All Was Golden in the Sky

There are little memories in your life you can’t help but always remember, even if they don’t always make the most sense: the smell in the air on a cool Florida morning as you’re getting ready to go see Cinderella’s castle; skipping down Main Street to the tune on your Disneyland sing-along VHS; meeting Mickey Mouse while fully decked out in your tackiest 90s gear with no shame. Florida fills me with so many emotions I can’t even verbalize them; it always felt like my home away from home, and for one summer in college it had been. Disney World and I had a connection that California had no hope of rivaling.

That being said, I’d never been granted the honor of being able to reside in the Polynesian Resort in any of my previous visits to Disney World. My parents had stayed there on their honeymoon once-upon-a-time, and we’d often sneak on the monorail to get a glimpse of the tropical paradise they’d happily stayed in during their early wedded bliss. Hell, it was one of the original hotels of the park and still gorgeous; I freaking loved it.

When Brendon and I made it into our room, or suite, rather, since Brendon insisted, I nearly knocked him over in a huge hug, murmuring my repeated thanks into his ear and snuggling my face against his chest. He just laughed and held me tight, silencing me with a kiss as soft as the hibiscus petals in my hair. “You’re cute when you’re all excited, you know that?” he asked later as I hung up some of my clothes in our closet.

“Just wait, kid. We haven’t gone to the parks yet. You ain’t seen excited yet,” I teased, slipping into one of his old shirts and shimmying into the bed with him. Even if it was routine for his arm to immediately wrap around my shoulder, it never felt any less special.

“So, Magic in the morning?” he asked. I could see his eyes trailing along the molding on the wall, impressed with the craftsmanship in such an old room.

“Um, definitely. We have a tradition in my family where Pirates is the first and last ride we do on the trip, so, I mean—“

“We should probably definitely do that, then,” Brendon teased, rubbing his nose against my cheek. “Now go to sleep, goofball. We’ve got a long day ahead of us!”

Please. As if I could sleep when I knew I’d be going to Disney World the next morning.

We got to Magic Kingdom before park opening to watch the characters roll in on Casey Jr. Brendon was decked out in the biggest sunglasses I think I’ve ever seen, his hands tightly gripping my hips as he stood behind me. I could feel his chest rumble in laughter against my back every time I squealed with excitement. We got a few curious looks, but it was mostly parents with young children around us. The age group that fit into his fandom probably wouldn’t make appearances for a few more hours at the earliest.

The Cast Members at Guest Services were very nice when Brendon dipped in for all his celebrity nonsense. While they got all that sorted out, I grabbed us a couple of celebration buttons reading ‘Happily Ever After’ with Cinderella and her prince in their carriage. Brendon grinned when I presented his to him, the date “April 27, 2013” scrawled across it in my messy handwriting. “Counting down the days, baby girl,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to my forehead as he escorted me back on track to Main Street.

It’s impossible to describe every moment we had that day in Magic Kingdom, but I can try a synopsis. We rode Pirates of the Caribbean first, as is tradition, then meandered around a bit. We took tons of pictures in front of Cinderella’s Castle, photography courtesy of the ever handy Disney Photo Pass cast members. Brendon got us the bride and groom ears and then insisted we do the customary kiss in front of the castle. I think the cast member taking our picture just about swooned at the adorableness that was Brendon dipping me.

All of the rides were just as amazing and magical as I had remembered from my years of visiting. Brendon didn’t judge me once for insisting we go on Peter Pan or Jungle Cruise, and the Guest Relations cast member we had talked to earlier made it easy for us to avoid the super-long wait times with a nifty pass. We remained on the whole pretty anonymous.

Until Fantasyland.

Brendon had ducked into Gaston’s tavern to get us some Lefou’s Brew and one of the giant cinnamon buns I’d noticed people walking around with. I decided to wait outside by the fountain depicting Gaston and Lefou, watching the man himself greet people and pose for pictures like the ham he was. It was gorgeous out, like a spring day up in Maryland, and the skies had decided to stay calm and not punish us to one of the customary Florida thunderstorms. I heard my name being called and assumed it was just someone calling out to one of their friends, until I felt a tap on my shoulder.

“Um, excuse me, I really don’t mean to bother you, but are you Annie Greene?” It was a girl probably sixteen years old or so. I’d just seen her pose with Gaston and what I assumed to be her older sister a moment ago. She seemed nervous, her hands clutched around an autograph book she’d just had Gaston sign.

My face immediately twisted into a pleasant smile, the same surprised smile I flashed whenever I was actually recognized. “Um, yeah, that’s me. How are you?”

The girl’s face contorted into a huge grin and she spun around to her sister. “I told you it was her, Laura! I told you!” She was shaking when she turned back to me, and I noticed her sister blush in embarrassment. “I told Laura it was you. She told me it’d be rude to come up to you, but I knew you wouldn’t mind.”

The poor girl’s sister looked so exasperated I couldn’t help but laugh. “No, no, it’s fine. It’s very nice to meet you, honey. Are you guys having a good day?”

Her nod was so intense I swore she was about to snap her neck. “Laura, come over here!” she hissed. Laura begrudgingly obliged.

“I’m so sorry about Charlie,” she muttered when she walked up to us. “I told her not to—“

“No, really, I don’t mind at all! We’re in Disney World—happiest place on Earth and all that. No worries whatsoever.” They seemed to lighten up when I smiled at them again, and I could see Laura’s shoulders visibly relax.

“We’re just really big fans, you know,” the first girl, Charlie, said. “You and Brendon both, but, I mean, especially together. Your Instagram pictures are just always so cute, we just really love you!” Her blabbering was kind of adorable and odd; fans didn’t normally come up and tell me how much they loved me. That was always reserved for Brendon.

“Your clothes look like they’re going to be beautiful. I can’t wait ‘til they go on sale, I really want to buy some,” Laura said. Her fingers were digging into her sister’s shoulders, like she was trying to keep her from moving any closer to me. It was appreciated.

“Well, thank you very much. I really appreciate that,” I smiled. I could see Brendon poking his head out of the tavern, juggling a silly looking mug and a plate with the cinnamon bun teetering on it. “Oh, I’m really sorry to interrupt, it’s just, my fiancée looks like he needs some help…”

Both girls’ heads snapped in the direction of the tavern, their jaws falling slack as Brendon approached. “Didja make some friends, babe?” he asked, handing me the plate. I smiled at the two girls; they looked flabbergasted.

“Bren, this is Charlie and Laura.” They looked mortified to be addressed by name. “Charlie, Laura, this is Brendon.”

Bless them, they looked like they were about to faint. Brendon flashed them his infamous grin and Charlie let out a squeal I think only piglets would be able to translate. Did they not expect to see me here with him? Really?

“Pleasure to meet you ladies,” he said, trying out some accent I couldn’t quite interpret.

“Oh my gosh, this really is the most magical place on Earth,” Charlie breathed, and I had to hold back a fit of giggles. Her face told me she was dead serious.

We indulged them in a few photos and signed Charlie’s autograph book—it was so tempting to try out my ‘Annie Urie’ signature, but I had to refrain—and they seemed very disappointed when their parents indicated to them that it was time to be moving on. They both gave us tight hugs, Charlie’s much tighter than Laura’s, but I couldn’t say I minded. Laura hesitated as they started walking away, and at the last second she turned back to me.

“Listen, Annie, it’s not my place, but I just wanted to say something,” she said. Charlie had already reached their parents, and Brendon was acting very interested in his Lefou’s Brew. He always acted very interested in food whenever he was eavesdropping.

Laura looked pretty uncomfortable, twirling her fingers around her pin lanyard as she tried to maintain eye contact. I could be nothing but patient, so I offered her a gentle smile as my only prodding.

“Look, I just wanted you to know, a lot of people are mad about all that stuff that Shane guy has been saying about you,” she said. “And all the other mean things people have been saying. I just wanted you to know that a lot of the Panic! fans Charlie and I know actually really love you, and we think you’re gorgeous.” She looked down at her perfectly pedicured toes peeking out of her sandals. “So, you know, please don’t take any of those things to heart. All the true Panic! fans love you and Brendon together and wish you both nothing but good things.”

I had pulled her into a hug practically before she finished her last sentence, and I could already feel the tears bubbling up behind my eyes. “Oh, Laura, bless you for saying all that. That is so sweet,” I said, somehow managing to avoid any tremor in my voice. I pulled back and flashed her a watery smile. “Thank you very much for that, that was great.”

Brendon teased me later about it, saying I get emotional way too easily, but I could tell that Laura’s words had meant as much to him as they had to me. So, as usual, I just ignored all his jests, instead too occupied with the absolute exultation that Brendon had somehow scored us dinner reservations at Be Our Guest.

“You never cease to amaze me,” I whispered, staring up at the ballroom ceiling in awe. The cherub babies from the movie smirked down at me; it was like they knew how amazing they were, and they were owning it.

Brendon snorted and held my chair out for me. “I seriously hope I never stop,” he smiled, ordering us a glass of red wine. Our napkins were folded to look like roses; it was so cute, I almost didn’t want to unfold it. So I just snapped a picture of it instead.

“I don’t think you ever will,” I said with a smile. I reached over the table and held Brendon’s hand in mine, feeling the wine already starting to take effect. He looked so damn beautiful sitting across from me, as much as he might disapprove of me using the word. The soft lighting of the room made his eyes sparkle like they had that night in our backyard when he had hung up all the lights, and his smile made my tummy tingle.

“How in the world did I ever get lucky enough to be with you?” I asked, feeling my head tilt as I admired him.

He grinned and pulled my hand up to his lips, kissing right above my ring. “Annie, I ask myself that same thing every day,” he sighed.

“What, how I got lucky enough to be with you?” I teased.

He chuckled. “Exactly. Like damn girl, how you be so lucky? You struck gold, girlfriend.”

The scallops? Oh my God, so good. Baked in a bread bowl with mushrooms—dear Lord. Brendon kept trying to sneak bites, and I pretended not to notice his fork slipping over to my plate. The whole “what’s mine is yours” thing wasn’t too tricky with Brendon—except when it came to my chocolate cupcake.

“What the hell is that?” Brendon asked towards the end of dinner. Epic music started playing overhead, loud and thunderous like the victory music from Beauty and the Beast. Brendon’s face crinkled in laughter as he looked over my shoulder, and he shook his head in disbelief. “Dude, fucking sweet. The Beast is a badass.”

I glanced over my shoulder and sure enough, there was the Beast, strutting through the ballroom with some mean kind of swagger. An announcement came overhead saying you could meet ‘The Master’ in his study, and Brendon and I exchanged conspiratorial looks.

“Well, fuck, we need to do that,” he said.

It was things like that that made me love him.

A day at Magic Kingdom wouldn’t be complete without the fireworks show. Once again, Guest Relations came through in scoring us a spot right in front of the castle, so our view for Celebrate the Magic was unimpaired by any towering Mickey ears. I teared up when Walt Disney showed up on the castle, reciting one of my favorite quotes: “I only hope we don’t lose sight of one thing; that it was all started by a mouse.”

“You’re a dork,” Brendon whispered in my ear.

“Be respectful, that’s Walt, ya dick,” I scolded. He just laughed and blew a raspberry on my cheek.

Wishes is probably my favorite fireworks show—ever. I mean, sure, there’s Fantasmic!, but eh. Wishes is the epitome of Disney magic. The music, the Jiminy Cricket, the perfectly timed fireworks—so beautiful. I snuggled into Brendon’s arms towards the end, and we both stared up at the sky as the light illuminated the castle. The cheers and giggles behind me were so comforting that I almost forgot to move when it was all over.

Later that night, as we lay in bed, I played with Brendon’s fingers between mine, mesmerized by how perfect they looked against each other. “When did you know?” I asked. My voice felt like less than a whisper.

I seemed to have shaken Brendon out of some trance; he’d been staring at my face for the past five minutes, eyes darting around in his curious way. “Hmm? Know what?” he asked. He added a quick kiss to my forehead, almost like a question mark.

My fingers brushed against my ring, and I was amazed yet again at how beautiful it was. “That you wanted to marry me.”

Brendon smiled, that happy smile that gave my dreams meaning. “Hmm,” he hummed, laying on his back and staring up at the ceiling. Like a reaction I leaned up and ran my hand across his chest, looking down into his face. Would I ever tire of gazing into those eyes, those chocolate pools sweeter than any of Brendon’s candy obsessions?

His hands took their positions—one on my back, one in my hair—and he stroked gently as he pretended to ponder my question. “When did I know that I wanted to marry you…now, that’s a mighty fine question.” He pursed his lips, and I had to try very hard to refrain from pressing mine against them. They were just so plump! And yummy! And there!

“Are you having fun making me wait?” I asked.

“You know me, I always have fun,” he laughed. He seemed to be very amused by the sarcastic look I shot him, and it was a fair few minutes before his giggling subsided. “Oh, Annie,” he finally sighed, pulling me tightly to his chest. I nuzzled into him, sighing when his fingers wove through my hair.

“It was after you left to visit Maryland the first time after we started dating.” His voice was so soft, as gentle as the fingers that twirled around my curls and traced my spine. “I’d just gotten off the phone with you before you went to bed. You had made some really corny joke, and after we said goodnight, I felt funny. Weird. Restless. I felt so flustered knowing I couldn’t just run over to your apartment and snuggle up with you to some bad movie. My bed felt lonely, and we hadn’t even slept together yet.”

His lips pressed against my hair, and I pulled away to look him full in the face. He was smiling so big his teeth were peeking out, a goofy, happy smile. “That’s the night I wrote Always,” he said. “That’s the night I thought, ‘Ya know, this girl is pretty damn cool. I think I oughta wife her.’”

“You’re such a cheeseball,” I cooed.

“It’s cause you make me feel so gouda,” he growled, nibbling at my neck.

“You Muenster!” I cried, giggling as he rolled me onto my back. “Unhand me, you beast!”

We rolled around in a fit of giggles, tickling and nibbling until the other insisted on a truce. Neither of us relented until my phone started blasting the ringtone indicating Hannah, and I begrudgingly pulled away to grab it. My finger was about to swipe to unlock, but Brendon’s hand stopped me.

“Surely she can wait until the morning?” he asked. He looked so hopeful, his bottom lip caught between his teeth and eyes wide in happiness.

I glanced back at my phone, giving it only a second’s thought. “She can wait,” I agreed, putting my phone onto silent. I turned back to Brendon, gripping his forearms to keep myself from falling off the bed. “Now, where were we on cheese jokes?”

“Nacho cheese?”

“Straight to the punch line, then.”

“Ey, Mozzarella!”