Chapter 15 – Wedding Bells
Planning a wedding was nothing like the movies.
There were no perfectly tied bows, no effortlessly cooperative relatives, and certainly no "just say yes" moments. What there *was*, however, was chaos—and a lot of laughter in between.
"Elena," Marcus called out from the living room, holding two fabric swatches. "Which one of these looks less like a funeral napkin?"
She peeked out from the kitchen, face covered in flour from testing cake recipes. "The one on the left. But barely."
"Good. That's the tablecloth."
They were trying to do everything themselves—partly for the experience, partly because neither liked the idea of a grand, impersonal wedding.
They wanted intimacy.
A ceremony in a small garden outside the city. Close friends, family, art, and music. Personal vows. Nothing too grand—just real.
Still, the stress added up. Elena's dress took three fittings longer than expected. Marcus's best man backed out last minute. Her mother argued with the florist. His sister tried to convince them to hire a DJ instead of a string trio.
In the middle of it all, one afternoon, Elena sat on the couch surrounded by invitation envelopes and burst into tears.
Marcus rushed over. "What's wrong?"
"I don't know if this is even going to be *good*, let alone perfect," she said, wiping her face. "Everything's going sideways."
He sat beside her, pulled her into his chest. "You know what I keep thinking about?"
"What?"
"The moment you walk down the aisle. I don't care if the flowers are late or the napkins are ugly. I just want *that* moment."
She laughed through tears. "You're so annoyingly calm sometimes."
"Balance," he grinned.
The day finally arrived.
Sunlight peeked through the trees of the garden, casting gold over the rows of white chairs. Friends and family whispered and smiled. Soft music played as Elena stepped onto the aisle, her heart pounding.
Marcus turned—and the moment their eyes met, everything else disappeared.
No nerves. No stress. Just the quiet certainty that this was right.
When they exchanged vows, there wasn't a dry eye in the garden.
And when they kissed, it was with the quiet understanding that they hadn't just planned a wedding—they had built the beginning of a marriage.