Happy Ending
The full white skirt of her dress is dirty, and the flowers woven into her hair droop, but Fancy can't find it in herself to care.
"Never would have pegged you for the runaway bride type." Noah nudges her over on the park bench—he never did have any concept of personal space—and grins at her.
The grin is full of perfect teeth, and his thigh is solid warmth pressed against hers, and Fancy won't look into his eyes, because she doesn't want to see the concern he can't hide lurking in their blue depths. "Shut up," she mutters, pouts really, and she knows she's being childish, but she can't fight the urge to cross her arms across her chest and stick out her tongue at him. "If you say I told you so," she warns.
"Me? Not me," Noah defends with a slight smirk, bumping shoulders with her. "Give me that," he says, grabbing the almost bare-stemmed bouquet from her lap and eyeballing it with a twinkling eye.
Only a few velvety petals remain, the rest lay at her feet, and Fancy feels her cheeks burn with embarrassment as he raises an eyebrow and twirls it between his fingers.
"What did it ever do to you?" he teases, plucking a petal between his own fingers and holding it in the palm of his hand. His full mouth puckers, and the petal takes flight, floating in the breeze.
Fancy watches its progress, watches Noah out of the corner of her eye, and slowly turns and leans her back against Noah's side. One of his arms casually loops around her naked shoulders, and she captures it between her own with a shy hand, pressing her cheek against his warm skin. His breath gently stirs her hair, and his nearness comforts her. Together they watch the young families stroll the grassy knolls and go about their day, occasionally casting intrigued glances their way. Her lips brush against his skin as she murmurs a plea. "Tell me I did the right thing." His answer, when it comes, is both the answer she wants and the answer she dreads, and she hopes that, somewhere out there, the man she loves won't waste this chance at a happy ending.
"You did the right thing."