We were in the Rust Bucket and Max was trying to get Ben into a tuxedo. The tuxedo was a family heirloom. It has been worn by Max, Ben's father and now, Ben himself. I couldn't wait to see how handsome he was going to look. My dress for the wedding was going to be a surprise. Max got it for me a few days ago.
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"Don't think I can this much longer," Ben said. "Just hold on. Almost there," Max said. "Can't... breathe." "Ben, don't give up on me now," he said. "Got to get out of here. Going hero." Ben said as he reached for the Omnitrix. "No, you're not. Save the drama, will you, please? I just need to make sure this tux fits."
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I looked at my love and I could tell that he was having difficulty breathing. "Better lessen that bow tie, Grandpa. Ben's brain needs all the oxygen it can get." She said. Not impressed with Gwen's comment, I slapped her arm. "The only thing worse than going to a stupid, old, boring wedding is being in a stupid, old, boring wedding. Why can't they find someone else to be the ring bearer?" He said.
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"It's only for one weekend. You'll live." "I'm glad we're here. I can't wait to see you and Ben walk down the aisle together, Paige. It'll kind of be foreshadowing for when you're 19." I blushed and looked at Ben. He winked at me and that made me blush even more. "This tuxedo is a family heirloom. It was mine when I was a kid. Then your dad wore it, and now you," Max said.
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"Oh, lucky me." He said, sarcastically. "Just be careful with it, please." "I'll make sure he's careful with it, Max. I promise," I said. He sent me a grateful smile. "Smile and say megadweeb." Gwen said as she took a picture. "Noooo!" He screamed, looking at it in horror.
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It was such a gorgeous day out. The weather was absolutely perfect. "Ugh, look at this dump. Makes you want to hurl, doesn't it?" "I think it's beautiful. It looks like a perfect location for our wedding, Benji." I said, taking his hand. He smiled, "If that's what you want to do, princess. That's what we'll do." Then he brought me into his arms and held me gently.
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"Uncle Max." "Joel. And this must be Camille. Congratulations," Max said. "I'm so glad you're here. Maybe you can talk some sense into my parents," Joel said. "Why? What's the problem?" Joel didn't get a chance to answer because his parents showed up. "Max." "Betty Jean, Gordon." He greeted them.
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"Ah, Max, we're so glad you're here. Maybe you can talk some sense into these kids." "What's going on?" He asked. "Ah, they don't know what they're doing. This whole wedding is a terrible mistake," Gordon said. "The whole wedding is a terrible mistake?" Max questioned. "See? Listen to your uncle Max." "Hang on a second. That's not what Max said. It doesn't matter what anyone thinks. If two people love each other, not even family can stop them from being together. Isn't that right, Ben?" I said.
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He nodded and took my hand. "That's right, princess. Even if our families didn't want Paige and I together, we're still going to be together because we love each other and NOTHING will ever change that. Isn't your child's happiness important to you?" He asked. Betty Jean and Gordon didn't say anything. "You're not going to say anything because you know we're right," I thought. "Now, Gordon, the kids are grown-up's. Who are we to get in the way?"
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"Exactly! Thank you! That's what Ben and I have been saying," I thought. "These are my parents -- Mr. and Mrs. Mann," Camille introduced. "I'm sorry we had to meet under such awkward circumstances." "So are we." "Maybe this won't be so boring after all," Ben said. "Nothing can be boring as long as we're together, Benji." "Uncle Max, this has been a nightmare -- not just the families. The wedding dress got lost, the photographer's camera got smashed, all the flowers up and died. Everything's going wrong." Joel said, panicking.
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"Don't worry. I'm sure it'll all work out." "Excuse me for interrupting, but I'm Gwen. This is Paige, your flower girl." "Gwen, I think you're more excited about this than I am," I said. "Of course I'm excited! You and Ben get to walk down the aisle together." She said, humming the wedding march. Later that night, Ben said that he wanted to take a dip in the lake.
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We were heading to the lake when we passed by a dessert truck. Ben saw a cake and had a huge smile on his face. "Come on, princess. Let's feed each other cake... it'll be good practice for our wedding." I reluctantly nodded and hoped that we wouldn't get caught. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. The person delivering the sweets caught us. "It's okay. We're the official food tasters. Yeah. Keep up the good work."
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We made it to the lake when we saw a sign. "No swimming? Now what are we supposed to do for fun, princess?" Ben asked. We saw the food truck speeding away and got an idea. He activated the Omnitrix and in a flash of green, he was Cannonbolt. We hit the track head on and it exploded. "Oh, yeah, it's scary being this good." Suddenly, everything was on fire. "Benji, we have to do something!" I said, freaked out.
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"This isn't working. We need water -- lots and lots of... Cannonbolt cannonball!" With the fire put out, we went to get out of the water Out of nowhere, guns were drawn on us. "Oh no!" I thought, shaking from fear, not from the water. "Boy, the lifeguards around here are really strict," he said. "An arburian pelarota." "An alien wedding crasher. Who sent you?" Betty Jean asked. "Nobody, I swear!" He said.
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"What is going on?" Joel asked. "This alien was trying to ruin the wedding." "I was trying to save the wedding!" Ben argued. "I can't imagine why, Benji. These people are crazy!" I thought. "Uh, it seems like he's telling the truth," Max said. "Still, better not take the chance. You know aliens -- can't trust any of them." "Camouphlat vaporis." Gwen cast a spell and steam appeared. When it was safe, we escaped.
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"He's getting away! Blast him!" Gordon shouted. "Put those things away. This is a wedding, not a shooting range," he said. "But that thing is still out there." "It doesn't matter. We want you to promise, no more weapons for the rest of the weekend," he said. I saw a shadow move and we went to follow it. "Hey, where'd he go?" Ben asked. I shrugged, not knowing what to say.
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Ww saw the shadow and rolled away from it. Suddenly, the Omnitrix timed out and Ben was back to normal. "Princess, are you ok?" "Yeah, are you?" He nodded, "I hate weddings. I can't wait for ours, my love," Ben said. I kissed his cheek, "Come on. Let's get back to the Rust Bucket." "I guess I forgot to mention that the groom's parents were Plumbers and the bride and her family are aliens, huh?" Max said.
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"I forgot too, sorry Benji." "Aliens? They don't look like aliens," she said. "They're just in disguise for the wedding. Actually, they're some of the toughest, nastiest, meanest beings in the galaxy. We call them Sludge Puppiea. The Plumbers and the Sludges have been going at it for generations. But a few years ago, their children, Joel and Camille, met and became close. A truce was forged from that single relationship. This is the first ever marriage between a mud alien and a human. It could put an end to years of fighting. It was one of my favorite stories that Max told me. I remember you used to tell it to me as I fell asleep," I said.
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Max smiled, "I still do." "And someone doesn't want that to happen," Ben said. "We'd better keep our eyes open. Something tells me the trouble is just starting." Later that night, we were at dinner with both families. I was excited about being the flower girl but right now, all I cared about was making sure everything went smoothly. "Sweetheart, when can I see your dress?" Ben asked.
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I smiled, "You know what they say, Benji. You can't see the bride before the wedding, it's bad luck. You can wait until tomorrow." I said, kissing his cheek. "I can't wait to hold you in my arms on that dance floor. Wait a minute... I don't know how to dance!" "Gwen, can you please help Ben?" I asked. "I can't refuse a request from my sister. I was going to let you squirm, but Paige and I did take cotillion for three years. Cotillion? It means -- oh, never mind. Paige and I know how to dance. I can teach you," she said.
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"Yeah, I'll think about it. For my princess, I'll do anything in the world. Even dance with you." Out of nowhere, dishes broke; destroying the peace of the evening. "Camille, I am not letting you marry any filthy human without a fight." "It's my ex-boyfriend! How'd he find out about the wedding?" Camille exclaimed. "That's got to be the thing that attacked us last night. It's payback time, princess. You ready?" He asked.
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"I'm more than ready, Benji. Let's do this." He activated the Omnitrix and in a flash of green light, he was Diamondhead. "Back off, dirtbag!" "A petrosapien. What are you doing here?" "Uh, friend of the groom?" Ben said. "Then you're no friend of mine." When he got hit... I'd had enough. "All right, listen here, dirtbag. Leave him alone. It's time you dealt with the most powerful sorceress in the world... me!" I threw some fireballs at but it didn't work.
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I ran to Ben's side. "Are you ok?" "I am now." He said as I kissed his cheek. Suddenly, the sludge grabbed us. Ben punched it while I threw a fireball at it. Then we ended up in the pool and the sludge alien dissolved. Ben and I came out of the water, covered in disgusting purple goo. "Ew, yuck!" We exclaimed. "It was a dirty job, but somebody had to do it." "We are not canceling my wedding," Camille argued.
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"Civilians will be at the wedding tomorrow. What if there's another alien attack?" "Please don't put this off. Paige and I are really happy to be here. All of us are," Ben said. "At least let us bring our Plumber gear." "No. No weapons," Joel said. "Everyone, relax. There's no need for weapons now. It's all over." "I wish I could believe that." Max took me aside, "Sweetheart, I want you to promise me that whatever happens tomorrow... if you're in danger, use your magic. No questions asked," he said.
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I nodded, "I promise, Max." Later on, Gwen and I entered the Rust Bucket and found Ben trying to dance. "You look like your underwear is too tight," she said. "Wa-a-a-h! Oof! Ha, very funny. Now buzz, Gwen." "You trust me to help kick alien butt. Why won't you trust me to teach you how to dance?" "Because you're probably just going to trick me into looking like some dancing doofus. I can't dance like a doofus with my princess in my arms. Not happening."
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"You don't need my help to dance like a doofus with Paige, so get over yourself and give me your hands," Gwen said. "Most important thing is don't step on her toes. Or you'll be hearing from me," she continued. "Ugh. This is so gross." "Like I don't know that? Now just count. One, two. One, two. Forward, back. Forward, back." She instructed. "Hey, I'm dancing. Princess, come here."
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I went into Ben's arms, he picked me up and twirled me around. Then he dipped me and kissed me. Before I closed my eyes, I saw Gwen take a picture of us. The next morning, we got up and got ready for the wedding. I came out of the bathroom, Max was standing there with tears in his eyes. "Max, what's wrong?" He hugged me, "My little girl is growing up. It seems like just yesterday, I held you for the first time," he said.
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Then Ben saw me and I thought he was going to faint. "Y-you l-look beautiful, princess." He said as he took me in his arms. "Come on, we don't want to be late." As I walked down the aisle with Ben and looked at Joel and Camille as they were getting married, I thought, "I can't wait for this to be us!" "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to witness the union between Joel and Camille."
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Max looked at us and gave us a thumbs up. "I am so proud. Just look at those two." I heard him say. "This young bride and groom are an inspiration. They remind us that love conquers all. If anyone has a reason why these two should not wed, let them speak now or forever hold --" The Reverend was cut off when some sludge was thrown at him. "Yeah, we have something to say." "This wedding and every human here are about to be canceled."
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"Mom, dad, what are you doing?" Camille demanded. "Putting an end to this once and for all." "It was her mom and dad behind the dirty tricks all along," Ben said. "What did I tell you? Once a sludge, always a sludge." "They set up the ex-boyfriend to take the fall and keep suspicion off of themselves," Max said. "There will be no wedding and no truce." Then Joel was grabbed, "But you said you liked me."
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"We lied." "Stop it. No!" She said, begging her father. "Stay out of this, Camille. This is for your own good." Then Camille was thrown to the ground. We had had enough! Ben activated the Omnitrix and was now Heatblast. I conjured up fireballs and was ready to burn everything In sight. We sent fire toward the sludge puppies and they dropped Joel. "Oh, yeah. We're all fired up. Right, princess?" He asked.
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"Absolutely! Now, where were we?" "Another wedding crasher. Why'd we even bother with invitations? Then they transformed into their alien forms and hit Ben. Gwen grabbed my hand as we were about to get hit. "Stingu invisibus!" Unfortunately, the spell didn't work. I froze and couldn't do anything. She grabbed my hand and we ran as fast as we could. We dodged the alien's attempts to grab us.
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But soon, Gwen and I were grabbed. Then a blast was fired and I saw Max, Gordon and Betty Jean. "Claws off my granddaughters, sludge!" Max said. He messed with his weapon so it would explode. "Max! "Grandpa!" Gwen and I got him out of there as quickly as possible. "Oh my gosh! I forgot about Ben! Don't worry, I'm coming!" I said, as I raced to find him.
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When we found him, he was ok. Mr. and Mrs. Mann were frozen like statues. "Little big for the wedding cake... but it's the thought that counts," Camille said. "I now pronounce you man and wife." "Yep. Best wedding ever." "It sure is, Benji," I said. Now, we were at the reception and Ben and I were dancing. The song was A Thousand Years by Christina Perri. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world.
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I closed my eyes and put my head on his shoulder. Then My Little Girl by Tim McGraw came on. Max came over and extended his hand, "Paige, sweetheart, may I have this dance?" I took his had and we danced the night away.
Hello everyone. Here is a picture of what my dress looks like in this chapter. Plus the songs from the reception. Enjoy💚
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