Church Tongue

I couldn’t believe it, she was getting married. My best friend was getting married. The love of my life and she was marrying some dickhead.

I located the ring on her left hand. It was gold she’s always made it clear she hated gold rings and if she ever got married she would want the ring to be silver. Just shows how much that guy knows about her.

“Wait so let me get this straight, you’re actually marrying this Pratt?!” I asked needing more conformation on the matter

“Yes Aled, I love him” I cringed internally at that word. She passed me an envelope “Open it” I did as she said and pulled out the piece of card that was inside. It turned out to be an invitation to the dreaded event

“Why are you giving me this?” She shook her head knowing where this conversation was going to lead

“You’re my best friend I expect you to come”

“You know I despise that dick you’re marrying” I said the last word with venom

“I don’t see why he’s never done anything to you” except propose to the woman I love

“It’s the way he acts, he’s a complete jackass and you don’t see it, all he wants is to own you like some piece of property! And besides it’s not only me that doesn’t like him nobody does”

“I know they don’t but at least they’re civil with him, fuck even Katie’s civil with him and she’s never civil to anyone she doesn’t like. But as I said before you’re supposed to be my best friend. Why can’t you just be happy for me? Everyone else has managed it”

“I can’t, not when you’re marrying him” She sighed in frustration

“I guess we just don’t see eye to eye anymore”

”And I guess you don’t see wrong from right like before” She shook her head

“I’m not staying if you’re going to be like this, the weddings in a week, you’re still invited you either come or you don’t.” With that she got up and left the apartment I share with Joel and his girlfriend and closed the door with a slam.

I scrunched up the invite and threw it across the room watching it hit the wall and feebly bounce off before putting my head in my hands

I felt like an utter prick for being like that but it was hard not to I had loved her before I even found out what love was, she was truly my other half, my soul mate. It hurt me to know if I hadn’t have been such a wimp she could have been mine.

I looked up when the front door opened and the sound of laughter floated into the room followed by Joel and his girlfriend Katie, why couldn’t I be like them? They were best friends just like me and Shannen, the only difference being Joel had the guts to tell Katie how her felt about her.
They both went silent when they saw me; Joel gave me a sympathetic look before speaking

“She told you then?”

“You knew! You fucking knew and you didn’t tell me?!” I almost screamed at him, losing my temper a little bit. He didn’t let it bother him and continued

“Yeah, I’m sorry mate. I figured she’d want to tell you herself” I nodded in understanding then looked at Katie.

“Yes I knew, I was the first one to know and im her maid of honor. Just because nobody told you it doesn’t give you the right to sulk.” Joel was looking at Katie with love and admiration in his eyes.

“Im not sulking, why would I sulk?” I pouted

“Because you’re hopelessly in love with your best friend and was too much of a pratt to do anything about it and now she’s marrying some other guy you’re insanely Jealous and mad at the world” That was one of the best things about Katie she says it how it is.

“Alright maybe”

“I pretty much summed it up didn’t I?” She stated more than asked with a raised eyebrow

“Yes” I mumbled

A week later and I still hadn’t spoken to Shannen she’d been nowhere near the house and today was the first time Katie had seen her since they had both been busy with last minuet preparations

“You complete and utter twat!” Screeched Katie from the doorway

I only just jumped off the sofa in time as something came flying past my head narrowly missing it, I glared at Katie who was stood with a pissed off expression on her face

“What was that for?!” I shouted back

“Because you are a complete and utter twat!”

“Yeah I got that part thanks! But why are you throwing things at me?!” She stormed forward and got up in my face

“Just be lucky it missed Philips” She growled, I will admit I was slightly scared

“What am I meant to have done?” I all but whispered due to the burning anger in her eyes

”You were a royal prick to Shannen when she came to tell you she was getting married” I opened my mouth to argue back but she cut me off before I had the chance to “I know you love her and all but it’s your own fault you didn’t suck it up and tell her” She said pushing me up to the wall so I couldn’t escape I looked around at a last attempt at escape, I noticed Joel and Phillip stood in the corner of the room watching this all unfold

“Joel can you please control your woman?!” Joel nodded and moved forward to help when Katie turned around and glared at him

“You come any closer and there will be no more sex for you. Ever” His eyes widened and he backed up to stand in his original place next to Phillip

“Sorry man, it’s just not worth it” I shook my head and looked at Phillip

“Please man. Help me” He moved forward to come help me, he’d nearly reached Katie when she spoke, still glaring at me as she did

“Come any closer Phillip and Joel doesn’t get sex ever again” Phillip shook his head and backed off

“Phillip!”

“Sorry Aled I can’t do that to Joel” Still without breaking her glare she spoke

”Now boy’s I suggest you disappear while me and Aled have a little heart to heart” I looked at them both silently pleading them with my eyes not to leave me alone with her, they both gave me apologetic looks as they left the room, leaving me alone with the angry she devil.

When they left the room she continue to glare at me as she backed away to sit on the sofa patting the seat next to her, I quickly sat down not wanting to piss her off anymore than she already was

“Look Aled I’m only telling you this because you need to hear it and who knows maybe you can learn a life lesson from it. You cant just be like that with Shannen because she’s marrying someone that’s not you, I get that you love her and she loves you but the chance for the both of you to become anything more than friends has gone since neither of you were man enough to tell the other but if you carry on acting like a royal twat you wont even have her friendship”

“It’s hard though every time I see her with him it pisses me off so much and that’s why I cant go to her wedding it would be too much to watch her marry him” I sighed

“I understand how your feeling I felt the same when Joel was with Hailey but you just need to man up and go” She got up and walked towards the door turning back once she had reached it “Just think about what I’ve said ok” with that she left the room.

I sighed and dragged a hand through my hair as I leaned back to stare at the ceiling still not knowing what to do with myself.

The dreaded day finally arrived and I sat on the sofa watching Joel console Katie since she was forced to wear a dress. I was watching her try to talk Joel into swapping outfits with her, but as expected it wasn’t working very well, even though I was watching them my mind was on Shannen I was wondering how she would be feeling, would she be feeling happiness? Regret? Nervousness?

I zoned back in when Joels phone began ringing he quickly answered it giving a quick one word answer then turning to Katie “Phillips outside waiting for us” She nodded back as Joel ran back into his and Katie’s room to grab his wallet leaving me alone with her, she turned her gaze on me
“I know you want to sit and mope around the apartment all day but remember Shannen needs you there and who knows something exciting might happen” She said with a knowing sparkle in her eyes

“I doubt it” I mumbled

“Well if you change your mind there’s a suit laid out on your bed ready for you to change into” Joel came back into the room and smiled at Katie

“You ready to go?”

“Yep” He nodded at me then took Katie’s hand as they left the apartment

I spent the next two hours laying on the sofa trying not to care about anything; about an hour ago I’d brought a bottle of Jack Daniels in and placed it on the coffee table I was now sat torn between the invitation that was on one side and the bottle that was on the other

I stared at the crinkled invitation thinking about what Katie said to me yesterday, I knew she was completely right and I should just man up and go, checking the invite I discovered I only had 20 minutes to get there so I quickly got up and dressed in the suit that Katie had laid out for me before dashing out of the apartment and making my way to the church to be there for my best friend on her wedding day.

The ceremony had already started when I arrived so I quietly slipped in and sat down at the back of the room. I listened to the pastor and realized he was coming up to the part where people could speak up, I was seriously considering doing it but I knew deep down I couldn’t do that to her

“If anyone here knows of any lawful impediment to why these two should not be joined in holy matrimony speak now or forever hold your piece”

Silence

“I object” Everyones eyes snapped towards the front of the room where Katie stood behind Shannen, the groom was the first one to recover from the shock and speak

“I always knew you were a lesbian for Shannen but I didn’t think you were stupid enough to admit it on her wedding day” She just looked at him un-amused and pointed at him

“Shut your pie hole before I shut it for you” He glared at her but kept quiet as she turned to Shannen and grabbed her hands, the bride looked her maid of honor in the eyes before speaking

“You’re my best friend Kate so I know you have a good reason for stopping my wedding” Katie nodded

“I was actually counting on a certain stupid twat to stand up and stop it but since that didn’t happen I had to do it” Shannen nodded and went to speak but Katie cut her of “and after this morning Im surprised you didn’t stop it yourself, I know why you were hesitant to marry him, you love someone else and that exact same someone has spent the past week pining over your dumb ass” Shannen went to speak again but was once again interrupted, this time by her groom.

“I always knew you didn’t like me you silly cow” He said glaring at Katie “you’ve always been jealous of mine and Shannens relationship and as soon as I marry her don’t think you’re ever going to speak to her again” As soon as he said that Katie’s face went and I knew she was about to go batshit crazy on him but before she had a chance Joel ran on stage and grabbed her and well Shannen beat her to it

“Who the fuck do you think you are talking about my best friend like that I….”

“She’s no friend of yours she’s a whore, they don’t have friends they have fuck buddies and pound signs” Shannen glared at him

“If I get interrupted one more god damned time I swear to god I’ll slap a nun! And how dare you call her a whore only I’m allowed to do that. I should have listened to her when she told me you were a royal twat” She turned to Katie and hugged her “I’m glad you stopped it when you did” He grabbed Shannen

“Nobody will ever love you like I do” He sneered and before I realized what was happening I had shot out of my seat

“I will” Everyone’s eyes snapped to the back of the room where I was stood

Well fuck it I’ve come this far.

“You? Ha… what the fuck?!” He sent a glare to Katie who had somehow managed to squirm enough out of Joels grip to be able to throw one of her heels at his head.

I reached the stage ignoring the shocked faces of everyone and the smug face of Katie and stood face to face with David, who even though he stood up straight and squared his shoulders was still nowhere near as tall as me.

“Yes me. Don’t ever say nobody will ever love this amazing woman because it will be nothing but a filthy lie! I have been in love with her since before I was even old enough to understand it and if I wasn’t such a wimp I may have been lucky enough to call her mine, but for some reason unknown to all of us she agreed to marry you” David turned a deep shade of red and made to move towards me when another heel was thrown at his head

“Don’t even think about it you wank stain, if you don’t back the fuck off I’ll punch you in the ovaries so hard your nan will feel it” Katie growled at David who somehow managed to go from red to white as a sheet and held his hands up in defeat

I turned to Shannen who was now grinning from ear to ear “I’m sorry for being a royal twat to you but as you might have figured out by now I’m in love with you Shannen I always have been even when I might have not realized” I heard a quiet sob and gave a quick glance to the front row where mine and Shannen’s moms where holding each other sobbing and looking like they had won the lottery I shook my head and smiled at the love of my life

“I know this probably wasn’t the best time but when is, to me you’re my soul mate and it’s always been you, without you I wouldn’t be me you’re the best part of me and I don’t think I could’ve lived with that. I was planning on keeping my mouth shut and letting you marry him and give you your chance at love but obviously in the end I couldn’t and I know it seems selfish but I want my chance at love and I want that with you I just want to know if you want me back?” She shook her head and my heart dropped

“You complete and utter twat!” My eyes widened in shock “It’s always been you, you nob you were just too much of a thick shit to notice. I will always want you no matter what time you ask you are my life you dick” I chuckled

“Do you really have to swear that much you’re supposed to be saying nice things” She shook her head and flung herself into my arms

“Shut the fuck up you monumental prick. I love you now kiss me!” I wasted no time in claiming her lips with my own earning us a wave of cheering from Shannen’s side of the wedding and I’m pretty sure I heard Katie shout finally and start wolf whistling.

We broke apart for air and pressed our heads together looking into each other’s eyes I mumbled “Want to get out of here?” she nodded and began laughing when I swang her upwards and caught her bridal style.

I began carrying her out of the church as everyone cheered and applauded us, we had just got out of the doors of the church when I suddenly remembered

“What about your ex?” She laughed and shook her head grinning

“Don’t worry about him Katie will take care of it” I laughed imagining what Katie would do before looking down at the beauty in my arms and once again claiming her lips with my own before pulling away

“Easy tiger” She winked I shook my head as I began once again carrying her down the steps of the church “Hey Aled?” I turned my head down to look at her in my arms

“Yeah?”

“It took you long enough you sexy welsh bastard” A huge smile spread across my face and in that moment I have never felt more complete in my life.