Chapter 12
A/N: So, how do you like it? Nessie is officially one step closer towards her happily ever after, but will their love survive?
Nessie POV
Nearly four and a half months after the night of the surprise, our wedding ceremony took place. It was a Saturday, to make convenience for our guests – not many, as both of us preferred simple weddings – and it was the 24th of September.
On the big day I was woken up early at six in the morning by Rachel – my bridesmaid, of course – to get ready. According to Rachel, there seemed to be many preparations to make, even though I didn't see how putting on a gentle touch of makeup, doing my hair and dressing me should take so much time. Jake would be coming over to fetch me at eleven sharp, in time for the lunch banquet we were arranging for family and close friends. The real wedding banquet, however, to which other guests would be invited, would take place at seven tonight, and we'd be partying until midnight. A sort of party, that is, as Jake knew I hated stiff, overly-formal occasions.
Jacob's sister, Rebecca, flew in from Spain last week. She moved into Billy's old house, and has become good friends with Rachel as well. When I struggled to open my lids Rachel was standing in front of me, frantically shaking my shoulders, sending tremors right down my spine. Rebecca was right behind her, checking all the makeup pads laid out on the wooden dresser draped with pink satin.
My wedding gown was a long one with a line of train, a silky white empire cut with tailored modern floral patterns sewn across the bosom and waistline. It was strapless and showed off the curves of my shoulders and the arch of my neck. At the Canthacey District that day – apparently Rachel's favourite shopping area here – she'd bought a matching silver choker with lace to go with my gown, and it looked absolutely awesome – vintage Victorian style.
Rachel carefully fitted the gown over my head after I'd brushed my teeth and cleansed my pores, whilst Rebecca maneuvered the zip and angled it on the other side so it wouldn't catch in my hair.
My wedding ring glistened in the glow of the lights in my room. Jacob had found and bought a nice little apartment in a condominium not far from Leah's old Forks house, which was now inhabited by a family with two daughters of the name Johansson. So, we were currently on poor mode right now. Jake had also been promoted from a regular office clerk – his good-hearted boss had, thankfully, recognized his potential – and promoted him to become the executive manager of the company. There were also friends from the office coming to our wedding banquet tonight.
Apparently, Rebecca was even more brilliant than Rachel at makeup. Rachel was still the fashion expert and all, but what I didn't know previously was that Rebecca had trained to become a professional makeup artist, but somehow or other this long-lived dream had failed her. Rebecca refused to state the reasons – a long story, she claimed – but I sensed the sadness beneath that uncaring, quiet mask.
So it was Rebecca who did my makeup today. She'd unconsciously use a few Spanish words when speaking to us. So it seemed as though she'd taken up the habit of speaking Spanish when living in Spain with her husband.
"Rachel, get me the brillo de labios," Rebecca would say, which meant Spanish for 'lip gloss'.
Rachel and Rebecca had spent afternoons planning my hair and makeup, and they'd outdone themselves this time. I looked amazing when they'd finished. If only Aunt Alice and Aunt Rosalie and Grandma Esme could see me now…If only my mother Bella could be here! As Rachel was my bridesmaid, Rebecca had agreed to be the one to escort me down the aisle, as my father Edward was sadly absent. Where was he now? Jake and I had declared our marriage in the classified column of the paper – had he seen it? Did he even think of me often, as I would think of him?
Suddenly, amidst all the hustle and bustle of preparing for the wedding, I fell silent and stared unseeingly into the mirror as Rachel and Rebecca busied themselves with styling my hair. For the first time since Jake had declared his love for me in the tent that day, since I found wonderful girlfriends in Rachel and Rebecca, I felt…
Alone.
There were no family members around, no people of whom I was blood-related. Seriously…How many brides had been totally alone, without any kin, on their wedding day? Those brides who had fathers escorting them down the aisles…who had mothers fussing over their hair…grandparents tearing up and saying how much they would miss her…aunts and uncles cracking jokes about their husbands…had no idea how lucky they were.
I sighed quietly and stared at my reflection. While accompanying Rachel on various shopping trips, mainly to the Canthacey District, I hadn't completely neglected the old side of myself, the more tomboyish side of Renesmee, the side which would play football with my uncles for hours on end.
My naturally milk-chocolate eyes hadn't lost their spark of mischief through all the thick layers of eyeshadow, eye liner and mascara. My lips, no matter how glossy red they might be, served as a representative for the imperfect part of me – my lips were lopsided in their balance, the upper lip a little too full for the lower lip (I'd inherited that trait from Bella). My cheeks still flushed that tomato red when I walked long distances and ran in the fields, even though it was not often now. When I was a kid, my brown brows had been quite the bushy type, if you know what I mean. Even beneath all that brow pencils and stuff, my brows had grown thinner, but the end of my left brow, now made invisible by a matching pencil, still had some of my childhood bushiness in them. My nose was still dotted with very tiny freckles. They were almost invisible as they matched the colour of my skin, and could only be seen close-up in a mirror, but had been made totally and utterly invisible under the layers of concealer and foundation.
Instead of the usual 'Go Natural' look, Rebecca had decided to abandon the gentle rose-pink lip glosses in favour of wild, dark cherry-red shades. My 'Wedding Day' makeup would, of course, differ from my 'Casual Meetings' makeup…not that I could say for sure which makeup for which kind of style.
The blusher on my cheeks was stronger this time, a more intense cherry-blossom pink instead of the usual rose-pink to match my 'Go Natural' lips. The eyeshadow, instead of colours to complement my eyes and stand safely in the background, seemed now a dominant part of my eyes. The shadowy effect, or illusion, posed above my eyes now was a bold shade of purple, halfway between violet and lavender-lilac. There was a hint of pink in that shade, but I couldn't be sure…
After two entire hours of fussing and debating, I was pronounced ready. Rachel had recommended me a berry-scented facial cleansing foam, as well as an eye mask, which all took an hour as well. And thus at five past nine my look was complete. My hair looked better than I could have imagined – it fell in soft waterfall-like curls down my shoulders and back, flowing like gentle waves, and Rebecca had carefully slicked it with gel and applied some sort of conditioner cream to make it look glossier and more chic than usual.
I don't think you'd be interested to know all the minor details of my wedding day, especially those concerning makeup and fashion. Jake came to fetch me with two of his friends from his office company – muscular men named Colin and Brady.
At around eleven-forty-five, the priest at the grand and intricately decorated church stood before Jake and I as we held hands. Jake squeezed my hand in an affectionate gesture and I looked up at him, a faint smile playing on my lips.
"Do you take Renesmee Cullen to be your wedded wife? To protect her, love her, and care for her, through health and sickness, through wealth and poverty, to love and to cherish, and till death do you part."
"I do." Jacob had an easy smile; a relaxed, 100% casual smile. Was he not as nervous as I was?
"Do you take Jacob Black to be your wedded husband? To comfort him, encourage him, and love him, through health and sickness, through wealth and poverty, to love and to cherish, and till death do you part."
"I do." I tried my best to control my voice and to keep it from wobbling and further unsteadiness in the midst of my joy.
"You may now kiss the bride."
Jake lifted the white gauze veil over my head and our lips locked again in a kiss more passionate and sweeter than any we'd ever shared.
So…
Now I know what true bliss feels like.
So Nessie thinks she has her happily ever after, and so does Jake, and so might some of you. Anticipate more, because that's not the end!
I anticipate your reviews as well!