two years later-
it was one of my favorite days of the year, christmas eve, and i couldn't have been more thrilled.
"how do you think you did on your finals, mi tesoro {my treasure}?" my mom asked while she was preparing her famous pozole we had every year.
i laughed, "i studied my butt off, so hopefully really good,"
i finished my first semester of my second year of college. my year off was incredible and all, but i wanted to keep my word with my parents and go back to school. when i was younger, they always told me no one could ever take away my education, so i should pursue it for my benefit, and my benefit only.
i'm doing online school instead of going to 'actual' school. i'm surprisingly not getting my teaching credential, and instead majoring in communications and minoring in marketing research to become a social media manager. i would be managing social media marketing campaigns, developing relevant topics to reach certain customers of my client, creating, curating, and managing all published content of images, videos, and written things. it's a lot of work, but at the end of the day, i would be having fun with my job. being around shawn for three years allowed me to see what goes on behind the scenes, and it really interested me.
shawn. the past two years with him were incredible, and i couldn't have asked for more. being with him really brought out the good in me, and i loved him dearly for it.
my mom stoped stirring the pot, "i'm glad you and shawn have stuck by each other, you two are made for one another,"
"thanks, mom," i said while hugging her, "you've always been so-"
"ya llegamos! {we have arrived!}" my dad yelled while coming in through the front door.
"they're back earlier than usual," i said while letting go of my mom, "they normally don't come back until we're getting ready,"
"huh, wonder why," my mom said while turning back to the pot, "i'm pretty sure i'm good here, go spend time with him,"
i titled my head, "are you sure?"
my mom motioned me to go away with her hands, "go before i change my mind,"
i walked out of the kitchen and to the living room, "hi, dad,"
my dad embraced me in a really tight hug, "hi, mija, {daughter,}"
i let go of my dad, "you're back early,"
"huh, didn't notice," my dad said while walking away, "anyways, i have to go trim my beard, have fun,"
i laughed, "you too?"
once my dad was out of slight, i turned around and walked into his arms. i smiled, even though he couldn't see, "hi,"
he let go of me and kissed me, "hello, gorgeous,"
i kissed shawn again, "how was home depot?"
"same as it always is," he said while he held my hand, "before i forget, there's another present i need you to wrap,"
"nothing new there," i said, "where is it?"
he smiled, "your room,"
"okay," i said before leading the way to my room.
when i got to my room, there was nothing on the floor or bed, "what pres-"
i was cut off by shawn pushing me on the bed and kissing me while he was on top of me, "i'm your present and you're my present, in conclusion, we wrap each other,"
"nice try, mendes," i said while laughing and trying to get up, "my parents and sisters are here,"
"that didn't stop us our first time when we were in mexico with your whole family," shawn said with a smirk while putting an emphasis on the word whole, "and the many times after that,"
i slapped the back of his head, "first of all, shut up. second of all, my family was not even around when we were in the hotel room,"
he pretended to think, "that's not how i remember it,"
i chuckled, "you forget everything because you're a grandpa, that's what old age does to you,"
"we're both in our twenties," shawn said while laughing.
"i'm twenty, you're in your mid twenties," i corrected.
"i'm twenty five," he said.
"that's what i said, grandpa," i responded with a smile, "mid twenties,"
he kissed me again, "whatever,"
"you lovebirds need to start getting ready!" my mom yelled from the kitchen.
"okay," i said while surprisingly pushing shawn off me, "get out,"
he stayed on the bed, "but i've seen you na-"
"i don't care," i said while opening the door for him with a smile, "get out,"
"fine," he said when he got out of the room, "i love you,"
i pecked his lips, "i love you too, mendes,"
i changed into a wrap top, skinny jeans, red pumps, cartier bracelets and rings, my promise ring, and layered necklaces. for hair, i curled it, and for makeup, i did something cute. [outfit below]
just like every year, right as i was putting on perfume, there was a knock on my door.
i laughed, "come in, mendes!"
he spun me around, "you look stunning, but there's nothing new about that,"
i kissed him, "and you look as handsome as always,"
"let's go," shawn said while intertwining our hands together, "everyone's here,"
my parents, sisters, grandparents, aunts, and cousin were sitting at the table. i greeted and hugged everyone before making my way to shawn and i's seats.
"she's finally here, what a miracle!" my mom said sarcastically.
"love you too, mom," i responded.
"i'll make this short and sweet since i'm pretty sure we're all starving. estoy muy agradecida de que dios nos puso todos aquí en esta mesa por el tercer año, {i'm so grateful that god put us all here at this table for the third year in a row,}" my mom said while getting a little emotional, "pues, um, los quiero muchísimo, {but, um, i love you all so much,}"
everyone at the table responded with positive comments to my mom before they all looked at me.
i laughed, "my favorite part, he,"
shawn laughed, "oh god,"
i smiled, "para la cena de hoy, tenemos tamales y pozole, y para beber tenemos ponche, jugó, y vino que voy a poder tomar en un año, {for today's dinner, we have tamales and pozole, and to drink we have ponche, juice, and wine which i will be able to drink in a year,}"
everyone laughed, "ay, cassandra,"
we enjoyed our meal and reflected on our year, which i always loved doing. and like always, right when i was in the middle of talking about school, the conversation was cut short by the kids being impatient.
shawn got up from sitting next to me and got gift boxes that had an envelope taped on them. the past two years, shawn did this, and it ended in him taking my family to different places around the world.
"i swear, shawn," one of my aunts said, "if it's another trip,"
"who said it was a trip?" shawn responded.
i laughed, "oh god,"
he smiled, "okay, three, two, one,"
everyone ripped open the envelopes at the same time, again.
surprise, surprise, it was a plane ticket. but this time, it was to portugal in august.
"as you all know, my dad is from there, and i thought it would be fun if we all went," shawn said with a big smile.
"very thoughtful of you," my mom said, "thank you so much,"
i hugged him, "thank you, mendes,"
"you're welcome, gorgeous," he said after kissing my forehead.
after everyone calmed down a bit, we did the secret santa and white elephant we always did.
when we finished opening presents, i went to my room and changed into one of shawn's hoodies and grabbed my suitcase.
once i got everything i needed, i made my way back to the living room.
shawn grabbed my suitcase from my hands while my grandpa and dad were outside, putting other luggage in the trunk of the uber.
my mom, grandma, and aunts hugged me, "bye, mi vida, {my life,}"
"las quiero mucho, {i love you all so much,}" i said while letting go of them.
"mi niña, {my girl,}" my mom said while cupping my face, "you're all grown up,"
i chuckled, "stop, you're going to make me cry,"
"adios, mija, {goodbye, darling,}" my grandpa and dad said, "te quiero mucho, {i love you so much,}"
i smiled, "i love you guys too,"
my family then turned to shawn and hugged him, "good luck,"
shawn smiled while nodding, "thank you so much,"
"wow, am i that bad to travel with?" i asked sarcastically.
everyone gave me a nod with a forced smile.
i laughed, "whatever,"
i got in the uber after shawn, then we rolled down the window, "bye!"
they all waved exaggeratedly and blew kisses.
i cuddled into shawn's side.
shawn put his head on top of mine, and i closed my eyes, "i love you,"
"i love you more, gorgeous," shawn said while playing with my hair.
sleep took over both of us until the moment we arrived at the airport.
shawn and i got out of the uber and grabbed our luggage before heading inside. we did everything we were supposed to, and eventually got on the plane and took our seats. once we sat down, i pulled out my blanket for shawn and i, and we both quickly fell asleep.
arriving in toronto-
the moment we landed, shawn and i got off the plane and went through immigration and customs. we were able to get through all that pretty quickly, and it didn't take that long to get our luggage. we then got an uber and started heading to karen and manny's. the car ride was spent facetiming camila and her family because we didn't talk to them in a while.
when we made it to karen and manny's, shawn and i thanked the driver and gave him a generous tip for helping us get our luggage out of the car.
"thank you," the driver said while getting back in the car, "merry christmas!"
"merry christmas!" shawn and i yelled back before making our way to the front door.
"ready?" shawn asked.
"extremely," i responded before he kissed me.
we didn't even get a chance to knock before karen opened the door, "hello, sweets! merry christmas!"
"hi!" shawn and i responded while hugging her, "merry christmas!"
"c!" aaliyah screamed after karen let go of shawn and i, "merry christmas!"
i engulfed her in a hug, "merry christmas, a!"
shawn joined our hug, "i wasn't invited for the hug, so i'll just join in,"
aaliyah laughed, "merry christmas, ugly,"
"cassie! how are you?" manny asked, "merry christmas,"
"merry christmas, manny," i said while hugging him.
"good to have you back in canada," manny said before he grabbed the suitcases from shawn and i, "i'll take these upstairs, and i'll be back so we can eat breakfast,"
"thank you," shawn and i said before following karen to the table.
"i just got off the phone with mama gutierrez," karen said while looking and shawn and i, but mostly looking at shawn, "she sounds excited,"
i laughed, "nothing new about that,"
"very true," karen said while laughing.
aaliyah sat on my left and shawn on my right, "this looks so good, and i bet it tastes just as good, even better,"
karen smiled, "thank you, darling,"
manny came to the table and sat down, "let's eat!"
we devoured breakfast so fast. like it was there one moment, then gone the next. we quickly wrapped up our conversation on how shawn and i spent christmas eve at my house, then all headed to go get changed since we were all in our pajamas.
"same thing as last year?" i asked aaliyah.
aaliyah nodded, "yep, i pick out your outfit, and you pick out mine,"
i walked into aaliyah's room, "let's do this,"
i picked out aaliyah's outfit and set it on her bed before i walked out. just i shut aaliyah's door, shawn came out of his old room where aaliyah was.
shawn ran a hand through his hair, "she kicked me out because she said you have to go get dressed,"
i walked passed him, "good,"
shawn quickly grabbed my arm and pulled me into his arms, "i see sassy cassie is out to play today,"
i playfully rolled my eyes, "oh shush,"
shawn kissed me before running a hand through my hair, "te amo, {i love you,}"
"i love you too, mendes," i responded before making my way into his room.
i looked at the outfit aaliyah picked out for me, "you did good, like always,"
"why thank you," she responded before walking out, "i'll leave you to it,"
i changed into a gray sweater, a black coat, skinny jeans, black heeled boots, cartier bracelets, a watch, my promise ring, and the necklace shawn gave me. for hair, i curled it, and for makeup, i did something smoky but natural. [outfit below]
"aaliyah, i'm done!" i yelled as i knocked on her door.
"let's go," aaliyah said.
we made our way to the living room to find shawn, karen, and manny sitting on the floor next to the christmas tree, talking.
"let's get started, eh?" shawn said while handing me a cup of coffee in the mug that was given to me by him two years ago.
i laughed while cuddling into his side as he wrapped an arm around my waist.
manny held up a present, "i'm starting this year!"
i did the same thing i did for the past two years, which was ordering things online for everyone and having them shipped to the mendes' so aaliyah can wrap them for me. the only problem i ran into this year was i did not know what to get shawn, but after thinking for awhile and asking my friends for help, i figured it out.
"this is huge!" shawn said after he was handed the present.
"open it!" i said while clapping.
he sat down and unwrapped the present, "this is, woah,"
"it's your career on a map," i said before laughing, "literally,"
it was a map of the world in black and white with pins in the places where he had been, with a brief description of some of the most iconic places' backstories. it took a long time to put together because i had to talk to so many people like andrew and his tour managers to track down a proper 'list' of the places he's toured.
shawn carefully put the framed map down and engulfed me in a hug, "i love it so much, thank you, gorgeous,"
i pecked his lips, "i'm glad you like it,"
"when are you two going on your walk?" karen asked while getting up.
shawn got up, then helped me up, "now?"
"yeah," i responded.
shawn and i decided to make it a yearly tradition to keep doing the walk around his neighborhood. that walk was a very special thing to us because it brought back memories of when he gave me my promise ring.
karen came towards us, handing me a blanket and shawn a coat, "i put them in the dryer so they could be warm,"
i put the blanket around me, "thank you,"
shawn hugged karen, "thanks, mum,"
"you're welcome," karen said while patting his back, "now go before it starts snowing harder,"
shawn and i walked out the door, "we'll be back!"
"have fun!" karen, manny, and aaliyah yelled back before i heard aaliyah squeal.
shawn and i laughed before he wrapped an arm around me, and i snuggled into his side. we walked around the whole neighborhood reminiscing on our past two years together, until we got back to the front porch of the mendes'. i sat down on the porch swing and stretched my legs.
i laughed, "i shouldn't have worn heels,"
shawn cleared his throat, "ha,"
i rubbed my eyes, "remember right before you gave me my promise ring, we sat down and you were sweating so m-"
i opened my eyes to see shawn kneeling down on one knee right in front of me, holding a small box.
i gasped, "oh my god,"
"okay, i'm pretty sure you know what i'm doing," shawn said before chuckling, "but, i'm going to need you to not say anything until i'm done because i don't want to leave anything out,"
i blinked and shed a tear while nodding.
shawn put the small box back inside his coat and held my hands with both of his, "two years ago today, i told you i loved you and i wanted you to be mine. i told you it took long because i wanted it to be perfect, and things take time to be perfect. i told you i loved you so incredibly much, to the point where every thought i have, has you in it. i told you your promise ring meant i saw us having a future together and i'm never going to stop loving you. nothing about that has changed, except my love for you growing stronger,"
he paused to wipe the tears i shed, then held my hands tighter.
"but the last thing i told you was to not get too used to your promise ring because it was just the beginning, and i intended on marrying you one day, so it would be replaced with an engagement ring, then a wedding band to go with it," shawn said while letting go of my hands to grab the small box from his coat again, "so here i am, replacing it,"
i kept looking into his eyes without saying anything.
shawn smiled, "i know it's not going to be easy, it's going to be very hard. we're going to have to work at this everyday, but i don't care because i want you, forever,"
"i love you so much," i said before giving him a passionate kiss.
after our kiss, we leaned our foreheads against each other, until he pulled away, "wait, we did this last time, i still need to ask you,"
i laughed, "oh shit,"
"now, cassandra teresa gutierrez, soon to be mendes," he said before winking.
i smiled while holding his unoccupied hand.
shawn opened the small box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring, "will you marry me?"
i shed a tear, "of course i will,"
he was about to slide the ring on my finger, until he noticed my ring finger had the promise ring on it. he took the promise ring off and put it on my other hand, then slipped the beautiful diamond ring on my finger.
shawn put his hand on my cheek, "a gorgeous ring for a gorgeous girl,"
"i love it," i said while admiring the ring before looking at shawn, "but i love you more,"
shawn held his hand out for me. i gave him mine, and was quickly swept off the porch swing. i intertwined my fingers with his, but was soon spinned and pinned against the wall, "well then,"
shawn and i shared a very passionate kiss, until i pulled him away.
shawn pouted, and i looked him in his eyes, "your family is inside,"
he put some of my hair behind my ear, "i think you mean our family,"
i blushed at the thought of manny, karen, and aaliyah being my family.
"in that case, our family is inside and waiting for us," i said before kissing him again.
shawn sat me back on the porch swing and gave me another kiss, "our family can wait for a few more minutes, i want to keep kissing my fiancée,"
instagram:
tagged// cassiegutierrez
liked by cassiegutierrez, camilacabello, and 9,918,789 others
shawnmendes: hello, world. this is my fiancée, cassie soon to be mendes, and i love her so incredibly much. anyways, i have to go kiss my fiancée again. merry christmas, everyone xx
18,881 comments
fanaccount1: shassie babies coming our way🥰
fanaccount2: they're probably only getting engaged because she's pregnant
jocelinponce: oh my god, congratulations!! you did good, mendes👏
camilacabello: i'll be waiting for my save the date card, thank you very much
fanaccount3: skjsksjoksksioj
johnmayer: they grow up fast. congrats you two.
fanaccount4: when's the wedding?
aaliyahmendes: my🥰 moods🥳 in😭 emojis🤗
cassiegutierrez: i love you, fiancé❤️
shawnmendes: i love you more, fiancée❤️ cassiegutierrez
~swipe for more~
tagged// shawnmendes
liked by aaliyahmendes, jocelinponce, and 998,814 others
cassiegutierrez: feliz navidad from my fiancé, shawn peter raul mendes, and i🎄❤️
17,217 comments
jocelinponce: my frijolita is getting married!!! they grow up so fast😭
camilacabello: oh my!!!!👏🍾
fanaccount1: yay
madisonbeer: love is real🥳
fanaccount2: i've shipped since those mf paparazzi pictures from them leaving the gym three years ago came out
laurenarendse: congrats, lovebirds💕
aaliyahmendes: i'm so happy💘
fanaccount3: iconiccc
shawnmendes: i love you❤️
cassiegutierrez: i love you more❤️ shawnmendes
shawnmendes: impossible, gorgeous❤️
fanaccount4: true love exists, and they're an example of that
eleven months later-
"to putting fries before guys!" jocelin screamed while aaliyah, katherine, nessa, alyssa, camila, and i raised our champagne glasses, "at least for the weekend,"
since brian and jocelin are shawn and i's best man/maid of honor, they planned to take our wedding party to vegas for our bachelor/bachelorette party, two weeks before the wedding.
micheal shot up from his makeshift bed on the airplane and pointed to a sleeping brian, matt, ian, and niall, "excuse me, we're trying to sleep over here,"
shawn came from around the corner of the plane with his arms crossed, "didn't you ladies say that a month ago when we went to cancun for cass' twenty first?"
"it seems to be said every time we go out," anthony said, pretending to think.
alyssa chugged her whole glass, "and this is why i broke up with daniel, he just sucked the fun out of me,"
everyone laughed. nobody really liked daniel.
aaliyah filled alyssa's glass up again, "but you're doing amazing sweetie!"
"who's daniel?" i said while drinking out of the champagne bottle, "don't know him,"
shawn came up to me and took the bottle, "you're pushing it, mendes,"
"hey!" jocelin said while raising her pointer finger, "you two aren't married yet, so it's still gutierrez, mendes,"
"i'm excited," shawn said after he kissed me and looked at jocelin again, "i can't help it, trujillo,"
anthony and jocelin got engaged over the summer. they couldn't wait to plan a whole wedding, so they had a small ceremony and reception with close family and friends.
katherine checked her watch, "how much longer is this flight?"
"we're landing in fifteen," brian said while stretching his arms, "driving arrangements are already there for when we land,"
i saw jocelin made eye contact with camila, then winked.
the last fifteen minutes of the flight were spent by everyone trying to wake up matt, ian, and niall. once we landed and got through everything we needed to get through, we made our way to the front of the las vegas airport.
brian spotted two ubers and went over to the drivers, but quickly came back to the whole group, "these are both the ones i ordered for the boys, where are your guys'?"
jocelin smirked before pointing to a huge party bus that pulled up, "right there,"
i got out of shawn's arms and walked towards jocelin, "stop,"
niall, anthony, and shawn laughed.
matt and ian's mouth went wide while they looked at brian, "you didn't get a party bus?"
"i got you, frijolita!" jocelin said while grabbing the rest of the girls, "let's go, bitches!"
i went up to shawn and pecked his lips, "i'll see you at the hotel, mendes,"
"have fun, gorgeous," shawn said before kissing me again, "but not too much fun,"
"let her go in peace!" aaliyah said sarcastically.
"excuse you!" michael screamed at aaliyah, "that goes for you too, babe,"
michael and aaliyah were dating after michael finally built up the courage to ask her out.
"oh, mila!" niall yelled, "noah told me to tell you to behave yourself, and make good choices,"
camila got engaged to noah centineo. when camila and noah filmed the havana music video, they lost touch after. around a year ago, they got closer again, and that eventually led to them getting engaged.
camila chuckled, "huh, hailee and jack told me to tell you the same exact thing!"
niall and hailee got married over a year ago, and had a little boy named jack, shortly after, and, they're expecting a girl in a few months.
"you all are holding us back!" jocelin yelled, "we need to go check in!"
the guys made their way into the two different ubers, while us ladies made our way into the party bus. the whole ride to the hotel was us trying to sing 'beautiful girls' by sean kingston, a bop, while trying not to overdo it on the champagne.
"that was iconic," nessa said while getting off the bus.
"i'm pretty sure the pole in that bus is scarred," alyssa said while we all walked into the hotel lobby.
katherine laughed while we walked towards the guys who were already there, "the last time i saw you move like that was your quinceañera,"
shawn wrapped his arms around me, "what did you do?"
"she had fun, that's what she did," aaliyah said while walking up to michael.
"you got yourself a party animal, canada," camila said while walking up to us, "we already knew this, but she knows how to have a good time!"
"pure facts," jocelin said while coming back from talking with brian and anthony.
shawn rested his head on top of mine, "oh god,"
"everyone, gather around. there are three suites. one for the girls, one for the boys, and one for shassie," brian and jocelin said, "everyone is to go to their suite and get settled in before shawn and cassie join their other suite to get ready with their group. then, we all meet up in the lobby before going our separate ways for the night. bet?"
"bet," everyone said before making their way to their rooms.
"gorgeous, i love you and all, but i'm showering first, you take too long," shawn told me once we walked into our big suite.
i set my purse down, then walked into the bathroom, "um, no, i'm showering first,"
"we'll compromise," shawn said while he followed me into the bathroom, "we'll shower together,"
"you better hurry then, mendes," i said while taking off my engagement ring before taking off my shirt, "i'm not waiting for you,"
once we got out of the shower, we got a bag together and made our way out of our room, and to our group's suite.
"excuse you, gorgeous. i liked it, so i put a ring on it," shawn said while taking my engagement ring out of his pocket, "so please put it back on,"
i laughed before kissing him, "oh my god, i love you even more now for quoting beyoncé,"
"good, you're here just in time," aaliyah said before she pulled me into the room.
i turned back to look at shawn and blew him an air kiss at him, "i love you, see you soon!"
aaliyah blindfolded me before sitting me down on a chair.
cardi b started playing right before someone took off my blindfold, "surprise!"
i looked around the suite and saw it was all decorated, "wow,"
"we wanted a fun atmosphere for when we got ready," jocelin said, "we hope you like it,"
i smiled, "i love it, thank you,"
alyssa pointed behind me, "i hope you especially love the banner i picked out for you,"
i turned around to see a banner that read 'same penis forever', "oh god,"
everyone laughed before they picked up a glass of champagne after handing me one, "time to get ready, bitches!"
i changed into a shimmery tight dress, shawn's jean jacket, rose gold heels, cartier bracelets and rings, my promise ring, my engagement ring, and layered necklaces. for hair, i curled it, and for makeup, i did something dramatic. [outfit below]
"holy shit!" aaliyah yelled while we got out of the room, "we look hot!"
"i mean," jocelin said while we got in the elevator to meet with the boys who were already in the lobby, "we clean up pretty fucking nice,"
right when the elevator doors opened, we met eyes with the guys and they instantly started cheering.
"woah, gorgeous!" shawn yelled while i walked up to him and hugged him after pecking his lips, "you look so good,"
i smiled, "why thank you,"
"time to go!" brian yelled, "the rides are here,"
"okay, gorgeous," shawn said while holding my hands, "you can drink all you want and can have one lap dance,"
"just one?" i asked while fake pouting.
shawn rolled his eyes, "fine, two,"
"you can have two lap dances," i said before dramatically pausing, "but one has to be from michael,"
michael shook his head in disappointment.
shawn laughed before kissing me, "i can't with you,"
"enough of the lovey dovey goodbyes, you'll see each other before you're in bed," jocelin said while pulling shawn and i apart, "we have to go,"
"i love you!" shawn yelled while the girls and i walked into the second party bus of the day.
i waved, "i love you more, mendes!"
the party bus ride to the club was us trying to sing our tipsy little hearts out, and it was pretty funny. once we finished singing the last song, we got out of the bus and made our way inside of the club, which jocelin was quick to lead us into. apparently, the place was reservation only.
we walked to a table that was right next to the stage. it had a plastic crown and sash waiting for me. the girls put the things on me before we ordered a round of shots. right after we got our shots, dancers made their way to the stage, and put a chair in the middle. a dancer got off stage and picked me up before carrying me bridal style to the chair. the girls started laughing and cheering once the music started and i proceeded to get a lap dance.
the whole party there went on for awhile, until camila suggested we go to the karaoke bar that was down the street. of course everyone agreed, so we drunkenly, but safely, made our way there.
we once again made our way to the front near the stage. we all took probably our fourth tequila shot of the night before i went up on the stage.
"i just want to say something before i start," i said while holding up my second strawberry lemonade vodka before 'imagine' started playing, "i'm sorry, ari sweetie, i'm not going to do any this song any justice,"
i sang the song until it got to the whistle notes. i brought up jocelin, and we both 'hit' the whistle notes.
"that was amazing, oh my god!" camila yelled while clapping, "i'm going to call ari and tell her we're out of a job!"
"encore!" everyone in the bar yelled, "amazing!"
i gave jocelin a nod before she made her way over to the dj and told him what song we wanted.
"so we'll sing again, but not the same song," i said into the microphone while stealing another strawberry lemonade vodka that was on our table, "we can't disappoint sister ariana twice,"
jocelin made it back on stage just when the first note of 'single ladies' played.
she laughed into the microphone, "we're the opposite of single, but this song is a bop!"
we surprisingly made it through the whole song while doing the music video choreography, "thank you, we'll be here all night!"
when we got off stage, there were two guys sitting in jocelin and i's seats.
i slammed my hand onto the table and closed my eyes, "excuse you, assholes. we just preformed the whole single ladies choreo, and i'm tired as fuck, so please, do me a favor and get up before i drag your asses out of this bar,"
i opened my eyes to see the two guys being shawn and anthony.
"well for your information miss single lady," shawn said while pulling me onto his lap, "i'm not moving,"
i got back up after taking another shot, "then i'm dragging your canadian ass out of this bar!"
shawn turned to look at the guys, "i think it's time for these ladies, especially this one, to go to bed,"
"what?" we all said, "no!"
"what?" the guys mimicked, "yes!"
i put my arms out so shawn could hold me, "fine, but you have to carry me,"
"deal," shawn said after lifting me over his shoulder before pulling my dress down.
we somehow ended up in our third big party bus of the night. we sang bops like 'i don't fuck with you' and 'party in the usa' the whole ride back to the hotel.
the guys weren't anywhere near as drunk as the girls were, so they helped us get to our suites safely. the girls went into their room, the guys went into their's, and shawn and i went into ours.
shawn helped me get out of my clothes and take off my makeup, "did you have fun today, gorgeous?"
"so much," i said while putting on one of his shirts, "but i missed you,"
"i missed you too," shawn said while laughing, "did you use any of your lap dances?"
"just one," i said while snickering, "you?"
"i didn't," shawn said before smirking, "but i would love to claim one now though,"
i gasped, "you dirty boy, mendes,"
"what? i'm just kidding," shawn said before he pushed me on the bed, "or am i?"
and that's my man for you.
two weeks later-
it was december second. four years since i met the love of my life. a little less than three years since we confessed our love for each other. a little less than a year since he proposed.
and it would soon be the day we got married.
"i have to steal cassie now. the photographer and videographer want to get shots of her putting on the dress now that her hair and makeup are done," my mom said after walking into room where the my bridesmaids and i were in.
"good luck," jocelin, aaliyah, katherine, nessa, alyssa, and camila said, "love you!"
i smiled at them before i left the room with my mom, "love you guys, too,"
my mom, grandma, sisters, karen, and i walked into the master bedroom which had my dress. karen and my sisters stood next to the photographer, watching, while my grandma was handing things to my mom as she was helping me get dressed.
i changed into my dress, a veil, silver heels, my promise ring, and the necklace my mom gave me that she wore on her wedding day. for hair, it was in an updo, and for makeup, it was something fitting for the look. [outfit below]
karen and my mom stood back while looking at me, "beautiful,"
my grandma wiped a tear, "te ves muy preciosa, {you look so beautiful,}"
i had tears building my in my eyes, "gracias, {thank you,}"
the photographer smiled after taking a picture of my grandma wiping my tears, "okay, get the bridesmaids in here so we can take a few more group pictures before we have to head off to church,"
"team!" i yelled really loud so the girls could hear from the other room, "let's do this!"
all of us squished into a limo to head to the park to take some last minute pictures of just us girls before we had to head off to the church.
"karen, you need to walk shawn down the aisle with manny, hurry," my mom said while practically pushing karen out of the car.
karen laughed, "i'm going,"
my dad and grandpa helped us out of the car and into the church.
"come on, ladies. shawn and the priest are already at the front," the church coordinator said once we got in.
the church coordinator guided shawn and i's grandparents to the opened double doors, "grandparents up first,"
she then made our wedding party line up with their partner.
aaliyah and anthony, katherine and matt, nessa and micheal, alyssa and ian, and camila and niall made their way down the aisle before the maid of honor, jocelin, and best man, brian, walked down the aisle.
she closed the doors for thirty seconds, so people could stand and watch me walk down the aisle with my parents.
i looked at my parents, who both had tears in their eyes, "nunca olvides que siempre vas a ser nuestra niña chiquita, {never forget that you're always going to be our little girl,}"
i kissed their cheeks right as the mariachi started playing the entrance music.
"¿lista? {ready?}" the church coordinator asked while she had her hand on the handle of the double doors.
i nodded while taking a deep breath, "i'm ready,"
once the double doors opened, i could see everything that shawn and i took so much time planning. but most importantly, i could see shawn at the end of the aisle, waiting for me with tears in his eyes.
while walking down the aisle, my eyes never left shawn's, even when i was wiping my tears. the moment my parents and i got to the end of the aisle, they gave me a blessing before they hugged shawn and handed me over to him.
shawn helped me walk to the front center of the aisle while he wiped a tear from his eyes, which made me start crying even more. he mouthed 'you look stunning, gorgeous' while the priest was saying his opening remarks.
right before our vow exchange, the priest explained the significance of our vows and shawn and i's duties and roles in marriage.
brian tapped shawn's shoulder with a piece of paper. shawn looked at it and was hesitant to take it, but ultimately decided not to.
shawn took both of my hands in his, "cassandra teresa gutierrez soon to be mendes in a few minutes,"
everyone in the audience laughed, including me before mouthing 'i love you'.
shawn took a deep breath, "i promise to give you the best of myself. i promise to trust and respect you as your own person, and realize that your interests, desires, and needs are no less important than my own. i promise to share with you my time and attention, and to bring joy, strength, and imagination to our relationship. i promise to keep myself open to you, encourage your dreams, and help shoulder your challenges. i promise to grow along with you and be willing to face change to keep our relationship alive and exciting. but most importantly, i promise to be your partner and love you in good times and bad, completely and forever,"
shawn let go of my hands to wipe my tears before i looked at the priest to see if it was my turn to say my vows.
the priest nodded, and i made eye contact with shawn again, "from the moment our paths crossed, you've surprised me, distracted me, captivated me, and challenged me in a way that no human being ever has. i've fallen in love with you again and again, countless times. i promise to be true to you, uplift and support you, frustrate and challenge you, and share with you the beautiful moments of life,"
i took a tissue jocelin handed me before turning back to shawn, "no matter what we encounter together or how much time has passed, i know that our love will never fade, that we will always find strength in one another, and that we will continue to grow side by side. i believe in the truth of what we are, and i will love you always, with every beat of my heart,"
"now for the rings," the priest said once i finished talking.
brian handed shawn my wedding band and engagement ring so he could put it on after my wedding band, "i, shawn peter raul mendes, take thee, cassandra teresa gutierrez, to be my wife. to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, in joy and sorrow, and i promise my love to you. and with this ring, i take you as my wife, for as long as we both shall live,"
jocelin handed me shawn's wedding ring, "i, cassandra teresa gutierrez, take thee, shawn peter raul mendes, to be my husband. to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, in joy and sorrow, and i promise my love to you. and with this ring, i take you as my husband, for as long as we both shall live,"
"and with this, i now pronounce you husband and wife," the priest said, "shawn, you may now kiss your bride,"
shawn grabbed the sides of my face and kissed me, while i rested my hands on his biceps.
shawn pulled away, but kept his hands on the side of my face, "wow, gorgeous, you're my wife now, not fiancée,"
i chuckled, "wow, we're married,"
"oh my, i love you so much," shawn said before we walked down the aisle.
once everyone made their way out of the church, we thanked them for coming, and took pictures for a few hours with the whole wedding party. the moment we finished, we made our way to the reception in the limo from earlier. once we arrived at the reception, the whole wedding party was introduced before shawn and i.
our wedding party cleared the floor, but shawn and i stayed to do our first dance, 'so high', which john legend was going to sing live.
"now, mr. and mrs. mendes will be doing their first dance to 'so high' by john legend, which he will be singing live!" the dj yelled into the microphone before everyone cheered.
john was at the end of the stage, with his band behind him, "before i start, everyone please give it up for mr. and mrs. mendes one more time!"
everyone cheered before john started singing, and shawn and i started dancing.
"i'm excited for what's coming in the future," shawn whispered in my ear, "all the little challenges we're going to get thrown, i'm happy i have you to face them with,"
i wiped my eyes, "you're going to make me start sobbing again,"
"you've been very emotional today," shawn said, "what's up with that?"
i laughed while looking around, "uh, does today being our wedding day ring a bell?"
"oh shit," he said while laughing before taking a long pause, which resulted in me resting my head on his chest, "paris,"
i removed my head from his chest, "paris?"
"that's where we're going on our honeymoon," he said, "andrew just finished arranging the last few details,"
shawn really wanted to plan our honeymoon and surprise me with the location on our wedding day. i don't know if he found it exciting or something, but he was really cute about it, so i let him do it. i didn't really care about where we went because all i wanted was to be with him.
"i can't wait," i said with a smile before kissing his lips.
everyone cheered as john sang the last note of the song. shawn and i proceeded to dance with our parents and grandparents after we finished our first dance.
the night went smoothly, we ate, did our toasts, which jocelin was very excited about because she said she could finally speak her mind about our relationship. she started her speech by saying, 'we're gathered here today in america to celebrate the wedding of a mexican and canadian', of course this made everyone laugh.
and, let's just say dancing was a big part of the night.
cutting the cake was pretty iconic too, i guess shawn doesn't know how to cut a cake, so that led him to almost dropping our wedding cake, and it was all caught on video. after the cake incident, more dancing was done, curtesy to the banda {band} we got.
but all good things must come to an end. shawn and i were about to exit, but all the lights went out. of course, i started freaking out.
my grip on shawn's hand got really tight, "are you fucking kidding me?"
my dad handed us a flashlight, and shawn and i made our way to the table where our parents were sitting. i leaned my head on shawn's shoulder until i noticed a spotlight where john performed and on center stage on the dance floor, "what-"
i stopped taking when i saw the lead singer of banda ms, alan ramirez, on stage, holding a guitar while making his way to a stool.
shawn grabbed my hand and brought me to the dance floor, "surprise, gorgeous,"
my mouth went wide, "i'm-"
"buenas tardes, todos! estoy aquí para cantar una canción para el último baile de la noche, {good evening, everyone! i'm here to sing a song for the happy couple for their last dance of the night,}" alan said before smiling while taking a pause, "esto es 'solo con verte', {this is 'solo con verte',}"
alan played the first cord of the song, and i started crying, "mendes, i can't with you,"
shawn laughed, "mendes, this is all because i love you,"
"oh my god," i said before kissing him, "i love you,"
he lifted my chin up and kissed me again, "i love you more, gorgeous,"
after our last dance, we made our way out of the reception, and to the next stop, our honeymoon, which was very fitting for the moment.
paris, the city of love.
instagram:
tagged// cassiemendes
liked by cassiemendes, camilacabello, and 10,354,002 others
shawnmendes: hello, world. this is my wife, cassandra teresa mendes, and i love her so incredibly much. anyways, i have to go kiss my wife again. much love, everyone xx
*comments have been limited*
cassiemendes: i love you, husband❤️
shawnmendes: i love you more, wife❤️ cassiemendes
tagged// shawnmendes
liked by aaliyahmendes, jocelintrujillo, and 1,002,021 others
cassiemendes: he's my husbanddd❤️
*comments have been limited*
shawnmendes: i love you, gorgeous❤️
cassiemendes: i love you❤️ shawnmendes
two weeks later-
instagram:
~swipe for more~
~swipe for more~
tagged// cassiemendes
liked by niallhoran, jocelintrujillo, and 10,540,927 others
shawnmendes: had a few surprises in paris, but it treated us well❤️
18,716 comments
fanaccount1: traveling is just their thing
fanaccount2: that's disneyland paris, wtfff
jocelintrujillo: that's my best friend😍
fanaccount3: i still can't believe they're married🤯
camilacabello: cuties in paris, i 💘 shassie
aaliyahmendes: i'm glad y'all are coming back soon
cassiemendes: love you, mendesss
fanaccount4: they're both mendes now😭
shawnmendes: i love you, mendesss cassiemendes
~swipe for more~
tagged// shawnmendes
liked by katherineurzua, aaliyahmendes, and 1,004,984 others
cassiemendes: paris was amazingly amazing🤩
17,943 comments
jocelintrujillo: cuties🤪
fanaccount1: ew, they're probs coming back to america now
aaliyahmendes: 😜😜
fanaccount2: alexaaa, play 'that should be me'
shawnmendes: wow, that's my wife😍
fanaccount3: i'm crying in the club rn
cassiemendes: 🥰🥰 shawnmendes
fanaccount4: i'm so happy they found each other👏🎉🥳
~7895 words~
authors note// thanks for reading my forty third chapter in traveling | shawn mendes. holy shit. wtf did i just do? they're married. holy shit. two chapters left in traveling, i can't believe it. thank you so much for showing love to traveling, fifty four thousand reads, wow. and, thank you to all of you who helped me out figure out the length of this chapter... i hope it wasn't too long and you enjoyed it. please, let me know what you think. these future ones are going to be longer than usual ones. anyways, see you soon.
xx, c