Until You Met Me

Feeling Molly’s lips against the underside of his jaw, Gerard quirked a sleepy smile, his arm tightening around her shoulders slightly as he listened to the sound of her alarm clock which filled the bedroom. It had become a routine of theirs. For a few weeks, Molly and he had spent whatever free time they both had working through the checklist that their wedding planner had provided them with, and whilst progress had been slow and steady, he knew how much Molly loved it. She tried to temper her excitement. Whenever they spoke about the plans, Molly tried to keep her face from lighting up, still a little cautious that eventually they’d hit a point where Gerard found himself overwhelmed by how quickly things were progressing again, but she never quite achieved it. She was excited, and despite all of his initial worries about the two of them moving too fast, Gerard was excited, too.

“There’s no way we have to get up already” Gerard grumbled, letting his eyes flutter closed again.

Molly pressed a kiss to the side of his neck before she shook her head, leaning out of the bed briefly to turn off the alarm. “You don’t” she murmured “But I do. I have a preliminary appointment at a bridal boutique at nine” she added, cuddling back into his side.

Gerard, who’d been idly running his fingers through her hair, furrowed his forehead “Did I know that?” he asked.

Molly leant back to look up at him. “I told you about it a few days ago” she replied “Were you not paying attention?” she asked, her lips quirking upwards in amusement.

“It must have slipped my mind” Gerard answered.

Molly scoffed out a laugh before she settled back into the space at his side, her fingers lazily tracing patterns against his stomach. “Is it OK that I go?” she asked quietly.

“Why would that not be OK?” Gerard asked “We’re planning a wedding. You’re going to need a dress” he added, letting out a slightly baffled laugh.

“You told me it was OK last time, and then you kind of freaked out afterwards” Molly said “I kind of want to avoid that happening again” she added, offering him a slightly shaky smile in an attempt to soften the blow of her words.

Gerard was quiet for a moment before he exhaled a quiet sigh. He knew that she was right. The last time she had told him that she was going to look at wedding dresses, he had gotten scared that things were moving too quickly between the two of them, and had almost immediately moved to pump the brakes, but he knew already that it was different then, and he wanted to assure Molly of it, too. He couldn’t pinpoint what exactly had changed, but he wasn’t overwhelmed by the idea that they were moving forwards, and he wanted Molly to know it. She was naturally optimistic, and he didn’t want that to change. He didn’t want her first thought to always be that he was going to try and slow them down again.

“That was last time” Gerard quipped “Now, I am happy that you want to go and look at wedding dresses” he added.

Molly’s answering smile was bright, but still slightly cautious. “Really?” she asked.

Gerard nodded without missing a beat. “Absolutely” he said “Is it just going to be you?” he asked.

“My mother and Pop are coming” Molly replied “I figured I’d need at least one opinion” she added.

“You could wear anything and I’d still find you gorgeous” Gerard quipped.

Molly answered his comment with a bashful laugh before she pushed herself out of their embrace and climbed out of the bed. “Are you sure that you’re OK with this?” she asked as she moved towards her dresser.

Gerard watched her with a soft smile before he nodded his head. “Certain” he answered.

~#~
“Molly?”

Molly, who’d been staring down at the piece of material in her hands, blinked a couple of times at the sound of her name before she looked up, smiling shyly at Julia who stood in front of her, her own soft smile on her face. She hadn’t been listening. From the moment that the designer had placed a selection of fabric swatches in front of her, Molly had been taken by just staring at them, and she knew from the smile that was on her mother’s face that she had noticed.

“Did I miss something?” Molly asked.

“Isabel asked if you wanted to try a dress on” Julia said “She’s got a couple in the style of what you described. What do you say?” she asked.

“Can I do that?” Molly asked.

“Of course” Isabel, the designer, mused “Follow me and you can get changed” she added, leading Molly away from her mother and sister.

Handing over a couple of dresses, Isabel pointed her towards a small changing room before she disappeared again, leaving Molly alone. Taking in a deep breath, Molly shuffled into the changing room before she started to get changed, eventually finding herself stood in front of a mirror, marvelling at the white dress that she had pulled on. Carefully ghosting her fingertips over the material, Molly stared at her reflection before she shook her head, unable to stop herself from grinning.

It hadn’t felt right before. When she had last gone to look at wedding dresses, she had found herself overwhelmed almost as soon as she had stepped into the shop, but that feeling hadn’t hit her again, something which had her more than a little relieved. She had worried that it would, much like she had worried that Gerard would start to feel overwhelmed again, but as she stood there, staring at her reflection, she couldn’t feel anything but excitement. It had been a long time coming. She and Gerard had missed each other for years, but they’d finally realised what was right in front of them, and it wasn’t going away.

“Molly?”

Molly jumped at the sound of Julia’s voice before she slowly unlocked the changing room door, her smile growing even wider as she watched her mother and sister’s faces light up. Shaking her head, she felt her cheeks warm as they fussed over her, but her smile never faded.