33.0 #4
"I don't see you as a moment, or a phase," he said, voice thick. "I want to be with you. Only you. Not just now — for my whole life."
His lips brushed my temple — soft, careful.
"Amira... I want forever with you."
My fingers curled into his shirt.
He lifted his head just enough to meet my eyes. "You're the woman I want to build my life with. We don't need a label for that."
A tear slipped out.
His thumb caught it.
"But if you want me to ask you — formally — to be my girlfriend? Even though I swear we're way past that? I'll do it. I'll do whatever you need to feel secure."
My voice trembled. "I'm sorry for being upset."
He shook his head gently. "It's okay, baby. I understand why."
I rested my cheek on his chest. His arms came around me, slow and sure, swinging us in soft circles while the room blurred in gold around us.
For the first time, it felt like he wasn't just choosing me behind closed doors.
He was choosing me where people could see.
Where whispers didn't scare him.
Where I mattered.
Then the coordinator tapped my elbow.
"You're up, sweetheart."
My stomach twirled.
The music dipped low as the DJ announced,
"And now... a toast from our beautiful maid of honor."
All eyes turned.
I stepped away from Brooks walking near the DJ booth. He handed me a mic.
I took a breath, and smiled at the crowd.
"At first," I began, "Tati told me I wasn't allowed to cry because she didn't want mascara lines in her wedding video... so if I do, everyone pretend you didn't see."
Laughter rolled through the room, warm and easy.
I looked at her — veil slightly crooked, smile wide enough to split the sky — and my voice softened.
"When I first met Tati," I said, "I was in a completely different chapter of my life. One I wasn't sure I'd make it out of. And somehow, in the middle of all that, here comes this woman—loud, nosy, beautiful, annoying, loyal—pulling me into her sunshine whether I wanted it or not."
The room laughed; Tati nodded proudly.
"She became my sister before I ever realized I needed one. The friend who would hype me up even when I looked a mess, curse me out when I deserved it, and sit beside me when silence was the only thing holding me together."
Tati's eyes were already glassy.
"And then," I continued, "I watched her fall in love and let me tell you Tati falling in love is like watching a fire calm down just enough to warm a room instead of burn it down."
People cooed; Seth threw an arm around her shoulder and kissed her temple.
"When she met Seth, she didn't dim. She didn't shrink. She didn't become a different version of herself. She just became... more. More grounded. More soft. More safe. I've never seen someone's smile change shape the way hers did when she said his name for the first time."
She covered her face, laughing and crying at once.
I swallowed. "So today... watching you two promise forever... it's not surprising. It's right. It fits. It feels like the world rearranged itself just a little so that you could end up exactly where you were meant to."
My voice trembled and I let it.
"Tati, thank you for loving me like blood even when we had no reason to be family except choice and Seth, thank you for loving her in a way that makes her brave enough to dream out loud."
I lifted my glass toward the head table.
"To a lifetime of choosing each other — loudly, softly, and always."
Glasses rose everywhere.
"To the Williams family!"
The room echoed it back, loud and warm, wrapping around us like a blessing.
Cheers. Glasses clinked. Tati ran up and wrapped her arms around me so tight my feet left the ground.
The DJ's voice boomed across the speakers:
"Alright everyone — grab your sparklers and head outside! It's time to send off our bride and groom!"
A chorus of excited screams rose immediately.
People rushed toward the entrance, grabbing sparklers from the baskets staff brought out. Sam linked her arm with mine. Brooks hovered close behind me.
We all funneled out into the courtyard where staff lit rows of sparklers, creating a glittering, golden tunnel.
The night glowed.
The air hummed.
Guests lifted their hands, sparklers crackling like tiny stars.
Then the doors opened.
Tati and Seth stepped out, hand in hand, glowing like the world belonged to just the two of them. The crowd erupted.
"Go, girl!" Mya screamed.
Tati laughed through tears, clutching Seth's arm as they walked — then jogged — through the sparkling aisle. Everyone cheered, phones flashing, petals thrown, champagne sloshing.
They paused at the end for one last kiss before ducking into the white vintage car waiting for them.
The doors shut.
The engine revved.
The crowd waved as the car rolled out through the gates, trailing light and laughter behind it.
The wedding had shifted into its final beat.
Guests started drifting back inside for the wind-down, the music softer now, the dance floor half-full, the energy easy and loose — the good kind of tired.
I exhaled, the adrenaline settling warm in my stomach.
That's when I felt him.
A hand, slow and certain, brushing the small of my back.
Brooks.
He didn't rush. Didn't speak. Just let his touch settle there — steady, claiming, careful with me in a way that made my breath hitch.
"You ready?" he murmured, voice low enough that only I could hear it.
I turned slightly, meeting his eyes.
Warm.
Dark.
Saying everything he'd whispered on the dance floor.
I nodded.
He laced our fingers together, guiding me toward the exit — unhurried, like he wanted every second between here and the car.
The night wrapped around us the moment we stepped outside the gates.
The driver stood waiting by the black SUV, door already open.
Brooks squeezed my hand once — soft, intentional — before helping me inside.
I slid into the backseat, heart thudding.