Day Seven
Morning

God, Cole was screwed.

He couldn't take his eyes of Allison.

She looked fucking unreal.

He wasn't sure how he was supposed to ignore her when she looked that good. And if he couldn't ignore her, he couldn't act like everything was all right.

But honestly, that effort might be useless by this point. Cole wasn't sure if there was anyone left who didn't realize what was going on by this point. But as far as he knew, Scarlett and Nate didn't know. He had to keep it that way.

Everyone gathered into the room they were instructed to wait in while Nate and Scarlett did their first look. The group gathered by the window to watch, peering over each other to get a glimpse. Everyone watched quietly, as if speaking too loudly would ruin the moment. Cole snuck a glance at Alli, feeling a surge in his chest at the smile on her face.

Her dress was the same color as the rest of the bridal party, with the exception of Lila. They were wearing emerald green dresses, all in various styles. Lila wore a champagne colored dress. Since she was the maid of honor, Scarlett wanted to make sure she stood out in the photos. The green complimented Alli really well. He always loved her in green. It matched her eyes. It hugged her body perfectly. Her hair was loosely curled with a few pieces pinned back. She just... she looked so damn beautiful.

Cole watched as his sister walked towards her fiancé and he felt his heart swell with joy. She looked beautiful. She was in a satin white dress that dipped down in a V formation in the front. The back was low as well with a bit of a train behind her, small buttons trailing down the back. Her veil was lined in pearls, trailing behind her with her train. She tapped Nate's shoulder, straightening her back as she prepared for him to turn around.

Nate turned, his face instantly scrunching slightly as tears brimmed his eyes. He pulled his lips in before bursting out into the biggest smile Cole had ever seen. Letting out a watery laugh, Cole could hear Nate say, "You look so beautiful. God, you're so beautiful."

Scarlett let out a joyous laugh, reaching forward and taking Nate's hands. "You... you look so handsome."

Nate took a step further, cupping her face in his hands. "I- oh my god, you're a dream."

Cole smiled fondly at the interaction, taking a step back to let them have their moment. He headed over to where there were some cups of water, turning around to look at the group by the window. Noticing Allison walking towards him, he stood a little straighter and offered her a tight smile. She sucked in a breath as she waved stiffly.

Part of him wished they hashed things out prior to the wedding, but it wasn't like there was much time. Cole didn't even know how he felt yet about everything. It didn't help that he didn't know how Alli felt about it all either. This wasn't the time to start the conversation for obvious reasons. The air between them felt heavy with uncertainty.

"Hey," Allison greeted unsurely.

Cole swallowed. "Hi."

Allison's jaw tensed as she debated what to say. She opened her mouth to speak but was cutoff by the photographer. "All right, family! Let's do some group photos. We'll do brides family first."

Cole let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding, placing a hand on Alli's back as he led them over. She seemed plagued with thoughts, and Cole felt the sudden need to know everything going in her head. While he didn't know with certainty what he wanted, Cole could only cling to the hope he didn't blow his chances completely. Even though things were a mess, he wasn't ready to give up. He hoped that his reaction didn't close that door for them.

The Alvarez family made their way to where Nate and Scarlett were. Scarlett chose a pretty damn good place for pictures. The hotel definitely knew what they were doing, they had several different places to either set up the venue or take photos. They were currently on top of a ledge, of sorts. The ocean in the background.

"How about we do some with and some without Matthew?" Scarlett suggested, lifting her hand to motion for Matthew to come as well.

"You sure, sweetie?" Lorena asked, glancing back at her boyfriend.

Scarlett smiled. "Yeah, definitely, we'll get a mix. We'll have Charlie and Ashton jump in too at some point."

His sister was always good at that. She just had a knack for working things out and helping everyone feel included. Cole envied her in that way. She just got things right. It always seemed easy for her.

The photographer seemed a bit... out there. Cole wasn't one to judge, really. But he had to admit, he jumped slightly when he first saw the main photographer. The man was in quite the loud outfit. Most wedding photographers tried not to stand out at a wedding, they would just try to blend in. Not this guy, it seemed. His outfit was almost clownish, colorful stripes on oversized fabric. His face seemed to be permanently frozen on this open mouthed smile, eyebrows raised and eyes wide.

He guided the family to where the photos would be taken. He placed them in the order he desired, stepping back to check his work. Cole and Alli were next to each other, and he felt his fingertips twitch slightly. He let his arm rest on her waist, gauging her reaction. A shiver ran down her body, little goosebumps over her arms. Allison sucked in a sharp breath, but relaxed into his touch.

Cole turned his attention to Nate and Scarlett, asking, "Hey, Nate, you stop crying yet?"

"Shut up," Nate shot at him with a laugh.

Scarlett shrugged, rubbing his arm fondly. "If you didn't cry, I would've been kinda pissed."

"Wait, do you guys remember the family photoshoots we did when we were younger?" Lila quipped suddenly with a chuckle, glancing at her family.

"Oh my god," Scarlett laughed out, shaking her head.

"Oh, you guys hated those," Lorena recalled, her eyes closing.

Cole raised an eyebrow. "Could you blame us? They would take hours!"

"Only cost me a small fortune, too," his mother added. "One of you would always storm off at the end."

"Yeah, none of that today," Scarlett said firmly, glancing at all her siblings.

"Here we go, family!" the photographer shouted enthusiastically as he got into his position. "Biiiig dynamic smiles!"

Sam tilted his head. "Come again?"

The photographer's smile didn't waiver from his face as he repeated, "Biiiig dynamic smiles!"

The family awkwardly flashed their smiles, but no pictures were taken. If Cole wasn't busy posing, he would have looked around to see if anyone else found this slightly strange as well. The photographer was just standing there in his squat position, camera in hand and an open-mouth smile on his face.

"Bigger!" They smiled bigger.

"Biiiger!" A little bigger.

"Biiiiiiger!"

"Just take the damn photo!"

"Lila!"

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗

After what felt like forever taking photos, they were heading over to the ceremony.

He could sense nerves increasing by the second. Neither his sister or Nate could stop smiling. The photos went as well as could be expected. The twins even refrained from complaining almost the whole time. Scarlett and Nate were planning on taking photos of just them two while the cocktail hour took place after the ceremony.

The wedding planner guided them to the walkway that led to where the ceremony would be taking place. This section of the wedding would be outdoor while the reception was going to be inside in the hotel ballroom. The weather was perfect today luckily. Spirits were high. It was really gearing up to be the day the family deserved.

The planner told them she would help cue them to walk out once the music started, allowing everyone to get into the positions she guided them to last night. She glanced at Scarlett and Nate. "All right, you two ready?"

"Okay, I'll see you in a minute," Nate told Scarlett fondly, smiling softly at her. She nodded excitedly, holding her flowers tightly.

Scarlett leaned up and placed her hand behind Nate's head, bringing him towards her and placing a kiss on his lips. After a second, she pulled back and grinned at him. "I love you."

"I love you," Nate responded gleefully, not missing a beat.

"Scar, your lip gloss!" Scarlett's best friend, Maeve, exclaimed in panic. She reached for her purse and pulled out a tube, hastily running up to her friend. Nate laughed as he stepped back, stealing one more glance at her as he headed to the front of the line.

"I can't believe I'm about to get married," Scarlett gushed as she held as still as possible, her friend reapplying her lip gloss.

"Hell yeah you are," Maeve quipped proudly as she finished the touch up, slipping the gloss back into her bag and handing it to her girlfriend. Maeve turned to Bree, telling her, "I'll see you after the ceremony, yeah?"

Her girlfriend nodded, heading out with the twins' boyfriends as well to head out to their seats. Everyone got into their spots in line, pairing up with who they were walking with. Cole made his way to the back, waiting for his sister to meet him. Scarlett glided over, smiling at the others as she passed them.

Cole beamed at her as she approached him. Scarlett let out a cheerful laugh, breathing in deeply as she placed herself next to him. His voice was fond as he said, "You look beautiful, Scar."

"Thank you," she chirped happily, smoothing her hands out over her gown.

"You ready?" Cole asked carefully as the music started to play.

Scarlett sucked in sharply, unable to wipe the smile off her face. "I'm ready."

"Last chance to bow out," Cole offered teasingly. "You know I like Nate, but I'll plan an escape if you need it."

His sister laughed, shaking her head as she wove her arm through his. Her voice was soft as she assured him, "No need."

They got situated at the back of the aisle. Cole straightened his back, unable to wipe away the feeling of pride. He felt good walking his sister down the aisle. He couldn't help but remember when she asked him to do this a few months ago. Naturally, he cried. He and Scarlett had always been incredibly close. The twins had each other, and he had Scarlett. They had always just got each other. Whenever one of them needed someone, the other was there. Walking her down the aisle felt right. If it couldn't be their Dad, Cole was grateful it was him.

Cole breathed in deeply, glancing down at Scarlett who was looking ahead with a fierce look in her eyes. Cole grinned excitedly as he turned his head back to the double doors, waiting for their cue as the others made their way out.

After a bit, it was just them left. Cole had rehearsed this in his head for the past few weeks. He was ready for any situation. If she tripped, he'd make it look as natural as he could. If she wanted to run, he'd cause some sort of diversion so she could make a break for it. Anything that came up, he was ready.

"After you're done here, go win back Alli," Scarlett told him in a voice far too nonchalant.

Cole's head snapped in her direction. "What?"

"You really think I haven't noticed?" she asked softly, placing a comforting hand on his arm. "Whatever happened... whatever's stopping you. Just go get her back."

Something about it made him smile. Of course she noticed. He wondered if there was anybody left at all who didn't know. His first instinct was to apologize for the fact that he and Alli were hashing this out during her wedding, but she didn't seem distraught. The look on her face made him think it would be okay. Like she had no doubt that everything would work out. Cole shook his head at her in awe, chuckling as he smiled at her.

"You're a really great sister, Scar."

She beamed at him. "I know."