Mariner sighed as they walked out of the conference room at the SFHQ Event Center. Everything related to wedding planning was exhausting and tedious and downright boring at this point. All of the fun decisions had been made and it was crunch time.

"This will all be over in 4 days," Boimler whispered to her, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Angelica was right. We should have eloped," Mariner said with a laugh.

"Well, we still can…" Boimler said, slowing his walking speed to look at her.

"We can't cancel this big ass shindig," Mariner replied with another sigh.

"We don't have to…" Boimler began, pulling her aside into a small seating area as the captain and the admiral walked by.

"What are you talking about?" she whispered back at him as if he were crazy.

"So, I was thinking… we can't make it to Oceana Prime and back in time, but there are great beaches here on Earth," he explained.

Mariner stared at him in silence, her brain running through several scenarios.

"Can we go tonight?"

"Give me an hour to work it out. I've already thought this out," he smiled.

"Bold Boimler strikes again," she said, grabbing him in a fierce hug.

"Do you want to tell anyone?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Just me and you. We're doing this one for us and no one else."

"Okay, meet me in the transporter room after Beta shift. I'll take care of everything. We're just going to pretend we're going to have dinner somewhere," he said, glancing around to make sure they were still alone.

"This is going to be the longest duty shift ever," she said with a smile, "I can't believe we're doing this!"

Keeping her mouth shut was harder than making it through an entire duty shift for Mariner. At lunch she nearly spilled her guts to Tendi and Rutherford but managed to keep it together once Boimler arrived from the bridge. They shared a secret smile and Mariner couldn't help but giggle briefly, Tendi looking at her strangely.

As soon as beta shift ended, she ran to their new shared quarters and packed a small travel bag before Boimler could see what she planned on wearing. She impulsively grabbed the small PADD that contained a discarded draft of wedding vows she had written; they had been way too sappy for the general public, but they would be perfect for a private moment. She tossed in some makeup and hair styling tools and then bolted down to the transporter room.

Boimler was having a random conversation with Ensign Fletcher, who was manning transporters for Gamma shift. "Ready for dinner?" Boimler asked her with a wink.

The judge's wife placed a white plumeria in her hair and then handed her a bouquet of the same flowers. "You look lovely, dear," she said with a motherly smile. Mariner took one last look at herself in the mirror, not truly believing it was her. A thousand thoughts, regrets, and wishes ran through her mind as she fidgeted with her engagement ring and adjusted the white sundress she had brought with her. She couldn't wait to see Boimler's face.

"Ready?"

"Let's do this," Mariner said with a smile.

After the longest walk in history, the judge's wife lead her to the beach where the golden sun was dropping below the horizon in a spectacular display of purples, pinks, and oranges. "Oh my god, it's a pink beach," Mariner whispered, feeling the emotions in her throat as she realized he had brought her to a beach as similar to Oceana Prime as it could be on Earth.

Boimler's heart nearly stopped when he saw her, not expecting to see his almost-wife in a white dress. He attempted to swallow his tears as she walked toward him, memories of their moments together echoing in his head. Finally, she reached him, and he could see the tears in her eyes as she smiled the biggest smile he'd ever seen on her face.

The judge dispensed with the usual ceremony formalities since he and his wife were the only guests/witnesses.

"We're here to join you both in loving matrimony. Beckett has prepared her own vows and would like to read those now," the judge began. Boimler raised his eyebrows at her with surprise.

"I wrote this a few weeks ago but decided that it was too personal for anyone else to hear," she smiled, looking down to the small PADD she was holding.

"Brad… for four years you've been my best friend, and you know that. We've shared so many experiences together. But you've been so much more to me than you could ever know… In the darkness, you're my sky full of stars. When I fly off the handle, you're my anchor to the ground. When I'm stuck in the past, you're my future... and I can't wait to see where our lives take us."

The judge handed her a wedding band to place on Boimler's finger. "You brought them?" she whispered with a smile, and he nodded. She slipped the band on his finger, surprised that neither of them was shaking.

"Brad has also prepared his own vows," the judge said, nodding to Boimler who pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.

"Beck… Everyone knows you as the hilarious bad ass, but I'm fortunate to know you a bit better than that. You are beautiful, kind, and honest. You are loyal, generous, and ethical. I love you when you when you're all of those things, and I love you when you're not. I've seen you hurt, sick, angry, and at your absolute worst. I know your deepest and darkest secrets along with your dreams and wishes. I know exactly who I'm marrying, and I will choose you today, tomorrow, and every day after."

She sniffled as he slipped her wedding band on her finger, trying very hard not to cry. Their eyes met and she saw a tear roll down his cheek. "Don't do it, I'm going to lose it," she whispered to him with a laugh. He laughed and wiped the tear quickly, blowing out a shaky breath.

"Having expressed your desires to be united in marriage with the exchange of vows and rings, by the authority vested in me by the administration of United Earth, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride!"

Mariner handed her bouquet to the judge's wife and then grabbed Boimler by his uniform jacket to pull him in for a kiss as he laughed, which kept them both from dissolving into tears.

They walked off the beach together, laughing hysterically through their tears, overflowing with so many emotions.

"I want to call Angelica," Mariner said on a whim, "she can keep a secret, right?"

"She's about as secure as Space Station Knox," Boimler said, turning to ask the judge if he could use his comm terminal.

Angelica answered from a handheld device in her restaurant kitchen. "Brad, are you okay? You never call me!" she said, visibly worried.

"Everything is fine! Can you keep a secret?" he laughed, looking off screen to Mariner.

"Yes, what did you do?!" Angelica asked, walking out the back door of the kitchen to ensure no one overheard the call.

"We eloped!" Mariner yelled, jumping into view.

"You did?! Good for you!" Angelica squealed happily, "Please come see me tonight, I want to hug you and feed you dinner and make you a cake!"

"That sounds perfect, honestly. You're the only one we're telling," Boimler explained, "We were just so tired from all of the planning and the huge guest list… we wanted something to ourselves."

Mariner changed out of her dress before transporting to Modesto but left the flower in her hair. "I'm going to remember you in that dress forever," Boimler whispered to her as they took one last moment on the beautiful pink beach, the stars twinkling overhead.

"Thank you for doing this, it was beyond perfect," she replied, looking up at him with a smile.

"Anything for you. I mean that. Anything," he whispered before kissing her.

Angelica greeted them the second they walked in the door, grabbing them both in a big hug. "I'm going to cry again!" Mariner laughed.

"Me too," Angelica laughed as tears fell from her eyes. She and Mariner hugged each other tearfully, laughing and crying.

"Stop, both of you, I already cried today," Boimler said, covering his own eyes to avoid watching the girls cry.

Angelica led them to a secluded table in a quiet part of the restaurant where she had placed a few candles and a beautiful arrangement of flowers. They could hear the live band playing music as they sat down, and the servers brought them glasses of red and white wine. "I'll ask them to play something for you," Angelica smiled.

Angelica was clearly as detail oriented as Boimler because a few seconds later, the band began a rendition of "Can't Help Falling In Love," complete with a female vocalist who had a voice like silk. Apparently, Angelica had been listening when Mariner was trying to pick out the first dance song for the big wedding.

"Would you like to dance, Beckett Boimler?" Biomler whispered in Mariner's ear. She followed him to the dance floor and sighed as he took her in his arms on the crowded dance floor. There were no prying eyes, no parents with expectations, and no dignitaries to impress.

"This is the best idea you've ever had," she whispered to him with a smile, "Today was better than any big, fancy Starfleet wedding."

"Getting to experience this is going to make Saturday so much easier to handle. I know you're going to look beautiful then, but all I'm going to be thinking about is you on the beach," he replied.