Her Wedding Day

Disclaimer: All things Twilight belong to Stephenie Meyer; I'm merely playing in her sandbox.

Her Wedding Day



She was utterly breathtaking.

Sure, she wobbled just a little as she started down the aisle on her father's arm. Only my sharpened sight noticed the slight catch in her stride and the nervous tightening of her hand on Charlie's arm.

But that was my Bella.

She was concentrating on each step so hard, her face strangely serious. I couldn't help smirking just slightly at her worried expression; tripping over her own feet was her greatest fear this day...not the fact that she was marrying a non-human, mythical being, a dangerous beast in the form of a man.

No, wedding herself to a monster did not concern my Bella in the least, of course. As long as she didn't fall, she'd be fine. I smiled wryly; my girl was an extraordinarily fearless woman.

No matter how long I lived, I would never deserve her—such an entrancing combination of strength and fragility, of fierce loyalty and abiding love.

I felt my love for her swell my heart.

I had never loved her so much as I did at this very moment.

Once she raised her eyes from the ground on which she carefully stepped, her beautiful brown eyes latched onto mine, and I could see nothing else.

I'm sure that her dress was perfect—lovely and graceful on her slim form, modestly outlining her curves in a way that would drive me distracted later.

Later...much later...I would peel that dress off of my beloved, and slowly, surely, we would become one in body as we were becoming one in heart, mind, and soul in mere moments.

But I couldn't focus on her dress now; I could only see her warm, chocolate eyes—melted chocolate—as warmth and emotion filled them. I could feel my own eyes burning oddly, too.

Our love was like that...full, warm, complete.

It seemed as though it took hours for Charlie to walk his daughter down the aisle, but it was only a few seconds.

But somehow, during the passage of these mere seconds, I changed...from a boy to a man. My age and appearance may remain the same, but I would never be a boy again.

I was ready, so ready, to step up and become the husband of Isabella Marie Swan.

After seeming eons of gazing deeply into each others' souls as she drew ever nearer on her father's arm, she was here.

At my side.

Forever.

Charlie slowly removed her trembling hand from his arm, and, giving me one last glare of warning to never hurt his angel, he placed her hand in my much larger one, clasping our joined hands together inside both of his in silent blessing.

My eyes burned again with the depth of my emotion at the fierce love in Charlie Swan's eyes for Bella shone forth as his only daughter prepared to give up his name and take mine instead.

I nodded to him, acknowledging his warning...and promising with earnest eyes to cherish her, always.

He nodded back, his face severe with emotion, sealing our covenant.

He may be only human, but Charlie would hunt me down and kill me (or at least attempt to do so) if I ever let Bella down.

And I wouldn't.

Ever.

The fact that she had chosen me over him burned joyously and gratefully in my heart.

I knew very well how fortunate I was to have won her love.

As Charlie stepped aside to take his seat, Bella and I, our hands clasped, approached the minister, her friend Angela's father.

As the minister spoke about our young love, about the value of marriage in our day and age, his words faded away as if I heard them from a distance; instead, my focus was upon the blushing beauty at my side.

Bella had never been more lovely than she was at this moment—this moment in which she fulfilled my every fantasy and became mine.

My own.

My wife.

Our vows were simple, traditional—the same words uttered by so many people, but rarely before by a couple quite like us.

Bella blushed and stammered a little as she repeated her vows, and I loved her all the more for the vulnerability she displayed. My own replies, while more audible for the audience's sake than hers had been, were spoken also from a place of great emotion as I barely resisted choking up as I made the traditional promises that bound us together.

Forever.

Then Mr. Weber pronounced us husband and wife, and her warm chocolate eyes melted into mine, closing as our lips touched.

It was a solemn kiss, a binding kiss, a kiss of promise. With this searing kiss, we sealed our vows to love, honor, and cherish one another...for as long as we both shall live.

Our friends and family members conveniently disappeared—I didn't hear them, see them. We were as if alone, she in my arms, where she could always seek and find protection and an eternal love.

All too soon, we became aware of our audience, pulling slightly away from one another, Bella hiding her blush against my chest for a moment. But I knew that my smile was exultant.

As Mr. Weber announced our names, my name now hers, I don't think I have ever been as happy as I was in that moment. Joy suffused my mind, my body, my very soul, filling me to the brim and over the brim, overflowing magnificently. I couldn't contain myself or my joy as I laughed softly, pulling my beloved Bella close to my side....

Then I woke suddenly from beneath the cedar which I had chosen as my bed for the night, jumping to my feet with the shock of my dream, shaking my shaggy head as reality descended with a jolt.

My dream seemed so real this time. So damn real.

But this was the day.

And I knew what I had to do.

I had to be there for her tonight—to be her best friend, one last time.

If I ran at full speed, I might make it to the reception at least, if not the wedding itself.

No matter how much being there tonight would hurt me, she deserved to be surrounded by everyone she loved on her wedding day.

It would be my wedding gift to her.

I just hoped that the leech wasn't into gloating.

And I began to run with purpose for the first time in months, letting the land blur beneath my paws as I turned my nose toward the southwest, toward Forks. Toward Bella.

I hope that you all enjoyed my first one-shot. I had this vision in my mind and I had to write it. I hope that some of you at least saw this day as being Bella and Edward's wedding day...at first. :)

Let me know what you think, okay? Please Like, Share, Tweet, Comment, and VOTE!!! I'd love to hear your opinions!! :)

 

Love you all,

Cassandra :) xxxooo