In comparison to his fiance, Luke was a relatively calm person. Sure, he got aggravated and went on rants that rivaled Taylor's impassioned speeches at town meetings, but he was relatively level-headed, cool, and collected. Today was the exception. His heart was pounding, he couldn't stand still, and he was practically jumping out of his skin any time someone bumped into him. He sat down and poured himself a scotch while Jess and Jackson went out to have their pictures with Lorelai and the bridal party. He sunk into a chair, trying to calm his nerves as he nursed the drink, when Jess and Jackson came back in.

"Did you see her?" Luke asked, standing up from his chair.

"They're all accounted for." Jess quipped as he entered.

"She looks incredible, man. Wait till you see her." Jackson told Luke.

"Not much more waiting, it's time for us to head out there." Jess piped up again, checking his pockets for the rings as he made his way towards the door.

"Now, huh?" Luke said.

"Yep. Now's the time. Last chance to run." Jackson said with a grin.

"Not running. No chance in hell." He said firmly.

"Figured as much. You're going to have to stop pacing once we get out there, though, so why don't you go a few laps and get it out of your system." Jess advised his uncle.

"I'm good," Luke shook his head. "It's out of my system. Jess, you ready?"

"Got the rings, so I think I'm good to go."

"No funny business with Rory." He said sternly.

"She's my cousin." Jess said, making a face.

"You remember that."

"Is the stress of the day getting to your head? Because I think you're talking crazy." Jess prodded, although he understood his uncle's concern.

"It might be. Let's go before I make a fool out of myself."

"You mean let's go give you an opportunity to make a fool of yourself in front of a crowd?" Jackson teased.

"Exactly what I mean. Let's go." Luke said, not wanting to delay the moment any longer.

He followed the men out the door and a hushed silence fell over the congregation of people who had come to the ceremony. Not a moment too soon, the music started, and Luke looked up, seeing Sookie come down the aisle. He peered at Jackson, who was beaming, and then smiled to himself. The waiting was over. Or, at least, almost over. Rory followed soon after Sookie, and Luke smiled at the girl who was looking more like her mother every day. His breath caught a little as he thought about the little girl who had politely followed her walking-tornado of a mother into his diner over five years ago. That little girl was gone, and a grown woman, his daughter, stood in her place. As she ascended the small steps, the crowd stood and turned, and Luke craned his neck to try and catch a glimpse of Lorelai.

"Try not to pass out when you see her." Jackson teased.

Jackson had meant the warning as a joke, but Luke felt his knees buckle a little as Lorelai rounding the corner. Every possible word to express his emotions at the moment left his brain momentarily as he took in the sight of her: The crispness of her dark curls against the piercingly white lace that covered her skin. Her fresh face, and those striking blue eyes she was hiding behind long, full lashes. Radiant. She was radiant. That was the best word he could think of, but it still wasn't enough. All too quickly but never soon enough, Lorelai and Richard had reached the end of the aisle and Richard was extending his hand for Luke to shake. Luke snapped back to reality, shaking Richard's hand quickly and then taking Lorelai's hands in his as Richard stepped away.

"You look…God, Lorelai. You look-"

"Shh. Let's get married so you can kiss me."

"You shouldn't have reminded me. Now it's all I can think about."

"Well then I guess we should get this over with."

"No, not over with. But, let's get it started at least." They looked over at Reverend Skinner, and he took it as his sign to begin.

"Friends, family, and children of God, we've come here today to watch Luke and Lorelai commit themselves to each other in matrimony, in the presence of their Heavenly Father. We are gathered here to celebrate the love between Luke and Lorelai, a love so strong they have decided to join together in marriage for as long as they both shall live. Their marriage today is just a reaffirmation of the love they already share with one another. From this day forward, there will be no Luke without Lorelai, no Lorelai without Luke. They are bonding their souls, and their lives, from this moment forward. The bride and groom have prepared their own vows."

Luke cleared his throat, daring not to look at his audience before he spoke. "Lorelai, everyone in this room knows I was a goner the day that I met you." He began, winning a chuckle from the audience. "I don't need to tell you how much I love you, because you know, and so does everyone else in this town. That doesn't mean I don't plan on proving it to you, today and every day for the rest of our days. It's no secret that I wasn't always the most fun person to be around before I met you. I'm still not the most fun, but I've gotten a bit better. Lighter, when you're around. Lorelai, I look at my life before I met you and it just seems so different, so much less than what it is now. It's like my life isn't even real to me unless you're there, and you're in it, and I'm sharing it with you. You know, I haven't had to share anything for almost two decades, but it's a lot better than I remember it. Lorelai, I just like to see you happy. I want to spend the rest of my life as the man who makes you happy."

"Luke, compared to you I am very much a "go-with-the-flow" kind of girl. A lot of people think that about me, but you've seen the crazy, and you know better. You know that all of my life has been about choices I've made. The choice to raise a daughter the world told me I wasn't ready for. The choice to leave home at sixteen. Those are some big choices. And I made smaller choices too. The choice to get on a bus out of Hartford, instead of emptying my savings account and trying to escape to someplace warm. The choice to get off at the Stars Hollow stop, march into the Independence Inn and demand a job, despite the fact that I had no working papers, no resume, and no skills. The choice to walk into a building that I thought might be a hardware store or maybe a diner and demand a cup of coffee. Luke, those are all my choices, but you are my Choice, capital "C." The big one. I choose you. In a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any different reality, I choose you. Today, tomorrow, and everyday, I choose you."

"Does the best man have the rings?" Archie asked, and Jess stepped forward, handing the rings over.

"Luke, repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed."

Luke had held strong when she walked down the aisle. He had managed not to shed a tear during his vows or hers. He had almost made it. But he looked into her eyes as he slipped the gold band onto her finger, and he was a goner. "With this ring, I thee wed." He managed to choke out.

Hearing the way his words warbled in his throat caused tears to spring into Lorelai's eyes as well, and she chuckled, whispering to him. "We almost made it. Glad I sprung for the waterproof stuff."

"Lorelai, repeat after me." Archie said again. "With this ring, I thee wed."

"With this ring, I thee wed," she managed to repeat, though her voice was trembling.

"By the power vested in me by the state of Connecticut, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Luke, you may kiss your bride."

"My bride," he whispered as he pulled her in close, not giving her a second to respond before he crushed his lips against hers.