“It almost feels real,” I murmured, and she nodded as we watched our friends, Jennie and Dirks, hang the last of the lights above us, casting a soft, golden glow over the entire yard.
Dirks called out, “You ready?”
I paused, taking a moment to look down at Charlie. She smiled widely, and there was a spark in her gaze.
“Let’s get you some health insurance,” she said with a grin.
I laughed, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. “That’s my girl.”
19
charlie
“He’s a good man,” Auburn said as she came up beside me, her eyes fixed on Austin.
He laughed with Dirks, helping him wrap up the speech they were putting together. There was something about the way he moved, the way he smiled—it was so genuine.
I turned to Auburn, and the resemblance between mother and son was undeniable. Her curly blonde hair and blue eyes—mirrors of Austin’s—made the similarities striking. She looked beautiful, elegant, like someone who carried the weight of many years but still had a softness about her.
“Thank you,” she murmured, placing a gentle hand on my back. “Thank you for doing this for him. Ledger and I haven’t... We haven’t been there for him the way he deserves recently. It’s not fair.”
I shrugged, feeling a little awkward but also grateful for her honesty. “It’s okay. He’s helping me too.”
Auburn’s eyes softened, and she gave me a small smile. “You seem like a really nice person, Charlie. He might mess up and?—”
I reached out and took her hand, giving her fingers a reassuring squeeze. “I’m going to mess up too. We’re human.We’re flawed. I’m not perfect, and I don’t expect Austin to be either.”
Her smile widened, and she squeezed my hand in return. “You’re right.” She glanced at Austin, her expression thoughtful. “I was a teenager when I had him. My mother helped raise him, but she was... toxic, for both of us. Sometimes, I wonder, if I’d been there more, if he’d be... less flawed.”
“No,” I said gently, my eyes meeting hers with empathy. “You raised him just as he was supposed to be.”
I looked out at Austin, and, as if he could feel my eyes on him, he stopped talking to Dirks and turned in my direction. My cheeks flushed, and he smiled and gave me a wave. I awkwardly waved back at him with my free hand.
“He’s stronger than he knows.”
“He is,” Auburn whispered. “Ready to get married?”
“Fake married,” I corrected her.
“Right,” she laughed. “Fake married.”
She walked over to the boys, exchanged a few words with them, and they all got into position. In the corner, Evie had set up her little piano and started playing a simple chord.
Jennie laughed softly and looped her arm through mine as we made our way down the garden path toward where Austin stood waiting. Ledger and Auburn were beside him, their hands clasped together, looking every bit the supportive parents.
I should have felt guilty that my mom and brother weren’t here, but I wasn’t, because they would’ve ruined the moment. There was a power in standing alone in my own choice.
My eyes were locked on Austin. His white shirt hugged his frame perfectly under his jacket, and I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the way his blonde curls lightly moved in the breeze, or how his blue eyes held such a calm, serene expression. Surprisingly, I wasn’t nervous. In fact, I felt light, almost weightless. This decision—though the wildest thing I’d ever done—felt like the easiest one I’d ever made. Part of me was annoyed I hadn’t put “get married” on my bucket list sooner.
“Hi,” he murmured when I finally reached him.
At some point, Jennie had slipped away, standing on the other side of me, mirroring Auburn and Ledger.
“Hi,” I whispered, a smile tugging at my lips.
He reached out, and without a second thought, I slipped my hands into his. For what was supposed to be a fake wedding, every emotion coursing through me felt undeniably real.
Dirks cleared his throat. “Alright, folks, we’re gathered here today to witness the union of two people who, uh, decided to do things their own way.” He smiled at us. “Now, before I go any further, we’re going to exchange vows.”
