It's pretty long (judging by my Microsoft Word, seven pages), so I hope it is enough to sustain you readers until I can update again tomorrow night or Sunday sometime, because I'm really on my way home! I have got two more chapters finished up being written and just have to be typed up, and then I've got even more ideas for future chapters! Enjoy this and see you in a couple days!

"So you did elope," Collins teased, as they told the Bohemians the news, a couple days later.

"No, Collins, for the last time, we did not elope," Shay insisted firmly, but she was laughing. "We just enjoyed a week on the beach and Roger proposed, but we are not married yet. We wouldn't get married without you guys having some input on it."

"It sounds perfect," Lena said, after Shay had relayed the story. "You're so lucky, Shay."

"Yeah," Maureen and Joanne said together, their arms around each other's shoulders.

Shay smiled. "Yeah, I know," she said. "I'm just glad it finally happened. He has seemed itching to do it for days."

"Well, you deserve it, Baby girl," Collins said.

Shay smiled. "Thanks, Collins," she said. "So are you guys ready to plan a wedding?"

"More than ready," the Bohemians said together. Shay grinned and leaned up to kiss Roger.

A couple days later, Shay and Roger drove down to Scarsdale. Shay fidgeted nervously while she was driving. Roger reached over and took her hand. Noah was sitting quietly in the backseat.

"Baby, relax," he said soothingly, laughing. "They are gonna love you."

"Really?" Shay asked him. "Even though I've got a, you know, a history? I mean, I'm negative, but still..."

"Baby, look at who you've got for a fiancé," Roger said seriously. "If you think your history is bad, look at me."

Shay looked over at him. "You know," she said, "you're right. OK, I guess I'm ready, then."

Roger smiled. "Good," he said. "You'll be great, I promise. Do you trust me?"

"Of course I trust you, Roger," Shay replied, and she was reassured, as they continued on their way to Scarsdale.

Roger knocked three times on the Davis's front door and Mrs. Davis answered. "Roger!" she exclaimed excitedly, as she opened the door and saw her son. "Come in, come in!"

"Hi, Mom," Roger said, and he hugged his mom as they entered, and Shay shut the door behind them. "How are you?"

"I'm great," Mrs. Davis said. "And who is this?"

"Um, well, first, we should get Dad," Roger said, looking around. Roger's timing was perfect, because a moment later, Mr. Davis came down the stairs. "Hey, Dad."

"Hi, son," Mr. Davis said. "What are you doing here? And with…?" He indicated to Shay, not knowing who she was.

"Surprise visit," Roger said. "Actually, I have some great news. Is it OK if we sit down, though? This little boy is pretty tired from the trip."

"Sure, sure," Mr. Davis said, and he ushered them into the living room. "So tell me who this is."

"Dad, Mom, this is my fiancé, Shay Milano, and her son, Noah," Roger said, introducing Shay to his mother and father. "She lives in East Village, not far from Mark and I. Shay, these are my parents, Dylan and Jordan Davis."

"It's very nice to meet you both," Shay said, as she shook their hands individually.

"Nice to meet you, too," they said together.

"We're so glad Roger finally found someone," Jordan said. "You two seem perfect for each other."

Shay smiled appreciatively. "We are very happy together," she said. "We're very excited to get married. Of course, you both are on the top of the guest list."

"Thanks," Jordan and Dylan said together.

After a moment, Dylan spoke up. "Shay, is it OK if I speak with you privately for a moment?" he asked.

"Of course, Mr. Davis," Shay said.

"Please, it's Dylan now," he said, smiling at her.

"OK, Dylan, whenever you want." Shay followed Dylan into the kitchen. "What's up?"

"I want to thank you for being there for Roger," Dylan said. "You probably didn't know him before Mimi died?"

Shay nodded. "Actually, I did," she said. "I was one of Mimi's dance partners. I've left that job now, though, to do modeling instead. Less exploitive, you see."

"I think that's very smart of you," Dylan said. "But anyway, through April and Roger's past drug use and after he became positive, he was pretty lost for a while. Mimi helped him get past a lot of that trouble, but I can see that you have helped so much more, too."

Shay smiled. "I try my best, Dylan," she said.

"May I inquire about your son?" he asked curiously. Shay searched his face for a moment, looking for any sign of judgment, but there was nothing.

"Of course," Shay said. "Noah is where my, um, past history comes into play. He was the result of a one-night stand at a party I never should have been at with an abusive boyfriend. But since that night, I've never gone to one party and I'm always careful with whatever I do in life, whether it's men or activities or whatever, for my son, and now, Roger, too."

Dylan nodded. "I'm glad," he said. "I'm glad that you didn't let this 'party' incident, you know…"

"Stop me from living?" Shay suggested. Dylan nodded. "Nah. 'No day but today', as Mimi said. And I'm negative, by the way. I've never done drugs."

Dylan nodded and smiled. "I'm glad," he said. "Thanks for listening to me, Shay."

"Of course, Dylan," Shay said, and they went back into the living room.

"So do you approve of her, Dad?" Roger asked, looking up at his father, slightly nervously.

"Yes, of course," Dylan said, smiling at his son. "You have our blessings."

Roger smiled. "Thanks, Dad," he said, and he hugged his parents and leaned down to kiss his mother on the cheek.

"Hey, Collins," Shay said, when they had returned that evening, "can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Baby girl," Collins said. "What's up?"

"Well, I was wondering…"

"What?" Collins pressed her eagerly.

"Would you mind, you know, taking place of my absentee father at my wedding and do me the honors of walking me down the aisle, as my father figure?"

Collins beamed at her. "Absolutely," he said, "I would be honored, Baby girl."

Shay hugged him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you," she said. "I appreciate it a lot."

"You're worth it, Baby girl," Collins said to her. "You changed Roger's life."

"Yeah, I guess I did," Shay agreed modestly with him, smiling.

"So what date have you guys set?" Lena asked, a few days later.

"Um, something like September 30th," Shay replied. "We want the weather to be cooler, but not cold, you know?"

"Yeah," Lena said, nodding. Then her face brightened, as she got an idea. "Hey, what about September fifth?"

"My birthday?" Shay asked, looking over at her. "Are you serious?"

"Deadly," Lena said, smiling.

"Well, um, I dunno," Shay said. "I guess I'll admit, I was hoping Roger would be OK with that date." She smiled serenely.

"I'm OK with whatever you want, Baby," Roger said, entering the kitchen quickly, the look on his face making it seem like he was running from something or someone. "And would you two go tie Maureen to a tree, so she quits dogging me about tuxes, please? I want denim. Tuxes and me… we have issues." He grimaced at her.

Shay and Lena burst out laughing. "That's great, Baby," Shay said, "because I don't want a dress."

Roger looked relieved. "You don't?" he asked. Shay shook her head. "Well, great, because it would be really neat if you…"

"I am not, however, going naked," Shay cut him off, laughing and giving him a fierce look, "no matter how much you want it. We have young, virgin eyes giving us our rings, you know."

Roger laughed. "Yeah, you're right. Whatever you want, Baby," he said. "Now go get Maureen!" He gave her a pleading look.

"Oh, all right," Shay said, and she went out with Lena.

On September fifth, 1991, Shay's twentieth birthday, she woke up next to Roger. He was breathing deeply and calmly. She smiled happily and gently caressed his hair, but he didn't wake. Shay smiled again and slipped quietly out of bed and went to the kitchen. She poured some beans into the coffeemaker and went searching for the filters. As she found them, her eyes fell on a small, white bottle: Roger's AZT. She thought about what it meant. She had never really thought about it at all. He was required to take it twice a day to prolong his life, which she knew that, as much as she wanted it to be normal, it never could be so. And whether she liked it or not, he could be taken from her tomorrow or next year.

As the coffee beeped when it was done, Roger came into the kitchen in his boxers, his hair disheveled. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and smiled as he saw her sitting in the chair.

"Hey there, my beautiful bride," he said, as he wrapped his arms around her from behind. "How did you sleep?"

"I slept great," Shay said, smiling up at him. He leaned down to kiss her, but she pulled away playfully. "No, don't kiss me until I've freshened up; or, better yet, wait until you have the pastor's permission." She grinned.

"Aw, but I like your morning breath, it's sexy," Roger teased.

Shay laughed, but tried to keep it down, so she wouldn't wake Noah up. "Yeah, I know you do," she said. "Now go get pants on. Collins and Mark will be here to take you to get ready for our big day, while I'm stuck with Mo, Jo, and Lena."

Roger chuckled. "All right, Baby," he said. "I'll see you in a couple hours, OK?"

"You will," Shay said, grinning, as the doorbell rang. "Damn it, I told them not to do that," she added irritably. "They're gonna wake Noah up. Go!" She flourished her hands at him.

"Roger, let's go!" Mark yelled from downstairs. "We've got a wedding to do!"

"I'm coming! And would you keep it down? We've got a little kid sleeping up here," Roger yelled back, laughing at how had just contradicted himself, and he blew Shay a kiss as he went by, and then he was gone.

"Lena, did you see Roger?" Shay asked. "Is he OK?"

"He's nervous as hell, sweetie," Lena replied, "but I told him that's good luck. His parents are here, talking him through it, especially his dad."

"Good, that should make him feel better," Shay said, as Maureen put up her hair into an elegant twist. "Ouch, Mo, don't pull," she added, as Maureen accidentally tugged on her hair.

"Sorry, Princess Bride," she joked, smiling at Shay.

"Speaking of princess," Lena said, looking at Shay, "are you ready to go marry your prince, Shay? If you are, Collins is waiting for you at the back of the aisle."

"OK," Shay said, and she took a deep breath, "yes. Yes, I am. And my baby boy ring bearer is out there waiting, too?"

Lena smiled. "Yep, he's already done with Mark and Roger, so they can keep an eye on him once Collins gets down there with you, and you get busy. But keep it PG, OK? We got a little ringbearer out there. You go, girl," she said, and Shay, Maureen, and Joanne followed her out of the room.

They lined up at the back of the aisle and then began to proceed. As Shay heard the Grand March begin and she started to walk down the aisle with a beaming Collins, all traces of nervousness vanished as she saw Roger. He was gorgeous. Shay couldn't stop smiling as she walked up to him and Collins took his place by Mark, the Best Man.

"Hey," Roger whispered to her, "you look beautiful, Baby. Really, wow."

"Thanks," Shay whispered back. "You look great, too. Smokin', really. I can't wait."

"Me, neither," Roger agreed, smiling down at her, knowing what she meant.

Then the ceremony began. It was beautiful. As Roger and Shay said their vows and exchanged their rings, with help from Noah, there was not a dry eye in the church. It passed in a blur for Shay, and soon, she and Roger kissed for the first time as husband and wife. Shay threw her bouquet and laughed when Lena caught it.

"You're next," Shay whispered to her.

"Yeah, I guess," Lena said, laughing as she looked at Mark, whose eyes were wide, and they went to the reception.

OK, so here's the real chapter 12. I know I said the previous chapter was number 12, but hey, that's because I was up at 4:30 A.M. (earlier, actually, typing it) to update for you readers, LOL. Next chapter will hopefully be up by tomorrow night. If not tomorrow night, then Sunday, almost guaranteed. And of course, if you're interested (I know Rosablasifann08 and Renthead621 are), I'll tell you how my trip went.

Don't forget to review, as always.

Until next time, lots of love,

Renthead07