You are invited to the matrimony of Bran and Cassandra.

I read over that line multiple times, my smile stretching each time. Cas was getting married, well shit. It was kind of weird seeing someone close to me get married, of course, it was about darn time but, it made me put life into perspective. I was thirty-two, did I want to get married? Of course, I did. But did I think it'd be soon? Not really.

Was it weird that when I thought of the word, a certain dark-skinned girl with a bubbly personality came to mind?

Alright, calm down Everest. I was yet to make it official, not to talk of marriage, but it wouldn't be so scary if it were with her. I chuckled, my heart swooning at the thought. When did I become this soft? Perhaps eight years was enough to get over the heartbreak caused by her -- my ex-fiancee.

"So? What do you think?" Cas questioned eagerly, her eyes bulging as she fixed one of her customer's haircuts with pursed lips. "Fancy," I admit, it was pretty fancy. The embroidery on the card was enough, not to talk of the shimmer which dusted the invitation slip.

"Bran went all out, huh?" I teased, from what she told me, he was more of the romantic type, not to talk of the wealthy family he came from. Her side smile verified my words, it was him.

"I told him not to, but you know that man always wants to go the extra mile." She said while brushing up the edges of the man's fade, "I find it really sweet." Cas added with a pout, she was blushing. I chuckled at her. It was nice to see the woman grin like this, the most I was used to seeing was a pitiful smile for the guys that surrounded her. I wondered how she and Bran met.

"You know, I find it funny how my little brother had to almost die for us to meet." She began as though she knew I was curious about it, I arched my eyebrows, what did she mean almost die? When she saw the confused look on my face, she chuckled.

"You're good." She told the client, directing him to the reception where he'd pay, she then sat at the handle of the chair.

"I mean, that little slob left the oven on for too long, slept off and woke up to a burning building. I dropped everything to get to him, thankfully, the firefighters were already there. So was Bran." She left free a soft smile as she explained.

"He was so sweet, he offered to ride along with us since I was basically shaking like a leaf. I thought they were meant to do that but I found out he in fact wasn't. He also drove me home, made sure I was alright and left with my number." Cas cheesed, shaking her head at the memory. "I guess after that, I wanted to know more about him, the firefighter." I just listened, watching as she told the story of how they met.

Well shit, if I played my cards right, was this how I was going to tell the story of how Amelia and I met? The moment she watched me tumble down a hill and land with my ass up? I breathed out a laugh, the thought riled something in me.

"So, you're coming, right?" It was leaning more toward a statement than a question. I wouldn't miss it, the wedding was happening a week from now. "I am, definitely. Am I allowed to bring a plus one?" She smirked. "Is it the girl? The one that's twenty?" She teased, wiggling her brows.

"Ah, ah...c'mon. Her name's Amelia." Cas giggled, throwing her head back. "Right, our little Amy. Yeah, of course, you can bring her. I'd love to meet her too." I nodded, would Amelia fancy the idea of coming with me to a wedding? Wasn't that too forward? Anyways, I was far beyond hiding my intentions from her. "If she agrees, I guess you'll meet her."

"I am curious to see the woman that melted your black heart." I scoffed playfully. "My black heart? I'm hurt." A hand went over my chest, and Cas snickered. "You seemed to avoid anything romantic, especially in the earlier years." "Could you blame me? I was left heartbroken, I guess it was our relationship or service." Cas nodded. "Was that why you chose not to go home for so long?"

She got me there. I opted to work at the base for years, until I was called back into service and ended up in the hospital, forced to go home. It was better to crowd my thoughts with work, and documents, than the bitter note left on my bag that day. Darn, had time passed so much? I laughed to myself. Now here I was, feeling giddy at the thought of another woman.

The little lady I liked calling mine.

"I'm happy for you." It was Cas who said this, her smile evident. I smiled back. "That's my line, Cassandra." I teased. We talked some before I hugged her goodbye, getting into my truck with a hefty sigh.

While I rested my back, meditating in the silence, I remembered something. Abel. I did say I was going to visit him again, for the job. When was that anyways? A chuckle left my lips, goodness, he probably thought I was kidding when I asked for the job opening. Making up my mind, I realized it wouldn't be for another two hours before Amelia would close from work.

The drive to his mechanic wasn't a long one, but it was a bit nerve-wracking. Being an elder brother myself, I completely understood how protective he could be with Amelia. Especially seeing Amelia shed tears that day, because of me. Lord knew if I saw Saffron cry because of that Rivers kid, I wouldn't let him leave my sight, not to talk of going close to Saff again.

"Alright," I muttered to myself, closing the door to the tuck and shoving the keys into my pocket. The shop wasn't as empty as before, they were a few cars inside, and the men that were relaxing were now shirtless, working on parts of different cars.

"Welcome!" One gruff voice greeted me as I entered the shop. I move towards one of the workers, his biceps flexed as he screwed a part of the engine, grunting. "Uh, hello." I greeted him, not wanting to interrupt his work. The man barked back a hello, glancing at me from the side of his eye. "Hey man, looking for anybody in particular for your car?"

"Oh, I'm actually looking for Abel...I want to work here."

"I was starting to think you forgot about us." The familiarity of the voice made me turn quickly, it was him, Abel. I breathed out a smile. "Hey, sorry about that. I was pre-occupied." I opted for a handshake which he returned, thankfully. "Hm, I'm sure." I wasn't sure if it was a smirk because it faded as soon as it came. "Did Amelia send my message?" Abel asked.

Hearing her name made my heart squeeze. I wonder how she was doing right now, hopefully, she was getting more confident in her new job. "Ah, no. I'm sure she probably forgot." Yesterday was pretty intense, I didn't like seeing her that way, getting so angry in front of her. I wouldn't blame her for forgetting.

"Alright." Abel clapped his hands. "So, do you have any experience with cars?" He stared expectantly. I chuckled. "Not exactly. The most I know is fixing tires and tweaking a few under the bonnet." He hummed, taking a black apron from a cardboard box by the side.

"Here, you're going to show me your skills. Wouldn't want to stain your clothes before you go pick her up, now would I?" He teased, making me laugh. "Right." Seeing most of the workers without shirts, I decided to do the same, carefully unbuttoning my white dress shirt. "You comfortable?" He asked, grabbing some equipment from the toolbox. "Yeah." I felt a bit bare, but surely I could get used to it. I put on the black apron.

"Let's go."

I nodded, following him to the car I assume he was working on. As we reached there, I pulled out my phone and quickly sent a message. It had been hanging on my mind and even though she may not see it, I wanted to do so anyway.

'Have a wonderful day sweetheart. You got this.'

"Alright Everest, show me how you'd fix a leaking tire."