ooooookay this one's a looooong one
get ready for tears. lots of them. happy tears to be specific
PLEASE enjoy!
———
August 13th, 2019
Holiday House
Watch Hill, Rhode Island
Tiny drops of water raced down along the window, blurring the sea-view outside. Kaia tried to focus on one single drop and track it's path all the way down to the windowsill but every single time, another rain drop would slide into it, either forming a larger glob or simply dispersing in every direction.
Eventually, her own vision started to blur entirely. She blinked before her eyes could get teary from going out-of-focus for too long. She didn't want to unintentionally ruin the makeup Layla had just spent the large majority of the morning perfecting.
There was a light knock on the door before someone barged in and though Kaia didn't turn around to see who it was, she didn't have to. Mica's voice was loud enough to announce his presence.
"It's fucking insane out there, I almost got drenched!" He exclaimed, sitting down on the edge of the bed and running his fingers through his hair to shake off the rain.
"I know, I can tell," Kaia sighed, keeping her gaze trained on the window closest to her as more and more rain drops splashed against the glass, a lot faster now.
"What are you going to do?" Mica asked, taking his camera out of its case and making sure no water got inside.
"Oh, dad was smart enough to suggest we get that tent thing, just in case," Kaia explained. "I'm glad we listened. I think we're going to be okay. We'll just wait for the rain to stop before getting out there, I suppose."
"It doesn't look like it's going to stop any time soon," Layla mentioned quietly, her words muffled by the hair clip she was holding between her teeth as she worked through each strand of Kaia's hair.
"It might!" Kaia exclaimed annoyedly. "I— well, at the very least it will slow down a little. We've still got at least a few more hours before heading out, anyway."
"In all cases, I used waterproof mascara. You can get drenched, or bawl your eyes out. You'll be fine," Layla told her with a little amused smirk.
"I'm sure I'm going to be crying like a baby by the end of the night," Kaia mumbled, smiling shyly down at her lap. She twisted the ring on the fourth finger of her left hand off, turning it around in her palm before moving it to her right hand. It felt odd to wear it on the other finger, but her excitement bubbled up when she thought about the simple gold band she was going to be wearing instead in just a few short hours.
"I think I might also cry," Mica laughed, leaving his camera on the bed when he was sure it was safe and coming over to Kaia's side, planting a kiss on the top of her head, careful not to ruin Layla's hard work. "Tu es magnifique." [you look beautiful.]
Kaia couldn't help but blush. Her hair wasn't even done yet, and she was still in her bathrobe, but it was still nice to be complimented. "Merci," she replied softly.
"Do you want me to go check on T?" He asked, knowing that the two had followed tradition and hadn't seen or talked to each other since going to sleep in separate rooms the night before.
"Yes, please!"
"I'll be right back, then," he told her, squeezing her shoulder on his way out.
"Also," Kaia stopped him with his hand paused over the door handle. "Tell her I love her. And I miss her. And I'm so excited! And that I love her!"
"And that I'll be there in twenty minutes. We're almost done here," Layla added with a little chuckle.
"Got it!" Mica laughed, hurrying to the master bedroom with a shake of his head.
Kaia tried to relax in her seat as Layla curled the last strand of her hair, but she was restless.
"You're going to have to sit still for this next bit. That, or don't complain to me when your hair's all wonky!"
"Fine! I'll try!" Kaia huffed, sitting up straighter and closing her eyes while Layla went ahead and braided her hair from the sides and tying those braided strands together from the back, leaving the rest of her hair cascading over her shoulders like a waterfall.
"There we go!" Layla finally sighed in relief, brushing her fingers loosely through Kaia's hair, careful not to ruin the waves. "Do you want to add the flowers to the braids now?"
"Yeah, why not," Kaia shrugged slightly and Layla nodded, grabbing the handful of baby's breath and adding them to the plaits that twisted along the crown of her head.
"We're all done," she murmured softly, dropping her hands down to her sister's shoulder. "And you look absolutely gorgeous."
"Thank you," Kaia replied, unable to keep her excitement contained as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. "Seriously. Thank you. This is all you."
"Well... yeah, a little bit," Layla said playfully, making Kaia laugh. She pushed her chair back and got up, wrapping her arms tightly around her sister.
"I love you. So, so much."
Layla hugged her little sister back, squeezing her tightly. "I love you too, Kibs."
After she pulled away, Kaia went to sit down on the edge of the bed while Layla tidied up her things.
"I know I asked Mica, but can you remind Taylor that I love her when you see her?"
Layla laughed softly, nodding her head. "Sure thing. I'll let her know. I'll be back soon!"
As she opened the door to leave, Anna and Emilia barged in, gasping loudly as soon as they saw her.
"Oh my god!" Anna shouted, running over to her side. "Oh my god, Kaia! Shut up, you look beautiful!"
"I know!" Kaia replied just as excitedly. She wasn't going to lie when she did look great, all thanks to Layla who slipped out of the room with the goofiest grin on her face to head to the room Taylor was in and help her with her hair and makeup.
"How are you feeling?" Millie asked as she sat down next to her. The girls looked gorgeous in their wine-coloured dresses and their own flower crowns that were made by Kaia herself. It only made her that much more excited about the day as though it were even possible.
"I could barely get a wink of sleep last night! I've been up since five, actually. And I'm so jittery and excited, my hands are literally shaking! Were you like this on your wedding day?" Kaia ranted, talking much faster than usual.
"Have you forgotten how big of a mess I was the whole bloody time?" Anna laughed, wrapping an arm around Kaia's shoulders and squeezing her gently.
"Anyway, we got some champers!" Emilia said, pulling out a bottle of Moët that was already open and pouring some into three glasses.
"It's barely even noon!" Kaia exclaimed but still she accepted the champagne flute and took a sip, careful not to ruin her lipstick.
"Yeah, you'll need the alcohol boost," Anna told her, smiling amusedly as Kaia took an even bigger sip.
"I don't think so," she replied anyway. "I'm okay. I'm excited and everything but, I don't think I've ever been more sure of anything else in my life. I've never felt... calmer. I know this is right."
"Gosh, I'm so happy for you, Kibs," Millie said softly, squeezing her tightly.
"All right then! Where's your dress?" Anna asked, leaning back against the headboard with her legs crossed. "Which shoes did you end up choosing?"
Kaia jumped up enthusiastically and left the champagne on the end table before running to the closet where her dress was hanging and the heels were sitting in their box right under it.
"Okay, so! It's not the ones I showed you last time. I made a last minute change while I was going through my mum's things and I found these heels from like the 80s or something! I think she might have worn them to her graduation but they're perfect!" Kaia explained, rushing to show her friends the shoes.
Meanwhile, in the bedroom all the way on the other side of the house, when Layla knocked on the door, no one opened it even though she could hear some chatter inside. She knocked again, harder this time and Abigail opened the door, smiling tightly at Layla.
"Hey! How's it going?" Layla greeted her with a warm smile when Abby opened the door further, revealing Taylor, pacing around the room in a bathrobe. "Ah... what's happened?"
"I have no idea, but we're spiralling, apparently. So..." Abby let Layla in and closed the door behind her.
Andrea was standing with another one of Taylor's childhood friends Layla hadn't met before, trying to get her to sit down. She also spotted Mica cowering in the corner, chewing on his thumb.
"Hi..." she said hesitantly, dropping her things near the mirror. "Is there a problem with the preparations?" No one heard her though, so she approached Mica who looked very worried. "What happened?"
"I mentioned the weather," he whispered, moving from chewing the side of his thumb to picking his cuticles with his teeth. "And one thing led to another..."
"Mom, what if she doesn't actually want this though?"
"Oh, are you actually serious?" Layla couldn't help but laugh, crossing over to stand between Taylor and her mom and hold her by the shoulders. "Do you mean, Kaia? You're asking if Kaia doesn't actually want this wedding?"
Taylor jumped back, spooked by Layla's sudden appearance, but she didn't answer, choosing to look down at her toes instead.
"You're actually insane if you think that," she chuckled, playfully shaking the blonde. Then, she pointed at Mica behind her and asked, "did he tell you that she wanted you to know that she loves you? And what was it, that she misses you, and that she's very excited?"
"And that she loves you! She said it twice!" Mica chimed in, jumping off the bed and standing right behind Layla, his head poking over her shoulder. "I told her, but it was too late. She was already halfway through hyperventilating."
"All right, well, she wanted me to remind you as well, again, that she loves you," Layla told her, squeezing her arm. "She obviously wants this."
"I know she loves me! But like, that doesn't mean she wants to actually marry me—" Taylor replied, speaking fast and without any breaths but Layla had to cut her off.
"Where's all this coming from?" she furrowed her eyebrows. "We were both there when she proposed, Tay. I think she wants this."
"Right, but I've fucked up a billion times since then—"
"And you're gonna fuck a billion more times!" Abby told her with a frustrated sigh.
"Why did I mention the bloody weather?" Mica grumbled, hiding his face in Layla's shoulder.
The older Browne sister sighed softly and ran her hands up and down Taylor's arms. "Come on, how about we sit down? We don't have much time. I've got to get you ready, then get ready myself, then make sure my sister, your bride, didn't fuck up all my hard work."
Taylor didn't answer but she let Layla lead her to the chair. As Layla set up her equipment, Taylor kept fumbling with her ring, staring at it intently.
"What are we thinking?" Layla asked softly, releasing Taylor's wet hair from the bun atop her head and smoothing the blond curls down her back with her fingers. "Down? Up? Half up, half down?"
"It's raining," Taylor mentioned instead.
"Yes, it is," Layla replied patiently. She had had to deal with her fair share of nervous breakdowns and she knew how to keep the situation from spiralling further. She had to remain calm herself. "You know, I still haven't seen your outfit. I need to know what you're wearing to know what to do here."
"It wasn't supposed to be raining!" Taylor continued. "We checked the weather just last night! It wasn't supposed to rain during the day."
"Honey, the weather's unpredictable. It's fine. Everything's still going according to plan," Andrea tried to reassure her daughter.
Layla went on normally, plugging in the hairdryer and getting the brushes ready.
"You can't see it from this side of the house, I'm guessing. Dad's got it under control though. They finished setting up the tent this morning, just before it started raining, and he's overlooking everything himself. So, it won't be an issue. We've also got umbrellas, but the rain should at least ease up a little within the next hour. So, you'll be able to cross to the tent with no issues," Layla explained calmly, setting down each hair product on the vanity table one by one. "Besides, I'm sure it will make everything look more aesthetic. Kaia loves this weather. She might have manifested herself."
"She does love the rain," Taylor mumbled, fumbling with the string keeping her robe tied together. "How's she doing?"
"Surprisingly, she's very collected. Actually, calmer than I expected," she chuckled, using a bunch of hair clips to section off Taylor's hair. "She knows what she wants, and that's you."
Taylor blushed softly, dropping her gaze down to her lap.
"I'm going to find something to drink," Abby mentioned, already heading toward the door.
"Oh, I'm coming with you!" Mica rushed outside right behind her.
"That sounds like a great idea!" Brittany exclaimed, following them into the hall.
Once the room was quiet, Andrea went to sit on the bed and Taylor, though still nervous, seemed to relax slightly while Layla combed her fingers through a strand of her hair.
"She's not freaking out?" Taylor asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Not at all," Layla reassured her. "In fact... well, I thought she would have a panic attack. I was expecting one. But she's fine. Which means she knows exactly what to expect. She knows just how right this all is. No matter what happens, she's going to marry you today."
Once again, Taylor didn't answer. She picked at her nails only to stop when she didn't want to ruin the fresh nail varnish.
"Can I ask you something?" Layla continued, a little hesitantly.
"Yeah?"
"Are you freaking out because... you're having doubts? Or is it, I don't know— are you trying to find something that's going to go wrong? Like the rain, which you have absolutely no control over?"
"No, no, of course not! I—" Taylor struggled to put her thoughts into words. "I just... I don't want to mess up." Her voice was just barely above a whisper as she admitted that.
"Can I butt in for a second?" Andrea said, smiling at her daughter.
"I feel like you're going to anyway," Taylor mumbled, making her mother laugh.
"Honey, you're going to mess up. Eventually, maybe a year into your marriage, maybe ten... you're going to mess up. You both will. It's almost inevitable. But it's how you decide to move on past those mistakes, how to make it right that truly matters. With your dad and I, I guess it was a bunch of little things that kept accumulating. I don't know if you remember any of the fights—"
"I do," Taylor interrupted softly. "Which is why— I mean, we don't always fight, but when we do it's always, like, a big, explosive one. And marriages are like super stressful!" Taylor looked up at Layla. "You and Connell don't fight that much, do you?"
"I mean... pshhhht... like, it's never as explosive as your fights with my sister, but we do argue a lot. Just last night we had a fight because he didn't want to wear a tie—"
"He's not wearing a tie?" Taylor cut her off, once again panicking about something else going wrong.
"He is going to be wearing a tie because my sister, your bride-to-be, threatened to hang him with it if he didn't wear it and ruined all your wedding photos," Layla laughed, patting Taylor's shoulder comfortingly. "She'd rather kill my boyfriend than not give you the perfect wedding. So, based on your history, I'd say you're due for another argument pretty soon. But, again, based on your history, it'll only bring you even closer somehow."
"Do you want to marry her today?" Andrea asked, coming up right next to her daughter.
"I don't think I've ever wanted anything else in my life as much as I've wanted this," Taylor immediately responded with no hesitation.
"Well, there you have it then," Andrea smiled widely, wrapping her arms around Taylor who leaned her head against her. "You just focus on today. Worry about those other things when they actually do happen. You two will be just fine. I know it."
Taylor simply nodded, hugging her mom back and nuzzling her arm.
"How about I get you a drink? What do you say?"
"Some wine would be nice," she mumbled, nodding once again.
"All right. Coming right up!" Andrea kissed the top of her head before leaving the room to let Layla start working.
"Okay, are you going to show me your dress now so we can figure out what we're doing with your hair and makeup?"
"Right!" Taylor cleared her throat and scrambled out of her seat. "I think it would look great with an up do... what do you think? Nothing too excessive or fancy. Just keeping it simple."
She unzipped the garment bag and held the dress in front of her, causing Layla's eyes to widen in astonishment.
"Oh my god, that is gorgeous! I—" She nodded excitedly, walking up to get a closer look at the intricate details. "Mon dieu, yes... absolutely. Keeping it simple! Let's do it!"
"Great!" Taylor grinned as she placed the dress back and rushed to sit in front of the mirror again. "The rain's really not going to ruin anything, is it?"
"Just the fact that it's going to be a tent ceremony now instead of an outdoor ceremony," she shrugged, letting her fingers comb through the blonde's locks to untangle them.
Taylor managed to smile and relax, closing her eyes to let Layla actually start working.
***
"Oh, great! You didn't ruin your hair!" Layla exclaimed as she rushed into Kaia's room after finally getting dressed herself.
"I've been sitting soooooo still, I think my neck's turned to stone," Kaia answered, turning very slowly to greet her sister.
"You're not in your dress yet? The wedding starts in like, ten minutes?" Layla exclaimed, closing the door behind her.
"See, I have a useless wedding party. They're all too scared to touch it!" Kaia exclaimed, glaring at Millie, Anna, Sam, and Izzie. "But have you seen Sam's suit? It came out so cool!" She giggled.
Layla looked around the room, spotting the bottle of champagne in the corner with less than a sip left in it. "Are you guys drunk?"
"Of course not!" Kaia exclaimed.
"See..." Anna cleared her throat, standing up awkwardly. "She got really nervous after the first sip... and drinking more helped a lot."
"My god, the pair of you," Layla couldn't help but laugh. "If it makes you feel any better, Taylor's also a mess. A gorgeous mess, though! So, you better sober up!"
"I'm not drunk," Kaia promised her. "I'm just super jittery and excited and nervous and— is it still raining?"
"Yep, less though, so that's good!" Emilia pointed out.
"Hey— can I get drunk tonight?" Sam wondered, fiddling with their bowtie.
"Ask your mum, dumb ass," Izzie shot back.
"She's your mum too, dip shit!"
"All right, get dressed already! Everyone's already out there!" Layla grabbed her sister by the shoulders, dragging her toward the closet where the dress was hanging from. "And you're walking down the aisle first!"
"I still can't believe you played rock, paper, scissors to decide!" Anna laughed, standing up so she could help out.
"It's not as easy without your heterosexual traditions," Kaia rolled her eyes. "How else would you have had us choose who was going to walk down the aisle first?"
"I think whoever tops should stand there like a groom," Sam said casually, making their twin elbow them hard.
"Mate!"
Kaia turned to her cousin, eyebrow raised in disbelief. "I'm not about to discuss my sex life with you, but that's a very dumb idea."
"I'm just saying," they continued. "I'll be standing up there at my wedding!"
"No, your bottom arse definitely won't!" Isobel teased their sibling who gasped in shock.
"Shut up! I'm not a bottom, you dickhead!"
Millie snorted loudly, helping Anna get the dress out of the garment bag. "I forgot just how entertaining these kids are."
"Oi! We're almost adults!" Isobel huffed, only making the actual adults in the room laugh harder.
"Trust me, babes, you don't want to be an adult just yet," Layla sighed heavily.
In just another thirty minutes, Kaia was dressed and ready to go. Her dad was waiting outside the door with Mica behind him and as soon as Anna let them in, they were both gobsmacked speechless.
Georges took his glasses off and passed his finger under his eyes. "My darling..." he spoke softly, sounding almost out of breath.
"No, dad, if you start crying, I'll start crying, and then Loul will start crying because I'd have ruined all her hard work and— let's not, please!"
Her dad and sister both laughed, though Georges was very obviously tearing up.
"You can cry, I used the expensive stuff," Layla chuckled.
"I need to show you something," he croaked, pulling out his phone and scrolling through his pictures. "I was looking through the old albums the other day, and... well, I found these pictures from your mum and I's wedding, and, you just look so much like her today..."
Kaia glanced at his phone as he clicked on a picture of him and Nour almost thirty years ago at their wedding. Her dress was long-sleeved and only had a flowery lace pattern around the waistline, while Kaia's was sleeveless with thick, lacy straps over her shoulders and even more lace all the way down the sheath gown. Her hair though, was done up almost the same exact way, and she wasn't sure if she had come up with the idea along with her sister based on the pictures they had seen of their mum at her wedding while growing up or if it was sheer coincidence. But it made her smile up at her dad and lean against him as he embraced her tightly.
"I'm sorry, I'm going to be very embarrassing today."
Kaia laughed, hugging her dad tighter. "Don't apologise. I expect nothing less," she teased him, squeezing him one more time before letting go.
Georges pretended to be wounded before smiling fondly at his youngest daughter. "You look absolutely, radiantly magnificent, sweetheart. And I have to be honest... I didn't really think this day would ever come. I thought I'd be walking your sister down the aisle first, and I wasn't so sure with you. So, yes, I'm going to be teary-eyed all night long."
"I love you, dad," Kaia sniffled, wrapping her arms around her dad's elbow.
"And I love you, Kookie."
The rain had thankfully slowed down to a soft drizzle as Kaia's wedding party walked outside. She followed after them, arm in arm with Georges, and into the large tent where all their guests were already waiting. She quietly waved at all their friends and family members as she passed by, unable to keep herself from grinning excitedly. Finally, she found herself standing at the very front with Austin who was going to officiate their union because a website on the internet made it legal for him to do so. Georges left a kiss on her cheek, mentioning he loves her one more time before going to sit at the very front.
"Oh my god, Teff's going to freak!" Austin squealed, running his hand's down his stubble.
"What? Why?" Kaia's eyes widened worriedly, glancing down at her dress when Austin's hand grabbed hers and he smiled softly.
"You look amazing, Kibs. Like, seriously beautiful."
Kaia blushed, looking down at the ground to avoid his eyes, focusing on the soft wedding march Taylor's band was playing in the background. "Thank you, Austin. You don't look too bad yourself in a tux."
"Thank you!" He smirked, holding his wrist up and adjusting the sleeve of his shirt under the blazer like secret agents do in spy films. Kaia rolled her eyes though she couldn't help but smile affectionately at the man she was going to be calling her brother in a few minutes. "Oh! Oh! I see mom! I think it's time!"
Kaia spun around, catching a glimpse of Andrea who was telling the band that they could start playing the song Taylor was going to walk down the aisle to. It wasn't the regular rendition of the song that Kaia had heard countless times during their wedding rehearsals which confused her because it sounded beautiful and very familiar, in fact. She froze when Taylor's bridal party had made it inside, and the flower girl, James, started walking down the aisle, tossing petals left and right and stopping midway to wave at her parents. Ryan laughed as Blake ushered their daughter to keep going and everyone started laughing at the adorable little girl but Kaia was too busy trying to keep her breathing steady.
She was stuck trying to decide whether she wanted to watch Taylor walk over to her or wait until she reached her side before turning around.
Andrea hurried to her seat and Kaia sent her a small smile when Taylor stepped inside on the arm of her father.
Kaia froze completely; she realised she wasn't even breathing. But it was impossible to remember how to get her lungs to start working again as Taylor marched toward her in her gown. It was breathtaking, leaving her shoulders and chest completely bare, a long train following her. It had quite a lot going on, which didn't surprise Kaia, but it was still incredible elegant and Taylor looked absolutely regal in it.
Austin leaned in, his grin as wide as his face allowed, and whispered, "breathe," just as Scott stopped in front of the small step and kissed his daughter on the cheek.
Taylor was standing right next to Kaia now, and she still couldn't move, or breathe, or form any sounds when Taylor's hand shot up and she gently ran a shaky finger along Kaia's cheek.
Shit, she was crying. She hadn't even noticed.
"Hi," Taylor breathed out shakily, and when they met each other's gazes again, they both laughed and stepped even closer.
"Hi," Kaia whispered, holding Taylor's hand that was still cupping her cheek and kissing her palm softly before lacing their fingers together at their side. Taylor squeezed Kaia's hand, her deep blue eyes watery, and Kaia squeezed back three times, pulling her in for a hug.
"Hi," Taylor whispered a second time, giggling as Kaia buried her face in her neck, sniffling softly. "You look so beautiful, my god."
Kaia shook her head, unable to respond without breaking down completely, and finally pulled back. "Shit— sorry," she spoke loudly now, laughing at herself.
Austin cracked, his head tossed back as he shook with laughter along with everyone else in the room.
"Do you need a moment?" He asked softly, beaming affectionately at them.
"I don't think a moment's going to be enough," Taylor replied, and Kaia blushed knowing it was true. She would stare at her all day long if given the opportunity.
"Let's start, then," he said, clearing his throat gently, and holding out his cards. "Actually, I have no idea why I have these!" He laughed, stuffing the note cards back in his pocket. "I'm nowhere near qualified to do this thing. I watched like a million videos on YouTube trying to get inspired but in the end, I figured just winging it and talking from the heart was the way to go. Plus, I'll save you guys from a lame, half-drunk speech later."
Kaia and Taylor shared a look, both of them rolling their eyes at Austin who was quite pleased with his joke.
"Love... is like oatmeal. It sustains you!"
"Is that from Brooklyn 99?" Kaia whispered and Taylor nodded, sighing heavily as her brother kept talking, proud of himself for that.
"And marriages are like a big bowl of overnight chocolate chip and peanut butter oats. Sorry, I had to make that joke! Now, I've known Taylor my whole entire life. She's always been my older sister, you know, the one I looked up to even after I started gaining height on her when I turned twelve. I remember when we were kids, she used to make me run around and play house with her dolls and sometimes, the dolls would have weddings and she had this detailed image of her prince charming and how magical it was all going to be, and honestly, Teffy? That Prince Charming always sounded like a major douche! So, you can't even begin to imagine how relieved I am that your magical knight in shining armour or whatever is Kaia."
Kaia glanced up at Taylor whose cheeks were burning red.
"I'm glad too," she told her brother before smiling at Kaia and squeezing her hand.
"And I remember when I first met Kaia, and the first time I ever saw you two together in the same room. I could tell you cared about my sister, that you were just so genuine and so... I don't think I had ever heard Taylor do that pig-squeal laugh in public before, but you made her squeal like a pig and I didn't even wanna tease her about it! It was just... I think everyone in here can agree, actually. You've always had this like invisible, glowing bubble around you whenever you're in the same room. It's like no one else is ever there. I don't know if I've ever personally felt true love and joy with anyone else before but when I look at you guys, well that's what it looks like to me. I guess, that's what we're doing here today. We're celebrating this pure love— your love, and I don't think there's anything that quite compares to it. It's golden, isn't it?"
"Like daylight," Taylor whispered in response.
Austin laughed softly, rubbing his eyes as he had started getting emotional. He shared a knowing glance and a grin with his sister who wanted to hug him tight and never let go but they stood their ground and he looked at the two brides expectantly.
"I believe you guys prepared your own vows?"
Taylor nodded and let go of Kaia's hand so she could slip it into her pocket and—
"Holy shi— your dress has pockets?" She squealed and Taylor grinned, jumping up on her toes excitedly.
"Yes, it does! That's like the second thing I'm most excited about today!"
"The first being the cake?" Her brother butted in and though she rolled her eyes at him, she still laughed.
"Okay, uh," Taylor cleared her throat as she unfolded a piece of paper and held Kaia's hand again. Then she looked up sheepishly and dropped the paper. "I actually memorised this. I just wanted to show you my pockets."
Kaia burst out laughing along with everyone else. "Well, I love them."
"I love you," she replied cheekily. "And— okay, I think... you've already heard my vows."
Kaia couldn't help but giggle as she remembered the night that Taylor had proposed and recited all of her promises to her. It was adorable.
"And I know I tend to talk a lot and get super emotional and make very long speeches and I'm already so close to crying and choking up because you're actually marrying me today!" Taylor let out a shaky breath and Kaia squeezed her hand. "I guess, just like Austin said. My whole life, I always wondered when I'd meet my prince charming, or the perfect James Dean kinda guy to sweep me off my feet. I'd sit in the park reading, thinking I'd meet them there. Or in a coffee shop, or a bookshop. Never in a million years would I have thought that it would be at an after party while I was drunk on like four mojitos but then again, I suppose it fits perfectly in the story that we've written so far. Every single day, I think back to that moment I bumped into you and I think I knew it instantly, as soon as you turned around and looked up at me, I'd never be able to leave you alone."
"And you never did," Kaia murmured, her smile widening.
"No, I stalked you a bunch of times!" Taylor said, laughing at her younger self. "But I also realised that night that I didn't need to look for that Prince Charming anymore. I didn't need a prince charming. I just needed an extraordinary person who was extraordinarily normal. I'd found my soulmate. My person. My best friend. Someone who could make my whole world stop just by smiling at me, but also, start it all— My life truly started when I met you. And we just finished the first book and now we're moving on to the sequel and I can't wait to live it all with you. I love you."
Kaia ran her hand over her cheek to wipe a stray tear and stepped closer to Taylor.
"I love you too, Tay. I've loved you way before you even knew I ever existed," she started, grinning sheepishly at the ground. "You were always a dream to me. Never in a million years did I ever imagine actually meeting you, let alone standing here today. If you had told my sixteen year old self that I'd be marrying Taylor Swift, I would have laughed. Getting married? Me? To Taylor Swift? It sounds surreal to say it out loud even now. But, here we are, and there's nothing that's ever felt more right than this exact moment. Nothing's ever felt as right as being with you does. And well, I love you, Taylor, and I always will."
Taylor laced their fingers together and squeezed Kaia's hand, murmuring "I love you" softly.
Austin hopped excitedly turning to his sister first. "Do you, Taylor Alison Swift, take Kaia Browne to be your wife?"
"I do," she replied, never once breaking eye contact with Kaia who was just barely keeping it together.
"And do you, Kaia Browne, take Taylor Swift to be your wife?"
Kaia nodded, swallowing back the lump in her throat, and said, "of course, I do."
"The rings?"
Taylor's godson, Leo, ran up to them and she crouched down to his level to retrieve the velvet jewellery box.
"Thank you, buddy!"
Leo hugged her tight and Taylor kissed his cheek before giving him a fist bump and sending him back to his mother's side.
Kaia was on the verge of sobbing at the sight alone.
Austin helped Taylor stand back up and held the box open. They slipped the wedding bands on each other's fingers and Kaia finally allowed herself to let out that shaky breath, closing the gap between them and kissing Taylor with everything in her.
"I— well, I guess, you may kiss the bride?" Austin said while everyone cheered loudly and started clapping.
Kaia pulled away, laughing through her tears and leaning her forehead against Taylor's. "Je t'aime. Je t'aime de tout mon coeur." [I love you. I love you with all my heart.]
Taylor kissed her once more, gentler this time. "I love you too," she whispered against her lips.
The next hour was all a blur. They made it back to the house for the reception and Taylor and Kaia went around saying hi to all their guests who congratulated them. They hadn't invited more than a few dozen people but it was still overwhelming. They had to take pictures with just about everyone next and Mica was surprisingly being quite professional and nice to them about it. They barely had time to sit and have their first official drink as a married couple before it was time for them to have their first dance.
Ed stood on the small makeshift stage with just his guitar and started singing Perfect.
"It was really nice of Ed to do this," Kaia murmured as Taylor's arms snaked around her waist, pulling her even closer.
"Mhm, he offered," Taylor chuckled, smiling widely down at her wife. It still didn't feel real. "Hi."
Kaia grinned, brushing her thumb over Taylor's cheek. "Have I mentioned how ethereal you look today?"
"Not yet," Taylor told her. "Thank you. I do think we look amazing."
"Babe, we're killing it!"
Taylor laughed, cupping Kaia's face in her hands and kissing her. "I can't believe I was so nervous this morning when I'm literally marrying you!" She stopped and gasped softly. "I'm married to you. Babe, we're married!"
"Babe, you're my wife!"
"Babe, you're my wife!"
"Babe!"
They both laughed hard again and shared another kiss and when they pulled apart, Kaia rested her cheek on Taylor's shoulder and they continued to sway to Ed's comforting voice. Taylor hummed the last few lyrics in Kaia's ear before more people joined them to dance. Ed played another couple of songs before giving the stage back to Taylor's band and going to dance with his partner.
"I am so happy for you, my darling girl," Georges whispered during the father and daughter dance as they swayed to the song, Kaia's head resting on his chest. He rubbed her arms, pulling her closer to him. "And I know your mum's so damn proud of you. We used to spend hours talking about this day and I think she would have been so happy tonight."
"She was always worried I'd end up alone," Kaia laughed softly, embracing him tighter. "I wish she could have been here."
"She is," he told her, stopping for a second to meet her eyes. "In more ways than one. She's always with us."
"I know," Kaia whispered, swallowing back a lump in her throat.
When the song ended, Kaia searched the room for Taylor but she wasn't there. She spotted Scott and asked him if he knew anything but he only said she had run off somewhere as soon as the song had ended.
Kaia pouted, deciding to go around in search of the blonde. Five seconds they had been married and she had already lost her wife!
"KIBS, KIBS, KIBS!"
She turned around to find Selena calling her. The singer hugged her tightly, squealing in her ear.
"Why the long face?"
"I lost my wife," Kaia admitted with a little sheepish laugh. "Have you seen her?"
"I think she said something about the bathroom?" Gigi said with a small shrug.
"All right, thanks, guys!" Kaia hugged them once more before moving to the hallways.
"Pst, connasse!" [Pst, idiot!]
Kaia turned around when she heard Mica's voice while flipping him off only for him to take a picture of the exact moment she held her middle finger up. Nothing says classy like a bride flipping off her friend in her wedding dress.
Mica cackled as he checked the picture. "How did you manage to make this one look good? Unbelievable."
"I'm just gorgeous like that!" She responded cheekily. "Have you seen my wife anywhere?"
"Oh my god, fuck, Kibs! Your wife!"
"I know!" she replied excitedly. "I can't stop saying it!"
"It's going to start being annoying, isn't it?"
Kaia only smiled at him in response. "Well, have you seen her?"
"She was dancing with her dad a moment ago," he told her with a shrug, poking his head back into the room with the dance floor. "Oh, she's in there talking to Kamilah."
"Oh?" Kaia turned back around with her eyebrows raised. She wasn't there a moment ago! "Hm... well, let's eat, then."
Kaia went back to Taylor's side, the blonde automatically wrapping her arms around her frame. "Couldn't find you," she mumbled, slipping her hand into Taylor's pocket.
"I'm sorry, I had to use the bathroom," she murmured back, kissing her forehead gently. "Do you want to eat something?"
"I'm too excited to stomach anything!"
"Me too," Taylor laughed as she dragged Kaia back to their table with their families. "We have to, though. I'm slightly tipsy already."
Kaia giggled as they slipped into their chairs. Andrea came up behind them, leaving a kiss on the back of their heads each before sitting down next to her daughter.
"You looked truly magnificent up there," she said, her voice sounding thick as though she had just been crying. "Ugh, you girls have made my heart so full tonight."
"Moooom," Taylor cooed, hugging Andrea and kissing her forehead.
Kaia held out her hand, squeezing Andrea's gently.
Right before the dinner was served, the maids of honour gave their speeches. Abby went first, giving an emotional short toast to her long years of friendship with Taylor and how happy she was that she had found Kaia.
Next, Millie retold a very embarrassing story of Kaia during her uni days, getting drunk and debating her hatred for weddings and marriages and here she was now. Kaia hid her face in Taylor's shoulder the whole time, promising to murder Emilia later on.
Of course, Mica had to give a toast as well. Kaia dreaded the moment anyone agreed to give him the microphone but once again, she felt a little guilty for he surprised her.
"This is going to be really short, but I just wanted everyone to know that I've known Kaia almost all my life. She's always been the sister I never had. I've seen her go through a few relationships in the past twelve years, some of them were quite questionable. But, then Taylor came crashing into her life and I knew it from the very beginning, no two people are more perfect for each other than you guys. It's been one hell of a journey watching you get to this place and I'm so happy you have finally made it here, because honestly! You two can get quite stupid sometimes. But, no matter. I love you guys. Don't forget to stream the You Need To Calm Down music video. I'm in it. Thank you!"
"Of course, it's not a Mica speech without promoting himself," Taylor giggled before they all took a swig from their champagne glasses.
"I love him," Kaia smiled fondly, leaning her head against Taylor.
"Me too."
Andrea stood up slowly next, smiling down at her baby girl.
"So, I've got this slideshow of baby pictures..." she started when Taylor gasped so loud she almost choked on thin air. Kaia burst out laughing with her mother in law. "I do, but I won't be playing that one tonight! I'm not here to embarrass my daughter... much. But I did want to say a few words and welcome Kaia into our family, but the truth is, honey, you've been like a daughter to me for almost three years now. I guess it's just official now. I don't think there's anyone more right to spend the rest of their life with Taylor. It's in your nature to be kind and caring and so loving and I thank God every day that you found each other, that you've got one another to support each other.
"Taylor, my baby girl... I still remember all those times you put on those white dresses as a baby. That time we were moving out of the old house and we found my wedding dress and you decided to try it on. All those times you put on those dresses for school dances, parties, then award shows, and concerts... and now, to see you sitting there, in your wedding dress, next to the person I know is always going to treat you right, well, as your mother, I'm relieved and happy, and so damn proud. I love you, honey. More than you can ever believe. And I love you, Kaia. Never doubt it. Congratulations, Taylor and Kaia. What you two have is beyond special. Cherish it. Cheers, everyone."
"I love you, mom," Taylor breathed out as Andrea sat back down, wiping a tear from under her eye.
"Thank you," Kaia said softly. "You've been a mother figure to me for three years now and I don't think I've ever truly thanked you for it. I do appreciate it and everything you've done for me."
"Of course, sweetheart. It's nothing!"
Kaia shook her head, reaching over Taylor to grab Andrea's hands. "It's not nothing. It's everything to me. I lost my mum and there's obviously no replacing her but you were there for me. Any time I needed... well, a bit of motherly affection in any way. You were always there and you always made sure I felt it. So, thank you. I want you to know how much it means to me."
Andrea was speechless. She simply leaned in and kissed her temple. There wasn't anything more to be said, anyway.
Dinner was served with more drinks until everyone was buzzed and dancing wildly.
Kaia was sitting with Will, Millie, Andrew, and Mica, talking about Will's last trip to Mallorca when Taylor stood behind Kaia, sliding her arms over her shoulders.
"Excuse me, mrs. Browne-hyphen-Swift, do you mind coming with me for a moment?"
Kaia grinned toothily up at her wife and nodded. "Sure, mrs. Swift-hyphen-Browne. I'd love to. Excuse me, my wife needs me!"
Her friends rolled their eyes at her though they laughed as the couple walked away.
"What's up, baby?"
Taylor walked over to the grand piano which they had moved to the side to make more space in the room and stopped behind it, letting go of Kaia's hand and moving to sit on the stool. She tapped the microphone that had been set up and adjusted her dress under her before grinning up at Kaia who furrowed her eyebrows questioningly.
"Hi, everyone!" Taylor spoke into the microphone, everyone quieting down and turning their attention to her. "First of all, I'd like to welcome you all officially and thank you for joining us tonight for, possibly, well, the happiest day of our life together. So far. Who knows what the future holds! Second of all, I have a small wedding present prepared. As you all know, I have an album coming out in two weeks, it's called Lover, and surprisingly, it's basically one giant love album dedicated to the love of my life."
"It's not surprising," Jack called out from his seat and Taylor laughed sheepishly.
"Right. It's quite expected, actually. But, some of the songs, I mean, most of the songs, I wrote them after we got engaged. And two of them in particular, I knew immediately after recording them that I wanted you to hear them for the first time right here, at our wedding."
Taylor looked up at Kaia, smiling shyly now as she set her hands down on the keys and started playing a familiar set of chords. Kaia was sure she had heard them before around the house, but she couldn't connect any lyrics to them.
"I love you, Kaia," she said before she started singing.
Everything else in the room seemed to fade away. There was only Taylor, sitting there at her piano in her wedding dress, serenading her. And only then did she realise that these same chords had been integrated into the wedding march that played as Taylor had walked down the aisle earlier.
We could leave the Christmas lights up till January,
This is our place we make the rules
And there's a dazzling haze, a mysterious way about you dear,
Have I known you twenty seconds or twenty years?
Taylor looked at Kaia after singing the first verse, her eyes full of love and adoration as she sang to her.
Can I go where you go?
Can we always be this close?
Forever and ever
And ah, take me out, and take me home,
you're my, my, my, lover
Kaia found herself nodding, promising Taylor that, yes, absolutely, they could be attached at the hip if it were physically possible. Taylor laughed and continued.
"We could let our friends crash in the living room," she sang, pointing at Mica who had spent one too many nights crashing at their place. He flipped her off while grinning from ear to ear, probably deciding to do it more often.
This is our place, we make the call
And I'm highly suspicious that everyone who sees you wants you
I've loved you three summers now honey, but I want them all
Can I go where you go?
Can we always be this close?
Forever and ever
And ah, take me out, and take me home,
you're my, my, my lover
Ladies and gentlemen will you please stand
With every guitar string scar on my hand,
I take this magnetic force of a girl to be my lover
My heart's been borrowed and yours has been blue
All's well that ends well to end up with you
Swear to be over-dramatic and true to my lover
And you'll save all your dirtiest jokes for me
And at every table, I'll save you a seat, Lover
Can I go where you go?
Can we always be this close?
Forever and ever
And ah, take me out, and take me home,
you're my, my, my
Oh, you're my, my, my
Darling, you're my, my, my lover.
Kaia walked up to Taylor as soon as she played the last note and before she could stand up or say anything else, Kaia was kissing her, barely even noticing everyone around them clapping.
"You wrote me a song?"
"I've written you hundreds of songs, which is something you already know," Taylor laughed, dropping her hands to Kaia's waist. "And I'm going to play you another one."
"Oh my god, Taylor..." But she couldn't say more, choked up by another lump in her throat.
"That one was called Lover. And I suppose, babe, you have no choice but to let me go where you go now and to let me be close forever and ever. We're married, so, you can't say no," Taylor said and Kaia laughed, shaking her head lightly.
"I guess, since I have no other choice!" She pretended to be disappointed while Taylor went back to playing another song.
"Mhm. You don't. Anyway, I'm going to play another song before everyone gets tired of me and you can go back to taking advantage of the open bar! This one's called Daylight. I hope you like it..."
Taylor cleared her throat, watching her fingers as she started singing again.
My love was as cruel as the cities I lived in,
Everyone looked worse in the light
There are so many lines that I've crossed unforgiven
I'll tell you the truth but never goodbye
She looked up as she started singing the chorus, catching Kaia's eyes and locking their gazes.
I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you
I don't wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you
I've been sleeping so long in a twenty year dark night
But now I see daylight, I only see daylight
Kaia let out a shaky breath, sniffling softly and hugging herself as Taylor continued, looking shyly at the keys once more.
Luck of the draw only draws the unlucky
And so I became the butt of the joke
I wounded the good and I trusted the wicked
Clearing the air, I breathed in the smoke
Maybe you ran with the wolves and refused to settle sown
Maybe I stormed out of every single room in this town
Threw out our cloaks and our daggers because it's morning now,
It's brighter now.
Taylor sang the chorus again and Kaia found herself mesmerised. By her voice. Her piano playing. Her beauty. Just... by her. Completely mesmerised by Taylor.
And as she sang the bridge, Kaia gasped softly, recognising the tune immediately. Taylor had been stuck on it for ages almost a year ago. She remembered the blonde sitting at the piano and playing that same melody over and over again, always stopping whenever she realised Kaia could hear her.
And I can still see it all in my mind,
All of you, all of me intertwined,
I once believed love would be black and white, but it's golden
Taylor looked at Kaia again, smiling softly at her.
And I can still see it all in my head,
Back and forth from New York, sneaking in your bed,
I once believed love would be burning red,
but it's golden...
And Kaia found herself saying the next line out loud as Taylor sang it.
Like Daylight.
She recognised it from the song she was writing on her birthday last year, and she remembered what she had told her fans mere weeks ago about it, and just a couple of hours ago, she had said it to Austin as he married them. But she was saying it to Kaia. All this time. She had been telling Kaia that she had brought daylight into her life.
Kaia hoped that Taylor knew that she lit up her life just as well, that she made everything that much brighter just by being there.
"You gotta step into the daylight, and let it go. Just let it go, let it go," Taylor sang the last note, played an arpeggiated chord, and dropped her hands back into her lap as the notes resonated, lingering in the air as everyone else caught their breaths.
Eventually, all the guests started clapping slowly, but Taylor only looked at Kaia, waiting for her reaction. The brunette stood there, frozen in place, staring at the blonde with wide, doe-eyes.
"Fuck," Kaia finally broke, laughing at herself as she started crying, possibly for the hundredth time that night. She closed the distance between them, flinging herself at her wife and embracing her tightly.
Taylor was glad she was still seated because she might have lost her balance otherwise. She held onto Kaia tightly and nuzzled her hair, laughing softly at her reaction though she felt her own tears blurring her vision.
"Did you like it?" She murmured, just quiet enough for Kaia to hear.
"That was the most perfect wedding present in the history of wedding presents," Kaia whispered back, letting herself sit on the piano stool right next to Taylor who held her face in her hands, softly caressing her cheeks.
"But did you like the song?" She asked again.
Kaia laughed and nodded, leaning forward until her forehead touched Taylor's and their noses brushed up against each other. "Darling, I loved it," she told her, leaving a kiss on the inside of her wrist.
"How long before we can get out of here?"
Kaia grinned mischievously, turning to look at the grandfather clock in the corner of the room.
"I'd say right after we cut the cake?"
"And then, ten days of uninterrupted cuddles—"
"—Sex—"
"What?" Taylor looked at Kaia and burst out laughing as she pretended to look innocent.
"Cuddles. Yeah. Absolutely. On the beach. Just you and me. In bikinis. Halfway across the world. On a beach. With drinks. Cuddling—"
"Honey, we've been married five minutes. Of course I didn't mean actual cuddles," Taylor whispered, making Kaia laugh even harder.
"I love you so much," she giggled, tipping Taylor's face towards hers to kiss her sweetly.
"Say Just Married!"
Taylor and Kaia pulled away to look at Mica and said, at the same exact time, "dickhead!" just as he snapped the picture. He rolled his eyes and groaned at them as they both looked back at each other and giggled like school girls.
"Ugh, you two are literally so perfect for each other. Literally. I can't even be mad because you're so cute today. Ugh! Come here, you guys!"
He hugged them tightly, squeezing them hard, his camera bumping into the side of Taylor's head. She groaned and rubbed the spot while hugging him back with the other arm and Kaia patted his back affectionately.
"Are you drunk on the job?" she teased.
"I take better pictures under the influence. You'll thank me once I get them edited!"
He left a kiss on each of their cheeks before leaving them alone again.
Kaia stood up, smiling cheekily at Taylor and holding out one hand. "Mrs. Taylor Swift-Browne, may I please have this dance?"
"Certainly, Mrs. Kaia Browne-Swift. It would be my pleasure!" she answered, accepting her hand and allowing her to lead the way back to the middle of the dance floor.
They didn't end up dancing. Not really. Even when a series of upbeat songs played, they simply held each other and swayed to the beat of their own song, one only they could hear, and it was enough. They were happy to just be there. They had a whole life ahead of them of dancing and they were happy to just hold one another and sway for now.
———
List of their wedding attendees:
- all their friends and family
people who never even received an invite:
- jules and karlie oops
- andy didn't either but it's okay we still like andy in this house it just woulda been hella awkward