Holly was dreaming too. She was standing at the entrance of a cathedral filled with red roses, the perfume of which lingered in the air. Looking down, she discovered that she was wearing the most gorgeous dress she had ever seen. Made from white satin and delicate lace, it hugged her silhouette perfectly and fell away behind her in a short train. A bouquet of white lilies suddenly bloomed into her hands, causing her to gasp in delight.
Was it her wedding day already? She wondered as she looked down the seemingly endless aisle. The church was totally empty except for Ross, in his wedding suit, standing at the back and waiting for her with an expectant air.
Right next to him, violins suddenly materialized out of thin air and their harmonious song resonated through the pillars and filled the empty space. After looking around curiously one more time, Holly concluded that this was her cue to go down the aisle.
As she slowly made her way across the cathedral, people started to appear in the pews on each side of her. There was first Barbara, her mother who nodded approvingly as she passed by, flanked by Roger's father and Alexandra. On the other side, Ed popped up with a wide grin, and, with large motions of his hands, motioned her to go faster.
She looked at each of them in turn, wondering where all of the others guests might be. Then she glanced back at the front to look at her fiancée and stopped dead in her tracks.
While she was looking elsewhere, Ross had vanished, and standing in his place was Roger. His face was mud-covered as well as his hands and clothes. His shirt, which used to be white, was full of dirt and torn on several places. Holly could feel that she had seen him in those clothes before but could not remember where exactly. She hesitated to go on. Surely she was not meant to marry Roger again?
She looked down at her own clothes and gasped. Her wedding dress was gone and in her place was a shredded lilac dress. She could never forget that dress; it was the one she had worn that fateful week in Santo Domingo.
She looked back at Roger but he was still too far to read his expression clearly. What was the meaning of all this? And where was Ross? Her heart tightened in her chest. She was about to turn away and run out of the church when she felt someone nudging her gently in the back, pushing her forward. She turned around to find Blake, smiling calmly. Before she could protest, her daughter took her hand and led her toward Roger, then vanished.
She was now standing in front of her ex-husband, her heart beating violently. This was the man who had abused her, who had kidnapped her and almost let her die on a forsaken island. Yet she could not deny that as he stood gazing at her love shone in his eyes.
When he spoke, his voice seemed to come from very far. "I know what you're thinking, Holly. All these things that happened years ago, that I did to you, how could you ever get over that and trust me again, right? But I mean it when I tell you that not a day has gone by since then where I have not regretted hurting you. It broke me too."
"Then why are you here?" Holly heard herself ask.
"Because we belong together, Holly. We always have, and now the time is finally right. Come to me," he pleaded, extended his hand to her. "Just take my hand, and everything will be alright."
Holly closed her eyes. She felt as if she was standing on the brink of a precipice. Should she jump? Would she land safely on the other side if she did or crash to the ground? There was no time to think, no more time to make a decision, she must -.
She woke up with a start and bumped her head against Roger's chest, waking him up in the process. His first impulse was to hold her closer and to bury his face in her hair, but the look in her eyes stopped in short.
"Holly, are you alright?"
..