Here I Am, There You Are

I took a deep breath in as my stomach felt like it flipped. It was constantly in knots, sending shivers through my entire body. All I could do was stare off into the distance and breathe slowly to keep the contents of my stomach inside. The robe I was wearing both felt like it was choking me and like it wasn't wrapped around my body tight enough.

Everything in me wanted to run to Jack. But he wasn't here. I couldn't do that. Even if I could, it would ruin everything.

"Wow," my sister sighed heavily as she sat on the coffee table across from me, "you really need to get yourself together."

My eyes snapped towards her and I glared. As much as I wanted to retort something back, telling her to leave me alone, I really couldn't. There was too much fear that I'd throw up as soon as I opened my mouth and then my mind was racing so much that any words I said would get jumbled up anyway.

"It's your turn to get your makeup done," Anna added cocking her head towards the empty chair facing the mirror.

I shook my head in quick short motions. "Mom can go first."

"Rachel–"

"Mom can go first."

Anna just exhaled again and got back up to tell my mom to go next. I could tell that she wanted to slap me. Honestly, I would have slapped myself. I really was acting unreasonably. She was really holding herself back. Usually, she wouldn't hesitate to literally snap me out of it. She had done it many times over the years.

I continued to sit there on the couch, starting to bite on my nails before I realised they were acrylic and had just been done. It made no sense; I didn't know why I was such a nervous wreck. There wasn't really any reason to be. Sure, some cute romanticised nerves would have been okay, but I literally had to keep myself in check so that I wouldn't pass out.

"Hey," Sascha said softly, unlike her usual loud self, and sat where my sister had been just a second before. Only she was a bit more supporting and even took hold of my hand, her thumb running over my knuckles. "Everything's going to be alright."

"I know, I know." I nodded in reassurance, but the shake in my voice and tapping foot said otherwise.

"Everything has been planned perfectly and it's all going smoothly, there's nothing you've got to worry about."

I tried putting on my best smile and looked at her. Honestly, I didn't know if looking at her had been a good idea or a bad idea. On one hand, it made me happy, but on the other it started making tears drop from my eyes.

"You look so pretty!" I gasped, admiring her. I could barely see the way the mustard coloured dress and professionally done brown glam makeup looked through the way the tears blurred everything. But still, it was amazing.

"Oh no, don't cry!" She started fussing and reached out to try and wipe some tears from my cheeks.

"I'm so sorry," I sniffed as I tried to stop the tears by catching them before they even fell. "This is why I need to go last."

"We need to make sure you're ready, though."

"It will be fine."

1:30pm. That's how late it was. I still had an hour and a half before I had to be ready. That was more than enough time. For now, I could still rub my eyes freely. As long as I didn't lean too far back or ran my fingers through my hair, I would still be on track. My hair was already curled and in its updo, pinned together and all sprayed down. Touch ups were definitely going to happen, but redoing it would cause way too much stress.

"I come bearing information!" Ethan announced as he entered the room.

He was already completely ready to go. His ochre tie and navy suit were already on and fit perfectly. I told him he was allowed to join later, but he insisted on being there the entire time. Now he enjoyed being sent out to see how things were going.

I turned around in my seat to look at him while he closed the door behind himself again. Usually, it was just something small like the fact that the flowers had been placed on one half of the room. But every small thing interested me. It calmed my nerves just a little, especially since I could hardly go down and look myself.

"The guys are here and getting ready!" He said without waiting for a response from everybody. "Everything is going according to plan, or so I was told."

That time my nerves calmed down a whole lot. Just knowing that Jack was in the same building right now helped significantly. I didn't really know why that was the case. It wasn't like I thought he wouldn't show up, it was just a comfort having him close. For some reason, it finally made me feel ready to actually get ready.

While the girls cheered, Ethan came up to me and sat down next to Sascha.

His eyes went wide as he scanned my face. "Oh no, you weren't crying were you?"

"Good tears, though," I confessed. "I'm going to be crying many more times today."

"Okay, well..." he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a wrapped gift with a twine ribbon. "Jack told me to give this to you."

I took the gift from him and looked at it in curiosity. It was some weird square and thin shape. "We promised each other we wouldn't do gifts!"

Ethan shrugged. "I'm just the messenger."

I sighed and carefully pulled on the twine string to undo the bow. Honestly, I felt very guilty for not getting Jack something, but at the same time it also warmed my heart. So, I carefully lifted the corners with tape and revealed the gift below the wrapping paper. What was left in my hands was a CD case. The cover was just that photo of us together in the cue for the Blink-182 concert back in high school when Jack let me borrow his baseball cap.

Next, I opened the case, expecting to find a CD that I would not be able to play now, but that wasn't the case at all. Instead, there were multiple pages like a little book. I recognised the first page as the album cover for Cheshire Cat by Blink-182. On it, though, there was a note in Jack's hand writing: Baby, you make me smile like a Cheshire Cat.

I flipped to the next page and found another album cover with a note. Every single page was exactly like this:

With you in my life I'll never have to live by myself in my Dude Ranch again.

There's isn't one I can think of for this one, but I have to include it. It's an important album.

I can't wait to Take Off My Pants and Jacket ;)

I'm going to have to Blink-182 times to stop all the happy tears from falling.

Thank god we didn't live in different Neighborhoods back when we were kids.

I wouldn't want to live anywhere but in our house in California with you.

I'll love you until we're Ninety-nine.

I couldn't stop grinning as I flipped through multiple times. It was absolutely perfect. Although he was a much bigger Blink fan than me, Blink was still quite important in our friendship and relationship. They had always been in the background somewhere. Now, Jack was friends with Mark and he had been invited, but it was still so fitting.

I closed the CD and carefully put it down. "Okay, I'm ready to get married."

"You still need to get your makeup done and your dress on," Anna reminded me.

"I know," I sighed, "but I'd just go like this."

"It's not much longer now," my mom encouraged as she got up from the makeup chair, being done much earlier than the others because she didn't want much makeup on. "And it's all your turn now."

"Yeah, alright," I nodded and got up, "let's do this!"

I walked over to the chair in front of the large mirror and sat down, making sure my robe still covered everything. Of course, I wasn't just completely naked underneath it, I was wearing my matching underwear. But that set was for Jack to see after we got married. I decided to get us a little treat, I didn't want to ruin that by accidentally showing it off now. Sure, when I was going to get changed into my dress, I would need help. But that was different.

The makeup artist carefully tilted my head back a little and started her work. We had already practiced the look on me, so I knew it was going to look good, but it was the real deal now. I could feel that she was being more gentle and cautious with her brush strokes. I completely trusted her and everything she did. Afterall, I did choose her because of her talent.

We had chosen to go with quite a neutral look. The foundation she used on me was very light coverage and left me looking glowy. She still used all the products, including highlighter, and contour. Even blush was added to give me a nice warm look. Everything was used in moderation, though. The eye look just consisted of some warm brown tones, thin eyeliner, and a bit of mascara. I also had opted not to go with lipstick, although the shade she had chosen was very beautiful. Instead we just went with a simple light pink toned lip gloss.

She was done relatively quickly. Despite how simple it was, it still took a little longer than everybody else's looks. It was a classic case of a low effort look actually not being low effort. Everything had to blend perfectly to continue to look natural. It needed to look glowy, but not shiny, bronzed but not fake tanned.

When I looked in the mirror, I couldn't stop admiring it and thanking her. Every little thing we finished brought me that much closer to actually getting married to Jack. In just a short while, I would officially be Rachel Steward Barakat. Although I technically was keeping my surname, I was taking over Jack's as my new official one.

"We have thirty minutes until you've gotta go downstairs," our wedding planner, Maisie, announced, "so I'd say it's time to put on your dress!"

"Oh my god, okay." I nodded and stood up. The nerves were starting again. "Not long now."

"You're going to look so beautiful." Sascha clapped her hands together and grinned at me while my sister rushed over to where my dress was hanging in its protective cover.

I walked over to join Anna. She held onto the zipper and waited for everybody to come around before opening the cover, careful not to accidentally damage the fabric. Everybody awed at the dress. It was so different to what Anna had worn to her wedding, but it fit me perfectly. I didn't want all the lace and frills that she had. I went with something sleek and simple.

May, Jack's sister who was also one of my bridesmaids, put one of her hands on my shoulder. "Jack's going to love this dress."

"I love it," I laughed. She hadn't been there when I was choosing my dress, so this was the first time she had seen it.

Anna started pulling off the cover, leaving just my dress on its hanger. As much as we all enjoyed admiring it from afar, I did actually have to put it on so we could keep on schedule. So, Anna and Sascha nominated themselves to help me out. We went behind this screen that had been set up so I wouldn't be struggling around everybody. Putting on that dress was no joke. The skirt was made up of multiple layers to make it look fuller and there was no way for me to even try to reach the zipper. I was grateful for the help I had.

Once it was on, there was one thing left to do. I came from behind the screen and saw everybody gasp. I didn't want to smile yet until I actually saw myself as well. There was always a small fear that everybody was acting like I looked good to make me feel good. But then I turned around to look in the mirror, and I couldn't stop grinning either. I was so happy and knew I was only going to get happier as the day progressed.

My dress looked exactly as I had imagined. It was made out of a plain white fabric that was so smooth to touch. The top had a high neck neckline and no sleeves, leaving my shoulders exposed. Although my front was pretty much covered, my back was practically completely open, showing off the light tan I had. The skirt was a-line, clinching at my waist and connected to the top with a belt-like tin strap of fabric. The hem draped over the floor, creating a small train behind me. I already knew it was going to be impractical for our reception, which is why I could clip off the top layer to reveal a layer that only reached to the floor in the same fabric as the rest of the dress.

"You're so beautiful!" My mom gushed, tears pricking at her eyes.

"Mom," I sighed happily and accepted the hug she gave me. "You're going to make me cry!"

When we pulled away, her tears were already falling and I was trying my best to keep mine back. We all knew this was going to happen, but I still wanted to try to stop from messing up the beautiful makeup I had on.

"Oh, wait, here," Ethan interrupted, patting down his pockets and pulling out a tissue from his jacket. He reached over and handed it to me.

I quickly dabbed away the tears that were threatening to spill, looking up so I wouldn't accidentally close my eyes and let a tear drop. When I turned around to look at all the people I would have by my side, I saw they all had watering eyes. Well, all except Ethan. To make things even worse, my dad came into the room with Olive on a leash. His eyes fell on me and I could see his eyes twinkle.

He walked up to me and hugged me tightly. "My baby girl is getting married."

"Now I'm crying too," Ethan announced and sniffled. "Dammit."

I couldn't help but chuckle. We all still needed a second to compose ourselves before continuing on with the schedule. My hair was fixed and lightly sprayed down again and my makeup was lightly touched up, especially the area around my eyes. And then it was time to go out and find Jack.

We went downstairs and out the back of the church. My childhood church had some super nice gardens. Rather than just having the usual perfectly cut, bright green grass, they actually added some hedges, trees, and carefully picked patches of flowers. It was perfect for the easter egg hunts they always held, and it was definitely also perfect for our wedding photos.

Jack was already in the gardens with his groomsmen. Luckily his back was already to me, or else the first look would have prematurely happened. The photographer got into position while Alex told Jack that I was just down the path from them. The groomsmen left to go join my bridesmaids and parents to watch what would happen. I could feel the excitement pump the adrenaline through my veins. It was all happening.

When I was given the go ahead signal by the photographer, I started to approach Jack, careful not to ruin my dress this early in. The gravel path cracked underneath my heels and I tried my best to hold up my skirt just a little to keep it off the ground, but it didn't really do much.

"Are you ready?" I whispered as I put my hands gently down onto Jack's shoulders.

He took in a deep breath. "Can I turn around?"

"Yeah."

He shrugged his shoulders a few times to loosen up and then turned around swiftly. As soon as he got a glimpse, he yelled out, "fuck!"

I burst out with laughter. Of course that would be the first word he said to me after seeing me. It was exactly what I expected deep down. I was just glad we had decided to do this first look and not wait until the actual ceremony. He couldn't just scream it out in church.

"Shit, you look good," he stated a bit quieter and let his eyes wander up and down, slowly they started watering.

"Always the gentleman," I chuckled and gently put my hands on his cheeks.

"No, I'm serious," he took in a deep shaky breath, "are you sure you want to marry me?"

I nodded. "I wouldn't want to marry anybody else."

I didn't even need to stand on my toes to kiss him. It was like nobody was watching us anymore. At that moment, it was just us in that garden, surrounded by the green plants and colourful flowers, birds chirping from the tree tops. I didn't think it was possible for me to fall in love with him even more, but everything felt so right.

When we broke apart, Jack quickly and subtly wiped his eyes. "I'm so embarrassed right now. Here I am, fucking crying like a baby, and there you are looking all chill."

"I cried multiple times before I came down here, I just don't have any tears left to cry." I took hold of his hands.

He frowned and quickly wiped away another tear before returning his hand to mind. "I hope all good tears."

"Of course, nothing but. First, I got emotional when I saw Sascha after she was the first to be ready, then I cried when I just put on my dress and my mom cried, then I cried when everybody else was tearing up, then my dad came in and shed a few tears, and then Ethan joined in as well. You should be glad you weren't there."

"Hmm..." he faked a thinking face, pursing his lips and looking to the side. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you, I think I could have dealt."

"You would have been bawling your eyes out," I remarked jokingly. "Oh! Also, I almost cried when I got that CD case. But I managed to stay composed. Totally acted like I wasn't melting inside."

He started grinning, his eyes finally drying up. "You liked it?"

"I loved it," I stressed. "I just feel guilty for not doing something for you!"

"You looking so beautiful is all I need."

We shared another kiss. It was so strange to think that those were our last few kisses before we were a married couple. In just an hour or so, we were going to be up there saying our vows. It was all so surreal, and I couldn't wait for it.

"You ready to get married?" I whispered against his lips.

"Definitely."

Our moment eventually came to an end. Although I wanted it to last forever, I became more and more aware that there were people actually watching and waiting to join. There were definitely going to be a lot more moments for Jack and I to have, so I didn't need to worry. The photographer told us he had gotten some great photos of it, which was one of the most reassuring things I had heard that day. I didn't want to forget anything. Next, he started to direct us how to stand for the posed photos. We had pictures of just us two, pictures with our parents, of course pictures with the bridesmaids and groomsmen, maid of honour and bestman, and even one with Olive for fun.

That hour of waiting until the ceremony started went by so quickly. It felt like no time had passed and Jack and I were already saying our 'see you laters.' He went to the altar with his groomsmen while I went in the opposite direction with my dad and bridesmaids. The doors were closed, but I could hear all the buzzing inside. My heart was going insane. It was beating so fast that I was afraid it was actually going to bruise my ribs.

The first chords and notes from the piano started playing, and I knew that it was actually happening. We had chosen to go with a piano version of I'm lost without you by Blink-182. It was only right to choose a Blink-182 song. Jack had always been a big fan and the shows we went to as teenagers really solidified our relationship, even if it was only a friendship back then.

May walked out first, joining her brother up and giving him a quick hand squeeze before standing on my side. Anna followed after her. Jack and I only had four people each by our sides, so everything went at a comfortable slow pace. The long seconds were making me more and more nervous, but I knew that if we were hurried, I only would have been more stressed.

"I'll see you up there." Ethan winked and gave me a big comforting hug before he also got the go ahead from the wedding planner to go down the aisle.

I didn't get to see him walk down the aisle, I was still hidden with my dad.

"Hey, I love you," my dad said as we got ready to walk as well. "You'll always be my baby girl no matter what. I am so glad that you found Jack. I can't think of anybody who I'd rather hand you over to."

"Thank you," I barely managed to get out, my throat clamping shut from both the emotion and nerves.

And then we got to go through the doors as well. Everybody was looking at me, but my eyes were fixated on Jack. He was staring right back at me, his smile even brighter than it had been before. This time, he was managing to keep his tears at bay. I just kept beaming back. It was one simple wedding, but it was so perfect. Jack was perfect.

When we reached the altar, my dad kissed me on the cheek and unhooked his arm from mine. Jack held out his hand and helped me up the steps, which I was so grateful for. The last thing I wanted was to fall during my wedding. He gave me a comforting little squeeze before letting go of my hand again.

I had almost forgotten about the bouquet I had been clutching to my chest the entire time until I got to hand it over to Ethan. It consisted of a large range of different flowers. Freesia, roses, hydrangea, brunia berries and astilbes. They were a mixture of white, pale yellow, brighter yellow, and a nice blue, following the colour scheme we had chosen.

As soon as I was standing there, facing Jack again, the pastor started the ceremony. "Welcome family, friends, and loved ones. As I assume you all know, we are gathered here today to join Jack and Rachel in holy matrimony. They have asked me to make this more personal, so I am here to provide.

"I have seen Rachel grow up. From the time I baptised her as the smallest baby up until this day I have always known she was destined for great things. I have only had the pleasure to know Jack for a much shorter time, but he is a bright loving man. Together, I can tell that they are a perfect match. They complete each other in a way you will find nowhere else.

"Jack, Rachel let me in on a secret and told me she loves the way you always find a way to make her smile. She loves that you manage to always compliment her even if she is having a bad day. You always find a way to cheer her up. You listen and always make sure you are there, no matter how far apart. Most importantly, she loves you for staying despite seeing her at her worst and never made her feel unwanted.

"Rachel, believe it or not, Jack also told me a few things about you. He loves your smile, your voice, and your caring nature. He loves that you stuck by him through all these years and were always somebody to rely on. He adores the way you fall asleep before him and the way you kiss him in the morning when you leave for work. There is nothing he wouldn't do for you.

"Marriage is a joyous occasion. It is a commitment in life between two people. It radiates with love, the familiarity of home, and eternal friendship. Your relationship will take more than love to last. It takes trust and commitment, a willing to face the unknown together.

"You have come together this day so that the Lord may seal and strengthen your love in the presence of this minister of His word and this community of family and friends and so, in the presence of this gathering, I ask you to state your intentions.

"Jack, do you take Rachel to be your wedded wife, to live together after God's ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony? Do you promise to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, remain faithful to her as long as you both shall live?"

Jack took his eyes off the pastor and looked at me with a small smile. "I do."

"And Rachel," the pastor now asked me, "do you take Jack to be your wedded husband, to live together after God's ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony? Do you promise to love him, comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, remain faithful to him as long as you both shall live?"

"I do." I nodded, not taking my eyes of Jack.

The pastor then directed his words towards the crowd again. "Who gives Rachel to be married to Jack?"

My dad stood up, his hands clasped together. "I and the rest of her family do."

He bowed slightly before sitting down. It sounded a bit sexist, handing me over to get married to Jack like I was some property that had no own will. However, it was tradition. It wasn't that way anymore. Now, it only showed that everybody in my family supported us and my choice.

"I believe you have written your own vows," the pastor led into the next section. "Jack?"

Jack reached back and accepted the folded up piece of paper from his brother, who was his bestman. He took a deep breath in and wrapped his hand around the microphone, which he brought to his mouth. "Rachel, I know I've told you this many times before, but I'm going to repeat it again. I thank you for sticking with me throughout the years. If you were to go back in time and tell 16-year-old me that I would be up here today getting married to you, I would have passed out. I fell in love with you back then and promise to love you for the rest of our days, even if you call me 'dude.' I will always believe in you and support you every step of the way. I've always got your back. Even when we get taco bell. I promise to always give you the better taco of the two."

And then it was my turn. I got my notes from Ethan. "When I first met you, I thought you were strange. To be honest, I do still think that, but I would be lying if I didn't say I love everything about you. I love your jokes, your loyalty, your understanding, and even how frustrated you get when your hair just isn't having a good day. Your friendship has always meant so much to me and I promise to always reciprocate it, even if it means letting you have the last slice of pizza. When we first started dating, I had no idea where it was going to take us. I never could have imagined standing here today, so in love with you. I promise that I'll always be there as your biggest fan, no matter how far away you are."

It was difficult not to start crying again during our vows. Both of our voices occasionally went shaky, especially when we made eye contact with each other. I wanted nothing more than to just kiss him already, but I couldn't do that yet. We were just minutes away, though.

"The wedding ring symbolises the promises you have just made to each other." The pastor took over again. "It is a visible sign of the invisible power of love that binds you together. Let them serve as a representation of the way you feel today and let it remind you during times of hardships. This love is eternal. Now, please repeat after me. With this ring I am giving you my promise–"

"With this ring I am giving you my promise," Jack was the first to repeat, recieving the ring from his brother.

"To always love you."

"To always love you."

"Cherish you."

"Cherish you."

"Honour you and comfort you."

"Honour you and comfort you." Jack winked at me, causing me to chuckle, the ring catching a bit of light and reflecting it.

"I promise that I will love you."

He inhaled, feeling the same excitement I was. "I promise that I will love you.

"And keep my heart open to you."

"And keep my heart open to you," he bit his lip, getting a little impatient.

"All the days of my life."

"All the days of my life." He finally got to put the ring on my finger.

His hands were trembling quite a bit, but he still managed to slide the ring on. I had already taken off my engagement ring and put it on my other hand for the time being. So he didn't have to worry about taking that one off first, which was probably a good call. The ring he had chosen was a perfect match with my engagement ring. It had the same band – the same rose gold weaving between the clusters of small diamonds. They were going to go so well together as a set, which is exactly what Jack had intended. I was going to switch back my engagement ring with it as soon as we were married.

"Rachel, please also repeat after me," the pastor then instructed me. "With this ring I am giving you my promise."

I was given the ring I had chosen for Jack by Ethan. "With this ring I am giving you my promise."

"To always love you."

"To always love you." I had to wipe away a quick tear when I stared into Jack's eyes.

"Cherish you."

"Cherish you."

"Honour you and comfort you."

"Honour you and comfort you."

"I promise that I will love you."

"I promise that I will love you." I could now feel the same impatience that Jack was feeling when he was repeating the words. I wanted to make this official already. I wanted to kiss him and call him mine.

"And keep my heart open to you."

"And keep my heart open to you."

"All the days of my life."

"All the days of my life."

I now got to slip the ring on Jack's finger as well. While my ring was quite thin and delicate, I didn't see that fit with Jack. I went with something much more robust. It was a dark gray tungsten ring that had a nice grainy texture. I thought something that was more that colour suited him much more than a simple gold or silver ring. To show that it belonged with mine, however, there was some sneaky rose gold on the inside. You couldn't really see it when it was on, but it was definitely there. It was visible from the top, but most people wouldn't look at Jack's finger that way.

"Jack and Rachel, you've come here today to declare your love and commitment to each other in front of friends, family, and God. It is my honour and delight to pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

Jack didn't waste a single second. He hooked his arm around my waist and lightly pushed the palm of his hand onto the small of my back to bring me closer. I quickly managed to put my own hands on the back of his head to close the space even more. Everybody was clapping and cheering as our lips met halfway. I was sure that my parents were yet again shedding a few tears. But right at that moment, all I could think about was Jack. I wished to never forget the way I was feeling then.

When we finally parted, the pastor announced, "it is my pleasure to present to you for the very first time, Mr. and Mrs. Barakat!"

Jack and I couldn't stop grinning at each other. It was so surreal. We were actually married now. We were officially husband and wife. I was excited yet scared for what was to come. But I knew that Jack was going to be there by my side every step of the way. We were going to face it all together. Everything was going to be alright.

We walked down the aisle together, hand in hand. Everybody continued to cheer for us, which was one of the strangest feelings ever. Jack just continued to glance down at me with that goofy smile of his. It filled me with love every single time, warming my heart and making me feel like I was back in high school with some stupid crush.

Jack and I went all the way out of the church and stepped into the nice car we had rented to take us to the venue for our wedding reception. Everybody else was going to meet us there. It was at this very nice old barn that had some of the most amazing natural lighting. Around the venue was a large field, giving us both indoor and outdoor space for our guests to enjoy. With how good the weather was, it was the perfect venue.

Jack wouldn't stop holding my hand and kissing it the entire ride over. We didn't speak much, we were still enjoying the moment. Part of me wanted to jump up and down and kiss him all over. But the other part of me, just wanted to take it all in and relish it. My mind kept going over our vows again and again. I really didn't want to ever forget them. It was all so perfect. We were officially married now.

When we arrived, we didn't immediately go straight to the reception area. Although we were the first ones there, we weren't ready yet to be part of the party. There were still a few things to do before that. Those all were to happen in the building next to the barn, also known as the farmhouse. It was where smaller rooms and the bathrooms were. Now it was a great place for storage of extras and for us to get ready again.

As soon as we entered the farmhouse, we were greeted by the wedding planner's assistant. "Based on your smiles, I'm assuming everything went well."

I nodded and looked up at Jack, our hands tightly intertwined. "I don't know how others felt about it, but I thought it was perfect."

"Better than I could have ever imagined," Jack agreed, softly kissing me with a big smile. "Although I did really have to hold back from swearing in the church."

"You did surprisingly well, not even one slip up," I giggled.

The assistant wedding planner led us to the room where we got to wait as all the guests streamed in, both from the church and from people who hadn't been invited to the ceremony. They all got to enjoy the drinks at the bar and socialise while I got my makeup and hair retouched. I wasn't complaining, though. Neither was Jack. We'd get to make our great entrance and all our wedding photos would continue to look great.

Jack and I just got to relish in the fact that we had just gotten married while everybody around us did their job. They had all done this enough times to know when to interrupt and when not to. It actually got things done really quickly. As soon as everything had been touched up, I waltzed back over to Jack. I wrapped my arms around his neck, of course pressing a kiss to his lips.

"I wish I could drink and have fun with you," I mumbled, lightly brushing the hair on the back of his head with my fingers.

"We talked about this," he muttered back, "I won't drink if you don't want me to."

"I wouldn't want to put you through that kind of torture." I straightened out his collar.

"Well, I promise you I won't drink too much," he compromised. "I do actually want to remember every detail of today."

"And you don't want to get a bad case of whiskey dick on our wedding night," I whispered to him lowely so nobody could hear before giving him a much deeper kiss than I had given him since we had left the church.

We were interrupted by a whistle coming from the door. I checked to see who was in that direction to see Ethan walking in, Sascha right behind him.

"Keep that for tonight!" He teased with one horrible wink, almost as bad as Jack's winks.

I slowly dropped my arms off of Jack's shoulders. "Well aren't you funny?"

"Just think about it," he continued, holding back a mischievous grin, "everybody in that room knows you're going to bone when you leave."

"Oh, great, thanks." I shook my head and subconsciously took a small step away from Jack.

"You chose him to be your maid of honour?" Sascha judged me harshly. "You could have had me!"

"I know..." I sighed dramatically as if I was regretting my choice – of course I wasn't. "But, hey, I gave you the privilege of planning my bachelorette party."

"And it was the best one ever," she pointed out.

"Very true."

"Hey, so, when are you guys going to join?" Ethan redirected the conversation to what he initially came in for. His phone buzzed and he pulled it out of his pocket, immediately seeming distracted.

Still, I answered. "About ten minutes or so."

He hummed in response, obviously not caring much anymore, and started typing. "Okay, well, Chase is here, so I am going to go find him and I will see you again later."

With that, he left the room very quickly.

Sascha sighed and rolled her eyes jokingly. "We were actually here to help you out with your dress. Surprisingly, Ethan was the one who reminded me."

"Ooh, yes!" I looked down at the skirt of my dress which was still at its very long length. If I went into our reception like this, I would not be able to dance and it would be stained by alcohol and mud forever.

Sascha helped me undo all the seamless little clasps. Most of them were in the back, where they definitely weren't visible, so she was very useful. Although Ethan was my maid of honour, Sascha really technically was one as well. Ethan helped me with things like vows, checking on the planning, and hyping me up. Sascha, however, did the other jobs. She was more involved with the 'female' aspects; she didn't mind seeing me fully naked and gladly helped out with fixing my appearance. Of course, the bachelorette party had also been her job.

I understood why Ethan suddenly ran away, so I was in no way mad at him or upset with him. He was about to go into his sophomore year at college and pretty early on in his freshman year he met this guy. His name was Chase and he wasn't somebody Ethan would have usually hung out with back in high school. Chase was pretty shy and quiet, had very curly blonde hair, and wore round glasses. At first, Ethan was just glad to have made a friend, but they quickly started dating as well. I hadn't seen Ethan that happy in a while.

Once the final clasp of my dress was undone, Sascha carefully removed the skirt layer. She made sure to fold it delicately so things wouldn't crease and wrinkle and even hung it up for me.

"Damn..." Jack breathed out and checked me out again. "You look amazing."

"I'm still wearing the same thing!" I chuckled, brushing a piece of hair that was supposed to be framing my face behind my ear.

He continued to look at me with loving eyes. "You are beautiful."

It was another perfect moment to share a kiss. So we did. This time, it was only a brief peck, but it still radiated love.

"While I'm still here, would you like me to help you go to the bathroom before you join the party again?" Sascha suggested.

"That is actually a very good idea," I agreed with a single nod. There probably wasn't going to be much time during the reception for me to leave, so I was going to take this opportunity.

"Okay, let's go."

I started following her out of the room, but quickly ran back to Jack to deeply kiss him yet again. Even leaving him for a brief moment today already made me miss him. I didn't want to leave his side. It was amazing to think we were going to spend the rest of our lives together, and now it was also officially recognised.

Although Jack and I kept saying we didn't want to forget a thing about our wedding day, our reception was actually a blur to me. It went by so quickly. We had our first dance, I danced with my dad and Jack with his mom. Everybody enjoyed the live band we had chosen. It was all still going just as planned, at it was amazing. We even managed to get some food despite all the people who came up to us and congratulate us. I couldn't recall anymore who I had spoken to and who I hadn't spoken to. It all happened so fast. One moment, I was lost in my own little world dancing with Jack, the next we were stepping into the car to go to our hotel.

Jack had kept his promise and paced himself. He was only a little tipsy as we stood in the elevator, waiting to go up to our suite for the night. All I could think about as we were leaving our friends and family was that they all knew what was going to happen now. Ethan really did open my eyes up to that. But I wasn't going to let it stop me from enjoying myself.

As soon as we entered the room and the door shut behind us, Jack and I started the complicated process of kissing and taking off our clothes. He was very eager to take off my dress, yet still took good care of it. There was no throwing around with it, he even took the time to carefully place it on the armchair in the room. However, as soon as he saw the lingerie I was wearing, he had me pressed up against the wall, and all his inhibitions disappeared.

"I recall promising you we'd make a baby after we got married," I whispered against Jack's lips, taking this second to catch my breath and calm my rapidly beating heart.

"Really? When was this?" He chuckled deeply and started kissing down my neck.

I gave him some more access and brushed my hands through his hair in anticipation. "After our high school reunion."

"I was one drunk boy." He smirked against my skin, his hot breath flowing over me.

"I know." I rubbed my foot along his leg, biting my bottom lip as his hands started roaming freely again. "That's why you just say the word when you're ready, and we can give it a shot."

He broke away from my neck, making me feel cold, but the way he stared right into my eyes kept the fire brewing. It felt like he was staring for minutes, but it must have just been seconds. He grew a small smile and my heart skipped a beat.

"The word," he said quietly and pressed his lips against mine heavily.