August in Texas feels like the seventh circle of hell. Finn had been in Afghanistan and he remembered exactly what hell felt like, and he thought the comparison was pretty apt.

When Rachel had found out that Kurt was planning an outdoor wedding, she'd thrown a fit. "Nooo," she had moaned to Finn. "I can't bear it. He's crazy."

"He said that you would say that," Finn told her. "He said something like "oh ye of little faith."" He had brought her hand up to his lips. "If you don't want to do it, we'll tell him you don't."

Rachel thought about it. "Kurt knows how miserable I am…he wouldn't do anything that made me cry on my wedding day."

Finn smiled. "So we're good?"

She nodded. "We're good."

Finn wasn't certain how Kurt had managed to pull it off mostly from NYC, but now here they were, standing in the middle of a field by a stream, surrounded by trees, and no one felt like they were melting. Kurt had said something about strategically placed fans and breezes off the water, but Finn hadn't really paid attention. Stuff like that could remain a secret forever and he wouldn't mind.

There were white flowers everywhere. Over the guests there was a canopy of white, from flowers to ribbons to lace. Finn loved it, and he knew Rachel would too. It was fussy and frilly but strangely beautiful, and he didn't feel like any less of a man for thinking so. That's exactly what he'd told Puck, too, when the other man had laughed at him.

He had worried a little about his leg in his Class A's…no matter how you dress it up, a carbon fiber blade stood out. After a while, he decided not to worry about it anymore. He knew that Rachel loved him no matter what, and no one else really mattered.

He and Kurt had fought about his wedding attire, but in the end he'd been adamant; he was a soldier- a proud one- and he was going to wear his dress uniform. After Kurt had seen him in it, he'd agreed that it would be fine. And then he'd teared up a little. When Puck had stood beside Finn in his Class A's, they'd all gotten a little teary eyed. Puck told Finn that even though he was out, he was still a soldier; they'd been planning this when they were both in the service, and it was what he wanted to wear. Finn liked the idea, and after seeing them, Kurt had too.

Finn stood now in front of a small group of their family and friends and waited. He remembered how lovely Rachel had looked in her wedding dress when they were in school; he knew that now she'd look even more beautiful. He looked to the front row to see his mom and Burt, smiling as Carol wiped away another tear. She'd been crying for a week now.

Every member of the Glee Club had been able to make it, and he and Rachel had spent the night with them last night. It felt good to finally have Quinn on their side. She'd brought Brody, something no one seemed too happy about, especially Puck. Finn noticed that every time his friend looked at the other man he looked like he was sucking on a lemon. Quinn didn't look too happy about it, either, which Finn thought was strange.

Puck and Blaine stood with Finn; two men he loved dearly. Quinn and Santana were going to be Rachel's bridesmaids. Kurt hadn't wanted to be in the wedding party because he had to stand in the back and pull all the strings, making sure everything went as it was supposed to. Finn had joked that Kurt would be bald before the wedding was over, and then spent the next hour trying to get Kurt to open the bathroom door and stop crying, telling him over and over that his hair was still thick and fine and it had just been a joke. Everyone was so sensitive lately, geez.

A hush fell over the crowd and Finn straightened, staring at the spot he knew Rachel was going to appear. Santana came out first, followed by Quinn. Finn didn't even watch them as they moved down the aisle. When everyone stood, he held his breath. She was coming.

The air left him in a soft whoosh the moment his eyes landed on her. "Rachel," he breathed, his eyes locking with hers. LeRoy and Hiram were at her sides, her arms locked with each of them. Her dark hair flowed over her shoulders with a slight curl to it. Her white dress hugged her chest tightly and then fell in a cascade of white to the floor. She'd laughed about being a "hillbilly" bride- getting married while she was pregnant- but Finn had never seen anything more beautiful in his life.

When she finally reached him, LeRoy took her hand and held it out to Finn. Finn reached out and took it, slowly pulling her close to him. "Breathe, baby," she said, smiling. With her free hand, she wiped away a tear he hadn't known was trailing down his cheek.

"You look amazing," he whispered.

"Better than last time?"

"Better than anything," he said. A small part of his brain realized that what he was saying didn't really make sense, but he ignored it. Rachel was the only thing he could think about. "I love you," he said, staring into her eyes. "I love you so much."

Rachel's smile was radiant. "I love you too," she said, squeezing his hand as they turned to the preacher. Because of the short notice and some other reasons Finn didn't understand, they had a protestant preacher. He didn't really care if it was an alien so long as it meant Rachel would really be his when it was over.

He listened as Rachel repeated the words the preacher told her to and then repeated them himself. He only messed up once, which he thought was a definite win. As he finally slid the ring onto her finger he closed his eyes for a moment. Everything he'd dreamed about for so long was happening…it was all coming true.

When the preacher said, "You may kiss your bride," Finn needed no further encouragement. He took Rachel's face in his hands and kissed her deeply, his body moving closer to hers as she wrapped her arms around him. It wasn't until Puck tapped him on the shoulder that he realized everyone was waiting for them to break it off. Turning to the crowd, he lifted her hand and grinned. Everyone stood and cheered as he looked down at her. He was going to have to do something special for Kurt; this was like a dream.

As everyone made their way to the tent and the reception, Finn didn't let go of her hand. When they finally made their way into the enclosure, the band began playing and Burt said, "I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Finn Hudson!" While everyone applauded again, Finn pulled Rachel close for their first dance. Kurt had stomped around, threatened to quit and even cried, but they'd all known that in the end "Faithfully" would be their wedding song. There was really no other option.

"You look beautiful," he told her as they moved in a slow circle on the floor. Finn had never been a great dancer, and he was grateful that Rachel was content to sway in one spot with her head on his shoulder.

She looked up at him, glowing. "You look pretty amazing yourself," she told him with a grin.

Finn lowered his head for a kiss, smiling against her lips as he heard about 30 cameras go off. "Kurt and his disposable cameras," he said, looking around. Every table had three Kodak cameras on it, for the guest to take whatever pictures they wanted. It was a good idea, much like every other idea of Kurt's. "He should look into being a wedding planner."

Rachel nodded. "This is amazing," she agreed, closing her eyes as they danced.

Finn couldn't tear his eyes away from her; he'd never seen anything so perfect. "Are you okay?" he asked, hoping she wasn't too tired. She'd spent the past week in misery, complaining that no human being was ever supposed to get this big or ache this much.

"You know," she said, putting her head against his chest, "I'm good. I don't know how or why, but nothing hurts, nothing aches…everything is just good."

"Good," Finn told her, holding her tightly.

"We'll have a week of wedded bliss, and then go directly into the parent portion of our lives," Rachel said, grinning slightly. "Are you ready for all of that, Mr. Hudson?"

"As long as I've got you, Mrs. Hudson, I'm ready for anything."