. He motioned for us to continue, but I put my hands on my hips.

"Jordan," I said.

"Yes'm?" Jordan said, smiling.

"You can leave now," I instructed.

He made a pouty face and said, "I hate you..."

"Liar," I said, brushing him out the door.

"I strongly dislike you, then!" he shouted.

"Liar!" I shouted back at him, shutting the door so he couldn't get back in. I turned to Meredith and said, "Alright, now, we just need to do your makeup, and then it's off to the altar."

"Dios mío, Kara," Meredith sighed. "It's actually happening."

"It's exciting, isn't it?" I laughed.

She smiled at me, barely containing her happiness. The door from the adjoining room opened, and the four bridesmaids entered. Two were Meredith's cousins, one was Dillon's sister, and the other was Lauren. Lauren gave her gratitudes to Mer before coming to stand by me.

She poked me in the side and whispered, "You're next."
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Matt sat down sideways in a chair, facing me. I turned and faced him as well, and he took my hand. I looked down at our entwined fingers, and I couldn't help but smile.

"I see everyone's having a great time," he said. "What about you?"

"Mer's my best friend," I said, looking up and finding Mer and Dillon still on the dance floor. "I couldn't be happier for her. She deserves this."

"I didn't think it'd happen," Matt confessed. "He's never been one to get attached to a girl."

"Maybe he found his other half in her," I said, looking back at Matt.

We were silent for awhile, just listening to the sounds around us. Matt scooted a bit closer to me, putting an arm around my shoulders. I loosened his tie for him; he looked so different in a suit. I put my head on his shoulder, watching Meredith and Dillon share another kiss.

"Matt?" I said.

"Yeah?" he replied.

"I'm sorry," I said.

"For what?" he asked.

"I didn't know how you felt about me, but George told me," I answered. "If I knew, we could have given it a shot earlier."

"But you wouldn't have known how you felt," Matt said, touching my cheek. "And now we both do."

I bit the inside of my cheek. He leaned forward and took a drink from his glass, and he ran a hand through his hair. I played with a fold in my dress, letting the silence grow between us.

"You don't have to be sorry," Matt said.

"I know," I sighed.

The dinner party began reassembling for the toasts, and Matt had to leave to sit by Dillon. He kissed my cheek before he left, and Lauren stole his chair. She smiled at me.

"Good news," she said. "I think Aron's gonna be leaving you alone."

"What?" I said. "Why?"

She nodded toward the end of the table where Aron was talking to one of Meredith's cousins. I smiled and shook my head. He may not have been trying to date her, but he was at least distracted from Matt and me.