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Before: The Invitation


Ashley

Just like that, it was already a week before the wedding. We had Christmas at Chris's mother's house and all we did was talk abou wedding plans, and my stomach was getting more and more nervous. I went out running everyday we were at Karen's, jogging further than I ever pressed myself to go in Los Angeles. Once so far that Chris had to come pick me up almost five miles away because I was to exhausted to run back.

Christmas morning, Karen gave me a beautiful necklace to wear at the wedding that had been worn at all the weddings in her family and handed down generations. She swept my hair back and attached the chain behind my neck, a tear drop shaped diamond rested against my skin. She smiled, "Now you're a part of the family," she said brightly.

Chris grinned and wrapped an arm around me. "Only one more week before you're officially mine," he said.

I smiled on the outside, though inside something was building, some sort of screaming sensation.

That night I threw up for a good half an hour until my face broke out in a sweat and my knees ached from kneeling in front of the toilet. It wasn't the first time I'd yacked thanks to my nerves. I felt sick almost constantly, and a little lightheaded, too. I went back to bed feeling weak and my stomach aching like I had cramps or something but I didn't have my ---

I paused. Laying in the dark, my eyebrows cinched together.

I didn't have my period. It was after Christmas and I hadn't had it yet. I was really regular, there was no reason why I shouldn't have had it in the middle of the month. Unless...

My heart raced.

No way.

I touched my stomach. I thought about the way I'd been sick, about the missing period, about the dress that had been just a little too tight.

I took a deep breath.

The next day when Chris and I were home in Los Angeles again, I decided I needed to know the answer now, rather than later. When I went for my run, I stopped at Walgreens and I got a pregnancy test. The cashier looked at me and I felt like she was judging me. I turned red, paid quickly, and rushed out of the store with my purchase tucked into my coat. When I got home, I made sure Chris wasn't there and I rushed up stairs and took the box out of the bag and stood in the bathroom staring at it.

I was terrified.

I heard Chris's keys in the lock. I rushed into the bedroom, looking for a place to hide the box. I shoved it back into it's Walgreens back and plunged it into my suitcase, which was still out from our trip to Karen's.

"Hey honey," Chris called from the dining room as I was shoving my suitcase into the closet, trying to bury the evidence, "I'm home... Where are you?"

"In here," I yelled. The suitcase was refusing to go up on the shelf. Chris stepped into the room, saw me struggling with it, and came over, nimbly pushing it up. I heard the bag and box slide and hit the front wall of it as he pushed it up there and my face turned red.

"You forget something in there?" he laughed, about to take it back down.

"No," I answered quickly, "I left -uh- your wedding present in there," I said quickly. "So I wouldn't forget it when we went to the vineyard next week." I smiled. "So no peeking."

"Cross my heart," Chris replied.

I didn't want to tell Chris until I knew. I don't know why, I felt like it was mine to know. My secret with the universe. A secret I didn't want to know.




Nick

I called Ashley everyday between Angel and Aaron's birthday party and Christmas, trying to catch her with free time. But everything I came up with to suggest we do, she couldn't because Chris was there or Chris had made plans or Chris had done something to block me off. The son of a bitch was doing a ridiculously good job of keeping me away from Ashley, and I hated it. I even tried just going over there once, but she must've been out when I got there because nobody answered the door when I hit the buzzer.

Christmas was just me at home with a couple cartons of Chinese food. I lay on my couch and stared at the ceiling, the TV running Christmas movies on one of the channels for background noise, but my mind spinning over the last year. I couldn't believe it was only 365 days before that I'd laid across chairs at the Miami airport a mere four feet away from Ashley.

Then I heard Jimmy Stewert's voice and I looked over. It's A Wonderful Life was on TV. I sat up and turned the volume up. I grabbed the phone and I dialed Ashley's number.

"Hello, you've reached Ashley Jackson, I'm unable to answer the phone right now, but leave your name and number and I'll call you back as soon as I can."

Beep.

"Hey, it's me. I was just calling because your stupid movie's on and I'm gonna actually sit through it this year... just for you. Maybe I'll actually like it this year." I laughed. "Call me when you get this. I miss you." I hung up the phone and watched the movie.

I had hoped Ashley would answer and we'd talk through the movie. Maybe she'd even pull it up on her own TV and we could watch it together, apart. But she never called back.

By the end, I'd decided that I understood why Ashley liked the movie so much. It was about giving second chances and enduring integrity.

I dreamed that night that Ashley had hair like Donna Reed, and I wore a suit like Jimmy Stewert. AJ wore a nightgown like Clarence and told me I had to tell her I loved her before the night was over or Chris, who was in a wheel chair and trying to take over the entire city, would take Ashley as well.

I woke up the next morning, my phone vibrating against my face. It was almost eleven. I blinked my eyes open and sat up. It was Chris's number. I answered it, "Hello?"

"Hey Nick, it's Chris."

He sounded strangely amicable. I wondered what the catch was. "Hey Chris," I said slowly.

"I've been thinking, you should come to my bachelor party," he said cheerfully.

I rubbed my neck. Had I fallen into some sort of time warp? Was I forgetting a moment that Chris and I had interacted and made up since my bring it bitch shout at the club? Was I still dreaming? Was this Bedford Falls?

"Nick?"

"I - yes - sure," I answered, my mind still reeling through questions.

"Okay awesome. We're going to this strip club downtown for it. Maybe we can score you a lap dance or something," Chris laughed.

"When is it?" I asked. The last thing I really wanted to do was go to a strip club, but whatever.

"Thursday night. Just meet us up at the apartment, we'll head out around seven."

I thought about it a moment. Then it made sense why Chris was inviting me to this thing. Thursday night was Ashley's bachelorette party. Chris was heading me off before Ashley could invite me to her party.

"I can't commit just yet," I said, "But I'll let you know when I know."

Chris was quiet a moment. "She's not going to ask you."

"What?" I said.

"Ashley," he replied, "She's not going to ask you to go to hers."

"You don't know that."

"Yes I do."

"How?"

"Because I'm gonna tell her you already said you'd come to mine. Because you're going to."

I was quiet a moment.

"Nick, if you wanna be a part of Ashley's life in the future, I suggest you start playing according to my rules or you're going to lose her completely."

I raised my eyebrow, "Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"I was hoping I heard you wrong," I replied.

Chris laughed, "Just come to my bachelor party, Nick, and we'll get it all worked out."

"Okay."

"Atta boy, Carter. See you Thursday." He hung up the phone.

I sat in silence for a moment, staring at the phone, thinking about everything that had just been said. Then I called AJ. "Hey. What're you doing Thursday night?" I asked.

"Probably sitting at home watching Ooba Gooba with Ava," he said.

"Chris just called and invited me to his bachelor party," I said.

"The bachelor party?" AJ asked. "Chris wants you at his bachelor party? I thought you all weren't getting along?" he sounded concerned. "What'd I miss? Last I heard you were telling him to bring it bitch in a club."

"That's the last I knew, too," I said.

The phone clicked and Rochelle butted in, "Alex, you have to go with him to the party," she said.

"Hi Ro," I said.

"It's probably an ambush!" Rochelle said, "Think about it, Nick. Chris and all his buddies and you."

"Shit that's true," AJ said.

"An ambush? Guys, stop it, you're being dramatic," I said.

"Are we?" Rochelle asked. "Chris is a tool Nick, he's not above pulling some shit like that to teach you a lesson. And he knows he couldn't beat you one on one in a fair fight. You could own his ass anyday of the week. You're like Rocky Balboa to his Eurkle."

AJ crowed.

"So AJ, you have to go with Nick to the bachelor party. And you guys should bring someone else too." She thought about it. "Maybe Kevin."

"Kevin's never gonna go to this," I said, "He hates Chris."

"I do too," AJ piped up.

"Yeah but Kev's also pissed at me," I said, "He'd probably say something like this is what happens or some other shit and start in on a tangent for a hundred years about procrastinating."

"Did you ever sign those contracts?" AJ asked.

I looked over the back of the couch at the pile on my table. "Yes," I lied.

AJ snorted.

"Then ask Howie," Rochelle suggested.

Between Howie and Brian, Howie was only slightly more likely to say yes. Brian would curl up and die when he heard it was a strip club we were going to. Picking between Brian and Howie was like picking between Raj and Wolowitz from Big Bang Theory as back ups in the fight.

AJ was sort of my Sheldon Cooper.

But at least he was willing.

"I'm gonna rip that guy's nads off and then he won't be able to face her a man," he crowed.

I heard Ava cry in the background. "Kick his ass, Nick," Rochelle said, "My bets on you." She hung up the phone to go get Ava quieted.

AJ was excited, "If you beat him up are you gonna go all bloody nosed and limping to tell Ashley you won her in battle?"

"Well hopefully I won't be bloody nosed or limping," I said, "And I'll probably just tell her I love her rather than making her sound like a trophy at a renaissance fair, but yeah basically."

"Man this shit is romantic," AJ said.

"LIKE DAYS OF OUR LIVES," screamed Rochelle in the background.