Chapter 2: Side By Side
990 Words
The music was still playing when Ryan tapped his glass.
The room quieted slowly, laughter fading into warm anticipation. Gigi stood beside him, glowing, fingers laced with his. I moved closer instinctively, wanting to see her face when he spoke.
Ryan cleared his throat, already emotional.
“I’ve known since the first week I met her,” he said, voice thick, “that Gigi was going to change my life.”
There were soft laughs. Sniffles.
He talked about her kindness. Her chaos. The way she loved without limits. He thanked his parents. Thanked their friends. Thanked me.
“And I couldn’t imagine this day,” he continued, looking directly at me now, “without her standing beside Gigi. She’s been there for everything. So if she’ll accept… we’d love for you to be Maid of Honor.”
The room erupted.
I felt tears hit my eyes instantly. Not because I didn’t expect it — Gigi and I had talked about this since we were teenagers — but because it was real now.
And then Ryan smiled wider.
“And of course,” he added, clapping a hand on his brother’s shoulder, “I’ll need my best man. Ethan.”
Applause again.
My heart dropped.
Not from surprise.
From awareness.
I glanced at Ethan as everyone cheered. He smiled easily, hugging his brother, nodding once in that calm way he had. But when his eyes lifted — just briefly — they found mine.
Maid of Honor.
Best Man.
Side by side.
My stomach flipped.
We were going to be standing next to each other at every fitting, every rehearsal, every planning meeting.
Off-limits suddenly felt dangerously close.
Becky appeared at his side then, sliding her hand around his arm. She smiled — but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. When she looked at me, it was quick. Measuring.
“You’ll be amazing,” she said lightly, though her tone carried something sharp underneath.
“Thank you,” I replied politely.
She squeezed Ethan’s arm tighter than necessary.
Possessive.
He didn’t react — just rested his hand over hers briefly before stepping away to hug his mom.
The rest of the night blurred into celebration. Champagne. Laughter. Too many hugs. At one point Becky drifted near me again.
“You and Ethan will be working closely now,” she said casually, sipping her drink. “Wedding planning can get… intimate.”
I met her gaze evenly. “It’s about Gigi and Ryan.”
She smiled.
“Of course it is.”
But something in her expression said she wasn’t entirely convinced.
Hours later, guests began filtering out. The music softened. Shoes were kicked off. Empty glasses gathered on tables.
Becky left early — claiming a headache.
Ethan offered to drive her.
She declined.
That felt important.
Soon it was just immediate family. Ryan’s parents were in the kitchen discussing their gift — something about contributions and speeches and how proud they were.
“And you’re next,” Ethan’s mother said warmly, patting his cheek. “We’ll be planning yours before we know it.”
I found it strange.
She didn’t mention Becky’s name.
Ethan smiled respectfully. “Let’s survive this wedding first, Mom.”
Everyone laughed.
No one pressed.
But I noticed.
Later, I hugged Gigi tightly in the quiet of the hallway.
“I love you,” I whispered.
She squeezed me back. “I couldn’t do this without you.”
“You don’t have to.”
We stayed like that for a moment — ten years of friendship wrapped into one silent promise.
Then she leaned back, studying me.
“You went quiet after the toast.”
I hesitated. “It just hit me how fast everything’s moving.”
She smiled knowingly.
“My future in-laws are already planning Ethan’s wedding too.”
That was my opening.
I tried to sound casual. “With Becky?”
Gigi blinked — and then laughed.
“Becky?” she repeated. “Oh please.”
“What?”
“She’s a phase. I give it a month. Two, maybe. They fight constantly. She thrives on drama. Ethan shuts down around drama. It’s painful to watch.”
I stayed very still.
“They don’t belong together,” she added gently. “Trust me.”
Something warm — and dangerous — unfurled in my chest.
I didn’t ask anything else.
—
When I finally left, the night air was cool against my overheated skin.
The drive home should have cleared my head.
It didn’t.
I replayed the party — the toast, the applause, Becky’s tight smile, his mother’s comment.
But mostly…
Him.
The way he’d looked at me during the announcement.
The way his jaw tightened when Becky made that comment.
The way his eyes lingered just a second too long.
Maybe that was just who he was. Polite. Observant. Attentive.
Maybe I was imagining it.
I pulled into my condo driveway, heart still restless.
Inside, the quiet wrapped around me.
I went straight to the shower, turning the water hotter than necessary. Steam filled the space, fogging the mirror.
And then — without meaning to —
Ethan.
The memory of his voice.
The slow drag of his gaze.
The way he’d licked his lip absentmindedly while listening to someone speak.
The size of his hands when he gestured.
I closed my eyes.
My breath deepened.
Heat pooled low in my stomach — unwanted, undeniable.
This was ridiculous.
He was taken.
He was my best friend’s future brother-in-law.
He was off-limits.
The water suddenly ran cold.
I gasped, stepping back, reality crashing in.
I stood there for a long moment, chest rising and falling.
This had to stop.
It was nothing.
Just proximity. Just imagination.
Right?
But when I crawled into bed later, staring at the ceiling in the dark, one thought refused to quiet:
If he was just a phase for Becky…
Then why did it feel like the beginning of something for me?
- Writer
