The Meeting

The Vows.

"Leah, from the moment we met you have been my saviour. You saved me from dark world of a fake smile after my mum died. You are my best friend, my soulmate and my inspiration.

We didn't have an easy journey to get us to the place we now find ourselves in, surrounded by our loved ones as we vow to love each other for eternity, but I want you to know that deep down I always knew you would be the person I stood here with.

If I tried to list all the things I love about you, I wouldn't know how to ever finish so I'll just tell you a few of them now but I promise to tell you the rest of them forever.

I love how much your family mean to you, they are at the root of everything you do and everything you wish to become. I love how passionate you are about your interests, refusing to conform to society's definition of normal. I love how your eyes sparkle when you talk about things you love. I love how you can make me feel like only you and I are present when we're in a room full of people.

During the months we spent apart, I tried so hard to forget you, to forget how to love you and to not miss you anymore but I realised that when you have met the person that you are made to spend forever with, it is not possible to find that with someone else. I want to thank you for never giving up on me, no matter how long had passed or how sure you were that you had lost me. Without you, my world seems colder, lonelier and has no meaning.

I can't promise that we won't ever argue, irritate each other or make thoughtless errors that cause the other upset but I can promise that as long as you're by my side, I am willing to work through these challenges with you.

I promise to hold you, support you, encourage you, protect you and love you. As long as we both shall live."

I had gotten through it. I had managed to say exactly what I felt about Leah without stuttering or messing it up. Not because of my rehearsals, not because of the times I had read and reread my vows but because the whole time I spoke, my Leah was smiling at me through her tears. Holding my hands, squeezing them exactly when I needed her to and willing me on when I felt I couldn't, just as she always had done.

"Alex, the last few years with you have been the best years of my life. You have been, and will always be, the important person in my world.

You are the best friend I have ever had, the person I know I can come to with problems, the person who makes me feel safe, the person that I think of in everything I do and every decision I make.

It hasn't always been an easy ride. I know I have made mistakes in the past but I hope I have shown you that I won't ever be so stupid again. From the moment I lost you, until the moment you came back, my heart ached for your love.

In your letter, you told me how you knew I was the one, I felt today would be the perfect opportunity to tell you how I knew you were the one. As I entered that train station in Manchester that day, every part of my brain told me it would be weird, too forward and too soon to go to Liverpool. I couldn't listen to my head though, because louder than any thought I could have, my heart beating in my chest told me that it was worth it. I will forever be glad that I made that decision, the decision to take a risk for love.

Love is never easy and I don't doubt that we will face challenges and obstacles in the future. Some may be small, but some may be significantly bigger. My promise to you today is that I will love you endlessly, through those challenges. I will communicate with you, be honest with you, be faithful to you and be strong for you to ensure we also come out stronger. As we always have done.

My love for you knows no limits, even when I think I cannot possibly love you anymore than I already do, a simple smile, laugh or touch is enough to force my heart into creating more love.

So today, in front of those we love. In front of your mum, who I wish I could have met, I stand here to promise that I will continue to love you more for as long as we both shall live."

By the time Leah had finished her vows, the tears were freely flowing from my eyes but the happiness was oozing from my smile. She used her thumbs to wipe my tears and I did the same for her, our bodies relaxing into the feeling of connection.

As the service came to an end, Leah wrapped her arms around my waist and mine folded around her neck. She pulled me in slowly and carefully, placing her lips against mine. Her top lip fell just above mine and with that, I was kissing my wife for the first time. The guests began to clap and cheer as we broke away from our moment, almost forgetting that anyone else was in the room.

We turned to walk by down the aisle, hand in hand. Married. Our love for soul music prominent through our wedding exit song, Ain't No Mountain High Enough as we cheered our way towards the doors of the reception.