Second Chances

Chapter 3

Carly sat in front of her vanity putting the final touches on her hair and makeup. Yesterday she had been reeling about this marriage. She was sure that it would end in disaster and her and Jason fighting because she was freefalling toward him again. And God only knew how crazy mad she got when Jason didn't reciprocate those feelings. She had been heartbroken due to her own actions and Jason's too. But today? Today she was full of hope and love and happiness. She never thought this day would come. She dreamt about it two decades ago and then she had to let go of that dream. Her screw up had hurt her so deeply. She never thought she could recover and now as she was getting ready to marry the one person who she had loved longer than she could even recall, she was filled with a sense of peace and of inevitability. To say that it was long overdue was an understatement but now, all she wanted was to bask in the present and let go of all her insecurities and her crazy plans and just live the rest of her life with the man she loved. The one she had loved most of her life.

Carly loved the place her and Jason were currently in, but if she were honest with herself, she wanted more. She wanted all of Jason and now that it seemed possible and that the marriage was going to be real, and both of them were falling in love with each other, a huge weight was lifted off of her shoulders. Ever since that dance at the Metro Court pool, she had been so confused by her feelings. She truly did believe that being in love with Jason was a thing of the past. Something that had happened a long time ago and was over. Of course, there were instances when she would see Jason – even married to Sonny – and remember what it had been like to be with him. But immediately she would berate herself and lock those feelings up. She had Sonny. She loved Sonny and Jason was her best friend. Willing to do anything for her. She didn't want to screw that up. She would rather have Jason as her friend than not have him in her life. She was giddy, and so happy, because now she would have both: Jason as a best friend and Jason as a husband who was in love with her. Any only her. She didn't have to fight for him, with him or accept that he loved someone else. Jason was finally going to be hers. And she would keep him for the rest of their lives. She no longer had to share him. And that made her positively giddy!

Carly had been so used to locking up her feelings, pretend they weren't there, so Jason could stay in her life, that it was just second nature to her to repress her feelings of being in love with him. But kissing Jason today felt like coming home. She had missed him. Even though he was with her at all times and they seldom were without going a full day without seeing each other at least once or twice, the phone calls and the texts would not stop. They were completely attached at the hip. Like all best friends, right? But not really. There was always something more. Something that Robin, Liz, Sam and Britt picked up on; as well as Sonny and Jax. They just weren't willing to admit it. Until now.

Carly looked at herself one more time, smiled and got up from the vanity. She heard Josslyn and Bobby come in her bedroom and they smiled at her, excitedly. "How's the bride?" Bobby asked, as she approached Carly to hug and kiss her. "Honey, you look stunning. Jason is going to be left speechless."

Carly laughed at that. "That's not so hard, mom. Jason doesn't say much."

They all laughed and nodded their heads. "But he has a ton to say to you." Joss interjected. "I swear every time I see you guys together, you are yapping away, whispering something in each other's ear. Maybe you a bit more mom but when you get Jason going, he won't stop."

"That's because I piss him off." Carly offered, laughing. "But what else is new? He loves me anyway."

"He sure does." Bobby said, as she clapped her hands. "Okay, enough, enough, enough, let's get you dressed."

Carly reached out her hands to both Bobby and Joss and stilled them. "Before that, I just wanted to let the both of you know how much it means to me that you are here with me. I am so happy that I am getting married to Jason but to have the two of you here with me now, is just the icing on the cake."

Joss looked at her mom and went for it: "Mom, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, honey."

"Between now and the past few weeks, it's like night and day with you. I mean I know you were happy that you were going to marry Jason but you were sheepish, quiet and jumpy even. But as of today, you are a giddy bride, seemingly in love with the man you're about to marry and glowing. What changed?"

Carly smiled and was surprised at how perceptive her daughter had become. That made her proud. "Jason and I aired out a few things and needless to say, I was surprised and happy at the outcome."

Bobby nodded her head, completely understanding what Carly meant by her words. Carly and Jason had finally come clean to one another about their feelings. It had never been that hard to decipher for the people that surrounded them, just to each other. "You could have asked me you know. I have known for years that Jason's devotion to you was unflappable. And while you doubted it always, it was there. You just needed to trust it."

"You're getting another chance at love mom." Josslyn interjected. "Be happy. You deserve it."

Carly felt her eyes fill with tears and pulled away. "Okay, okay, okay, let's stop this because if we don't, I will need to get my makeup redone and we don't have time for that."

They all giggled as they helped Carly into her dress. As Carly looked down at her dress and smoothed it out, she heard her phone ring and she reached for it, surprised to see Jason's name pop up. She picked up immediately: "Please tell me you're at the Metro Court changing." Carly whispered, as she walked away from Bobby and Josslyn.

"I was." Jason responded, as he gripped the phone a bit harder. "I'm even dressed and ready. And I'm waiting for you at the chapel."

"Well…" Carly said, as she laughed. "Consider me surprised."

Jason felt his lips tug upwards. "Question is: are you ready?"

"I am as a matter of fact."

"Ready to do this then?"

"Can I confess something to you?" Carly asked.

"Anything."

"Would it be crazy if I told you that I thought I've been ready for twenty years?" Carly said, honestly, her heart in her hand.

Jason closed his eyes briefly and sighed out loud. Hearing that from Carly warmed him inside. "Yeah?" Jason asked and then thought to himself: "Yeah…I've been…I've been ready for a long time.

"Yes." Carly reiterated, bringing him back to the present. "I'm so ready to marry you Jase."

"And to answer your question, no, you're not crazy. Because I think I'm right there with you. I'm just now able to admit it to myself."

"And now to me." Carly whispered, emotion coming out of her voice.

"And now to you." Jason whispered, right back.

They both stood quiet reveling at the peace that came by just listening to the other breathe. What a difference a declaration of love makes.

"Jason?" Michael and Spinelli spoke out.

"Carly? Mom?" Bobby and Josslyn spoke out.

Both of them closed their eyes and sighed. "I gotta go." They both said at the same time. Perfectly in sync, as they always had been.

"But I'll see you soon." Carly said. "I'll be the one walking down the aisle towards you to become your wife."

"I'll be here waiting." He would wait an eternity for her if he had to. And something told Jason that he would not be able to look at anyone but Carly once he saw her walking toward him. She was going to be a vision. And she would finally be his.

"Am I going to have to take that phone away from you?" Bobby asked Carly as she shook her head. "Can't Jason wait one more hour to see you and make you, his wife?"

Carly smiled as she laughed out loud. "This is so surreal mom."

"You're happy and you don't know how much it makes my heart soar. So many people were surprised by this wedding but like I told all of them, it may have taken me aback for a second but then it made perfect sense."

Carly laughed sarcastically at that. "Where's Joss?" She would not bad mouth or become petty in front of her daughter. Especially not on a day like today.

"She stepped out for a second. Why?"

Carly rolled her eyes. "Let me guess who was surprised and unhappy with us getting married: All of Jason's exes?"

"Honey you can't possibly be jealous of them anymore, right? Look at where you are, about to be married to Jason. Besides, yes, they were a bit taken aback but if you must know, they weren't surprised by it. It seemed Jason had not only put you first currently but also when he was with them. Besides, you dear daughter will not only have his loyalty and friendship, you will have his fidelity and love. You will have it all. Just like you wanted to, so long ago."

Carly took a step back, sighed out loud and counted to ten. "You're right mom. Who cares what others think? This is our time – Jason and mine. You should have seen him when he told me that he had been in love with me when Michael was a baby and that he was starting to develop feelings for me again. He told me that he made himself only see me as a friend and that he would die for me and that's how he justified putting me first."

"That man has always been in love with you Carly. That kind of devotion stems from unconditional love. So of course, he would put you first. When you love someone that much, it doesn't matter what stage you're in, in a relationship, you would put everything and anything to the side, just to be next to the one you love."

"And I love him mom. I always have. But I never thought that I would have the opportunity to love him out in the open so I pushed those feelings to the side and locked them up. I did love Sonny, you know that, but Jason, Jason is…" Carly said, wistfully.

"The love of your life." Bobby finished for her.

"The love of my life." Carly repeated, as she wiped a tear from her eye. "And he will always be."

"Then let's go get you two married."

Back at the chapel….

"I'll be here waiting."

Jason was standing facing the altar and close to where he thought he would stand as Carly walked down the aisle. A part of him still couldn't believe this was happening. He had never allowed himself to imagine this day would come. Of course, days when he was longingly remembering what they had shared, had been sporadic in the past dozen years or so. But for the past few months, they had become more frequent, harder to ignore and definitely with a sense of renewed love in his heart.

He was trying his best to ignore members of the five families. They were here for a reason but he refused to acknowledge that this marriage was only for business purposes. This was their day. A day they had both wished for at one point or another. He would deal with the repercussions of the actions he had decided to take against the five families at a later date. Now, well now, it was time to enjoy the moment. And screw everyone who tried to get in their way.

"Okay everyone let's take a seat…the ceremony is about to begin." Maxie stated.

Jason stood taller, inhaled deeply and let out a breath, he didn't even know he had been holding. Carly had defined her feelings - starting for him again as butterflies – and he knew at this precise moment what that felt like. And it wasn't because he was nervous. No. Spinelli was right. He had never been more sure of anything in his life. Marrying Carly had been the one thing he never thought he could attain in his life. He had never been happier than to prove himself wrong.

The music started and Jason saw Joss standing in the doorway – she looked beautiful and as she smiled at him and Michael, he smiled back. Seeing her walk down the aisle had him – if you could believe it – almost giddy with anticipation. And that's when it happened. When he saw Carly turn into the doorway and look at him, with so much hope in her eyes, and he knew, he just knew, that same hope was reflected back to her in his. They were connected in ways he could not explain even if he tried.

And he was left speechless, frozen in place, just drinking her in. The only woman that took his breath away and made him feel so deeply and so reverently. It had always been her. If she hasn't lost you by now, she never will. Those words came back to him now because he realized how true they were. Carly would never lose him. He was in for the long haul. Already had been in for the long haul for more than two decades. Now was the time to reap the benefits of being in love with her.