Disclaimer: See previous chapter. The song "Wedding Day," and its lyrics, both belong to the Bee-Gees.
A/N: Here it is everyone...THE WEDDING! {Listens to all the yelling and cheering from the Woody/Jordan fans} Yes, I am giving you what the writers of the show refuse to give! Hope you all enjoy it! Thanks to Mrs. Rhett Butler and canadianfan1984 for reviewing.
(Side note to Mrs. Rhett Butler: Bonding is always good for a kid, whether they're teenagers or preschoolers, stepkids or biological kids. And I believe I remember some early requests for bonding moments between Jordan and Amanda, so it's not like I could refuse...Anyways, keep on the reviewing, and I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter!)
(Side note to canadianfan1984: Methinks that ye thinks correctly! {Sorry, I couldn't resist!} It WILL be a factor in their bonding, and also a big part of the story later on. Keep up the reading, reviewing, and enjoying!)
Chapter Fifteen: Wedding Day
"I'm so nervous! Is my dress ok? Is my hair ok? What about my make-up?"
It was the day of Woody and Jordan's wedding, and the bride was going crazy with nerves. It was up to the faithful bridesmaids to calm her down, something that at the moment appeared to be a Herculean task.
"Yes, Yes, and it's perfect," Lily said with a laugh. "Calm down Jordan! Everything's going to be fine!"
"She's right," agreed Devon. "You've made it this far, you'll make it the home stretch."
"They're BOTH right," Amanda interjected. "Look Jordan, you're marrying the man of your dreams, in a gigantic church wedding, with your closest friends as bridesmaids and groomsmen. It's basically the wedding every girl dreams of. Well, my dream weddings have featured either Matt Damon or Jason Lee as the groom, but other than that, there's no difference..."
"What about Peter?" Jordan asked slyly, cheered up by Amanda's previous comment.
"We've only been together for five months," Amanda said, blushing over her make-up. "That's hardly enough time together to be thinking about marriage. Besides, even if I was thinking about it, he might not be."
"The kid's got a point," said a voice from the doorway. All heads turned, and saw Renee Walcott standing in the doorway, hair and make-up done, dress on, and carrying a bag that contained a curling iron, hairpins, and other items. The girls had been surprised when, a month earlier, Jordan had called a truce with her and asked her to be a bridesmaid. Secretly, they had been hoping for a truce, but they had gotten more than they had bargained for.
"Anyway," Renee continued. "I've got the hairpins and whatnot, so the bridesmaids can FINALLY have their hair done! Would've been here earlier, but traffic's a bitch, and I can't control that."
"Unless you traded something for the world's only flying car," Amanda said under her breath, remembering the Kevin Smith short film she had watched earlier that morning. Thankfully, no one heard her, so she didn't have to explain herself.
"So, who's first?"
"This looks really good," Lily said as she stood up and looked at her hair in the mirror. "Never knew you were this good with hair."
"Well, for a while in high school, I wanted to be a cosmetologist, but plans fell through," Renee said. "OK Amanda, you're next, and then we're done."
Amanda sat down in the chair, and Renee began to brush and pull and twist her hair into the updo that Jordan had selected for the bridesmaids' hairstyle. While she was working, there was a knock at the door, and a voice unfamiliar to Amanda said, "Jordan, may I come in?" Jordan, Lily, and Devon all gasped. They knew who it was. Jordan nodded to Lily, who answered the door. In walked a man in his early 60s with white hair and eyes that sparkled like Jordan's did.
"Dad," Jordan whispered, before running to him. Max Cavanaugh caught his only daughter in a hug and said, "You look so beautiful, Jordan. Just like your mother did on our wedding day."
Jordan pulled back and studied her father. Not much had changed in the year he had been gone, except he looked healthier.
"So why did you come back?" she asked.
"Garrett called and told me you were getting married, and I also received a call from the groom, asking me to show up because my daughter had made it known that she wished I would be there to give her away." Amanda grinned when she heard this, knowing her father had been successful in getting Jordan's dad to appear for the wedding.
Max looked around the room, greeting the familiar faces, but stopping when he saw the teenager who was getting the finishing touches put on her hair. Renee put the last pin in place and said, "There we go Amanda! Now ALL the bridesmaids are finished."
"I assume that this is Woody's daughter, then?" Max asked as Amanda rose from her chair to greet him. He studied her as she walked over to him, and then smiled at her. "Welcome to the family Amanda," he said. "I hear you've been cleaning tables at the Pogue lately. Maybe we can do something about getting you to work in the tech booth permanently, now that I'm back."
"I wouldn't want any of the other employees to resent me," Amanda said. "I mean, they could claim preferential treatment..."
"Don't worry about it," Max said. "You're my granddaughter now. I'm supposed to spoil you, or so I've heard."
"You've heard right," Amanda said with a grin, and she would've continued, had it not been for the minister coming in and announcing that it was time. A last minute scurrying for bouquets, and they were ready.
The girls got into place as the music began, and they marched in a line through the doors and to the altar. The guys were already there, standing in a line behind Woody. Peter looked up as the girls entered, and was completely floored by Amanda's appearance.
The girls took their places at the altar, and then the music signaling the bride's entrance played. Everyone stood up and faced the doors, and watched as Jordan walked down the aisle on her father's arm. The assembled peoples oohed and ahhed over how beautiful Jordan looked, including the members of the wedding party. Jordan took her place next to Woody at the altar, and the ceremony began.
"Now it is time for the vows," the priest droned. Amanda had been watching the ceremony intently, but had stopped listening to the priest long before. She didn't need to anyways, she thought. Jordan and Woody had decided not to write their own vows, so they were just reciting after the priest anyways. She looked across the aisle to Peter, and smiled when she had caught his eye. She could tell he hadn't been paying attention to the priest either. She suddenly felt a slight pain in her side, and realized Devon had caught her and was trying to bring her attention back to the ceremony.
On the other side of the aisle, Peter was experiencing something similar, except it was Nigel who was doing the elbowing.
"Stealing glances at the bridesmaids, are we?" Nigel whispered, following Peter's eyes to the bridesmaid line. "Or should I say, bridesmaid?"
"I can't help it. She looks so beautiful," Peter whispered back. "Like an angel, or something from a dream..."
"That she does," Nigel agreed. "As do the rest of the bridesmaids. I can't help but notice that they put me with Devon, the only other single person working at the morgue. You think they're trying to give us a hint?"
"I wouldn't know," Peter said, turning his attention back to the ceremony. They had finished the vows, and were on to the most important part of the wedding.
"Do you, Woodrow Hoyt, take Jordan Cavanaugh to be your lawfully wedded wife; to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, for rich or poor, in sickness and in health, until death parts you?"
"I do."
"And do you, Jordan Cavanaugh, take Woodrow Hoyt to be your lawfully wedded husband; to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, for rich or poor, in sickness and in health, until death parts you?"
Jordan looked at Woody and smiled. "I do," she said.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife," the priest said. "Woody, you may kiss your bride."
As Woody leaned in to kiss Jordan, the church erupted in cheers.
"Finally! I can sit down!" Amanda said as she plopped herself into a chair. The reception was going strong, and she finally could get some rest. "Never knew being stepdaughter-of-the-bride could be so damned exhausting..."
"At least everyone's dancing now," Peter said as he dropped into the chair next to Amanda. "Did you hear that toast Garrett made? I thought Jordan was going to drop dead from embarrassment."
"I personally thought that you and the other groomsmen were gonna drop dead from keeping all that laughter in. Your faces were the brightest shade of red I've ever seen!" Garrett, who was again speaking into the mic, this time announcing the newlyweds' first dance, stalled Peter's reply.
"This song was picked out by Jordan and Woody, from their daughter Amanda's extensive music collection. Well, enough talking, it's time for the newlyweds to take center stage."
Woody led Jordan out into the middle of the dance floor as the music began to play...
We both acknowledge what we came here for
We take each other and walk through the open door
From the first time that I saw you
To the way you look tonight
I was shaken by your spirit
I was blinded by your light
And the world that I used to see is gone without a trace
Replaced by your eyes and the smile upon your face
And I will not turn away
'Cause you might disappear
I was haunted by your heart
And I felt that you were here
And funny when the time is right
When lightning strikes
You're not alone
Baby, I will pray for you my whole life through
This day
We'll be together
Husband and wife
Now and forever
The rest of our lives
Well, take me to Heaven
Take me tonight
There is nothing words can say
On this our wedding day
Oh, now is the hour, now is the sowing of the seed
I will take tomorrow
I will lay it at your feet
And the two of us escape from the sadness of the world
From the thunder and the darkness
From the hunger and the hurt
Everyone watched as the two danced across the floor. Amanda leaned her head on Peter's shoulder and smiled as he put his arm around her. This was true love in action they were watching, and everyone knew it.
You know I will remember well the mission bell
That rings your name
And baby there could never be
A memory like you
We'll be together
Husband and wife
Now and forever
Lovers for life
Well, take me to Heaven
Take me tonight
There is nothing words can say
On this our wedding day
This is my pledge to you
I will follow through to the end
And we will find another plane
We'll be home again
And tonight I'm going to find true love, true love
We'll be together
Husband and wife
Now and forever
Lovers for life
Well, take me to Heaven
Take me tonight
There is nothing words can say
On this our wedding day
This our wedding day...