Status: FIN.

The Roots That Tied to My Feet

of confidence

Melanie stared at the white dress that billowed down her body. She looked beautiful. Her hair was in perfect curls and her eyes were shining a bright blue and her smile was radiant. She looked at the boy across from her with such love and admiration it could make the happiest man in the world sick—but they were happy.

It didn’t matter what anyone else though; they were happy and that was what mattered.

Melanie smiled as the brunette boy spoke his soft, but confident, “I do.”

He stared at her with such strong emotion that her own heart began swelling inside her chest. She was so proud of him and of the man he had become. She had known him for years and they had been through plenty of good and bad, but now he was a man; a man that was going to be a great husband.

“And do you, Charlotte Hensley, take Kennedy Brock to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

The red head grinned, “I do.”

“Well, by the state of Arizona and the Lord himself, I am proud to now pronounce you husband and wife. Kennedy, you may now kiss your bride.”

The small crowd erupted in cheers, clapping as Kennedy kissed Charlie softly on her lips. They pulled away a few moments later, and began walking down the aisle, Kennedy lifting his new wife into the air on the way. Melanie smiled softly, as she walked behind them and out of the church. The hot air met her skin and she silently thanked Charlie for the short bridesmaid dresses.

“Melanie!”

She turned to the calling of her name and smiled as Jared enveloped her in a hug, “Baby girl how have you been? I didn’t get a chance to see you when you flew in last night!”

She hugged her friend back tightly, “Yeah, I drove straight to Charlie’s for her bachelorette party. I’ve been pretty great, just busy with school.”

“Well this is your last semester right?” Jared smiled, running a hand through his red hair.

She nodded her head with a smile on her lips. “Yeah, so we’ll see what happens after that.”

They stood in comfortable silence for a moment, surveying the guests around them who all had smiles on their lips. After a moment Jared touched her hand, “I—I uh, I’m sorry about your mom. We were on tour when it happened that’s why we couldn’t attend the funeral but we all wished we could have been there,” he spoke gently.

Melanie smiled at him bitter-sweetly, “She’s out of pain now, you know? It’s better for her—she’s in a better place. And, I know you would have been there, Jare. Don’t even worry okay?”

He nodded his head and his red hair bounced lightly in the wind. He held his arm out and gestured toward the hall where the reception was to be held, “Shall we?”

Melanie chuckled and latched on to his arm by linking their elbows together. They walked into the dining hall where guests were mingling and Melanie smiled as she heard laughter. She honestly hadn’t had the feeling of happiness around her for a while—but here, here everyone was happy and it was okay.

Her house had been quiet for the past few months since her mother had passed. Her father was relieved that she was out of pain but he mourned over the woman he had love for twenty-five years. Haley didn’t really know what to feel—and neither did Melanie for that fact. She wished she could have told her baby sister how it was supposed to be handled and how she should get over it, but she didn’t even know herself.

All she knew how to do was live—and she knew that that’s what her mother would have wanted.

“Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in.”

Melanie smiled instantly as she heard his voice and she turned and was instantly met with his chest. She hugged him tightly before looking into his blue eyes and ruffling his copper colored hair, “Garrett Nickelsen I have missed you dearly.”

“God I’ve missed you too. And your little sister,” he said laughing.

She rolled her eyes, “How was tour hun? And Haley missed you too, trust me. I would know.”

“I know. Phone sex just doesn’t suffice,” Garrett said with a sigh.

Melanie’s eyes widen and she made an ‘o’ shape with her mouth, “Ew.”

He laughed and slapped her on the back, leading her over to the bridal party’s table. They took seats adjacent to each other and Garrett turned to her with a smile on his lips, “How is Seattle?”

Melanie smiled and took a drink of her water that was in front of her, “It’s Seattle. It’s beautiful, rainy, and just peaceful.”

“How is Benjamin?” Garrett asked softly, adverting his eyes to the entry way where Haley was walking in. She looked beautiful. She was wearing the same pink, creamy colored dress that Melanie was. It had a flower on the one shoulder and a cinched waistline.

She shrugged, looking back into her friend’s blue eyes. “I haven’t talked to him since I moved my stuff out of his apartment. Last I heard he was still moving to New York.”

“Well, that’s good for him, I suppose. Are you coming home when you finish this semester?”

Melanie shrugged her shoulders as her eyes scanned the room looking at the families and friends of the couple, “I guess we’ll see. My dad really needs me here, so most likely. I just want to make sure he’s okay, you know?”

Garrett nodded his head in understanding and patted her hand gently before standing up next to her, “He’s not the only one who needs you, you know.”

Melanie looked away from his blue eyes that were boring into hers and stared at the lace pattern of the table, “Go away, Nickelsen,” she mumbled.

Garrett laughed before mumbling an ‘I love you’ and going and wrapping his arms around her baby sister. Melanie watched as Haley jumped in his arms and kissed him lovingly and he swung her in the air. You could tell they were in love simply by the way they looked at one another. They fought, they loved, and they were each other’s and that was it. End of story.

Melanie twirled a strand of her blonde hair around her finger lazily, before walking across the room and wrapping her arms around a boy with long brown hair and a never ending adorable grin. “Patty cakes,” she whined.

“Melly boo, what is wrong my love?” Pat Kirch smiled, hugging the girl tightly.

“I hate weddings,” she pouted.

He looked at her worriedly, pushing his brown hair out of his eyes, “Because of what happened with—

“No, no, no,” Melanie chuckled softly. “Not because of Ben…I just, I’m lonely. You guys all have girl friends and I’m all alone. I walked down the aisle with Kennedy’s weird cousin Les.”

Pat and Melanie looked across the room where Les was looking at her with a small smile on his lips. She didn’t find him creepy—he was just, well, he was a complete nerd. He wore glasses and suspenders, and not even the fashionable type. She was sure he was a great guy—just not for her.

A small girl with long black hair walked up to the two and smiled innocently at Melanie. Pat grabbed the girl’s hand and brought her close to him, “Melanie, you remember my girlfriend Ashley?”

Melanie grinned, “You were at my movie night a while back!”

Ashley smiled and her blue eyes lit up, “Yes I was! I—I uh, heard about everything…I’m really sorry for your loss.”

She nodded her head and said a gentle ‘thank you’ before excusing herself from the couple that was just validating everything she had just ranted to Pat. She was the only one who didn’t have a date to a wedding. How pathetic was she these days?

“And now ladies and gentlemen, introducing for the first time to you, Mr. and Mrs. Kennedy Brock!” The DJ yelled into his microphone suddenly, causing Melanie to turn her eyes to the couple who walked into the room. She couldn’t get over how beautiful her best friend looked. She looked completely flawless—and Kennedy, well he looked like he would never be any happier in his entire life.

All the guests applauded and hooped and hollered. The couple took their place on the dance floor for their first dance ‘married’ and everyone smiled. A few women around the room wiped tears from their eyes. After another song couples began making their way to the dance floor, holding each other close as Edwin McCain’s ‘I’ll Be’ flowed through the air.

She kept her eyes downcast on the table in front of her, tracing patterns with her manicured fingernail. She tried to convince herself that she didn’t look pathetic just to comfort herself, but she knew she did. She watched as a hand made its way into her vision and it’s palm was facing up towards her.

“May I have this dance?”

Melanie didn’t have to look to know who it was—hell, she didn’t even have to hear him. She could see the calluses on his fingertips from years of the guitar. She knew how those hands felt on hers, and how they felt when they brushed against your cheek—it was weird really that she knew all of this considering the beholder was married to her best friend now.

Melanie looked up into his shining green eyes and smiled, taking his hand in hers. She looked to see his wife dancing with the one boy she had been successfully avoiding all day long. She feared what she could possibly be saying to him.

Kennedy placed his hands on Melanie’s hips as they started slow dancing to the music. She smiled at the boy as she watched him look over at Charlie and exchange a glance.

“Congratulations, Kennedy. I am so happy for you, you know that?” Melanie sighed, wrapping her arms complacently around his neck.

“Thank you, Melanie. For…everything,” Kennedy started, looking at her for a moment. “I—you, you taught me how to love. You showed me what it was like to love someone deeply, and I know now that I was supposed to meet you so that I would know how to love her.”

Melanie felt her cheeks blushing at his compliment and she was overjoyed. “Charlie is perfect, and if you hurt her I will cut off your balls, okay Brock?”

Kennedy laughed heartily before taking her hand over her head and spinning her in a circle, “Note taken. You will cut off my balls and her brothers will cut off everything else, according to what they told me the night I first asked her out—four years ago.”

Melanie giggled, “She’s a special girl.”

“That she is,” he sighed, a simple grin on his lips. “So, about that boy you’ve been ignoring all night.”

She sighed softly, her lips pulling into a straight line, “What about him?”

“Are you going to talk to him? Because honestly I don’t know how you’ve been able to ignore him tonight—we’ve been trying to practically throw you two together,” Kennedy laughed.

“Oh I know,” Melanie chuckled. “I simply just run basically. I see him coming in my direction and I run in the bathroom—you know the drill.”

He shook his head from side to side with a serious look on his lips, “Why are you always running from him, Melanie?”

She shrugged her bare shoulders gently and bit her lip avoiding Kennedy’s eyes. She looked over his shoulder and she could see Charlie talking seriously to John. She could only see his back—but even that did wonders to her. She could picture his muscles that had been under her fingertips as he whispered that he loved her and she got butterflies in her stomach.

“He scares me,” she said after a moment.

“Why does he scare you?” Kennedy asked simply.

“Because he more than anyone knows exactly how to break me,” Melanie admitted after some thought.

“Sometimes, Melanie, being scared just means that it’s right.”

*

Melanie listened to the tapping of the glasses and smiled as she stood up from her seat and looked around the room. All eyes were on her and her glass of champagne and she adverted her eyes to the excited couple next to her. She smiled at her best friends before looking back over the room of guests reminding herself that she wasn’t nervous.

“For those of you who don’t know, my name is Melanie and I’m Charlie’s maid of honor,” she began smiling at her best friend who was grinning at her. “I remember the day I met Charlie. I remember the first thing I thought about her was that I hated her because she was so darn beautiful—and God, I tried to hate her, but an hour later I was already falling into her charm. She helped me through my troubles and gave me more advice about myself than I think she’s even aware of…and I’m just so thankful that I met someone as beautiful inside and out as you are, honey. I love you so much—you are my best friend.”

Charlie mouthed a ‘thank you’ at Melanie before kissing Kennedy softly.

“Now, Kennedy Brock,” she grinned, causing laughter coming out from the mouths of many who had known the kids growing up. They knew what kind of trouble these kids had gotten in to and they wanted to hear stories she was sure. “There are so many stories that I could tell—but they would probably get all of us in a lot of trouble,” she laughed along with her friends. “So instead tonight, Kennedy, I’m going to tell my favorite memory of you.

“On the night of my sixteenth birthday you snuck into my bedroom and kidnapped me. You blindfolded me and led me to your car and we began to drive. I had no idea where we were going and instead of answering my pleas you turned up the radio—which was blasting Def Leppard, because you knew that was the only way I’d shut up.

“We drove for about twenty minutes before I felt the car start slowing and a slew of curse words flew from your mouth. You forgot to gas up the car and we were stranded on the side of the road in Phoenix in the middle of the night. So, we started walking and after a few hours we found an amusement park—an abandoned one. God, I was so scared that night. I had never liked clowns or any of that stuff—and you definitely took advantage of that. I was terrified, but you showed me that night that sometimes fear can be worth it.

“Kennedy, you were my best friend for many years and you taught me so much. But, I think the thing you taught me the most about was my fear. Just tonight you told me something that I will never forget—sometimes being scared just means that it’s right.

“So, I want you to remember that yourself. When you two are a year down the road, or four years no matter what the world throws at you—sickness, fights, loss of a job, anything; I want you to remember that when you two are scared you will have one another. You will have each other and the fact that one day you will fear about losing the other just means that you love them—and that you don’t know if you could stand to lose them. Let your fear bring you home, back to one another.” Melanie raised her glass in the air, and smiled at the red head who was crying holding her husband’s hand tightly as they smiled up at her, “To the happy couple!”

Melanie drank along with all the other guests and hugged Charlie as she sat back down. The attention was all focused on Kennedy’s right side now, at the boy who was standing up nervously. For someone who was used to attention he seemed anxious—and Melanie wasn’t sure why.

“Kennedy, Melanie may have not been willing to get us into trouble—but I am,” John started, his green eyes glancing over her body quickly, making her nerves race. “Dude, we have had some of the most amazing times and God, some of the worst, but I wouldn’t take any of them back. You have been my best friend for years now and I’ll never forget the stupid crap we did. Like the time we egged all of my exes houses—and that was a lot, or the time—God the time we dressed Pat up as a woman and set that jerk you hated at school on a blind date with him.

“I am just really happy for you man, and you have given me some of the best advice I’ve ever received—besides from my mom, but now I’m going to give you some. I know, I know, ‘advice from John O’Callaghan’, the one boy who’s had maybe two stable girlfriends ever and,” he paused before looking into Melanie’s eyes confidently before continuing, “—constantly loses the one girl he loves. But maybe that makes me a perfect advocate for this.

“You have the world in the palm of your hands—and that world is now Charlie’s as well. Love her like there is no tomorrow. Love her as if you’ll never see her again. Love her and give her everything she needs or wants. Spoil her. Hold her in your arms and don’t let her go—because you won’t realize just what you had until it’s gone.”

John turned his gaze back to the couple and grinned, “Charlie, take care of my boy. I trust you. To the Brocks!”

Everyone drank once again and Melanie could feel the heat in her cheeks from what John had just spoken. He said it directly to her, plain and simple, night and day; even after five months of silence he still loved her.

*

Melanie let her heels hit the floor as she fell back onto her bed dramatically, her down comforter rising around her. She was so tired. The rest of the night had gone swiftly. There was dancing, and Charlie threw the bouquet, but Melanie’s mind was elsewhere. Her thoughts were on the boy who had pronounced his love for her in such a confident and obvious way. They never got the chance to speak though—he had to take Kennedy’s family to the airport.

Melanie sighed before standing up and walking across the wooden floor of her bedroom and looking out the back window. The tree house stood there in the branches proudly—reminding her of everything she had given up five months ago.

She let her feet carry her outside without a second thought and soon enough she was making her way up the old wooden stairs. The breeze was hitting her shoulders cooling her hot skin. Arizona summers could be killer—but at night they could be breathtaking.

Melanie walked into the tree house, her feet hitting the wood paneling softly. The room had looked exactly as it had a few short months ago but it still made her breath catch and her heart swell. She felt tears start pouring from her eyes slowly, not even noticing that her sobs had become louder. She placed her hands flat against one of the covered walls as her fingers ran over the words ‘I love you.’

She wished she wouldn’t have left that night three—now four years ago. She wished she had stayed and kissed him once again. She wished that she hadn’t had left five months ago without speaking another word to him. She wished she could take it all back and go back to loving him—but she couldn’t. The past was the past and until a few hours ago she was sure he had moved on. She had prepared herself for heartbreak, but now she was met with nothing.

“Why are you crying, Melanie?”

She jumped at the voice behind her and felt a chill go up her spine as she suddenly felt his presence. “I—I’m not,” she said dumbly, keeping her eyes on the wall in front of her instead of the ones that were begging to see her face.

He chuckled softly, “You’re horrible at lying, you know that?”

“I’m actually really good at it. I’ve been lying to myself and to you for years now,” Melanie responded simply.

She turned around to look at him and her chest tightened when she did. He was wearing black slacks and a matching over coat with a black button down underneath with a soft pink tie that matched her dress. His hair was a mess as always and his lips were pulled into a small smirk.

John looked at her assertively walking closer to her, “What are you scared of, baby?”

She looked down, keeping her blue eyes away from his, “You.”

“Why?” he asked softly, using his fingertips to make her look at him.

Melanie bit her lip and tried to choke back tears, “You can hurt me so badly, John. You hold the key to breaking me and you don’t even know it.”

“You think that I’m not scared, Melanie? I’m terrified of you,” John whispered, placing his forehead against hers. “You—you are the one person that scares me more than anything.”

“Why?” Melanie asked, echoing his words. She loved that after months of nothing they could still act as if nothing had changed—as if time didn’t exist. And maybe for them it never really did.

“Because—you’re my best friend and the love of my life. I can’t lose one of you without losing the other. You are the biggest part of who I am. If you believe in me—I believe in me. If you’re weak, I know I need to be strong. When you’re sad, you push me to want to make you happier without even asking. You are that girl that makes me want to change myself. You honestly make me a better man as cliché as that sounds, but, you also know how to make me the worst.

Melanie, you can make me so angry and so happy at one time. You make me worry about my future and where I want to live someday. You make me think about things like children—something I would never have thought about before, baby. I love you so much it hurts. And that’s why you scare me.

“And the fact that I can’t stay away from you—I refuse.”

Melanie stared into John’s green eyes that were boring into hers and she smiled softly at his sincerity. A tear slipped down her cheek but he caught it with his fingertip.

“Melanie, please don’t cry,” he pleaded gently.

“J—John, what if nothing changes? What if we fight all the time and we end up leaving each other? I can’t do it—I would rather just be your friend then never have you at all,” she whispered.

“Melanie, that’s what we do—we fight! We scream, we want to literally kill each other. But then we kiss, and we laugh and we go out and talk and we’re fine. Perfect couples are made of imperfections and I want you to be mine,” John said honestly, rubbing his nose against hers.

“I want you to be mine too, John,” she said simply, before confidently pressing her lips against his. He responded quickly and kissed her gently, taking his time. “I’m so sorry for everything I did—leaving and just—

“Melanie, stop.”

“No,” she said confidently, a small smile making its way onto her lips, “Listen: you’re smart, I’m dumb. I’m ugly, you’re sexy. I’m short and simple, you’re tall and talented.”

Melanie’s heart fluttered as John smiled wide and pulled her tight against his chest, “I’m ready for this, Melanie. I’m ready to love you.”

“I am too,” she spoke honestly, pressing her lips against his in another tingling kiss.

John pulled away with a smile on his lips and he ran his fingertips along her cheeks, “Are you sure?”

Melanie grinned, before looking at the boy she had loved since she was twelve years old. The boy who had showed her how to love and how be happy. The boy who taught her who she was. The boy she didn’t know how to live without.

“I’ve never been more confident.”
♠ ♠ ♠
BRIDESMAID;

Special thanks to: disappearing act., keriberry234, whilethefirewasout, steven hyde., carefulsilence, SynysterGracie, SweetPea, emmaleekayy, helloshelby, allzac, LadyMidori009, partyy posion;, a2nnyka (x2), aaaxelsson, GaskarthBabeey, coast of maine, etoile filante, i_am_originial, lovely youth, Elisex, YourPantsAreMissing, mrs.tonight, jordohhh, itsahit, somebody_who_cares, bria22, yeahhboii1994, BrytNshiny, feelingsintowords, and YouClickedYourHeels.

Wow you guys, you have absolutely amazed me throughout the course of Of Confidence and Roots and I am so sad to see it ending, I legit almost cried and have been debating on posting for about the past hour now. I am still just---so upset it's ending. It's bittersweet.

Thank you so much to every single person that read this/subscribed/commented. I love you guys more than anything and you kept me updating this story. Ah, wow, I'm just--amazed this is finally done. I've been writing it since 2008. Anyways, I love you all once again, beyond words.

Now that this is finished check out my new John story in the meantime. I'm extremely excited: And You Sold Me.

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xoxo ketely