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Dedication: PhoenixFeathers24 for the cover! Thank you!

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A few months later

"How have you been?" Ashley questions as she takes a sip of her coffee. She leans back into her chair, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. She gives me a warm smile.

"Really good," I tell her honestly. "Miles' and I moved into our place last weekend."

"That's fantastic!" she beams at me. "You two have come so far."

"Yeah," I agree with a shy smile. "I never would have imagined us to be living together. Especially after everything."

"True love conquers all," she teases.

I let out a quiet laugh. "And you? How have you been?"

"I've been well. I'm taking next semester off and am travelling to Europe. I'm also thinking of taking a position across town. It's an office job."

"Oh that sounds great!"

"I haven't made a decision yet. And I've been dating a guy for a few months now, so that might change things." Her cheeks blossom red when she speaks about him and her lips curve upwards. I smile and lean forward, planting my chin into my palm. "Gosh, Isobel, he is so great. So nice and handsome. You'd like him."

"Sounds amazing!" I gush. "When can I meet him?"

"Maybe we could have drinks one night?" she asks, before pausing. "That's totally inappropriate, isn't it? Considering I counselled you."

"Well, it was a mandatory counselling through school. I didn't seek you out and pay you to counsel me. We just happened to be paired." I shrug. "I don't see the harm in being friends. Especially since I've graduated. And you might not return to work for the school, anyway."

She purses her lips. "Still feels wrong, doesn't it?"

"Not to me, but maybe for you," I laugh.

"True. What are your plans for this afternoon?"

"I have a wedding, actually. It starts at three," I glance down at my phone to check the time. "It's Miles' father's."

"Oh!" she looks surprised. "I didn't think they got along."

"They don't. He wasn't even invited to the wedding." Ashley's mouth drops. "I know. I was invited and not his own son. Mum and I went around there for a talk. Well, mum basically abused him." I roll my eyes. "But anyway, Miles is going now. We had dinner with his father a couple weeks ago. It was really awkward and tense, but progress, at least."

She nods, looking thoughtful. "The relationship will never be great, by the sounds of it, but if they can be in the same room, I think that's a good start."

"Me too."

The 'quick coffee catch up' between Ashley and I quickly stretched to two hours, like I knew it would. With university applications, moving in with Miles, getting set up, life has been busy.

When I get home, mum and Becca are beginning to get ready. Both Finn and Miles are sprawled across the lounge, each having an Xbox controller on their hands. Finn barely glances as I enter and Miles gives me a smile.

"How's Dr Byrnes?" Mum asks.

"She's good. And it's Ashley now," I point out.

Usually, Finn would make a comment on how 'hot' she is, but now that Becca and him are quite serious, he doesn't even look up when we mention her name. He's a changed man.

Becca and I spent nearly two hours getting ready. Most of it is spent talking and trying on each other's clothes. I've just finished, when Finn stomps into my room, looking sour.

"Are you finished yet?" he growls, planting his hands on his hips, looking adorable in his suit. "We're going to miss the entire wedding."

"Oh hush," I wave him off.

His jaw goes slack when Becca waltzes out from my bathroom. She looks gorgeous, dressed in a pretty, lilac dress with lace. She has paired it with cute silver heels and elegant earrings.

I smile and exit the room. I'm dressed in a navy dress that is shorter at the front but longer at the back. It flares behind me as I walk. I glance in the hall mirror, double-checking my makeup.

"Damn, if you look half as good as that on our wedding day, I'll be a very happy man," Miles teases as he wraps his arms around me, resting his chin on my shoulder.

I smile as I lean back.

He spins me around so that we're facing. He kisses my cheek softly and links our fingers.

"I'm getting nervous," he admits.

"Don't be nervous. I'll be right beside you the entire time," I promise him, giving his hands a squeeze.

"Thank God."

"Almost ready?" Mum shouts from the bottom of the stairs.

Miles holds my hand as we walk down the stairs. I give him a sidelong glance. He's dressed in a striking navy suit, with a light blue shirt underneath. He looks damn good.

There's a knock at the door. I let out an excited giggle. Mum scowls at me, giving me 'the look'. She bustles to the door. When she opens it, Adrian stands there. He's the man my mum has been seeing. This is the first formal even together and I'm possibly more excited about it than she is. Okay, probably a lot. It's a big deal for me. Well, for all of us. I never thought my mum would recover after everything. But she has and I could not be happier for her.

Adrian is tall and has a neatly, trimmed beard that somehow makes him longer younger and yet still mature. They look gorgeous together. Mum's cheeks turn hot as they greet. He pecks her on the cheek and I slap Miles' shoulder in excitement.

"Ow," he mutters, frowning at me.

We travel to the wedding in Adrian's cruiser. Miles and Finn climb into the back seats, Becca and I in the middle, with mum sitting up front. Becca squeals when Finn pokes her hair, almost pulling it from the silver pin that's holding it neatly back. She rouses on him but the seriousness is taken away when she erupts into a series of giggles. Champagne does that to her.

When we pull up, my mouth falls open. I almost smack my head against the window when I see a gigantic water fountain out the front. It looks gorgeous. Cars are scattered everywhere, indicating there's quite a turn out here.

After circling the car park three times, Adrian decides to drive up the curb and park on the lawn. We all hurry from the car and pretend like we don't know who the person was that decided to create their own park.

As we step inside, my eyes travel across the room. The place is flooded with light purple and gold decorations, raining from the ceiling and spread delicately across the tables. People dressed in formal gowns are spaced through the hall, spilling out into back, where the ceremony will take place.

"Damn it, I blend in with the decorations," Becca mutters, glancing down at her dress and Finn snorts in response.

Miles' hand finds mine. I give him a side glance.

"You okay?" I whisper.

"Yes," he nods, his voice sounding thick. "I'm okay."

I lean my head onto his shoulder and squeeze his arm. "I love you."

He kisses my temple. "I love you."

We make our way through the hall. Mum and Adrian peel away from us, running into people they know. The four of us keep to ourselves as we wander out the back, towards the fresh air and less crowded outdoor space.

"Nice wedding," Finn says with a whistle.

"Incredible," Becca agrees, her eyes wide as they sweep around.

"There he is," I murmur as I spot Miles' father, shaking hands with another formally suited man.

Miles' grip on my hands tightens to the extent it's uncomfortable. When Andrew finishes his conversation, he glances up. Miles tenses beside me.

"Shit," I hear Finn mutter. "This is intense. Should have brought my popcorn."

I see Becca nudge him and Finn winces.

Awkwardly, Miles' father walks to us, somehow looking more uncomfortable than we do. His smile is tense.

"Finn! Great to see you," he greets. Finn shakes his hand politely and introduces him to Becca.

"How do you do," he smiles, before turning to me. "Isobel, you look gorgeous."

"Thank you," I reply with a stiff voice and an unintentional resting bitch face.

"Hey dad," Miles says sarcastically. "What's up?"

"Miles," he says through gritted teeth and a tense jaw.

"Thanks for the last minute invite," Miles continues. "Nice that you remembered you had a son."

"Not here. Not now."

"When else would I see you?" Miles questions. "You never make an effort to actually visit me."

I take a moment to look at the resemblance between Miles and his father. They're almost the same height and have an identical build. They both have dirty blond hair, that's a little too long.

He exhales through his nose as he stares at his son. "I'm glad you came." He says tersely as he glances around the group. "Enjoy yourselves."

As he walks away, I look up to Miles, who simply looks perplexed.

I touch his shoulder gently. "Let's go get a drink."

"Hell yeah, he's paying for it," Finn smirks.

As we line up at the bar, I lean into Miles side. He hooks his arm around my waist.

Finn orders for himself and Becca, while Miles orders for us. The bartender gives us a weird look when we all order two each but doesn't ask any questions.

After sliding across our beverages, we take them each in our hands and walk over to one of the few spare tables. We all take a seat, Becca spilling one of her drinks already. She dramatically gasps as she rights the glass, looking sheepish.

Finn raises his glass with a smirk. "Here's to the first of many shitty weddings we'll probably have to suffer together."

"I second that," Miles mutters.

"And here's to amazing memories, friendship and our future," Becca pipes up, with her eyes glossy and her cheeks pink. "I love you guys."

"We love you, too," I reply with a smile.

"Cheers," Miles murmurs, as we begin to clink our glasses.

"Cheers," the rest of us say, before we race each other, seeing who can down their drink first.

I couldn't have asked for a better way for this to go.

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And that's the end! Thank you all to patiently stayed with me throughout this journey (I know my updates when from x3 a week to much slower with my work life changing). Thank you to everyone that takes the time to vote and comment. I cannot express how much I appreciate your feedback and kind words. I hope you guys enjoyed this story! <3

Current Completed Works (as of March 2018):

Downright Delinquents, Childhood Sweethearts, Coach's Number One, Chasing Casey, Faithless, Not Quite Dead, Bad Liar, The Best Thing For Me.

Current On-Going Works (as of March 2018):

Coach's Second Best (Coach's Number One sequel) and Darker Than Sin.

Don't forget to check out the trailer if you haven't already! Thanks to my amazing Wattpad best friend ADreamingReality <333

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