Hi everyone. I wrote this in an hour in the computer lab at my college, so forgive me if it seems hasty. It's just something I've been wanting to write for a long while. This song is called 'The Wedding' by a German band called Diary of Dreams. It's an amazing song, so if any of you like rock music, try listening to it while you read the story, or just listen to it period. It's fantastic. Anyway, excuse the space between the first two lines of the song; I couldn't get it to go away, so oh well.

Oh, and I read the plot summary for episode 12 called 'Blackout' It's going to air on Jan. 20th, and here's what it says:

'Betty tries to be neighborly by planning a karaoke party in her apartment building, but before the big day, her building is robbed, and it's partly her fault. Marc is distraught since he lost something irreplaceable in the theft. Meanwhile, Daniel and Wilhelmina are back to being at each other's throats, so Amanda tricks them into attending couples counseling with Dr. Sparks (Frank Whaley), and Ignacio refuses to accept Bobby in Hilda's life. Then a citywide blackout ups the ante for everyone.'

Sounds to me like Danimina might not be far off. I don't know, I could be wayyyyy of here, but fingers crossed right? Sorry, I've babbled enough. Enjoy the story!

*****

You follow the path that you meant to avoid

A matter of time till an echo unfolds
what the next step might bring
you take a look back while your heartbeat is raging
to the song you sing

"Will you marry me?"

The question had completely caught Wilhelmina off guard. All she could hear was the sound of her heart beating in her ears, and it hurt like hell. And yet there he was, Connor, bent down before her on one knee, with a small velvet covered box sitting open in his palm to reveal the diamond ring within. She could hardly believe it when they'd released him from jail. She hadn't known how he'd done it, but the FBI couldn't find any evidence that he had stolen the money-couldn't find it at all-and despite all the cries of protest he was a free man. She had continued her relationship with him, seeing him just like she had when he was in jail. Yet, now, something was different.

When silence evolves into a deafening noise
When the blackening coat weaves a ceiling of darkness
When I speak the words that you wish me to say
When voices of sound come to life all around

She had said yes because she knew he expected it-because she couldn't think of anything else to say. That was six months ago. She looked up at herself in the vanity mirror located in the dressing room of the largest church in New York City. All she saw was white lace, silk…and the face of someone who had no real clue as to what the hell she was doing. All she could think about was Daniel. She didn't know why; it was like her mind was its own machine, whirring maniacally beyond her control. While Connor had been incarcerated, she and Daniel had spent more time together, trying desperately to get Cal out of the company. And the more time they'd spent together, the more they'd had trouble remembering how to pretend to hate each other. She had committed herself to Connor while he was in prison, but even then, as she leaned across the table in his cell to kiss him, her stomach had churned at the thought. It hurt like hell.

I could never say these words to you
I could never doubt the way you do
I could never trace the steps for you
I could never live the way you do

The door to her dressing room swung open and Marc rushed in.

"Willie! It's time to go get married! Oh my God, aren't you excited?!"

She didn't hear a word he said. She just mumbled an unenthused "Uh-huh" and took his hand. He led her to her place behind the church doors and hurriedly straightened her dress, fluffing the 16 foot train just so.

"Is Daniel there?" she asked so quietly Marc wasn't sure he heard right. "What the hell does she care?" he wondered.

"Uh, Pasty Face? Yeah, he's here. You should see him Willie! In his black tuxedo he looks like an anorexic emperor penguin! It's so hilarious!"

Wilhelmina didn't even bother to reply. She just stood stoically, staring at the doors, waiting for them to swing open. The Wedding March started, the sound of it so loud it could shake the church from its foundation.

"I wish it would" Wilhelmina thought, as the doors opened and everyone turned to stare at her. "Time to make the biggest mistake of my life" she thought as she numbly made her way down the aisle.

Adrenaline pumping in every vein
I must go now and look for a new place to hide
you will chase me again I am certain of that
but be sure that the next time you will not succeed

She made her way down the aisle, feeling the stares and hearing the approving awes of the crowd. No one she even gave a damn about was there-except for Daniel. She felt the roar of the music beneath her skin, felt cold as ice as she made her way toward Connor. He was smiling down at her, that same cocky grin he'd smiled at her when she first saw him in jail and he told her no one would ever find the money.

"You're going to marry someone who stole every penny from this company?!" Claire had shrieked at her when she found out about the wedding.

"I'll marry whomever I damn well choose" Wilhelmina had retorted, even though her uneasiness about her own decision could have crushed her there and then.

"Fine; but you walk down that aisle and you're out of here. I don't ever want to see you again" Claire had hissed before she walked out.

Wilhelmina had turned her gaze to Daniel, who was standing at the opposite end of her office, just staring silently at her. The look on his face didn't reveal any anger, any malice of any kind. She saw only hurt. Before she could open her mouth and say something to make him believe that she didn't give a damn about him or his opinion, he turned and left. He didn't say a word. And for the first time in Wilhelmina's life, she was disgusted not with someone else, but with herself.


When you're begging for shelter don't knock on my door
When say that you changed you have done that before
When a tear in your eye - what a great alibi -
tries to weaken my senses, shatter all that I learned

"Screw them, we'll run away together Willie; we'll finally be happy, and wealthier than all of New York combined" Connor had said when she told him about how everyone had reacted. He had kissed her, but her lips didn't return his affections. Her body was betraying her just like her heart. She was supposed to love him-she had once. So why not now? Why not any longer? She had stared at him as he poured two glasses of champagne. "Would he even want to be with me if we didn't have the money?" she wondered. "That's the only thing he can ever talk about" she thought, feeling an overwhelming sense of disgust.

Wilhelmina breathed in a heavy sigh as she thought about that moment, and all the moments before that where she had felt like an idiot for not breaking things off with him. She felt the veil tickle her face as she reached a gloved hand toward Connor, stepping up to the church alter where the priest stood. Connor grinned excitedly at her, and she attempted to smile a smile that could convince her that she wasn't screwing herself over. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a face staring at her from the pew at the front of the church. Connor had his back to whoever it was, and he didn't notice thing. She broke eye contact with him and peered past him.

Daniel.

He was ashen faced; his eyes were red, as though he had cried for as long a time as he hadn't slept. He stared up at her with a look that made her heart sink in guilt. She knew why he was there. She knew that he had shown up because he couldn't deny his feelings for her anymore, even though she knew his mother would kill him with her bare hands when she found out. And she knew that he knew what she was feeling, knew that his presence was his way of testing her. "Can you really say 'I do' to him while you're looking at me?" his face was saying. The priest raised his head.

"And do you, Wilhelmina Slater, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?" he asked gravely. She turned her eyes from Daniel to Connor, who was anxiously awaiting her reply.

"No" she said firmly. She stepped back from him as the crowd gasped. Connor's face was contorted with confusion and rage.

I will never say these words to you
I will never doubt the way you do
I will never trace the steps for you
I will never live the way you do

"What?!" he hissed.

She took one last look at Daniel, who was staring at her in shock.

"No" she repeated numbly, turning and running down the aisle. She swung the heavy wooden doors open and ran out of the church and into the limousine parked out front. She shut the door and rolled down the window, waiting.

Daniel appeared a few seconds later. They locked eyes and she knew that for the first time in her life, she had done something that made herself happy.

*The End*