𝔸 𝕃𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕚𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝔻𝕒𝕣𝕜𝕟𝕖𝕤𝕤 ➁

74. The Lighter Things in Life

A/N:
^ I love this cover.
It was meant for this chapter. ^

A FEW YEARS LATER

I rock on my heels in anticipation as I stare down the aisle. I never thought this day would come. In all of my thirty-six years I never thought I'd see this day. I hear the music sound off in the distance making my heart thud irregularly inside of chest. It beats like that until I see her.

The moment Rae comes into my view my world slows down, almost coming to a complete stop. Instead of beating irregularly, my heart beats steadily. She's arm in arm with Mr. Travers walking toward me to the rhythm.

Her gorgeous dark-red hair is half-up, half-down. There's baby's-breath laced into her locks, twisted in just the right manner to make a beautiful crown on top of her head. The bouquet in her hands is simple yet intricate, much like the white dress she's wearing. With each and every step she takes closer to me I can feel the emotion of an entire lifetime of loving this woman build up inside me.

Rae's bright hazel eyes find mine as she gets nearer. There is so much love in them that I feel my own emotions boil over. I cup my hand over my mouth as I take her in and feel tears well inside of my eyes. This is the moment the love of my life and I will finally belong to one another.

Her father places her hands in mine with his blessing and I gladly take them from him. I can't help myself as I bring both of her delicate hands up to my mouth and give them a soft kiss. The breath-taking smile she gives me in return makes my heart swell to ten times its normal size.

The officiant says what he has to say but I'm hardly listening because we'd practiced this. We'd gone through the rehearsal and, in truth, we'd been to many weddings that weren't ours before this. Now it's our turn and the only part that matters is the current part; our vows.

I take a deep breath as I hold her eyes, "Rae, there's been nothing about us that has ever been easy, that's for sure." I give her a smile when she lets out a soft laugh and continue with, "but that's what makes this all the more meaningful. I feel like I've waited a lifetime for you but I'd do it all over again to be the man standing in front of you right now. I'd wait a million lifetimes and a million more after that for this day. Because today is the day I'm officially able to give you all of me, everything inside of me, even though it's already been yours for as long as I can remember. My everything, all that I am, I am happy to say solely belongs to you. I love you."

Rae looks upward, wiping the tears away from her eyes before looking at me. She blinks a few times and swallows back the emotion I can see welling inside of her before she's able to speak. "Seth, my giant," it's my turn to let out a little laugh at that, "you are the love of my life and my existence. There will never be anyone to capture my heart and soul like you have." She pauses as she wipes a few tears away before continuing, "you've loved me through the good, the bad, and the ugly. You've loved me for me, just like I love you. I think that's the best thing about our love. It knows no boundaries. It knows no time limits. It's just there, just like it always has been and I promise it always will be. I promise to always love you."

After her words everything after that happens in a rose-colored blur. We both devote ourselves to one another and the officiant names us man and wife, Mr. and Mrs. Seth McCaslin. I don't think there's ever a moment in my entire life where I've ever felt so full of happiness.

We spend the rest of the afternoon singing and dancing, celebrating our love for one another. Our families congratulate us mutually, everyone finally able to be happy for something we'd been ashamed of for so long. We weren't ashamed of loving each other any longer though. There was now a weight off of my shoulders which felt like the weight of a dozen worlds being lifted.