Party 'til you pass out / When the party's over

1.33

'Why not? It's not like you're married, or something...' I inhaled deeply, twisting my wedding ring around my finger while I looked at it.

'Well -' I tried to find a way to tell Tom without - without what? Upsetting him? Getting him angry? Making him laugh? Why would his reaction matter so much to me? 'We actually are.'

From the corner of my eyes I watched Tom's reaction. He looked stoic, blinking his eyes a few times, unable to respond to my words. He got up, paced up and down around the couch, rubbing his face and shaking his head. I just sat there, like a little kid waiting for its father to explode after being caught in the act. But Tom didn't explode - he just huffed and laughed a little without joy, unbelieving.

'What?' He looked down on me, his eyes burning into mine as if asking me to tell him I was joking. I just held up my left hand for him to see my ring, and he rolled his eyes and turned away from me.

'For fuck's sake...' He walked into the kitchen, got himself a glass of water to and came back. He looked at me while taking some sips of water before talking again. 'Since when?!'

'Last week,' I muttered, avoiding looking at him. Annoyance poured from every fibre of his body, and I felt uncomfortable.

'How?!' Tom's shocked eyes burned into my head, and still, I didn't dare to look at him.

'He asked, and I said yes, and we just...'

'So, he asked you to marry him in a - what? A moment of mindless love, and you said yes and you just got married right there and then?'

'Why are you so hostile?!,' I threw at him when my uncomfortableness hit the limit. Tom stared at me, and I hated how I couldn't read his emotions right now. He had gotten a master in hiding them from me if he wanted, since what happened a few months ago. He sighed deeply and ran his hand through his hair.

'I'm just shocked, that's all.'

'Why?,' I demanded to know. He shrugged.

'I just wish the best for you.' My eyes met his and I cocked an eyebrow. 'For you and Oli,' he added.

'And who says getting married isn't the best for us?' Now it was Tom's turn to make a face to me.

'We got married on a Monday morning at the courthouse. We went in, got our paperwork fixed, got married and walked out,' I then said.

'How romantic...' Tom finally got down on the couch and sat back, his head on the back rest and his eyes closed. 'Just when I thought your relationship couldn't become more complicated...'

'I know,' I mumbled, feeling small now. We stayed silent for a long while.

'You know...,' Tom then started, opening his eyes and looking at me with those icy blues of him. 'I'm not upset that you and Oli got married, because I know you two are crazy about each other - you must be blind not to see that.' I smiled carefully at that. 'But, I know this happened without thinking it through, because I know my brother and he is an impulsive fucking idiot sometimes -' I chuckled.

'He is...'

'I'm just upset that you guys jumped into marriage without thinking about the consequences, just because you were on a wave of love, and -' He looked at me and sighed. 'Look where you are now.' I gulped and nodded quietly.

'Don't get me wrong, Ali. I really hope you guys can talk this out, because I know you two are meant to be, but holy shit. You both really know how to get the worst out of each other.' He gave me an unbelieving look and I laughed shortly.

'We do...'

'Seriously... After all you've been through. Come on... You're really getting this upset over him being lured into Amanda's trap? Give the lad a break - he is drunk for the first time in ages and his ex-whatever takes advantage of it. Don't blame it all on him.' I looked at Tom while he spoke, his words creating some sense into the chaos in my mind. 'You can't tell me that Oliver kissed Amanda deliberately, jeopardizing the best thing that has ever happened to him - his relationship with you. Ali, really, trust me when I say that Oliver would die for you. He is so goddamn fucking head over heels with you, he would never do anything to hurt you on purpose. And I would kick his annoying skinny ass if he ever did.' Tom gave me a small smile and I now noticed the silent tears running over my face.