I huffed in frustration as I threw what seemed like the hundredth dress to the floor of my room.  Every potential outfit I pulled from my closet was quickly shot down by my severe scrutiny; they were too old, too small, too ugly, too pink, too black, too everything.  No matter what I tried, I couldn’t even come close to satisfied. 

I shoved my hand through my hair, which of course, was refusing to cooperate as well.  Just once in my life, I wanted it to be easy to get ready for something important.  I kicked a lone shoe across my room in irritation, glaring at it when it crashed against my dresser with a solid thud.  Stupid shoe. 

“Joey?” my mother called from across the hall.  She, ironically, was also getting ready for a night out.  She claimed she was going to get drinks with her sister, but I suspected they were going to scan the local bars for men, which still struck me as odd given the newly-single status of my mother. 

“What?” I said irritably.  She appeared in my doorway, much more successful at getting ready than I was in a lovely grey dress with her hair and make up nearly finished.  I tried to smooth the frown from my face as she looked at me sympathetically.

“Still don’t know what to wear?” she asked.

“No, everything I have is awful,” I whined, shoving my hands into my closet in hopes of something appearing.  Nothing did.

“What about that one blue dress-“

“No,” I said shortly, knowing exactly which dress she was referring to.  I had deemed it too long and therefore not a candidate.  She frowned at my clipped tone and placed her finger on her lips, thinking of more options.

“I know, that red one.  That you were going to wear to your cousins wedding last year before it got called off,” she suggested hopefully, snapping her fingers in triumph.  My mouth twisted to the side, thinking of the dress she was referring to that I had completely forgotten.

“It’s not in my closet…” I said.  That was probably why I hadn’t thought of it- my mother kept it in her closet, for some strange reason I couldn’t remember.  Something about not wanting me to ruin it.  She held up one finger to me before disappearing down the hall, carrying the red dress in a plastic cover when she returned.  Holding it out to me, she beamed.

“This will be perfect, Joey,” she said, smiling at me.  She was in a very good mood today, which made me happy.  And, I couldn’t deny, she was right.  The dress was perfect.  I unzipped the bag to pull it out and inspect it.

Still in perfect condition, the red lace that covered the entire dress was soft in my hands. 

“Thanks, mom,” I said, smiling.  “It’s perfect.”

She beamed once more, clapping her palms together in front of her before dismissing herself so I could get dressed.  When she was gone, I slipped out of the t-shirt and shorts I was wearing to pull it on.  The soft fabric fit me perfectly, the hem hitting the middle of my thighs and the wide scoop neck settling impeccably against my chest.  I was surprised it still fit so well since I had gotten it nearly a year ago. 

After another hour of battling with my hair and face, I was satisfied with my appearance.  My brown hair was loosely curled and swept into a low, loose type of bun I had concocted, and my make up accentuated my features to the best of my ability.  I was ready with enough time to start feeling nervous, and I moved downstairs to wait for Harry to collect me.

Twenty minutes later, he arrived just as he said he would.  I was in the downstairs bathroom, checking my appearance one last time when I heard him knock softly and let himself into my house.  I emerged from the hallway to see the most beautiful boy I’d ever laid eyes on waiting for me by my front door.

He wore a light grey suit jacket over a baby blue button up, on which he’d left the top few buttons open to reveal his smooth chest.  His grey pants were perfectly fitted, clingingly deliciously to his legs and bum.  I nearly swooned when I examined him further, noticing that his hair, which was still usually carefully smoothed against his head, was pushed back and up, boasting to much more volume than usually happened when he just pushed his hand through it.  He looked amazing, and I was fairly certain I was drooling. 

“Wow,” he said huskily.  He cleared his throat and shook his head gently.  “Wow, Joey, you look incredible,” he said, eyes widening as he studied me, a grin spreading across his face.

“You don’t look so bad yourself, babe,” I replied, grinning.  “Who know my boyfriend cleaned up so nicely?” I walked towards him and let my hands run up the lapels of his jacket before they reached his neck.  He continued to look down at me in awe, eyes searching my face intently as he smiled at me.

“I dunno but I always knew I had the most beautiful girlfriend in the world,” he said, resting his hands on my hips to lean down and kiss me hello.  His lips pressed to mine, molding around my lower one and lingering for a few seconds before pulling back.  I couldn’t control the grin invading my face, not that I really bothered to try.  Harry made me so happy, and I was going to let myself be happy. 

He gripped my hand in his, running his thumb over the back of mine.

“Ready?”

“Mmhmm,” I hummed, squeezing his palm as I grabbed my jacket off the hook and slid it over my shoulders before following him outside.  His black SUV sat in my driveway, engine running to keep the car warm in the chilly evening air.  I giggled as he opened the passenger door for me, offering his hand in a formal manner as he helped me into the seat.  His lips pressed to the back of my hand before he released it and gently shut the door.

I couldn’t stop staring at him as he drove us to the venue of the wedding; the blue color of his shirt really made him look incredible, bringing out flecks of the color in his eyes I hadn’t really noticed until now.  It lightened up his entire being, and to me, he was glowing.  He grinned as he felt my gaze, dimple dipping into his cheek.

“You’re staring, babe,” he said gently, smirking at the windshield.  His hand, which had snaked its way across the seat the instant he got in the car, squeezed my thigh gently.

“You just look so good I can’t help it,” I admitted, sucking a breath as his fingers briefly left the wheel to wipe across his lower lip, framing his smirk.  “Damn,” I whispered, shifting in my seat.

“Stopppp,” he whined, the smile he wore and chuckle he let out after contradicting his words.  I giggled before leaning across the seat to press a kiss to his jaw, letting my lips linger for a second before returning to my seat.

“Do that again,” he requested, shooting me a quick look out of the corner of his eye.

“Okay,” I obliged, grinning as I leaned forward once more.  My lips were about to make contact with his skin when he abruptly turned his face toward me, connecting our lips for a split second before he turned back to face forward again, grinning proudly. 

“Mature,” I laughed.  “If you wanted a proper kiss all you had to do was ask, you goof.”

He shrugged, still grinning as he stared forward.  The rest of our drive passed in playful exchanges, our hands constantly connected to each other in one way or another.  When we pulled up to the venue, I gasped.  It was an old boat club right next to the harbor of the lake.  The glittering lights from the docks brought back a rush of memories, most specifically the time Harry had taken me to see his boat.  My body flushed with heat as I remembered what had also happened that night in the little room beneath the boat’s deck.

The deck to the clubhouse, which served as a place for people to mingle and the entrance, was decorated with hundreds upon hundreds of beautiful white flowers I didn’t know the name of, thousands of glittering white fairy lights, and subtle gold accents placed tastefully here and there.  We weren’t even in the building yet and it was already beautiful.

Harry let himself out of the car, quickly darting around the front to open my door once more and help me out.  I had chosen, for some reason, to wear heels tonight, and I was already a little wobbly on them. 

“It’s so pretty,” I breathed, taking in all the tiny details that had surely taken hours of consideration to decide. 

“Yeah, I guess it is, huh?” Harry commented, not paying much attention to the impeccably decorated clubhouse we were now walking toward.  Such a boy.

We walked through the gate that led to the porch, where people stood together, talking and laughing in groups, waiting to be called to their seats.  It was pretty chilly out so despite the amazing surroundings, most of the people were gathered inside.  We worked our way through the crowd, Harry’s hand clasped in mine as he led me until we found his mother and sister, each holding flutes of champagne as they observed the other guests good-naturedly.

“Joey! Don’t you look lovely,” Anne said sincerely when we walked up.  “What a beautiful dress.”

“Thank you,” I replied, smiling at her.  “You look great, as well!” 

She waved me off modestly with a flick of her hand, grinning at me as she thanked me.

“See, I told you you’d be fine,” Gemma said, smiling at me as well.  She, just like Anne, looked beautiful.  This entire damn family was too attractive for their own good.  A man appeared suddenly at Anne’s shoulder, telling us it was time to take our seats.  Harry allowed his mother and sister to lead the way before tugging me along with to follow them to our seats.  It was a fairly large wedding with a lot of guests so I was slightly surprised when we were seated in the first five or six rows.

As we sat down, we waited patiently for the wedding to begin.  I sat silently, contentedly observing more of the careful details that I knew Harry wouldn’t appreciate.  Harry played with my hand, which was captured in both of his.  His lean fingers smoothed along every inch of my hand, tracing the fine lines in my palm before letting them run down the backs of my fingers, over and over again.  I grinned at the feeling.

Before long, the entire wedding had started, groom standing at the front as the bridesmaids and groomsmen started making their way down the aisle in pairs.  When the flower girl stumbled a bit on her pass, the entire crowd let out an audible ‘awe’ as she corrected herself and smoothed her dress, grinning sheepishly as she carried on her way. 

When the traditional music started playing from the live quartet in the corner of the hall, the crowd stood, eyes turned excitedly toward the back, awaiting the bride.  She appeared in the most beautiful wedding gown I’d ever seen, her blonde hair falling softly around her positively beaming face.  I wasn’t surprised to discover that she was beautiful- it clearly ran in the family. 

Watching her walk down the aisle, an expression of pure joy and love on her face, made my heart feel full.  I couldn’t help but think that could be me someday, working my way toward my own groom at the end of the aisle.  Without a moments hesitation, I pictured Harry standing there, beaming at me as I came closer to him, looking handsome as ever in a tux of his own. 

A tear slipped from my eye, my mind overwhelmed by the beauty of the moment and the possibility of the future I desperately wanted.  Granted, I was nowhere near ready for that now, but someday, I knew that would be it.  That would be the moment that gave me the promise of the rest of my life with the one boy I love more than anything in the world. 

I jumped slightly when Harry’s thumb wiped away the tear that had fallen to my cheek; I turned to see him looking at me intently, lips pulled into a soft smile as his eyes burned into mine.  He leaned forward, pressing his lips to my temple before moving them next to my ear.

“You’re still the most beautiful one in here,” he whispered, his lips moving against the shell of my ear.  I could feel my eyes crinkling in the corners as I smiled wider than I thought possible.  I exhaled in a half laugh, half gasp as I turned my face toward him, reaching my hand up to pull his lips to mine in a gentle kiss. 

“I love you,” I whispered to him, meaning it with every piece of my being.

“And I love you,” he whispered back, kissing my forehead before snaking an arm around my back.  Automatically mine wrapped around his waist, hugging myself into his side as we turned to watch the rest of the wedding.  The grooms face was one of my favorite parts of the whole thing as he took in the sight of his soon-to-be wife; his face was absolutely lit up in happiness, tears leaking from the corners of his eyes as he beamed at her. 

Vows were said, prayers were recited, and the crowd as whole seemed to cry as the bride and groom exchanged their ‘I do’s’ and kissing, officially becoming man and wife.  It didn’t matter that I didn’t know these people- they were Harry’s family and so obviously in love that I was incredibly happy for them, no matter who they were.  We clapped and cheered as they raised their joined hands in the air, grinning excitedly at the crowd of their family and friends.

Unlike the few weddings I had been to, the reception was right after the wedding in the same venue, which I quite liked.  There was no awkward amount of time to kill between events, so everyone rolled into the evening on a high from the beautiful ceremony. 

After eating a delicious meal and sneaking a few glasses of wine, Harry led me around the reception to introduce me to his various family members.  I learned that he had no grandparents left, but plenty of aunts, uncles, and cousins.  They all embraced me warmly, openly, much different from the way Gemma had at first.  Perhaps they didn’t feel as protective of Harry, or maybe they were more oblivious to the potentially evil ways of our generation, but either way I was grateful for their easy welcome. 

I had yet to meet the bride and groom, but that was alright.  I knew they would both be extremely busy running around, meeting with all their guests and going about in their newly-wedded bliss.  I caught flashes of them here and there, but they rarely stayed in one place for long.  Apparently getting married was a busy affair. 

Music had been playing softly throughout the evening, but I noticed people had started dancing as Harry and I sat at a table with Anne and Gemma, sipping the wine we had snuck off the table while Anne pretended not to notice.  Harry’s hand rested on my knee under the table as my ankle crooked against his, letting my toe slide up and down the back of his calf absentmindedly.

I could feel him watching me as he leaned forward and pressed his lips against my ear once more. 

“Do you wanna dance with me?” he asked quietly, drawing back a few inches to let his face hover in front of mine, giving me a devastatingly beautiful grin.  He had shed his coat jacket at some point and was now left in just the light blue button up, looking as stunning as ever.

“Absolutely,” I said, returning his grin as we stood up and placed his hand on my lower back, steering me toward the decently full dance floor.  I didn’t recognize the song, but it was a beautiful slow one that bounced clearly around the hall from the speakers that had taken over the quartet. 

“Now be patient, I don’t really know what I’m doing,” Harry admitted, ducking his head to my ear once more as he maneuvered us through the crowd.  We reached a clearing big enough for him to stop and turn to face me, frowning at me as he debated what to do.  I rolled my eyes playfully before grabbing his hands and putting them on my hips and looped my arms around his neck.

“It’s not so hard,” I told him gently, swaying to the music so he would follow.  “See?”

He grinned sheepishly and nodded. “If this is all it is, not too hard at all.”

“We’ll master this before moving on to the waltz,” I joked, tightening my arms around his neck to pull myself closer.  We swayed easily to the music for a while before he tightened his grip on my waist, pulling me even closer so our torsos pressed together.  I sighed happily as I rested my head against his chest and felt his lips press into my hair. 

I could feel his heart beating steadily beneath his chest and feel his breath entering and leaving his body. 

“Today’s been amazing,” I mumbled.  More than the beautiful wedding itself, I had immensely enjoyed fantasizing about my potential future with Harry, dreaming that maybe I could have this for myself someday.  With him. 

“Usually I hate weddings but it was so perfect with you,” he returned, lips mumbling into my hair.  I felt his thumbs tracing patterns in my lower back through the fabric of my dress.  I squeezed my arms around his neck and pecked his chest lightly.

“Well good,” I replied, grinning to myself as I snuggled into him again.  We swayed in quiet contentment for a while, my fingers playing with the hairs at the nape of his neck absentmindedly while his fingers continued to press into my lower back before he spoke again.

“Are you gonna marry me someday?” he asked quietly, so quietly I almost wondered if I hadn’t been meant to hear.  I suppressed an ecstatic grin as I pulled back in his grip just enough so I could look him in the eye.

“Sorry?” I asked, wanting him to repeat it.  He blushed lightly as he bit his lip and studied my face.

“Are you gonna let me marry you?” he repeated, rewording himself just slightly.  If my heart could have burst out of my chest in pure, unadulterated joy, it would have right then. 

“You wanna marry me someday?” I asked, a grin breaking through my features.

“Absolutely, if you’ll let me,” he answered instantly, no hesitation to be had.

“Harry, there is literally nothing in this world I want more than to marry you someday,” I told him seriously, looking him straight in his clear green eyes.  His face lit up at my response, and he looked like he was glowing. 

“I love you so, so much,” he whispered, leaning his forehead against mine.

“I love you, too, Harry. Always?” I breathed.

“Always.”

**

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