It's wedding day.

Current time? 9:34 AM.

Time before wedding? Exactly 5 hours and 26 minutes.

I crawled out bed, heading over to the shower.

Bryce was still asleep, but he needed to be.

He hadn't felt well last night, and although he hadn't puked anymore, I didn't want him to be sick for wedding day.

I took a long, hot shower, re-washing my hair.

It was nerve-wracking for me, and I wasn't even going to be in the wedding.

I can't imagine how Kayla must be feeling.

Although to find out all I needed to do was walk next-door.

She'd stayed in Regina's room last night, because she didn't want to stay with Josh the night before the wedding.

I dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, once of Bryce's t-shirts, after I got out of the shower, leaving my hair wet for now.

I went out into the kitchen, where Kayla was sitting on the couch, holding her coffee with both hands as she watched the news.

"Good morning," I greeted.

She glanced over her shoulder at me. "Good morning."

"Did you sleep well?"

"No."

I chuckled. "How're you feeling?"

"Awful."

I took a seat next to her. "Why awful?"

"I'm a nervous wreck," she informed me.

I could see the circles under her eyes, which weren't cute for your wedding day.

"I'm supposed to get married in..." she paused to check her phone for the time. "4 hours and 53 minutes and I'm freaking out."

"That's natural," I promised. "You're about to get married, to promise your life to someone else. That's a big commitment."

"This is not making me feel better," she declined. "Is this what you do with my brother? Because this is awful."

"Hold on," I said, laughing. "I was going to say that it's okay. It's okay to feel nervous and anxious. Because that means that you know you made the right decision."

"How so?"

"Because if you didn't feel anything at all, that's when there's an issue."

"Feeling nervous means that I'm having second thoughts, which means that I'm not ready, which means that maybe-"

"You're way overthinking things," I said, placing my hand on her arm. "Being nervous is a part of human nature before making a big decision in life. Before doing anything major in life."

"Do you think Josh is nervous?"

"I think he's ready to shit his pants," I promised. "But his love for you is greater than his anxiety, same for you. And that's why you'll go through with the wedding. And when it's over, you'll realize that it was all just a build-up."

She nodded, letting out a slow exhale before taking another sip of her coffee. "I'm still nervous."

"You will be. But just know that Josh is too. And you guys will get through this together."

She nodded again.

I heard the slam of a bathroom door, and Kayla's eyebrows raised.

"I think your brother's up."

And we both heard the sound of him throwing up.

"Oh no," she muttered.

"Don't worry," I said, patting her arm. "Everything's going to work out."

She closed her eyes, taking in deep breaths and letting them out slowly. "This cannot be happening."

"He's fine," I promised. "He's just letting out early. Better now than later."

"I'm so selfish," she said, reopening her eyes. "Here I am, freaking out about my wedding while he's in there throwing up." She set her coffee down, standing up. "What should I do?"

"Wait," I informed her. "He doesn't like to be bombarded in the bathroom, he prefers a few minutes after he's finished."

"Does this happen often?"

"Day four of Chemo usually."

She shook her head, sitting back down. "It isn't fair."

"No, it isn't," I agreed. "But we can't think like that."

"You know that he used to take care of me when I was younger?" Kayla asked me, picking back up her coffee. "I used to cry after dad left, and he was only 2. He didn't even know what was going on. But I used to cry myself to sleep at night because for me my entire world was ending. And Bryce used to sit on the edge of my bed and promise me that it would be okay, that things would get better."

"He's a good person."

"He's too good of a person," Kayla corrected. "Too good for this to happen to him."

"Why do you think that Bryce won't open up to your dad?" I asked her.

"Because of me," she responded, looking down at her coffee. "Because of what I just told you."

"What do you mean?"

"Every night my dad used to tuck me in and tell me a story. And when he was gone I would cry myself to sleep. So Bryce would sit there with me every night until I fell asleep. And I think that really tore him up. Dads aren't supposed to leave. They're supposed to be there wipe the tears, not cause them."

That made sense.

"And he has his own reasons," Kayla added. "He's told me. In a very heated manner. But I still think that he should talk to him."

So we're in agreement then.

"But it's ultimately his decision," Kayla said, with a shrug. "So we'll see."

The door opened, and Regina came in, her phone in her hand. "Are you ready?"

"No," Kayla declined.

Regina offered her a smile. "It's now or never."

Kayla looked over at me.

"It's now," I encouraged.

Kayla took one last sip of her coffee before standing up. "Okay, now it is."

The two of them left, and I went back into our bedroom, where Bryce was lying down in bed.

If I hadn't heard him earlier, I'd still think he was asleep.

But instead I climbed into bed next to him, resting my head on his chest.

He wrapped an arm around me, opening an eye to look at me.

"Good morning."

"I don't know about the good part."

"It is a good morning," I informed him. "Chin up my love, it only gets better from here."

~*~

Exactly one hour until wedding time.

And exactly thirty seconds until I needed to be in the lobby if I wanted to join everybody else on the ride down to the wedding venue.

I was wearing my dress, the one that Bryce had been so anxious to see.

It was ivory in color, the bust was lace and it came down in a V to the gold belt that wrapped around my upper mid-section. The dress then fell to the floor with a slit that ran up my left leg to about mid-thigh.

My hair was pulled back in a loose bun, a few wisps of hair flowing around my face.

I grabbed my gold clutch purse before leaving the hotel room, feeling nervous.

I'm not sure why I was nervous; I'm not the one getting married.

But I still felt anxious.

I met the rest of the party downstairs, Bryce's family still strangers to me.

Bryce had an earlier call time along with the rest of the groomsmen, and he was incredibly nervous before he left the hotel room.

But he had stopped puking, which was always a good thing.

We took group taxis to the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, where the wedding was being held.

Everything was set up when we got there, and we were escorted to our seats.

"Name?" an usher asked me.

"Sophie Allen."

The wedding was being held outside, and I was led to the front and seated in the second row, behind Regina and Lionel, Bryce's dad.

The two seats in front of me were both empty, Regina and Lionel probably both back with Kayla preparing for the ceremony.

I found myself looking around at the venue as I waited for the wedding itself to start.

It was gorgeous.

The ceremony was being held in the garden, and I couldn't imagine why Kayla spent her time stressing out so much.

This was a dream wedding.

The music began to play from the piano, and people took their seats, a hush falling over the crowd.

The music played for a few minutes, and we all anxiously stared at the aisle, waiting for the appearance of Regina to mark the beginning of the wedding.

After what seemed like hours, Regina finally appeared, slowly making her day down the aisle with a smile on her face.

We all stood up, watching as Regina made her way down the aisle.

Her eyes were puffy, which she'd tried to cover with makeup, and I could feel myself tearing up.

I wasn't going to be dry-eyed by the end of this wedding.

Regina took her seat in front of me, on the left side of the aisle, facing the front towards the altar.

The groomsmen came next, and I spotted Bryce in the midst of them.

They all looked solemn and prepared for the wedding, so I suppose they'd been giving a strict talking to by Josh pre-wedding.

Kayden came next as Best Man, biting back a smile.

He also looked like he'd shed a tear or two.

The crowd began to get a little anxious, because we all knew who came next.

Josh made his way down the aisle, looking like a deer in headlights.

I felt a little sorry for him. He honestly looked scared to death.

Kayden offered him a supporting smile and a slight nod as they made eye contact and Josh ascended the altar, his back to the crowd.

Kayden mouthed something to Josh, something supportive I hope.

The officiant came next, and I couldn't help the bubble of excitement inside of me.

It all felt so real all of a sudden. This was it. Kayla was about to get married.

Josh turned to face the crowd, looking a lot less terrified than he did previously.

I looked over at Bryce, who was standing off to the side with the other groomsmen.

He looked adorable in his tuxedo. His hair was all done up again, and he actually had a smile on his face now.

This was his sister's wedding after all.

The bridesmaids were next down the aisle, followed up by Rebecca, Kayla's Maid of Honor.

The ring bearer came next.

He was young, maybe three or four, dressed up in a tuxedo. He was carrying a small pillow, but I'm not too sure that those were the real rings.

He slowly made his way down the aisle, but he looked absolutely petrified.

And then, less than halfway down the aisle, he just stopped.

Josh looked over at Bryce for support.

Bryce looked at Josh, raising his eyebrows.

Josh cocked his head over at the little boy.

Bryce let out a sigh, hopping down from his position as groomsmen.

What was he doing?

Bryce made his way down the aisle, offering his hand out to the little boy in the aisle.

The crowd began to "aw" as Bryce walked with the little boy down the aisle, leading him up to the altar.

Bryce crouched down next to the little boy. "Remember what you do now?" he whispered.

The little boy offered up the rings to the officiant.

"Good job," Bryce whispered.

The officiant accepted them with a laugh, and Bryce high-fived the little boy before the little one practically ran back to his parents, and Bryce retook his spot as groomsman.

Leah came next as flower girl, skipping down the aisle as she decorated it with flowers.

She looked to Bryce as she reached the end of the aisle, and he flashed her an indiscreet thumbs-up.

She giggled, turning around and skipping back to sit with her mom.

And then the music changed, signaling that it was time for the bride.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I waited for Kayla to appear.

And as I looked at Josh, I could tell that he was ten times as anxious as I was feeling.

And then Lionel and Kayla appeared at the head of the aisle, and I could practically see Josh's body deflate.

The two of them made their way down the aisle together, Kayla's eyes watery.

I could feel the tears spilling out of my eyes as they reached the end of the aisle, Josh stepping off the altar to accept Kayla.

Lionel lifted Kayla's veil, kissing her cheek before passing her off to Josh.

It was traditional, to signify him giving her away to Josh.

I wiped the tear off my face, looking over at Bryce.

He was watching the exchange with a stoic face.

The ceremony was short and sweet. They hadn't written their own vows or anything fancy. They'd just wanted a simple ceremony.

"I present to you for the first time, Joshua and Kayla Manson," the officiant announced.

They turned to face us, and I could feel the tears rushing down my cheeks as I clapped for them.

They made their way down the aisle, Kayla laughing as Josh whispered something to her.

The bridesmaids were the first to follow and then the groomsmen.

And then the ceremony was over.

All of the build-up, all of the stress and anxiety, and it was all over. Just like that.

Kayla was married.

The crowd began to disperse, everyone laughing and chatting amongst themselves.

The wedding party was taking pictures, so I went inside, where some people had already migrated, and found myself chatting with some of Bryce's relatives.

"Can I steal her away?" a familiar voice asked behind me.

"If you must," Bryce's cousin Matilda said, with a laugh.

I was whipped around to look into Bryce's crystal blue eyes.

"Hello there," I said, with a smile.

"I missed you."

"Wasn't that beautiful?"

"It was a wedding I guess."

I rolled my eyes. Typical Bryce.

"You're beautiful though," he said, his eyes sweeping my dress.

"Thank you."

He wrapped his arm around my waist, steering me outside.

"Your sister is married," I said, with a sigh. "Isn't that amazing?"

"It's strange, because now we don't share the same last name."

We stopped outside by the fountain, and Bryce smiled at me. "I saw you crying."

"It was emotional."

"You cry over everything I've come to learn."

"Weddings are a very emotional thing for me."

He laughed before giving me a quick kiss. "I've been waiting to do that."

I wrapped my arms around his neck, giving him a much longer and more passionate kiss. "And I've ben waiting to do that."

He bit his bottom lip, looking into my eyes. "Screw this, let's go back to the hotel."

"Later."

He shook his head.

"There you two are!" Kayla called. "Come take pictures with me."

Bryce let out a soft groan. "No! We took enough."

"I don't have any with you and Sophie," she complained, coming up to the two of us. "And oh my God Sophie, you look gorgeous. So we have to take pictures."

Bryce glared at her.

"Come on sour puss, let's go."

"Come on," I said to Bryce, laughing as I followed Kayla.

"I don't want to," Bryce pouted.

"Remember what my mom told you," I said, poking his side. "It's Kayla's day so behave."

He let out a sigh, but did as I asked, straightening up and smiling for the next few thousand pictures.

Now I see why he didn't want to come back.

The photographer would move Bryce an inch and then take a couple pictures. And then he'd turn Kayla a different way and then take a couple more. And this would continue forever.

"Am I finished?" Bryce finally asked. "Because this is ridiculous."

"Yes, you're done," Kayla said, kissing his cheek. "Thank you."

Bryce pulled her into a tight hug, catching her by surprise. "Congrats sis."

"Thanks bro," she said, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm really happy you could make it."

"Yeah, me too."

She pressed her eyes shut, but I could still see the tears.

"And stop crying," Bryce ordered. "I'm fine."

"I know," Kayla said, pulling away to wipe her tears. "It's my wedding, I get to cry."

He just shook his head, chuckling. "Go take more pictures."

She squeezed his hand.

"I'm not going anywhere," he promised. "I'm staying for the reception, okay?"

"You don't have to."

But anybody could tell that she really didn't mean it.

"I am," he said, with a smile. "So go."

She nodded before heading off to take more pictures.

"She's being really clingy," Bryce informed me.

"She just got married," I said, watching as Kayla and Josh went to take some couples pictures. "She's clinging onto all that she knows before her entire life changes."

He didn't answer, watching her in silence for a few moments. "Kayla Manson," he muttered, quietly. "I don't know if I can get used to it."

I think that's the closest I'll get to an emotion out of Bryce.

So what did you guys think about Kayla's nervous spiel before the wedding? Do you think Sophie handled it well? And then day four of Chemo, was anyone worried? What about the wedding itself? Thoughts & opinions?

So my mom is currently making breakfast for dinner. You haven't lived until you've had pancakes for dinner guys. It's life.

Teaser: Time to head back to reality (oops there goes gravity). <--And yes, this will be included in the chapter. Because how can you not referene Eminem? But anyways, it's time for Bryce's 3-month MRI post-surgery...