Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
As always, Alcyone deserves a standing ovation for her great beta work! Her patience with me is remarkable. I would also like to thank Silly Bella for waving her magic wand over this story and giving me a great suggestion to make it better.
"You do realize that this is probably the most cliché thing we could possibly do, don't you?" I asked, slumping onto the couch and petulantly folding my arms across my chest.
He stopped fiddling with his sound system and turned to look at me, eyebrows raised, mouth quirked into a questioning smile. Obviously, he was amused at my annoyance.
I refused to let his expression soften me. Although I had been irritated before he had suggested this, I wasn't going to let him cajole me out of my pique. So I stared back mutinously. His smile widened and he turned back to his task. Unfolding my arms, I began to fidget with the ring on my left hand; it winked and sparkled in the light. I looked up to speak, but found him standing in front of me, looking down with an amused grin.
"May I remind you that I offered to spare you all of this? You were the one who insisted that we do it right. Have you changed your mind? Do you want to leave for Vegas right now? Or just forget the whole thing entirely?"
I smiled ruefully at his offer. As usual, he was right. It had been my decision to proceed in this manner and, despite my indignation over how things were being handled, I wasn't going to stop doing what I knew was right. His reminder didn't alleviate my frustration, but it did go a long way towards softening it.
"No, I haven't changed my mind."
He gave me that crooked smile, the one that always made my heart race, and reached down to pull me into his arms. I shivered at the coolness of his skin, but pulled myself closer. In one lithe movement he had us on the bed, lying side by side. I sighed and cuddled against him, resting my head on his shoulder and resigning myself to fate. A blanket came to settle around me and I smiled at his thoughtfulness. He shifted slightly and music suddenly filled the room; the familiar strains of a song he was fond of pulsed around us.
"You can relax," he whispered in my ear. "I know that Alice had been running you ragged. Besides, I only told her that we were going to listen to some possibilities, not that we would actually pick a song. We don't have to do anything that you don't want to do, no matter what Alice says. This is our wedding, if she wants another one, she can take it up with Jasper."
His words made the tension slip from my shoulders, taking the last of my irritation from me.
"Are you sure? I mean, if it is something you want…"
"I'm positive," he breathed. "I just want you to be happy. As long as we are together, nothing else matters."
I moved closer to him, touched by his words. He began to stroke my hair, shifting it from the back of my neck and spreading it across the pillows behind me. His touch was soothing, easing the ever present tension from my body. Relaxing, I closed my eyes and listen to the music as it swelled, swirling around in my head. The high, clear voice of the lead singer caught my attention.
Hold you in my arms, I just wanted to hold you in my arms.
My life, you electrify my life.
Let's conspire to reignite all the souls that would die just to feel alive.
I'll never let you go, if you promise not to fade away, never fade away.
"Well," I said, snickering, "if we were to pick a song, this one might work. I do just want to hold you for the rest of my life and there is a certain electricity between us. It doesn't sound too bad."
"I wouldn't try and stop you, if that was what you wanted." I could hear the amusement in his voice. "It fits nicely with my plans for the future."
"Which are?"
"How do you feel about me becoming a permanent accessory?"
"Sounds fine to me. Although, you might want to rethink it when I start chasing anything with a pulse." My words were light, hiding my apprehension over what I would be like in the near future. I didn't fool him though.
"I won't let you do anything you will regret, I promise," he assured me once again. His arms tightened around me for a moment. "We will all be here for you."
"I know, but it is hard. I don't want to end up like Bree."
We were both silent for a moment, remembering the young newborn. The song changed, softening, its beat less staccato and more melancholy, fitting my mood. I marveled at the words, how they fit us, our situation, our relationship.
It's plain to see it's trying to speak, cherished dreams forever asleep.
Hopelessly, I'll love you endlessly, hopelessly I'll give you everything, but I won't give you up.
I won't let you down, and I won't leave you falling, if the moment ever comes.
"It will be different. You are different," he said, brushing a kiss across my forehead before stroking my hair again.
I took comfort in his words. In my heart, I knew that he and the rest of my new family would take care of me. Although it didn't stop me from remembering what I had seen and heard about the world I was about to enter, I found courage in the fact that he loved me and would never let anything happen to me.
With another sigh, I shifted again, lost in the peacefulness his presence brought me. His hand moved and he began to stroke my back. It wouldn't do to let anything mar the serenity we had found. All the omnipresent threats of the last year or so were gone; we were ready to start our life together, I was ready to start my new life.
The music shifted again, this time changing to a soft ballad. Again I was affected by how well he had chosen these songs, each one able to describe some aspect of our relationship, ascribe meaning to it.
You are the strength that keeps me walking. You are the hope that keeps me trusting.
You are the light to my soul. You are my purpose...you're everything.
And how can I stand here with you and not be moved by you?
Would you tell me how could it be any better than this?
I pushed myself up slightly so that I could see his face. His hand stilled. We gazed at each other for a moment, wordlessly communicating. Like always, his beauty left me breathless. He leaned up and softly brushed his lips against mine before pulling me back down. My face came to rest in the crook of his neck. I was utterly content.
"How did you choose the songs?" I mumbled against his skin.
He laughed. "I just selected those that seemed to fit us. It wasn't hard. I happen to be very fond of music and have a large library at my disposal. It was also a good excuse to keep Alice from pestering me about wedding plans. After I realized what her scheme was for this afternoon, I figured that it was time to enlist your help in the selection process."
I giggled, happy that he had found a way for me to avoid an afternoon of interviewing potential florists and caterers. The dress fittings had been hard enough. I didn't need someone else fawning all over the prospective bride, telling me how happy and excited I must be.
"If you don't like any of the ones I picked though, I could always write something for us. I would be happy to present it at the reception, telling everyone how you influenced me to write it. I could do it after we cut the cake, but before the conga line and our rendition of the tango."
I swiftly pushed myself away from him, staring down in horror. "You wouldn't…" I trailed off when I saw the knowing smirk on his face. "You," I said, poking him in the chest, "can be so annoying sometimes."
He grabbed my hand and swiftly brought it to his lips. "You love me anyway."
"It's an affliction," I muttered, settling back into his side, happy that he wasn't planning on subjecting me to all of the insipid and inane rituals that were usually practiced at weddings. There were plenty of human experiences I could do without.
"Any of that would be the most cliché thing we could possibly do at our wedding," I told him, rescinding my early statement. "Besides," I said acerbically, "it's not like we can watch Strictly Ballroom again and suddenly I will be able to paso doble, so the conga line and tango are out."
He chuckled and bent his head to run his lips from my ear to my neck and back again. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sensation. His hand resumed its leisurely stroking and I began to drift letting his touch and the music soothe me, ease my tiredness. The music twisted around my head, the melodies playing sweetly in my ears. Some were soft and charming, others spirited and delightful, but all spoke of love and the singer's feelings on the subject. The tunes revolved as I floated, neither awake nor asleep and I caught snatches of some of them.
I don't believe that anybody feels, the way I do about you now.
And all the roads we have to walk are winding,
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding,
There are many things that I would like to say to you,
But I don't know how.
Fill my heart with song and let me sing for ever more.
You are all I long for, all I worship and adore.
Whenever I'm alone with you, you make me feel like I am home again.
Whenever I'm alone with you, you make me feel like I am whole again.
For once I can touch what my heart used to dream of,
Long before I knew, someone warm like you,
Could make my dreams come true.
And you feel like no-one before, you steal right under my door.
And I kneel 'cause I want you some more, I want the lot of what you got,
and I want nothing that you're not.
Whether near to me or far, it's no matter, baby, where you are,
I think of you. Night and day.
Love left a window in the skies, and to love I rhapsodize.
I blinked, realizing that I had fallen asleep. The room was silent except for the soft sound of him humming, humming my lullaby.
I rolled and stretched, making a little sound in the back of my throat. "What happened to picking out a song for our wedding?" I asked, peeking at him through the hair that had fallen in my face.
He reached out to brush it back behind my ear. "I was thinking, even though they made a valiant attempt, none of the songs could truly describe what I feel for you. No, trying to use someone else's music doesn't work for me. They never knew you, never knew what it meant to be inspired by you, not like I do."
He began to sing again and I listened, transfixed at the melody he wove just for me.
"I love you."
His answer shone from his topaz eyes.
A sharp rap interrupted the silence, breaking the poignancy of the moment. I started, but he just rolled his eyes, half-annoyed, half-amused by whatever was about to intrude.
"Bel-la, Ed-ward," Alice trilled in a singsong voice from outside the door. "I need you both to come look at the centerpieces and decide which ones you like. After that you need to decide on a photographer and pick out the font you want to use for the invitations." Exuberance and enthusiasm radiated from her voice.
"We should start thinking of a way to ditch the reception," I said under my breath as I untangled myself from him.
"Perhaps we could leave for the honeymoon early," he agreed, bringing the two of us into a sitting position.
"I saw that!" Alice cried from the hall.
Legal Reasons dictate that I post the artist and song title for all of the music referenced in this work. So, in the order they appear:
Muse, Starlight
Muse, Endlessly
Lifehouse, Everything
Oasis, Wonderwall
In Other Words/Fly Me to the Moon — This is a big band era/jazz standard. I prefer the Frank Sinatra version, but Astrud Gilberto, Johnny Mathis, and Diana Krall have all recorded versions of it as well.
311, Love Song
For Once in My Life — Another jazz standard. I love Harry Connick Jr.'s version, but Michel Buble, Tony Bennett, The Temptations, and Stevie Wonder have all covered it.
U2, Original of the Species — SM said recently in an interview that this song inspired her while she was writing The Host.
Night and Day — A big band classic by Cole Porter, it has been recorded by legends like Ella Fitzgerald, Fred Astaire, Frank Sinatra, and even U2. For me it is a tossup as to whether Bono or Frank's version is better.
U2, Window in the Skies