CHAPTER 2: The Wedding

***JAMIE***

I was lost in thoughts when the priest's voice suddenly pulled me in.

“Do you—Jamie Silver, take Avery Gordon to be your husband? Do you promise to be faithful to her in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love her and to honor her all the days of your life?” The priest asked, tugging his glasses slightly.

I didn’t think before answering. “I do.” 

“And, do you—Avery Gordon take Jamie Silver to be your husband? Do you promise to be faithful to him in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love him and to honor him all the days of your life?

“Of course, I do.” Avery responded, a wide smile spreading across her face.

“With the power vested in me,” the priest said, facing the congregation. “I pronounce you husband and…”

I didn't let him finish. “You know what… I don't think I can do this. I can't."

The whole congregation gasped and when my eyes traced to my parents, the look on their faces almost made me change my mind. But I tightened my resolve, refusing to back down.

“What? What are you saying?” Avery asked, giggling nervously as she clutched her flowers with her now shaky hands. I could feel the curious looks of everyone present on us as I took a step back. 

“I’m sorry, I can’t get married, I can’t do this,” I said and ran out of the wedding hall.

I could hear Avery’s hysterical wails and my mother screaming my name, but I couldn't care less right now. This time, I was going to choose me, and even though I wasn’t so sure of the decision I was making, I just wanted to live in the moment. 

I ran as fast as my legs could take me until I entered the forest part of the pack, and I just sat there, back resting against a tree trunk and started crying. 

“I thought there's an unspoken rule that men aren't supposed to cry?” An unfamiliar voice came behind me, making me startle. 

I took a step backwards from the tree, trying to get away from him, but in the heat of the moment, I lost my footing and I started falling. I was about to hit the ground when I felt a soft grip around my body, lifting up carefully. When I opened my eyes, I was met with the beautiful green eyes of the same man I had just seen, he was holding me with a smirk on his face. 

“Are you alright?” He asked in a gentle tone, releasing his grip around me.

I looked to the place he was just at and again, I saw him there, I looked back to the man who caught me earlier, and he was here, same dress, same expression, same hair. 

“What the heck?” My womanly voice almost slipped out as I took steps backwards from him.

Then it dawned on me when I looked again. They must be twins.

“Oh… I'm sorry,” I mumbled, clasping my palm against my head. “You guys are twins right?”

A small smile spread across the face of the one who held me earlier. “I've never seen anyone react this dramatically to finding out we're twins before.”

The other one just scoffed, tapping his fingers against each other. 

I was already smiling in admiration before I could notice. Forget Spencer, these two were now my world. 

“Who, who are you guys?” I stammered the words out of my mouth. 

“Oh, we’re here for the wedding of Prince Jamie,” they echoed and my eyes grew wide. They’re here for me. 

“And you are…” one of them asked, tilting his head slightly. 

I swallowed hard. “Prince Jamie.”

The one who made a joke about men not being allowed to cry suddenly burst into laughter. “You mean to tell us that you're the prince of the six kingdoms in Frostvale?”

“Yes,” I nodded, “sadly though… the wedding is over.”

They didn't even respond, they just started walking away.

“What? You don’t believe me?” I yelled behind them. 

“You sound like a girly man, pardon us if we don’t believe you are the high prince,” one of them said, but neither turned to even glance at me.

My jaws clenched and my hands tightened as I watched them leave. 

I remained there in the woods for minutes, thinking about the gravity and repercussions of what I just did.

“It'll all work out in the end,’ I mumbled to myself as I started making my way towards the castle.

***

“Ohhhh Jamie Silver, you’ve done the height of it!” Mother lashed out in anger immediately after she sighted me and I just flinched back. I wasn’t ready for her anger, nor my dad's.

“You are going to Silverstone Academy, start packing,” Father said in a low tone without as much as looking at me.

“You can’t be serious honey,” Mother spoke up, but my father was dead serious. 

“Dad, about Silverstone…”

“No young man, you are going and that’s final. And remember, you brought this upon yourself,” Father threatened, making Mother shift uncomfortably in her seat. 

I reached for my pocket and brought out the admission letter I had earlier stuffed in it.

“Here,” I said, stretching the letter towards him. “You don't need to pull any strings.”

“Guess you had your plans, didn’t you?” He asked but I couldn’t answer, he was pissed already. 

I couldn't answer. I just kept staring at him.

“Just remember this…” he said, folding the letter and keeping his gaze locked on me. “Whatever you do at Silverstone, you'd better not allow your real identity to be found out.”

I moved closer to him and slid the letter from his grip. “That was my plan from the start.”

“NOW, GET OUT!!” He yelled, Just as I attempted to say something, cutting me off. “OUT! NOW!!!” He yelled again and I just knew I had to leave. Now wasn’t the right time to talk to him about anything. 

I walked out of their room and went back to mine that stood just a few yards away. Sighing, I pushed the door open and I wished I hadn’t, because Avery was seated on my bed, waiting for me. 

“Jamie, oh my, you must have been startled,” she said as she rushed towards me, cupping my cheeks, but I just brushed her hands off. 

“We need to talk, Avery,” I said as I walked towards the sofa and sat on it. She did the same, sitting beside me. 

“You don’t have to explain anything, I understand, I also had cold feet, and I know it can be crazy for some of us.”

“No Avery, I wasn’t at all having cold feet, I just am not interested in getting married to you.”

Just as I said those words, she jumped to her feet with her brows furrowed. 

“So you don’t want me? Is there someone else?” She asked, already sobbing, her mascara smearing all over her face. 

I rose to my feet too, keeping my gaze locked on her. “No, I mean, not just to you, to any girl for that matter.”

She wiped the tears off her eyes instantly. “So, you’re gay?”

“NO!” I shrugged, “I’m not gay, let’s just say I’m not ready for any woman for now.” 

“I can wait Jamie, no matter how long you need,” she reassured and I just slammed my right palm on my forehead. 

“No, I don’t want you to wait for me Avery, I can’t give you what you want, or anything, and I’m not even your real mate, I want you to find your mate, be happy, and enjoy life,” I said. 

She looked at me as though she understood all I had said, then she sighed and turned to leave. 

I sighed in relief, and just like that, Avery spun around and threw a punch across my jaw. I fell to the ground and my head started pounding. Then my vision became blurry until I was totally blacked out.

“THAT’S WHAT YOU GET FOR MAKING ME A FOOL IN FRONT OF EVERYONE” I heard her voice say before my brain finally shut down.