My note…this is something I've been meaning to do for a long time now. I guess you can call this a compilation of sorts. It is a future fic based (very, very) loosely, off of some of the content in a few of the fics I've written(mostly Good things..."), as well as from the actual show(ie, Jimmy's standing therapy, J.T.'s death, Craig's drug use, Spinner's cancer, Ashley dipping back into music...), and is the companion piece to 'Today I met the boy I'm gonna marry' . It'll be a work in progress that will probably take some time to complete, and will most likely have long gaps between updates, since I will be writing other things as they come to me. I also want this story to be as perfect as I can get it, with accuracy and good characterization a must. I do have a lot of plans for our beloved JimAsh (Kelley knows many of my plans, and I'm guessing Heather will too, very soon, when I beg her for wisdom and guidance...as always). I'm not sure how far I'm going take this one(yet), but I have no objections to a third(or fourth) installment:) I apologize for my long winded-ness, now let's get on with the show(or at least this very short introduction)….
EVERYTHING
CHAPTER 1: RULES OF ENGAGEMENT
"We're engaged!".
Paige was the first to react, as a shrill screech emanated from her throat. "Oh...my...God, oh my God, ohmigod", she chanted as she danced over to the beaming couple. Paige finally stopped long enough to grasp Ashley's hand and pull it up to her face, "Whoa!".
"Ash, it's beautiful", Ellie gasped, moving forward and closing up the circle of friends that had suddenly surrounded the couple.
Ashley marveled at the work of art on her hand...Jimmy had designed it himself. "It is", she agreed, the image blurring slightly through her tear filled eyes, but still obviously stunning.
"Okay, so now we have to set a date...you do have a season in mind, right?", Paige started to ramble as she looped her arm with Ashley, effectively pulling her from Jimmy's lap. "Spring is always nice...summer's kinda iffy, and everyone gets married in June. So no".
Ashley frowned slightly as she processed Paige's words...she kinda liked June.
"Fall would be very pretty, but only early fall, late fall is too damp and dreary...", Paige continued on. Ashley was about to respond when another gasp from Paige could be heard. "And absolutely no winter. Winter in Toronto is atrocious".
Paige took in a huge breath. "Once you have a date set, you need to come up with a theme...".
"Theme?", Ashley questioned nervously. "It's a wedding Paige, isn't that theme enough?".
"NO!", Paige scoffed, rolling her eyes incredulously. "Ash, this is the biggest, most major event of you life...".
"Paige, Paige...slow down", Jimmy urged, when he noticed Ashley getting a bit overwhelmed. "We just got engaged, we have plenty of time to...".
Paige gasped in horror, "You've obviously never planned a wedding before James...".
"And you have?", Jimmy mumbled laughingly, under his breath.
Paige ignored Jimmy's quip by quickly turning her back to him, and led Ashley into the living room.
With a backward glance over her shoulder, Ashley's eyes called pleadingly over to Jimmy, as Paige spoke again, "...then there's the venue, the food... There was a garbled gasp from Paige, as she tugged harder on Ashley's arm, that was immediately followed by a shocked, "OH, how could I forget? The dress...".
Jimmy sat in stunned silence and shook his head disbelievingly...wait till Ash tells Paige that this wedding probably won't take place for a few years yet. He quickly moved his hands to the rims of his chair and pushed forward. "Ah, Paige...".
--
Ashley gazed admiringly at the sparkling ring on her slim finger, marveling at the fact that it was really there, and what that meant. Her eyes traveled upwards to find Jimmy silently watching her as she laid on the couch, her head in his lap. "I still can't believe it's real", she whispered softly.
"Well, I could take it back...", he teased playfully, and trailed off as he reached out his fingers to play with the ring. With a gasp of mock horror and a sudden flick of the wrist, Ashley's hand twisted so that her fingers entwined perfectly with Jimmy's, in a firm grasp. His other hand snaked along Ashley's free arm until his fingers found the perfect spot. "Or I could just pinch you instead", he whispered down to her. The smile she gave in return, made Jimmy's cheeks redden slightly and he added a self-consciousness shrug, "...in case you wanted to wake up..."
"From this dream?", Ashley cut him off, questioningly. She wondered momentarily, why Jimmy always seemed to need an added reassurance when it came to the subject of their engagement, or relationship in general...as if he couldn't believe it himself. She quickly sat up to look at him with total honesty in her eyes, as well as her voice when she answered...
"Never".