I Cannot Hide This Even Though I Try ~ A COMPLETED One Direction Fanfic

Epilogue - The Big Day

“The limo is here. We need to be leaving here right now.”

“Oh, right, okay. Come on then, everyone, it’s time for us to go,” I manage to utter, my breathing going shallow again, constricting my voice. I slip my hand into my tuxedo pocket and gently rub my thumb over the pocket watch in there. “Oh, before I forget, you’re supposed to hold this,” I suddenly say, pulling a plain white box out of my other pocket and handing it to Danielle. “It’s your duty as the, uh, maid of honour.”

“I know. Now come on, it’s time to go!” she urges, taking the box before lightly pushing on my shoulder to get me to move.

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As I stand at the end of the aisle, my eyes begin to wander over the crowd. I smile at my parents and sisters, but quickly turn my attention elsewhere. I see Niall’s dad and his stepdad, and I share a broad smile with them both. They’re like a second family to me, which I suppose is fitting all things considered. Finally, my eyes land on the doors at the far end of the room.

Music begins playing and the crowd stands up, all of them turning to face the doors. In walk Daisy and Phoebe, Lou’s twin sisters, both in white dresses with scarlet bows in their hair, both holding baskets filled with flowers of the same colour. Next, Abby and Rayne walk in wearing knee-length scarlet dresses, their hair curled and pinned back. After them, Louis and Josh walk in with matching suits, suspenders, and ties, both of them grinning like mad. Lastly, Maura walks in, her arm linked with his.

As part of the preparations for the wedding, Niall and I haven’t seen each other in over a week. Last time I saw him, his hair was as long as I had ever seen it, and I wasn’t sure what he was going to do about the fact that his roots were showing. Now, his hair is an amazing chestnut brown, and is back to the length it was when we first auditioned for the X Factor. I admire his tuxedo, which is a brilliant white with the same grey waistcoat, white button-up, scarlet suspenders, scarlet bowtie, and black leather shoes as I’m wearing with my plain black tux.

After looking him over, I make eye contact with the most handsome man I’ve ever seen, and I can’t help but smile. The man walking towards me right now wears his heart on his sleeve, so anyone can see how he feels by his expression. At this exact moment, he’s smiling his crooked little smile, and his blue eyes are shining brighter than I’ve ever seen them shine before. His cheeks flush when he notices me, but he doesn’t break eye contact.

By the time Niall has made it to the end of the aisle, it feels like hours have passed, but I know it couldn’t have been more than a minute or two. The ceremony officially begins, and suddenly everything is happening too fast for me to keep up. The first portion of the ceremony goes by in a blur because I’m too busy drowning in the pools that are Niall’s eyes to really pay attention.

“Liam,” Paul addresses me, bringing me back to the situation at hand. “Do you take Niall to be your husband, constant friend, faithful partner and true love from this day forward? In the presence of your family and friends, do you offer your solemn vow to be a faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow? Do you promise to love him unconditionally, to support him in his goals, to honor and respect him, to laugh with him and cry with him, and to cherish him for as long as you both shall live?”

I glance at Paul, who became a licensed officiant just so that he could perform the ceremony for us, and then back at my fiancé. “I do,” I breathe, and for a moment I fear that my voice is too quiet to be heard, but then Paul continues to speak.

“Niall, do you take Liam to be your husband, constant friend, faithful partner and true love from this day forward? In the presence of your family and friends, do you offer your solemn vow to be a faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow? Do you promise to love him unconditionally, to support him in his goals, to honor and respect him, to laugh with him and cry with him, and to cherish him for as long as you both shall live?”