Status: Finished! I just have to post all of the chapters on here :)

Now I panic?

Chapter Twenty

Zach's POV .............................................

Kortney pulls on the hem of her shirt nervously, looking herself over in the mirror. She's wearing dark, fitted jeans, a gray blouse, with silver bracelets and a necklace that I bought for her, and silver sandals.

After hours(literally) of debating between us all, she decided to leave her hair down. That in itself is a huge risk, since she has dreadlocks and all... my grandfather is going to have a heart attack- after he tries to kill her. I'm not letting her out of my sight.

Everyone is now nervous, and my parents actually talked to me about possibly taking her somewhere safe if things get out of control. I don't get why my parents are letting them come at all, personally. Kortney is nervous enough about this wedding as is- I don't need them ruining it for us.

I watch Kortney sigh, and run a hand through her hair, looking a bit faint for a second. I stand, going to stand behind her. She doesn't even notice me, continuing to examine herself, and I know that she's thinking that she looks terrible.

"Kor..."

She doesn't acknowledge me, and I give her a shake. She starts, and her eyes meet mine in the mirror. "Huh?..."

I hug her around the waist, concerned. "What are you thinking about?"

"They're not going to like me? What if they really turn out to hate me? I've never met anyone racist before. Is there anything I can do to make them-"

"Kortney. They will hate you no matter what, so why don't you just accept it. But just know that I love you, and no matter what they think, we are still getting married."

I get a small smile from this, and she leans back into me. "This is going to be an interesting weekend..."

I sigh, nodding. "Ditto..."

The doorbell chimes, and Kortney stiffens, making a break for the bathroom. I catch her by the shoulders, hugging her tightly. "It's going to be fine, Kor. We're all here for you, alright?"

She doesn't respond, and I pull back, tilting her chin up so she can meet my eyes. I see tears, before she looks down again. "I can't do this, Zach. I just can't." She's obviously terrified.

"You'll be fine. But here's a tip. Are you listening?"

She nods, and I continue.

"If you don't act scared, they probably wont bother you as much. Act tough. Be tough for me okay?"

She sniffs, getting the look of stubborn determination that I know so well, and nods, pulling away, straightening her clothes. "I'm ready."

That's my girl...

I take her hand, and we exit her room, walking with deliberate slowness to the main room.

When we emerge from the hallway, and come down the few stairs, we see my grandparents, greeting my parents and josh enthusiastically.

My grandmother is still beautiful, even at her age, with deep-set blue eyes and white hair, that she keeps pulled loosely back with a diamond hair pin.

My grandfather is as fit as he was in his thirties, and just as rough. He was actually arrested once before, for assault on a woman: a black woman. That's why i'm not letting Kortney away from my side.

My grandfather spots us first, unfortunately, and I instinctively put an arm around Kortney's shoulders. "Hi grandpa. How are you?" I say this nonchalantly, as if i'm not holding a girl that he will despise.

His eyes look Kortney up and down, as he strides forward to shake my hand.

"They were well, before I caught sight of... this"

He says 'this', looking straight at Kortney, but she doesn't flinch, I notice proudly.

"Nice to meet you sir," she says politely, smiling.

He locks eyes with her, staring her down, but doesn't respond.

My grandmother approaches next, and pushes Kortney out of the way carelessly, giving me a tight hug. I glance over at her, and after the initial shock wears off, I see an angry fire start in her eyes.

This weekend can't possibly end well...

"Zachary! It's so good to see you. I heard about this amazing fiance that your parents are bragging constantly about. Where is she?"

I resist the urge to make some smart retort, and pull away from her, going back to stand by Kortney.

"Grandmother, Grandfather, this is Kortney, my amazing fiance.

Grandma Mattie gasps, putting a hand over her mouth, while my grandfather's eyes go so dark they're almost black. "Excuse me?" he says, his voice dangerously low.

Kortney bravely steps forward , and I brace myself for some sort of fight, ready to jump in if necessary.

"My name is Kortney Jezebel René, and I am your grandson's fiance. It's nice to meet you both, and I hope we can have a fairly enjoyable weekend."

The electric shock in the room is almost audible, as my grandparents process this. Grandma Mattie is the first to speak.

"You sound educated. But i'm going to have to disagree with this marriage proposal. My grandson deserves much better, and you deserve, well, much less."

A muscle in Kortney's face twitches, a sure sign that she's absolutely furious, even though her face stays calm. "With all due respect, ma'am," she steps back, and puts an arm around my waist. "we didn't exactly ask for your approval."

At this, my grandfather steps forward, threatening. "You will not speak to my wife in that way, girl. You might feel like you're worth as much as Zachary because you have that ring on your finger, but you are nothing. Remember that. And we will not allow this marriage to continue."

Kortney faces him without fear, and I remind myself not to pull her behind me. She can handle this.

"What exactly about me is is that you hate? You don't even know me."

He dismisses this with a chuckle. "You're black. That explains it all. Everyone knows, deep down inside, that blacks are as low as animals. Even you, whether you admit it or not. You're no different from any other nig-"

"Dad," mom snaps, fury written all over her face. "You will not use that language in our house. You might as well leave."

"African American," he finishes with a look of disgust.

Kortney steps even closer, which is either incredibly brave, or incredibly stupid. I can't decide.

"If it's about whether i'm smart or not, i've been top of my classes since middle school. Straight A's all year through, never done drugs, and even managed to not get shot at all of the shootings we've had at the school. I'm sure you never had to carry around a knife to your prep-school classes, did you, Mr. Thomas? I'm not just getting ahead, i'm surviving."

There's silence for a long time, while they stare each other down, and I actually begin to relax. But then, before any of us knows what's happening, he raises his hand and slaps her. Hard.

No one moves, and I don't even hear breathing. Red spots dance in my vision, as I give in to the blind fury inside me. Stepping forward, I pull Kortney behind me, and almost punch him. But Kortney grabs my arm as I rear back.

"It's not worth it, Zach," she mumbles. "Just let it go. Please let it go.

I lock eyes with my grandfather, and take a half step back. His shock is obvious by my barely controlled fury.

"If you ever put a hand on her again, I wont hesitate to call the cops on you. They can escort you out."

He folds his arms. "I'm sure the authorities will be on my side-"

"Want to test that theory?" I ask, pulling out my cell phone.

He's silent, and I put my phone back in my pocket. "Josh can you show our grandparents to their room?"

He hurries to comply, knowing that i'm close to seriously harming someone.

When they're gone, I turn back to Kortney, cupping her face in my hands, and kiss her softly. "I'm so sorry baby. Are you okay?"

She nods, wincing when I touch where he hit her. A blueish-purple bruise is starting to spread across her cheek, in the shape of his hand, and I take a deep breath to push my anger back.

"Why didn't you let me punch him? He deserves it."

She looks me in the eyes. "We're bigger than that Zach. Not retaliating shows a message too. We wont drop to his level. I've been hurt worse."

This is news to me. "By who? When?"

She looks down. "It was a long time ago. Don't worry about it. I need some ice, before this bruise spreads even more."

The look on her face is killing me, and I glare long and hard at my parents, who have been watching us the whole time. "I hope you're happy. I told you this would happen."

They look away guiltily. Kortney walks away from me, towards the kitchen, and I walk behind her, giving her some space. She gets ice from the freezer, putting it in an ice pack, and presses it to her cheek, closing her eyes.

I look at her, leaning back against the counter. She's still beautiful, even with the bruise...

A tear slips from between her closed eye lids, and she wipes it away angrily. The stress is slowly coming over her.

I walk over and hold her in my arms, letting her rest her head on my chest. "It's going to be okay baby. I wont let him hurt you again. You held it together good though. I'm so proud of you."

She gives me a small smile that doesn't reach her eyes. "Can we go somewhere? I don't want to be in the same house with them right now..."

I nod, understanding. "Come on."
♠ ♠ ♠
I AM SO ANGRY!!! How dare that-
*takes deep breath*

Okay. Back to reality. Twentieth chapter people! WOO! And this story has five out of ten stars! Thank you guys so much for all of the support. I really appreciate it.

Kortney and Zach say hi, even though Kortney is kindof pissed at me letting her get hit.><
Zach wont let her go. LOL.

Anyways, subscribe, comment, and all that chiz. Hope you liked it. I made it a lot longer this time.

_TECH_