All Chapters of WHEN TWO WORLDS COLLIDE.: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

By Saturday morning, Victoria had already changed her mind about her wedding dress three times.The first one was too simple.The second one was too dramatic.The third one was perfect.At least, that was what she had decided five minutes ago.She stood in front of her bedroom mirror, holding the phone in one hand and the ring box in the other.Claire was still on the phone."You've changed your mind again, haven't you?"Victoria smiled."Maybe.""Victoria.""What?""You've been engaged for less than twenty-four hours.""I know.""And you've already looked at thirty-seven wedding dresses.""Thirty-eight."Claire groaned."You're impossible."Victoria laughed.She looked at herself in the mirror again.There was something different about her.She couldn't explain it.Maybe it was the ring.Maybe it was knowing that the man she loved had looked her in the eyes and asked her to spend the rest of her life with him.Whatever it was, she couldn't stop smiling.Her mother walked past the ope

The wedding was six months away.And somehow, six months became six weeks.Then six weeks became six days.And suddenly, Victoria was standing in front of a mirror in a white wedding dress, staring at herself while Claire adjusted the veil behind her.“Don't cry,” Claire warned.Victoria laughed nervously.“I wasn't going to.”“You're already doing the face.”“What face?”“The face you make when you're trying not to cry.”Victoria looked at herself again.She was getting married.Today.Not someday.Not eventually.Today.Her fingers brushed over the small earrings her mother had given her that morning.Her mother had cried.Her father had pretended he wasn't emotional.Claire had cried twice.And Nadia...Nadia had been running around since seven in the morning telling everybody what to do.Victoria smiled.“Where's Nadia?”Claire laughed.“Probably bossing someone around.”“That sounds like her.”A knock came at the door.“Victoria?”Her mother's voice.“Come in.”The door opened.H

Three years passed.Not dramatically.Not with some life-changing event.Just quietly, the way childhood usually did.Nadia turned twelve.Sophia turned two.And somehow, the little girl Nadia had once carried around like a doll had become a tiny person with a very loud personality.Especially when she didn't get what she wanted.“No.”Victoria looked up from the kitchen counter.“Sophia.”“No!”“You can't have another cookie.”Sophia folded her arms.“Cookie.”“You already had two.”“Three.”Victoria stared at her.“You had three?”Sophia nodded proudly.Nadia, sitting at the kitchen table doing homework, burst out laughing.“She's snitching on herself.”Sophia pointed at Nadia.“More!”“No,” Nadia said.Sophia frowned.“Mean.”Nadia laughed harder.“See? She called you mean.”Victoria shook her head.“She learned that word yesterday.”“And she's already using it correctly.”Richard walked into the kitchen.“What happened?”Victoria pointed toward Sophia.“Your daughter wants another

By sixteen, Nadia had grown into the kind of girl people noticed without her ever trying to be noticed.Not because she was loud.She wasn't.Not because she chased attention.She actually avoided it.It was simply difficult not to notice her.She had grown taller, her features had softened, and the little girl who once followed Richard around the house asking endless questions had become a calm, intelligent young woman who seemed to carry herself with quiet confidence.But the biggest change wasn't physical.It was the way she saw the world.Nadia was still remarkably innocent.She had never been interested in sneaking out, getting drunk, impressing boys, or becoming popular just for the sake of it.Her friends sometimes teased her about it.She didn't care.She had her priorities.School.Family.Her future.And, most importantly, becoming the kind of person she could be proud of.Her bedroom reflected that.Books were everywhere.Science textbooks sat beside novels.Sticky notes co

The Sterling family had been in town for three days before Nadia finally heard anything more about them.And even then, she wasn't particularly interested.She was home for a short break from university, which meant she had already made a list of everything she wanted to do before returning.Sleep.Study.Spend time with Grandma Eleanor.Take Sophia out.Help Victoria in the kitchen.And, if she had enough time, do absolutely nothing for an entire afternoon.The last one was the most difficult.Nadia was sitting at the dining table with a cup of tea when Richard walked in."You've been studying since breakfast."She looked up from her book."No, I haven't.""I watched you.""I took a break.""You've been home for two days and you've already finished one textbook."Nadia smiled."I like studying.""I know."Richard pulled out the chair opposite her."How about dinner tonight?"Nadia frowned."Here?""No. We're going out.""Where?""The Sterlings invited us."Nadia paused."The people y