Jen's alarm went off at five in the morning. She tried to smack it off as quickly as she could so she didn't wake Matt beside her. She leaned over and placed a soft kiss by his eye that wasn't buried in his pillow. "I'll see you later, Handsome," she whispered before she slipped out of bed to start getting ready.
It was their wedding day.
Last night had ended late. The wedding rehearsal was right after work. Jen and Nikki had managed to get the day off while Matt and Foggy could only get off a few hours early. The Nelson family was beyond generous in catering and hosting the rehearsal dinner which morphed into a pre-wedding party.
It was past eleven when Jen could finally sneak out to drop off her dress and everything else that was needed at Nikki's. For a hot minute, Jen even contemplated just sleeping there since she would be getting ready there the next morning. That idea was quickly set aside when Jen considered how much actual sleep she would get on Nikki's couch in her one-bedroom apartment.
When Jen had returned home, Foggy was in the living room going over his Best Man's checklist. Matt had already gone to bed. Matt had offered to go back to his mom's apartment in the few days leading up to the wedding if Jen wanted to keep up the tradition of not seeing each other before the wedding. That idea was quickly shut down. They were both excited and nervous about the wedding and being apart would only compound it. Together, they kept each other calm and sane.
After her shower, Jen threw on some comfy clothes and slipped quietly out of the apartment to go get transformed into a dream worthy bride.
Foggy rolled his ass out of bed around eight. He stumbled out to the living area, put on coffee and took Gizmo for a walk before jumping into the shower. By the time he came out, Matt was awake and making them breakfast while Gizmo ate his morning kibble at Matt's feet. "Aren't I supposed to be taking care of you today?" Foggy asked.
"You took Gizmo out. I'm perfectly capable of making breakfast for us. You know damn well that neither one of us just waits around for someone to do something for us when we can just do it ourselves," Matt replied as he set scrambled eggs, bacon and toast on plates for himself and Foggy. "I was trying to save time and keep to that rather meticulously planned schedule that was given to us in not only print, but also Braille and an audio version. It's not going to take me that long to get ready. I'll need you to make sure my tie is straight and my hair isn't sticking up."
"It's your wedding day. I'm your best man. I'm supposed to make your life easy today," Foggy said in between bites.
"You already are," Matt reassured him. "Just don't forget the ring and the marriage license and we're good."
"Legal documents I can definitely handle. Now, finish breakfast. We're coming up on the shower and shave window and you need to be properly fed today."
Maggie left the apartment far earlier than was actually necessary to get to her hair appointment at the salon. She wanted to stop by the church first. She slipped quietly into one of the back pews, blessing herself before kneeling to pray.
"You are worrying unnecessarily," Father Lantom said softly as he slipped into the pew beside Maggie. "Everything will go beautifully today."
"Who says I'm worried? Maybe I'm just looking for a bit of calm before the crazy?" Maggie countered.
"I've known you long enough to know the difference between worried and searching for peace. The last time you had that look on your face was when Matthew sat for the Bar exam and you were here nearly every day until he got the results." Father Lantom motioned for Maggie to sit beside him. "Matthew and Jennifer are already blessed with God's gift in finding each other. You didn't come here to talk to Him. You came for someone else."
Maggie turned her head at that statement. Paul Lantom knew her far too well.
"Go and talk to him. Make sure he knows to be here today even though I'm fairly certain he already is. I've got everything under control here," Lantom reassured her before nudging Maggie to the door that led to the courtyard and cemetery.
Maggie could find Jack's grave with her eyes closed, having been there more than anyone could have guessed. Possibly even more than Matt. She blessed herself and placed a kiss on her hand and placed it on his headstone. "Our boy is getting married today and I wish so much that you were here to see it. You'd be so proud of him and you'd love Jen. She just hit Matty with a blast of California sunshine and he was hooked. Sound familiar?"
Maggie took a moment to collect herself and wipe the tears from her eyes. "I'm sorry for not being there when you needed me and I'm sorry it took so long to get my head out of my ass. You did a great job with Matty. You had the hard part. I just finished him off. Watch over him today, Jack. I know it would do him some good to feel your presence. I'll save you a seat next to me. I love you, Jack and I always will." Maggie placed one more kiss on the headstone and caught a glance at her watch and pulled out her cell phone from her purse. "I had better call our boy to make sure he's up on time. You know as well as I do how much difficulty he has with early mornings."
Matt heard his phone ringing while he was in the shower. "Foggy, can you answer that?" Matt called from the bathroom.
Foggy heard Matt's phone ringing and he knew who it was. "Good morning, Mrs. Murdock. How are you on this fine day?" Foggy said pleasantly.
"Franklin, you haven't called me Mrs. Murdock in years," Maggie replied.
"You just called me Franklin," Foggy countered. "What can I do for you?"
"I was calling to check on how Matty was doing."
Foggy easily heard the nervous tension in Maggie's voice. "You were calling to make sure Matt was awake since we both know that he is prone to sleeping in."
"Among other things."
"Maggie, we've got this all under control. I take my best man duties very seriously. He's already up. He's had breakfast. The dog has been taken care of and Matt is in the shower. Don't worry, Maggie. Everything is going smoothly."
"I'm going to worry, Foggy. It's my son's wedding day."
"Go enjoy wedding morning pampering with Jen's mom and mine. I will get Matty to the church on time decked out in his absolute best. I'm not going to let my best friend down on his big day."
"Is everything alright?" Matt called from the bathroom.
"Your mom was having a bit of a freak out that you were going to oversleep on your wedding day."
"I have never missed anything important because of oversleeping," Matt called back in protest. "But if she wasn't worrying, I'd be worried about her."
At 11:30, Foggy got a text from the driver waiting downstairs for them and that meant it was time for the final checks. "Rings, pants left pocket," Foggy stated out loud for Matt's benefit.
"Do you have both mine and Jen's?" Matt called from his room as he was tying his tie.
"Of course I do. Where would Nikki keep them in her dress?" Foggy laughed. "Wallet with vendor envelopes in pants right pocket. Marriage license, speech and cell phone, jacket pockets. Matt, what are you doing about your cane? Are you using it or tossing it in the bag with your other shit for after?"
"I really don't want to use it," Matt admitted as he came out of his room. "It just means I need to focus more or rely on other people."
"Well, there's plenty of us willing to help," Foggy said as he came over to pin Matt's boutonniere on him. "You've got me. You're walking down the aisle with your mom and it's not like Jen is going to leave your side. We got you, buddy. No worries."
Matt handed Foggy his wallet, phone and keys to put in the bag with his cane. "I still don't get why we need a car. It's a four-block walk."
"We need a car BECAUSE it is a four-block walk IN AUGUST," Foggy emphasized as he straightened Matt's tie. "We are in tuxedos and we need to keep you looking top shelf excellent and not turn into a sweaty mess."
Matt couldn't argue with Foggy's reasoning. He just accepted it and pulled on his glasses. "Is there anything else, Mr. Nelson?"
Foggy put Gizmo in his crate and made one last check of his pockets. "It's time to get you married to the girl of your dreams, Mr. Murdock."
Matt and Foggy were greeted by a familiar voice when they hit street level. "Good morning, Mr. Nelson. Congratulations Mr. Murdock."
"Happy? What are you doing here?" Matt asked as Happy took the bag from Foggy and he got in the car.
"I had to drop off Mr. Stark and Miss Potts and I like to help out where I can. So, when Dr. Banner mentioned to Mr. Stark that you were lacking in transportation, I volunteered and he insisted," Happy explained as he closed the doors and got in the car. "I'll also be driving you to the airport when you leave for your honeymoon."
"Thank you, Happy. I'm just going to put in my own insistence...that you come to my wedding as well," Matt replied.
"I wouldn't miss it, Mr. Murdock."
When they arrived at the church, Father Lantom greeted them at the door and took Matt and Foggy to his office to wait before the ceremony started. "Let's get the paperwork out of the way first. Matthew, Franklin...do you have the license?"
Foggy pulled it out of his jacket pocket and handed it over.
"Matthew, you're signing on the first line. Franklin, you sign underneath it," Father Lantom explained as he placed Matt's hand where he needed to sign. "I'll bring this over to Jennifer for her to sign."
"She's here already?" Matt asked as he handed the pen to Foggy.
"Yes, and she asked me to give you a message," Father Lantom laughed. "She asked for you to meet her behind the church in the courtyard before the ceremony. She has a gift for you."
"A gift for me?" Matt was confused and he turned to Foggy. "Did I forget something?"
Foggy shook his head and patted him on the shoulder before offering his arm. "You're good, buddy. This is something that Jen wanted to do for you. Let's go. You don't want to keep her waiting." Foggy led Matt out the back door of the church to the small courtyard next to the cemetery. Jen and Nikki were waiting for them.
"What's this about? I thought we weren't supposed to see each other before the wedding?" Matt asked as he approached Jen.
"That's an old superstition," Jen laughed as she took Matt's hands. "I wanted us to have a First Look...so you could know what my dress looked like."
Matt swallowed hard, trying to keep his emotions in check as Jen took his hands and pulled him close. Matt started at her shoulders and felt the pleated straps of the satin dress that formed a v-neck. "I feel like I should be doing this later," he whispered as his fingers ghosted over the fabric of the bodice of her dress and down to her hip where there was silver beading in the shape of feathers.
"Don't worry. I will definitely need your help getting out of it later."
Matt moved his hands up to her neck, where he found the chain of the locket he gave her on their first Christmas, and her hair. It was twisted and braided into a loose, low bun at the nape of her neck with a small, jeweled tiara with tiny roses woven into her hair. "Do the roses have color?"
"They're red," Jen whispered as she removed his glasses and handed them to Foggy. "Now, for a bit of magic with the help of science."
Jen took a few steps back from Matt as Tony Stark and Bruce Banner stepped out of the shade of the church. They plugged in a few small devices at Jen's feet and a wall of light mist appeared around her.
Jen was watching Matt's face and she knew the exact moment that her little experiment worked. First, his jaw dropped and his eyes went wide as he tried to take in all the details of her dress and he smiled and started to cry at the same time. Jen had Tony and Bruce turn off the mist as she stepped forward to give Matt a hug.
"Thank you," Matt whispered just to Jen before lifting his head and extending his thanks to Foggy, Nikki, Tony and Bruce. "I can't properly express how much I appreciate this."
"It was our pleasure," Tony said first with more sincerity than anyone had ever heard from him.
"We were glad to do this," Bruce said. "We had a lot of bigger and more complicated ideas when Jen first came to us but settled on modifying a fog machine."
"I... we thank you both for this. You don't know how much this means to me...us," Matt replied as he tried to get the tears under control.
"Since you're already crying, I have one more gift for you," Jen said as Nikki handed her the plain handkerchief that Maggie had given her. She opened up the handkerchief and used it to dry Matt's tears before she took the memory charm with Jack's photo and slipped it into his hand. "Your mom gave me this at my bridal shower to give to you. Now, your dad can be with us today."
Matt's hands shook as he felt the small round frame with a bow with a pin on the back.
Jen was trying not to cry as she pinned it on his lapel by the boutonniere.
Matt kissed Jen gently so he didn't mess up her makeup or hair as she pinned it on him. "I love you so much."
"I love you too. I'll see you in a little while," Jen whispered as Nikki helped to gather up her short train after putting her phone away from taking some pictures to share with Jen later.
As Jen went back inside, Foggy turned to Matt. "You ready to get married now?"
Matt wiped his face before taking Foggy's arm. "I am. Let's get this show on the road."
When Matt and Foggy got back to Lantom's office, Maggie was waiting for them. She stepped forward to give Matt a hug. "How are you doing, kiddo?"
"I'm doing pretty well, Mom."
"You look fantastic," Foggy commented.
"Thank you, Foggy," Maggie replied.
"Mom, can you describe your dress to me?" Matt asked.
"Of course, Matty. I'm sorry." Maggie nervously smoothed out her dress. "It's burgundy and goes to the floor. The top is beaded and the sleeves are as well and they go to my elbows. I have the same charm you do pinned near my collar. He would be so proud of you today."
"It sounds beautiful, Mom," Matt said as he hugged his mom again and tried to wipe his eyes under his glasses.
Father Lantom knocked at the door before opening it, now dressed in his robes for the ceremony. "How are we doing? Ready to go?"
"Absolutely Father," Matt replied.
"I'm glad to hear that. So, just a reminder. The music will start and I will walk to the altar first. Matthew, you and Maggie will follow next. Franklin, you will follow Jennifer's mom. We will then close the doors before Nikki and Jennifer with her dad." Lantom made the sign of the cross over Matt's head and took his hand to offer him a silent blessing. "I'll see you out there."
Father Lantom stepped out of the alcove and out to the altar just as the pianist and violinist were starting to play "Can't Help Falling in Love" as the processional. He looked out among the guests and smiled before the guests of honor made their appearance. There were a whole bunch of lawyers and paralegals, roughed up boxers who cleaned up nice for the occasion, a few nuns sprinkled about, a very select number of Nelsons that seemed to blend together with the Walters' family California craziness and it was all topped off by the Avengers trying not to stand out. Father Lantom heard the doors open and he saw Maggie and Matthew walking down the aisle, something that he never would have imagined when Matthew was a child.
Matt walked with Maggie to the front pew and the counted his last few steps to his place in front of Father Lantom.
Once Maggie was seated, Father Lantom gave the signal to Foggy to start walking down with Jen's mom.
The wedding coordinator closed the doors behind them and Nikki, Jen and Morris Walters came out of the bridal room. Jen stood just off to the side of the door as Nikki got ready to go. She was taking a few calming breaths to settle her nerves.
"You got this, girl," Nikki whispered before the doors opened again.
"You ready for this, kiddo?" Morris asked as Jen took his arm and the wedding coordinator straightened her train. "We can still bail if you need to?"
"Dad, stop that," Jen admonished him. "I've been ready to marry Matt for a while now. I moved across the country to be with him and I know you wouldn't hurt him like that. You love Matt."
"You're right. I do love Matt but I wouldn't hesitate to bury him in the backyard if he hurt you," Morris said with a smile.
"Dad!"
"Relax, kiddo. I was just chasing the butterflies away," Morris laughed as the coordinator gave him a nod. "It's time."
The doors opened again and everyone stood as Jen entered with her dad.
Matt was tracking Jen's racing heartbeat as she walked down the aisle. He couldn't help the big smile on his face. He could hear the whispering from their guests at how beautiful Jen was. He stepped forward as they got up to the altar and took Jen's hand from Morris to walk the last few steps together.
They walked up to the altar and Jen handed her bouquet over to Nikki for a moment. Once her hands were free, she held up a finger to ask Father Lantom to wait a second. Jen reached up and slid Matt's glasses off his face and folded them up to slide them into his pocket and took her bouquet back from Nikki. She wanted to see his eyes as they got married.
Father Lantom smiled at that small gesture as he made the sign of the cross and blessed them. "In the name of the father, and of the son, and of the holy spirit."
"Amen," everyone responded.
"Dearly beloved, you have come together in the presence of all those in attendance here, with the intention to enter into marriage." Father Lantom continued. "Christ blesses the love that binds you. Through a special sacrament, he enriches and strengthens those he has already consecrated by holy baptism, so that you may have the strength to be faithful to each other forever and assume all the responsibilities of married life. And so, in the presence of the church, I ask you to state your intentions. Jennifer Susan Walters and Matthew Michael Murdock, have you come here to enter into marriage without coercion, freely and wholeheartedly?"
"We have," Matt and Jen both respond.
"Are you prepared, as you follow the path of marriage, to love and honor each other for as long as you both shall live?"
"We are."
"Since it is your intention to enter the covenant of Holy Matrimony, join your right hands, and declare your consent before God and his Church."
Jen handed her bouquet off to Nikki again and took Matt's hands.
"Before we get to the vows, Matthew and Jennifer have written their own declarations that they would like to share. Jennifer?"
Jen took a deep breath and started. "When I came to New York for just a small weeklong visit, I never expected that I would quite literally run into the love of my life and just a few months later I would leave sunny California to become an East Coaster. The day I met you, I found my missing piece. Meeting you was fate. Becoming your partner was one of the best choices I ever made. But falling in love with you was out of my control and a ride I would gladly go on over and over again. I wasn't lucky enough to be your first but I want my lasts to be with you forever and always."
"Matthew?"
Matt let out a shaky breath before trying to make sure his eyes were locked on to Jen's. Matt tried to focus his gaze where he thought Jen's eyes were. "I thank God every day for that sweltering day in August where He sent an angel to me who needed help. I never thought I would find one of the most precious pieces of my heart by running into them on the street. You are my everything. Your heart is like music to me. You're my lighthouse on a dark ocean, whether it be the Atlantic or the Pacific. The hardest thing I've ever had to do was say goodbye to you at the airport, knowing that we wouldn't be together again for months. It literally sucked the air from my lungs. After the second time, I vowed that I would never say goodbye like that again and I would propose the next time we were together. I couldn't make it to your law school graduation but you surprised me at mine. I had to run home to get the ring before the party and you blessed me again by saying yes. My heart was yours from the moment you said yes to a date with me and it will be always and forever."
After their personal vow exchange, Lantom continued. "Matthew, please repeat after me. I, Matthew, take you, Jennifer, to be my wife. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life."
"I, Matthew, take you, Jennifer, to be my wife. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life," Matt said as steadily as he could while trying to keep the overwhelming emotions in check.
"Jennifer, please repeat after me. I, Jennifer, take you, Matthew, to be my husband. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life."
Jen sniffed a little before starting. "I, Jennifer, take you, Matthew, to be my husband. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life."
"May the Lord bless you. What God has joined, let no one put asunder," Father Lantom continued before turning to Foggy. "Do you have the rings?"
Foggy fished the ring box out of his pocket and removed the two rings, a white gold ring with white and yellow gold braiding with small blue diamonds in each loop for Jen and a polished black tungsten carbide ring with a blue inlay under a black Celtic dragon for Matt, to give to Father Lantom.
Father Lantom set both rings on a plate on the altar and blessed them with Holy Water before handing the first ring to Matt. "Matthew, please repeat after me. Jennifer, receive this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the father, and the son, and the holy spirit."
Matt slid the ring on Jen's finger. "Jennifer, receive this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the father, and the son, and the holy spirit."
Father Lantom then gave Matt's ring to Jen. "Jennifer, please repeat after me. Matthew, receive this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the father, and the son, and the holy spirit."
Jen placed the ring on Matt's finger. "Matthew, receive this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the father, and the son, and the holy spirit."
Now came one of Father Lantom's favorite parts of wedding ceremonies. "Now let us ask for God's blessing upon Jennifer and Matthew, that he may favor those on whom he has bestowed the Sacrament of Matrimony. In the sight of God and these witnesses, I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may now kiss!"
Applause erupts from the guests in the church as Matt and Jen share their first married kiss before turning to make their way back up the aisle, followed by Foggy and Nikki and their families.
The guests were directed to the reception while the bridal party and stayed behind for a few photos that they didn't get before the ceremony. Before they left the church, Matt asked to make one stop first.
Everyone else held back as Matt and Jen went down the path to the cemetery. Matt had memorized this walk, the walk from the church to where his Dad was buried, long ago. Twice - once as a child and again when he had grown. At least, he didn't have to count the headstones this time. When they reached Jack's grave, Jen took two deep red roses from her bouquet and handed them to Matt. He looked over at her for a moment, his eyes expressing the question that he didn't ask...are you sure? Jen nodded and urged him forward.
Matt stepped forward and set the roses on the ground and said a small prayer before his dad's headstone. "Sorry it's so short, Dad. Jen and I need to get to a pretty big party in our honor. I really miss you today. I'll try not to step on Mom's toes later. I love you, Dad."
As Matt stepped back, Jen stepped forward. "Thank you, Mr. Murdock," she whispered, even though she knew full well Matt could hear her. She placed her hand on the top of the headstone for a moment before turning back to Matt. "You ready?"
Matt nodded and held out his hand. "Our ride is waiting. Foggy and Nikki went on ahead with our parents."
While their guests were enjoying the cocktail hour, Matt and Jen slipped unnoticed into the private bridal suite at the Lighthouse on Pier 60 of Chelsea Piers. Trays of hors d'ourves, plates from the food stations and drinks had been set up for them to get something to eat before the main reception had started. As they ate and relaxed a bit, their wedding coordinator arrived with their venue host.
"I would first like to offer my congratulations to you, Mr. and Mrs. Murdock. I was told you would like to view the reception room before your grand entrance."
"Yes, thank you," Jen started.
"We want to see the room first for two reasons. First, I'm blind and it's easier for me to get the lay of the room with it empty. I'm relying a lot on people assisting me today and I want to try to make it as easy as possible," Matt chimed in.
"Second, we want to experience how beautiful it is before our guests," Jen added.
The venue host understood completely. "I'll let you finish eating while I give the room code to your Best Man and Maid of Honor and then we'll take the tour. Rest room is in the back left corner and I'll be back in a few."
Nikki and Foggy went ahead to the reception and were mingling with the rest of the guests in the cocktail hour before Matt and Jen needed them again. They ended up by the seating chart after working their way around the room.
"This is probably one of the most creative ways to label tables that I have ever seen," Nikki commented. The tables were named with their high school and college mascots, hometowns, favorite food, colors, songs and sports, favorite date spot and where Matt proposed.
"It's set up to be a game," Foggy replied. "Each table is a factoid about Jen or Matt or both. The place cards are the game. You need to match each fact to the right person and I believe there are prizes." Foggy looked up and saw the wedding coordinator waving them over. "Time to go," he told Nikki.
The venue coordinator returned as she promised to give Matt and Jen their private first look at their reception hall. She opened the doors and let them soak it in before she started explaining. "You will make your entrance through these main doors. The dance floor is directly in front of you and your sweetheart table is directly in front of you on the other side. The dance floor is 30×30. Your DJ is set up in the corner at your four o'clock. All your guests are on both sides of the dance floor. The left wall is all windows with a door accessing our patio. Your cake and dessert bar are off to the right."
Matt caught the skip in Jen's heartbeat and the gasp in her breath when she saw the room. "Describe it to me?" he whispered to her.
"It's breathtaking," Jen replied. "There's vines along the ceiling with little lights in them to look like stars. Our tables are all lit with candles around purple, red, blue and teal flowers." Then Jen paused for a moment. "Our cake."
"It smells delicious. I can smell the vanilla and chocolate cake and the strawberries."
"It looks amazing. Alternating black and white layers with little hearts in the frosting."
"Is everything how you pictured it?" the coordinator asked.
"Everything and more," Jen replied.
"I'm glad. I'll take you back to the bridal room so you can prepare for your entrance."
Foggy and Nikki were waiting for them when Matt and Jen returned, followed by the wedding coordinator.
"I just want to go over the introductions. Your parents will be introduced first and then the Best Man and Maid of Honor will enter. There will be a pause and then you two will enter and go into your first dance. Following that is the parent dances and speeches as they start serving the first course."
"Sounds straightforward enough," Matt replied.
"When do we go in?" Jen asked.
"The guests are moving from the cocktail hour room to the reception hall now. When you hear the music start playing a bit louder, that will be your cue to walk over to the door. You'll hear the DJ announce you from there."
"I can already hear him," Matt muttered with a smirk as the coordinator left.
It was only a few minutes before the music switched and the DJ asked everyone to take their seats and to give their attention. Matt caught it before everyone else and he smiled. The hard beats of Irish music quickly captured his attention. "It's like my dad's old walk-up music but I'm pretty sure this is from 'Lord of the Dance.'"
"Did you know they were going to do that?" Foggy asked as he held the door open and noticed the smirk on Jen's face.
Matt shook his head as Jen took his hand and he looked over at her with a feeling that she had something to do with it. "One of the many surprises today."
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the beautiful Lighthouse at Pier Sixty. I'll be your Emcee for the evening. Please direct your attention to the entranceway. It is time to introduce our wedding party! First, we have the parents of our bride and groom. Please give your love to Morris and Elaine Walters and Maggie Murdock."
Maggie walked in with Morris and Elaine so she wouldn't be alone. The Fogwell's boxers were pounding on the table to welcome all three parents and the whispered chanting of 'Murdock! Murdock!' could be heard even over the music as Maggie took her seat with them as Morris and Elaine sat at the table opposite them.
As Foggy and Nikki almost started dancing in, the DJ started again. "Next we have the Maid of Honor, Nikki Ramos, being escorted by the Best Man, Franklin Nelson. They know how to get the party started." The DJ paused briefly to build anticipation as Foggy and Nikki took their spot on the side of the dance floor. That pause was just long enough to get Fogwell's boxers going again. "And now…here they are…being introduced for the first time as a married couple… please give them a nice standing ovation…Matthew and Jennifer Murdock!"
Matt and Jen walked in holding hands with enormous smiles on their faces. This was the most that they had ever been the center of attention. They walked to the center of the dance floor as the music changed to 'Thank You for Loving Me' by Bon Jovi and went right into their first dance. About halfway through the song, other couples were invited to the floor to join them. Foggy danced with Nikki. Morris and Elaine were out there and Fogwell even convinced Maggie to dance. As the song finished, the DJ spoke before the next song started. "I'd like to ask Morris and Maggie to join their children out on the dance floor."
The dance floor cleared as Maggie came from one side to meet up with Matt and Morris came from the other to meet up with Jen. Josh Groban's 'You Raise Me Up' started to play.
"I'm surprised you didn't put your glasses back on," Maggie whispered. "Where are they?"
"Jen threatened to hide them from me if I tried. She wanted to see my eyes," Matt laughed as he patted his pocket. "The only thing is that you can tell that I've cried at least three times already today."
"Your wife is a very smart woman. You have beautiful eyes." Maggie brushed her son's hair away from his face and held his cheek gently. "You're allowed to show emotion on your wedding day. Your father and I didn't have something this big but even he stumbled over our vows because he was trying to keep it together."
"I wish he was here," Matt whispered.
"He's here, kiddo," Maggie reassured him. "And he's got a few people acting as his messengers."
As the song ended, everyone took their seats as the salad course started to be served and the DJ handed the microphone to Matt and Jen.
"So, this is the time where the Best Man and Maid of Honor usually make speeches but we've commandeered the mic from them," Matt started.
"Since we know full well that our best friends would have done their absolute best to embarrass us," Jen finished off.
"Objection!" Foggy called out.
"On what grounds, Counselor?" Matt asked, receiving a few laughs from the lawyers in the room.
"On the grounds that I had a very heartfelt speech written with very little embarrassment within in it," Foggy protested. "So did Nikki."
"Speak for yourself, Nelson," Nikki laughed. "I had years of embarrassing but humorous tales to draw upon and I had a greatest hits list prepared for my bestie."
"I withdraw my objection. I'll share later," Foggy replied. "You may proceed."
"Thank you, Foggy," Jen responded. "We wanted to take this opportunity to express our love and gratitude before we all eat and get this party started right."
"We hope it doesn't sound too much like a statement to a jury since that's our usual audience," Matt added. "First, we want to extend our love and gratitude to our parents."
"Who didn't freak out when we told them that we had fallen in love with someone who we had only known for a week who lived over three thousand miles away," Jen explained further.
"They didn't discourage us. They didn't say we were crazy or this will never work or it was just a fling."
"They actually encouraged us to try when they saw how happy we were."
"They didn't complain about long phone calls at odd hours since we could only visit each other on long breaks from school."
"And on those breaks, they helped to arrange plane and train tickets and opened their homes so we had a place to stay without needing to worry about hotels."
"They treated us like family right from the start," Matt said.
"And we are eternally grateful. We love you all," Jen said as applause broke out and all three parents were trying to be discreet as they wiped their eyes.
"We must also extend our love and gratitude to our best friends, Foggy and Nikki," Matt started again.
"Even though we stole their moment with a live mic."
"They have been by our sides from the beginning. Putting up with us after we had to say goodbye after brief visits and keeping us from falling apart."
"They are the peanut butter to our jelly. The macaroni to our cheese," Jen laughed.
"The chips to our guac and salsa," Matt added. "And we couldn't have done any of this without them."
"And finally, before we shut up and everyone gets to eat without us jabbering on, we would like to thank all of our friends and family who joined us here today," Jen stated to the room.
"We understand that many of you had to travel a great distance to be here to celebrate our wedding and even though we can't spend as much time as we would like with everyone today, know that it means so much to us that you would take time out of your lives to join us for this day. We only hope that we can show you the same amount of love someday that you have gifted to us."
"So, with that, the Prosecution and the Defense rests," Jen laughed as she held up a glass of champagne. "Time to eat because I don't know about you but I know I'm starving."
After dinner finished, the DJ opened up the dance floor for the party. Matt and Jen quietly cut their cake with just their parents and Foggy and Nikki watching so they could enjoy dessert before hitting the dance floor. Both of them got frosting on their noses while trying to feed each other. Matt was accidental. Jen was on purpose so she could kiss it off.
As the party was winding down and the guests were starting to say their goodbyes to Matt and Jen, Foggy and Nikki thought it was the right time to give them their gift.
Matt and Jen were out on the outdoor patio, taking a small, quiet moment for themselves in the cooling night air, when Foggy and Nikki came up to them. "What's up?" Matt asked first.
"It's time for our gift to you," Nikki exclaimed.
"You didn't have to get us anything," Jen replied. "You have already done so much for us today."
"We wanted to," Foggy said as he held out the envelope. "Because you deserve it."
Jen opened the envelope and saw a receipt for a room reservation and a hotel room key for the Peninsula hotel. "You really didn't need to do this. We were just..."
"You were just going to spend your wedding night in your apartment," Nikki interrupted. "And we, as your best friends just couldn't let you do that."
"We got you two nights. Happy will bring you when you're ready to sneak out. He already has your personal stuff from today in the trunk and come Monday morning, he will bring you back to the apartment to get your luggage before taking you to the airport for your honeymoon," Foggy added in.
"We really weren't expecting this. We didn't pack anything," Matt admitted.
Nikki waved him off. "Don't worry. We did. Your overnight bags are already at the hotel waiting for you. But, it's not like you're going to be wearing much until Monday anyway."
Matt and Jen both blushed a little at the statement but couldn't exactly deny it. "How can we possibly thank you enough for everything?" Matt asked.
Foggy waved them into a four-way group hug. "You're going to bring us back some awesome gifts from your Caribbean honeymoon, preferably high-end rum and things that sparkle."
After Matt and Jen left in the car for the hotel, Foggy swore he heard someone call out his name. He paused and heard it again.
"Foggy-bear," Marci called out again as she approached on the sidewalk.
"Do you need backup?" Nikki asked quietly as she saw the uptight blonde approaching. "I'm happy to stay and throw down if needed."
Foggy shook his head. "I can handle this. I'll be inside in a minute to help gather everything."
"Just shout if you need to," Nikki replied before going back to the reception hall.
Foggy took a cleansing breath before attempting to talk. "What are you doing here, Marci?" Gone was the joy of the day and cold, tempered anger replaced it.
Marci was a bit taken back by Foggy's tone but it wasn't unexpected. "I wanted to give this to Matt and Jen," she said as she held out a card.
Foggy accepted it. "You've never liked Matt and you only began to tolerate him once Jen was around. Try again. What's the real story?"
"I wanted to apologize and maybe get another chance," Marci quietly admitted.
Foggy scoffed as he crossed his arms, practically building a wall. "You picked a hell of a time to do it. Did you look up the actual meaning of the word before you came because I don't actually think you know what an apology is."
"Foggy-bear..."
"Don't call me that," Foggy snapped. "You want another chance? I've done nothing but give you chances for years and every time you cast me aside like last year's heels whenever you feel like it. I'm not fancy enough for you. I'm not ambitious enough. You push me out. I impress you again by wiping the floor with the slumlord you represented or you want a Friday night fling, let's call Foggy back. I am tired of this." Foggy took another breath to gather his thoughts for what he had to say, no matter how much it hurt. "For years, I believe I made my intentions clear. I loved you. I've wanted a future with you. I've wanted this," Foggy said as he gestured to the party that was ending behind him. "I want the wedding and family. I want to hang out with Matt and Jen and watch my kids play with theirs. I wanted that with you but for whatever reason, you haven't seen to reciprocate unless it suits you. My feelings didn't matter. You need to search whatever is left of your soul to figure out what you really want but I'm not waiting around to find out what you decide. As far as I'm concerned, we're done."
Marci was stunned and embarrassed that Foggy eviscerated her like that right on the sidewalk. "Foggy, I don't want to end it like this. I still care for you."
"Maybe you should have thought of that before you picked a fight with me and kicked me out?" Foggy just shook his head before turning to go back inside, leaving Marci on the sidewalk. "Goodbye, Marci."
Nikki hadn't gone far, just in case. She couldn't quite read Foggy's face as he came back in. "You good?" she asked softly.
Foggy shrugged. "I'm not sure," he said honestly. "Part of me feels relieved to get that out but part of me just feels empty."
"I totally get that. Been there, done that SOOO many times," Nikki said with understanding as she put a hand on Foggy's shoulder. "So, how about this? We finish up here. Make a quick home stop for comfy clothes and then hit a great all-night diner I know that makes awesome Belgian waffles. We can binge junk food and unburden ourselves of our exes."
"I like this plan."
Matt and Jen were given the full first-class treatment when they arrived at one of the premier hotels in the city. When they arrived at their suite, a gift basket with two fluffy robes, bottles of water, fruit and treats, mini bottles of liquor and a chilled bottle of champagne was waiting for them as well as the bags their best friends had packed. Matt thanked the bellhop and tipped him after he gave them a quick layout of the room and then locked the door behind him as he shrugged his jacket off and made a lucky toss on the chair before coming up to Jen, wrapping his arms around her waist before kissing her. "So, what do we do now, Mrs. Murdock?"
Jen couldn't help the big giddy smile when Matt said her new name. She was still getting used to it. "I think you are entirely way too overdressed for the occasion, Mr. Murdock."
"I can easily fix that in the time it takes you to get us a drink," Matt laughed as he was already toeing off his shoes and unbuttoning his vest.
Jen stepped out of her high heels and went over and popped the cork on the champagne and poured two glasses. By the time she turned around, Matt had undressed down to his boxers and his tuxedo had been thrown over the chair.
"Is this better?" Matt asked with hands open.
"Much," Jen said as she handed him a glass.
"Now, how can I help you get comfortable? Dress or hair first?"
"Dress, please."
Matt took a big sip from his champagne before setting the glass down on the table. "How do I get you out of this?"
Jen smiled. "The bow where the lacing is tied is tucked in by my butt."
Matt nodded as his hands ghosted over her rear. "Gives me an excuse to feel you up."
"Like you need one."
"Not anymore. We've got a license for that now. It's sitting in my jacket pocket," Matt laughed as he finally found the bow. He untied it and started unlacing Jen's dress. "This is like an overwrapped Christmas present." After a couple of rows of lacing, Matt got into a quick pattern of undoing them. Once he reached the top, he slid the straps off her shoulders to allow her to slip her arms out before he took the chance to slide his hands down her bare skin to push the dress down so Jen could step out of it. Matt was pleasantly surprised when he discovered that Jen wasn't wearing a bra under the dress, just a pair of delicate lace panties.
"Do you want me to put on the lingerie that Nikki most certainly packed?" Jen asked.
Matt wrapped his arms around Jen and picked her up just enough to move her away from her dress on the floor. "I am more interested in taking off rather than putting more on. That would only delay our fun." He pulled her in close for a kiss. "Shall we take care of your hair now?" Matt asked he sat down on the bed and had Jen sit between his legs.
"There's probably about a thousand bobby pins in there," Jen sighed as she leaned back against Matt's chest.
"I'll find them," Matt reassured her as he got to work. Every few he got out, he placed soft kisses along her neck and shoulders while caressing any bare skin he could reach. Once the last pin was removed, Matt ran his fingers through Jen's curly hair. "There's the curls I love," he said as he turned her chin to kiss her properly.
Jen ran her fingers through Matt's hair as she kissed him before she stood up and took his hand to pull him up. "I think it's time for bed, my handsome devil," she told him as she slipped her underwear off and climbed into bed after turning off the light.
Matt quickly ditched his boxers and slid into bed next to Jen and pulled her closer. "Come here, Beautiful."
My inspiration links if you are so interested
Jen's dress - a-line-v-neck-court-train-satin-wedding-dress-with-beading-002127256-g127256#/
Jen's tiara - /products/royal-rose-tiara
Jen's rings - 1-ct-tw-blue-diamond-vintagestyle-bridal-set-10k-white-gold/p/V-20016432
Matt's ring /products/6mm-celtic-blue-black-tungsten-carbide-ring-with-dragon-inlay-design-with-carbon-fiber
Maggie's dress - a-line-scoop-illusion-floor-length-chiffon-lace-mother-of-the-bride-dress-with-beading-cascading-ruffles-sequins-008217326-g217326#/
Elaine's dress - a-line-scoop-illusion-ankle-length-chiffon-lace-mother-of-the-bride-dress-with-pleated-008143377-g143377#/
Nikki's dress - a-line-one-shoulder-floor-length-satin-bridesmaid-dress-007262591-g262591#/