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Cherry sure liked to keep herself a lot more… involved now that Dad had a boyfriend- well… Fiance now huh? Even a husband soon?? Nova had talked to her sister more this last month than she had for the last 15 years. It was strange, she felt completely neutral on the subject, not conflicted - even though Cherry’s words were being drowned out by her own thoughts right now - just neutral. Just before she started feeling bad about that fact something cut into her thoughts.
“So! Who’s your plus one gonna be?” Cherry smiled and waved around the adorable personalized wedding invite Andy had made for her. Every invite to his family was personalized.
Nova blinked, knowing there was a possibility she simply heard Cherry wrong. “Plus one…?” Cherry nodded, only confusing Nova even more, “Where on the invite does it say we get onea those??”
“Right in the middle of everything silly~!! Are you really saying your sharp eyes missed something like that??” Cherry held her invite in a way Nova could easily read, yeah no… there was no missing that.
“I- Don’t have an answer for that… Y’know what, I'm gonna go find my invitation.” And shockingly she actually knew where it was in her mess of a room at Ysa’s. It was an important little piece of paper, unlike bills and traffic tickets.
“What right now?? We haven’t finished getting you an outfit!! And to think I spent all this time scouting a clothes shop that had formal wear with boobie windows…”
“I like everything here completely equally! Thank you sister who knows more about fashion than me! You can take it from here! I have other shit to do!” Nova ran off, leaving Cherry behind.
“Hm… well you’re right about one thing~” She already knew what she wanted for Nova, and Falls and Decay and Alex and Andy and Glint, everyone but Ravy, punk was so not her style… and oh she even got permission~! How fun would this be~?
- - -
Nova rushed to her husband’s mansion on her motorcycle, jumping the big stupid fence instead of waiting for the automatic gate to open. She rushed up to her room and expertly located one of her many leather jackets, fishing the invitation out of its pocket as if it was a certain desk drawer in any normal person’s room.
Her thumb scraped off some loose glitter that made up the flames on the front of the card as she opened it – How could her own father curse her this way… Why would she put a card like this in her pocket?? – She was invited, her dad was getting married, yadda yadda yadda where the fuck was her plus one?? She read the card inside and out, front and back, probably 3 separate times. It was stupid… Cherry’s was written very clearly; she couldn’t miss something like that!!!
She took out her phone as she sat on her bed, tossing the invite on her pillow before remembering, ugh the glitter. She texted her brother, Falls.
N: ‘Ey, shithead, lemme see your invite.’
Falls responded quickly,
F: ‘Don’t call me a shithead ya fucking bitch!!’
N: ‘I’ll call ya whatever I want, Fagass! Lemme see your fucking wedding invite!!!’
Nova was well aware of the irony calling her brother a fag while asking for the invite to the wedding where her dad was marrying another man. Falls was still far and away the Gayest man alive, but now everyone knew he got it from somewhere.
F: ‘I ain’t sending it ta ya’
N: ‘Aww why? Dad tellin’ you how much he loves ya on it? <3’
F: ‘YEAH, AN WHAT OF IT???’
Nova had to stop and laugh before she could respond.
N: ‘Well then just… tell me, ya got a plus one right?’
F: ‘Sure I do, tho dad invited basically everyone I know already, like there are only 30 people in the whole world right?’
N: ‘Feels that way.’
N: ‘Uh gotta go now’
She ignored her phone chiming another message, most likely Falls trying to find out why she asked in the first place. She… had a pit in her stomach… as she stuffed her invite back in her pocket (spreading glitter) and walked on back to her motorcycle.
She hesitated before putting her helmet on… Her dad was a very hard person to be mad at. He was just so Good. but she was gonna get there… Why was she singled out? This wasn’t something Andy would just forget! She was his Daughter, and he had put so much thought and care into every invite!! She was singled out!! Her friends must not be good enough! Or dad just didn’t think she had friends… ugh…!! Now she was gonna give it to him!!
The ride was far too short for that anger to wear off, thanks to all the traffic violations. She pulled up to Andy’s place, Ravy’s car and Andy’s big family van were parked there. Man, her dad was lame, but he was also home. She kicked off her bike and simply let herself in, it was her dad’s house so basically her house too.
“EY DAD!!” There was a slight anger to Nova’s voice, which was replaced with slight regret seeing Andy sitting on the couch about 5 feet away, flinching from Nova’s loudness. “Ah- ey, I got some fuckin questions for you.”
“Is this supposed to be an interrogation…? Ah- kidding, kidding… what is it sweetheart?”
“Tch- the way yer acting I think you know!!! About the invites dad!!”
“Is this about the glitter…?”
“Oh you fuckin Wish it was don’t ya?? The Plus one!! Falls’s got one!! Cherry’s got one!! Where the hell is mine???”
Andy paled slightly, “ah well you see-”
“And I know you didn’t forget because that isn’t like you!!!”
“I didn’t, I-”
“Like c’mon!! I have way more friends than Cherry and Falls do!! I know people!!! I have so many old friends I’d fill up the fuckin venue all on my own!! An’ sure most of em are drug dealers but is that really worse than Gunter’s lil boyfriend?? Or Glint?? Or fucking Ration??? Seriously, what would be the worst thing I’d do!?”
“You… You’d invite Ysa, that's what!!!! That’s why okay??” Andy finally caved, raising his voice in a rare moment.
Ravy was cleaning a mug in the kitchen to make tea.
“Oh- thats… Thats even fucking worse!! Ysa’s my husband too!”
“Yes I know that.. But… you know how I feel about him... How Ravy feels about him.”
“But you came to my wedding with him! You didn’t have a single issue back then! Then… Then Ravy comes along and you hate him!! You HATE him! And you don’t hate fucking anyone!!”
“Nova, the things he did-”
“Is it just as bad as what mom did??”
It was Ravy’s favorite mug, Andy ate cereal out of it by accident but that was ok.
“I- No it’s… it’s worse than that! I can’t fully tell you but surely you understand from that…” Andy struggled to get the words out.
“No I don’t!! Because it’s completely fucking wrong!! Have you met Ysa?? He can’t rape anyone?? He’s too fucking small!”
“I didn’t say that was what he did…”
“Well whatever! You forgive everyone! Literally every single fucking person! And MY HUSBAND is your goddamn exception?? How fucked is that??”
“Sweetheart. I hate to say this but it isn’t about you. Me and Ravy would be uncomfortable with him there…”
Ravy added the tea to some water and started boiling it.
“Well maybe you should start getting yourselves comfortable!”
“Not on our Wedding Day…! Don’t you think I’ve tried bringing Ravy and Ysa together before? It doesn’t just work out sweetheart, and the last thing I want is for us to be upset in any way. The last thing I want is the first real day of our relationship to be me… failing him again…”
“... Who’s ‘him’ exactly?”
“. . . everyone?”
“If he can’t be there then I’m not going.”
Andy felt the sting of tears behind his eyes, and the sudden tightening of his throat. He was upset before, but if Nova was being honest... He was devastated. “You… You can’t really mean that, sweetheart…”
“I fucking do mean it!! Watch me!! I’ll fuckin stay home with Ysa! He, For Some Fucking Reason, was never told when the wedding would be, so even though he’s a super sweet guy who’d never let me do something like this he can’t actually stop me!!” She crossed her arms and turned away, but she knew… Andy was going to cry, and if she saw her dad cry she wouldn’t be able to stop herself.
“N-Nova…” He felt his heart shatter, Pulled in two by the people he loved most in the world. His voice cracked and he… God, what could he do?
Andy nearly jumped out of his skin when Ravy placed down a mug of tea on the coffee table, he truly was a terrible jumpy mess when he was upset. “Ravy-”
Oh shit, she didn’t realize this guy was home. Ravy looked at her with kindness and thinly concealed sadness. Nova shivered under the gaze, she knew Ravy could do some fucked up stuff if he wanted. And the thing was he Didn’t. She fully expected him to snap one day.
“I can tell you.” Ravy offered weakly, “I can tell you everything he’s done, if that’ll change your mind…”
“I-I…” Nova stepped back, glancing at Andy, who was paralyzed with shock and sadness, all teary-eyed… she started tearing up as well. “I… don’t… think I want to know. I’m going home. To… think about it…”
And she did, she had to get out of there, but she didn’t go all that far. Her tears blurring her vision made it too dangerous to drive. She stopped to smoke and calm her emotions… but Andy was left in his living room with Ravy, crying his fucking eyes out.
Ravy sat on the couch next to his finance, pulling him into a soft hug, he knew better than most that Andy needed comfort in times like these. He pushed the warm mug of tea into Andy’s hands, hoping the heat would bring some relaxation. Truthfully, tears were flowing from his face too, just more silently. “I’m sorry, Koibito… I tried…”
“Sh-she’ll show up right?? Sh-she didn’t m-mean all that… She knows I love her! I-I just love you too… I love you both so much…”
“I know you do…”
“W-were you really… going to tell her?” Ravy nodded as Andy wiped his eyes and sipped his tea, “y-you didn’t have to… I mean… it hurts you doesn’t it??”
“Of course it does… but she was hurting you, whether it was deliberate or not… I wouldn’t let you deal with something like that while I was right there…”
“R-right… of course you wouldn't! You’re always there for me…” Andy sniffled a bit and leaned his head on Ravy’s shoulder. “H-hey… it wouldn’t be the end of the world if… if he was there right?”
“It would be, actually. I already let you invite Ration, Especially now that you’ve invited Ration. He won’t be there if Ysa shows up.”
“Th-then, Nova can video things for Ysa?? Just taking pictures! It… she’s right, it really isn't fair… and I just…” He shivered suddenly, as he noticed Ravy’s harsh glare. “N-no… I remember what he did to you… forget it…”
Ravy tried to calm back down. Of all the things… He knew Andy understood what Ysa did to him!!! And he was always on his side about it, surely that didn’t… change…! no, no it didn’t change, Andy was just… too goddamn nice. Oh, his fiance… he softened his glare.
“... Do you hate Ysa?” Ravy held Andy’s hand and brushed his thumb against it.
“He’s done such awful things to you.” Andy still seemed pale, he was a skittish kind of man, Ravy understood it wasn’t personal.
“That isn’t what I asked. I know I hate Ysa, I know why I hate Ysa, I don’t need to know anything more about that. Andy, do you hate Ysa?”
“I…” he hiccuped a bit, his tears refusing to go away, “I… I don’t know…”
“I knew it… you don’t actually have a single mean bone in your body…” he rubbed Andy’s back, sighing.
“He makes her so happy. He makes so many people So fucking Happy. Everyone but you… why you??”
“You just… know a different Ysa than I do… I can’t forgive him, but I’m so So sorry I ever made you think that meant you couldn’t.”
Andy sat there, his eyes getting shinier…
“And I’ll still love you no matter how you feel about Ysa.”
“Ah-! G-get out of my head…! Hmph… Th-thanks Ravy…”
“Mm.. no problem. And yeah… Nova can take pictures while she’s there, that's reasonable enough… Just go and ask Ration if he’s ok with being in the photos too… Look, there's literally no way Nova won’t show up. there's gonna be cake there.”
“Hehe-! Come on, that's my daughter you’re talking about! B-but… thank you… so much…” he squeezed Ravy in a hug with surprising strength.
“Anything for you… almost.”