Second Chance

Annabelle’s POV

“You would’ve laughed your ass off. Ken shoved Jared, who ended up pushing Garret, who pushed Pat, who fell face first on the ground, scratching his whole cheek. It looks so gross now that it’s healing. It looks painful too” I hear John’s voice as if he’s so far away, when in reality, we’re lying together on my bed, me in between his legs, my back resting on his chest. Practically, he’s speaking in my ear… but my mind is somewhere else.

I shouldn’t be thinking about him. Why am I thinking about him? He’s finally letting me go & allowing me to be happy. But why am I not happy?

“Bellie, are you listening to me?” John says, making me look up at him, when he tugs at my hand, that he’s been so interested in playing with while telling me his tour stories. Him & his band had a week of special presentation, so today is the first time that I get to see him after a week. I look at him & give him a small smile, nodding my head yes. But he gives me a knowing look. “Are you ok? Since I came back, you’ve been zoning out. Is everything alright?” He asks, & I see in his beautiful hazel/green eyes that he’s truly worried.

“It’s nothing” I say, leaning up a bit to kiss him. He kisses back for a second, before pulling away & tucking my hair behind my ear.

“You’ve been acting strange since that day we had lunch with your friends” He says & I let out a sigh, indirectly letting him know that that was the catalyst for my recent mood change. “Wanna talk about it?” He says, running his hand through my hair. I turn around, so I’m lying on him, wrapping my arms around his naked torso, resting my head on his chest, wishing he would just drop it. “I think they were great. Bit strange that you hanged out with a lot of married couples though” When he said that, I couldn’t help but remember that day all over again.

*~*~*

“Brian?” I hear Michelle’s worried voice. I look up & I see Brian staring at me. I hear her give out a nervous chuckle. “Brian, are you ok?” & I could hear her desperation & scariness. But Brian just kept looking at me, not saying a word. A smirk on his face & the next 2 words that came out of his mouth, made my world stop.

“I’m sorry” He says & in the next seconds, all you can hear are the gasps & murmurs coming from the entire packed room. But why was he apologizing? Was he apologizing to me… or to Michelle? He turns to look at Michelle. “I’m sorry” He says again, letting go of her hand & stepping down, walking towards me. He stops before me, giving me a smile. But before he could say, or do, something, Jimmy spoke up.

“If you could all give us a minute” He says, walking to us, grabbing Brian’s arms, pulling him towards a door at the side. We all stood there, shocked about what was happening. I turn my eyes to look at Michelle. She’s as shocked as everyone else, not crying though. But I don’t think reality has really sunken in. She doesn’t realize that she has been stood up at the altar. & I can’t help but feel sorry for her. This is all my fault. All of this is happening because I had to meddle in.

“Anna” Leana says from my side & I turn to look at her. “This is your chance” She whispers. “Go” I turn to look at Michelle, who started crying, being comforted by her sister. I can’t even tell how she must me feeling. The love of your life leaving you at the altar, in front of all your family & friends, in a beautiful dress. It must be heartbreaking & humiliating. “GO” Leana whispers harshly this time, gaining the attention of Gena & Michelle’s sister in-law, who gave me a strange look. I nod & hand her my small bouquet, walking towards where Brian & Jimmy had disappear. I feel a lot of eyes on me, but I don’t care. Cuz this is my second chance.

*~*~*~*~*~*~~*

“You’re doing it again” John says into my hair & I snap out of my trance.

“I’m sorry. I’m just tired” I lie to him, nuzzling further on his chest. I feel him scoot me upward from my arms, before him wrapping his arms around my waist, securing me there.

“I love you” He says, kissing my nose, before starting to plant little kisses all over my face. I let out a small moan when he hits that spot that drives me crazy on my neck. He quickly turns us over, him ghosting over me, before gripping my shirt & pulling it upward. He kisses my lips next & I can see how this night is gonna end. I just wished Brian would stay in the back if my mind. At least for now.

Brian’s POV

I stare at the ceiling of my hotel room. It’s another sleepless night for me. Ever since I decided to let go, for good this time, of Annabelle, I can’t sleep, I can’t eat, I barely function in studio. It’s safe to say that I’m like a fucking zombie all day. & to top it all, the guys have been pushing me into writing solos that I sincerely don’t want to do. I’ve lost all inspiration. It’s like I’m useless without her. How did I function before without her? All these years without her… how did I manage to do it? I guess it’s just now that I finally realize that I completely lost her. She’s getting married, for God’s sake. I put my hand up, blocking my view from the ceiling that I’ve memorized from staring hours after hours, glancing at the platinum ring resting on my finger… & to think that I almost didn’t do it.

*~*~*

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Jimmy screams at me, after shoving me into some tiny room. It looks like an office. Oh, they have skittles. Before I could grab some, Jimmy shoves me again.

“What the fuck do you want, Jim?” I say, rolling my eyes annoyed.

“For you to get your ass out there again & marry her” He says, exasperated.

“I don’t want to. I don’t love her. Why should I marry her if I don’t love her?” I say, leaning on a desk.

“You love her, Brian. She’s your best friend” He says, letting out an exasperated cry.

“Belle is my best friend. & she’s the one I love” I say, crossing my arms over my chest, elevating my tone just a bit.

“So, what? You’re just leave her there, standing in front of everyone, making a fool out of herself?” He says.

“You know… this isn’t my fucking fault” I say, anger brewing from me.

“Oh, really? Then who is it?” He say, staring at me in mock interested.

“It’s yours” I say & he scoffs.

“My fault? How is it my fault, Brian?” He asks, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Nothing of this would be happening if you would’ve minded your own goddamn business. I was gonna call off this wedding. Do you think I like leaving one of my best friends standing alone on the altar while I run away with my other best friend? No, I don’t like it. It’s killing me to do this to her. But you had to come & talk shit to Annabelle & make her leave me. So if anyone is guilty here, it’s you, not me” I say.

“So you’re blaming it on me? That’s really mature, Brian. Are you gonna blame me too for you fucking Anna? Was it my fault that your dick landed on her vagina? I don’t think so” He replies & I’m about to beat the shit out of him for speaking so cruelly about Anna.

We didn’t fuck. I would never fuck her. We made love. What we did was something so beautiful that he could never understand. He could never understand how much I love Belle. How I would do anything to be with her.

I see someone open the door & as soon as my eyes landed on her, all anger disappeared. Jimmy noticed too & turns to see Anna standing there. Her eyes are red from all the crying she’s done. It’s killing her. & it was killing me to see her crying & hearing her sobs that she couldn’t manage to keep low. “Oh, great” He mutters, rolling his eyes.

“Shut the fuck up, Rev” I say, quickly glancing at him, before fixing my eyes on her. I see the corner of her lips twitch upward, almost as if she was shy to smile at me. I walk closer to her & just grabbed her face delicately, never looking away from her eyes. “Hi” I say, making her smile & blush.

“Hey” She says in a soft voice. I can’t believe how much I love her. I feel my heart expand to the point where I don’t think it fits inside my chest. I lean down to kiss her, before being interrupted by Jimmy.

“You guys must be fucking kidding me, right? You’re gonna kiss? Here?” He says & I see Belle sighing. I roll my eyes, turning to face him. This is getting ridiculous.

“Don’t you think you’re not needed here?” I ask, standing in front of Belle, holding her hand.

“Are you guys serious? Haven’t you thought about anything? The consequences of this? You guys are practically casting yourself out. You’re ruining a lot of lives right now” He says. “Are you ready to quit the band, Brian? To destroy everything we’ve worked so hard to get for some rushed bad judgment? Cuz you know Avenged won’t go on after this. You’ll fuck everything up for all of us” He says & I cast my eyes down.

I’ve never thought about all of this. Yes, I love Annabelle to death. But can I be so selfish as to bring down all of the guys with me?

“& you’ll fucking destroy Michelle. That girl is gonna be a mess after this… after this… betrayal. You claim you loved her & yet, you’re willing to hurt her the most today. Her most important day will be tainted by your unfaithfulness & gutless. Are you fucking ready to live with the burden that you just ruined her life?” He says & I feel my hand slipping from Annabelle’s. I don’t completely let go of it.

His words… his words are ringing so true. I love Michelle. She’s sweet, & caring & funny. I don’t want to take that away from her. I don’t want to ruin her.

“& you” He says, pointing to Annabelle. He wasn’t done. “You’re giving up your life. For what? For a life without friends? Because we know the girls are never gonna talk to you again. Val is gonna hate you. Her hate will only be compared to Michelle’s. Have you thought about her?” He asks.

“Of course I’ve thought about her. I’m not a selfish bitch, Jimmy” She says from behind me. Of course she wasn’t gonna let Jimmy beat her down. But I couldn’t help but feel this awful feeling pressing my chest. It’s the kind of feeling you get when you know you have to the right thing… even if it is what you don’t want to do.

“Well, you act like one, Annabelle. You helped her pick her wedding dress. You helped her with the flowers, the china, the fucking pictures, the fucking centerpieces. You fucking dare stand next to her as one of her bridesmaid a day after you just fucked her fiancé. You’ve got some nerve, Annabelle. You waltz here thinking about stealing her man without consequences? Everyone is gonna hate you. Even your parents will be fucking disappointed in you. You’ll be a fucking embarrassment to them. Do you want that? Do you seriously want that?” He finishes. I feel my breath becoming more ragged. Do I want her to go through all that? “Do you want to live a life of loneliness? Do you-“ He gets interrupted by an angry Belle.

“I don’t fucking care. Who the fuck are you to tell us how to live our lives, Jim? I love him. I want to be with him. I’m gonna be with him. So you can just get the fuck out of here & stand in the sidelines watching us be happy. Or you can just accept the fact that we fell in love. Yes, it was a shitty timing, but it happened. Deal with it” She says, letting go of my hand & walking to stand in front of Jimmy. She looks so small next to the giant Jimmy is. “Why can’t you be happy for us?” She asks him, her anger disappearing.

“I can’t be happy when another friend was blindsided by her ‘fiancé’ & one of her ‘best friends’” He says, walking past her & past me to head out of the office. “I just hope you have the balls to get out there, where everyone is waiting, & tell her that there won’t be a wedding cuz he chose you” He finishes, before storming out of the office. Annabelle lets out a long breath, rubbing her forehead. I keep my eyes cast downward, hating myself for what I’m about to do. I feel her walk to me & place her hands on my cheek, lifting my head, making my eyes meet hers.

“Hey” She says, smiling to me. Her eyes are filled with hope & I hate myself even more. “It’s gonna be alright. We’ll be alright” She says, caressing with her thumbs my cheeks. “I love you” She says, leaning up to kiss me, but just as her lips are about to brush mine, I turn my face, making her lips land on my cheek. I take his hands off my face & turn, not having the heart to look at her. “Brian” She says & I hear the hurt in her voice.

“He’s right” I say, feeling my lips quivering. I can’t cry. Not right now.

“No, he’s not” She says & I can tell she’s about to cry, by the cracking in her voice.

“Yes, he is. This is wrong. This is all wrong. I can’t…” I start, swallowing the lump in my throat & shaking my head. “We can’t, Belle” I say. I hear her give out a sob. “I… I’m sorry. But I’m gonna marry her” I say, placing my hands on my pockets & start walking out of the office.

“Brian” I hear her softly say. & it breaks my heart. “Don’t do it” She says before sniffing. “Please, don’t do it. Don’t marry her. I’m begging you to not marry her. Just stay with me… please” She says & I turn my head to see her choked up in tears, looking at me so helplessly that I just want to hold her tight & never let her go. But I don’t. I can’t. Because Jimmy is right. I hate that he’s always right.

“I’m sorry” I say, before walking out of the office, & stopping when I hear Annabelle break down crying loudly. But I can’t go back.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“FUCK” I say really loud, not caring if the guys heard me. I don’t think they did. They pretty much crashed when we got back from the studio. Besides, it’s 3 AM. “Why did I do it? Why did I listened to him?” I ask to myself, before getting up from the bed & heading out to the bar of the room. I need something to drink since I’m not gonna catch any sleep tonight.

Jimmy’s POV

I hear Brian curse. It has become a routine for him. Ever since the girls left, he can’t sleep. I know it’s not because he misses Michelle’s body next to his. I don’t know what the fuck Annabelle & he talked about, but ever since, he’s pretty much just walking dead. I look down at the pictures in my hands… his wedding day pictures. He’s not smiling in any of them. I, at least, putted out a faked smiled… but he didn’t. He did a pretty good job at half decently disguising his sadness… but I knew it was there. I start seeing more of them & I can’t help but feel guilty… cuz Annabelle is not in a single picture. & I just remembered watching Brian walking back to the altar. I really thought he was gonna call the wedding off, but he just took his place, apologized softly to Michelle, giving her an excuse & told the minister to continue. Everyone took their places… everyone except Annabelle. From my standing, I saw her, standing on the backside, almost in the shadows. She was crying hard, her shoulders shaking. & when Brian said ‘I do’, I literally saw her heart break into a billion pieces. Her bottom lip was trembling from her trying to hold back her tears, trying to hold back her pain. She just dropped her head, closed her eyes, let out an inaudible painful sob & turned… leaving without saying goodbye.

But I did it for her. I did it cuz she deserved to be happy & live her life. But at that moment… I realized I made a huge mistake. A mistake I haven't forgiven myself yet. I guess that's why I'm being an asshole to Anna. I'm punishing her for the mistakes I've made.