Disclaimer : I still can't claim ownership to Zoey101, Another World, or Couples .

Chase's head pounded viciously as if Logan had taken a golf club to it , the pain increasing as he sat up in bed , gripping the sides of the mattress with his hands as the cheerful chirping birds outside his window made him wince . He gritted his teeth as the vivid memory of his bachelor party came into focus along with his partying with the tasty bourbon .

He stuck out in his tongue which felt like wadded cotton .' Ukkk ! Ugh !'

Zoey poked her head in the doorframe watching her fiancée struggle through his obvious hangover as Chase swung his legs over the side of the bed with a groan and bit back her laugh . In his blue plaid boxers and a ratty old tee shirt , mussy hair , her heart swelled with deep love for the man who had always had her heart .

' I never would have thought you for a bourbon guy ,' teased Zoey, sitting beside him on the bed ,' I'm sort of impressed ….'

Chase scowled .' Must you be so loud '

Zoey slapped his shoulder, lightly , and kissed his cheek .' Stop whining , Chase , it doesn't suit you . Besides I brought you something to help with the nasty hangover '

She held out a crystal glass filled with a suspicious looking green liquid which Chase stared at with a dubious expression . It didn't look appealing .

.

' Did Quinn make this …concoction cause much as I love the girl, I don't want my stomach to explode . Is Reese up ? He can drink this …sludge first '

Zoey gave him a fixed look .' Be nice . I don't think Quinn's experimented with any form of drinks since her Frazz ,' She shoved the glass in his hand ,' Besides she didn't make this , Grandpa Mac made a pitcher of it for you morons . He said it would help '

Chase froze , drink perched at his mouth, green eyes wide as he stared at Zoey , alarm evident in his tone .

' Shit , your Grandpa knows we went to the bar last night ? Crap ! I knew we should have did the whole beer and video games thing instead of the damn bar . Does your Dad know too? I swear, all the men in your family must hate me now '

He thought he was in good standing with her family and it added to his own terror that those important to Zoey wouldn't think he was good enough to marry her . It was an age old fear born from that spring break at Logan's house their freshmen year and one tiny part of him felt like that awkward kid again . Chase had been battling his own freaking issues back and forth within himself since they got down south .

He respected Mac a great deal and this was just disturbing .

Zoey gave his shoulder a little jostle .' Calm down and drink , Chase . Grandpa figured you guys had went off gallivanting around the bayou trying to find a watering hole and wished you'd thought to include him or so he claims .'

Chase took a tentative sip .' Are you lying to me ? '

It looked as gross as those leafy smoothies that Lisa was always trying to get them to drink but he didn't figure it was a shake . He caught a tang of Tabasco, stuck out his tongue at his first taste , but figured it wouldn't be near as bad so he chugged it .

' No, I'm not lying ,' Zoey elbowed him ,' believe me , I thought he would have disapproved but apparently I was very wrong . Just drink it , Chase '

He obliged her with a semi grimace .' Drunken '

' You were very much so ' Zoey ruffled his fuzzy hair with affection ,' you up for some talking or do you need a shower and coffee first ? '

Chase placed the empty glass on the nightstand and let his head fall to rest on her shoulder . The bourbon had hit the spot but next time he was sticking to the beer .Best to play it safe , he really needed to remember that from now on .

This had been like a special once in a lifetime kind of thing so there was that - sappy as it was it was like a right of passage from single life to married living .

.

' Shower, coffee, you '

Zoey laughed as she leaned in to kiss him, softly .' Not with my grandparents in the house . Get your shower and I'll have some coffee waiting for you …'

Chase pretended to pout but her hearty giggle threw off the mood but he returned the kiss as he moved from the bed, thankful the room wasn't spinning .

' Hmm bringing me coffee is new . That part of the wife ..perk ? '

' Maybe '

' Go get a shower ' Grabbing underwear and a pair of clean jeans , Chase blew her a kiss and made the way down the hallway towards the bathroom passing Lisa en route to taking her morning yoga outside in the sunshine .

Lisa noted the open door , spotted Zoey's blonde hair, and poked a head in to see what was up this morning .' Hey Zo, you game for some yoga outside this morning ? Vince, Lola, and I thought we'd take advantage of this gorgeous southern scenery and meditate in the backyard '

Zoey contemplated her waistline and those stubborn five pounds she kept wanting to lose but she refused to be one of those brides that starved herself before the big day . She looked good and Chase loved her so she wasn't even going to go there , period .

She was afraid she'd already stressed entirely too much for both her and Chase .

' Naw , I'm waiting on Chase to finish up showering ,' admitted Zoey, wryly ,' I realized last night that he and I really needed to connect again. How's Michael ? '

A slow curve of an amused smile played around Lisa's mouth . ' Wishing he had gotten wildly drunk so he wouldn't be in the dog house with me for letting that woman hang all over him .'

It still irked her that Michael hadn't just walked away from unwanted advances . They had been dating for a long time and other people hadn't ever been an issue with them.

They'd pretty much got that out of their system in their first month of dating and the silly four hour Blix van break up incident . Michael liked to talk like he had dated a lot of women at P.C.A. but in reality , it was very few besides herself .

Zoey chuckled at that .' How long you going to torture Michael ? You know he adores you, Lisa, and absolutely nothing would have happened with that girl .'

Michael was as solid and steady as they came .

Lisa sighed as she pulled her black hair into a high ponytail , giving the band a tug .

' Just a little bit . See you later, Zo ' With a jog in her step, Lisa left her friend moseyed downstairs to grab the others and start their morning ritual .

****************************Wedding Bells *******************************

' Coffee, sweet tea, or me ? ' .

' Mornin , sweetie ' greeted Quinn, turning away from bottling her newly made sweet smelling perfume into the antique bottle to smile lovingly at her boyfriend ,' how's the hangover ? '

Logan tilted her chin up to drop a kiss on her upturned lips .' I don't have one , babe, I didn't drink enough last night . Chase probably has a hell of one though …..wimp '

' Mhmm, I imagine so though I must say Chase is quite amusing when he is inebriated ,' Quinn blinked at him from behind the frames of her glasses ,' um, so , I thought you brought me coffee …? '

Logan held out his arms and pulled her in tight .' Nah, I brought you me , Quinn '

'

Quinn was bemused as she thwacked a finger on his forehead .' You trying to be extra charming and romantic to me in case I'm still irritated at you ? '

Logan was the face of innocence .' You said you weren't mad '

Quinn's lips twitched ,' I'm not '

' Cool ,' Logan picked up the perfume bottle with curiosity ,' You finish making your fancy perfume ? When did you have time to work on last night ? '

Quinn lifted the glass stopper and placed it under his nose .' Well , it didn't actually take as long as I had thought once I got the blends right. Doesn't it smell pretty ? The azaleas and camellias made it a soft blend that I think will suit Zoey's personality '

' It smells like a bunch of flowers, Quinn '

Quinn just shook her head , amused by him. He wasn't impressed by ultra feminine scents in the first place , her own fragrance was subtle but simple, so she should have known better to expect him to have an opinion on it one way or the other .

' Oh, you ,' muttered Quinn , busying herself with tying a pale pink bow around the middle of the antique bottle ,' I'm just going to leave it out with the rest of Zoey's wedding trousseau for her to find . Should be a nice surprise , I'm thinking .'

' Yeah, Zoey will be surprised ,' Logan picked up her hand , bringing her wrist up for him to drop a kiss there ' You want to get some breakfast with me then I thought we could go into town together . We need to pick out a wedding gift for Zoey and Chase ….I was going to give them some cash but Julia told me it was tacky .'

He was referring to his stepmother . They had been making strides in their relationship and Logan did like the woman but he didn't get how giving money was tacky . Chase didn't have loads of money and college and marriage was expensive , Logan thought he was being pretty damn thoughtful. But no,and on top of that Vince had to go and agree with his step-mom then remind him how he shouldn't t want to insult Chase either .

Quinn always seemed to know the right way to handle things so he figured , they would work the gift out together .It was bound to be less complicated .

' Tacky , maybe a little, I suppose ,' surmised a thoughtful Quinn, as she glanced down of her outfit which consisted of a pair of cut off shorts and a plaid camisole top ,' it is generous that you want to help our friends out financially but I am positive it would be insulting to Zoey . I was considering getting them something practical for a home but perhaps together we could find something special from us '

' I think five hundred bucks and a microwave makes one hell of a special gift '

Lisa bounded down catching the tale end of their debate and stopped to join them .

She bent her leg backwards and lifted it behind her head in a stretch that was natural to her as breathing . She loved the airy feeling of the sunroom and decided it was a nice short cut to the back of the house .

' I was just going to get them a blender . Way to make me look cheap , guys '

' If you can be cheap, I don't see how its unacceptable that my cash gift is tacky . All of these stupid , traditional wedding gifts rules is annoying as hell '

' Well I don t think Chase and Zoey registered anywhere so we don't know what they might want but they will need practical things to set up a household ' contributed Quinn,' turning off her equipment and capping a beaker of pink liquid ,' Logan and I are going to go into after breakfast to do some shopping , you and Michael care to join us ? '

' Nah , ' replied Lisa , cheerfully ,' I got drafted by Zoey last night to go with her Mom and grandma this afternoon to pick out china patterns and silver . Yay! '

It had been a weird request at midnight but Lisa just figured this was helping take the stress away from Zoey . She reasoned that her friend didn't give one iota on what kind of plates or silverware she and Chase had to use and this freed her from what Lisa suspected would be a boring, grueling day in a ritzy home store .

Quinn grinned ,' Yeah! '

' Babe, breakfast ? Lisa , you joining us or what ? ' asked an impatient Logan ,' I want to get this shopping done sooner rather than later . We cant do that if we stand here talking all morning …'

' I had a coffee this morning ,' Lisa started to jog away from them,' Now yoga before Vince and Lola wonder what happened to me . Have fun , you guys '

Quinn and Logan went in search of breakfast while Lisa left the sunroom jogging at a easy pace to the backyard area that was shaded by oversized weeping willow trees and a spectacular view of the bayou . A nice breeze lifted her hair and she tilted her face up to the morning sun with a relaxing sigh . It was already glorious outside !

She found Vince and Lola already doing their sun salutations as she joined them on her mat that Lola had brought outside for her . Lisa slid into a position and flashed them a smile .

' Morning '

Lola gave her a brief smile then sat down on the ground, folding her legs together and flicked an accusing glance towards her boyfriend .

' Good morning , Lisa , ' replied Lola, a perturbed tone in her voice ,' I hope your morning is better than mine . I figured you'd be making up with Michael '

Lisa arched a brow, curious .' I'm letting Michael stew over his breakfast but what's the matter ? '

Vince gave up any pretense of being calm or getting through Yoga at this point as he peered at Lisa . A phone call from his father and the coach in Texas had woken him bright and early this morning with news of his college plans being updated .

' Nothing is wrong ,' informed Vince, determined that he and Lola would handle new changes like the adults that they were ,' Coach Britton is wanting me to come down to Texas earlier than I had planned to get set up and get the lay of the land before classes get started .'

Lola glared at him ' Which is still two months away '

She crossed her arms in front of her chest, angrily .' You don't see me giving up and cutting my summer early to go to New York …but Vince is considering leaving after the wedding .'

Lisa winced .' Is it important that you be in Texas early, Vince ? '

Lola gave her the evil eye .' Traitor '

Vince reached over to lay a hand on his girlfriends leg .' Yet to be determined , Lisa ,' continued Vince , carefully as if it would suddenly make Lola understand much better instead of reacting right off the bat ,' My girlfriend would rather throw me off a bus at the suggestion that our pre-plans could be adapted to something else . Right now however I am not going to Texas or anywhere but here .'

Lola chewed on the inside of her cheek, anxiously .' That Zen tone doesn't do anything for me , Vince , but bravo. Nice shot , buddy '

Bothered and slightly miffed at him, Lola rose from the ground and in a quick motion rolled up her mat , tucking it under her arm . It was too early in the morning to argue with Vince though she really wanted to yell and lash at him for being an insensitive jerk but Texas college ball was a big deal to him . It just irked her because unlike the rest of their coupled up friends, she and Vince had a sort of laid back approach to being together and the distance . Only now did the idea of him being in Texas did it trouble her .

They weren't very good at fighting - mainly because Vince now approached his life through his Zen and Buddha which made it so difficult to stay mad at the man .

' I'm too worked up to do more yoga , I need pancakes ' With that , Lola went inside the house as Vince fell back on the mat, exasperated .

' She'll eat her feelings and be better , Vince '

' I hope so ,' replied Vince , meeting Lisa's quiet gaze ,' the New York thing made sense , it was doable for the both of us but I really wanted Texas . Lola knows it . I might have considered driving down to Texas early for like oh five minutes because barely awake but I cant do that . I want to spend my summer with Lola ….'

Lisa stretched and sent an understanding smile towards Vince . ' Lola will realize that after she rants to Michael for a good five minutes , has her pancakes , and you and she will make up. You two will be fine, Vince '

Vince blew a breath threw his teeth .' I know your mostly right , Lisa and we both know my Lola is a drama queen on her best days but somehow everything feels different .'

Lisa thought of herself and Michael 's future with consideration . Though they would both be in different colleges it was in the same state which made it less daunting than the rest of their friends situations . She had few doubts of the adjustments that might be new to her and Michael but they would make it work .

She knew with complete faith that no matter how difficult , Quinn and Logan loved each other too much and they would find a way to make the distance work for them .

Zoey and Chase were still juggling the details of college between real life wedding plans but they too would be all the more better together when it came down to it .

Not once had Lisa ever questioned that the take it as it came live in the moment Vince and Lola would let new challenges beat them , it shook her a bit . Still, they were like yin and yang, she would say a little prayer for her friends .

Stretching her back gently then rolling her shoulders , Lisa vowed to get in a good fifteen minutes worth of yoga in to soothe her now anxious soul then find Michael .

In light of everything it made the dancer realize that she was being silly being angry at Michael . Maybe she even took him for granted and she needed to remind him how crazy in love she still was and always would be with her emotional teddy bear .

Satisfied , Lisa decided to switch up yoga with some ballet .

*************************WB******************************** ***

Amanda was feeling chipper this afternoon as she strolled into her parents sun room , her veil now her daughters tucked in a small box in her arms , humming an old Dean Frame ballad from the early 90's . Everything was coming together smoothly for the wedding and it appeared as if was on the right track without any problems .

She had gotten a hearty morning jog in this morning , Mike was playing hooky from the business and had corralled Dustin into a day of fishing and junk food . They had packed an basket of ham and cheese sandwiches, a bag of chips , a thermos of lemonade , and an entire box of Bing Bongs and Doodle Cakes .

Dustin had his fathers horrible junk food addiction while Zoey was the opposite .

She knew Zoey had came over early to speak with Chase and was hoping to cajole the couple into registering in the shops in town rather than sending Lisa to do it for them . She was a lovely good but this was just something the couple should do together .

Noticing Quinn's lab equipment on the table , Amanda couldn't resist taking a peek at what the young woman had been creating in her beakers . Placing the veil box on the edge of the table, she studied the beaker of candy cane pink liquid then recognizing the antique perfume bottle deduced that likely the scientist was making perfume .

She uncapped the beaker to inhale the sugary scent of the blend trying to recognize the flowers and notes Quinn had used unaware of the swirl of pink that hovered , lingered in the air around her then dissipated around her .

' Lovely ' Recapping the beaker , Amanda put it back , picked up the veil, and made her way into the house and the dining room where she suspected to find the wedding party .

' Mom ! Dad ! Zoey, Chase ! Anyone around ? ' She stopped in the dining room where Michael and Lola sat at the large table finishing up their pancakes and juice .

' Hey Mrs. B, it's just me and Lola ,' answered Michael, between bites of his sausage ,' I think your Dad had to go into the office . Chase and Zoey haven came downstairs yet ..'

Amanda helped herself to a small juice .' They are getting married soon, I was her age once, and Mike and I did the same thing ….its all good .'

Lola raised a elegant brow .' No offense , Mrs. Brooks , but we so didn't need to know that . '

Amanda chuckled ,' I have lists for you, Quinn, and Lisa - last minute duties to help Zoey with the little details of the wedding '

' I'm good with lists '

Michael nearly choked on his pancake .' Stacey isn't here to do your job for you, Lola '

Lola punched him in the arm .' Shut up, Michael '

Amanda couldn't help as her lips twitched into a soft smile .' I have lists for you boys as well, Michael '

Michael grimaced .' Dang lists '

Rachel strolled in looking much younger than she actually was dressed in billowy cream colored pants and a long midnight blue silk shirt and delighted in the fun having young people in the house again brought to the old house .

' Darling, let the kids eat in peace before you send them off on wedding errands ,' teased Rachel, winking at Michael, ; 'why poor Michael hasn't even had his eggs and bacon yet '

A wide grin split across Michael's face at the made for order breakfast that was included in staying with Zoey's grandparents . It was just awesome .

' Mrs. Cory, you rock '

************************************WB*******************************

Chase now fresh out of the shower dressed in cargo shorts and a blue polo shirt , towel dried his messy hair , and flopped down on the bed beside Zoey who had stretched out on it , half awake, half a sleep . She was a beautiful sight to behold .

His very own Sleeping Beauty .

Chase dropped the towel on the floor , slid beside her , and slid her into a warm kiss .On a contented sigh, she blinked open her eyes, wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, and clung eagerly to him, each kiss deeper than the next, and breathed in the scent of Chase .

He brushed a barely there kiss on her cheek and felt moisture .' Zo, what's wrong ? '

Zoey sat up, wiping angrily at the dumb tears with the back of her hand .' Nothing, I don't know ,' admitted Zoey, taking a cleansing breath ,' I think I 'm becoming one of those awful Bridezillas ? Am I a monster bride ? We're getting married really soon and you hate the stupid tuxedo I'm making you wear because I want to please my Mom '

Suddenly it dawned on Chase that in his buzzed out brain last night he rambled on like a damn moron about his part in their wedding - aw, shit !

He smoothed a hand through her honey blonde hair, tenderly .' No, I mean, defiantly not monsterish , Zo, maybe a little crazy . According to the girls and my mother that's all a part of being a bride …..I don't like monkey suits . It's one day though so it's no big deal .really . I'm all good with it .'

'

Zoey let out an exasperated breath and took a minute to just hold onto him , tightly .

' We're getting married outside at my Grandparents house in my hometown ,' decided Zoey, matter of fact ,' you've done everything I've asked of you even though you hate it . I think I need to start working on compromising - if you don't want to wear the tux, Chase, you don't have too '

' I am sure we can fin d something that is well, more you and just as nice for you and the guys to wear '

' Where is all of this coming from, Zo ? '

Zoey scrubbed at her face then faced the man she loved .' I think I succumbed to all the pressures of wedding stress too much but you should enjoy our big day too . We still have plenty of time to make some changes …'

Chase thought of his last conversation with his mom and knew she was overwhelmed with their part in their wedding . This would help ease their worries too which was good .

' Okay but what are your parents ? Won't your Mom and Dad be furious at us if we start telling them all the things we don't want ? '

' They will get over it ,' insisted Zoey , determined to see this through ,' if not then we can always threaten to elope . Mom would hate that worse than just giving in to us .'

' Alright ,' Meeting her determination with his own, Chase contributed his own thoughts into the mix ,' Four hundred people makes me nuts and my folks cant afford to rent that many chairs down here . I don't want them taking out a loan either ….can we go back down to making it small again ?"

Zoey considered the guest list with a resigned sigh ,' Let's say under 200max '

' One hundred would be better '

' My family knows everyone down here, Chase, I think two hundred is fair'

' Fine ,' relented Chase , reaching for paper to write it down ,' but no ex-boyfriends invited . You didn't see me inviting Rebecca and I would feel a hell of a lot better if you took James off of the guest list …'

Zoey twisted her lips in a grimace but agreed .' Alright but did we ever decide on whether we should invite Dana and Nicole to our wedding ? '

' No ,' pondered Chase ,' we agreed we shouldn't invite half of P.C.A. just our good friends . None of us has heard from Dana in three years so I'd go with no and not feeling bad about it which leaves Nicole . She was one of your best friends, Zo …your call .'

' I still get occasional emails from Nicole ,' admitted Zoey of her old friend ,' I would feel horrible if we didn't invite her .'

' Cool ,' continued Chase ,' I also see no logical reason why we need to pay good money for an ice sculpture . It has to go too …'

' Can your Aunt Kim make mini shrimp quiches for the buffet ? I don't want the food to be fussy but fun too '

Chase shook his head, empathetically .' Aunt Kim can make anything '

' No string quartet ,'

' We need a band that plays music we can all dance too '

' I feel less freaked out that I have been in weeks '

Chase hugged her tight ,' Me too . I love you, Zoey '

' I love you too , Chase '

Meanwhile downstairs , Rachel and Amanda were debating which family jewels were a possibility for Zoey to wear with her dress while Lola picked at a bowl of fruit , lost in her own Vince induced thoughts .

Michael listened as he finished up his second helping of breakfast when Lisa wound her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his in a tender kiss .

' I'm sorry for last night ,' murmured Lisa , quietly ,' I overreacted and blew things way out of proportion . I love you, Michael Barrett '

Michael grinned as he kissed her nose .' You did but on the bright side, Lisa, made me feel awfully good to know I made you a teeny bit jealous .'

' Don't push it , pal '

' I love you, Lisa Perkins'

' Awwwww Michael loves Lisa ' chanted a teasing Lola, eyes glinting merrily as Chase and Zoey walked hand in hand into the dining room .

' Morning everyone ' greeted Zoey, butterflies dancing in her stomach as Chase squeezed her hand in reassurance . They had this together .

' Zoey and I have an announcement ,' informed Chase without preamble ,' We appreciate all of the help and how great you've all been but this is our wedding . We should have our wedding how we want it so I guess what we're trying to say is that we are taking it back today .'

An shocked o formed around Amanda's mouth but no words came out . Rachel nodded .

' That's right . Chase and I are taking back our wedding as of right now ' .