You're In Love: Epilogue
Duo Maxwell had expected a lot of things when he had been asked to be Heero's Best Man. He had expected to give sex advice, write a good speech, throw a killer bachelor party, get drunk and maybe give an awkward "manly" hug every now and then. What he did not expect was a chain of odd requests that basically amounted to "stall the wedding". He had been asked to give the wrong street to the florist, hide the Bible, and a few other strange things that he could find no explanation for expect one: Heero had cold feet. Heero Yuy did not get cold feet.
Outwardly he looked completely composed, but a man did not ask someone to stall his own wedding for no reason. The last straw came when Heero requested that Duo "misplace" Relena's veil. "Have you seen the size of that thing? Where exactly would I hide it! It has a train that's TWENTY FEET LONG! I'm not sure it's going to fit inside the church let alone a place no one would notice it!"
Duo remembered the day that he and Heero had gone with Relena to pick it out. He could also remember thinking when he saw it on her that if two people hadn't been carrying the back of it the sheer weight of the thing would have snapped Relena's head off. Relena called it a "classic", but privately Duo believed there was a reason certain things went out of style. Outwardly, of course, he and Heero had instantly given their wholehearted approval.
Heero said nothing for a moment, then mumbled: "You'd find a way."
"What are you doing Heero? Don't you WANT to get married? Because there is NO way she is walking down that isle without that thing."
Instantly Heero gave an affirmative nod. "That's not the problem."
Relief flooded through Duo as he realized he was not dealing with a nervous groom. "Then what is it? You're wedding was supposed to start ten minutes ago."
Heero seemed to consider his words for a minute. "I just need twelve minutes and twenty three seconds more."
This had to be the oddest conversation Duo had ever had, and he'd been around the other pilots for extended periods of time. Finally, he sighed. "I'll see what I can do."
Exactly twenty two minutes and thirty seconds after the wedding of Relena Peacecraft and Heero Yuy was supposed to begin, a nervous young woman walked into the church and looked around for a place to sit. It was then that Heero made his final two requests of his Best Man. The first was to return the veil to the bride, and the second was to go and direct the young woman to sit in the section reserved for the groom's family. She accepted the instruction with a large friendly smile, and had Duo not been in a very big hurry he might have stayed to flirt or at least inquire as to how the girl knew Heero.
Precisely twenty minutes later, after some hasty pinning by five overworked bridesmaids and one dictator of a maid of honor, the bride marched down the aisle, escorted by her brother, veil firmly in place.
She sat in the front row of the groom's side, the only person distinguished with such an honor. Across the aisle were some of the biggest names in politics, including the Foreign Minister and the President. Looking uncomfortable among the prestigious company she found herself in, she glanced over her shoulder at the huge crowd behind her and found that many eyes were on her. No one had believed that Heero had any family and none of the people who called Heero their close friend had any idea who she was. Many questions hung in people's minds: Who was this woman? If she was Heero's family why had she arrived so late? Why wasn't she in the ceremony? The church was large and sitting in a pew alone made her feel small and the scrutiny all the more intense. Doing her best to straighten her back and concentrate solely on the altar, she caught Heero's eye for the first time. Looking at her, Heero did something he nearly never did: he smiled. Sitting directly behind her, Anne Une caught the full blast of it and dropped her program in shock.
The ceremony progressed quickly, full of pomp and incredibly long like the popular posh weddings that had recently come back into fashion. The church was full of weeping women and misty eyed older gentlemen, but the woman, usually highly emotional, sat stoically through the whole thing, unflinching and unwavering. She didn't shed a tear. She did, however, make a few private jokes to herself about the size of the bride's veil.
The service ended and the happy couple marched down the aisle, man and wife at last. She stood and turned to follow before she could be hounded by those who would remember to be curious. She wasn't quite fast enough however. She wasn't even halfway out of the pew when the braided gentleman who had shown her her seat came bounding over, closely followed by three others. She lamented her lack of talent at making excuses and steeled herself for the questions to come, but instead she felt a hand on her elbow and turned. There, looking happier than she had ever seen him, was Heero. He embraced her warmly and murmured in her ear: "I'm glad you came. Will you be in my wedding pictures?" She smiled up at him, happy for the joy her friend was experiencing. Perhaps she would stay for the Reception after all.