There" Caroline said, securing the small flower in Lily's hair. Lily turned to look in the mirror and smiled. Caroline turned to see that Bonnie was finishing up with Elena's hair, having swept it back, allowing for a few pieces of hair to fall along her face. Those were then curled into delicate ringlets.
"Done" Bonnie said, turning Elena's chair so she could see herself in the mirror. "You look beautiful" Bonnie smiled, squeezing Elena's shoulder.
Elena looked at herself in the mirror in complete awe. Bonnie had done such a wonderful job with her hair and Caroline had done wonders with her makeup. Then Elena saw Lily in the mirror, standing behind her. Lily looked like a little angel, dressed in her green dress and her long curls falling down her back. "Look at you" Elena smiled, turning around so she could face her. "You look so beautiful" she said, grabbing Lily's hands.
"You look pretty too, Aunt Elena" she said, smiling brightly. Elena couldn't stop the tear that escaped her. That was the first time Lily had ever referred to her as her aunt. And it felt amazing.
"Ah ah ah, no crying" Caroline warned, shaking her finger. "You'll ruin your makeup" she reminded.
Elena carefully wiped at her tear before pulling Lily into a hug. "I love you so much" Elena whispered to her.
"I love you too" Lily said, trying to whisper as well. Elena finally let Lily go, holding her at arm's length and fixing the curls that she had crushed while hugging her.
A soft knock on the door startled all four girls. "They're ready" came Jeremy's voice. Elena took a deep breath before standing. Jeremy smiled at each one of them as they filed out of the room. Elena remained where she was though, figuring it would be a few minutes before she would have to begin walking.
Bonnie would be walking with Damon. Elena apologized profusely to Bonnie for this, though she knew that Stefan had made Damon promise to behave himself. Caroline was going to walk with Alaric and although this was not a setup, Caroline swore it was a setup.
Jeremy was going to walk with her. The ceremony, a vow renewal, was going to be more intimate than their first wedding. Elena felt like she could actually express how she felt with Stefan today in the close company of their friends and family. "You look beautiful" Jeremy said, smiling at her once more. Elena moved forward and pulled him into a hug before she began crying again. "Mom and Dad would be so happy right now" he told her quietly, hugging her tight.
Elena nodded. "I hope so" she said. "I'm so glad you're here" she added. "It means a lot to me."
Jeremy pulled away from her. "I wouldn't miss it" he smiled, grabbing her hand. "Come on. It's almost time" he told her, pulling her along. Elena took another long, deep breath as they stood just inside the backdoor, waiting. "You're not nervous, are you?" he asked.
Elena shook her head yes. "I just don't want to forget what I want to say" she said. She wanted it to be perfect. She wanted everyone to know how Stefan made her feel. But most importantly, she wanted Stefan to know, and she had a lifetime to tell him.
Jeremy squeezed her hand. "You won't" he assured her. The music began and Jeremy and Elena began walking.
By the time she was halfway there, Elena finally focused on everyone standing up front, waiting for her. Lily, standing in front of Bonnie, and Caroline behind them. Alaric standing behind Damon. And finally, Stefan standing in the center, his piercing green eyes glued to her from the moment he saw her.
Elena felt herself blush and had to focus on Jeremy. But soon, she had to let him go. He kissed her cheek and gave her hand to Stefan, eyeing him with a warning look that Stefan seemed to understand.
Stefan smiled as he stood with Elena, grabbing both of her hands now. "You look beautiful" he mouthed to her as he heard the Celebrant reading from a book, informing every one of the reason that they were all sitting there today. But Stefan wasn't listening. How could he when the one girl he wanted more than anything was standing in front of him, looking at him adoringly?
"Thank you" Elena mouthed back, feeling the butterflies in her stomach already.
As the Celebrant continued, speaking of the importance of a wedding vow renewal, Lily realized she could not take it anymore. She left her position in front of Bonnie and quickly made her way to Stefan, tugging on the bottom of his jacket. Stefan was so lost in Elena that he didn't even see Lily until she made her presence known. "Uncle Stefan I have to go potty" she whispered, crossing her legs.
Everyone laughed as Damon grabbed her, picked her up, and walking quickly with her back inside, Katherine sunk lower in her chair, somewhat mortified that her daughter had disrupted the ceremony.
Elena and Stefan laughed quietly as they looked at each other. Only Lily could disrupt something this important and still be so cute.
"I think it is time for Stefan and Elena to share their vows with each other" the Celebrant said. "Elena, would you like to go first?"
Elena nodded. She took another breath and could feel her hands tremble. Stefan could feel them too. "I ... I used to tell myself that one day, I would meet this perfect guy who would make me smile and laugh every day that I was with him. The perfect guy who would give me my happy ending" she began, staring into Stefan's eyes. "I had to tell myself this, to get through most days" she continued, thinking back to those heartbreaking times that she had endured in the past. Stefan squeezed her hands, reminding her that those days were over. And that they would never come back. "I didn't think you were a perfect guy when I first met you" she said, speaking to Stefan and causing most everyone to laugh. Stefan grinned, remembering quite well how much she hated him. "I'm sure I called you a few choice names and I know I made you work for my trust. But you kept at it, probably when you shouldn't have. But I'm thankful that you never gave up." She took another small breath and smiled. "It didn't take me long to realize you weren't perfect" she said, getting another laugh and a smile out of Stefan. "I realized that I didn't need perfect. I only needed you" she said, feeling her tears begin. "It took me too long to realize that you could give me my happy ending" she quickly added. "And that is what I want, right here, right now, with you" she told him, smiling nervously. "I love you, Stefan. Nothing will ever change that" she finished.
Stefan was pretty sure that if there weren't people watching them, he would have pushed her up against that nearby tree and kissed her senseless. But he was going to behave himself because he had her all to himself tonight. "The first day I met you, you slammed me up against the wall because I was hitting on you" he began, causing Elena to turn red and the audience to laugh. "And I thought it was the sexiest thing ever" he added. More laughter. More of Elena turning red. "I was pretty damn determined to never get married and to just have fun for the rest of my life" he admitted. "Until you made me realize that someone could love me enough to make me want to love her back. To want to marry her. Start a family eventually" he added. "I fell so hard for you, Elena. And I'm pretty sure every day I am with you, I fall even more in love with you. And I plan to give you everything so that you can have your happy ending. So that we can have our happy ending. I love you."
Before the Celebrator could even say the words, Elena was already in Stefan's arms kissing him. Lily made it back just in time and began clapping with everyone else who were now in tears.
As soon as Stefan and Elena pulled apart, he grabbed her hand so they could walk back down the aisle. Now, the marriage was real. Both of them could feel it. But Stefan's plans to sneak off with Elena were dashed when Caroline began shouting that they all had to go and have pictures done. "No" Stefan whined.
"Yes" Caroline whined back. "God, is sex all you think about?" she asked, her hands on her hips. "This is supposed to be the happiest day of your life. Don't you want to remember it?" she asked him.
"I'll remember it just fine, upstairs with Elena" Stefan stated.
"Yes, we do" Elena corrected, eyeing him mischievously. "And after pictures, we are having dinner and then dancing, remember?" Elena reminded him as his hand wandered across her back.
"Are you trying to kill me?" he asked against her ear as he began kissing her.
Elena smiled as she pushed him away from her. "Pictures" Elena said, grabbing his tie and pulling him along.
"Yeah, pictures Uncle Stefan, pictures!" Lily chanted as she ran past them. Wherever there was a camera, there was Lily.
"See?" Caroline said as the others followed. "Your niece has the right idea" she added.
Stefan grumbled as he wrapped his arms around Elena and tried multiple times to drag her off into the hedges and sneak away. Elena laughed every time, but managed to get them to the front of the yard for pictures.
The girls took their pictures first, including one of Elena's favorites where she was holding Lily. The boys followed and somehow, Lily made it into most of those pictures as well. Then the girls joined the boys and even more pictures were taken. Katherine hung back, a neutral look on her face as she watched everyone get their pictures done.
Elena glanced over and saw Katherine. She felt bad for her. She really had been left out of everything. Stefan had even planned on not inviting her to the ceremony until Elena told him he had to. "Katherine!" Elena called. Katherine whipped her head around to see Elena waving her over. "Come and get some pictures!" Elena encouraged. Katherine shook her head no. "Yes. I want some with you and Lily and Damon" Elena told her.
Katherine looked around, internally debating with herself before she walked over and stood with Lily and Damon. She did end up smiling as the camera went off. Damon and Lily seemed really happy to have her there.
Stefan slipped his arm around Elena and kissed the side of her head. "You're a much better person than I am" he told her, holding her close.
Elena smiled as she watched the three of them. "No" Elena told him. "I just believe in happy endings" she reminded him.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Dinner was over before anyone knew it. Elena was kind of glad because most of her dinner time was spent walking around the table and talking. She was most excited about the dancing that was about to take place.
Stefan had finally stopped trying to sneak her away and was thoroughly enjoying himself. Lily was entertaining everyone with her stories about Stefan, some of them funny and most of them embarrassing.
Stefan, giving up on telling Lily to stop with the stories, grabbed Elena and led her to where the live band was set up. He wrapped his arm around her, grabbed her hand, and began swaying with her to the music. There were no words being sung, but the rhythm was slow and it was perfect. "I love when you dance with me" Elena said, smiling up at him.
Stefan dipped his head some, capturing her lips with his. By this point, other couples had joined in on the dancing too. Damon had Katherine in his arms and Jeremy had Bonnie. Caroline reluctantly began dancing with Alaric. Zach was left with Lily, though he didn't seem to mind. She was a very good dancer.
One song. Two songs. Three. Stefan reluctantly let go of Elena when Alaric requested that he get to dance with her. Caroline looked extremely happy to dance with Stefan though. "You are glowing you're so happy" Caroline told him. They danced for a few minutes.
"Is it that obvious?" he finally asked her. Caroline nodded with a smile. "Good" he said, spinning Caroline away from him and switching her out with Katherine by mistake.
"Well" Katherine said, beginning to move with Stefan. "You look all happy" she told him, smirking.
"I am happy" Stefan agreed. He nodded over towards Damon. "You two seem to be doing better" Stefan said, turning with her so she faced Damon.
"I love him" Katherine admitted. "I love you too, though" she also admitted. Stefan looked at her curiously. "I know. You're married and happy" she said, rolling her eyes. "I just need to know that I'll always have you in my life in some way, shape or form" she told him.
Stefan thought for a moment before answering. "We have Lily. She's our connection. So, you don't have to worry about losing me" he told her, seeing true emotion in her eyes right then. "But I need you to accept Elena. Because she means a lot to me and Lily" he explained.
Katherine studied him for a moment. "Fine" she said. "I will accept Elena" she stated. "But don't expect me to go shopping with her or have lunch with her" she said, scoffing as if that would be the death of her.
Stefan smiled. It was a start. A very good start. "I wouldn't expect that at all" he told her.
"My turn Uncle Stefan" Lily said, squeezing in between him and her mother. "Excuse me Mommy. Your turn is up" Lily said, reaching her arms up until Stefan picked her up. Katherine grinned before she began to dance with Zach.
"Don't you look pretty" Stefan said, spinning around with Lily, making her laugh. "What's this I hear about you pushing a boy down on the playground the other day?" he asked.
"Corey tried to kiss me, so I pushed him down" Lily said. "I only got in trouble because he cried like a little baby" she added.
Stefan grinned. "That's my girl" he said proudly, holding up his hand so she could high five him.
"I don't think he'll try to kiss me no more" she said.
"I don't think he will either" Stefan agreed. "But if he does?" Stefan asked.
"Push him down harder" she grinned.
Stefan kissed her forehead and then set her down as the song ended. "Go and get some cake" he said, pushing her along in the direction with the tables. Stefan looked around for Elena and found her dancing with Zach. She was looking at Zach and laughing about something. Her laugh could kill him from happiness if that were possible. Stefan walked up to them and tapped Zach on the shoulder. "Think I could take my wife back?" Stefan asked, a genuine smile on his face.
"I suppose" Zach said, handing Elena's hand to Stefan. "Congratulations you two. For real this time" he winked before walking off.
Stefan pulled Elena close to him and began dancing with her once again. "Hi" she smiled, resting her head against his shoulder. It was nice to just lest relax for a moment.
"Hi" Stefan smiled, kissing against her ear. "Walk with me?" he asked, checking around to make sure no one was watching them. Katherine was kissing Damon while Lily was arguing with Alaric about something. Caroline was refereeing. Bonnie and Jeremy were talking with Zach. It was a perfect time to get away.
Before Elena could protest, Stefan was walking her across the yard to the trail that led to the back of the property where the barn was. Elena laughed while Stefan tried to tell her to be quiet, though he was laughing too, especially after Elena had tripped over a tree root and he had had to catch her. "We're abandoning our guests" Elena told him.
"They can entertain themselves for a little while" Stefan told her. He continued to walk with her into the barn, shutting the door behind them. Once inside, he pulled her into a long kiss. When he pulled away slightly, he smiled down at her. "I just wanted a moment alone with you" he told her. Just a few minutes to kiss her and gaze at her to really make sure this was all real.
Elena was a bit surprised when Stefan pulled her into a firm, yet gentle hug, rather than trying to get her dress off. "I think I can handle that" she smiled, moving her arms up to wrap them around his neck. She leaned up on her tippy toes and kissed him, surprising him at first, but enticing him soon after. They were slow, sensual kisses and they were perfect. "So, tonight" she said before he kissed her again. "I thought we could put photo albums together with all the pictures of us and our families" Elena said, accepting another kiss from him.
Stefan grinned when he pulled his lips away from hers briefly. "You're funny" he told her, kissing her again. "We can do that tomorrow. Tonight, I want to show you how much I really love you" he said, whispering in her ear.
"Yeah, that does sound better actually" Elena said, closing her eyes as she felt Stefan kissing her neck. Stefan mumbled his agreement. "Can I make any requests for tonight?" she asked, feeling her legs begin to give way from under her. Luckily, he had a strong hold on her, physically and mentally.
"Mmmm hmmmm" Stefan mumbled, kissing her shoulder now. He was a little irritated with her dress. It didn't show enough skin for him to kiss.
"I love you" she whispered with a smile.
"I love you too, Elena" he told her. "Forever. And ever. And ever" he said, finally placing a gentle kiss against her cheek. The perfect gesture from an almost perfect guy.