Theme: Another Step
Summary: It's just another step in their lives.
Syd fussed over Z as she straightened the bride's veil and carefully shifted the long auburn locks off her shoulders.
"Syd, would you chill out? It's no major deal!" Z exclaimed, exasperated by the fussing of her best friend. Syd stepped back, a light pink suffusing her cheeks.
"Sorry, I'm just nervous and excited" she explained, sighing. Z laughed, turning to the mirror to secure her earrings.
"Aren't I supposed to be the nervous one?" she teased, cocking her head as she fastened the other earring. Syd nodded, grabbing a brush to tease the tangles out of her own hair.
"Okay, okay, I get the point. Why aren't you nervous though?" she asked, pausing in the brushing. Z stepped back from the mirror, eyeing her appearance before turning to Syd.
"Why should I be? It's just another step in our lives," she explained, smiling. Syd giggled, and gazed at the pink diamond on her left hand.
"I know, but I was so scared when I got ready to walk down the aisle. I don't know why," she mused.
"The way I see it, we're just legally and spiritually confirming what we've always known," Z ruminated. A knock on the door alerted the women to another presence, before Anubis Cruger opened the door, peering around.
"Z? We're ready for you," he explained. She nodded, smoothing her sunglow yellow dress before she left their bedroom.
Jack had taken it upon himself to set up the side yard just so for their wedding, and had made sure that Z didn't see it before hand. He had rented several lawn chairs to set up for seating, and the focal point was a small hole dug in the ground with an infant tree lying beside it, picked up fresh from the nursery that morning. He was spiriting the roots with water as the pastor from a local church cleared his throat, alerting him to the start of the ceremony.
Z laughed softly to herself seeing this…it was just like Jack to go out of his way to make sure everything was perfect. Seeing Jack straighten and dust off his hands, her breath caught in her throat, and she froze for a moment, nervous for no apparent reason.
Then it was as if her father was at her shoulder instead of Commander Cruger, whispering reassurances that it would be okay. Everyone stood and turned, looking at her, and Cruger gently rested her hand on his arm, leading her down the aisle.
'Just take a step…another step…and another' she coached herself.
Before long, she was standing in front of the hole, and Cruger placed her hands in Jack's, and she looked up into his eyes, and everything vanished. The fear, the nervousness, the audience. It was just her and Jack, and the rest of their lives in front of them.
The ceremony itself went quickly, and the next thing that really registered in Z's mind was kneeling on the dewy grass, helping Jack cover the roots of the baby tree with the freshly turned dirt. Their fingers tangled, and he looked up at her, and grinned. Without conscious thought, they leaned together, sharing their first kiss as a married couple.
It was just another step to go.