Don't really know where this came from...but it's been around for a while.
"To Be Reunited" will be on hold until after my final exams finish this week.
Enjoy!
Crashed
She never realized how cold the room was before sitting on the marble floor for several minutes. Her bare legs shivered underneath the skirt of her milk-beaded, white dress. The matching heels and the silk train lied forgotten behind her. They were all that remained undamaged. The thin veil and the golden bouquet of flowers looked worse for wear. The flowered hair pick hung loosely in the disheveled curls of her scarlet locks.
A simple gold ring lied forsaken before an unoccupied altar.
She knew this would happen.
"Jessie, honey."
Pale, thin arms wrapped her in a delicate embrace. Her Maid of Honor knelt beside her, forgetting about messing up her own light yellow dress to rid the loneliness seeping into the heart of the bride. Although grateful for Bo's gestures and intentions, Jessie continued to stare where she stood ten minutes ago, the second step leading to the pedestal erecting the church's altar.
She could not help but feel angry.
Even as her bridesmaid began to maternally rub her bare, frigid arms to provide comfort, the cowgirl could not disguise her irritation, her aches. Her eyes narrowed, her lips quivered. It had taken months, years, to reach such a climax in her life. Now, it lied all around her in shambles.
A complete disaster.
Their enemies crashed the wedding before it even truly started. Zurg and his minons, Lotso and his henchmen, Gravitina and her jealousy, Stinky Pete and his greed. Jessie had lost count after the destruction they caused encouraged total chaos to erupt in the church. She gave up on her optimism after that.
It took every ounce of strength she had left to stifle the yells and curses she wished to address to no one in particular. It took a lot more to stave her tears, but that had proved impossible. The little trickles of water smeared what little make-up decorated her flushed face, smudging the lines framing her emerald eyes. She grew increasingly frustrated at herself for showing such weakness.
"Oh, Jess. I know." Bo felt the tears dripping onto her fragile skin and resolved to hold the cowgirl tighter. "It'll be all right, though, I promise."
That was hard to believe.
"Bo?" A voice called from behind.
"I'm over here, Woody." The said woman called gently before returning her attention to Jessie.
Heavy steps beat across the stone floors of the enormous chapel, the only sound the two women heard before Woody Pride walked into their views. Despite his black, leather boots, the sheriff had dressed in his finest ebony suit in order to fit the Best Man title he donned for the day. But at that moment, his ensemble bore several rips and wrinkles that had not been there when the ceremony started, when he had given his sister away.
He did not speak. He merely glanced at the two women who gave his life value. Bo exchanged a sympathetic glance with her husband as he returned the gesture. Looking down again, the bridesmaid continued to calmly warm her sister-in-law's chilled arms.
Woody eventually squatted to stroke the long length of his sister's red hair, moving a few strands from her face before settling his hand on her shuddering back. He sighed heavily as he removed his signature cowboy hat from his head.
"I'm sorry, Jess." He whispered lowly. "If I could've done something…I never wanted this to happen, especially not to you two. You don't deserve it in the least."
Jessie did not answer him. She merely shifted her attention to the leather boots that obscured her view of the altar. She knew that if she uttered a single word, she would explode and wind up hurting the wrong people. None of this was their fault, not even the hundreds of strangers that once filled the wooden pews could be blamed. It was just a matter of circumstance.
Yet, she grew tired of that excuse.
"Are they gone?" Bo asked after a few moments, believing it was a shared wonder between her and Jessie.
"Yeah, managed to drive them off with the help of a few other rangers, but they seemed satisfied enough to leave." Woody griped, standing to gaze at the chapel's grand wooden doors, one of which now hung from one of its hinges. "Ungrateful little–"
"Is he all right?" Jessie interrupted his rant while still staring at his boots.
"Yeah, he's not hurt, just very irritated."
If the answer had been different, the cowgirl would have given a stronger response than just a numb, dismal nod. Yet, she felt that was all she could muster at the moment. The sheriff sighed heavily, realizing he wasn't going to receive a decent reaction from her. He knelt down and tenderly grabbed a hold of his sister's pale shoulders.
"Jessie, this isn't going to make anything better." He advised firmly. "It's not worth the energy. You didn't even want it to get this big anyway. You didn't know more than half the people on the guest list! What kind of wedding is that?"
"Buzz knew them, Woody. They weren't randomly selected from a lottery." Jessie reminded quietly.
"He knew them for about, what, a day or two when he 'saved' their planets?" Woody mocked softly. "They're just here to mooch off the extravagance of the event. You and I both know Buzz didn't want any of this either."
Jessie didn't argue. Her stare broke when she closed her eyes tightly, several more tears spilling down her cheeks. She heard Woody sigh dejectedly and believed he had quit trying to talk to her. Yet, she was not entirely surprised to feel his long arms envelope her firmly. It didn't take her long to submit to the comfort of the embrace and she wound up burying her tear-stained face in her brother's shoulder.
Woody smiled lightly despite hearing the cowgirl's gentle sobs and proceeded to rub her back soothingly. All he needed to do then was to bring her 'round the bend.
"Don't believe that everything you two have has to end because all of this happened." The sheriff advised in a low, confident voice. "That's what those villains wanted. Don't give them the benefit of the doubt."
"And besides," Bo added, her tone strong and certain as well, "You can do it your way this time. No pre-made plans, no investments or funds, no guests who could care less about why you two are getting married. You decide when, where, how big or how small, and who gets to watch."
"It's your day," Woody concludes, "not theirs."
"B-but what about th-those scoundrels?" Jessie inquired, her voice still thick with emotion. "They just barged in and ruined everythin'! What's to stop 'em from doin' it again?"
"It was the popularity of the wedding that drew them here."
The cowgirl pulled away from the safety of Woody's embrace to glance beyond him. Buzz stood just behind the sheriff, the Space Ranger's posture remaining tall and proud, despite his disheveled appearance. As he gazed upon his distressed fiancé, his assured expression showed he did not share her worries.
"I assumed that when the whole universe figured out our wedding plans, our enemies would figure them out as well." Buzz explained calmly. "I tried to make sure they were kept at bay, but they found a way around our defenses anyway." He paused for a moment. "But, in the oddest way, I kind of wanted them to ruin the wedding."
That surprised everyone. Jessie could not help but give him a look of utter bewilderment, unsure about what to say. He had wanted the wedding destroyed? Why?
The ranger sighed and knelt down in front of the cowgirl as Woody moved aside. He opened his left hand, revealing the simple gold ring that had been dropped near the altar when the chaos erupted.
"I didn't want our wedding to be so artificial, so meaningless." He continued softly. "We let the wrong people get involved and it just didn't feel right after that." Reaching down, he took both of her small hands in his, squeezing them gently. "I wanted a second chance, to do it the right way, our way. Do you agree?"
Jessie hesitated for a second as she mulled over his request, but it grew more and more appealing as she imagined the possibilities they now had. They could do what they wanted, whenever, wherever, and with whomever. And no crowds, no fanciness, and no villains? The thought alone lifted the cowgirl's spirits.
Finally letting a smile stretch her lips, Jessie turned back to her lover's brilliant blue gaze, responding with a vigorous head nod.
"I do."
The bride and groom to be shared a relieved laugh as Buzz took Jessie's right hand and slipped the gold band on her ring finger. He beamed brightly at her grateful smile.
"Then let's get started."