To quote Maya Rudolph in Bridesmaids, "It's happening."
Although, hopefully, this isn't a pile of shit.
##
"From this second forward," Heather announced, thundering into the apartment under the weight of two garment bags and the entirety of her hair and makeup tools, "this apartment is a penis-free environment until after the wedding."
From his spot at the kitchen counter, Ed's eyebrows rose on his forehead, his eyes darting from Heather to the curious gaze Noah was now leveling on him from where he sat playing with his toys on the floor.
"Daddy?"
Ed shot Heather an exasperated look and she smirked as she made her way back toward the bedroom. "Not even sorry," she said lightly. "Liv back there?"
"Yeah," Ed nodded, then turned his attention back to Noah. "Alright, kiddo. That's our cue. You got your bag over there?"
The boys were being banished to get ready at Heather and Ben's apartment, and since, being men, the process of getting ready was significantly shorter than what Heather was undoubtedly going to put Olivia through, they'd made sure to pack plenty of toys to keep Noah occupied until it was time to get ready.
"Wait!"
Ed turned to see Olivia, wrapped in her plush robe, rushing out of the bedroom.
"We weren't gonna leave without saying goodbye," he teased her with a chuckle, rubbing her shoulders as he followed her over to Noah.
"I know," she said, covering one of his hands with hers in acknowledgement. "But I still want kisses. C'mere, sweet boy." Noah immediately stepped into his mother's embrace, wrapping his arms tightly around her as she buried her face into his hair. "I love you so much, baby."
"Love you, mommy."
Releasing him, Olivia ran her fingers through his hair. "Be good for Daddy, okay? I'll see you in a little while." Olivia turned to Ed. "And you," she kissed him, the lip lock venturing slightly beyond chaste, into passionate. "I can't wait to marry you."
"Likewise," Ed whispered, licking his lips as they separated. An impatient throat clearing from the doorway leading to their bedroom made them separate further and Ed rolled his eyes playfully at his bride-to-be. "C'mon, bud," he said, reaching for Noah as he made his way toward the door. "We can tell when we're not wanted, can't we…"
"I love you," Olivia said earnestly. "Both of you."
Ed grabbed his own garment bag from where it hung by the door and winked, and when the door shut behind them, Olivia took a deep breath and turned back to face her friend.
Heather drummed her fingertips together and smiled brightly, wiggling her eyebrows in a way that scared Olivia just a little bit.
"Come," Heather beckoned. "Let's do this, shall we?"
##
"You got a dog in this fight?"
Ed had settled into the corner of the couch in Ben and Heather's living room, one eye drifting to keep an eye on the boys playing in the corner of the room.
"Nah," Ben called from the adjoining kitchen. He held out a bottle of Stella in offer to Ed, who shrugged in agreement, and Ben made his way into the living room to join him on the couch, nodding when Ed muttered his thanks. "My brother's a Seminole…" he added in explanation.
"Sorry to hear that," Ed quipped, his lips curling in a smirk around the mouth of the bottle as he took a long pull.
"Not more than I am," Ben said dryly.
For a few downs, they engaged in quiet conversation about the game, pausing every so often to grumble about the incompetence of the officiating crew, before an injury timeout forced the game into a commercial break.
"So," Ben broached, sipping his beer. "Nervous?"
"Nah," Ed thumbed the label on the bottle and shook his head before glancing back at Ben. "This is right, ya know?" Ben hummed in agreement. "Once we got past all the craziness in the beginning, it was like…" Ed looked up, searching for the words, "I dunno, like we shoulda been doin' this the whole time."
"Why weren't you?"
The chuckle escaped Ed before he could stop it. If he only knew… "Ah, job stuff. Life stuff. We were in different places… Liv and I have talked about this extensively," Ed added, looking pointedly at Ben, who chuckled.
"Well," Ben lifted his glass, causing Ed to do the same, "I guess, here's to everything happening when it was supposed to… Congratulations, man."
The men tapped their bottles together, chuckling when Noah and Jackson copied their gesture with toys in-hand in the corner.
"So, we have to be back there at…?"
"Liv said four."
"Right," Ben nodded, glancing at the clock. It was just past one o'clock. His eyes drifted to the boys, watching them play enthusiastically with Hot Wheels on Jackson's racetrack play mat. "Think we should get dressed first, then get them, or the other way around?" he wondered aloud.
Ed watched the boys maneuver the toy cars into what he could only imagine was meant to be a fiery collision, spittle flying everywhere from their exaggerated sound effects as they dissolved into a friendly wrestling match to see who's car would overpower. "Probably us, then them," Ed ventured lightly. "Carefully."
"Right," Ben nodded. He glanced at the clock again. "But…not for a while?" he added hopefully. Ed chuckled, not wanting to sit around in a suit any longer than he had to, either.
"Not for a while," he confirmed.
##
Awestruck, Olivia warily eyed the multitude of makeup products Heather had spread across the surface of her vanity. Heather stood up, turning from where she had been organizing and stood in front of the brunette, who was perched on a stool from the kitchen.
"Okay," Heather started, her tone no longer teasing and playful, but all business. "How are we doing this?"
"Natural," Olivia said without hesitation, glancing at her reflection around Heather's shoulder. "I want him to be able to recognize me coming down the aisle," she chuckled.
"Got it," Heather nodded perfunctorily, reaching up to twirl a lose strand of hair that hung at Olivia's face. "Hair?"
Meeting her friend's eyes, Olivia gathered the rest of her hair behind her head, "That chignon I showed you? Can you do that?"
Heather turned, plugging in her hairdryer and grabbing a brush. "Of course," she said. Flipping the appliance on, she spoke loudly over the noise, "Hair first. Let me know if I burn you…"
Soon, despite being keyed up from the anticipation, Olivia felt herself falling under the spell of the rhythmic whirring noise and gentle tugging, her eyes closing as Heather worked diligently on her hair.
"You doing okay?" Heather asked her after an extended silence. Her question was muffled by a row of bobby pins she was holding between her teeth and Olivia smiled.
"I'm good," she said. In a matter of hours, she would be walking down the aisle toward the kind of happy ending she'd given up hope of ever finding before finding the courage to open herself up to Ed like she'd never opened up to anyone before.
She wasn't just good. She was perfect.
Heather nodded, smiling as she continued to work on Olivia's hair. "Finish your vows?"
"I did."
Heather raised her eyebrows expectantly, as if waiting for Olivia to run through what she'd put together, but her friend was quiet, stoic. "I'm all ears if you want to practice…"
"No need," Olivia shook her head subtly. She tapped a forefinger on her temple. "It's all here."
Heather raised her eyebrows again. "You're brave," she acknowledged, before continuing with a soft smile. "When Ben and I got married, it was all I could do to remember my own name by the time it was my turn to say my vows."
"Really?" Heather had a tendency to be kind of shallow, so this surprised Olivia; she would've expected that Ben would have been the one to get more emotional during their ceremony.
"Mhmm," Heather nodded. "I think…" she furrowed her brow, putting in one more bobby pin before looking at Olivia in the mirror. "We're done," she announced. "What d'you think?"
Olivia turned her head left, then right. "It's beautiful." She met Heather's eyes in the mirror, silently thankful that makeup was happening last, because she could already feel the sting of emotion in her eyes. "Thank you."
…
Between hair and makeup, they'd taken a small break to remove their dresses from the garment bags and Olivia watched from the edge of her bed, a glass of Prosecco hanging comfortably from her hand as Heather and Amanda meticulously guided a steamer over the delicate material of her gown.
"You're awfully quiet over there," Amanda observed, eyeing her Lieutenant before taking sip of her own beverage. She'd come over early to help get her ready, and despite previous strain in their relationship, Olivia was incredibly thankful to have her Sergeant's support and companionship on such an important day. She respected the younger woman—all the things that made them similar, and the things that made them so incredibly different.
Olivia smiled, swallowing another sip of the bubbly liquid and suppressing a hiccup with a hand to her chest before she replied. "I'm just," she shrugged, "taking it all in."
"No cold feet, right?"
"No," she shook her head vehemently. "My feet are just fine," she added with a wink and a barely visible curl to her lips.
"It's kinda surreal though, isn't it? You marrying Tucker," Amanda said with a smile, gingerly lowering herself onto the bed and leaning back against the headboard, careful not to disturb her own hair and makeup. "Who woulda thought…?" she added, bewildered.
"I'm just glad they got their heads out of their asses…" Heather interjected, shrugging her shoulders as Olivia eyed her incredulously. "What?" she asked, her face expressionless.
"Way to be supportive…" Olivia chuckled.
"I'm here, I'm supportive," Heather defended. "But my God, Liv… you were so dead set on being in your own way in the beginning… I thought for sure the poor guy was gonna give up on you."
"Ed's never given up on me," Olivia said softly, a smile seeming to grace her lips without her knowing, conjured by the mere thought of her fiancé.
"He won't," Amanda chimed in. "The way he looks at you…"
Olivia blushed; shyly shifting her eyes to her dress to deflect the comment she knew was true. Her gaze floated over the details, her mind lost in thought as Heather and Amanda fell into an easy, playful conversation around her.
The strangest thing, she pondered distantly, was that her mind drifted not to Ed, not to the guests gathering on the roof, not to doing one more internal run-through of her vows to make sure she wasn't leaving anything out…
Instead, as she sipped the Italian wine, she imagined someday, years into the future, sitting in a room like this with a young woman, carefully steaming the very same dress she was about to put on, fussing over hair and makeup, and then standing with Ed to give her away.
And once her mind went there, she found it wasn't a far leap at all to think about a certain blonde-haired, blue-eyed baby, likely sitting in a crib at DCS downtown.
A baby that had her and her soon-to-be-husband wrapped securely around her little finger.
##
Listening to the dull chatter of the arriving guests behind him, Ed stood at the railing just behind their makeshift altar, dressed in his charcoal grey suit, watching the sun begin its descent behind thin wisps of clouds hued in pinks and oranges to their west.
It was finally here, and the day couldn't have been more beautiful if it tried.
In a matter of minutes, Olivia would step off the elevator into the rooftop atrium in a dress he had yet to see. She would walk down a rose-petal lined aisle to stand with him before those that were closest to them, and promise to spend forever…
John Munch, whom he and Olivia had asked to officiate the ceremony, stood nearby, chatting idly with members of his former squad before Heather signaled the bride's arrival and the festivities began.
Ed took a deep breath, tuning out the conversations swirling around him. He flattened his hands down the side of his blazer, his exhale turning into a gasp as he realized the protrusion he was expecting to feel—the ring box—wasn't there.
His movements became frantic as he patted himself down, searching his pockets repeatedly—first his jacket, then his pants—for the box that contained both his and Olivia's wedding bands. He ran through the events of the day in his head, trying to remember the exact moment he'd last had his hands, or his eyes, on the velvet box.
Several long panic-stricken seconds passed before realization dawned and Ed's whole body visibly deflated in relief. He'd given the rings to Noah when he'd dropped him off with Heather at the apartment, so he could fulfill his "best man" duties of holding onto the rings before the ceremony.
He leaned against his forearms on the railing, dropping his head between his shoulders, before he felt a hand on his upper back. Turning his head to the side, Munch's face greeted him with a sardonic smile, dark friendly eyes peering at him over the frames of his glasses.
"Don't worry, I'm sure she'll show up," John assured him, seeming to misunderstand the source of Ed's unease. "Though, I might've insisted that Noah stay with me, if I was you," he winked at Ed. "Insurance…"
Ed smirked, pushing off the railing and turning to face their guests and the aisle that marked the course that Olivia would soon be taking toward him. He heard the door to the atrium open and his heart skipped a beat before realizing it was just Heather.
"Won't be long now…" John echoed his thoughts from half a step behind him. Then, softer, "I know we like to bust your balls, Tucker, but in case I haven't said it yet, congratulations. You got yourself a good one."
"Don't ask me how…" Ed breathed.
A beat of silence passed before Ed heard John's voice in his ear again.
"Well, who knows what she's thinking...but you? You got yourself a good one for sure."
##
Riding the elevator up to the roof, rather than nerves or cold feet, Olivia felt an overwhelming sense of peace; one she felt sure had everything to do with the man waiting for her at the altar and the tiny hand she held firmly in her own.
When they had first starting thinking about the wedding logistics, entertaining the idea of having John officiate the ceremony for them, Ed had suggested the idea of having her former Captain give her away.
"I know he was like a father to you," Ed had said.
It was true; Don Cragen had been a constant in her life for so many years—important years, too, and she certainly felt affection for him that was similar, she thought, to what a daughter would feel for a father figure.
The more she thought about it, though, the more it felt like this was something that she wanted—needed—to do for herself, and for Noah. She knew Don loved her like a daughter, but the reality was that however connected she felt to him, she wasn't his to give away…
Symbolically, she wanted to do this with Noah: she and her son, a package deal, heading toward Ed, the next chapter of their lives as a family…together.
##
Somehow, Ed picked the exact perfect time to look up from his shoes, his eyes finding hers across the roof with a precision that astounded even him. And then, immediately after the recognition came the sensation that he'd had the wind knocked out of him.
She was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.
For her part, Olivia was impressed that sensations like this actually happened, and weren't just something romanticized in the movies. Stepping out of the atrium and onto the roof, her eyes met Ed's and it was immediate, the way everyone and everything faded away into the background. She was only aware of him and her on the roof—the two of them, and Noah, who was tugging insistently at her hand.
"Mommy," Noah whispered loudly, looking from his mom to Ed, then back again. "We go to Daddy?" His small voice was unsure; they hadn't done a thorough rehearsal, and the poor boy had little understanding of what was going on other than Mommy and Daddy were getting married.
The fact his parents were capable of doing little more than staring at each other only furthered his uncertainty.
"Yeah," Olivia whispered brokenly, belatedly reacting to his confusion. She squeezed his hand but didn't look at him, unable to tear her eyes from the man waiting for them at the end of the aisle. "We go to Daddy," she confirmed.
Noah stared at her impatiently, clearly not understanding the depth of the moment his parents were sharing. "Then…we go," he prodded, pulling at her hand again. "He waiting."
His insistence forced a chuckle from her throat, breaking her trance, and she looked down at her son, who was practically squirming in his effort to get her to move.
"It's okay, sweet boy," she soothed, squeezing his hand and bringing her eyes back up to meet Ed's, gasping at the love she saw emanating from the blue irises at the other end of the aisle.
The beginning of their relationship had felt a lot like one step forward, two steps back as Olivia worked to not only open herself up to the prospect of being in a long-term serious relationship, but also to pursue that venture with someone who had been an enemy for so many years.
She had felt the same spark that he had that first night of drinks, but she had a much harder time reconciling what that spark meant. The whole time, Ed was patient with her—he was there when she allowed him to be and respectful of the space she needed. He made it clear what he wanted, but he didn't pressure her; he let her get there in her own time. She was so grateful, sure that had he not been that patient with her, they may not be here today, ready to make it official and start the rest of their lives together.
She could feel tears pool in her eyes and silently thanked Heather for thinking ahead and using waterproof mascara and eyeliner.
Her next words were directed toward Noah, but echoed a sentiment that she herself had learned from experience where Ed was concerned.
"We don't have to rush. Daddy's not going anywhere."
Then, she took a deep, steadying breath and nodded resolutely to Heather, who started the music for her do walk down the aisle.
A hush overcame the guests, who stood and turned to face her.
Unfazed by the dozen or so sets of eyes that were now on her, she looked down at Noah and squeezed his hand. "Ready, sweet boy?" At his determined nod, she chuckled. "Me, too," she said tearfully.
Finally.
##
For a second, he thought he was going to pass out before she made it down the aisle, but then, he remembered how to breathe, and smiled at her and Noah as they slowly made their way toward him, drawing awed whispers from their closest friends and family along the way.
"You're gorgeous," he whispered to her once she was close enough.
It didn't seem like a strong enough word. But he was hard-pressed to wrack his brain for a better one in his condition.
Her makeup was natural, as she'd insisted, and his eyes didn't seem to want to tear themselves from the way the strapless dress molded to her every curve. He found himself resisting the urge to line the curve of her bare shoulders with kisses, loving the way the dress contrasted with her supple, tan skin. Slowly, he let his eyes take her in completely, the subtle beading and lacework that divided the bodice from the skirt, the delicate way it flared right around her knees, swishing around her ankles where the hem just barely grazed the floor.
It was the kind of understated beautiful that took your breath away because it didn't distract from her. It took her best features and somehow, found a way to amplify them.
He'd be lucky if he could string two words together when they started the vows.
"You, too," she winked, taking his right hand in her left.
Ed reached down, taking Noah's hand in his free one, so the three of them were now connected, standing in a circle.
Noah squirmed slightly between them and Olivia smiled down at him before turning her attention to John, who was looking on with pride.
"Shall we?" Clearing his throat, he looked around Ed and Olivia to address the guests. "I think if any of you would've told me a few years ago that I would be marrying Olivia and Ed Tucker," he held his hands out, "I'd have taken you straight to Bellevue myself," he quipped, drawing a chuckle from the group, including Olivia, who rolled her eyes, and Ed, who laughed bashfully. "And yet," John smirked. "Here we are…"
Olivia smiled warmly at her longtime friend and former squad-mate, sparing a wink at Ed while they waited for John to continue.
"I've known Olivia a long time. Well," John corrected, "I guess I've known them both a long time. But I've always liked her more," he admitted, eyeing Ed. "Sorry."
"I don't blame ya. Me too," Ed quipped.
"In all seriousness," John continued, looking fondly at the Lieutenant, "I worried about this one for a while. Years, even. I'm really glad you found what you were looking for, Olivia."
"Thanks, John," she whispered.
"Alright," the former Sergeant addressed the guests. "Since I'm Jewish, and these two are heathens, we're going to do this a little differently… You have each written your own vows, correct?"
"We have," Olivia nodded, Ed nodding along with her.
"Who wants to start?" He looked between both Ed and Olivia, who whispered I will. "The floor is yours…"
"Whew," she blew out a slow breath and looked down at their feet, suddenly nervous. "Okay," she began, squeezing his hand. "I wanted to say, obviously, that I love you—so, so much," she shook her head, her gaze introspective as it landed on him again. "More than there are words to even describe how much," she smiled tearily. "But even more than that, I wanted to say…thank you."
She saw the slightest hint of confusion in his eyes as he cocked his head to the side, hanging on her every word, as if there were no one up on the roof—in the world, even—but the two of them.
"You saw something here," she gestured between them, "before I ever thought to look for it," she smiled, her expression awestruck, almost wistful. "I don't think you know, even now, how grateful I am for that…to think of what we would've missed out on…" She trailed off, and he smiled as she collected herself. "Ed, I've never really believed that there was one perfect person out there for everyone, but if that does exist, there is no doubt in my mind that you are it for me." She reached for his hand again, squeezing it gently, letting her tears fall freely, knowing it was futile at this point to stop them. "You love me the way I need; in a way only you could. And you gave me space to fall in love with you without feeling like I was losing my independence, without making me sacrifice who I am. And that was—" she stopped, amended herself, "—you are the best gift of all. I'm still falling in love with you, a little bit more, every day. I'll never stop."
Olivia took a deep breath, her gaze drifting down from him to her son—their son, she mentally corrected herself, who was looking on with rabid curiosity, swinging both his arms as he stood patiently between the two adults.
"Once this little man came along, I thought it was going to be that much harder to find someone to settle down with; I'd resigned myself to the fact that it was just going to be he and I…But then you came along, and you've been so amazing with him. You're such an amazing father," she said brokenly. "Even in my wildest dreams, I couldn't have imagined being able to give him the kind of home and stability that we've built together, and I can't wait to start all over again and expand our family. I am in this with you…All of it. Forever. No matter what."
Somewhere in the background of this moment, they could both hear the sniffles coming from the guests looking on, and Olivia noticed John pull a handkerchief from his breast pocket, dabbing his eye subtly before tucking it away.
"Ed?" he prodded softly.
"Every day, I wake up and lookit you next to me, and can't wrap my head around how I got this lucky, how I get to be this guy standin' up here with you." He shook his head. "In what universe does it make sense that someone like you would wanna be with someone like me? But, I'll be damned… you do," he smiled.
"Can't say bad words, Daddy," Noah interrupted.
Ed dropped his head and chuckled, letting go of Noah's hand to palm his head. "You're right, bud. I'm sorry."
"Olivia's not the only one who's got him whipped," came a voice from the small crowd gathered in front of them. Laughter broke out, and Ed waited patiently for it to die down, only continuing once Olivia smiled and squeezed his hand in encouragement.
"You've given me so much—your trust, your love, a sense of finally belonging, of having something really real, ya know?" He paused then and looked pointedly at Noah, before meeting her eyes again and continuing earnestly.
"I'll never take it, or you, for granted. I wanna spend all the time we have together, from this second forward, makin' up for all the time we didn't get," he whispered huskily, thinking of the years that were wasted. He let go of her hand to cup her cheek, his thumb wiping a tear as it fell from her eyelashes. "I wanna make up for all the times I coulda been kissing you—"
"—But not yet," Munch interjected, drawing snickers from the guests and Olivia, who pulled his hand from her face and kissed his fingers before letting them hang between their bodies again. "Carry on…" John prodded.
"You're just…everything, Liv," Ed breathed, drawing a fresh round of tears from Olivia's eyes. "Everything I ever wanted but didn't think I deserved, and then some. I love you," he said emphatically. "So much more than I even thought it was possible to love another person. I love you for all the ways you amaze me every day—your strength, your heart, how much you love Noah; and all the ways you drive me crazy," he smiled.
"Watch it," she warned with a wink, squeezing his hand in hers.
Ed grinned, stepping forward and resting his forehead against hers. "Jesus, Liv, I really wish I could kiss you right now," he whispered, ignoring John's not-so-subtle throat clearing behind them. "Thank you for letting me be a father to Noah, for giving me a family, for trusting me to take care of you…both of you. It's the privilege of my life to get to be the one who stands beside you. I'm gonna make sure, every day, that I'm the kind of man you deserve to have at your side through it all."
"I love you," Olivia whispered, her voice catching from the tears lodged in her throat.
"Who has the rings?"
Olivia squeezed Noah's hand as a subtle reminder. "I da best man," he exclaimed, thrusting a fist with the ring box into the air, which Ed took from him before giving him a high-five.
"You did so good, baby." Olivia palmed Noah's head as she watched Ed remove the rings, careful not to drop them. He kept the one he was going to place on her finger, handing his to Noah until they were ready for it. "Hold on to that for me, okay? Hold tight."
"I got it, Daddy."
"I know ya do, kiddo," Ed chuckled.
John smiled, looked at Ed inquisitively, and waited for the groom to nod, signaling they were ready. Ed took Olivia's left hand in both of his. "Ed, do you take Olivia to be your wife?" John asked, repeating the agreed-upon abridged version of this step.
"I do," Ed said confidently. His eyes didn't move from Olivia's as he slid the platinum band onto her finger, squeezing her hand in his and lifting it to his lips when he was done.
"Olivia?"
"Can Mommy have the ring, baby?" Olivia asked Noah, her voice thick with tears. She whispered thank you when Noah handed it to her, taking Ed's hands in hers just as he had done.
"Do you take Ed to be your husband?"
"God, yes, I do," she breathed, sliding the ring onto his finger amid chuckles from their guests. She'd swore she heard a familiar whistle, but put it in the back of her mind while she absorbed the fact that they were one step—one step—from officially being husband and wife.
"If there are no objections…"
"John," Ed and Olivia warned him simultaneously.
"Not that kinda crowd. Okay…" he bounced on the balls of his feet. "Just because you both outrank me," he muttered, pausing until it felt like Ed and Olivia were about to fall over from anticipation. "I guess, by the power vested in me by the great state of New York…. just kiss her already."
The words were barely out of his mouth before Olivia felt Ed's hands grip her face, his lips crashing into hers as he pulled her into a tender, but decidedly passionate kiss. He felt her lips part against his and didn't waste the opportunity to suck at her lower lip. Olivia released a low moan into his mouth, her hands firmly gripping the material of his blazer, using it for leverage to pull him closer to her as his teeth nibbled at her lip before letting it go.
"I love you," he murmured against her mouth, his hands dropping to her waist as he pulled away, resting his forehead against hers.
"Did we really just get married?" Olivia whispered; her tone laced with disbelief.
"We did." Ed nodded, releasing a breathy chuckle. "And I'd do it again, every day," he rasped, kissing her again, pulling away only when Noah started tugging insistently at the bottom of his jacket.
"Noah get kisses, too!" the toddler whined, and Ed lifted him up, holding him between he and Olivia. His wife.
"Noah gets kisses, too," Olivia beamed. She put her hand on Noah's chin, holding his head in place as she and Ed simultaneously leaned in, each planting a big kiss on either cheek, exaggerating the smacking sound as they pulled away.
He wriggled to get free, making a beeline for Jackson, and Ed laced his fingers with Olivia's as their guests—the people closest to them, who had known and loved them both separately, and now together—descended upon them with congratulations.
It was like an out-of-body experience, like they were watching it happen from somewhere in the clouds. She hadn't known happiness of this magnitude existed and she was overwhelmed, feeling so much love from so many people all at once.
Olivia's eyes met Ed's in the craziness, her hand still gripping his tightly. And like she knew they'd be doing every day for the rest of their lives, they had an entire conversation with just their eyes, not a word uttered between them.
It's all worth it, for you and I.
##
A/N: Fret not… we still have some things to resolve.