Chapter 11: Cold Feet

*Olivia's POV*

I woke on the morning of my wedding day to the sound of birds chirping coming through my bedroom window. Elliot and Noah stayed at Fin's house last night. Being the traditional Catholic boy that he is, it would be wrong to sleep together before our wedding night...oops. But I let him have last night because I knew it was important to him.

It was around 8 am and all the girls and I had hair appointments at 10.

So, I got up, took a shower, brushed my teeth, and ate breakfast.

Alex and Casey went in together on a limo to chauffeur me around to all of the pre-wedding events. The limo arrived at 9:00 am and we were on our way to the salon.

The girls were already there, waiting for me and we took our place on the waiting room. They called my name first and I followed the very sexy male hair stylist back to his vanity. I laughed to myself on the way thinking I would soon be a married woman and very sexy men would no longer be game. I also laughed because there was a 99.99% chance that he was gay.

"How would you like me to style your hair, Miss Benson?" He asked. After realizing that would be the last time anyone would refer to me as "Miss Benson" I pulled out a magazine from my purse and revealed to him the picture I wanted him to use as a guideline while styling my hair.

Two hours later, he spun the chair around and revealed his work in the mirror. I looked up to see my bangs French braided across the top of my head and secured with a crystal-encrusted bobby pin. The rest of my hair was curled tightly and each curl was lined up into a beautiful bun at the base of my neck, adorned with a beautiful beaded hair accessory. "What do you think?" He asked.

I was already crying. "It's beautiful," I replied. "It's absolutely perfect." He smiled and the girls had already been done for about a half an hour. We left the salon and made our way to the spa.

When we arrived at the spa, they called my name first. I had my nails and does done, French style, with a sparkling-white design detailing each nail. After completing my nails, it was time to get my makeup done.

An hour later, they revealed my face in the mirror and I'd never felt more beautiful. The makeup wasn't to heavy. I t perfectly accentuated all of my best features and hid all of my flaws. I'd never felt more beautiful. I had to keep myself from crying, so not to ruin my eye makeup.

I waited about 15 minutes for the rest of the girls to be done and we decided to meet back at my apartment for champagne and to put our dresses on. When we arrived in my apartment, we made a few toasts, shared some laughs and went to go put on our dresses and jewelry. I decided I'd put on my dress last, so I could help the rest of the girls get into theirs. Each bridesmaid wore a turquoise knee length dress with a sweetheart neckline that gathered into a beautiful jewel-adorned bustle at the center of the chest. I helped each girl get their dress zipped and into place.

Olivia was watching cartoons and I walked over to her and knelt down so our faces were level. "Are you ready to put on your princess dress, Livvy?" I asked her. She nodded her head up and down excitedly and we went to get her little white dress put on.

After everyone was dressed, it was my turn. I headed into my bedroom, closed the door behind me and just sat on my bed for what felt like forever but was really only ten minutes. My thoughts were interrupted when Alex and Casey came knocking on the door, asking if I needed any help. "Can one or both of you come in here?," I asked.

They entered the room and, upon noticing that my dress was no where near my body, a worried look overcame their faces. As my two best friends, they knew me better than anyone else, so they sensed my hesitation. Alex took her place, sitting on my right side and Casey on my left. Each placed an arm on my shoulder and I was comforted by the silence that we sat in, as we knew what each of us was thinking.

Casey, breaking the ice, asked "You're getting cold feet, aren't you?" I nodded. "I mean there's nothing I want more than to marry Elliot. He is truly the love of my life and he has been for 16 years. But they say 50% of marriages end in divorce and eventually that newlywed bliss is going to fade and we're going to have to face the harsh realities of life. I believe we're strong enough to get through anything because we've already been through so much together, but there's still that part of me that worries about everything falling apart," I said.

"Olivia," Alex chimed in. "It is perfectly natural for you to have these feelings. Marriage is a scary thing but love conquers all and from what we've seen, you and Elliot have such a great love for one another that nothing in this world would be strong enough to tear you two apart. And just think of it this way: you've been through so much together already that the universe is going to give you a break sooner or later and you can count on that being one of the most blissful periods of your life. So go into that bathroom, put on that beautiful dress, get your ass in that limo, and go say "I do" to the man you love."

Casey and I laughed at her forcefulness. "I have to agree, Liv." Casey said. "Let's go get you hitched."

I laughed again, pulling them in for a group hug and saying "I don't know where I'd be without you two. Thank you for being the best friends a girl could ask for. I love you so much."

"We love you too," they replied in unison. "Now go get into that dress and let's get this show on the road," Alex said.

I obeyed, walking into the bathroom, taking the dress out of its protective bag, and unzipped the back. I slipped into the dress, pulling it up and asked Casey to come in and zip it for me. She complied and when she was finished, I walked back out into my bedroom, stood in front of my full-sized mirror, and smiled, trying again not to cry. I'd never felt so gorgeous in my entire life. I'd never felt so important. This day was all about me and my almost-husband. My happiness had reached a high point.

I walked out of my bedroom, down the hall, and into the common room and all I could hear was "oh my god" and "you're beautiful" coming from every set of lips in the room. "Thank you, ladies. You're all so beautiful too. Now let's go get married!"

With that, we headed outside and got into the limo. We were on our way to the church and I couldn't help but think, "today, I become Mrs. Elliot Stabler." I smiled to myself at the thought and could hardly wait for the adventures that life had in store for us.