Not the One

Part 34

A knock on the door caught Stevie's attention. "Come in."

Mick opened the door and walked into the room, smiling at her brightly. "You look stunning."

"Thank you." Stevie smiled shyly as she turned back towards the floor length mirror. "And thank you for letting us take over your house, Mick."

"No need. I'm glad to do it." He shrugged and stepped up to stand beside Stevie. "We still look good together."

Stevie rolled her eyes now looking up at Mick instead of his reflection. "Yeah, we made a nice couple, until you cheated on me."

"I hoped, you had forgotten about that." Mick said, scratching the back of his head nervously. "Anyway. Are you doing alright?"

"I am, yes." Stevie nodded, making sure her dress looked perfect. "I'm a bit nervous, but I'm also really excited, you know. This feels right."

"I'm so happy to hear you say that. You're finally thinking straight." Mick placed his hands on her shoulders in order to stop her from fussing. "Dave's a wonderful guy. You're both lucky to have found each other."

"Have you seen him? How is he doing?" 

"I caught up with Dave before coming to see you. Compared to you, he's a wreck. The poor man is convinced something's bound to happen." Mick chuckled, doubting it. "I did my best to reassure him that everything's just fine."

Stevie moved over to the window, where she could, albeit barely, see Dave, at least his figure, and the rest of their guests, waiting for her to come down. "15 minutes." She said, not necessarily to Mick, more so to herself. There were 15 minutes left before Stevie and Dave were to become a married couple.

Reaching for her bouquet, Mick handed Stevie the flowers. "Shall we?"

Taking a deep breath, Stevie nodded her head and looped her arm through Mick's. They had many ups and more downs, but somehow Stevie and Mick managed to remain the best of friends. She wished her parents could have attended the ceremony, but she didn't want to drag them all the way out to Maui. Stevie were going to visit them after together with Dave. Her brother wasn't able to come either, so the only choice left was Mick to walk her down the short aisle. He said, he was honored, when asked.

Mick cleared his throat loudly, when he and Stevie came out, catching the guests' attention. Heads turned and everyone's eyes settled on Stevie. She looked beautiful, she felt beautiful and more than that, she felt happy. 

"Take good care of her." Mick warned Dave, once the two approached him. 

"There's no other way." Dave shook his head, reaching for Stevie's hand. "You're the most gorgeous woman in the world, you know that?" 

"Am not, but thank you." She replied, their short exchanged was interrupted by the officiant, whom they now faced.

The smile on Stevie's face slowly faded. Suddenly, it all became so real to her. It was her wedding, she was the bride, Dave was about to become her husband. Her breathing quickened, her hands became slightly sweaty and she felt lightheaded. Dave didn't seem to realize that something was wrong, he couldn't wipe the smile off his face. 

Stevie had completely zoned out, until she heard the officiant addressing her. "Do you, Stephanie, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

Her mouth went dry. She was taking too long and she knew it. Everyone held their breath, staring at the couple, wondering what was going on. Stevie could tell that she was making Dave nervous as well, but she was unable to formulate the words. Two of the simplest, easiest words. 

"Stevie?" Dave gave her hands a squeeze, encouraging her to speak up.

"Dave, I'm- I'm sorry..." She shook her head, swallowing uneasily, before she spoke up again. "I don't. I can't." 

Gasps. The guests started whispering among themselves, when Stevie let go of Dave's hands and gathered the material of her dress and hiked it up as she turned to walk back up the aisle. Dave was frozen to the spot, he couldn't say or do anything, he couldn't even call Stevie's name. Mick was ready to jump to his feet, when he felt Christine's hand stop him. He looked at her and frowned, she just shook her head, making him stay.

In utter disbelief, Stevie managed to walk back into the house by herself, the sand didn't make it too easy. She didn't know what happened. Not even an hour ago, she was excited, she couldn't wait for the moment, when Dave slipped the ring on her finger.

Finally, standing on solid ground, Stevie let her dress fall down to the floor as she straightened out, breathing heavily. She had no idea if she had just saved herself from making a huge mistake or had she just made a huge mistake. As she was trying to figure that out, the front door to Mick's house opened and her lips parted, she inhaled sharply.

"Am I too late?"