A/N: Welcome back, my friends, to the world of Inevitable! I know everyone's been looking forward to more stories about Zoe and Ezra (and the Mikaelsons, of course!), so I am very excited to present to you the first of the Inevitable Weddings! This one is, as the title so accurately states, Ezra and Rebekah's. It'll be a shorter fic, consisting of five chapters total, but I'm hoping you'll enjoy it even though it's not as long as the original story of Inevitable. XD
Anyway, this first chapter focuses primarily on Ezra to begin with, and on him getting everything together to propose to Rebekah; he really wants to make everything perfect for her, so there's going to be a lot of him being adorably indecisive and fussy. There are also going to be some nice moments between Klaus and Ezra, because the bromance between those two assholes is still one of my favorite things ever. And there's a smaller moment with Zoe as well, before we switch over to Rebekah's POV for the actual proposal. ;D
Chapter 1: Proposal
"As happy as I am that you're planning to make an honest woman of my sister," Klaus remarked, "when I agreed to help you pick out an engagement ring, I hadn't expected you to take this long choosing one."
Ezra sent a halfhearted glare in his best friend and future brother-in-law's direction. "I'm proposing to your precious baby sister, who also happens to be the love of my life, and you want me to half-ass picking out the ring?"
"Of course not," Klaus replied, rolling his eyes. "But you've been on a quest to find the perfect ring for four and a half bloody weeks now. And I'm fairly certain that this shop," Klaus swept out a hand to indicate the jewelry store they'd just arrived at, "is the last one we can check before needing to go out of state."
"I think you're exaggerating just a little bit there," Ezra noted dryly.
"Just a little bit," Klaus agreed with a smirk. "Although," he added more seriously, "I am not exaggerating how ridiculous you're being for putting so much ressure on yourself to pick out a perfect ring."
"It's the engagement ring, Nik," Ezra shot back, his tone almost plaintive. "I want it to be perfect because Rebekah deserves to have the perfect wedding, gorgeous ring included." And considering the fact that he definitely wasn't short on funds thanks to the fact that he and Zoe were no longer on the run from their homicidally insane uncle (seriously, having an actual home instead of constantly moving around made saving up money so much easier), there was literally no reason fo rhim not to provide the most amazing and fantadtic ring on the face of the planet...provided, of course, he could fucking find it.
"I understand that you want everything to be perfect," Klaus said to him, his expression a mix of amusement, understanding, and sympathy. "And as her older brother, I commend you on your determination to bring that perfection about. But Ezra...I promise you, all Rebekah needs to be happy is you."
Ezra felt himself flush slightly. "Well, yeah, but-"
"No buts," Klaus said sternly. "You could tie together a piece of twine and propose to her with it, and I guarantee that she'd still say yes on the spot without a second of hesitation."
Ezra gave an irritated huff, although he had to admit that his Alpha's words did make him feel a little bit better. But even so... "I am not giving my soulmate a piece of string for an engagement ring."
Klaus crossed his arms. "If you keep passing on all the ring options, my friend, you're not going to have any other choice."
Ezra rolled his eyes as he headed for the front door of the shop. "Yeah, yeah, I'm an indecisive asshole, I know. Now are you coming in with me, or not?"
"Don't be stupid," was Klaus's immediate response. "Of course I'm coming in with you."
"Wow," Zoe said, peering at the impressive matched his and hers rings Ezra had purchased and giving a low whistle of appreciation. "Very nicely done, мой брат. Good choice."
"Thanks," Ezra said, carefully snapping the two ring boxes shut. "I wasn't sure I'd actually find what I was looking for." He gave a slight snort of amusement. "I know for sure that Klaus was a thousand percent done with the whole thing; if I hadn't found these yesterday, I think he really might have reconsidered letting me marry Bekah."
Zoe rolled her eyes, clearly not believing it for a minute. "Yeah, like he'd ever do that. And like you'd ever let him put a stop to it!"
Ezra gave a crooked smile. "True," he acknowledged. Now that he was finally committed to proposing to Rebekah, nothing short of the actual Apocalypse was going to stop him from marrying her. And possibly not even that. "I still can't think of a good way to actually propose, though," he admitted after a moment, frowning worriedly. "I mean...it's the proposal, you know? We're going to remember it for the rest of our lives. I want to make it a good memory for her. I want it to be perfect."
Zoe gave him a look that said he was being an idiot. "Ez, it's already going to be perfect because you are proposing to her. Seriously, it doesn't get more perfect than that."
Ezra rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I get that, Z, I do. But all Bekah's ever wanted is true love and a happy ever after ending. And isn't a fairy-tale wedding part of that whole dream? I just want to make her happy, sis."
Zoe's expression softened and she leaned forward to wrap him in a strong hug. "You," she told him, "are such a romantic dork." Then she pulled away and regarded him seriously for a moment. "Okay," she said at last. "I have an idea."
Rebekah wasn't sure what was going on with Ezra, but she knew that something was up.
He'd been running all sorts of mysterious errands lately, more than his duties as a member of the Council of Twelve accounted for; it was particularly obvious on days where Ezra would come home in a strange mixed state of excited and anxious.
She was confident that she'd know if there was something truly wrong with her lover, her mate, but she'd never take Ezra's well-being for granted, not when she knew how much he'd been through, and how far he'd come to be at her side. With that in mind, she had approached both Klaus and Zoe to get their opinions on Ezra's recent behavior.
They had both, strangely, reacted with amusement to her concerns.
Klaus had been his typical patronizing self for most of the conversation, but had reassured her that Ezra was perfectly alright. "Most indecisive romantic idiot I've ever had the misfortune of shopping with," he'd added almost as an afterthought, but before Rebekah could ask him to clarify what, precisely, he meant with that nonsensical statement, her brother had zoomed off, claiming that he had an important Council meeting to attend. Since she was also a Council member and knew of no meetings currently in session, she knew for a fact that her brother was bullshitting her; luckily for him, she was too preoccupied with trying to figure out what was going on with her soulmate to care about what Klaus was actually leaving to do.
Rebekah's conversation with Zoe had been equally mystifying and frustrating, and Rebekah had given up entirely when Zoe had done an abrupt subject change and asked her whether she liked flower gardens or beaches more. "Oh, don't worry about Ezra," Zoe had said dismissively when Rebekah had attempted, futilely, to return to their original topic of conversation. "Ezra's fine. He's just...working on something really important right now, that's all." And then she'd given Rebekah a bright smile and a wink and had flounced off to go help Davina with her chemistry homework, since the poor girl had missed Lord only knew how much school in the past year from all the supernatural shenanigans that had beset the Big Easy.
Despite Marcel's assurances that Davina could take some time off to recuperate, the teenager had wanted to at least try and get back a semblance of normalcy in her life, and had insisted on going back to school, at least a few days a week to get a feel for it. Zoe and Elijah were tutoring her the rest of the time, Elijah on subjects like history and literature and Zoe in 'less mundane' subjects like witchcraft and sorcery that regular human schools didn't cover in their curriculum. Marcel still wasn't sold on the whole idea, but since a lot of his time was still spent helping Sophie deal with her lingering depression over Monique's death, he was willing to go along with things since Davina had yet to suffer any sort of nervous breakdown; if anything, the girl seemed to be enjoying the workload.
In any case, talking to both Ezra's brother and her own brother had yielded no useful information whatsoever on what was going on with her lover. So she gave up on asking other people for their opinions and just decided to keep a close eye on her Ezra.
She was in the middle of hatching a plot to take him out on a dinner date (where, precisely, she didn't know, because they'd already been to pretty much every restaurant in the city) and weaseling an explanation out of him when the object of her thoughts popped up unexpectedly, poking his head into her room with a silly grin on his face.
"Hey there," he said, smile widening even further as she stood up from her desk and came over to wrap her arms around his waist. "Wanna go somewhere?"
"With you?" Rebekah answered. "Anywhere, darling, always."
"Great," he said, pressing a tender kiss to her lips. "Then let's get going, okay?"
"Right now?" Rebekah asked with a laugh as he tugged her out of the room and down the hall towards the stairs. "Are you at least going to tell me where we're going?"
"Nope," was Ezra's response, and the mischievous wink he gave her sent her off into another laughing fit. Oh, Ezra. He was the only man who'd ever been able to make her laugh like that, to bring true joy into her life. The only one to really make her happy.
So she followed after him, content to go wherever he wanted, whether it was down the street to get a beignet or around the world to visit the Eiffel Tower. With Ezra at her side, she could do anything.
She wasn't expecting him to take her to the Botanical Gardens in City Park, though.
"I'd forgotten how beautiful it is here," she said in a low voice as they entered. "All the flowers and trees...all the life."
"How long has it been since you've visited?" Ezra asked, wrapping an arm around her waist as they strolled at a leisurely pace through the Zemurray Azalea and Camellia Garden, taking their time as they meandered through the garden and admired the southern plants.
"I stopped by briefly in the 1980s," Rebekah answered, "back when there was a push to rebuild the gardens, since they'd fallen into a state of disrepair over the years. I meant to stick around and help," she added, "but the timing wasn't quite right, so all I could do was drop off some money and go on my way."
Ezra pressed a light kiss to the side of her head. "It's not your fault you couldn't stay longer; things happen. Besides," he added, "I'm sure they appreciated your donation."
Rebekah chuckled. "I'm sure," she agreed.
They wandered through the rest of the gardens, lingering a little longer in the Exotic Foliage area, particularly the Palm Court, because neither Rebekah nor Ezra had seen so many palms anywhere before; a helpful volunteer proudly informed them that the Palm Court housed the largest palm collection in the entirety of Louisiana, and they both listened attentively as the helpful man listed the different varieties of palms, as well as the different species of ferns and tropical flowers that could be found in the Exotic Foliage portion of the gardens. Once he was finished, they thanked him for his time and promised to donate on their way out to support the growth of the garden and its teaching programs.
"Thank you for bringing me here," Rebekah said to Ezra as they moved on to the Lord & Taylor Rose Garden. "I'm having a really great time."
"I'm glad," Ezra said. "Hopefully it's only going to get better," he added under his breath.
She frowned at him, faintly confused by that last comment, but let it go, distracted by the heady fragrance of the blooming roses. "Oh my goodness, look at how vibrant and lush they all are!" She went over to the closest rosebush and lightly touched her fingertips to the petals of a light pink rose that looked like something straight out of a fairy-tale. "So beautiful," she murmured.
"Beautiful," Ezra agreed, but when she glanced up, he was looking at her rather than the roses.
"Are the two of you having a good time?" a docent asked, coming over to them with a winning smile.
"We are," Rebekah assured the other woman. "Although, I was wondering if you could tell me about this species of rose?" She gestured to the rosebush with the pale pink flowers. "I know I've seen this type before, but I can't seem to recall the name...?"
"Ah, yes, the Blush Noisette," the caretaker said, nodding in appreciation as she turned to admire the bush herself. "Named for Phillipe Noisette, they can bloom all throughout the year if properly taken care of, although winter can be tough on them and rain does damage the flowers."
"That's right," Rebekah remarked, snapping her fingers. "It's also called the Noisette Carnée, isn't it?"
"It is," the caretaker replied, looking pleasantly surprised by Rebekah's knowledge. "How did you know?"
"Oh, well..." Rebekah flushed slightly. "I used to do a bit of gardening on the side, now and again."
"How wonderful," the caretaker said, beaming at her. "An excellent pastime to have. Now if you'll excuse me," she added apologetically, "there's a school tour coming through in an hour and I need to go prepare their information pamphlets."
"Of course," Ezra said immediately, waving for her to go ahead. "Don't let us keep you from your work; thank you for your time."
"Enjoy the rest of your visit," the caretaker chirped, and then she was gone, hustling off down the path.
Before Rebekah could suggest what they should look at next, Ezra was suddenly tugging her down the path towards the Butterfly Walk. "Ezra...?"
"Humor me?" he requested, looking at her with pleading eyes that seemed to hold a promise.
"Anything for you," she said at once, smiling at his eagerness. "Although I hope you'll let me in on the secret of what has you so excited today."
"Oh, I think you'll realize what it is soon enough," her lover replied, practically vibrating with anticipation.
"Okay," she said, laughing as she let him pull her along.
They were about halfway through the strangely deserted Butterfly Walk when Ezra, who had been following along behind her as she strolled amidst the dancing butterflies, suddenly tapped her lightly on the shoulder.
She turned around immediately, then felt all the air rush out of her lungs as Ezra went down on one knee in a singel fluid motion, a velvet-covered ring box in his hands.
"Rebekah Mikaelson," he said, staring up at her with the most openly loving expression she'd ever seen on anyone's face in all the centuries she'd lived, "I feel like everything in my life has led me to you. My choices, my heartbreaks, my regrets. Everything. And when we're together, my past seems worth it. Because if I had done one thing differently, I might never have met you. And even though I'm unsure about most things in life, the one thing I am absolutely certain of is the immutable fact that I love you with all my heart and soul, and will continue to love you forever, until the stars fall from the heavens and Time itself grinds to a halt." He snapped open the velvet box to reveal a gorgeous black titanium ring set with diamonds. "You are my everything, Rebekah. Will you marry me?"
"Yes," she said, the word spilling from her lips with no forethought required, even as tears of joy spilled from her eyes and streaked down her cheeks. "Yes, Ezra Storme, I'll marry you!" She jumped forward as he stood, wrapping her arms around him and kissing him until they were both out of breath.
"Thank you for visiting the City Park Botanical Gardens!" a volunteer as the gate said as they left a few minutes later (after dropping off a substantial donation at the main office, as promised). "I hope you had a good visit!"
"The best visit," Rebekah told him, holding up her hand and proudly displaying her ring even as Ezra wore a wide and slightly smug grin beside her, a matching black titanium band on his own ring finger since he'd anticipated the fact that she'd want him to wear his ring right away, too, regardless of when their wedding would actually take place. "I'm engaged!"
A/N: Well, that was the first chapter of this EzBekah wedding fic. How was it? Good, bad, so-so? I'm anxious to know what you guys thought, so pretty please leave a review and let me know what you liked/didn't like. :D The Botanical Gardens in New Orleans that Ezra takes Bekah to are a real thing, and while I haven't been to them myself (yet), they're supposedly very beautiful. Also, the black titanium rings mentioned in the story are also real; they're the rings on the cover image for the story. Also^2, the first portion of Ezra's proposal is something I found online and started crying over because it was so romantic and perfect; I decided to incorporate it into what I'd already planned for Ezra's proposal because it just affected me so deeply. Hope you liked it! :)
I haven't begun work on the second chapter yet, so I have no actual teasers to offer, but I can tell you that it's going to focus on Ezra's bachelor party...which is going to be planned/thrown by Klaus, so who the hell know what's going to happen. XD
See you next time! :)