and when i break (it's in a million pieces) - a kanej fic

Part 8

5 years ago:

With the ring glinting on Inej's finger, she and Kaz finally made the walk from Zentsbridge to the Van Eck and Fahey mansion. Her step was light, buoyed by the promise of a future. She'd scarcely breathed when he'd kneeled on his good leg and slipped the ring onto her finger. She'd had to look at it for almost a full minute before she could even believe that it was real. But it was, this was.

They were the last of their friends to get married. Nina and Hanne had gotten married nearly three years previous, fairly quickly after getting engaged. She understood their hurry-- especially in their line of work, nothing was promised. Plus, Nina and Hanne loved each other deeply, there was no reason to wait. Their wedding had been small enough to suit Hanne's taste, but lavish enough to suit Nina's. They'd gotten married in the palace gardens under an arch of deep red roses. Inej had been honored to be Nina's maid of honor. Most notably, King Nikolai and Queen Zoya had attended the entire ceremony and reception, complete with a waffle bar and large chocolate cake supplied by the palace staff.

Wylan and Jesper had been married for a little over a year. Their wedding was small, confined to the six of them, Maria, Colm, and Leoni, the girl Jesper's mother had saved all those years ago, who had become an unexpected friend to all of them -- but Jesper and Nina especially. Inej didn't speak to her much, but she sensed common ground and mutual respect between them as a result of having a taste for two certain stony-faced, sullen boys. They'd held the ceremony in their backyard near the boathouse. It fit both Jesper and Wylan perfectly, and Inej and Nina had both cried through their vows-- Nina much more loudly than her.

At each ceremony, a single chair was left empty. A tribute to Matthias. Inej had placed a rose there for him each time, and Nina always noticed with a somber smile and a squeeze of her hand.

She did have to remind herself that they weren't getting married quite yet, but that did little to bottle the joy bubbling in her heart.

Before she turned the final corner onto Geldstraat, Inej grabbed Kaz's coat arm and pushed him up against the side of a gabled house. She put her hands on either side of his shoulders, an indicator of what she was about to do, and stepped up onto her tiptoes to kiss him.

He tasted faintly of mint, and when she pulled away, she couldn't manage to wipe the smile off her face.

Kaz raised a single, dark eyebrow at her, "What was that for, Wraith?"

Inej just smiled and said, "The deal is the deal. And it's better than a handshake,"

He shook his head, but now he was smiling too, "The deal is the deal."

They made their way up Geldstraat gloved hand in hand. Just as she was about to open the latch on the gate, she paused, senses once more alert.

She scanned the darkening street, but couldn't sense any movement. The tingle at the back of her neck had disappeared.

She caught Kaz's eye. Clearly, he'd felt the same thing, but he only shook his head and motioned for them to go inside. It was better to talk there, away from potentially prying eyes.

However, the moment Inej's hand had touched the smooth brass handle, the door had flung open, nearly causing her to fall into the grinning Grisha on the other end.

"Inej!" Nina squealed, pulling her into a bone-crushing hug. She smelled like cinnamon and apple tart, and judging by the smell emanating from the kitchen, the cooks had made Nina's favorite.

Pulling away, Nina turned her attention to Kaz, who was standing slightly behind Inej.

"Brekker," Nina leveled her emerald gaze at him.