𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙱𝚊𝚍 𝙱𝚘𝚢 (𝚋𝚡𝚋)

47.

Wedding planning was more difficult than Shawn and Jaxon could've ever imagined. They waited a few months until after Jaxon graduated and finally decided to start the process.

Shawn and Jaxon sit at their kitchen table, surrounded by wedding magazines, notebooks, and a laptop. Shawn was clicking his pen repeatedly, flipping another page of the magazine. "So now that we know our budget...what do we do now?"

Jaxon chuckles a little. He looks down at the checklist he had made a few weeks ago when Shawn and Jaxon finally decided they wanted to move forward with their wedding. "Next on the list is venue and and choosing a date."

Shawn raises his eyebrows and sits up. "Shit...seriously? What do you think?"

"For a date?" Jaxon asks, sitting back and sipping his coffee. "I mean...I was thinking of like in the fall, right? It could be like..an ode to how we started dating."

"That's cute," Shawn smiles a little. "How about like...November? Both our schedules will be cleared up, and we'll be able to get everyone time to get together and clear out time for their schedules."

"What about venues?"

"I'm thinking of an inside venue. Something small."

"That sounds good." Shawn smiles. "I can look for some venues that'll fit our budget and all that shit."

Jaxon smiles as he flips his computer around and shows it to Shawn. "I've made a Pinterest board. It was lowkey created years ago, but...if you wanna look at it?"

Shawn scrolls through the Pinterest board, looking at all of the wedding decoration venues. "These are nice. You really like the nature colors, huh?"

"I feel like it looks like us," Jaxon says, watching Shawn's face as he scrolls through the Pinterest board. "Nothing too flashy or too bland."

"No, I like it too," Shawn smiles at Jaxon. "I can't believe we're actually doing this shit."

* * *

After a few weeks, they made their way to look at multiple venues. With both of their differing opinions, they decided on a small indoor wedding venue that was perfectly open enough for their liking and catered to both of their wants.

After viewing the rest of the property, they decided to book it with an official date of November 20th, which is in nine months.

They spent the rest of the day meeting with their wedding planner.

"I'm so glad to finally meet you guys!" Emily, their wedding planner, says. They had only briefly spoken on the phone, hoping to find an accepting and nice wedding planner when they met Emily.

Jaxon smiles as he shakes her hand. "Nice to meet you."

Emily was holding a binder full of ideas that she had gathered through Shawn and Jaxon's request and dreams of how they envisioned their wedding. "Well, we have some details to dive into! How about we get started?"

"Sounds good." Shawn waits for both of them to take a seat before sitting down.

"So...Tell me more about the vision you guys have planned? You said you two wanted a small inside wedding, correct? Have you decided on a theme or color palette?"

Shawn glances at Jaxon, nodding at him and allowing him to speak first. "Mhm! We want it to be very nature-like...Greens and whites and browns. We were thinking of having like...natural elements as well...like plants to match the greenery. Oh-...and like lights lit up around the venue."

Emily smiles at him, noticing the excitement in his voice. She notes down in her binder and looks back up at the couple. "That sounds lovely. Have you two chosen a venue?"

"We did," Shawn smiles. "We found one today and set the date. November 20th."

"You guys must be excited," Emily says. "How about logistics? How many guests do you guys think?"

"We wanna keep it small so...around thirty, probably?" Jaxon looks at Shawn. "We're still working out the guest list."

"That's totally fine. That still gives us a good idea of the space. Have you guys thought about the layout for the ceremony and the reception?"

Jaxon sits back a little. "Uhm...I'm not sure exactly how to explain it but," Jaxon grabs his phone from his bag, pulling up a picture of his vision. "This is what we had in mind."

"Oh, this is lovely," She scribbles down some more notes in her binder. "Have you booked a caterer yet? A photographer?"

"Uh...No we haven't," Shawn says. "We're still trying to find the best fit."

"No problem!" Emily says, "I have some recommendations I can provide for you, and we'll work together to make it the perfect fit. After you guys secure that, I will take care of the rest of the process so you two can relax."

***
Shawn passes a glass of wine to Jaxon, taking a seat next to him on their couch. "Fuck," He runs a hand over his face. "I am even more stressed I think."

Jaxon chuckles a little, taking a sip from his glass. "Me too." He sits up a little. "Should...should I invite my dad?"

Shawn hums and makes eye contact with Jaxon. "Do you want to? Like...how much would you like to?"

"I think it would be nice for him to be there," Jaxon shrugs. "But at the same time, I know that he never really approved of me."

"You can invite him if you want, baby. I think even if he doesn't show up, at least you made the effort."

"Hm," Jaxon grabs his notepad off the coffee table. "Our list is pretty small."

"We only have twenty-two people," Shawn chuckles. "I mean...who else do we really know?"

"Oh, we can add Kirstin's boyfriend. I think she wanted to bring him." Jaxon grabs his pen off the table, scribbling down his name. "Who else?"

"Read the list to me."

"My mom...and her date. My aunt...Potentially my Dad and Mallory. All of our friends...Your grandma and aunt. Jess and Crystal and their dates. Gav's mom."

"I still gotta reach out to a few of my other friends. I know some of the tattoo guys wanna come."

Jaxon takes another sip of his wine, scribbling down 'tattoo guys'. He sighs a little. "I always imagined Mia would be on this list. Her whole family."

"I know, baby." Shawn leans in, kissing him on his head.

"Would it be crazy?" Jaxon asks. He furrows his brows and looks up at Shawn.

"Not crazy, I don't think. If you really want to, you should reach out. It's completely up to you."

Jaxon frowns and looks back down at his notepad. He takes another sip from his wine.

* * *