After the majority of their guests had left for the reception venue, the bridal party gathered at the front of the church for pictures. Maja remained in her seat towards the centre of the sanctuary, and he gave her a deep nod as he lifted Fredrik up into his arms, taking care not to crush the boutonniere as he turned to face the camera, smiling widely at the photographer as they stood there, different permutations of their wedding party surrounding them as the pictures were taken. Finally, though, the man seemed satisfied with the images he had captures, and everyone headed towards the back, save for him, Roxanna, and Fredrik.
"Just a few pictures of the three of us?" Roxanna asked, seemingly addressing both him and the photographer. He nodded in an instant, while the photographer followed his lead. "Thank you!" she squealed as she enfolded them both in a loving embrace. "Oh, my sweet Freddy, it is so good to see you!" Roxanna kissed his cheek lightly before turning to look at the photographer. "All right, how would you like us to stand?"
"How about we have you sit in the deacon's chair, Roxanna, and Henrik and Freddy can stand next to you. Henrik, you place your hand on Roxanna's shoulder." They followed the instructions given them through a series of pictures, and then Roxanna nodded a little at the photographer.
"We don't want our guests waiting too long for us. Thank you."
"It's my pleasure, ma'am. I'll meet you at the reception venue." They nodded and the man left, his bag thumping against his hip as he went. Maja got to her feet and approached them as they made their way down the aisle.
"I can take Fredrik now," she said a bit sharply, and he gave her a dark look, watching her swallow thickly. "Well, he can't very well ride in your car!"
"Oh, but we would love it if he could come along with us! I know, you're so generously allowing us to take him on our honeymoon, but we get so little time with Freddy as it is that I just want to spend every moment I can with him."
Roxanna's impassioned plea seemed to have little effect on Maja, but then Henrik nodded a little as he stepped closer to his wife, and she seemed to deflate at the move, giving them a half-hearted nod. "Fine. But I will be taking him back to our hotel for the evening, so that you can have a proper wedding night."
Roxanna bundled Fredrik closer to her as she let out a cheerful sigh. "Thank you! Now, let's get to our reception!" They hurried out to the waiting car, and their driver opened the back door for them. Roxanna slid in first, taking care to make certain her dress was tucked in around her legs as Henrik handed Fredrik over to her. Then he was joining them in the back and they settled into the seat and watched as the driver took them to the restaurant Roxanna had hired for them.
Serena was waiting for them at the door, and she took the bouquet from Roxanna's hands before melting into the room, allowing them to claim all the attention of those gathered. The applause was kind, but Henrik still blushed deeply to have so many people focused on him and Roxanna at once. In the more intimate space of the restaurant, it seemed to overwhelm him a bit more than when they were at the church. Roxanna seemed to know how he was feeling, as she stepped closer to him, letting go of Fredrik's hand so that she could take hold of his as they approached their table. Maja appeared at their side moments later to take Fredrik, and Roxanna gave her a thankful smile which caused Henrik to smile as well.
From the corner of his eye, he watched Maja take a seat at the table closest to them, and knew that Roxanna had given her that position of honor, most likely to smooth the way between them even more. The tenderness of that gesture caught him off guard, and he teared up a little as he reached out for her hand, threading their fingers together as they settled back in their chairs. "Look, next to Freddy. He really did make it!" Henrik turned to look at the other table and found John sitting there, giving him a small smirk.
"I'm glad that he reacted well to our olive branch. Perhaps, when we're back from our honeymoon, we can have him over to supper."
"Oh, I'd love that Henrik!" She let her head thump down on his shoulder as the staff began to bring their food out, setting it down at the main table first. He'd forgotten that Roxanna had chosen their favourite foods as choices for their guests, and his stomach growled hungrily as he breathed in the delicious scent of prime rib. "I am so hungry, I might out eat you today," she teased as she tucked into their meal. The caterer had done an amazing job with the food, and he found himself quickly eating the meal, watching as Roxanna did the same.
After they'd eaten, Roxanna and he got up and went to mingle with their guests, his arm firmly wrapped around her waist as they weaved through the tables. It was nice to see how many of their colleagues and friends had joined them on this happy day, and he tried to stay up and focused as they went, knowing that there would be time to rest once he and Roxanna were back in their hotel room. Finally, they made their way to John and Maja's table, and he gave a strained smile to their friend as he held out his hand towards him.
John clasped it tightly, shaking firmly before getting to his feet and hugging Roxanna warmly. "It is so good to see you both once more, and to find you so happy. That's all I've ever wanted for the friends that I love so much." Though his words were kind, Henrik could see that there wasn't any real warmth in his eyes, which made him wonder about the sincerity behind them. Still, he had come, and that was all he would focus on, not wanting to dim the sparkle on their festivities.
"I am so glad that you got here, John. I wasn't certain that you'd gotten the invitation, since you had mentioned in your last letter that you were looking at heading to the continent to start working on your research, with you new mentor."
"You do have a good memory, Rox. I'll be moving to Portugal next month, and will hopefully begin in depth work on my trial before moving forward to the next step in things. And how are you finding your work? I've heard that Guy is quite driven."
"He is, but we get along well together. It's like having a really competitive brother. And it helps to have Henrik on hand to let off steam with when things get to be too much." Serena came up to their table just then, whispering something in Roxanna's ear. She nodded, and then looked at him. "It's time to cut the cake. Come along, Henrik. And remember, you promised to be gentle when feeding me my piece."
"I remember, darling." They got to their feet, and he watched Roxanna kiss John's cheek softly before ruffling Fredrik's hair as they made their way over to the cakes. They were neatly arranged on stands, and he smiled to see that they were all elegantly decorated. "This one is ours, yes?" he asked, pointing to the cake that had a heart atop it. Roxanna nodded as she picked up the decorative knife and held it out to him. Covering Roxanna's hands with his own, they cut into the cake and then managed to get it onto a small plate before he grabbed the forks from Serena's hand, giving one to Roxanna. "Here we go." She nodded and flaked a piece of it off, holding it up to his mouth. After swallowing the bite, he copied the movement before taking hold of the plate and guiding Roxanna back to their seats, wondering if this day could be any more perfect.