Pencil, Paper and Passion.

.:DAY ONE:.

I stood right in the middle of chaos, laughing and crying, doing nothing but contributing to the din. I threw my arms around anyone I could reach, not even caring if I actually knew them or not. It didn't matter; this moment was one of complete solidarity, so it didn't matter that complete strangers were latching onto each other in joy. I was picked up countless times, was spun laughingly around and passed onto the next person. Scattered all around us, untouched since their synchronized launch into the air, were the tasseled, square caps that marked this day.

Graduation.

Today, none of us were high school students anymore. We were handed a piece of paper, branded adults, and pushed out into the real world. Some of us would be going straight to jobs, others to college and university. Some would spend the next few years sitting on their parents' couch, some were getting married and starting families. Who knew where this or that person would end up? Who cared? It was all part of the adventure of growing up.

I glanced up at the stage, where the teachers and other faculty were still sitting, watching us. Ben stood near his chair, beaming. When our eyes met, his smile widened even further and he winked. I laughed and blew him a kiss; no one would notice in this crowd. Our eyes lingered on each other until Charlotte, Brandt, and Micah found me. I tore my gaze away from Ben's and turned to toss my arms around my friends.

Charlotte squealed in my ear, “We did it!”

“I know!” I gave her a smacking kiss on the cheek before giving Brandt and Micah the same treatment. “I'm so proud of us!”

Micah reached up to tug on a strand of my hair. “Me too.”

Charlotte and Brand added in their agreements, nodding. Suddenly, all of us were sniffling and wiping at our eyes. I blubbered out, “Oh god, this is awful. I don't want to be a grown up. And you guys... You guys are going away for college. Oh god.”

Charlotte curled her arms around my neck and sobbed into my shoulder, “I'm going to miss you so much.”

“Shut up, Charles, you're making it worse!” I wailed, flapping my arms around helplessly. I looked pleadingly and Micah and Brandt. “Get her off of me before I lose it completely!”

Micah only chuckled but I watched in horror as Brandt's lower lip trembled. Just like that, he was tossing his arms around Charlotte and me both, crying, “This isn't fair! None of are even going to be in the same state! And Micah won't even...”

All of us turned accusing glares on Micah, who only smiled and lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “It's a great opportunity.”

“Well, yeah,” I agreed, sniffling again. “But did the opportunity really have to be in Japan?”

He shrugged again. “The company I'll be interning at likes my art. They're willing to put me through school there, and to pay for a place to live. I wasn't going to pass it up.”

I wiggled away from Brand and Charlotte to throw my arms around Micah. “I'm so proud of you! You're going to be so great!”

He snorted. “It's going to be a while before I actually get to work on anything important. Besides, my first job is to learn the language. That's going to take some time.”

“Yeah, but in like, three years, I'll be reading some manga that you worked on. I'm so happy.”

“Then why are you crying?” He asked, trying to peel my arms from around him.

“Because I'm happy!” I let go of him, to throw my arms around Brandt. “I don't understand why you have to go to Chicago to be a cop, but I bet you'll be okay at it.”

He choked on a laugh. “Gee, thanks, Eliza.”

I pressed a sloppy kiss to his cheek before turning to Charlotte. We latched onto each other at the same time, both of us sobbing. I was barely able to get my words out, “You're really going to have to cut down on your swearing, if you want to be a kindergarten teacher.”

“I know. I've got a swear jar now.” She giggled around another sob, and then let go of me to wipe her eyes. “Okay, okay. No more crying, guys. This is our last night together. We have to make it count.”

I felt more tears gather at the corner of my eyes at her words, but determinedly blinked them back. “It's going to be the best drunken, four person party ever. I've got everything set up at my house.”

Charlotte nodded, smiling brilliantly. “Let's get started then!”

The four of us linked arms, making our way through the crowd. It took longer than it should have to exit the school's auditorium, because we stopped or were stopped every five seconds or so by someone saying goodbye. Of course tearful hugs had to be exchanged and that took some time. So, it took us more than thirty minutes to leave the school. We all piled into our respective cars, Charlotte and I in mine, and Brandt and Micah in Brandt's. It didn't take long to drive to my house and it took even less time for us to start our tiny little party.

The night consisted of laughter, hugging and drunken crying. Come morning, we'd said all our I love you's and goodbyes, so I passed out Advil and bottles of water before sending everybody on their way. I stood in the doorway and cried some more, because it was the last time I'd see them for quite some time. They were my best friends and I'd miss them terribly. It wasn't forever though, I'd make sure of that.

I let out a shaky sigh before closing the door and heading inside, to start on my own packing.

~~~~~~~~~~~

.:DAY TWO:.

The day started off fine, rolling out of bed and heading straight for the kitchen and coffee. I stood leaning up against the counter in nothing but a big t-shirt and bickered with Ben, as he poured our coffee.

“I'm not going.”

“Yes, you are. It's non-negotiable.”

“Your mother hates me,” I grumbled, taking a sip from my mug the second it was handed to me. Of course it was too hot and of course I burnt my tongue.

He sighed and took the mug back from me. “She doesn't hate you, Eliza.” With a few, practiced movements he'd taken the creamer from the fridge, poured a generous amount in my mug, and handed it back to me.

“Oh?” I took another sip, sighing appreciatively when it didn't scald my mouth. “Care to explain the daggers she glared at me, last time we went to dinner?”

“Elizabeth-.”

“Or should I say every time we've ever been in the same room?”

“Ah...” He scrubbed at the back of his neck.

“It's been three years and that woman has barely spoken two words to me.”

“I'm trying to think of an argument against that, but I can't.” He sighed again, before looping an arm around my waist and pulling me against his chest. “Every time I try to talk to her about it, she brushes me off.”

“There's nothing to talk about. She hates me.”

“She doesn't hate you. We'll figure it out.”

I rolled my eyes and stepped away from him. “Yeah, well, good luck with that. I'm going to get ready for work.”

“Elizabeth-.”

“We can talk about it later.” I set my now empty mug in the sink and walked quickly from the kitchen. I let out a frustrated sigh as I towards our room. I really wished there was a way to make Ben stop worrying so much. It wasn't his fault that his mother didn't like me; there was nothing he could do about it. In the three years that he and I had been dating, we'd gone to a number of dinners and other events at his parents' house.

I got along fine with everybody else (I already knew Jamie, so that was easy, and his sister, Meghan, treated me like her best friend) and his father, Mitchell, seemed to have taken me in as one of his own children. A visit to the Gallagher household wasn't a real visit until he'd pinched my cheek and called me 'Little Lizzy'. The only person who didn't want anything to do with me was Ben's mother, Patricia. She'd greet me at the door and then not say another word to me, the entire visit.

I really didn't know what I'd done to earn her dislike. I'd not been anything but friendly towards her, even when she was burning a hole in me with a glare. So, I learned to enjoy my visits with the rest of Ben's family and ignore Ben's mother as best I could.

Tonight, we were going to another dinner with Ben's family, this time to some fancy restaurant in the middle of the city. I just didn't feel up to it, and had been refusing Ben for two days. I didn't want to deal with his mother. Maybe I could convince him to convince her to stay home, that way I could actually have a good time with everybody else.

No, that wasn't fair to Ben. I'd just have to put up with her. With another sigh, I stepped into the bedroom and went directly to the bathroom, so I could strip off Ben's shirt and step into the shower. I'd only just adjusted the nozzles to my preferred temperature when I felt two arms wrap around my waist. I whirled around, screeching.

Ben stood there, laughing directly in my face. He reached around me to turn the heat up a bit more, still chuckling. “Jesus, Eliza, you don't need to be so jumpy.”

“Oh, excuse me. I suppose I should be used to people grabbing me in the shower.” I glared at him, jabbing him weakly in the ribs with my elbow.

“To be fair, I do have a habit of grabbing you in the shower. You should be used to it.” He smiled and nudged me under the spray, wetting my hair. When he deemed it damp enough, he tugged me closer to him and picked up my shampoo.

“Yeah, well, I'm not,” I grumbled, turning around and presenting him with my back. In no time at all, he was massaging my scalp with his fingertips, washing my hair for me. I closed my eyes and leaned my head back into his deft fingers. I let out a hum of appreciation and could all but hear his smile when he said, “I notice you don't complain about my grabbing you very much.”

I elbowed him in the ribs again and stepped back under the spray to rinse the suds from my hair. I narrowed my eyes at him when his dropped below my neck. “No, you'll make me late.”

“You're the boss, you're allowed to be late.”

“No, I just work for the boss. I'm still learning.” I pushed him away from me and made quick work of the rest of my shower, ignoring Ben when he complained that I was hogging the water. He was rinsing his own hair when I stepped from the shower and wrapped my body and hair in towels. I paused in the doorway of the bathroom, grinned to myself and turned back around, making my way to the toilet. I pressed the lever to flush and then darted back into the bedroom, snickering.

I'd made it to the closet when Ben's loud yelp and string of curses met my ears. I heard him fumbling around, knock over at least three bottles, roar my name and then the shower shut off. I backed into the closet but kept my eyes on the doorway. When he appeared, naked and dripping with soap still in his hair, I had to hold back laughter.

“Elizabeth?” He inquired softly.

“Uh-huh?”

“Why?”

“I thought you could use a cold shower?”

“You're done for. You're so dead.” When he made a sudden move towards me, I squealed and darted further into the walk-in closet, dodging his hands.

I felt my towel slipping and hitched it up as I ran past Ben, screeching, “Stop it! We're both going to be late!”

“You started it!”

“You're the one who attacked me in the shower!” I ran into the bathroom and slammed the door shut behind me, fumbling to lock it. I let out another squeal when Ben shoved the door open, sending me flying backwards. I would have fallen on my ass had Ben not caught me by the arms, grinning widely. “Ha! Got you!”

“Ben, please, we're going to be late,” I pleaded, trying to hold back my laughter. “You've got classes in an hour.”

He blinked. “What?”

I pointed towards the digital clock affixed to the wall. “It's half past seven. Your first class starts at 8:30.”

“Shit!” He pulled me upright and sat me on my feet before clambering back into the shower stall, and twisting the knobs at random. After more cursing, he managed to get it to the right temperature and finished his shower.

I rolled my eyes, hitched up my towel again and left the room to go back to the closet. I'd just finished dressing in a simple black pencil skirt and white ruffled blouse when Ben darted into the closet. I watched in amusement as he hurriedly pulled things from hangers and drawers, and then shoved them on. I watched him rifle through his sock drawer for a few seconds before leaving the closet and going to sit at the mirrored vanity. I watched him in the mirror as he emerged from the closet and sat on the edge of the bed to put his shoes on. I held back a snicker when I noticed that his socks didn't match and looked away to do my makeup and hair.

The next five minutes consisted of him fumbling around and me working around him, both of us trying to get ready, before he left me standing next to my car with a lingering kiss and a hurried “bye, sweetheart”.

I shook my head, chuckling, as I watched his black SUV drive away, heading towards the high school he still worked at. I climbed into my car, started it, and headed in the opposite direction, to my own work.

That night, at the family dinner, I didn't have to “put up with” Ben's mother. In fact, after I tearfully replied yes to the biggest question he'd ever asked me, his mother and I exchanged our first hug. From then on, my relationship with Ben's family, all of his family, continued to grow better and better.

~~~~~~~~~

.:DAY THREE:.

“Ready?”

“No.”

“Eliza...” Charlotte warned, reaching up to adjust a strand of my hair.

“Sorry, I just...” I trailed off, flapping my hands around helplessly. The bouquet of fresh orchids, clutched in my right hand, threatened to fall apart at the sudden movements.

Charlotte grabbed my arms, stilling them, and looked me in the eye as she spoke, “Don't you think you and Ben deserve a little happiness, after all the stuff you went through together?”

“Well, yeah, but we've been pretty happy these past six years. I mean, what if-”

“I don't care about your 'what if's, Eliza. I care about watching two people I love very much have the happiest day of their life, together.”

“Oh, that was good.” I told her, nodding. Good enough to stop the fluttering in my stomach and make me smile.

“Right?” She let got of my arms, fussed with the bouquet, and then reached up to pinch my cheeks before she stepped back and grinned. “Alright, ready?”

“Ready.”

Charlotte smiled wider and then whirled around to point at Noah, who stood by an ornate set of doors with a long-suffering expression. “Alright, Noah my man, give them the signal. Ladies? Grab a groomsman's arm and line up, we're ready to go!”

I watched her latch onto Jamie's arm and stand front and center before the set of doors. Behind them, four bridesmaids (a few close friends of mine from work and Ben's sister, Meghan) and four groomsmen (a few of Ben's close friends and my little brother, Tucker) lined up, excited smiles spreading across their faces.

Noah used his fist to tap sharply against the door, three times. After the answering knock sounded, he moved to stand next to me and I laced my arm through his, smiling up at him. “Thank you for this.”

“Yeah, well, who else was gonna do it?” He questioned, using his free hand to tug at his bow tie.

“If my dad were here, he'd do it, but well...” I took a moment to lean my head against his arm and close my eyes. “You're the next best thing. So thanks.”

He didn't say anything for a few moments, but then I felt him press his lips against the top of my head in a quick kiss. He cleared his throat before speaking again, “Don't mention it, kiddo.”

Up ahead the set of doors flew upon with a burst a music, violins and a piano mixing beautifully. Charlotte took a moment to turn and wink at me before gliding gracefully through the doors, Jamie at her side, our maid of honor and best man. I opened my eyes and watched as the other bridesmaids and groomsmen made their way through the doors and waited until the music stopped. When it started back up, the piano only this time, I squared my shoulders and stepped into the doorway with Noah.

I began walking down the aisle under the first opening chords of Clair de Lune, keeping my eyes on the satin runner beneath my feet and my arm tight around Noah's. Once we were halfway down the aisle, I lifted my gaze and immediately captured Ben's violet eyes. He grinned, looking incredibly handsome in his wedding attire. I smiled back and just barely picked up my pace, tugging Noah along.

Once we reached the end of the aisle, Ben stepped forward and held his hand out. Behind him, the priest spoke, “Who gives this woman to be married?”

Complete silence followed the question. I turned my head to glare at Noah, shoving my elbow into his side. He jumped, before speaking up, “Oh. Me. I do, I guess.”

Everybody in the church snickered and Noah's cheeks reddened. He took my hand and shoved it into Ben's as he muttered, “Here you go.”

There was more laughter as Noah took his seat, and then I handed off my bouquet to Charlotte before turning to face Ben. He took both my hands and smiled down at me, our eyes never leaving each others as we exchanged our vows.

When Ben's lips met mine in our first kiss as husband and wife, our friends and family cheered. They stood and clapped and called our names. Amongst the laughter, tears, and the inevitable wolf whistling going on around us, Ben leaned closer to whisper “I love you, sweetheart” in my ear.

~~~~~~~~~~

.:DAY FOUR:.
FINAL
(present tense)

It's always the early mornings that are the most calm; when I'm alone in the kitchen, staring blearily at the coffee machine just before seven o' clock, and I realize just how quiet the house can be. I smile when the single-serve machine sputters to a stop and reach out to take my mug from under the spout. I take a few precious moments to pour a bit of creamer into my coffee, before leaning against the counter to drink it.

I close my eyes and sigh happily as I drink, just as I do every morning. It's a routine now. I get up, make my way to the kitchen and appreciate the quiet as I drink my coffee. And every morning, just as I take the last sip-

“Mama!”

My eyes pop open at the screech and I lower my mug to the counter, watching my wedding ring glint cheerily in the light. I turn to the doorway and grin. My daughter runs in on chubby legs, red hair trailing behind her, violet eyes wide and awake. She reaches me just as I crouch down to catch her and I wrap my arms around her small body, picking her up as I stand. I bury my nose in her neck and revel in the giggles it causes. I lean back, smiling at her, “Good morning, Anna Louise.”

“Morning, Mama! Morning, Daddy!” She waves at the doorway.

I turn and notice Ben standing there, wiping at his eyes as a slow, sleepy grin spreads across his face. He waves back, “Morning, baby.”

When Ben steps into the kitchen and leans down, I lift my face so he can deliver his usual good morning kiss. He smiles into it. “Good morning, sweetheart.”

“Good morning, Ben.”

At two years old, Anna is easily jealous and in an effort to get her parents' attention, she shoves her face in-between ours. Ben chuckles as we kiss her cheeks, before he turns away to start his own cup of coffee. He lifts an eyebrow at me, “Want another?”

I shake my head and move to the kitchen table to set Anna in her highchair. “I'm going to get breakfast started.”

“Hmm.” He leans against the counter and crosses his arms while he waits for his coffee to brew.

I watch as he yawns, still sleepy, and walk over to kiss him again. When he stares at me questioningly, I only smile and say, “I'm just happy.”

He returns my smile and my kiss and says, “Me too.”