The ceremony occurred on an alien planet. Though Judy would have preferred a church, she accepted the fact that there was simply no way to get to one. Instead, they all gathered outside the Jupiter 2 and set up there. It was a warm sunny day, but the grass was still damp from the morning dew. The air smelled strongly of flowers and was heavy with emotion.
Judy looked down at the roses in her hands. Penny had found them and though they weren't exactly roses, they looked very close for something that came from another world. She had spent almost an entire day out in a meadow picking dozens of flowers that she deemed good enough for the occasion. She picked a decent amount, and now there were flowers everywhere. They sat in large bushels here and there, but most of them were up at the front by Don.
It had been two weeks ago it happened. It started like a perfectly normal day, but something had been off about Don. He seemed unusually happy and a bit flirtier than usual. Everytime she saw him that day, he would smile big at her, and she couldn't help but smile back. In the evening, she was in the galley helping her mother make dinner when Don walked up behind Judy and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She jumped, slightly startled, but relaxed as soon as she realized it was him.
"Don!" She laughed. "What is up with you today?"
"Maureen, would you mind if I borrow Judy for a moment?" He asked.
Maureen smiled, and Judy got the feeling her mother knew something she didn't. "Not at all."
"Come on," Don said, grabbing Judy's hand and leading her to the elevator. He didn't say anything, and a comfortable silence hung in the air. She laid her head on his chest and he gently ran his fingers through her hair. The elevator reached the upper deck, and he led her outside. They stood by the Jupiter 2 and he let go of her hand, but continued to smile.
"Okay, Don, what is it?" Judy asked.
"I just wanted to ask you something," He said in a casual tone.
"Yes?" She asked slowly. She had an idea of what he was about to do and her heart beat quickened.
He got down on one knee, pulled a ring out of his pocket and held it up to her. Her hands shot up to to cover her mouth. Suddenly getting very serious, he looked her in the eye and said, "Judy, will you marry me?"
"Yes!" She said in a breathy voice.
"You will?" He smiled big and stood. She threw her arms around his neck, kissing him on the cheek.
"Of course!" She let go of him, and he put the ring on her finger. She examined it as she put her right hand over her mouth again. The ring was thin and silver with a diamond on the top. She wrapped her arms back around Don and the two of them shared a kiss.
The ring had come from her mother. When Don went to Professor Robinson and asked him for permission to marry Judy, Maureen overheard and went to her cabin, returning with the ring John had given her all those years ago. Though when Judy and Don first began their relationship, John was unsure about his daughter dating "the hot-headed major;" he soon saw that the Don always treated her right, and so John agreed to let him marry her. Maureen then gave him the ring, and he held onto it for one day before giving it to Judy.
After their engagement, Judy and Don decided there wasn't much of a reason to wait to get married because they didn't have to book a venue or wait for RSVP's. They instead decided the wedding would be in two weeks. That was plenty of time to prepare for what would inevitably be a small ceremony.
Remembering the night Don proposed to her made a small smile pull at the edges of her lips. She felt overcome with emotion and blinked back tears. Judy now glanced over at where her mother was with the rest of the family. She was the only one crying, and she wiped at her eyes while John lightly caressed her hand. Maureen had helped Judy make the dress she now wore. They didn't have a lot of materials to make anything too fancy, but they managed to make a nice enough dress from different bits and pieces of fabric all bleached until they were white. They made a veil as well, and though it wasn't the nicest or fanciest wedding dress, Judy had thought it was beautiful.
Judy swallowed hard and began to walk to the front. She stared at the ground in front of her. The veil covering did little to conceal the emotion on her face. It had been a hectic two weeks, and as planned, it all came together today: the dress they made, the flowers Penny picked, the food they prepared, it was all done in time for today. Judy's mind was flooded with memories of her and Don, and these made her walk seem to take forever.
She glanced over at her sister. Penny had a blank look on her face and stared unblinkingly at where Don was. She noticed Judy looking at her, shifted her gaze to her older sister, and smiled sadly. Penny had seemed sad for the past two weeks. Ever since Judy showed her the ring, she hadn't been herself.
"Penny!" Judy had said excitedly upon seeing the her younger sister. "Look what Don just gave me!" She held at her left hand, and Penny's eyes widened.
"Wow!" She said. "It's so pretty."
"We're getting married!"
Penny's face was emotionless for a moment, but then she smiled. "That's wonderful," She said. "I'm so happy for you." Judy was so excited at the moment that she didn't notice her sister's hesitation until a few days later. Since she learned about the engagement, she'd spent a lot of time in her cabin alone. Judy went to visit her once, and found her just sitting on her bed doing nothing.
"Are you okay?" Judy asked.
Penny looked up at her. "I'm fine." She smiled again, but not with her eyes. Judy was tempted to insist Penny tell her what was wrong, but could tell Penny didn't want to talk about whatever was bothering her, so Judy let it be.
Judy thought she knew what was wrong. She believed Penny was sad because she worried she would never be able to get married, and now that Judy was marrying Don, Penny felt left out. Judy assumed the reason Penny spent so long gathering flowers was so she'd be able to play a part in the event. Nonetheless, Judy appreciated her sister's efforts.
Will had a more positive reaction to the engagement. "Good for you, guys!" He told the happy couple. He volunteered to help make a cake, and with the help of the Robot, they spent the night baking. After three failed attempts, Maureen stepped in, and they were able to make a very nice enough cake. It was covered with white icing and little frosting flowers. Judy was ecstatic when she saw it, thinking it was the nicest cake she could have asked for.
Judy looked from Penny to Will who too saw how Penny felt. He put his arm around her, and she looked up at him. She didn't say anything, and after a moment looked down at her hands. Will was the only one who knew how Penny really felt since the longing glances she'd been giving Don for the past two weeks managed to go unnoticed by anyone else. It didn't matter anymore. If she wanted to say anything it was too late now.
Judy tore her eyes away from them and looked down at her dress. With only a day to spare, she and Maureen finished the dress while the men were out with the Chariot. Judy was happy they left since it gave her a chance to try on her dress and parade around in it without her fiancé seeing. When she saw her reflection, she smiled. Don was going to love it. The best part was he didn't think she was going to have a wedding dress and he would be even more surprised. Judy twirled and wasn't able to stop smiling. It was perfect. Judy was sure that everything was going to be perfect.
Now when she wore the dress, she didn't feel as pretty as she did that day. She breathed heavily as she walked. Finally, she reached the front where Don was, and laid the flowers on his coffin. She couldn't hold back her tears any longer, and she let them flow freely. John walked up to Judy and hugged her. She cried into her father's shoulder, and pulled at the dress she worked so hard to make. After spending so long trying to get it white, it and the veil were soon dyed black.
The night they finished the dress, Judy heard the men come back with the Chariot as she finished changing back into her normal clothes. She hurried to the upper deck to meet them. Her father had his arm on Will's shoulder, and Smith hung back with his head down.
"Hey, guys," She said happily. None of them said anything, and they all avoided meeting her eyes. Something wasn't right. "Where's Don?" She asked.
John sighed and broke the news in a very straightforward matter. "There was an accident, darling." He hesitated before added. "Don is dead."
Judy felt her knees go weak. "No…" The word barely escaped her lips before she collapsed to her knees. She must of hear him wrong, but the look on his face told her that wasn't so. This wasn't real. This couldn't be real. "No," She said again as she shook her head, but her father nodded solemnly. "No!" She cried loudly as she buried her face into her palms and collapsed on her knees. This was just a horrible nightmare and all she had to do was wake up. Her father knelt next to her and hugged her. She tried to convince herself this wasn't happening, but at the same time, she knew it was true.
"What happened?" She asked through her tears. John explained it to her, and when he finished, she looked at his face. There were tears welling in his eyes, and she was shocked. She'd never seen her father cry before. He picked her up the way he had when she was just a girl, and carried her to her cabin. She was impressed with his strength, but made no comment on it. Her tears came in big, heaving sobs, and she clung to her father as if she were a child. He set her gently on her bed, but she didn't let go of him. Hearing the commotion, Maureen and Penny appeared in the doorway.
"What happened?" Maureen asked.
John didn't think it would do Judy any good to hear it again, so he shook his head, intending to tell his wife later. Maureen entered the room, and sat on the bed next to her daughter. Maureen put her arm around Judy and comforted her.
Penny stared at them from the doorway, but Will pulled her aside and explained the situation to her. She cried, though not quite to the extent her sister did. Will wrapped his arms around Penny, and she whispered to no one in particular, "I loved him…" Will ignored the comment, being unsure of how to respond. He'd suspected as much, but was never sure enough to say anything; it was none of his business anyway. Like Judy, Will also noticed Penny's shift in behavior over the past two weeks, but unlike his oldest sister, Will also noticed the way Penny looked at Don. That was the only time Penny ever spoke her confession aloud, and it was never mentioned again.
Dr. Smith wandered back outside. He couldn't bare to see any of them. He knew it was all his fault, and that was not an easy thing for him to admit. Normally he shifted the blame to someone else and played the victim, but he knew he couldn't do that this time. Though he had not been very fond of the major, he never intended to kill him. He sighed loudly and muttered a swear to himself. Nobody even knew it was his fault, and he should be thankful for this, but instead it made him feel worse. He had killed Don, and nobody would know.
A month before, Dr. Smith had been looking at John's rocket belt. He considered all the different things he could do with it, but when trying to get it to work, he broke one of the tanks. Not wanting to get in trouble, he put it back on the Chariot where he found it. He never thought anything bad would come since it was almost never used.
The next time they needed it was the night it killed Don. Out of nowhere, a giant alien bird swooped down, picked up Will, and flew away. The boy screamed, and John ran to get his gun. He aimed the gun, but didn't fire.
"What's the matter?" Don asked.
"I don't want to hit Will," Said the professor.
"Well do something!" Smith exclaimed in a frenzy. "Here!" He grabbed the rocket belt from where he had hidden it in the back of the Chariot and tossed it to Don who was the closest one to him. "Use this." Don quickly put it on.
"Be careful," John told him.
"Sound medical advice," Don said with a smirk. He fired up the engines, and ascended into the air. When he got about forty feet up, something went wrong. One of the tanks stopped working, and that made the whole thing go off balance. It came crashing down and landed with a thud.
"Don!" The Professor yelled as he ran to him. "Don! Are you okay!" Smith followed behind him.
Don didn't say anything when John reached him. He shook the younger man and said is name a few more times. Don then opened his eyes slowly and looked into the eyes of the Professor. Don didn't speak.
"You'll be okay," John assured him. "We'll get you back the Jupiter and fix you up."
"I'm not going make i-"
"Pardon my interruption," Smith said loudly. "But William is still very much in danger!"
John looked back at the Major unsure of what to do. "Go," Don told him. John gave him one last look before running back to his gun. The bird was flying in a circle over them, and John aimed his gun carefully. He fired, and hit the bird in the wing. It cawed, and flapped its uninjured wing violently as it tried to stay in the air. It slowly came to the ground where it released Will.
"Smith," Don said quietly. The Doctor looked down at him. "I'm scared," Don admitted.
"Oh, I'm sure you'll be fine," Smith said.
"Tell Judy I'm sorry," Don said quietly.
"For what?" There was no answer. "Major?" Smith shook him a few times, but Don didn't respond. Smith took one of the man's wrist and tried to feel for a pulse, but felt nothing. He quickly dropped the hand and stepped away from the body.
That was one night ago, and Smith had barely spoken to any of them since then. Judy insisted they dye her wedding dress black so she could show her respect. Maureen was reluctant to, but didn't want to argue with Judy, so she went along with it. John and Will found a metal, rectangular storage box in the ship that was about seven feet long and used that as a casket as they had nothing else. Penny took the flowers she had gathered for the wedding and put them by the coffin.
"It's okay," John said to his eldest daughter as she cried.
All Judy could think was how this wasn't supposed to happen. It was supposed to be a happy occasion; it was supposed to be the best day of her life.
"It's okay," Her father repeated. She closed her eyes and continued to cry.
Today was supposed to be a beginning, not an end.