"Brooklyn hold still dammit." Bernice gritted as she tried to apply the last touches on Brooklyn's makeup. Brooklyn took a deep breathe and stared straight ahead, staring at the person looking back at her.
Her emotions and thoughts were running wild, they've been running wild since she woke up. Today was the big day, the day where her life changed forever. The day where she would be tying the knot with the love of her life. Every time she thought about it, she had to blink away the tears that threatened to fall.
"Wow." Bernice mumbled as she stepped back to admire her best friend. Brooklyn looked beautiful with the light makeup and low bun she had. Brooklyn gave Bernice a nervous smile, her stomach was doing flips as the time was getting closer.
"What time is it?" She asked, standing up to do a light stretch. It was only her and Bernice in the back room, until she got herself fully together at least. The kids were with Raine and Chris was getting himself together with Trey along with his groomsmen.
"It is....8:30. We have like half an hour so let's get you in this dress chile." Brooklyn's heart rate sped up, once she stepped in her dress she knew the reality would really set in. She looked at Bernice for a second before hesitantly nodding. Bernice gave her a reassuring smile and grabbed the mermaid style dress off of the mannequin.
Brooklyn was already dressed in her white lace bra and panties set, so all they had to do was slip the dress on. Bernice held the dress low as Brooklyn slowly stepped in as they stood directly in front of the full length mirror. Bernice helped her pull the dress up as it fit perfectly. With no other words exchanged, Bernice reached over to grab the fragile Diamond necklace that sat on the dresser where Brooklyn sat before.
"This is beautiful." Brooklyn whispered, touching the slightly heavy gems that rested on her chest. Bernice nodded and grabbed the earring that went with the set. While Brooklyn admired her necklace, Bernice put the long earrings in to top off the look.
The jewelry set was one specifically picked out by Chris. It wasn't anywhere near cheap either and Brooklyn fell in love as soon as she seen it. It complimented her dress and her makeup perfectly, it was like a missing piece to a puzzle that fit perfectly.
"I am....speechless." Bernice breathed out, looking Brooklyn up and down. Brooklyn did a slight spin, staring at her whole outfit in the mirror. She had to admit that she looked beautiful and felt more beautiful than ever before.
"Niecy, what if he starts to get cold feet? Or what if I get cold feet? What if something goes wrong...what if nobody show up? What if-." Bernice grabbed Brooklyn's arm and led her to sit in the nearest seat.
"Bitch please be quiet. Everyone is already here Brooklyn, every single seat is full as we speak and filling up. He won't get cold feet and if he does then he's a dumb ass." Brooklyn placed a hand on her forehead dramatically and squeezed her eyes shut.
"Is his mom here? Can you get her or something, I really need to talk to her." Bernice raised an eyebrow and nodded, walking out to grab Joyce.
*
"Shit." Chris cursed frustrated, his shaky hands not allowing him to tie his tie correctly. Trey looked over at his friend who looked a bit distraught.
"Nigga breathe, the hell you shaking and shit for?!" Trey walked up to Chris, grabbing the tie from out his hand.
"Man I don't know, this is really bout to happen. After today, imma really be a husband, that shit is wild." Trey chuckled, finishing up the last loop on the tie. Chris silently thanked him and sat down, resting his elbows on his knees.
"Don't tell me you getting second thoughts." Trey said, grabbing a bottle of water and sitting across from Chris. Chris ran his hand down his face, running his tongue over his bottom lip.
"Nah it's not- it's not that. I don't know, this is a big commitment. I know for a fact she's the one and I know for a fact that's who I want to spend the rest of this lifetime with, but- fuck, I don't know." Trey nodded, seeing Chris start to get frustrated once again.
"I think you're just scared to be honest, but you don't have nothing to be scared of. Yes, this is a big commitment, but if you're so certain that she's the one for you then push these thoughts to the side. She's showed you multiple times that she's the one. I know this, you know this, everyone knows this. Not to mention, she also gave you them three beautiful kids that y'all got. There ain't no better than Brooklyn, at least not for you." Chris smiled at the thought of her alone, she was something special.
"I just want to see her, it's hard to believe this is really happening. We've been together for what...8 years or something like that and it's finally about to happen. I don't even know-." Suddenly, Chris was interrupted by the dressing room door being busted open. He looked up to see Raine, who seemed stressed out, carrying Maliyah while Micah and Malachi ran up to their dad.
"Woah, calm down." Chris smiled, sitting them both on either side of him. Raine said nothing, placing Maliyah right in Chris's arms and walking out of the room. Chris looked at Trey confused, but of course he was no help.
"Y'all little niggas looking all sharp and shit." Trey ran his hand over Micah's little fade causing the boy to laugh and curl up towards his dad. Chris looked down at Maliyah, kissing her chubby cheeks. She was literally a refection of him. All of the kids looked more like Chris than Brooklyn, but Maliyah was his twin and it was undeniable.
"Hi princess." Chris cooed, smiling down at her. She was wide awake, her big eyes looking around at everything. She had on a tiny white dress with white socks and a white headband. Being that she was still very small, they didn't want to put too much on her.
"Chris....It's time." Raine said softly, poking her head back in the room. Chris's palms instantly began to get sweaty as he handed Maliyah over to Trey.
"Y'all be good and listen to Uncle Trey okay?" He sternly spoke to the twins who both nodded, basically ignoring him. Chris sighed and stood up, looking over at himself once again in the mirror.
"You ready?" Raine asked, nudging the side of him. Chris bit down on his bottom lip and looked ahead at the double doors he was about to walk through to get to the ceremony area.
"As ready as I'll ever be." With that, the doors opened and he walked down the isle. He looked around at all the faces looking up at him mesmerized. He gave small smiles and nods to everyone, taking a deep breathe before stepping up to take his designated spot.
"Good morning." The priest spoke while holding his hand out to engulf Chris in a firm handshake. Chris nodded as he accepted the gesture.
"Good morning."
"I'm assuming you're the groom." Chris nodded and clasped his hands together in front of him
"That would be me."
*
"....And marriage isn't something that's an easy journey. You will have your hard times angel, but the most important thing is how you deal with your issues. This isn't a breakup and makeup type of thing, this is something that you should expect as a lifetime." Brooklyn nodded, rubbing the back of Joyce's hands with her thumbs.
"I expect more than a lifetime with him. With him I feel a sense of protection and I feel safe with him. I trust him with my heart, hell my whole life honestly. It definitely hasn't been anything less than a bumpy and curved rode, but I wouldn't take any of that back honestly. Everything happens for a reason so it's like if none of that happened where would we be now." Joyce gave Brooklyn a warm smile as she grabbed a tissue to wipe her eyes that were beginning to water.
"I've never been so proud of the two of you. After today, things are going to feel and look a lot different and-."
"Brooklyn, it's time love." Christine smiled, popping her head in the room. Brooklyn's heart dropped as she looked at Joyce, she was nothing less than nervous.
"A-all the bridesmaids and stuff already went?" Christine nodded and Brooklyn squeezed her eyes shut. She stood up with Joyce right next to her before Makai came rushing into the room.
"You look beautiful sis." He complimented, grabbing her arm while they walked towards the open double doors. Brooklyn couldn't even respond, she knew if she opened her mouth to speak the tears would come flowing like a waterfall.
Being that Brooklyn didn't have any father figure or mother figure in her life, Makai would walk her down the aisle. She didn't want it any other way, even though he was younger than her it was almost like he was her savior. There were times before her kids where she felt like giving up, but he's saved her from that. He's brought her out of depressions, suicide attempts, and overall he was her pure happiness.
Brooklyn and Makai stood at the back of the room, looking out at the beautifully decorated church. Brooklyn made eye contact with Chris who stood jittery at the front. She knew his nerves were on 1,000 just like hers.
The wedding wasn't anything too big, it was the perfect size to be intimate while also inviting close friends which especially contained industry people. Brooklyn and Makai watched as everyone stood once the instrumental of 'Someone like you' began to play. Brooklyn and Makai walked with the music. It was a slow and calm walk down, slowly making their way up to Chris.
Brooklyn watched as he squeezed his eyes with his fingers, turning around for a second to do what she assumed was to gather himself. He didn't turn around until they were standing in front of him, his eyes were glossy and slightly red. Brooklyn knew he was emotional, if she wasn't coaching herself to keep it together then she would've been the same way.
Chris took a step down to be leveled with Brooklyn. Him and Makai dapped before Brooklyn was handed off. She kissed Makai's cheek and latched onto Chris's hand. He slowly guided her up as they stood in front of the priest facing each other.
"We are gathered here today before friends, family, and above all else, God, to witness the holy matrimony of Chris and Brooklyn. Love and marriage are truly one of God's greatest gifts and accomplishments. Yes, the heavens and the Earth are pretty impressive, but the Lord has filled all of us with love and allows us to grow that love exponentially by sharing it with someone else." The priest began. Brooklyn rubbed her lips together as her and Chris stared deep into each other's eyes.
"Please, bow your heads as we set a prayer over this union...." everyone including Chris and Brooklyn closed their eyes. Bowing their heads towards one another. "Lord we come to you today to pray a special prayer over Chris and Brooklyn as their lifetime journey should begin today. We ask for guidance and love over the two. We ask for you to keep them under your wing, to allow them to overcome any challenges you throw their way. Lord we ask for you to cleanse them as they prepare to spend the rest of their lives with each other. We pray that you keep them for a lifetime, for eternity. Lord please bless over their children, that you keep them pure and with a special love in their hearts. We ask you these many mercies I'm no other name but your name. Amen."
"Amen." The church roared after him.
"Now we will ask the ring bearers to bring the rings." Brooklyn's eyes watered once she seen the twins round the corner with two plush pillows. Micah held Brooklyn's ring and Malachi held Chris's ring. Trey bent down to grab both rings and run his hand over the twins head. He held them in front of him while everyone cooed and an orchestra of "awww" filled up the room.
"Before the rings, the bride and groom have both written their own vows. Bride....you may recite your vows." Brooklyn took a deep breathe and glanced at the crowd of people who fell at a hush as they stared up at her and Chris.
"Um I didn't write them down because I wanted it to come straight from the heart. I honestly don't even know where to begin when it comes to us, our story, how we're here today....right now. Our journey wasn't one that was ideal, wasn't one that was easy, and wasn't one that I expected to get us to where we are today. From our first conversation, I knew whatever we had or whatever we built would be a long term thing. You've taught me so many things, you've helped me to grow as not only a woman but as a mother, as a better person for not only myself but for our children...for you. I want to promise you Chris that I will never leave your side. Whenever the going gets tough, whenever you feel like giving up, whenever you're on your knees crying out for help, I promise to be the hand to always lift you back to your feet. I promise-." Brooklyn's voice cracked as tears began to well in her eyes. Chris smiled down at her, using the pad of his thumb to wipe both of her eyes.
"Thank you. I promise to do my part as a wife, as your wife as we move forward with everything. I promise to not have you ever doubting or questioning yourself or your place as a man, as a father, as my lover. You complete me in every way and I never ever want you to forget that. I want you to know that if you have nobody else, you'll always have me no matter what. So with that, I promise to be the best wife I can be and I love you so much. With every last bone and fiber within me." Brooklyn whispered the last part, blinking quickly to avoid anymore tears fighting to fall. She looked out to see different people using tissues to wipe their own tears. Especially Joyce who was a complete wreck.
"Now for the groom...you may recite your vows." Chris nodded towards the priest before squeezing Brooklyn's hands in his.
"My baby girl, my best friend, my princess, my little baby, all that." Brooklyn blushed, breaking eye contact from Chris's eyes being set directly on her.
"My love for you goes miles, eternity. You've helped me in so many ways, if I had to name them we would be here a lifetime. My belief in myself isn't something strong, it isn't something that I can sit up here and say is serious because it isn't. My self doubt, my inner demons, the fight I have with my inner self on a daily basis is something that I struggle with everyday. The medications I have to take, my bipolar disorder, my PTSD, ADHD...everything that I fight with, you've never left my side through it all. Even on the darkest of days, even when you were mad at me or if I broke your trust, you never turned your back on me. When we were broken up because I messed up something special and I sat on the bathroom floor with 5 bottles of prescription pills....you came and talked to me for 6 hours. 6 hours on that bathroom floor that day to stop me from overdosing. 6 hours even after I broke all trust you had for me. 6 hours." Brooklyn lowered her head, she didn't want him to see her get emotional about the very sensitive topics.
During one of Chris and Brooklyn's many breakups, Chris did suffer from a possible overdose. Brooklyn found him after she went back to get some of her things. She sat with him in a full session of tears and regret to coach him to flush all of the pills and preached to him about his self worth.
"Nobody has ever done the things you've done for me. Nobody has ever given me some of the greatest gifts that you've given me. The biggest one being our 3 babies. Micah, Malachi, and Maliyah...you brought all of them into this world. The reasons why I breathe along with you and there's no way for me to thank you enough. I promise to never ever break your trust, break your heart, break the bond that we have now. I promise to always protect you and I promise to always love you. I promise to help you and teach you as you teach me what it means to love even deeper than what we know now. I promise to love you till the wheels fall off, and even after that." By the time Chris was done, Brooklyn was nearly in hysterics. She tried to keep her composure but the tears weren't stopping for a second.
"The rings please." The priest spoke, holding his hand out. The church watched closely as Trey handed off the rings to the priest who distributed them to Chris and Brooklyn.
"Let us start with Chris, repeat after me. Brooklyn, I give this ring to you as a promise to my vows. As a key to this love, to this matrimony. I give this ring to you to signify what it means to love and to cherish this life with you. Please wear this ring to signify my eternal love to you." Chris repeated every sentence while sliding the big rock he picked out on Brooklyn's finger. Her eyes widened as she looked down at the ring.
"A fucking rock." Brooklyn whispered to herself, hoping nobody else heard. But from Chris's chuckle, she knew she wasn't quiet enough. She smiled at him nervously while giggling.
"Now Brooklyn, repeat after me. Chris, I give this ring to you as a promise to my vows. As a key to this love, to this matrimony. I give this ring to you to signify what it means to love and to cherish this life with you. Please wear this ring to signify my eternal love to you." Brooklyn repeated each word while sliding the ring on. Chris licked his lips, it was nothing less than what he expected.
Both of them went all out for the others ring which was expected. They matched each other perfectly even though it wasn't planned.
"'Now before we declare the two husband and wife, does anybody object." Both Brooklyn and Chris's necks snapped towards the crowd. Everyone looked around just to come up short of any and all objections. The priest instantly held a wide smile on my face.
"Well in that case....with all the power invested in me and by the state of California. I now pronounce you husband and wife. Chris, you may now kiss your bride." Chris grabbed Brooklyn by her waist and leaned in. He slightly dipped her as his tongue found his way in to explore her mouth.
"Alrightttt, there are children here!!" Bernice yelled causing everyone to laugh. Chris laughed, pulling away and setting Brooklyn back straight on her feet. He gave her one last peck before they turned back to face everyone. He picked her up bridal style and they danced out of the building to whatever instrumental was playing.
"WE'RE FUCKING MARRIED!!!!" Brooklyn screamed once they stepped foot outside. Paparazzi lined the building behind a barricade. They snapped millions of pictures as the two grabbed champagne and both took a sip.
"You're my wife now...fine ass." Chris mumbled, snaking his arm around her.
"Mommy." Brooklyn looked down to see Micah running into her dress. She picked him up and spun him around, nothing could ruin her mood at the moment.
"My sister all grown and shit." Makai wiped his fake tears while stepping outside. Brooklyn laughed, playfully pushing him as he grabbed Micah. Everyone was simply happy as they all walked outside.
"Bitch you and your little groom need to get in that limo. We'll all drive in the other one and meet y'all to take the pictures." Brooklyn cursed forgetting they still had to do that.
"Don't nobody wanna take them damn pictures." Chris grumbled, grabbing Brooklyn by her waist from behind. He gave her a soft kiss on her neck as they stood in front of everyone.
"I know baby but we have to so come on. I can give you your first present in the car." Brooklyn whispered the last part, winking as she walked away towards the limo. Chris bit his lip, perking up and turning back towards everyone.
"We will see y'all over there." Raine, Trey, Bernice, and Makai all scrunched up their faces in disgust while Chris and Brooklyn ran off to the limo.
"She getting pregnant again, I give it a month at most." Trey said while shaking his head. Everyone around him nodded and walked towards their designated vehicles.
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Y'all we made it, THEY'RE MARRIED!!!! (2 more chapters)