Dolphin Tale 6

Chapter [2]

"I HAVE A QUESTION FOR you, Sawyer."

Sawyer turned his head and gazed into Hazel's eyes. She was lying beside him on the sandy shore, soaking up the last rays of sunlight. Their hands were entwined, their affection for each other resonating in their gazes.

"What would you like to ask me?"

Hazel grinned. "I don't want to rush things, Sawyer, but people have been asking about the wedding."

Sawyer let his gaze wander back to the sky that stretched, seemingly endless, above them. "Ah, that. Our wedding. I don't know, Hazel. When do you think would be an appropriate time?"

Hazel shrugged. "I don't know, either. Tomorrow?"

Sawyer laughed, his gaze travelling back to Hazel's face. "I don't think we can plan a wedding in a day, Hazel. I mean, sure, we probably could, but we should put some thought into this; we only get one shot, after all."

"Unless I say 'no', or 'I don't'," Hazel humored. "We'd have to do the whole thing again, right?"

Sawyer nodded, his eyes alight with laughter. "Yeah, that's true. But, in all seriousness, I think we should give this some serious thought. We should give ourselves a week to plan, and we'll see how we go from there."

Hazel nodded thoughtfully. "Sounds good. I mean, we can always postpone it if necessary. So, when do we start planning?"

Sawyer squeezed Hazel's hand gently. "Right here, right now."

"Where do we begin?"

Sawyer thought for a moment. "Location: Where do we want to hold our wedding?"

Hazel turned to face the ocean which was now streaked with all different shades of purple as the sun continued on its journey to the other side of the world. She smiled as memories came flooding back to her in a tidal wave. "That's easy," she said, turning back to face Sawyer. "Right here, at this very beach. It is, after all, where we first met."

Sawyer nodded, smiling. "It's perfect . . . just like you."

* * *

As the date to Hazel and Sawyer's wedding drew closer, people began to speculate on who was invited and where it would be held. The only thing that had been said was the date: the 5th of July—that was the only thing that been said about the upcoming wedding.

Hazel and Sawyer walked over to the main dolphin pool, their hands intertwined, smiling as rumors of where the wedding was to be held reached their ears. Some said that it was to be held at Clearwater Marine Aquarium, others thought it would take place in a park. So far, nobody had correctly guessed the beach where Winter had first been rescued, the place where Hazel and Sawyer had met by sheer chance and luck.

Who was on the guest list was fairly obvious—CMA employees, close family and friends, and a priest. Even though the media hadn't been alerted about the wedding, everyone knew that they'd find out in the end and attempt to gate crash the reception.

Dr. Clay watched Hazel and Sawyer from the window in his office. He still hadn't gotten his head around the fact that his daughter—his very own daughter who had never really shown much interest in another other human being until Sawyer arrived—was about to get married within a matter of days. He didn't mind—no, not at all—because Sawyer was a wonderful, honest, and compassionate person, and Dr. Clay knew, deep within his heart, that Sawyer would take great care of Hazel. Dr. Clay had known that a marriage was inevitable, but he would never have predicted it all to happen so soon. But, no matter what, Dr. Clay was happy for the both of them; they were the perfect match for each other. If Hazel was an incomplete jigsaw puzzle, Sawyer would be her missing piece; without him she was incomplete, with him, however, she was complete.

* * *

It was now one day before the big day and anticipation was high. Formal invitations had been handed out to those invited, and when the location was revealed, everyone agreed that it was the perfect place to hold their wedding.

"Have you picked out a wedding dress yet, Hazel?" Sawyer asked as they sat together on the edge of Winter and Hope's pool.

Hazel nodded. "Of course I have. Your mom helped me, and she told me to keep it a secret. I can't believe it's tomorrow . . . can you? It just like yesterday when I first met you, but in reality, I met you years ago. And you know what? I'm eternally grateful that I did."

Sawyer eyes glimmered with happiness. His heart soared and he felt elated. Tomorrow was going to be one of the happiest days in his life. But he was still nervous. What if something went wrong? What if it came to the vows and the two words he had been meaning to say never came out? What if he made a fool out of himself?

"What are you thinking about?" Hazel's eyes bored into his, frowning.

Sawyer looked away from Hazel, gazing into the far distance. "About tomorrow. Thinking about all the things that could possibly go wrong . . . "

Hazel let out a long sigh. "Me, too. I mean, what if I trip over my own wedding dress? What if I misplace my shoes? What if I . . . what if I make a fool out of myself in front of everyone?"

Sawyer shook his head. "You won't, Hazel. Trust me."

"And trust me when I say that you won't make a fool out of yourself either, Sawyer," Hazel said, placing an arm around Sawyer's neck. "I'm sure you won't."

"And if I do?"

Hazel shrugged. "Laugh it off. If you make a big deal out of it, so will everyone else. If you simply laugh, everyone will laugh along with you. It's an important lesson to learn. Other people will follow your lead, Sawyer, so if you do make a fool out of yourself—and I'm sure you won't—just laugh. There's nothing wrong with laughing, is there?"

Sawyer grinned. "No, there isn't. You give out some of the best advice, Hazel. You should be an inspirational speaker, or something."

Hazel's eyes became unfocused for a minute, her expression distant. "Maybe," she whispered. "Maybe, someday, when we go out and explore the world outside CMA and Florida." Her smile returned, her eyes alight with a flame of desire, a thoughtful expression replacing her distant one. "Maybe."