crescent [h.s]

epilogue 2 - the wedding

5 years later

Harry Styles

Today is the day I have been looking forward to for the last 5 years since I expected it to come at any moment, and the last 23 years since my daughter laid in my arms for the very first time.

It's my first baby's wedding day.

I'm awake when the rest of the house is silent, Dove shocking us all when she decided she wanted to stay in her childhood bedroom the night before her wedding. I really thought she'd stay at her apartment with her wonderful fiancé, but clearly not.

The door to mine and Aurora's bedroom creeks open, the hinge ever so slightly squeaking as a blonde head of hair peeks around the wood, my heart instantly recognising the sight of my beautiful daughter.

Without saying anything, she just motions her head to the middle of my bed in a wordless question, making me nod immediately. I press a kiss to Aurora's cheek before scooting away from her so Dove can climb in between us, making sure her sleeping body doesn't think I'm abandoning her.

Dove pulls the covers up to the tops of her shoulders, eyes casted forwards, not moving from the view out of mine and Aurora's bedroom window.

I let her lay here for a few minutes in silence, but eventually enough time passes, making me open my mouth in order to talk for the first time today, "What's up, sunny? Are you okay?"

She sends me a single nod, taking a second before pulling her eyes away from the window and over to my face, "I can't believe I'm getting married today."

I smile at her words, taking her right hand across the sheets and holding onto it, smoothing my thumb over the ring I designed for her when she was 3 years old, and replaced with the real stones for her 16th birthday. "You are...but only if you want to."

She starts laughing at me, turning her head in my direction completely, her straight white teeth shining in my direction as she nods continuously, "Oh I absolutely want to, there's no cold feet from me."

Lifting her left hand up in the air, she twinkles her fingers in the morning sunlight, the stones glistening in the sunshine. She's smiling gently at the ring on her finger when she talks again, "I'm gonna have another ring added to the stack at the end of the day..."

Aurora wakes up as we're talking, her hand patting around on top of the sheets until she meets Dove's body, a smile on her face that's turned in my direction before she's even opened her eyes, "Hi my prinkípissa, happy wedding day."

Dove is smiling at the sound of her mum's voice, rolling over to share a hug with her, "Thank you..." me and Aurora share a look at Dove's quiet voice, and my beautiful wife gives me a single nod as she turns back to our daughter and rubs her hand up and down her arm in order to comfort her already, "Dovey, is something wrong?"

Dove just shakes her head again, but sits up in bed and turns around so she's facing us, and back is to the window. She's wrapped up in a silk pair of pajama bottoms and a colour drained over sized t-shirt she most definitely stole from her future husband.

Wow.

My baby is about to have a husband.

We give her a moment to talk, and like always, she eventually does, "Do you think I'm making a mistake getting married at 23?"

With questioning brows, I ask, "Do you think you're making a mistake getting married at 23?"

She shakes her head, the side of her thumb in her mouth as she chews on her skin, Aurora immediately snapping her hand down so she doesn't end up breaking the skin like always, "No...I just know people will have things to say, and make their own assumptions."