` i can see you in your wedding dress, YURI!

[byron]

byron liked to tell people he had been to over fifty weddings in the past year, and over two hundred in the last five. he loved the shocked look people would get when they heard, wondering how on earth he could have so many friends. now, of course, attending so many weddings was just part of byron's profession. he was a wedding singer, after all. the guy who would have to sit at the piano and sing jason mraz covers, or fleetwood mac, or, and he cringed when this request came, taylor swift. tonight's couple had requested chasing cars, a song byron was more than pleased to sing for them.

the newly-weds had their dance long ago, and by now the floor had cleared of everyone else as well. the venue was starting to empty, with only a few drunk guests lingering at the tables. byron sat at his piano, fumbling with a box in his pocket. he took it out, flipped the top off and looked at the small delicate diamond ring in his palm. he knew he was crazy, taking a risk that would probably ruin a friendship. hoping she'd choose him over her long-term boyfriend. but not knowing the answer, and asking himself what if for the past two years had been too much for byron to answer. so with a quick flick of his fingers he closed the box, and stood up, heading over to the bar where he spotted yuri. his yuri. byron hopped up over the counter, and grabbed her hand, motioning her towards the hallway, "i need to talk to you."

[yuri]

though yuri had been with her boyfriend for the longest time, there was one person that she could never live without. byron. he'd been her best friend since they were little, and yuri really didn't know where she'd be without him. she told him absolutely everything. he'd been her first kiss years ago, but after that there hadn't been anything. she'd had one too many boyfriends, but she honestly thought that rayne was the one. they'd been together for months, she had her own drawer at his place, all that fun stuff. his anger problems didn't bother yuri. he'd never laid a hand on her in their time together, and she loved that. she was a really accepting person, really.

cleaning up the bar after the wedding, yuri thought about the night. it had been a really pretty wedding. one of the highlights had been hearing chasing cars sang by byron, considering it was one of her favorite songs. all of the bottles in place, counter top wiped off, stuff where it needed to be, yuri smiled at her work. she pushed some of her hair from her face and straightened her bangs, looking up as she heard byron come over and speak. "oh, okay." she smiled sweetly, following him to the hall. having her fingers laced with his was a familiar feeling, a comfortable one. she stopped when he did, looking up slightly to look into his eyes. she memorized the oh so familiar details of them over and over, just like she had so many times in the past. "yeah?" she asked, shifting her weight a bit on her feet, which were sore from being on them all night in heels.

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[byron]

forever in the friend zone was the last thing byron had ever expected. he'd been the guy in high school all the girls had gushed over, because he was that tall, dark, mysterious type. he kept to himself for the most part. byron had his group of close friends, including yuri, and that kept him content. he didn't need to be the center of attention, he didn't need to have an arm slung around a girl's waist at all times. this wasn't to say he was a self-absorbed jerk. byron was the guy that smiled at people when he felt they needed one, he wasn't pushy. he was a gentleman, because he'd been brought up to be one. that's partially why he had never tried anything with yuri, he was too content watching her be happy from a distance.

it was that sweet smile that always caused butterflies to swarm in byron's stomach, but he ignored that feeling as he led her towards the hallway. her hand in his was second nature, it was a comfortable gesture. yet something so casual still sent tingles up and down his arm, same as a little boy waiting for his first kiss. once they'd reached the hall, byron turned to face her, not meeting her eyes for a moment. was he really going to go through with this? he didn't linger on the thought a second longer, knowing if he did, he would have convinced himself out of it. "i care about you a lot, you know that, right?" finally his eyes met her's, a small, nervous smile creeping onto his lips.

[yuri]

all through high school, yuri had been one of the girls that people could consider popular. she got along with just about everyone, it was part of who she was. she had her close friends, and then she had all the people she talked to but wasn't super close to. yuri was the type of person that people went to for advice. she always knew just what to say and when to say it, though she did make mistakes like every other normal human being. there was hardly a time when she found herself single. though, not many of her relationships had ever been very serious. the guy got threatened with how close her and byron were, and it would end. that was one thing she had never told byron. about how six guys had broken up with her with the reasoning of "i'm not going to sit here and compete with him. i see the way he looks at you, and how you look back." that just wasn't something you told a guy, especially when you weren't sure about how you felt about him.

sure, he gave her butterflies. every time they went to her swingset in her back yard she remembered that first kiss. byron had been pushing yuri on the swing, and when she went to jump off, she fell and hurt her knee. after helping her up, she just stood there, staring into his eyes and blushing like a mad woman. this kiss had only been one of those small, middle school pecks, but it had been magical. at least, that's how yuri had seen it. after it happened, she quick changed the subject and started to run around again as if nothing had happened. if she were to say that she had gotten any sleep that night, it would have been a lie. she'd sat up for hours just placing her fingers on her lips as they tingled at the memory of the kiss. just thinking back about it then, she knew she shouldn't be. she quickly shut up her brain and smiled softly, eyes sparkling. "of course i know that. we've been through everything together." yuri tucked some of her hair behind her ear, eyes staying focused on his.

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[byron]

byron's grandmother liked to call him an old soul. he was one of those people who just didn't felt like he belonged during high school, and often, it was physically painful for him to be there. people would have never expected that, had they looked at him, walking confidently down the halls. to byron, high school had felt like someone had pressed the pause button on his life for four years. he couldn't stand listening to the boys around him chatter on. 'she's only doing that because she wants your dick,' or 'tell me what she said!'. it exhausted him. usually, she just wanted to be friends, and had said nothing of importance or interest at all. byron was happy with what he had, a family he loved, and friends he truly cared about. everything else was unneeded.

their first kiss was still a fresh memory. it was the kind byron had stashed away in his back pocket, taking it out at random moments and observing it from every angle. he was sure it had meant nothing to yuri, it was just a clumsy middle school kiss. but it had meant the world and more to byron. "okay," he said, smile faltering for a moment. "you mean so much to me, you always have, you always will." his hand reached into his pocket, playing with the box there, wondering why the speech he'd practiced in front of the mirror wasn't working out now.

[yuri]

yuri had never, and never would, take youth for granted. she did whatever she could to keep not only herself happy, but the people she loved happy. though, sometimes she never quite realized when her actions hurt someone else. unless that person flat out told yuri "hey, i don't like that you did this" then she could go her whole life without realizing that she had messed up in the process of having fun or keeping someone else happy. her relationships, for example. she didn't understand how the guys thought she was just taking them for granted. she was just trying to keep them happy, herself happy, and not lose her best friend in the entire world. somewhere along the lines, they got jealous and she lost them. it was just how it went. when rayne hadn't left her after a month or two, yuri had been sure that he was there to stay.

when byron's smile faltered, she couldn't help but notice. yuri's brunette head tilted to the side a bit, curiosity filling her everything. she'd heard him tell her how much he cares so many times before, but this time seemed different. it had her stomach twisting in knots, worried he was going to say he was leaving and she was never going to see him again. worry fell over her face as she overthought what was going on. "a-and?" was all she could manage out. what if he was sick? or moving? or something equally as terrible? the thought that this could be a happy thing hadn't even crossed her mind, she was way too busy worrying. byron was the one person in the world that she ever worried about so much, and if he was leaving her in any way, she would burst into tears in less than a second.

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[byron]

here's something i can tell you about byron, he was a liar. i don't mean that he recreated himself over and over for people, or told full out lies. but more and more he found himself lying. if people said they were nervous for the ap calc test, he would say he was too, even if he wasn't. if people said they had a horrible weekend, he'd say the same, even if he had a blast. lying allowed byron to walk neat circles around topics, it kept him at a distance. it was easy for him, it let him stay away from the real issues and the real problems. lying meant every time someone asked him about his feelings for yuri he would laugh and shrug it off. but standing in front of her right then, seeing the anxiety in her eyes made him want to tell the truth for the first time.

byron reached out to take yuri's hand, his other one still fiddling in his pocket. "we've known each other forever," gently, he let his thumb glide across the back of her hand. she was so soft and perfect. "i.." byron looked down to pull out the box from his pocket, but his movement was interrupted as he heard footsteps turn round the corridor and stop at where they were standing. by instinct, byron let go of yuri's hand as he turned to look at rayne, plastering a friendy smile on his face.

rayne looked at them both curiously, with furrowed eyebrows. "what's going on here?"

byron only smiled like he usually did, shaking his head before lying again. "nothing."

[yuri]

the saying 'opposites attract' definitely worked when it came to yuri and byron. she was almost always honest. when someone asked if she had a good weekend or what was going on with family, she usually told the truth. if she liked someone, she would tell her friends if they asked. unless it came to byron. then, she kept her mouth shut. for years she had sat there silently, getting butterflies over him when she should have been getting butterflies over her boyfriends. however, she kept quiet and pretended like there was absolutely nothing there. because there was nothing there, right? well, at least that's how she saw it. it would be horrible to risk her very best friendship.

yuri watched byron, her anxiety starting to go into even more overdrive than it already was in. she nodded, not really sure how to get any words to come to her mouth. she stared at their hands, comfortable with the feeling of his larger one around hers. she could feel the blush rising on her cheeks when she noticed the footsteps a little too late. she kept staring at byron for a moment before looking over to rayne with a wide smile. "byron and i were just talking." she smiled reassuringly, though she could already see that he was upset and his anger was only rising. though, when he finally stopped staring down byron and looked to yuri, she saw him soften a bit. "what're you doing here?"

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