Story: Listen To Your Heart

Author: gddg3696

Disclaimer: I own nothing Switched at Birth

A/N: You guys have no idea how much feedback I've been getting, I appreciate every SINGLE one of my reviews, they really encourage me to write more. Anyway, as you all probably know, SAB took a leave after the summer and, as you all probably also know, I did as well. I haven't been watching because I can't find it online anymore, but just recently I was able to. So, naturally, it got me back in the mood to continue writing. Sorry for the wait, readers! I'll have the next update up probably somewhere around next week. Here's your long awaited chapter, short and sweet, I hope! Review!

Bay hadn't let Daphne see the ballroom, or the ceremony decorations until the day of. Daphne had put up a bit of a fight, but Bay had assured her that the full effect would let her appreciate it better. Looking at Daphne's face as she walked into the dining room, Bay knew she had made the right decision.

Daphne and Wilke both looked mesmerized as family and friends greeted them, and Bay led them to their seats. After everyone enjoyed their delicious meals- another item on the short list of things Bay had allowed Daphne to pick out- everyone quieted down from their idle chatter as Toby struck his champagne glass, signalling an oncoming toast.

Bay had read Toby's speech and knew it as well as her own, so instead of listening in admiration, she concentrated on what she had been doing the entire dinner. Avoiding Emmett. The seating arrangement went with Wilke, then Daphne, Bay, Regina, Melody, Emmett, Kathryn, John, Wilke's parents, Ty and finally Toby. Bay hadn't locked eyes with him the entire almost-hour, and although she kept up conversation for Daphne's sake, she knew better than to speak up when Emmett was communicating.

Only after everyone began to clap and cheer did Bay realize it was her turn to speak. She got up, and began her rehearsed words.

"Let met start off by saying that my relationships with Daphne and Wilke have never been simple. What with Daphne's and my family's complications, obviously our relationship reflected our families conflicts. We didn't love each other right away, understandably, but during these past years, that all changed…"

Bay continued to let the words and signs flow freely, trying to put in as much enthusiasm and sincerity in her voice and signs, but it was difficult. She had prepped herself for sitting at the same table as him, but being so close to Emmett after not seeing him for a year was like that time in freshman year of high school.

Bay had done a 30-hour famine for charity, and had eaten and drunken nothing for those 30 hours, save for water and juice. Afterwards, her family took her to a buffet, a full meal. There was too much at once, it was overwhelming, and she threw up afterwards.

With a shaky breath and a burst of applause, Bay sat down, but felt no relief in the action. She wasn't finished with the battle yet. Before Bay could even try and calm herself with a soothing breath, Emmett stood up. She still didn't look him in the eye, but she saw his dark grey suit standing vertical and instantly knew.

He began to sign that he wanted to make a speech, and he didn't care if no one understood, because the people that needed to understand would.

"Emmett's going to make a speech." Wilke said, because despite Emmett thinking this, Wilke was too open to not share the speech with his parents, at the least. Bay quickly stood up.

"You're not interpreting on your wedding day, I'll do it." Bay only signed, and Wilke nodded. Bay partially turned to Emmett, making sure to only see his hands.

His hands, the same ones that had signed to her for hours at a time, the same hands that held her face when they kissed. The same hands that gathered hair out of her face and the same hand that was around her shoulder when they walked. The same hand that had written a note of goodbye over three years ago. Emmett was looking at his long lost love, but not in her eyes. They both knew better to avoid that.

"We met when we were little Daphne, and I like to think I have credit for introducing you into the deaf world properly. I remember when I first saw you; you had your red hair in a messy ponytail and were walking to school with Adrianna. I hadn't even known you were deaf yet, but I did know that you were full of life, the way you looked at the clouds and stopping to smell the flowers, literally." Daphne put on a surprised face, as Emmett hadn't ever told her he'd seen her before the encounter in the second grade.

"We grew up together, and we've been through so much. From adjusting to the deaf community to meeting the Kennishes, you have always had my best interest in heart, as I have for you, out of love. So I know you're making a wise decision in marrying Wilke." Daphne smiled brightly, as did Wilke as he kissed his wife's hand.

"Granted, when I first got to know Wilke, you two were drunk in the back of a car. And I've found you both drunk in other places since then." The crowd howled with laughter at this, recognizing Wilke's personality, and Daphne, truly then was a blushing bride.

"But I'm glad you've found each other. I'm so proud of you both, and I'm glad you've found someone to love and cherish forever. I can only hope to…" Emmett continued to sign animatedly until he realized Bay had stopped talking. Her eyes had glazed over a bit, and Daphne widened her eyes in alarm.

She saw in Bay's eyes the same look she had seen for days and weeks and months on end the year he left, and a ghost of a look she caught Bay wearing even now, every once in a while. Usually, though, she would shy herself away from the pain and be back to her almost-normal self within minutes. Bay did precisely that now.

She quickly asked Emmett to repeat his sentence, and he ground his teeth and nodded as he did.

"I can only hope to find someone to love forever as you both have. Congratulations!" Even Melody could sense Bay's fake cheeriness at the phrase, but everyone laughed at clapped just the same.

"Dad, why don't you give your speech now?" Bay suggested, as she excused herself slowly to go to the bathroom. Daphne stared at Bay cautiously, and Bay rolled her eyes and signed she was fine; she wanted Daphne to enjoy herself.

Emmett, obviously, saw the exchange and opened his mouth, backed up his chair, in an attempt to accomplish something even he then didn't know. With Bay's back to him, he tried to decide whether he was going to go after her, if this was the time, if he should wait…

And then the decision was made for him, as Ty stood up and followed Bay towards the bathroom.

"You're unbelievable." Emmett could see Bay's jarring signs from the corner of his eye. He rolled his eyes then as he faced the window, trying to ignore what she was saying to him.

"I'm the unbelievable one? He's being ridiculous! Every time he's in town it's as if he thinks just because we're not hitched, you two can play games while I turn the other way."

"What are you talking about? This has nothing to do with us not being married; he knows we're together! And playing games? That's insane, Emmett, he knows I'm with you." Emmett shook his head denying her claims.

"Then why is he putting the moves on you?" Now it's Bay's turn to roll her eyes.

"Emmett, be reasonable! He's my friend. You have Daphne, and I have Ty, what's wrong with that, he's like a brother to me!" Emmett's frown deepens as he signs back.

"A brother you almost had sex with?" Bay looks taken aback, and even he knows it was below the belt. Bay regains her sense of purpose and continues to debate with him.

"I didn't though, and that was two years ago. Speaking of best friends we almost had sex with…" Bay raises her eyes in a way that makes him think she wanted him to jump in with a defense. He weighs the pros and cons of yelling some more. He decides to continue.

"Look, all I'm saying is, I'm your boyfriend, and I don't appreciate him being all over you whenever he's in town. I see the way he smiles at you." Emmett said, flexing his fist. It was still sore.

"Emmett. He's in the army. He doesn't know any other girls, it's fine if he wants to smile at me."

"Maybe he should meet a new girl, because you're mine." Bay raised her eyebrows at him, as even though he hadn't heard it, Bay had actually heard Emmett growl a little. Very menacingly.

As a general rule, Bay didn't find the whole possessive boyfriend thing a turn on. Actually, she, as a general rule, thought of it as rather controlling. But on Emmett it was sexy.

"What is up with you?"

"I just want to know why you spend so much time with him!" Bay scoffs and quickly signs right up in his face.

"Are you even paying attention to the signs flowing from your hands? Ty's in town for like collectively 4 weeks a year, sorry for trying to make his homecomings matter." Emmett rolled his eyes.

"I love you. Does that not count for anything anymore? You're the one I love, and the one I want to be with, okay? You can't go around hitting people, people in the army, the next time they kiss me on the cheek. Or try to, anyway, it's a little hard when a drummer's fist is coming at the side of their face as fast as yours was." Emmett's anger evaporates then, and he realizes he was wrong.

Emmett had dated Daphne last year. The least he could do is let Ty see Bay, and Emmett shuddered at the next thought, and let him kiss her on the cheek. Once every couple of years, maybe.

Bay then pulls up to Emmett's dormitory and he frowns.

"I thought I was staying at your place tonight?" He asked. Bay parks the car and unlocks his door.

"And I thought I was having dinner with Ty this evening." Emmett pulls a face.

"Oh, come on Bay, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it…."

"A punch in the nose says it all, Emmett, see you later." Emmett signs some more but Bay deliberately looks away from him, the equivalent to turning up the music so not to hear someone speak. Emmett sighs and gets out of a car.

"I'm sorry, Bay."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll call you later, after I finish up my dinner." Emmett makes his way over to her window and taps it lightly. Bay rolls it down smiling a little.

"I love you." Emmett reminds her, with his voice, and then using his mouth to kiss her in a way that made Bay want to let him back in the car. But she didn't.

"I love you too. See you later." Emmett nods, holding the ice pack to his fist for a little while longer, before happily skipping to his room in comfortable security that Bay Kennish was definitely his.

"Hey, you alright?" Ty called as he found Bay lying on a sofa by the balcony. She had managed to keep her makeup in place but he saw tears forming in her eyes. Bay gave Ty a soft smile when she saw him.

"Should have gone with waterproof." Bay jokes, as she fans her face with her hands. Ty chuckles for her benefit, and sits down next to her.

"What's up, Bay?" Bay gives him a long look, as if to say, you know what. And he did, but he contemplated his next words very carefully because as much as Bay meant to him, the last thing he would want to do while she was in this vulnerable state was lie to make her feel better.

"Bay, he hasn't heard from you in years." Ty starts out softly. "Did you really think that he would be holding out for you all this time?" Ty feels rotten even as he just only thinks the words, but he follows through with them anyway. Bay laughs mockingly, almost deliriously as she shakes her head. She follows up matching Ty's previous soft tone of voice.

"No, I knew he wouldn't. It just hurts all the more hearing him say it in his own words to my face."

Ty sighs and takes the pretty girl in his arms, and thinks of all the times he had held her through the years. When Emmett had dated Daphne in high school for exactly 9 days, when Emmett had first left Bay years ago, every time he visited and he caught her looking at pictures of Emmett. Emmett, Emmett, Emmett!

Ty had shaken the guy's hand when Emmett and Melody had arrived, as he had been in charge of ushering those to their seats at the reception, and while Emmett shook his hand as well, anyone could tell he was distracted.

Ty had seen Emmett stare longingly at Bay throughout the ceremony. He loved her, he was back, and was hurting her still.

Once. Emmett had tried to move on one time, and that was a disastrous idea in and of itself. It was a horrible attempt that had given Emmett the end result of a red, palm shaped mark on his face, and a hangover so bad he swore to never drink again.

He couldn't blame Bay for pursuing a relationship with someone other than him. He had more or less tried to do the same, to be interested in another girl. Although useless, he had executed something similar.

Emmett sighed at the memory as he took another sip of his champagne glass, watching his best friend twirl on the dance floor, ecstatic from her fairytale wedding. He saw Bay and Ty approach then, as they took their turn to join the newlyweds in their celebration.

"Emmett. Seriously. It's our junior year you have to go! Next year we'll be seniors, king of the college, but until then, it's time to party! No more studying, no more summer jobs, let's just… celebrate?" Hayden, Emmett's roommate kept trying to coerce Emmett into joining the end of year kick off party at the Hollis dorm.

"Dude. I don't go out. You know that." Emmett had lived with Hayden for a year, and although they had become rather close, Hayden had never succeeded in persuading Emmett to leaving the confines of the room other than to attend class or to get food.

"Fine. I'll go for now, but I want to hear that you stopped by at SOME point in time. It's good for you, Emmett."

Emmett had rolled his eyes dryly and had continued surf the internet on his computer. Near 11 o clock, it bored him and he decided to do something he only did when he was absolutely sure that no one would interrupt him, when he was sure he would be alone for a long stretch of time.

He sighed as he looked at pictures of Bay. Hayden had found one of the albums and had asked Emmett with a straight face whether he was a stalker. Emmett had vehemently denied it, claiming it was his girlfriend back home.

It was easy to pretend they were still dating, when he was faraway, and it was a go-to excuse when girls tried to ask him out. Which they had. Since Emmett had left, his first year gone, spent traveling and freelancing, a girl named Tonia had asked him out for coffee after he bumped into her on the streets. The first thing he'd thought to do was sign crazily and mouth that he was deaf.

She followed up by signing back. Fantastic, he'd thought at the time, his one escape route, and she knew how to sign. Then he followed up with telling her he had to go, and with his back to her, running as fast as he could, he didn't know what she was saying or thinking.

The next girl to ask him out was Danielle, a girl in his English class junior year. She was nice, sweet enough and they had been assigned partners to a couple assignments. A few months ago she had asked him to go to a party as friends and he had ran for the hills. Unfortunately, he ran into her again. And again. It was hard to avoid someone when you lived on the same classes, ate in the same cafeteria and attended the same classes.

Just last week she had asked him to another party, she was stubborn. Emmett had continually made up excuses, because she knew he didn't have a girlfriend. She had asked him why she never visited, why he never talked about her and he hadn't known what to say. She was convinced Emmett was only "shy".

Before Emmett could continue his ponderings on ignoring any attempts to move on, Hayden stumbled through the doorway in a drunken mess and onto the floor.

"Bro, are you alright?" Hayden wasn't looking at Emmett's hands consistently, and when he was they were glassy. He was drunk as a skunk. Emmett sighed, and tried to haul Hayden to his top bunk. Finally he gave up, and just lay Hayden on his own bed at the bottom.

"You…NEED NEED NEED… to go out. Promised." Emmett sighed.

"No." Emmett signed slowly, and Hayden got up haphazardly and turned on all the lights. The ceiling light, bathroom light, lamps, computer, TV, disco light by the windows, and began dancing like an idiot.

"I'll stop when you leave." Emmett sighed and grabbed his coat. He would leave, take a fifteen minute walk around campus, and when Hayden was passed out on the floor in his underwear, Emmett would come back and hoist the guy into bed. Solid plan.

Emmett walked around until a sight caught him short.

"Hey, you! Want to help me… Emmett?" What he saw made him want to laugh a little. Danielle was dragging a boy with a pink boa and a crown on his head by the hand, while the apparent drag queen had a turtle backpack and a bottle of vodka in his arms.

Emmett couldn't fathom what was coming out of the chum's mouth, but it looked like he was singing. Or screaming, whichever.

"Are you okay?" Emmett signed, slowly, in case she was drunk, too. Danielle rolled her eyes and smiled.

"I'm fine, calm down. Drinky here is having a little trouble, want to help me drag him back to Greenbriar?" Emmett looked at her doubtfully. It was a small college, four on-campus dorms, about a hundred students per dorm, and Greenbriar was right around the corner from the McCormick dorm, where they were standing on the sidewalk deliberating as of now.

"Why? What exactly happened?" Emmett asked, as he grabbed "Drinky's" other hand.

"Alex is my buddy from high school, we were at the Hollis party and he had a bit too much of the keg. I caught him stripping in the kitchen with a bunch of hot dogs in hand." Emmett chuckled.

"Wow. How are we getting him up the stairs?" Danielle shrugged.

"He's first floor, thank God." Emmett nodded. After searching the ninja turtle backpack for the key, throwing out the alcohol and managing to get the guy semi dressed, Emmett and Danielle walked out of Greenbriar with accomplishment.

"Hey we should hit up the party on our way back." Emmett brought his hands up to protest.

"I can't, I have…"

"A family reunion? A job interview at the zoo? A meeting at Antisocialism Anonymous?" Emmett shook his head with a little smile. She knew the little routine, yet she bothered to ask at all, which dumbfounded Emmett.

"Look, I just don't do…"

"Laughing? Getting out of the dorm? Having a conversation? Making new friends?" Emmett houghed at a breath and stopped walking.

"No! Can't you get the message? I don't want to go out with you." Danielle rolled her eyes.

"Don't flatter yourself, I wasn't asking you out. Just thought you might actually want to interact with another human being before calling your junior year quits." Danielle headed inside Hollis and Emmett stayed outside.

He walked back and forth with his hands on his head. What did he have to lose?

"You know, I'm not sure if I'm prepared to dance. Us military personnel are quite rigid." Bay rolled her eyes at her old friend.

"I've noticed. Remember that time Daphne and I bet you couldn't do the worm?" Bay laughs as she remembers this.

"Good Lord, do I remember. I still have the scar somewhere underneath my gorgeous head of hair!"

"We couldn't even keep a straight face in the ER!" Ty chuckles along with her and is glad she's feeling mildly better. It's only because she hasn't seen him yet, though.

Ty led her to another corner of the room, and checked over his shoulder everyone in a while, making sure Emmett wasn't too close.

The song ended and Bay's phone rang.

"I have to take this, it's the limo people for their drive to the airport." Ty nodded understandingly as Bay skipped at quickly as her heels would take her up the gorgeous staircase for peace and quiet.

"Talk to me." Bay stated, pacing back and forth on the balcony overlooking the skyline. It was nighttime now, and soon the celebrations would be over, in time for the new married couple to ride off in their limousine. If everything was going swell.

"So listen, the oil hadn't been changed yet, and my guy didn't show up til late, so it looks like yer car won't be good to go for a bit." Bay raised her eyebrows.

"How long is a bit, exactly?" Bay asked, unintentionally sounding ferocious.

"Pfft… I'd say about half an hour later?" Bay nodded. It wasn't too bad, but she would need a delay in the strict schedule.

"It's a huge inconvience, you know… I booked the ride three months in advance, with specific instructions, and failure to adhere to that does not look good in the limelight…" Bay smiled a bit as she heard the guy on the end make an aggravated noise in his throat.

"I'll throw in a free limo next time you call for a ride, Ms. Kennish. I've got your name and number, all right?" Bay nodded.

"Perfect. Not a minute late."

"Gotcha."

Bay hung up, and took a deep breath steadying herself. I'm being ridiculous, she thought. If I really didn't care about Emmett, I wouldn't be so upset that he was back. Bay internally groaned. Sure, she knew that she was still in love with him, but it was much easier to live in denial while he was across the country.

"Bay?" A voice called out to her. It was rough, deep, familiar and beautiful. It was Emmett.