le 6 Octobre

Fall. Not too hot, not too cold. The leaves were colorful and still on the trees, but a few scattered the ground under the white folding chairs set up on the lawn. The weather was behaving for the most part. There was a slight breeze, but it wasn't raining and it wasn't snowing, despite what the weather reports said. It was perfect. Just how Laura wanted it to be and how Carmilla could only hope it would be.

Or, it would have been perfect if Perry hadn't barged into the hotel room Carmilla was using as a dressing room, in a panic, grabbed Lafontaine by their wrist and hauled them out of there and across the hall to where Laura was supposedly getting ready. Carmilla tried to follow, but Will was in front of her, blocking her only way to Laura, before she could even get out of the bathroom. She glared at him and tried to move past him again, but he was taller than she was, and bulkier. She admitted defeat after a two minute standoff and went back to curling her hair in front of the bathroom mirror, ignoring the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that formed when she saw the look on Perry's face before she grabbed Laf's arm. She tried not to think about what was going on just across the hall.

It wasn't Laura's fault she was crying on the day she was supposed to be marrying the love of her life, really. She didn't mean to upset Perry. She didn't mean to smudge her makeup. She didn't mean to get tear tracks in her foundation. She didn't. She just looked incredibly beautiful in her mother's dress that she had tailored to fit like a glove and Perry reminded her that Will was supposed to be coming to get her in less than half an hour to walk her down the aisle. Will. Not her dad. Her dad promised her the night he gave her her mother's wedding dress that he would be there. He promised. And she believed him.

It had only been, at most, 45 seconds since Perry left Laura to cry on the floor, looking at herself in the floor length mirror in the middle of the living room of the hotel suite her and Carmilla had spent the night in. Perry came back with a new fervor, dragging an incredibly confused Lafontaine behind her. She was babbling on about something, but Laura couldn't hear her over her own labored breathing and the cries that wouldn't stop wracking her chest.

Suddenly there was a sad looking Lafontaine, kneeling on their knees, in front of where Laura was sitting on the floor, her dress poofed out around her. They were saying words, but Laura still couldn't hear anything other than her heartbeat in her ears and her father's promise bouncing off the walls of her brain and her mother's voice telling her she looked beautiful, echoing in the back of her head. Then there was a hand on her cheek, calloused and tender, yet it was enough to calm her sobs to a controlled cry. She still couldn't breathe normally, but at least the words Lafontaine's lips were forming were starting to make sense in her head.

"-L, Carmilla loves you and you love her. I've never seen another two people more in love. It's actually kind of disgusting. You two are worse than me and Per. Carmilla wants this just as much as you do. If you're afraid to be hurt again, then you're afraid to be loved by her again. Don't let the past keep you from your future, Frosh."

Wait what?

Laura's only response was to shake her head as much as she could, seeing as she couldn't really use her voice. She wanted to marry Carmilla, that wasn't the problem. She loves Carmilla more than anything and she knows Carmilla loves her just the same.

As if to prove to her how much Carmilla loved her, Laura suddenly found her almost-wife kneeling in the space that Laf had just been moments before. She was in her tailored light gray suit pants with a crisp white button-up and suspenders that were barely over her shoulders, with her navy blue and yellow striped bowtie undone and hanging around her neck haphazardly. Her hair laid in loose curls around her face, flowing past her shoulders. She didn't have any shoes on and her makeup was only half finished. But God, did she look beautiful.

Her lips were moving and her frown was rapidly growing, along with the crease between her eyebrows, with every second that Laura stayed silent, but again she was too caught up in her own head and her voice seemed to be broken all of a sudden. Carmilla's hand made its way to Laura's cheek in an effort to calm her down and it worked for a little bit before Carmilla's voice actually broke through the fog.

"Laura, baby, say something. I get it, I do. Maybe we moved too fast. If you don't want this- If this isn't what you want, Laura, we...we don't have to get married today. It's okay. I can wait."

Carmilla's voice cracked and Laura's heart broke. She should say something. She really should say something, but she could only shake her head, her throat too raw to form coherent words. Until she watched Carmilla remove her hand from her cheek to run it through her hair. Laura could see tears forming in her eyes and as if it was playing a sick game with her, she felt her heart break even more at the sight. When Carmilla went to stand up, Laura broke.

"No!"

Laura's hand shot out and wrapped around Carmilla's wrist like a vise, effectively holding her where she was. Now frozen in front of Laura. Forced to make eye contact with the girl who she was sure was trying to come up with a way to let her down easy.

"Laur-"

Carmilla tried to stand up again.

"No!" Laura shouted, louder this time, practically begging with every last ounce of strength she had. Carmilla could feel Laura's grip tighten around her wrist, almost painfully and she didn't miss the panic that flashed across Laura's eyes. She wasn't going anywhere. "Carm, I want...to. I want-" Her voice broke, effectively cutting her off before she was able to finish reassuring Carmilla that she did, in fact, want to marry her and that she planned to, she just had a small issue. Laura sighed angrily. Mad at herself for not being able to form a simple sentence.

"Then what-" Carmilla was interrupted by Will clearing his throat in the doorway of the room. Carmilla was a second away from knocking him to the floor when something clicked. Will was there to take Laura to the car parked out front which would drive them the long way around the block to where the ceremony would take place at the park. Where he would then be walking her down the aisle. She looked back to Laura in front of her and placed her free hand on Laura's right cheek, looking her straight in the eye. She spoke so softly, Laura barely heard her over her own heart thudding in her chest, "This is about your dad isn't it?" She already knew the answer. She didn't need to see Laura's crumbling face to confirm it for her.

Carmilla didn't want to make a big deal out of something that was obviously a big deal. Laura didn't need that right now. Especially not in front of their friends and family. Right now they just needed to get married, but getting Laura to walk down that aisle was going to be difficult. Or that's what Carmilla thought until she got an idea and grabbed Laura's hands gently in hers and lifted her off of the floor.

"Let's go." She didn't say it forcibly and she made sure to give Laura enough time to back down before she pushed her way through their friend's bodies, dragging Laura behind her, and to the elevator, ignoring Perry's protests from behind them. There was no time for the stairs so Carmilla sucked it up and pulled a very confused Laura into the metal deathtrap of a box and quickly pressed the button for the lobby, ignoring the slight panic in her chest as the elevator doors closed, locking them in, and it began its descent. Laura was just watching her with a furrowed brow, as Carmilla pulled her phone out of her pocket, sent a quick text, waited for a reply, and placed her phone back. Carmilla whispered, "Do you trust me?" And with a nod of Laura's head came the ding of the elevator, signaling they had reached the bottom floor. As soon as the doors began to open, Carmilla tightened her grip on Laura's hand and started pulling her across the lobby and out the front door where they were met with two matching, brand new, Rolls Royce Phantoms, one completely blacked out for Carmilla, Laf, Kirsch, and Will, one white for Laura, Perry, Danny, and Mattie. Of course Will had to go all out, even after Carmilla told him their grandfather's Cadillac would have been just fine for the wedding parties to arrive at the ceremony in. The driver would have had to make a few extra trips, but it would have saved quite a bit of money. Carmilla didn't have time to complain about that right now, though. She was busy making a beeline for the driver of the black one, hauling Laura behind her.

"Ma'am, is there a problem?" The driver looked confused and slightly scared when Carmilla approached him, dragging her soon-to-be wife behind her in half a suit and no shoes, probably looking like a mad woman. She simply ignored him.

"I'm taking the car. Tell Will we might be late to the ceremony. I'll make him pay you extra if you let us leave right now."

The man didn't bother to argue anymore, the determined look in Carmilla's eye told him she was serious and that she wouldn't take no for an answer. He simply sidestepped out of their way with a curt nod and Carmilla mumbled a 'thanks' before she opened the passenger side door for a still confused and now, a little bewildered, Laura and made her way into the driver's seat. Laura didn't question Carmilla's behavior until they had been driving for nearly ten minutes.

"Okay, Carm, why did we just run out of our own wedding? And where the frilly Hell are you taking me?"

Carmilla just looked over at Laura in the seat next to her and smiled the smile she reserved only for her.

"You said you trusted me. Give me four more minutes and you'll find out."

Laura huffed and looked out the window to the blurring buildings they passed, hoping to get a clue. She hated surprises. Especially surprises that entailed running out on their wedding that they had spent months preparing for. Carmilla noticed Laura's change in demeanor and gently placed her right hand over Laura's left, where it was resting in her lap and smiled again when Laura turned her hand over, palm up and interlaced her fingers with Carmilla's. Carmilla felt the cool metal of Laura's engagement ring against her skin and her smile grew. She knew Laura was trying incredibly hard to hold everything in and she also knew it took a lot for her to do that. Carmilla squeezed her hand and Laura squeezed it back just as Carmilla pulled into a driveway in front of a rather large house at the edge of the town. She squeezed Laura's hand again and placed the car in park before exiting and making her way to the passenger side door. Laura was already halfway out of the car when Carmilla got there so she held out her hand and when Laura placed hers on top of Carmilla's waiting one, Carmilla pulled Laura up straight, shut the door behind her and led her up the steps to the front door of the house in front of them. Laura gave Carmilla a skeptical look, accompanied by a raised eyebrow, when Carmilla simply smirked and knocked on the door three times.

The man that answered the door was not what Laura was expecting. He looked young, but the crow's feet at the corners of his eyes and the slight grey in his short brown hair gave him away. He wore thick-rimmed glasses over his light blue eyes and had on a salmon colored button down, tucked into dark, navy blue dress pants, a brown belt, and loafers that somehow matched his expensive looking watch.

"Elijah." Carmilla greeted the man with a warm smile when he opened his arms for a brief hug.

"Ah, my favorite Karnstein!" Carmilla laughed and rolled her eyes, but returned the hug nonetheless, without any complaint. Laura was surprised, to say the least.

"I'm the only living Karnstein you know, Eli." Eli simply nodded his head with a small smile and opened the door wider, gesturing with his hand for the girls to step inside.

"Yes, well, come in, come in." Carmilla took Laura by the hand and led her into the foyer of the home. It was massive, complete with high ceilings, grand staircases right when they walked in the door, and a huge chandelier hanging above their heads, under a mural painted on the ceiling that Laura couldn't take her eyes off of.

"Eli, this is Laura. My fiancée." Carmilla gestured at Laura with a sweep of her hand. "Laura, this is Eli. He's an old friend of my dad's. He's also our family's lawyer."

"Oh, wow. It's so nice to finally meet you!" Laura immediately smiled and shot her hand out to shake hands with the man in front of her, but he ignored her and brought her in for a hug instead, much like the one he gave Carmilla. Laura laughed into his shoulder when she hugged him back.

"And to you as well, Miss Hollis." Eli was smiling when he pulled away and glanced back at Carmilla, whose smile was just as warm. "Now, what do I owe the pleasure? You said you needed a favor, Carmilla?"

Carmilla nodded her head and cleared her throat, taking Laura's hand again.

"Yeah, I, uh, I need you to marry us. Here. Preferably soon. We kind of ran out before the actual ceremony."

"Wait, what?"

Laura was confused as to why Carmilla drove the two of them 15 minutes from the hotel to this man's house just so he could marry them when there was a perfectly capable man waiting at the private park where the ceremony was being held. Carmilla ignored Laura's comment and simply squeezed her hand. Laura noticed a slight smile on her lips. Eli just laughed and shook his head.

"That would explain the dress and...half a suit you're sporting, Kid."

"It was sort of spur of the moment." Carmilla shrugged.

"I can see that," Eli replied, amused, before his smile turned soft. "Of course I will, Carmilla. Just let me see if Ben can watch the baby for a few minutes."

"Thanks, Eli." Carmilla smiled at the man as he turned and made his way further into the house calling out for Ben. Laura turned to face Carmilla.

"I'm so confused."

Carmilla simply smirked at the woman in front of her.

"Ben's his husband, 'the baby' is their child."

"Not about that Carmilla!"

Laura smacked Carmilla in the chest, playfully, a small smile lighting up her eyes. Carmilla cleared her throat and her smirk softened into a smile before she answered quietly.

"I just figured you would feel more comfortable getting married in a more private setting...You know, so it's not that big of a deal that you don't want to walk down the aisle in front of your family and-"

"Carm...I love you. Holy shit, do I love you. But, you really didn't have to do this."

"Yes, I did. Now, shut up and marry me, Cupcake."

Eli officiated their wedding with Ben and their child as witnesses and paperwork was signed, kisses were exchanged along with temporary rubber band rings that Eli provided, and Laura and Carmilla made it back to the hotel only a half hour after the actual ceremony was supposed to begin. When they pulled up in front of the hotel, Perry was frantically pacing and typing away on her phone with Laura's flats and hairpiece tucked under her arm. Laf was standing stock still with a worried expression on their face, their eyes following Perry's every move. Will was talking to the driver of the black Rolls Royce with Carmilla's suit coat draped over his arm and her black loafers in one hand and her father's watch in the other. Mattie was standing off to the side, looking bored, with Carmilla's makeup bag in her hand and examining her nails, while Danny and Kirsch stood slightly behind Will, Kirsch ready to jump into the conversation if need be and Danny watching the driveway into the hotel. Danny spotted them immediately and made their presence known to the entire group as Carmilla parked the car exactly where it had been and started getting out. Carmilla ignored the frantic shouting from all parties and instead, purposefully made her way to the passenger side of the car, opened the door for Laura, and helped her out with an outstretched hand. Carmilla glanced at the annoyed faces, all standing in front of them on the sidewalk and smirked.

"What are you all doing just standing around? I believe we are late to a wedding?" There was a chorus of groans and eye rolls that followed before everyone got into their respective cars, except for Mattie who got in with Carmilla, and Kirsch who took Mattie's place in Laura's car. Laura's car turned right out of the hotel, while Carmilla's turned left and headed straight for the venue.

The car ride to the park was silent, except for Mattie's quick, but confident hands digging through the makeup bag on her lap. She managed to get Carmilla looking as presentable as she could before they arrived at the entrance of the park. Their doors were opened by the driver, Carmilla's suit coat was shoved onto her shoulders then smoothed down by Mattie's nimble hands, her tie was tied and straightened, her shoes were shoved onto her feet within seconds before Will was dragging Carmilla to the side of the lawn where the ceremony was set up and every seat was filled. Carmilla ignored the feeling of her chest tightening at the sight of her mother's eyes on her from where she was sat in the front row. She hadn't expected her to actually come. Laura had insisted that she send out an invitation 'just because', but she actually came and she was smiling and she actually looked proud and Carmilla couldn't help it when she had to swallow down the sudden lump in her throat.

Carmilla was pulled out of her thoughts by the man they had hired as their ceremony's officiant. He was gripping her shoulder and smiling at her, silently asking if she was ready. She nodded her head and he nodded back before guiding her to her place in front of the podium and across from where Laura would soon be standing. Her eyes were looking out at the crowd when the white Rolls Royce rolled up next to the rows of chairs on the right side. She watched as Kirsch stepped out of the front seat and opened the back door for Perry who walked with Kirsch until he handed her off to Laf and he made his way to his spot in line behind Laf and in front of Will, where they stood behind the chairs on the right side. Danny stepped out of the car next and walked carefully to her spot behind Perry and in front of where Mattie was already standing. The music started and Laf led Perry down the aisle, where they placed a brief kiss to Perry's cheek before they let her go and took their place behind Carmilla. Kirsch and Danny followed close after, taking their places behind Perry and Laf. Lastly, Will walked with Mattie down the aisle to where they took their places behind Kirsch and Danny. Before Laura was even able to make her way out of the car, though, a black SUV pulled up behind the Rolls Royce. Everyone turned their heads, confusion clearly written across their faces.

Carmilla couldn't help the smile that formed on her face at the collective gasp from where Laura's family was sitting when Noah stepped gracefully out of the passenger side door of the black SUV, dressed head to toe in his Army Blues. He briefly sent a smile and a wink Carmilla's way, to which she reciprocated, before he walked up to the open back door of the white Rolls Royce and bent down so that he was level with Laura who about took him out in her attempt at exiting the car. Carmilla felt a pat on the back from Laf.

To say Laura was surprised would have been an understatement. Carmilla watched as Laura's eyes grew tenfold at the sight of her brother in front of her. A couple weeks after Laura sent out the wedding invitations, Noah called and told her that he wasn't able to make it to the wedding. Laura was beyond pissed and she and Noah got into a screaming match over the phone. At the end of that month, Carmilla got a call from Noah. He said his commanding officer pulled some strings and that he would make it, but not to tell Laura. He wanted it to be a surprise. Carmilla kept the secret for nearly six months, leading up to the wedding. She knew Laura knew something was up, but she wasn't going to give up seeing Laura's face light up on their wedding day when Noah showed up. It was so worth it.

As soon as Noah pulled Laura from the car by his outstretched hand, she had him wrapped up in a hug that nearly made him topple over. Carmilla could see the tears in Laura's eyes from where she stood at the front of the crowd and she was sure everyone else could too, just as easily. After Laura let her brother go, he kissed her on the head and took her arm in his and guided her to the end of the aisle. Every head was turned toward the two of them. Carmilla ignored Laf's 'holy shit' behind her and tried not to stare. Tried, being the operative word. But Laura looked absolutely stunning and she knew she was done for. Carmilla watched as her wife walked to the end of the aisle, her head bent, and eyes on the ground in front of her, a shy smile on her face, and a hand gripped tightly onto Noah's arm that was now linked with hers. Carmilla barely noticed the little girl with a flower crown on her head and a small white dress that flowed around her body freely, make her way down the center of the two sections of chairs with a basket of fresh, white, flower petals that she began to toss over the ground. Behind her, an even younger boy was walking with a pillow bigger than his head with two rings tied to the center, wearing the tiniest suit Carmilla had ever seen. When the girl reached the end of the aisle she turned back, grabbed the boy's hand and led him to Laf, who took the rings from the pillow before the boy was led to the row of chairs on Laura's family's side and they took their seats next to their mother.

Noah started leading Laura down the aisle to the beat of the Wedding March and Carmilla barely breathed. She wasn't expecting to cry. She promised herself she wouldn't cry, not in front of Laura's entire family, her small family, and their friends. Yet there she was, the second Laura looked up and locked eyes with her, tears began blurring the image of Laura walking down the aisle in her mother's tailored dress, her arm linked with Noah's. Carmilla hastily wiped at the moisture on her cheeks, hoping no one would notice. Of course, her wishes went unanswered when she felt a hand on her shoulder and Laf's voice in her ear, teasing, with a 'you crying Karnstein?' Carmilla's only response was an elbow to Laf's ribs and a clear of her throat. By the time Laura and Noah made it to the front, Carmilla had composed herself, but just barely.

Noah let go of Laura's arm when she was standing directly in front of Carmilla and gently gave her a noogie, everyone in the seats laughed at the look of embarrassment on Laura's face. Carmilla instinctively grabbed Laura's hands, a huge smile on her face that she didn't even bother hiding as she swept her thumb across the rubber band on Laura's ring finger. Before Noah made his way to his seat in the front row of chairs, he leaned into Carmilla, who hadn't yet taken her eyes off of Laura, and with a hand on her shoulder, whispered, "Thanks for keeping the secret, Karnstein. I owe you one." Carmilla nodded in acknowledgement and Noah continued to his seat.

Carmilla couldn't stop staring at the girl in front of her. Her wife. She felt tears brim her eyes again, but this time Laura was there to catch them when they started to fall.

The ceremony was short and the girls managed to put on a good show for their family and friends, deciding not to tell anyone about their little impromptu ceremony before the actual ceremony. They chose beforehand that they didn't want to recite their written vows in front of everyone, but instead decided to each write a letter to the other which they would read together that night after the reception.

After the officiant pronounced Laura and Carmilla as wife and wife, Carmilla led Laura back down the aisle where her grandfather's Cadillac was waiting for them, the words, 'Just Married' painted on the back window with white cans tied to the back bumper. Carmilla looked over her shoulder and found Will's eyes, saying 'thank you' as best as she could without words. He nodded with a soft smile on his face and Carmilla smiled back before opening the passenger side door for Laura and helping her into the car.

Carmilla took the scenic route back to the hotel they stayed in the night before, where the reception was being held. She wanted to give the guests enough time to get there, but also she just wanted to spend a few minutes alone with her wife. She drove them through the park's backroads, through the trees, and around the grand lake in the center, taking her time before she drove to the spot she had scouted out previously and parked the car. As the sun began to set, she pulled a bottle of champagne from an ice bucket that sat behind the passenger seat, and two glasses. The bottle was already popped and chilled, so Carmilla poured the champagne into the glasses before handing one to Laura, who eyed her with a raised brow. Carmilla smiled back with a shrug.

"I didn't want to wait until tonight to give you my letter." Carmilla pulled out the carefully folded envelope from her pocket and handed it to Laura as she carefully placed the champagne glass into the cup holder.

"But I thought we agreed-"

"I know, but this is way more romantic, trust me." Laura laughed, suddenly excited.

"Wait, I didn't bring mine."

"I didn't expect you to. Open it." Carmilla's leg was bouncing up and down, to its own accord. She only noticed when Laura placed her hand on her knee and squeezed it gently with a soft chuckle.

Relax, Carm. We made it through the wedding, this should be a piece of cake. There's no turning back now." Laura removed her hand from Carmilla's knee and held the envelope with both hands, staring at the loose script formed together to create the loveliest written rendition of her name that she had ever seen. She gently ran her fingers over it before carefully flipping the envelope in her hands and running her finger under the lip. It opened easily and she immediately pulled out the piece of letter paper, unfolding it to find a page filled with Carmilla's handwriting. She began to read:

"Dearest Laura, my wife,

I can't promise you I won't swear when I drive. Or that I will always follow the speed limit. I can't promise you I won't eat with my hands, or make a mess on my shirt at almost every meal. I can't promise you that I won't embarrass you with my bad dad jokes, or twisted sense of humor. I can't promise you I won't break into song and dance in the middle of the grocery store, or spin and dip you in the middle of the cereal aisle like we're teenagers. I can't promise I won't say things that may upset you, or trip up on my words when I get a little nervous. I can't promise I won't make faces at you across the dinner table, or climb across it, simply to give you a kiss. I can't promise I won't trip on my own two feet at a family dinner or say the wrong thing to your friends. I can't promise I'll always have the answers or that I'll be able to fix everything. I can't promise I won't make fun of your choice in romcoms and television shows, or secretly enjoy them. But I can promise you that I will be your home. I promise I will be the home to all your secrets. Your favorite hiding place at three am when you have a nightmare. I will always love you, through your tears, laughter, and silence. I promise to pull you into my arms when it's just a little too cold. I will rub your back after a hard day. I promise I will listen to the same story about your boss, no matter how many times you've told me, or about the article you are still working on. I will keep your heart warm, and your smile often. I will do everything to show you that despite everything I can't promise - I will always follow through with what I can. I want to make you feel safe and I want you to know that you always have someone to run to no matter how hard things get. I love you and I plan on loving you for as long as I shall live. You are my one and only, Laura, I just hope that is enough.

Your wife,

Carmilla Hollis-Karnstein"

By the time Laura finished reading the letter, she had tears streaming down her cheeks and her chest was heaving with every labored breath. Carmilla was watching her carefully, scared shitless, thinking that maybe they should have given each other the letters that morning, like Perry suggested, or maybe they should've just said their vows out loud in front of everyone, until a pair of soft lips were pressed into hers and every thought that floated through her mind was erased.

"I love you, Carmilla. It's enough."

The smile that spread onto Carmilla's face in that moment was most likely record breaking.

Laura and Carmilla made it back to the hotel and changed into more "casual" clothing - Carmilla only removed her suit jacket and unbuttoned the first few buttons of her dress shirt after loosening her tie, while Laura changed into a much lighter and shorter dress - and walking through the doors to the hall just in time for their grand entrance. Laura's family was seated, along with Carmilla's mother, who shared a table with Noah. At another two tables, sat all of Laura's father's fellow officers. The rest were filled with Laura's extended family and her grandparents on her mother's side, along with her father's mother.

As the DJ, Mel, announced the newlyweds, Laura and Carmilla took their seat at the middle of the long table at the front of the reception hall. Mel then announced the wedding party, naming Perry as Laura's Maid of Honor, Laf as Carmilla's Best Person, Kirsch and Danny as friends of the brides, and Will and Mattie as Carmilla's brother and sister. After introductions, were the toasts. The mic was handed off to Laf first who didn't miss the opportunity to embarrass Carmilla and Laura as much as they could with a prepared slideshow they didn't tell anyone about, before Perry pried the mic from their hands and proceeded to toast the happy couple with a short, but well thought out and heartfelt speech, which concluded when Perry teared up and Carmilla took the mic from her after standing up. She cleared her throat before she began, ignoring the shaking in her hands.

"Alright, this is getting way too emotional and it's making me queasy." Along with the audience, she heard Laura laugh beside her and felt her slap her in the leg gently. Carmilla smirked down at her before continuing. She didn't take her eyes off Laura, for fear of messing up in front of everyone that was staring at her. "Apparently, this is the part where I tell you how I fell in love with the girl of my dreams." Most of Laura's family awed, Carmilla could see her mother and Noah smiling at the two of them in her peripheral. "Yeah, yeah, get it all out now because this is probably the only time you're ever going to see me be this much of a sap." The crowd laughed again, then Laura was lowering the mic to her mouth.

"Don't let her fool you, she's the romantic one in this relationship-"

"Shh! You'll ruin my reputation!" Carmilla cut her off.

"Oh, that was already ruined when you cried during the ceremony." Carmilla gasped in mock offense, complete with a hand over her heart for dramatic effect.

"You wound me, Cupcake." Laura rolled her eyes and patted Carmilla on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, I still love you!"

"Good. I love you, too. Now, quit interrupting me, I have six pages of a speech memorized and this is being recorded for posterity and our future embarrassment, so I don't want to mess this up."

"Oh, well, for the sake of posterity and our future embarrassment, you may continue."

"Alright. For the sake of posterity and our future embarrassment... Here goes nothing. When I was six, I was a stubborn little shit-"

"Still are." Carmilla rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Anyway! I was a stubborn little shit who thought she knew everything and was better than everyone else. Then, one day on the playground, during recess at school, I met a certain tiny ball of sunshine who kicked a soccer ball at my face and tried to steal my cookies."

"Okay, in my defense, I didn't know they were your cookies! And I apologized profusely for hitting you in the face and I made sure you got to the nurse's office okay!."

"Laura, the cookies literally had my name on them and they were in my lunchbox when you took them."

"Whatever, you weren't eating them…"

"Because you interrupted my lunch when you kicked a soccer ball at my face." Laura rolled her eyes. "It's okay, I forgive you."

"Wow, thanks! It only took 17 years for you to say that!"

"Love you!"

"Mmhmm." Carmilla leaned down and kissed Laura softly on the lips before Laura pulled away with a hand on Carmilla's chest and cleared her throat, smiling. "I believe you were in the middle of a speech?" Carmilla nodded once.

"Right. As I was saying, she stole my cookies. They were my favorite too. I was pissed. I didn't even care about my bloody nose or the fact that it had dripped onto the pages of the book I was reading. She took my damn cookies! So, naturally, I pushed her. Except, she pushed me back. Long story short, I let her keep the cookies and she dragged me to nurse's office after the fact. And I don't regret it one bit. The look on her face when I said she could have them, made my life." Carmilla snaked her arm around Laura's waist and held her to her side as she continued. "That day, approximately 17 years, one month," Carmilla paused to look at her father's watch on her right wrist. "Six hours, four minutes... and about 20 some seconds ago, I found someone just as stubborn as me, if not more. She's put up with my shit for probably way longer than necessary and she's managed to put me in my place on a number of different occasions. I don't know how I made it this long." Carmilla smirked and looked down at her wife.

"Hilarious," Laura deadpanned with another roll of her eyes. Carmilla chuckled.

"I'm just kidding, babe, I wouldn't trade you for anything. Not even a plot of land on Mars and that's saying something. The view of the stars would be amazing- anyway...back to this thing." Carmilla cleared her throat and caught Laura smiling out of the corner of her eye. She smirked before continuing.

"So, after Laura practically forced me to become her friend, we quickly became best friends. When I say quickly, I mean within hours. She's very persistent and head strong and she didn't give up until she got what she wanted. I think I might've fallen in love with her that day, to tell you the truth. But I am thankful for her stubbornness every day. For example, when I was a freshman, my father died from a mix up of his medications. When I found out the morning after, I didn't want to do anything, I was devastated. My father was my role model, I looked up to him. I discovered my love of books with his help. The weeks following his death, I thought my life was over. I thought life itself was pointless. I mean, everyone dies, right? Why not give the world a break and get it over with sooner rather than later? I realize now that that was a horrible way to think. Though everyone dies, everyone also lives. How you live though, is up to you. Laura showed me how to live. She made me go to school when I didn't want to, she didn't let me fall behind in my classes, and she showed me what life was supposed to be like. We went on adventures, got into trouble, pulled all-nighters… When Laura was barely seven years old, her mother passed away from a cancer that started in her thyroid, spread to her lungs, and managed to take over practically everything in her body that it could. After she died, I remember Laura only taking a week off of school. One week, that was it. A whole five days of school. I made sure that I was over her house after school every one of those days. On Monday the next week, she was back at school. I thought she was insane, but then she told me something and I'll never forget it because it completely baffled me that she was as strong as she was. She was seven. She told me, life goes on. She said, 'Carm, I miss her, sure. I miss her so much it hurts, but I can't stop living just because she did. She's not in pain anymore and I'm grateful for that.' When my dad passed, she told me I should want to make the most out of my life because he no longer could." Carmilla paused to clear her throat of the lump that began to form.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make this as emotional as it's getting, but real quick, I just wanted to say that I only knew Laura's mother for a little over a year, but she was the most amazing and influential woman I ever had the pleasure of knowing...and she gave me the most wonderful wife and for that I am forever grateful." Laura looked up at Carmilla with a small, watery smile before she buried her face in Carmilla's chest. Carmilla wrapped both arms around Laura's shoulders and held her while she continued. "Which leads me to another great human being that I will forever be in debt to. Mr. Harrison Hollis. He was like a second father to me, we lost touch in the past few years, but in high school, I looked up to him. He and my father became best friends, they even coached a local soccer team that, of course, Laura and I were a part of, well mostly just Laura. I kind of just ate all the team snacks and picked the dandelions out of the grass and saved them for Laura after the game." With that a watery laugh came from Laura and she perked up enough to stand on her tiptoes and speak into the mic.

"She's not kidding, I think I went home with a bouquet of weeds after every game."

"Whatever, they were yellow, you liked the color yellow. You also kept them in a vase on your nightstand, so quit pretending like you didn't love it."

"Shut up." Carmilla chuckled lightheartedly.

"As I was saying, after my dad died, Mr. Hollis took me in under his wing and considered me his second daughter. Even after I screwed things up, he didn't judge me. Laura explained to him what happened between us after high school and he still loved me as if I was his own. If he was here right now, he'd probably have a lot to say to me though. He'd probably ground me and make me do chores around the house, like when we were kids, but I'd do it without complaining because I loved him like a father and I feel so lucky to have known him for as long as I had the pleasure." Carmilla heard Laura sniffle into her chest as she pulled her tighter against her. "Oh, shit, I made you all cry. Okay. Just a little longer, I promise… Let's skip a few years.

"Uh, when Laura and I were 17, I asked her to senior prom. We had our first kiss that night on the roof of the high school at two in the morning. I also told Laura I loved her for the first time that night on the beach at Harrington Park. Yes, we chose to get married there on purpose. After that night, we started dating. I lasted almost five months before I managed to fu-frick it up. Most of you know what happened, but a lot of you do not, so I'm going to quickly recap, what I call the stupidest decision I have ever made and what lead to a three year hiatus in mine and Laura's relationship.

"After my father died, my mother became...let's just say, less than pleasant. At the time, she of course didn't approve of me being gay, let alone actually being in love with another woman." Carmilla risked a glance at her mother and she was met with an apologetic look on her face. The sincerity behind her mother's eyes almost made her tear up. Almost. She would never forget what she did, but maybe sometime in the future she could forgive her. They were working on it and her mother showing up to their wedding only helped their situation. "The summer after me and Laura graduated, I showed up to Laura's house one night drunk as a skunk and just an overall mess. That was the night I told my mother that I was dating Laura. When I got to Laura's, she was of course completely understanding and just perfect and so sweet and loving and I thought it'd be a good idea to leave that behind. I know, it was stupid and I was wrong, I'll admit that. When I woke up the next morning still in Laura's bed I panicked because there was no way in Hell I deserved someone like her. She deserved the entire universe and all I could give her was one lousy speck of a star, so I left. I left without a goodbye, without telling her where I was going, without telling anyone. I went home and was put on a plane because apparently I was 'just going through a phase' and it was 'nothing that couldn't be fixed with a little discipline'. The next thing I knew I was in Paris with tutors and lessons and therapists. That went on for three years. I know what you're all thinking. You're thinking my mother is a monster. That she doesn't deserve to be here right now and that I shouldn't have forgiven her. Well, I haven't. Not yet. We're working on it, though. She's my mother. She's my family. We're trying. It's going to take some time and she has apologized sincerely and she hasn't touched a drop of alcohol in over a year. I'm honestly proud of her. Also, if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be who I am today and I wouldn't wish anything I went through on anyone, but I wouldn't take it back either."

Carmilla's speech was interrupted when her mother rose from her chair, the room going completely silent as she made her way towards the front of the room. Every head in the room was turned towards her. Even Laura stepped out of Carmilla's embrace to watch the woman make her way to her daughter. Carmilla was holding her breath. She hadn't anticipated that her mother would actually show up and she hadn't told her about the speech beforehand. Carmilla's grip on the microphone tightened as she watched her mother walk up to her and she nearly dropped it when she was crushed between her mother's arms, in a hug. It took her a minute to actually comprehend what was happening, but when her body caught up to her brain, she wrapped her arms around her mother and hugged her back. It was the first hug they had shared since Carmilla was in grade school that she hadn't felt uncomfortable being a part of. She could hear her mother's labored breathing in her ear, but it wasn't until she felt another pair of arms wrap themselves around her waist and a slim body press into her back, that she realized she was crying or that everyone watching them was clapping. Will eventually let go of his hold on his sister with a quiet 'I'm proud of you' whispered in her ear. Shortly after, her mother let her go and with the absence of her arms around Carmilla's shoulders came a long, shaky exhale of breath from Carmilla. Her mother then sat down back at her assigned table and everything around Carmilla came back to focus. The clapping was deafening, she could see her mother's eyes glossy with tears, even Mattie's were wetter than usual as she stood at the end of the table with a proud smile on her face, Will looked just as happy with his crooked grin. Laura was right beside her in an instant, a soft smile on her face and a gentle hand placed in the middle of her back as if saying she was there for support if Carmilla needed her. Only then did Carmilla notice she was still holding onto the microphone. She cleared her throat and wiped her cheeks before she brought the mic up to her mouth, the applause quieting down immediately. "Um. I wasn't done, but I think this is a good place to stop. I mean, you guys probably don't want to hear how I realized I was still in love with Laura while still with-"

"I'm kind of curious."

"You're always curious, Laur."

"Finish your speech!"

"I don't even know where I was-"

"Paris."

"Right...Paris...Um, w-while I was there I met a girl by the name of Ell." Carmilla cleared her throat again, "Yes, we dated. No, we don't talk anymore, but one thing that I remember and will never forget happened maybe four minutes before she broke up with me. We were sitting in her bedroom on her bed, she wouldn't look me in the eye and I made the mistake of asking her what was wrong. She simply said 'you' and she looked like she wanted to cry. I was obviously, rightfully confused. I hadn't done anything wrong, I thought we were in a good place, I thought I loved her. I was so wrong.

"After staring blankly at her for a few minutes she blurted out, 'I know you're in love with someone else'. I was even more confused. I wanted to tell her no, I loved her...but I couldn't. Because when she asked, 'who is she?' only one name came to mind, and it wasn't 'Ell'." Carmilla paused and turned to look at Laura head on. "I could've told her 'Laura', but just her name didn't do her justice. Instead, I said," Carmilla turned to the audience, hanging onto her every word, and said, "And this is word for word, " before she looked back at Laura.

"'She's the one that got away. The one with doe eyes, long mermaid hair, 5 feet, 2 inches tall, born October 23, with a smile that could end wars, put stars in the sky, and save a nation by simply flashing those pearly whites. She's deathly afraid of spiders the size of an ant, but has no problem jumping out in front of oncoming traffic just to walk the old woman with grocery bags up to her ears across the street. She's the girl who used to obnoxiously wake me up at four in the morning for sex and then fall asleep right after, leaving me suddenly wide awake. She's the girl that would kiss me when she was half asleep, when she was drunk, when my mouth was full of food, when the employees at McDonald's were yelling at my drunk ass to get out from behind the counter and to stop making myself a McFlurry at two in the morning. She's the girl that would kiss me at stop lights, at green lights, even when I was being a dumbass. Her name is-' and that's where I stopped because suddenly I was crying and Ell was crying and then she whispered, 'Laura', and that's when I knew I wasn't as good at hiding my feelings as I thought. Even Ell knew her name and I hadn't said it once since we knew each other.

"Laura Eileen Hollis-Karnstein, I loved you even when I didn't know I loved you and I can't believe I didn't know because obviously I was so head over heels for you that my girlfriend at the time knew. But I couldn't be happier with how things turned out. I've loved you for 17 years, one month-" Carmilla paused to look at her father's watch again. "Oh wow, seven hours, 12 minutes, and 30 some seconds and I can honestly say that I can't wait to love you for another 17, and another 17 years after that. I want to grow old with you, in love and with a bunch of little mini yous running around. I can't wait to love you until I take my last breath and I can't wait to annoy you for the rest of our lives...My darkness found the purest light. And it's you."

Carmilla's speech concluded with a chorus of knives clinking against empty glasses. With a watery chuckle and a smile to match, Laura leaned up and pressed her lips to Carmilla's as Carmilla held her there by a finger placed under her chin. The clinking stopped when Laura pulled away and Carmilla wiped the tears from her cheeks with the pads of her thumb.

"Jesus, Carm, how the Hell am I supposed to top that?!" Laura sniffled into the microphone and everyone laughed before she continued. "I'm just so lucky I got to fall in love with and marry my best friend." Laura shrugged as she turned to look back at Carmilla. "I knew I would love you from the first moment we met. It was like...not love at first sight, exactly, but- familiarity, I guess. Like: oh, hi, it's you. It's going to be you." Laura ended her toast by placing a quick kiss to Carmilla's lips.

The microphone was then handed off to Noah who wished the couple well and made a promise to try and be home more, followed by a story from their childhood about the first time Laura brought Carmilla home as her girlfriend. Laura tried, desperately, not to cry again, but failed and had to hide her face in Carmilla's shoulder. After his toast, Noah handed the mic over to Will who simply said that he was grateful to have found a friend in Carmilla, even before they were brought to light about their secret blood relation, and that he was happy to call Laura his sister, as well. As Will handed the mic back to Mel, Laura made sure to pull Will into a Hollis bear hug, while Mel continued on in the background, announcing dinner as the wait staff emerged from doors on both sides of the room.

After dinner and a few drinks, was the cake cutting and true to tradition...they made a mess, but not before posing for pictures as Laura and Carmilla cut the first piece together. The serenity of the moment only lasted until Laura grabbed the entire piece of cake and went to put it up to Carmilla's mouth so she could take a bite of it, only to shove it into the other girls face. Laura looked apologetic for maybe half a second before she noticed the mischievous glint in Carmilla's eye and that damned smirk plastered across her cake smudged face. Laura only had a 4 second reprieve before a handful of frosting was smeared down the right side of her face, down her neck, and down her chest, stopping just before the neckline of her dress. Then Carmilla was licking her cheek and pressing a kiss to her lips. She practically gave herself whiplash with the quick change of emotion from disbelief to disgust to mush, as Carmilla's tongue found hers, before dissipating to embarrassment as she quickly realized they were still in front of all of their family and friends. Carmilla simply looked smug as all hell.

As far as first dances went, Laura let Carmilla choose Elvis' "Can't Help Falling in Love" and they danced to it in some rendition of a Waltz that Carmilla only half led, due to Laura forgetting Carmilla was supposed to be leading and then trying to lead herself. Carmilla was sure her mother was watching in horror until they eventually just gave up in a fit of giggles and swayed to the beat even after the song ended and the other guests began to join in - Perry dragging Lafontaine, Kirsch respectfully following behind Danny. At the beginning notes of the song that followed, Noah and Will walked out onto the dance floor, each asking for a dance with their sister.

Carmilla was surprised Will could even dance at all, but she figured their mother was somehow involved, even if she wasn't physically in the boy's life growing up, she probably paid for dance lessons, regardless. Noah, on the other hand, had absolutely no idea what he was doing, but Laura semi-talked him through the steps and made fun of him for having no skill at all. He said he was more of a "club dancer", whatever that meant. Carmilla snorted beside them. The song wasn't even halfway through before Laura couldn't take anymore perfectly shined shoes to her toes and she had to pass Noah on to Carmilla, stealing Will for her toes' sake.

Will drifted along with her effortlessly, talking about how happy he was that the both of them finally got their shit together and proposed. Laura shoved him in the shoulder, a smile on her face. She was glad too. When he asked about when he'd be getting a niece or nephew, though, Laura glared at him and left him stranded in the middle of the dance floor to go take her seat back at her table.

"What'd you do to my wife, you dimwit?" Carmilla joined him seconds later, leaving Noah to fend for himself. He eventually left the dance floor in search of some more cake.

"I simply asked when I should be expecting a niece, maybe a nephew…"

Carmilla managed to hit him upside the head before their mother walked over and intervened, asking Carmilla for a dance, while Will went off to go find Mattie and a glass of scotch.

"You two haven't changed at all," Lilita commented.

"Yeah, he's still an annoying little twerp," Carmilla scoffed, rolling her eyes. She placed her hand in her mother's and let her lead the dance.

"He's your best friend." Carmilla nodded.

"Exactly." Lilita chuckled well naturedly. She was having fun. She honestly never thought she'd be where she was right now - dancing with her daughter at her wedding to Laura Hollis.

"You know, your father would be proud of you." Carmilla fumbled in her steps, but her mother didn't say anything about it, instead slowing the dance to a halt so she was looking directly into Carmilla's eyes.

"Mother-" Carmilla looked away, down at her feet, before removing her hands from her mother's grasp to nervously fumble with in front of her.

"What? He would...He always wanted to see you happy." Lilita placed a finger under her daughter's chin and brought her gaze back up to hers so she could continue. "I've never seen you any happier than you have been tonight, Carmilla." Carmilla only nodded, afraid her voice wouldn't work if she tried to speak. "Well, on that note, I should go find your brother and get a dance in with him before he's had too many or finds a cute girl." Carmilla only manages a smirk before her mother's walking away and she goes off in search of Laura, but not before taking a glance around the dance floor and noticing Danny trying to talk the DJ into a dance.

le 7 Octobre

The following morning, Laf ventured out of their room in search of the ice machine because Perry was claiming her tea was too hot to drink when they sleepily stumbled into a mess of dark curls, in half a suit, dress shoes and socks in hand, coming out of the room they were sure Danny was supposed to be staying in. They instantly forgot about the ice and raced back to their room to tell Perry.

Meanwhile, in the suite on the floor above them, Carmilla was wide awake, Laura's head on her chest, as she traced hearts with a single finger along the exposed skin of Laura's back. She could hear how content Laura is in the way she was breathing, fast asleep, long, deep breaths, exhaled onto the pebbled skin of Carmilla's chest. Carmilla leaned down enough to place a tender kiss to her wife's hair, thinking back to how they got here, nothing but happiness and contentment radiating from her as she watched Laura sleep.