The Sunshine Gleams From Your Wedding Band

The emerald green leaves of the oak trees fluttered in the wind as the sun gently warmed all in sight. The cloudless sky was picturesque, and added to the musical chirps of birds, it was a rare perfect day in the city of Chicago.

The fact delighted two people who resided in the city, as it was a very special day for them. Why was it special? It was their wedding day. After months upon months of planning, the day Jon Walker and Emma Pierce had been waiting for had finally arrived.

Staying true to tradition, they spent the previous night apart. Emma stayed with her best friend Lola and Jon stayed with his best friend, Spencer.

“Emm, are you ready to go? The car’s here!” Lola called into the apartment.

“One sec!” she replied before slipping on her white Mary-Jane shoes and heading for the
door.

Lola grabbed her by the hand and guided her to the vintage Rolls Royce which was waiting for them at the curb.

As she settled into the car, the nerves Emma had been trying to ignore suddenly resurfaced. She was nervous, not about marrying Jon, because she loved him with all her heart. To be honest, she wasn’t even sure what she was nervous about, the hours of effort and precise planning she’d done with Lola would ensure that everything ran smoothly.

The feeling of a hand on hers caused Emma to jump from her thoughts and back into reality.

“Emm, I just wanted to tell you how happy I am for you. I’m so glad you found the man of your dreams – you’re perfect for each other.” Lola sniffed, trying to hold back the almost inevitable tears.

“Oh God L, you’ve set me off now!” Emma cried, dabbing daintily at her eyes, not wanting to ruin the make-up Lola had expertly applied. “Thank you so much Lola, I couldn’t have done any of this without you.”

The two girls hugged, their 15 year long friendship reaching a new level. As they both got caught up in the moment, neither of them realised that they had reached the church.

“Ladies,” the driver coughed gaining their attention. They both gathered their things and exited the vehicle.

The crunch of the gravel underfoot was the only audible sound as the two walked toward the church that was so familiar. It was where Jon’s parents were married and where Jon and Emma christened their two children. It held a special place in their hearts, so it was a perfect setting for such a day.

Stepping into the church the ladies were greeted by a blast of cold air from the overhead air conditioner. They both looked up giving the machine looks of great annoyance before proceeding to fix their slightly frazzled hair.

The pale green room was softly lit as Emma waited patiently on Lola who had gone to retrieve her father.

Carefully flicking through the pages of a worn burgundy bible, Emma felt a pang of nostalgia from her childhood. She remembered the countless Sundays where she’d woken up early and gone to church with her parents and sister. She loved the whole experience, and all of the love and prosperity each service brought her.

Since reaching adulthood, religion had slipped in her list of priorities, but at that moment she felt the need to pray. She closed her eyes and gently recited the Lord’s Prayer.

“Amen,” she whispered just as her father entered the small room.

“Emm-Pie,” he greeted her with the special nickname he’d given her as soon as she was born, wrapping her in his warm, teddy-like embrace.

“Hey Dad,” she breathed as she hugged him.

He smiled widely at his oldest daughter, “I can’t believe that this day has finally come,” he looked her up and down, taking in her simple ivory gown. “You look absolutely beautiful, Jon is a very lucky man,” he smiled, his eyes glassy with salty tears.

“Thank you so much Dad, not just for this, for everything,” she began joyfully crying for the second time that day.

“You ready?” he asked as he held his arm out. She locked her arm through his and heard the familiar and comforting sounds of the wedding march begin.

They slowly began down the aisle, Lola and a very dapper looking Spencer a few paces ahead of them.

As soon as she was in the main part of the church, Emma’s eyes locked on her soon-to-be husband. The multicoloured light from the stained glass windows created a rainbow of light around them.

Step by step, Emma got closer to the rest of her life. The various familiar faces that she passed were all a blur; she couldn’t concentrate on anything other than the man at the end of the aisle. Since the beginning, Jon and Emma had both agreed that they wanted a smaller wedding, only inviting those who they really cared about.

Jon’s happiness matched and perhaps exceeded Emma’s (although, she’d beg to differ). He was completely positive he’d found his soul mate. He loved everything about Emma, the way her brown hair framed her face perfectly, the way she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose when she was concentrating, her passion for music. And above all, he loved how amazing she was with their two children.

The smile on his face was huge, Jon was confident that at that moment, he was the happiest he’d been in his whole life.

After what seemed like a lifetime, Emma reached the altar. Jon took both of her hands delicately in his own as the priest began the service.

“Do you, Jonathan Jacob Walker take thee Emma Louise Carter to be your lawful wedded wife, in sickness and in health, ‘til death do you part?” the priest asked, looking expectantly at Jon.

With tears in his brown eyes, Jon declared “I do.”

“Now, do you, Emma Louise Carter, take thee Jonathan Jacob Walker to be your lawful wedded husband, in sickness and in health, ‘til death do you part?”

Her answer slipped immediately between her lips, “I do,” she said confidently.

“And now, with the power vested in me, I pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride,” the priest said. Jon walked closer to Emma and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer he smiled and pushed his lips against hers.

Cheers and applause erupted throughout the holy building, Jon and Emma’s kiss drew out.

“I present to you; Mr and Mrs Jonathan Walker.” The priest announced to the congregated families.

They clasped hands and followed by 60 of their closest family and friends, they walked out of the church.

One of the couple's closest friends, Shane Valdez was the photographer. He arranged all of the photographs deciding which groups went where and arranging us to perfection.

“Okay, now I need the Maid of Honour and the Best Man,” he called, seeing as Jon and Emma were already standing in the prime spot – underneath a blossom tree which was fully in bloom. The small white flowers hung above their heads delicately like a cloud, it was beautiful.

Out of the group emerged Lola and Spencer, Shane put them in order and shouted “Cheese!”

We all laughed, as he flashed away, taking picture after picture.

“You look absolutely gorgeous Emm,” Spencer said once new people were called in to have their pictures.

She kissed his cheek, “thanks so much Spence, you look very handsome.” He flashed his trademark smile before leaving for the reception with Lola, his fingers laced with hers. They were a perfectly matched couple.

“Okay, I’m finished with you guys, now I only need Jon and Emma.” Shane called informed the small group of people, as they all hugged and greeted each other.

“You look absolutely stunning,” Jon’s mother, Cathy said to Emma. She smoothed down her hair, “you’re the best thing to happen to our Jonny. Thank you.” She gave a grateful smile, and walked away.

“Welcome to the family,” Mike Walker, Jon’s father, said before he too walked away.

Emma sighed contently, she truly felt like she fit in with the Walker’s. When she met Jon’s family that was her biggest fear, she thought that they wouldn’t like her. But on the contrary, they got on like a house on fire. In fact, Cathy went as far as to say, she was like the daughter they never had.

There was a light breeze as Jon and Emma walked to the Rolls Royce that they’d hired for the day. Their fingers were laced with one another’s; they were both as happy as can be. A good friend of the couple, Pete Wentz had offered to open his club for them to use as a venue for their reception and they happily agreed. Angels and Kings was one of their favourite places to hang out in Chicago.

The ride to the club was relatively silent. The pair deciding to bask in their newly-married status, feeling that words weren’t necessary, they could convey all their feeling to one another through their eyes.

As they entered the club, Emma surveyed the surroundings. The club which was usually lit with a dim glow now had pink and white fairy lights strung around, giving the room a magical glow. She had to try so hard to hold back tears as everyone she cared about looked on at her and her new husband.

Towards the back of the club, on the small stage a band was assembled. As soon as they had entered the space, Ryan Ross had played the opening chords of ‘The Weight’ by The Band, which was also Jon’s favourite song. He was accompanied by Andy Hurley who tapped away on the beats, seeming very controlled, no doubt due to the fact that he was wearing a tuxedo. And, Alex Suarez stood to the right of the stage, holding the song together with the rhythmic plucking of his bass strings. Patrick Stump and Victoria Asher stood centre stage, as opposed to playing her usually instrument, Victoria was singing with Patrick. Her soft feminine tones contrasted with and complimented Patrick’s strong voice, it sounded amazing. Emma and Jon were both touched that their friends had gone through all of the trouble to form a group especially for their wedding.

They walked through the group, hand in hand, smiling and talking to members of their families.

Once they had taken a seat at the top table, dinner was served. There were many different choices, for meat eaters, for vegetarians, for vegans, everyone was catered for. Sure, having the special arrangements with the food cost a little more, but it was a small price to pay for all of the effort and time their friends and family had put into this wedding.

Throughout the meal, people came over to congratulate the pair.

After Jon’s aunt had congratulated them, Emma leaned over to Jon and said, “What was she, the millionth person to congratulate us? How many more people to do we know?!” she sighed dramatically, eliciting a chuckle from her man.

As she admired the ring that fit perfectly on her finger, she heard that ever comforting voice.

“Hey Emm, you look gorgeous.” She looked up across the table and into his dark eyes, William Beckett – the man who was like a brother to Emma. The man who she would go to for help, anything, he was an amazing friend.

“Thank Bill,” she smiled as she hugged him. She pulled away and looked him up and down. Gone were the skinny jeans and v-neck t-shirts, they were replaced by a simple dark grey suit.

He turned his attention to the man who sat to Emma’s left. “You take good care of Jon, or you’ll have me to deal with!” he chuckled as he gave a quick hug to Jon.

“Thanks, man.” Jon replied before taking his seat once more.

“Now, time for the speeches!” Gabe shouted to everyone, he’s taken it upon himself to be the master of ceremonies and nobody wanted to stop him. Watching him then, they all realised it was a good call, Gabe was in his element. He was a crowd-pleaser, everyone had no choice but to love him, he had that effect on people.

Spencer rose first, smoothing down his black tuxedo. Gabe passed him the microphone,

“Well, what can I say?” he started turning to the happy couple. “I remember the first time Jon mentioned Emma. We were in the middle of a band practise and one of Ryan’s guitar strings snapped, and Jon being the gentleman he is, offered to go and get one. There was a new music store down the street, Carter’s Music, it was called.” He smiled. “When he got back, he was acting a little strange…well, stranger than usual!” he exclaimed, everyone chuckling at his statement.

“We all wondered what was wrong with him. He’s never acted that way before, after practise, I asked him what was up. ‘There’s this girl…’ he smiled at me. And after that, he used any excuse possible to go down to the store; he was there at least 5 times a week!”

Spencer finished his speech to rapturous applause, leaving Emma with a blush staining her cheeks and Jon with a nostalgic smile on his face.

“Now, Emma’s maid of honour, Lola would like to make a speech,” Gabe announced to everyone, handing the microphone to the black haired woman.

“Well, seeing as my lovely husband covered how Jon and Emma met, I’m going to tell you about another huge part of their lives. Their beautiful children Jay and Grace,” everyone’s attention swung to the two small children who sat with their grandparents.

Grace, the three year old, sat on her grandpa’s lap, fast asleep, whereas as the five year old Jonathan (also known as ‘Jay’), was wide awake and waving his small hands at everyone.
No one in the room could keep a smile from their face and many people went a step further as many ‘aww’s were heard.

“So, about 6 years ago, I remember this as clear as crystal, I was sitting at home when I heard a knock on the door. Before I even got there, I knew it was Emma; we always turned up uninvited at each other’s houses while the boys were on tour…”

It was a chilly day in the city of Chicago and Emma Carter was going to see her best friend Lola.

“Hey L!” Emma smiled as she hugged her best friend.

“How are you honey?” Lola asked as she ushered Emma inside. She took Emma’s overnight bag and placed it in the spare room, before returning to the living room.

“I’m fine thanks. I just can’t wait for the boys to come home.” She huffed.

“And how’s my godson?” she asked, nodding towards Emma’s protruding stomach.

“He’s doing fine, I’m about ready to burst and I need to pee every ten minutes, but he’s fine!” Emma laughed. She was almost at her due date and Jon had made sure Panic At The
Disco’s tour was going to finish in time for him to be at home to witness the birth of his first child.

“Well Jon and Spence are flying in tomorrow morning, so about 8 hours until they get here. Their flight lands at 6am, right?” Lola looked to her friend for confirmation.

“Yep, O’Hare at 6am.” Emma relayed.

“Okay, do you want a drink Emm?” Lola asked, being a good hostess.

“Some water would be great,” she smiled at her friend.“Then all I heard was screams of my name. I thought something had gone wrong, so I ran back into the living room.” Lola continued.

“Lola, The baby’s coming!” Emma screamed as she grabbed onto the back of the sofa.

“Okay,” Lola said, trying to think on her feet. “I’ll grab your bag.” She ran into the spare room and grabbed Emma’s bag and an extra pillow. “Let’s get going,”

She said, helping her friend up and out of the door.

They got into the car and Lola hooked up her phone to the wireless system in her car, so she could phone Jon while they were driving.

The sound of the phone’s dial tone sounded through the car.

“Hey Lola, what’s up?” Jon’s voice spoke.

“Jonny, I’m in labour!” Emma screamed, hoping her fiancé could hear her.

“Oh my god, Lola, what’s happening?!”

“Well, she is in labour and I’m driving her to the hospital now. There’s nothing else I can tell you now.” She spoke hurriedly to one of her closest friends.

“Okay, I’m coming now.” He said determinedly. Luckily, the band was only in Iowa, so it wouldn’t take him too long to get there.

“Alright, hurry!” Emma screamed again, this time at the intense pain that washed through her body.

Six hours, one exhausted woman, one newborn baby and two proud parents later Lola watched her two friends as they interacted with their baby.

“What are you going to call him?”

“Jonathan Michael,” Emma breathed, her hair was stuck to her head from sweat, and she was exhausted, but to Jon she looked more gorgeous then than she ever had.

“And that was only the first one!” Lola laughed, as did everyone else. “Two years after, their beautiful daughter Grace was born. And I can’t think of two people better prepared to be parents. Over the past eight years that they’ve been together, I’ve watched them grow together and overcome obstacles that only the best couples are capable of. Since they became parents, although I wouldn’t have deemed it possible they became better people. To Emma and Jon!” she declared, holding her champagne flute aloft.

“TO EMMA AND JON!” everyone cheered.

The speeches went down a treat; there was laughter, tears and everything in between.

Everyone had since congregated on the dance floor and they were shaking their booty’s like no tomorrow. Gabe, who was also acting as DJ, knew his audience and was playing everything from Fall Out Boy to N*Sync.

“It’s time for the happy couple’s first dance!” Gabe announced and the dance floor cleared, leaving a space in the middle for the two to dance.

Patrick, Victoria, Andy, Alex and Ryan all went back up onto stage and began their rendition of the classic ‘The Way You Look Tonight’, Emma’s favourite song of all-time.

Jon’s arms were around Emma’s small waist and Emma’s arms were slung comfortably around his neck and she rested her cheek on his chest and they swayed in time with the music. At that point, they may as well have been the only two in the room – they were in their own little bubble, lost in the music and each other’s embrace.

As the song ended, they pulled apart and looked into each other’s eyes. Taking the initiative, Jon slowly pressed his lips to Emma’s, trying to cement that moment in his memories forever. Cat calls and wolf whistles came from their friends, to which Emma blushed and Jon laughed.

“Okay, Emm, you ready to throw your bouquet?” Gabe asked, looking at her in the crowd. She nodded vigorously.

“Well, get up here then!” he laughed.

She made her way up onto stage (very slowly, she cursed her known ability to be clumsy at the most inappropriate times). Completely unscathed, she got onto the stage and faced away from all of the females who had gathered.

“Alright, count with me 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!” Everyone cheered and Lola slung the bouquet of lilies over her head. She turned around to see who the lucky lady was, and saw her best friend with the beautiful flowers in her hand, looking slightly confused.

It was understandable; Lola was standing a fair distance away from the other women, as she wasn’t really bothered about catching the bouquet seeing as she was already married.
She was quietly talking to her husband Spencer and Brendon when the bouquet landed in her arms.

She grabbed Spencer and kissed him passionately on the lips, partially for show and partially because she loved the fact that she could kiss Spencer whenever she wanted to.

“Sorry girls, that’s my awful aim for ya!” Emma shouted into the microphone.

The party continued Emma danced with everyone, Jon, Spencer, her father, Jon’s father, Gabe, Patrick, Alex, Ryan, Brendon, Nate, but to name a few. And the same could be said for Jon, he was a favourite among the older ladies at the wedding, his aunties, both his and Emma’s mothers, and of course his friends, Lola, Victoria and Emma’s sister Jessica.

At the end of the night, they were all partied out. Slowly but surely, everyone began to filter out of the club and back to their own homes. Then, it was just Emma, Jon, Lola, Spencer, Pete and Ashlee. The group stood in a softly lit corner of the club.

Spencer and Lola had agreed to look after Jay and Grace while they went on their honey moon, something Jon and Emma couldn’t be more grateful for.

“Thank you so much for letting us use the club, Pete,” Emma said to the dark haired man, before hugging him tightly.

“It’s okay Emma, anything for my favourite girl!” he smiled.

“What about me?!” Ashlee asked, feigning hurt.

“After you of course Ash!” he grinned.

“Great, so I’m third on the list then!” Lola sighed humorously.

“Nah,” Pete said, “joint second with Emm,” he grinned deviously at her. “You okay to lock up, Spence?” Pete asked the youngest of the small group.

“Yep,” he flashed his smile as he dangled the keys from his index finger.

Pete and Ashlee said their goodbyes before exiting the club, Pete’s arm slung around Ashlee’s waist (well, it was actually on her ass, but it was only to be expected from Pete).

“Okay, we’re going to get going,” Jon sighed, clapping Spencer on the back and bringing him into a hug. “Thanks for everything today.”

“My pleasure, you two deserve it. Especially after everything you did at our wedding!” Spencer grinned.

The girls said goodbye to each other before Jon and Emma went to kiss their sleeping children goodbye before they left for a hotel for the night.

The next morning Emma woke up to see the sleeping form of her…husband, she smiled at the thought. Waking up next to Jon for the rest of her life was something she was definitely looking forward to.

She kissed his shoulder delicately. “Jonny, wake up, we’ve got to leave soon.” She smiled as his eyelids fluttered open.

“...too...early....” he muttered sleepily.

She pressed her lips to his, a little more purposely this time. His eyes snapped open and he returned the kiss happily. “Okay, I’m up,” he said, defeated. He knew better than to mess with Emma, she was fierce.

“Are you not tired from last night’s…activities?” he smirked at her.

“Of course I am,” she grinned, “but our flight leaves in four hours which mean we need to leave in an hour!” she exclaimed as she looked at her watch, suddenly realising the time.

Jon smiled as he watched her get all flustered, grabbing their clothes and throwing them into their bag, getting out clothes for them to wear on their flight.

He got up slowly and walked over to her, “calm down baby,” he kissed her lips lightly.

They had a shower together, to save time, before packing their stuff away and checking out of the hotel.

Emma flung out her arm as they stood on the curb just down the road from the hotel. Quicker than expected, a cab pulled over. Jon loaded their three suitcases into the trunk and they set off to O’Hare airport.

As they sat in the back of the cab, they held hands, it was perfect, and they were content.

“Sydney, here we come…” Emma whispered.

Jon kissed her soft lips once more. “I love you so much, Emma Walker.”