Camgirl | tayley ✓

twenty-five

Eighteen months later, Taylor was waiting at the altar for his soon-to-be wife to join him. Typically, he succeeded in hiding his anxiety and pushing it down so deep inside that he would forget about it. But as he stood there with his hands intertwined in front of him, his shaky knees felt as though they would give out any moment.

Their ten-month-old daughter, Skylar Nichole York, sat in the front row, clapping her little hands while wiggling in Hayley's mother's lap.

"Da-da," she said as she reached for Taylor. He noticed her quiet voice and grabby hands and in response he raised a finger to his lips to shush her.

Taylor had already seen Hayley in her dress for the sake of better photo opportunities for the photographer. Taylor nearly cried when he had felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see the love of his life appearing more beautiful than he had ever seen her before.

Okay, he had cried a little bit.

But now he was even more nervous than he had been prior to the grand reveal of her dress. The bridesmaids consisted of Hayley's sisters and a few other female friends she had grown close with in the prior months. She couldn't choose just one maid of honor so she gave both of her sisters the title.

The older of the two did most of the work, though. The only unfortunate part about the decision of choosing two underage girls as the maids of honor was that the bachelorette party was more like a fourteen-year-old's birthday.

The best man chosen by Taylor was his best friend, his brother Justin. His oldest brother, Chris, was initially insulted but forgave him after being asked to be one of the groomsmen. Others who shared that title were his friends Alex, Eli, and Max. The most surprising of the group of groomsmen was a friend Taylor had made just before proposing to Hayley.

Yes, it was Zac.

To Taylor, it was a little bit weird to be friends with someone who had such close relations to a person he despised.

Whatever. Zac was a good guy, unlike his brother.

The groomsmen, best man, maids of honor and the bridesmaids walked down the aisle and took their positions. Taylor gulped.

The traditional Wedding March had just begun being played — something Hayley insisted they include in the ceremony. Even with all the weddings Taylor had been to in his life, he had never expected to hear that song being played as he watched someone he wanted to spend his life with walk down the aisle.

But that was exactly what was happening. That someone was the girl of his dreams.

Even though he had already seen her in her white dress, something about seeing her walking down the aisle in that exact same dress felt even more special. More surreal.

Maybe the realization was finally hitting him. Maybe it was the smile on her face as she walked towards him with her and her father's arm locked. Maybe just because things were finally okay with her and her parents. He was happy for her.

Hayley had wanted her dad to walk her down the aisle and she needed help from her mother when it came to mothering a child. Luckily, that resulted in most tension between her and her parents being resolved.

Taylor glanced at Hayley's mother and noticed that she was tearing up. His own mother was doing the exact same, dabbing her eyes with tissues that Taylor didn't even know she brought. His father sat there with a small smile on his lips. That alone said a lot.

Just as everyone else stared, his and Hayley's daughter looked around and watched Hayley walk down the flower-covered aisle.

Once they reached Taylor, Hayley and her father turned to face one another and gave the other a quick kiss on the cheek. The man joined the fellow parents of the two in the front row of the seats.

Once Taylor and Hayley stood side by side, facing the minister, the ceremony was underway. The minister gave the traditional speech, blah blah blah, welcome to the wedding, holy matrimony this and that. He went on and on about nonsense that both of them had already heard in past weddings they'd been to.

Taylor was prepared to tell the guy to just marry them already.

But he held back. The minister went on about responsibility, commitment, and love.

The groom was sure that he had never before heard something so lame.

Taylor's attention was brought back to the important ceremony when he heard the minister tell him, "I understand the two of you have prepared your own vows. Taylor, as you look into Hayley's eyes, please say your vows."

They both turned their bodies to face one another. Taylor cleared his throat and removed a crumbled up piece of paper from his jacket pocket.

Well, not exactly paper. He unfolded the partially torn McDonald's napkin (he couldn't find any paper and needed to write it down somewhere) and cleared his throat a few times.

"Hayley," his voice cracked. He cleared his throat again before going on to say, "I love you more than life itself. You've given me more than I could ever ask for. You've helped me to find happiness within myself and gave me the most precious gift I've ever received: our daughter."

Taylor turned his head and gave the young girl a small wave.

"I promise, with every ounce of my being, that I will protect you and love you for as long as we live. I vow to put you — our family — first. Always. Not work, not my friends. You, our daughter, and any additions to our family that the future may hold. I vow to support you through every decision you make. You've shown me that love is real, that one can find happiness in another person, which leads to them being happy with themselves. You've changed my life, Hayley. I don't know why you chose me, why you picked me out of everyone. But I'll always be grateful that I am your final choice, that I am yours. Today, tomorrow, forever. I'll be yours. I vow to grow old with you, to put your life before my own. You are my home."

Both of them were crying. Taylor did his best to fight back the tears that welled in his eyes. Only a single tear rolled down his cheek and met the smudged writing of the napkin.

Hayley was crying more than he was. And she hadn't even said her vows yet.

"Hayley, as you look into Taylor's eyes, please say your vows," the minister said.

The maid of honor handed her the neatly written vows.

"Taylor, you've saved my life. I was a mess before you came around. I wasn't important. I don't say that to earn yours or anyone else's pity. I say that because it is how I felt. But then you came along. You wanted me. Suddenly, I was important. Maybe not to many people, but I found self-worth as I fell in love with you. As your wife, I vow to never want anyone but you. To always choose you. You're what my heart wants. What my heart will always want. I vow to grow up with you, to grow old with you. I vow to be there for you each and every day, to put you and I first. I vow to do everything possible to make you happy. The sunshine you give me when you do something as simple as smiling lights up the deepest, darkest parts of me. Thank you for choosing me."

Even the minister was beginning to tear up.

"Can we have the rings, please?" He asked, looking around a bit. Justin dug deep into his pocket, pulling the two wedding bands from it. He handed them over.

The bride and groom exchanged rings. Hayley had already grown accustomed to wearing a ring due to the engagement ring that she had worn for the previous year and a half. But it wasn't so normal for Taylor.

But it felt good. It felt right. He knew that it was just jewelry but it felt like so much more.

The minister cleared his throat before proudly saying, "Taylor and Hayley, by the power vested in me by the state of Tennessee, I hereby pronounce you husband and wife. Taylor, you may kiss your bride."

Finally.

Taylor cupped Hayley's cheeks in his hands. He leaned down a bit due to their height difference and crashed his lips into hers. She stumbled over due to the force of the kiss, but she didn't care.

All she cared about was the fact that she was married. She was married to the love of her life.

[ thank u for reading, sinners. even though i now feel as though i have a high standard to beat with future stories, i loved writing this :') thank you all for reading. ]