And Stay || Han Lue [returns 2026]

three

TWO YEARS LATER

Nikoletta Linne was Beatriz' maid of honor. It was quite the honor on Niko's side. She had never been asked to be somebody's maid of honor before. Beatriz didn't have a lot of people to ask that weren't Keir's sisters. Niko had been Bea's best friend since she arrived in Puerto Rico - Nikoletta had just moved from Sweden to Puerto Rico with her parents. There was this instant "click" between them and they had been best friends ever since.

Today was a big day for Beatriz - picking out her wedding dress. Nikoletta was obviously going the moment Beatriz booked the appointment. It was being held in New York City in this shop that Beatriz found online. They decided to make a weekend out of it. However, Niko knew something was wrong with Bea.

"You good in there, Lex?" Beatriz's eyes closed as the employee zipped up the back of the dress. It was a little big on Beatriz, which was fine, she didn't expect to find a dress that fit her body perfectly. But just standing there in the dressing room, Beatriz just wished she eloped.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Niko." Beatriz let her hair fall against her back as soon as the employee finished zipping the dress back up. Beatriz glanced at her reflection before emerging from the dressing room. She held onto the skirt of the dress, a frown on her face. She stepped onto the small platform, looking at herself in the mirror.

Beatriz didn't even register the frown on her face.

Not until Nikoletta pointed it out. "Should I be questioning why you aren't smiling right now, Lex?" Beatriz turned her head, seeing her best friend right next to her. She had a concerned look on her face. "Are you okay, Lex?" Niko asked.

"I'm fine, Nik." The wedding between Beatriz and Keir was still a good year and a half away. It was Bea's future mother-in-law who wanted her to find a dress now so she didn't worry about it later. However, Beatriz couldn't stop herself from questioning a few details of the wedding itself.

Keir and Bea decided on a small wedding; less than 50 people were invited. When his mother found out about the size, she questioned them about it, stating that "Lexia" was Spanish and everyone in her family would want to attend, as everyone who speaks Spanish has large families. It wasn't the first time that Bea had to explain to Keir's mother that she grew up in the States. Outside of her sister, her family was small.

Her grandparents were immigrants on both sides. Her parents didn't have siblings. And up until two years ago, it was just her and Letty left. Obviously, they had Dom and Mia, they had a found family, but they had no idea that Beatriz was getting married and the last time she heard about Dom was he was on the run. So were Mia and Brian.

Keir even made the comment when they watched the news of Dom's escape that he never believed that Agent O'Conner was a real FBI agent. Bea kept her mouth shut on the subject. But that didn't change the fact that everyone questioned Bea about "her side".

Beatriz didn't have a lot of friends to begin with, and being unable to invite her found family really did hurt her.

Nikoletta didn't believe Beatriz, seeing her expression. "Lex-"

"I'm fine." Beatriz repeated. She smoothed down the skirt. "I'm fine."

Beatriz didn't find a dress, and she was okay with that because she realized while trying on the dresses that she didn't want to get married. It was actually something she had been struggling with ever since Keir proposed - Beatriz never pictured herself getting married or having children. Not unless she found that one guy and she honestly thought it was Keir.

In the beginning, she pictured a life with Keir - marriage, kids, continuing to live in Puerto Rico, the works. But as Bea continued to wear the engagement ring, she really wondered if Keir was actually the one for her. They had told people they weren't in a rush to get married, Beatriz was finishing up her Master's, Keir was working really odd hours at the time and they both decided to wait a little while before setting a date.