Axel stared at his reflection with his mouth agape. Today was the day. Pinching himself, Axel confirmed that not only was today the day, but it was also actually happening. He was going to be someone's husband in a few minutes.

Axel had been on cloud nine ever since Roxas asked him the big question: Will you marry me? Neither of them told anyone at the reception that they were now engaged, after all it was Saix and Xemnas' day. Axel couldn't help the grin that formed as they started the drive home. Roxas had reminded him of the ring and surprise that waited for him and Axel couldn't have been more excited. All through the car ride home Axel had a stupid grin on his face and his mind whirled with wonder.

When they finally arrived back home, Axel watched Roxas get out and walk to the front door. Putting his hand on the car door and opening it, Axel exited and stood awkwardly beside the still opened door.

"Axel? You okay?"
Nodding but not moving, Axel tried to think of where he had felt this before. It didn't take him long to pin why it was familiar. In the car Axel felt like he did when he was going to get a tattoo or piercing. The butterfly I'm-going-to-throw-up feeling, the jelly legs, the "Oh fuck" when the moment was almost over. In the car Axel was going to get a piercing, and when they pulled into the driveway it was like the needle had just gone through. He was no longer anxious, but he was exhausted and relaxed.

Taking a deep breath and walking over to Roxas, Axel stepped inside and walked into the living room. He knew that the surprise wasn't waiting for him out in the open since he had been through most of the rooms before they left, so sitting on the couch and waiting for Roxas to retrieve the surprise or deliver instructions for Axel to search for it seemed like the best plan.

"Here."
Axel looked up and took the book that was offered to him. It looked like your standard photo album. It was one of the smaller albums and the cover was black, but it had the word "Memories" in silver lettering. Opening the album up, Axel raised his eyebrow and looked at Roxas.
"What is this?"
"I went through our old photo albums and took out some of the pictures ... See, the first page is when we first started going out ... I wrote my feelings under it."

Leaning back into the couch and smiling, Axel took his time reading and looking at each picture. Turning the page, Axel gasped as he looked at the silver ring taped onto the page with "Will you marry me?" scribbled under it.

Smiling and turning to face Roxas, Axel kissed him and took the ring off of the page.
"I take it your answer is still a yes?"
"Yes." Axel nodded with his answer, his nose rubbing up against his fiancé's nose.

The months after that were spent planning the wedding which turned out to be harder than they had originally thought. Neither of them were picky when it concerned the little details like flowers and colour patterns and that seemed to make planning a lot harder. Roxas would pick a flower, Axel would say: "Sure, whatever you want." and Roxas would follow with "But do you like them?" Their flower discussion went on for a full week before both of them decided to get married in a garden. That solved their flower problem.

The food was easier to pick out, but that might have been due to their online searching. A donut bar was a definite thing, and so was the make your own taco. Roxas had picked out an appetizer, but Axel had forgotten what it would be ... probably mini hot dogs or something with "mini" in the name.

They hired a photographer to do the ceremony pictures and that was it. They planned to hand out disposable cameras to their guests and have them take their own pictures. If all went as planned, the cameras would be dropped off and they would get them developed later on. Axel had worked out the prices and had spit his orange juice out when he found out how much cheaper their idea would be. Not only was it cheaper, but it was fun.

The music was settled by hiring a DJ and the special songs were picked out with ease. They hadn't picked out a specific dance to do or to have guests do and they figured whatever happened on the dance floor happened and it was out of their control. Axel faintly recalled Roxas mention something about the chicken dance, but he wasn't sure.

All through this process Axel was checking things off of their list and was glad they had done almost everything. They hadn't picked the cake out yet and Axel wasn't sure if that would be easy or difficult. He wasn't picky with sweets and it was more of Roxas' area, but he did have one rule: nothing orange flavored.

Thankfully Roxas felt the same and they ended up with a three story vanilla cake with vanilla icing and chocolate flowers decorating it. Finally able to check off the cake, Axel glanced over the list and smiled nervously at Roxas. Everything was picked out.

Both of them had separate bachelor parties and Saix took Axel and their group to a spa. Axel was glad his party was being held in a spa and not a strip club, and the massage he received was one of those I didn't know I needed it until I got it things. Axel knew Roxas' party was being held at an amusement park and he hoped Roxas would have as much fun as he did.

The day before their wedding, Axel kissed Roxas and left for Saix' house.

"This is actually happening, right?" Axel looked at Saix' reflection and took a deep breath.
"Yeah, it is. Nervous?"
"Yeah ... But the good kind."
"You ready?"
Checking himself over in the mirror, Axel fixed his hair and turned to Saix.
"I look okay?"
"You look great."
"I'm ready."
"Let's go see your future husband then."

Axel had always found the phrase "Time stood still" silly. He always questioned it and rolled his eyes at the romantic movies and books that used it. Standing across from Roxas and staring into his eyes, Axel fully understood what people meant when they said that. Here Axel had no concept of time. The people smiling in the front row and the birds flying above them were all frozen. Nothing really seemed to register with him besides the man standing in front of him and the officiant. He heard the man speaking and he knew everything that was happening, but it all seemed to be timeless.

Axel watched Roxas' lips move as he spoke the traditional wedding vows, his eyes moving to his fingers as the ring was slipped onto his finger. Blinking and looking into Roxas' eyes, Axel thought about their life; the day they first met, their first date, first fight and the first night they spent living together. Repeating the vows and slipping Roxas' ring on his finger, Axel grinned as he heard the officiant tell them they were now husband and husband.

Kissing Roxas and taking his hand, they ran to the limo they had rented and crawled into the backseat. Glancing down at the ring, Axel's smile widened as he realized he could now add "First kiss as a married couple" to their list of firsts.

"Hey Axel?"
"Yeah?"
"You love me?"
"I do."