{Normal POV}
(Friday, October 7, 2022-5:50 pm)
[Mead Hall]
The day had come at last. Hayden and Troy's wedding, and in ten minutes; they would get married to one another. The previous three days had been spent making phone calls to ensure that the cake, food, minister, and hall were all ready for the 7th. On Wednesday, Hayden, and Troy got their suits. Troy had his Dress B, and Hayden his white tuxedo. Rachel, Vivian, Dustin, and Spencer had been at the hall since 2 pm to set up for the 6 pm ceremony. All the tables were set up and lined with a black tablecloth, then had the centerpieces put out. The cake had come at 5:45 pm, that was on a small, square table off to the side. The minister arrived and was now speaking to Troy about the ceremony proceedings. Hayden was in a back room, getting himself ready.
"Hanging in there, big brother?" Cole inquired as Troy was watching everyone show up, sign the guestbook, admire the décor, and view the picture collage that Hayden and Troy built for the occasion.
"Hanging," Troy replied. He wasn't nervous; Troy knew who he wanted to be with for the rest of his days.
"It's almost time," Dustin patted his son's back with a smile. "The last of the guests just arrived," Shane poked his head out as Cole went over to talk to him.
"Hayden is super nervous but ready," Shane informed.
"Troy too. Guess we should get this started," Cole stated. Shane nodded as he turned back to Hayden.
"Ready cuz?" Shane asked. Hayden nodded, then took a deep breath. Everything was okay, and now, Hayden was marrying his best friend and lover. There was nothing to be afraid of. Outside, Troy set up his laptop and turned it on, then began a video chat with Harry Andersen, who was still deployed.
{Hey, Troy!}
"Hey, Harry. Got everyone there?" Troy asked curiously. Harry moved back to show the entire Alpha Company in The Lounge. It had been a last-minute idea so the company could enjoy this moment too. Donovan managed to locate a projector and all the necessary wires to connect a laptop to it, and now the company was going to get to watch the wedding live through Skype.
{HEY!} the group yelled.
{Where's Hayden?} Amber asked.
"He'll be out in a second; we're just starting now," Troy assured as he stepped away from the computer and into his place with Cole beside him.
{Just so we're clear, Alpha Company…We're only keeping this hooked up until after the first dance.} Donovan reminded.
{Aye, sir.} the other replied. Troy chuckled a little as Shane and Cole stepped up to calm the crowd of guests.
"Alright, let's quiet down," Shane tried. Everyone continued talking.
"Guys…" Cole attempted now. Still nothing. Cole and Shane looked at one another and nodded.
"HEY! SHUT THE HELL UP!" Shane and Cole yelled. The room went quiet. "It's time to start, so everyone sit!" they said together now as everyone began moving to their seats. Moments later; it remained quiet.
{Heh, the kid would make an excellent Drill Sergeant.} Ryan chuckled. Cole laughed a bit and shook his head.
"Are we ready?" the officiant inquired. Troy nodded as he walked through the opening in the chairs to the door that Hayden was behind. Troy turned the knob and opened the door, then saw Hayden standing there. Troy smiled at how his fiancée looked.
"You looked amazing," Troy complimented.
"You do too," Hayden blushed a little. Troy offered his hand as Hayden placed his in Troy's, then Troy led Hayden out of the room and to where they would walk together on to the dance floor. Troy put his arm out a little, and Hayden positioned his hand to link to it, then the two walked down the aisle together. Now, standing before the official, the two returned to holding hands.
"Welcome family, and friends both near and far to the marital union between Troy Raseri and Hayden Haddock. As I understand it, these two young men wanted to skip all the fancy opening because everyone witnessing this event knows why they are standing before one another today. Also, Hayden and Troy know that they are entering the sacred circle of marriage by promising their lives to one another through vows and the exchange of wedding bands," the man smiled. "I'm just going to assume that there is no one who objects to this wedding?" it remained silent.
"Yeah, don't think that's gonna be a problem. Odin knows Hayden and Troy both have an Expert Shooter level and would kill anyone who dares stop this," Shane remarked.
"And then they'd skip town to avoid prison," Cole snickered.
"We wouldn't kill to get married; we'd just do it behind everyone's backs and move away," Hayden laughed a bit.
"Continue, please?" Troy urged the minister.
"To keep things short as per requested, I will hand this off to you two now," Cole and Shane dug out the band they were given to hold on to until this moment and placing it in the waiting palm of either Troy or Hayden.
"Hayden and I decided to do something a little different than most would. We wrote our own vows and ring exchange ones too. However, the way we say them might not be what you're expecting. But hey, that's just how we are. Hope you enjoy," Troy informed as everyone blinked a bit. What the hell had they planned without telling anyone?
"Oh, and bonus; we're having our first dance at the same time," Hayden smiled. Nobody understood anymore. Troy led Hayden to the middle of the dance floor, then he moved to the computer. Troy clicked something and moved back to Hayden. Not long after, soft music began to play.
"This very moment. Right here and now. Begins the journey of my dreams. Onto forever, hand in hand, with the one who matters most to me. I have tomorrow to look forward to. For God has given me you. To have and to hold. To cherish and honor. To love and call my very own. To share all I am with; body, heart, and soul…You are mine, as I am yours. To have and to hold," Hayden sang while Troy and he danced lightly together.
"Partner. Companion. Lover. And Friend. Keeper of all things I hold dear. I see you before me, and my heart is filled with joy. For everything that has brought me here. And I have tomorrow to look forward to. For God has given me you. To have and to hold. To cherish and honor. To love and call my very own. To share all I am with; body, heart, and soul…You are mine, as I am yours. To have and to hold," Troy singing took everyone by surprise. Hayden and Troy continued to move around slowly, but their eyes never left one another.
"I have tomorrow to look forward to," Hayden smiled.
"For God has given me you," Troy sang afterward.
"Has given me you!" Troy and Hayden went together. "To have and to hold. To cherish and honor. To love and call my very own. To share all I am with; body, heart, and soul,"
"You are mine," Hayden slipped the band he was holding onto Troy's finger.
"You are mine," Troy repeated."I am yours," Troy put the ring on Hayden's finger before they linked hands together, staring into the other's eyes, smiling.
"I am yours," Hayden recited.
"All my days, and all my life!" they continued together.
"To have and to hold," Troy sang alone.
"To have and to hold," Hayden went after him.
"To have and to hold," they sang together as the song ended promptly afterward. As it stopped, Troy and Hayden ended up right back where they started before the officiant. (A/N; The song used is To Have and To Hold. I, unfortunately, do not know the artist. I'm aware it's a duet, and if you go look up the title and add Wedding Song to the search, it should come up. I thought it was a beautiful song for these two. Anyway, enjoy!)
"Well, that's the first I've ever seen of couples doing their vows, exchange, and first dance all in one…But it was certainly entertaining to watch, creative, special, and more than acceptable as far as the ceremony goes," the minister chuckled a little. "I say we wrap this up," he added. "Troy and Hayden, before these witnesses; you have made your promises of everlasting friendship and love to one another and exchange rings as reminders of the vows taken today. It is with authority vested in me by the Barbaric Archipelago that I now pronounce you, husband and husband. You may kiss your groom!" the man announced loudly.
Troy and Hayden smiled as Troy snaked his arm around Hayden's waist, drew his now-husband in closer, then Troy cupped Hayden's cheek before leaning in and pressing his lips to Hayden's. The room erupted into applause, and the noise from Skype got louder too. Alpha Company was hooting and hollering for Troy and Hayden. The kiss was much more than a quick five-second hold. No, this was long, deep, and definitely involved tongue. After half a minute, Hayden and Troy broke the kiss and turned to face everyone.
"Ladies and Gentlemen; I give you, Mr. And Mr. Troy and Hayden Raseri!" the officiant called. More clapping and cheering as Hayden and Troy held hands at their sides, and Hayden rested his head on Troy's shoulder; both of them were smiling contently. Finally, they were married. Hayden would be keeping his last name as Haddock, but hyphenated with Raseri; it was easier for the military-related things. Troy and Hayden were in the same company, and platoon. Might get a bit confusing if someone yelled Raseri but didn't specify which one; there were ways around it, but this was just easier as Hayden was the last Haddock of his line being an only child to Spencer and Vivian.
"Well, we did it, babe," Troy told Hayden, kissing his husband's forehead.
"I know, and it feels amazing," Hayden sighed out happily.
Troy chuckled a bit. "Heh, you say that now. Wait until tonight when we're in the hotel room and give you feels amazing all night long,"
Hayden's face turned beet red. "TROY!"
"Oh, my," Rachel and Vivian blinked.
"I guess we can be somewhat grateful that neither of them can get pregnant, or I assume we'd be expecting a grandchild in nine months. Ain't that right, Dustin," Spencer said.
"I wouldn't go that far, guys. There have been cases in some parts of the world that Transgender males can have babies," Troy shrugged as the room kind of went a bit quiet, so did Skype.
"But…We're not doing that, so everyone can just chill," Hayden rolled his eyes. A sigh of relief circulated around the room as Hayden closed his eyes and shook his head that everyone believed Troy and Hayden would go through such a process to have a baby.
"Indeed. Why go through such a process like that when a surrogate or adoption would be ten times faster?" Troy agreed. "Hayden and I will have children eventually, but not right now. I mean, come on; we're technically deployed in Afghanistan for another three months. Hayden and I are both Active Duty, and we couldn't deal with having a family, but end up leaving the kids with neither of their parents. Perhaps when contract resigning comes around; Hayden and I can change things up to ensure we'd be home to have a family. For now, everything is just fine the way it is,"
"Yeah, we want to enjoy married life as just us for a bit before jumping into having kids," Hayden smiled.
"And there is nothing wrong with that," Hailey nodded.
"Quite right," Drew said as soon others nodded as well. Most people did start a family after getting married, but Hayden and Troy knew that with their military situation; it was not a smart move.
"And now that we've got that out of the way, I think it's time we get this party started. We're gonna kick it off with doing pictures. Hayden and I first, then with our parents and family. After that; we don't care," Troy informed.
"We'll see you guys when you get back! Enjoy your honeymoon," Donovan smiled. Troy and Hayden nodded, then the Skype call ended. Afterward, Hayden and Troy got themselves in a position to take a few photos with one another. Cole got the music going, and this moment officially marked the start of the reception; it was going to be a great time.