After giving in to their more primal urges, Kim and Tommy got back under the covers and Kim immediately snuggled into Tommy's chest. He stroked her bare back as she sighed contently and planted a kiss on his neck. "That was… wow," Kim breathed.
Tommy smiled, "I concur."
Kim gave Tommy a quizzical look. "You concur?"
Tommy shrugged, "I've been spending too much time with Billy."
"Tommy," Kim started with a smile. "As much as I adore Billy, don't do that again."
Tommy snorted a laugh and hugged Kim closer. They were silent for a few minutes before Kim sighed again. "What's going on in that head of yours, Beautiful?"
Kim absently traced shapes on Tommy's sculpted stomach. "I was thinking I must have been on drugs when I decided to get Trini a Murano. That's not a Trini car. A Cayenne, now that's a Trini car. She may be a mom in a few months, but she still needs her speed."
Tommy decided to humor her. "And does Jason still get a new truck?"
"Nope," Kim answered simply.
"That's mean."
"I can tell you weren't listening to a word he was saying at dinner," Kim commented.
"I was a little distracted," Tommy reminded her.
Kim kissed his chest before continuing, "He doesn't want another truck. He plans to trade his in to get a car. Much safer for the baby, he said."
"He loves his truck," Tommy mumbled into Kim's hair.
"I know. That's why he's keeping it. He just doesn't know it yet. I figured he's gonna be worse than all of us when it comes to protecting the baby so I'll get him a car that will help him out there."
"What exactly do you have in mind?" Tommy voice was muffled as he kissed Kim's neck, sending shivers up her spine.
"A Guardian."
Tommy stopped kissing Kim's neck. "A Guardian?"
"Mm-hm," Kim purred.
"As in a Mercedes Guardian?"
"Do you know of any others?"
"Jesus, Kim."
"What?"
"That's not even a car. That's a…a… I don't even know. Holy shit."
"It'll keep the baby safe," Kim pointed out.
"That thing would keep an Army safe. Kim, how much do you know about that car?"
"Well, the S600 Guard is an armored vehicle boasting of a B6/B7 protection level and the perfect personal transportation choice for those in need of superlative vehicular safety," Kim quoted.
Tommy rolled his eyes. "It has missile-proof glass. And a tank could probably roll over it without scratching the paint."
"They set it on fire in the video I saw online. Still shiny, thanks to its fire extinguishing system. Plus I figured I'd get the emergency fresh-air system. That one's optional."
"Kim, that's a 500,000 car."
"And? It's practical."
"For an arms dealer maybe. Kim, there's nothing around here that could cause that much damage."
"Says the longest serving Power Ranger in history."
"There hasn't been a monster attack in Angel Grove in years," Tommy pointed out.
"So that means they should be unprepared?"
Tommy looked down at Kim, who smiled slyly. "Ok, ok. You win."
Kim's smile turned victorious. Tommy shook his head. He should have known Kim would not only find a car that could drive through a tornado, but would insist on buying one for her friend.
"Jason's gonna go ape-shit," he laughed as he pictured the look on his friend's face when Kim presented him with the keys.
"I know. I can't wait. Now hush," Kim buried deeper into Tommy's chest. "We have about an hour left before I have to banish you to the hotel and I don't really want to spend it talking about cars. Do you?" Kim purred seductively.
In response Tommy brought his face down to Kim's and crushed his lips against hers. "I want to talk about us," he whispered huskily.
"What about us?" Kim breathed.
"How this is gonna work while you're in New York. Do we trade off holidays, you come here for one, I go there for one? Do we both get web-cams so we can at least see each other's faces without looking at a picture?"
"Those are good thoughts," Kim murmured as she kissed Tommy's neck.
"Kim, I'm serious. How are we going to do this?"
Kim groaned as Tommy pulled his neck away. "I don't know, Tommy. We'll figure it out. I won't know too much about my schedule until I get there and then we'll just play it by ear." Kim cursed internally. She knew he was right, they did need to talk about this, and she had been avoiding it the whole week. Trini and Aisha had both told her that she couldn't keep putting it off, eventually Tommy was going to press the issue. But the bottom line was Kim was scared, because she didn't have the answer and had no clue how to find it.
"Play it by ear? Kim, this isn't like taking a road trip, we need to figure out how this relationship's going to work while we're on opposite sides of the country."
"We will," Kim moved to kiss Tommy's neck again, but he sat up. "Tommy!" she protested.
"I wish you'd take this more seriously, Kim," Tommy turned his head away.
"I am! Look, Tommy," she cupped grabbed his chin and made him look at her. "We need to take our time with this, wait until things settle down before we figure out how we're going to maintain another long distance relationship. I can't say indefinitely that I'll be able to come here for Thanksgiving or Christmas or that I can call you the same time every day. I won't know until I get out there. Please," Kim stroked Tommy's cheek and he closed his eyes for a moment. "Please, can we just have now? I just want to enjoy the time we have together."
Kim lifted her other hand and pulled Tommy's face toward hers. She may have been able to stop the conversation between her and Tommy, but her mind was still hanging on to his question. "How are we going to do this?"
"Kim! Kim, wake up! KIMBERLY!"
"Whaaat?" Kim groaned as she buried her face into her pillow.
"Kiiimmm!"
"Trini, I need sleep," Kim mumbled, now pulling the pillow over her head. All of a sudden her head shot up. "Oh my god!" She turned to look at Trini, whose face was a mix of excitement, nervousness and annoyance. And also an interesting shade of green. "Are you ok?"
Trini shook her head, then clamped a hand over her mouth and shot out of the bed and out the door. Kim could hear her gagging into the toilet bowl. "Shit," she hissed and ran to the bathroom to find Trini retching over the toilet. Gently, Kim pulled Trini's hair back and held it while her best friend continued to be sick. She rubbed Trini's back until the nausea subsided. When Trini finally leaned back, Kim grabbed two little plastic cups from the sink and filled one up with water. She handed the water over and waited until Trini had swished it around a few times. "Spit," she commanded, holding the empty cup under Trini's mouth.
"You ok now?" Kim asked, sitting next to Trini on the bathroom floor.
"Yeah," Trini nodded. "God, morning sickness is a bitch."
"I'll take your word on that." Kim put her arm around Trini's shoulder and Trini leaned her head on Kim's shoulder. They sat like that for a minute before Kim spoke again. "Hey, Trin?"
"Yeah?"
"You're getting married today."
Kim could hear Trini smile as she said the words, "I know." They sat in silence a little longer before Trini spoke up, "I think I'm done puking for now."
"Good," Kim said as she got up and reached her hand down to help Trini off the floor. "Think you can handle some food, or do you want to wait a little while?"
"Food, good. I'm starved." As if to back her up, Trini's stomach growled.
Kim laughed. "Ok, I'll cook. What do you feel like?"
"Honestly?"
"Uh-oh. How grossed out am I gonna be by your craving?" Kim joked.
"Please. You'll be joining in on my craving. Ice cream… sundaes… ooh, with fried bananas!"
Kim pretended to gag, "Ew!"
"What? Ok, the fried bananas are a little unusual but it's sooo good! I've had it before I was even pregnant, so it's not even a weird pregnancy craving. It's better than something like fried pickles or-"
"Stop!" Kim cut her off. She shook her head and laughed a little, "All right, two sundaes coming up, one with fried bananas."
"Yay! Thanks Kim-Kim!" Trini leaped at Kim and hugged her. Kim rolled her eyes and, still smiling, wrapped her arm around Trini's waist and led her into the kitchen. "You relax while I figure out how to actually make fried bananas. If it's anything like fried plantains, I'm set. Michael used to love those." Kim turned to rummage through the cabinets.
"There's a name you haven't mentioned in a while," Trini commented as she sat down at the table. "Have you heard from him recently?"
"A few months ago he called to let me know he was having a blast in New York and decided to make the move there permanently. He seems pretty happy." Kim took down a mixing bowl and reached for the flour.
"Did you tell him you were moving there?" Trini asked, trying to sound casual.
Kim shook her head and she measured out the flour, "I didn't know at the time. I'll probably call him when I get settled in, let him know he's not the only guitarist in town," she laughed. She put a pan on the stove, added some oil, and turned the burner on.
"Does he still play?"
"Now and then he fools around with it, I think. I'd kill to have the natural talent he does on guitar. He can just pick it up and make the most beautiful music."
"You're no slouch yourself, Kim," Trini assured her as she tossed her the bananas that had been sitting in a bowl on the table.
Kim caught them and began to peel them, "I know. God, he was good with his hands," she joked as she took out a knife and began slicing the bananas length-wise.
"As good as Tommy?" Trini countered.
Kim turned toward Trini and flashed her a grin. "No way. Tommy is… amazing. He takes it from 'good' to 'my god, someone's killing her in there!' There's no comparison." She turned back to her task at hand, smiling to herself. She heard Trini laugh. They both knew Kim wasn't just talking about sex. Tommy had always had the edge over any man in Kim's life, even over Michael, who had been Kim's longest relationship.
"It's good that you and Michael were able to stay friends," Trini noted lightly. "He's a good guy." Trini had met Michael the first time she went to visit Kim in Florida. The relationship was just starting out and Kim was wary about being too affectionate with Michael around Trini, who had been there from the start of her relationship with Tommy and always claimed the two Rangers made a perfect couple. But Trini had put aside her personal feelings for the now-former couple and was able to realize how devoted Michael was to Kim and how hard he tried to make her happy. Shortly before boarding her plane back to Switzerland, Trini had wrapped Kim up in a hug and whispered, "Be happy with Michael, honey. He's crazy about you and if you let yourself, you'll be crazy about him." Kim had sighed and hugged Trini tighter and whispered, "I know." The visit was exactly what Kim needed to allow herself to really open up to Michael. Having her best friend's blessing meant that Kim could finally begin to lighten the burden of her failed relationship with Tommy and create a new one with Michael.
"He is," Kim agreed. She had finished frying the bananas and began to assemble the sundaes. "He's the only one of my ex's besides Tommy that I even wanted to stay in contact with. Maybe because we ended on such good terms. We still liked each other, as people. The romance had just gone out the window."
"I used to worry that might happen with Jason. That eventually the romance would fizzle and we'd realize we had been better off as friends."
"Never," Kim said firmly. "That will never happen with you guys. I've never seen two people more in love than you and Jason."
Trini grinned at her best friend, "What can I say? When you're right, you're right… Kimmy-Bear."
"Oh, hush up and eat," Kim placed Trini's sundae in front of her then sat down with her own, sans fried bananas. "How is it?"
"Oh muh gud," Trini mumbled with her mouth full. After she swallowed, she added, "I'm building a shrine," before scooping another heaping spoonful into her mouth.
Kim pulled her cell phone out of the pocket of the gray sweatpants she wore to bed and flipped it open to dial Aisha's number. "Ishe? You guys awake?"
"Yeah. We've been awake ever since Jason practically broke down our door screaming, 'I'm getting married today!' at the top of his lungs." Kim starting laughing until Aisha cut in, "It's not funny! He woke our whole floor up!" Kim laughed even harder. "Anyways, the guys are heading over to Jason's now and Kat should be out of the shower in… oh, crap five minutes ago! Didn't know it was that late."
"Cool. Well, you two can head over as soon as you're ready."
"Will do. See you in about ten minutes."
"Ok," Kim replied before closing her phone. "They'll be here in about ten minutes," she reported to Trini.
Trini nodded and put her spoon in her empty bowl. "What was so funny?"
"You're husband-to-be decided to let the entire fifth floor know he was getting married today," Kim said with a giggle.
Trini rolled her eyes, but smiled at the thought. "How grateful are you that I didn't freak out like that?"
Kim stood up and grabbed up hers and Trini's bowls. "Eternally. But it's still early. I have every confidence that it'll hit you soon and you'll put Jase to shame." She bent to kiss Trini on the cheek before putting their bowls in the sink. "But, in all fairness, you've been waiting for this day longer."
"And how did you come to that conclusion? We've both been waiting for this day since he proposed."
"No, your parents have been waiting for this day since he proposed. Your friends have been waiting for this day since you two announced you were in a relationship. He's been waiting for this day since he finally got his shit together and asked you out. But you, my dearest best friend, have been waiting for this day since he kissed you at the going away party."
Trini blinked hard at Kim's cannily accurate assessment. "If I didn't know you and love you so much, I'd be scared of you."
"I know sweetie, but you're not. So let's get you up and get your butt in the shower before the realization fully hits. Because I do not want to be calming you down through a shower curtain."
"I'm not going to freak out," Trini stated firmly.
"Uh-huh, sure," Kim answered as she placed her hand on Trini's elbow to get her up.
"I'm not!"
"Ok."
"Kiiimm!"
"Triiinnn," Kim whined back. Trini stuck out her bottom lip in a pout. Kim threw her a bratty smile, "Oh, c'mon, you know you wanna laugh."
Trini tried to keep her mouth in a pout until Kim stuck her tongue out. Fighting the urge to at least smile, Trini bit the inside of her cheek. "C'mon," Kim urged again.
Trini gave up and allowed her lips to curl into a smile. "You're such a brat."
"I know. And you're stalling. Look at you, a full-grown woman about to be married standing in her kitchen, wearing pj's with ducks on them, and pouting."
"Shut up."
"Nice come-back," Kim laughed. The sound of a car door closing made her turn to the front door. "Ok, we'll finish being six later. Go shower."
" 'Kay!" With an exaggerated childish grin, Trini skipped towards the bathroom.
Kim rolled her eyes and gave a snort of laughter before a knock came from the door. "Come in!"
"It's locked!"
"Whoops," Kim giggled. Trini's behavior must be contagious, she thought as she unlocked the door and opened it to reveal Aisha and Kat. "Hey loves!"
"Whoa, did happy hour start early?" Aisha cracked.
"Very funny," Kim replied, still smiling. "Trini and I are just in a goofy mood. And on a little sugar high. We had ice cream for breakfast," she explained.
"Only you two would even think about eating ice cream the day of a wedding. Trini with her crazy food theories that she somehow manages to prove have solid nutritional value, and you, Little Miss I-Can-Eat-Anything-I-Want-Without-Gaining-An-Ounce," Aisha smirked as she kissed Kim on the cheek and set her bags down.
"She's making up for all the years she had to spend avoiding chocolate like the plague," Kat defended Kim. As a dancer she was no stranger to strict dieting herself.
"Yes, thank you, Kat. You feel my pain. Chocoholics should not be gymnasts. Anyway," Kim continued, shaking her head, "Trini's in the shower. I'll hop in after her and then we can get ready for hair and make-up. Paul's coming at 10." Paul was Kim's personal hair dresser and make-up artist. He had helped her get ready for the countless interviews and commercials that had flooded in after she started making a name for herself in gymnastics. She adored him, with his high voice and flamboyant mannerisms. They always dished about the current men in their lives, and bitched about the ones that had been stupid enough to lose them, with relish.
"Please tell me he'll be able to do something with my hair. It hates me this morning," Kat complained.
"Paul's one notch above genius when it comes to hair. And oh man, is he gonna love you, Kat. He's been trying to convince me to make my hair lighter for years. He claims a lot of his 'visions' can only be done on blond hair," Kim snorted.
"He's not going to use me as his guinea pig, is he?" Kat worried. Kat had come over with Aisha do get her hair done with the wedding party. Sylvia would be there soon with Erin and Kat had offered to watch the rambunctious three year old so Sylvia could get ready without having to worry about making sure Erin didn't mess up her hair or clothes.
"No, that's me. He won't do anything crazy today, though," Kim assured her.
"That's cause he's met Trini," Aisha cracked. "That girl but the fear into him before the engagement party... she threatened to personally castrate him if he did anything, and I quote, 'That looks like a Sheer Genius reject.' "
"How that girl got addicted to reality T.V. is beyond me. But you should've seen the look on his face when I asked him to do our hair for the wedding. Priceless," Kim chuckled at the memory.
Just then, the door opened to the bathroom. A cloud of steam rolled out before they hear Trini call out, "Kim?"
"Yeah, sweetie?"
"I'M GETTING MARRIED TODAY!"
"Zach, I swear to god, if you don't get out of that bathroom I'll break down the door and throw you out the window! I'll commit defenestration right now! " Jason banged against the bathroom door again, for effect, and waited. When he didn't get an answer from inside, he beat his fists against the door yelling, "Get out get out get out get out get out!" until Adam and Billy each grabbed one of his arms and tried to drag him away. "I'm the one getting married today and he's the one that's been primping in that bathroom for an hour, AN HOUR!" he yelled the last part towards the bathroom.
"Dude, calm down," Adam tried.
"NO!" Jason roared.
"Ok, fine. Scream until you lose your voice. That should thrill Trini," Adam tossed back. Billy had stepped away and was explaining to Rocky that defenestration was the act of throwing someone out a window. "He got it from 'Sour Grapes,' " Billy added.
"Get him OUT of the bathroom!" Jason yelled again.
"Tommy?" Adam called warily.
"Two seconds," came the response from the bedroom where Tommy was getting dressed.
Jason growled again.
"Oh for the love of-" Billy threw himself against the door and busted it down, much to the surprise of Zach, who was standing at the sink with a towel wrapped around his waist. "Get out now, before we're forced to tranquilize Jason," Billy said calmly.
"Impressive," Rocky appraised from his spot on the sofa.
"What was… oh. Who broke down the door?" Tommy asked, emerging from the bedroom with his shirt unbuttoned.
Everyone pointed to Billy. "Nice, man!" Tommy slapped Billy a high five.
Zach scooted out of the bathroom and yelped as Jason rushed past him, picked the door up, propped it against the jamb and turned on the shower. Adam sighed and shook his head. "Ok, so after Jason gets out of there, the only ones who still have to shower are Billy and Rocky," he threw a glare at Rocky who was still lounging on the couch eating a bagel. "I'm pretty much ready, except for my tie and jacket, Tommy should be ready soon, and Billy's been done for an hour. At this rate, we might surprise everyone and get there on time."
"I don't know," Rocky argued. "Tommy may still find a way to make us late."
"I heard that!" Tommy thundered from the bedroom, where he had gone to finish getting dressed.
"You were supposed to!" Rocky called back. "This is fun! They should get married more often."
With that, six pairs of hands reached out to throttle Rocky.
"Ok, ok, ok, ok, OK! Who's pumped?"
Trini and Kim look warily at Aisha, careful not to move and mess up Kim's makeup and Trini's hair, which were both works in progress. Their sugar high had seemed to wear off as soon as they say down to be primped over, and Aisha was attempting to keep them in good spirits. "Can you call Kat to smack her, please," Trini requested to Kim.
"Can't" Kim responded tightly, keeping her lips pursed as Paul's assistant applied lipstick.
"She busy chasing after Erin," Aisha reported gleefully. "And Sylvia's getting dressed, before you get that idea."
"Damn," Trini mumbled. "Attached!" She yelled suddenly. Paul rolled his eyes and continued working on Trini's hair. When he had started pulling too hard in the beginning, Trini had first yelled, "Hey, that hair's attached to my head you know!" But now after many variations of the phrase, all of which Paul ignored, she shortened it simply to "Attached!" with a curse thrown in now and then.
"It hurts to be beautiful, honeybunch," Paul told her casually.
"Kim, how can you let him do this to you so often?" Trini asked, exasperated.
"I go to my happy place," Kim answered seriously. Her happy place had been happy enough when Paul had worked on her hair earlier. The bump on her head had gone down, but once Paul began working it into a French twist, it had become more tender than the night before. Still, she had to give the man credit, as much as it hurt, you couldn't tell the bump was even there.
"Ok, you're done!" Paul's assistant announced to Kim. With a grateful smile, Kim stood up, thanked the two artists and headed to the living room. Aisha sat on a chair, trying not to wrinkle her yellow floor-length bridesmaid dress while Kat sat on the couch, reading to Erin who was already the picture perfect image of a flower girl in her not-too-frilly white dress, her hair curled and pinned slightly to reveal her cherub face.
"Once Sylvia's done, I'll get dressed and then Sylvia and l can help Trini into her wedding dress. We did a test run, and it's gonna take three of us to get her ready, including her."
"Cool," Aisha responded as Sylvia emerged from the bedroom. Her dress was the same as Aisha's and the empire waist suited them both perfectly. "I don't know about you two, but I'm not putting my shoes on until the minute before we leave," Sylvia said. She smiled when she saw Erin sitting calmly next to Kat.
"Ditto that. Kim, go get dressed," Aisha commanded.
"Yes ma'am!" Kim mock saluted Aisha and marched into the bedroom. Once the door was closed, Kim let out a small sigh and headed over to the last remaining garment bag hanging on the closet door. Trini's dress was inside the closet, since no one was taking any chances.
Kim unzipped the bag to reveal her dress and smiled. I really do love this dress, she thought as she removed it from the hanger. Stripping off her robe, she carefully stepped into the dress, being careful not to step on the hem. After pulling it up and sliding on the straps, she reached for the zipper on the side and zipped it up. Kim adjusted it slightly before stepping in front of the mirror. She smiled at her reflection, then laughed. While the dark red dress, similar to the style of the others' dresses, fit her perfectly the full effect couldn't really be seen unless Kim stood on her tip-toes. While everyone in the bridal party was wearing heels, theirs were a little lower than Kim's four inch black ones. The dress hugged her curves just so, without being what the seamstress referred to as "too tight for good taste." It was Jason's idea to put Kim in red. Trini had mentioned that she wanted Kim's dress to be a little different since she was the maid-of-honor, and Jason came right out and said, "Put her in red. After all, if she wasn't a girl, she'd be my best man." Trini knew as soon as she heard it, the idea was perfect. Kim readily agreed to the color change. She would've never told Trini, but secretly she had been dreading wearing yellow.
"I look good," Kim laughed at herself.
A soft knock came from the door. "Come on in."
Trini opened the door then closed it gently. "You look beautiful," Trini said softly.
"Thanks. They did a really good job on the dress. You ready for yours?"
Trini breathed a huge sigh, "I think so. Oh, god, putting that dress on makes it too real."
Kim laughed lightly, "It is real, honey. But take a minute."
"No, I'm ok. Can you help me get this under…stuff on? We'll call Sylvia in when it's time for the dress. I just want a little more alone time with you. I can't believe last night was our last sleep-over. I mean, we've had hundreds and for that to be the last… it just seems so final. You know how much you mean to me, don't you? How dear I hold our friendship? If it wasn't for you, Jason and I might have never met. We went from snot-nosed little kids to getting married and you were there for every step. I'll never be able to tell you how much I appreciate everything you've done for us-"
"Stop!" Kim interrupted. "We just had our make-up done, and you keep going with that speech, we're both screwed."
Trini laughed, "Ok, ok. Just… thank you, Kim."
"You're always more than welcome. And Trini? I promise, last night wasn't our last sleep-over. We'll still keep up our traditions, husbands be damned."
"Good. But you're responsible for telling Jason that," Trini smiled as she stood up.
"Deal." Kim opened her arms and wrapped them around Trini as the two took a few minutes as the best friends they had always been.
Somehow, the guys had managed to get ready on time and again beat almost everyone to the church. They had been in one of the private rooms for almost a half hour before they heard that the girls had finally gotten there. Ten minutes later as Jason was adjusting his red tie in the mirror, he suddenly turned to Tommy and said, "I need you to check on Trini for me. I just want to make sure she's doing ok."
Tommy blinked in surprise but said, "Sure man. Whatever you want." With that, he grabbed his black suit jacket and headed out the door to where he knew the girls would be until the ceremony.
Kim was helping Trini with the finishing touches on her veil when Trini turned and asked, "Kim? Could you check on Jase for me? I want to make sure he's not freaking out or anything."
Kim nodded and handed the veil to Aisha. "I'll be right back."
Once outside the door, Kim spotted Tommy, who looked somewhat lost. Her first instinct was to call out to him, but when he turned around, she gasped softly. She had never seem him look like this. Sure she'd seen him in a suit before, but this time he literally took her breath away. His black suit was tailored perfectly, showing off his god-like build. The red tie stood out in contrast to his white vest, subtly signifying another of his Ranger colors. Before she could appraise him silently anymore, he spotted her. His dark eyes lit up as a smile stretched wide across his face.
"Just who I was looking for," Tommy took a few wide steps before he was in front of Kim. "Hey, Gorgeous."
It took a second for Kim to catch her breath to respond, "Gorgeous? I've been upgraded."
"Beautiful doesn't do you justice right now," Tommy affirmed, bending down to give her a soft kiss. She felt herself kissing him, but her mind was still on how gorgeous he looked.
"Tommy, you look… I've never seen anything better than you right now."
Tommy smiled again, "Thanks." He gave her another quick kiss. "I come here on official best man business. The groom would like to know how the bride is doing."
Kim laughed, "The bride sent me to ask the same question of the groom. You can tell him that his bride is perfect."
"No, Kim, that's you… why are you looking at me like you want to swallow me whole?"
"Because I do," Kim purred seductively.
"Kim," Tommy groaned.
"Sorry. Right, so official business done?"
"I'd say so," Tommy answered. He reached his hand out but Kim turned suddenly and started back for the door. "Kim!"
"Sorry, but if I look at you any longer they're gonna have to delay the wedding while they search for the best man and maid-of-honor."
Tommy chuckled lightly, "Kim, I'd like to think we have better self-control than that."
"We don't, you do. Because right now as much as I love seeing you in that suit, all I want to do is rip it off you and-"
"I get it, I get it, please stop!" Tommy begged.
"So you see the dilemma," Kim said.
"Yes. But, if I may," Tommy grabbed Kim's waist and pressed her body to his as crushed his lips on hers. Kim's mind went blank and she acted purely on instinct as she brought her arms up to wrap around his neck. Before she could, Tommy pulled away and before she could protest, started sprinting away. "See, you up there, Gorgeous!" he called as he ran back towards the guys' room.
"Mean!" Kim called back. Hate to see you go, but love to watch you leave, Kim thought as she stared at Tommy's departing backside. Ugh, get a grip, Kim. Once Tommy was out of sight, she turned to go back to helping Trini and make the last few moments before her best friends were joined forever count.
Keep smiling, keep smiling. Don't look at Tommy, Kim coached herself as she walked up the aisle. She gave a big smile to Jason's parents as she walked by, noticing that Karen Scott was already crying. Once she was at the alter, her smile stretched wide for Father Andrew, and finally beamed at Jason before she turned to stand beside Aisha.
Pachabel's Canon in D Major got louder and everyone stood. The doors in the back of the church were once again opened, revealing Trini with her parents on either side of her. Her smile never faltered as she began to walk down the aisle, the light bouncing of the crystals spiraling throughout her cream-colored gown. All eyes were on her as she glided toward the alter, but she only had eyes for one man, Jason. When at last they reached the alter,
Father Andrew stepped forward and asked, "Who gives this woman away?"
"Her mother and I do," her father answered proudly.
Trini's father lifted her veil and kissed her cheek, as did her mother. Jason shook her father's hand, kissed her mother's cheek, then together June and Charles Kwan lifted their daughter's hand and placed it in Jason's.
Father Andrew again spoke, "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Trini Mei Kwan and Jason Lee Scott." Trini and Jason turned to face each other, tears in both their eyes. As Father Andrew asked if anyone objected to the marriage Jason whispered, "You look beautiful," to Trini who beamed and whispered back, "So do you."
Tommy brought his attention away from the couple for a moment to glance at Kim. When her eyes finally found his, he smiled at her and mouthed, "I love you." Kim's eyes lit up as she mouthed, "I love you, too." Then Kim looked past Tommy and put her hand to her mouth. Confused, Tommy subtly turned his head to see Zach, decked out in his black suit, black vest, and red tie… stifling sobs. He reached in his pocket for the tissues but to his horror discovered he had forgotten them. Rocky managed to catch on to what was happening from his seat in the front pew with Adam and the rest of the ushers. Discreetly, Rocky leaned forward and handed a small pack of tissues to Billy, who quietly passed them to Zach.
"Jason and Trini have decided to write their own vows. Trini, please face Jason," Father Andrew instructed. Trini turned to Jason and took a shaky breath before she spoke," Jason, for most of my life you have been my companion, my confidant, my protector, and most importantly, my friend. Our friendship has grown throughout the years into something more than I could have ever hoped for." She reached for his hand and slid the wedding ring on. "With this ring I promise to love you, honor you, trust you, comfort you, and encourage you, just have you have done for me everyday. I will allow you to grow as a person and as my husband and I will watch our love grow into each other and the family that we will create and nurture, just have we will nurture each other in mind, body, and spirit."
Jason took the ring from Tommy and again faced Trini. "Trini, you have always been my voice of reason, my sense of comfort, and my reason for being. Without the love and peace you give me, I would be much less of a man than I am today." He held her hand and slipped her wedding ring on. "With this ring I promise to love you, protect you, honor you, trust you, comfort you, and encourage you, just as you have done for me everyday. My love for is everlasting, and I will continue to express that love and watch it grow into each other and the family that we will create and nurture, just as we will nurture each other in mind, body, and spirit."
"Now comes the fun part," Father Andrew joked. "Jason and Trini, by the power vested in me by the state of California I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." Jason was reaching for Trini before Father Andrew was finished and the now married couple embraced and shared their most passionate kiss. Everyone in the church cheered and a few stopped holding back and burst into tears.
Father Andrew held up his hands and announced, "Ladies and gentleman, may I introduce for the first time ever… Mr. and Mrs. Jason Scott!"
A/N: Here it is! I hope the length of this chapter will outweigh the fact that it took so long to get it out. This was probably the hardest chapter to write. While I knew what I wanted to do, filling in all the blanks wasn't easy with the writer's block that started as soon as I sat down to the computer. I have to confess, I'm disappointed in myself for this chapter, and I hope you guys enjoy at least some of it. Two chapters and an epilogue left before this story is officially finished! I am turning it into a series, but the next story won't be up until late winter at the earliest… right now I have something else that's being "created" and she won't be due until then! Thank you again for sticking with me this far, and I truly enjoy and appreciate the reviews. Next up: The reception!:)Emma.
