I have written stories surrounding Jack and Kate's proposal scene (which I dive back into with this one, because how could I not?), but this one takes us all the way to their nuptials. This is a three-part series that I hope is satisfying to all who have wondered what their wedding would both look and feel like.

Dedicated to my beautiful friend Camile (losttheothers), who requested I write this. I am honored. You have been such a dedicated reader and fan of my work and I love you so very much. I had the best time with you at the LOST 20th Anniversary concert in Hawaii this past April. The best trip I ever took. This is for you. With love.

The warm California sun set a golden glow over the most important day of her life.

Kate wasn't sitting in front of the mirror of her vanity, in their bedroom, on their wedding day, as somebody else. She was sitting there, bare-faced, heavy brown curls at her shoulders and down her back, and a white satin robe covering her naked chest as Katherine Anne Austen, unencumbered by her past.

Free. Free to marry the love of her life.

She recalled her heart soaring out of her chest, into the faraway cosmos when Jack asked her the question she had only hoped was coming, but never dreamed would be in the middle of the night. He gently shook her awake, still dressed in his professional attire, a tinge of panic in his tone and the ring burning his in-breast pocket to ashes. She sensed his urgency immediately, and she found herself ready to go to battle for him as she sat up and took in his slightly slumped posture. Then he looked up at her, his eyes pulling her in, and straightened his back in resolve as he spoke to her in a soft breeze. The words still danced on a sea of warm, irresistible love inside of her as she recalled them.

'Will you marry me?'

She was frozen, staring longingly at his chest, his movements hazy through her tears as he pulled out the small black velvet box, slowly opening it to present his beating heart to her. The image of this weathered, beautiful, broken, living and breathing gift she had been given out of the carnage and terror they once lived asking to marry her always sparked in those moments when she needed to be reminded of just how much someone loved her. How much he loved her. It was one of the precious things that made her feel worthy. He was the blessing she never felt she deserved, but he kept a hold on her she didn't want to escape.

She almost told him that she had edged him out by only a few hours after they parted ways in the courthouse parking lot and right before he came to her. He didn't wait much longer, which pleased her very much, because there were too many urges to grab her car keys, drive to his hospital, march into his office and shout loudly at him for taking so damn long before pulling his lips down to hers to hold off anymore.

He easily won in her eyes though. She might have waited longer, but was electrified from head to toe by seeing him at her doorstep in the middle of the day, being swept into his arms, kissed under then over the soft, wet pressure of his needy and talented mouth, undressed by his sure and strong hands, carried to, then gently laid over soft sheets and loved so good she felt weak in her knees the next morning. It was the most romantically gratifying and intensely intimate moment she had ever experienced in her life. He was the only one who could give her that to her heart's fullest content, and she would love him for the rest of her life for it.

The sound of Aaron's footsteps scampering towards him the next morning, his laughter as Jack ticked him into a tight hug still made her emotional just thinking about it. Jack must have known Aaron wouldn't be underfoot when he finally gave into what they both wanted. She often wondered how he knew.

She suddenly ran hot. The desperate need for the ceremony and reception to be over already so they could get to the surprise he had waiting for their honeymoon was making her visibly sweat. After how long it took to get naked together, kissing, kneading, pulling, panting, squirming and screaming into the night, she didn't know if she could wait much longer to have him inside of her as Doctor and Mrs. Shephard.

She heard a soft knock on their bedroom door and rose to open it.

Sun smiled at the sight of her friend, pleasantly surprised as she pulled her into the room amid the happiest giggles she had ever heard come from her.

"Someone is floating." Sun said with a laugh.

"Okay, so this is the dress and there are my shoes. Jack's mother, Margo is bringing my veil. I don't know if I should wear my hair up or down though. Oh, and I was thinking…" Kate continued to ramble, her nerves sparking throughout the room, making it hard for Sun to focus.

Sun took her by the shoulders to both still and calm her.

"Kate, slow down. I can barely keep up with you right now." She giggled.

Kate smiled through a nervous sigh. "I'm sorry. I just want to look absolutely perfect for him."

Sun scoffed. "You are drop dead gorgeous no matter what you're wearing and this is going to be the most perfect day if I have anything to say or do about it."

"Thank you so much for agreeing to come by early to help me and being here for the ceremony." Kate said, genuinely touched by her presence.

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else." Sun smiled.

"Look, I know things are still tense between you and Jack." Kate dove right in, attempting to ease the tension she knew was there between them.

His decision about the freighter was the right one, but she could never tell her grieving friend this. If she knew Jack was in danger, likely dead, and heard something like that coming from someone close to her, that relationship would be over.

The fact that Sun agreed to attend her wedding showed how strong she was in the face of her enormous loss. She actually thought twice about inviting her for fear of the ceremony triggering her. Jack encouraged her to send the invitation, overjoyed that not only did Sun respond with being honored to be in attendance, but wanted to help in any way she could.

"Jack is the one who let me in the house. He was happy to see me and I was happy to see him, Kate. Let's just leave it alone, at least for your big day?" Sun pressed, her voice soft and pleading.

Kate smiled and nodded. That was the most she could hope for at the moment. Then, there was another knock on the door and the sound of the other man in her life, his tiny voice excited.

"Mommy are you in there?" Aaron called to her with a hint of a whine.

"Mommy's here baby." The door opened and instead of Aaron, it was Margo.

"I hope it was okay he brought his grandmother up with him." Margo chimed as Aaron scurried over to Kate under the garment bag she carried into the room. He was dressed in his tuxedo, his dress shoe laces running loose at his little clumsy feet. Kate laughed to herself at how hard it must have been for Margo to keep him clean and kempt throughout the earlier part of the day.

"Were you a good boy for your grandmother?" Kate asked as he hugged her and wrapped his little legs around her waist.

He nodded. "Where's Uncle Jack?"

"He's downstairs getting ready, baby. Do you want to go see him?" He didn't reply, his little finger wrapped itself around one of her curls and suddenly became mesmerized by the long, silky strands.

"Sun, this is Jack's mother, Margo Shephard. Margo, this is our friend, Sun." Kate introduced them.

The two women exchanged pleasantries, delighted that Kate had no idea that they had already met through Jack, and spent a good amount of time planning what was soon to come for the bride.

"Well, isn't this a lovely dress." Margo sighed, moving towards the bridal gown that hung nearby. It was simple, sexy yet elegant. She would look absolutely stunning in it, she decided. She knew it would all look splendid together.

"I thought so too. I'm not really the poofy, frilly Cinderella gown-type." Kate shared with a laugh.

Margo smiled. "Neither was I if you can believe it."

Kate and Sun shared a look of amused skepticism, one Margo read deftly in the flat floor mirror that sat next to Kate's gown. "I know what you girls are thinking. A polished, refined woman such as myself must have wanted the big dress and the chapel and the flowers and the pope if we could afford him, but all of that was Christian's idea. I just wanted to get married."

Kate related to those words deep in her soul. She would marry Jack anywhere, anytime.

As if reading her mind, Margo turned to her to say, "And your father and I know that all you and Jack want is to be left alone to say your peace and finally be married, but I believe I speak for Sam when I say that we are so glad you two let us put this ceremony together for you. It's a gift we are more than happy to give."

Emotional and on the verge of tears, Margo pulled Kate and Aaron into a hug that was easily returned by Kate, who felt her heart bursting with the love she felt for Jack and for the family he had given her. Her thoughts roamed to Diane, what she could be doing right now and how even if invited, she wouldn't care to see her daughter married, a mother and happy. Unbelievably happy.

She cast those thoughts away. She had so much love and light in her life now, she wouldn't dare let ghosts of her past crowd her joy.

"You're squishing me, Grandma!" Aaron squeaked out, making Kate and Margo pull apart far sooner than they wanted to.

"Okay, you! I've got plenty of squishes reserved for later, so you just get ready!" Margo imitated his adorable squeaks. Then turned somber and emotional again.

"Speaking of gifts." Margo gestured to Sun, who suddenly held several bags in her hands.

"What is all of this?" Kate asked, readjusting Aaron on her hip, her eyes drowning in another well of tears.

"I know you and Jack are not the traditional types Kate, but every bride deserves her something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, doesn't she?"

Kate couldn't contain the tears, letting them flow down her face, grateful she had opted for waiting to do her makeup. The three women with precious Aaron in tow sat down on the large bench at the foot of their bed.

"How did you two even coordinate this?" Kate asked, feeling foolish for introducing them earlier.

"I'm a very stubborn and resourceful woman, my dear. I believe you know that about my son." Margo winked.

Margo was the first to share in the gift-giving, pulling out a dark burgundy, velvet jewelry box, much too large for anything else besides a necklace. She opened it and ran her fingers lightly, lovingly over the pearls, suddenly glowing and reminiscing about the man that she had worn them for. Big, poofy, frilly dress, long veil and all. It wasn't the wedding she wanted, but it was the man she wanted and that was all that mattered to her memories of that day.

She turned the box's opening to Kate and Sun, watching as they marveled at the beautiful string of pearls. Aaron was oblivious, playing with those loose shoe laces of his dress shoes as the women around him sighed and gleamed.

Margo spoke over the lump in her throat. "These pearls are a family heirloom from Jack's father's side of the aisle. His great-great grandmother, great grandmother and grandmother all wore them on their wedding day. As did I. When I thought Jack was dead, I didn't think I would ever have anyone to pass them down to. Then, he came back to me. When he introduced me to you the day you all came back into the world, just by the way he looked at you, I knew he found her, someone I could give these to. Someone I could call my daughter."

Margo didn't feel his marriage to Sarah was one of the lasting variety, so she held off on passing along heirlooms and other treasures that she felt should stay in their family. She knew her son could feel that tension and she did her best to make Sarah feel included as much as she could in other ways.

To her surprise and awe, she much preferred Kate for Jack. The criminal charges and the tabloid media stories were daunting, and made her question if Jack was making the right decision. Upon sitting down with her and Jack together for dinner shortly before Christian's funeral, she was instantly sucked in by Kate's charm, her resilience and her love for her son and grandson.

She was a tenacious woman, kind, but an edge to her that wouldn't make well for a surgeon's wife, but Margo presumed that was one of the many reasons why she had attracted her son so strongly. He found a partner, an equal, someone to fight through life with. Her emotional connection to him appeared impenetrable and inescapable, their communication mostly achieved with little to no words spoken. She knew that even if she had developed reservations, by the way the temperature rose to steamy heights at a mere glance between the two of them, they were in it for the long haul.

Kate had been through hell with Jack from what she gathered from the stories, the silent pain in their eyes and faces whenever they spoke to the reporters and the testimonies at her trial, making it evident that it was a horrifically scary situation that not many survived. Margo didn't want her son to be alone in his pain and trauma anymore. With Kate, she felt assured he never would be again, and she believed it.

Kate looked between the pearls and Margo and couldn't fathom wearing something so beautiful, and that this wonderful woman trusted her to uphold such a sacred Shephard family tradition.

Instead of taking the box, Kate broke down into gut-wrenching sobs, the force of her tears racking her tiny frame and strangling her voice as she took in the pearls and what Margo was offering to her with them. Sun grabbed the tissue box from nearby, but Kate was still too blown away with emotion to take one.

"Oh my precious girl. I love you." Margo comforted her with a warm hug.

"I love you too." Kate sobbed.

Aaron rose on his knees next to her and put his tiny hands up to her face when she was released from the hug. He wiped at her tears. "Are you okay, Mommy?"

Kate looked down at him, her damp face breaking out into a happy, lopsided smile. "I'm okay, baby. These are happy tears."

She turned to Margo, shaking her head in anxious protest as she wiped at her tears with a tissue. "I can't accept them. I'm sorry, but I can't."

"Oh sweetheart. You can and you must." Margo wiped the remaining tears, lovingly admiring Kate's ethereal beauty, both inside and out. "And no more of that, we don't want you puffy for the pictures."

There she was, Kate thought with an amused chuckle, thinking of every small detail even in the midst of an emotionally-charged moment. Sun pulled the next gift from its small gift bag. She handed it to her friend, who felt she couldn't take any more.

"Now for something new." With Sun's silent encouragement, Kate opened the jewelry box, gasping at the sparkling diamond earrings.

"Oh my God. These are beautiful. W—who?" Kate stammered, in shock.

"Jack couldn't resist. He told me he saw them in the jewelry shop when shopping for your engagement ring. He knew you had to have them." Sun shared.

Kate's tearful smile made Sun's heart fill with so much happiness. It wasn't lost on her that Sun had mentioned that she and Jack had spoken before today. He knew Sun would be more than willing to come to the wedding, because he had already plotted this wonderful surprise with her. She smiled at the insight Jack had about her to know that Sun being a part of the event was so important to her.

She marveled at the earrings for far longer than the pearls, this gift chosen by Jack himself, his thought to her when he saw them filling her mind and heart. The love she had in her heart for him overwhelming and all-consuming, effortlessly taking the air out of her lungs. She had a thought to wear nothing but her engagement and wedding rings with these earrings to bed with him tonight. Things would get too wild for the pearls, she thought with an impish smile, biting her lip in anticipation. She wanted to reserve them for their future daughter.

Sun turned, pulling out another small jewelry box, while Kate continued to stare adoringly at her earrings. "Something borrowed."

Kate closed the box that held her earrings and pressed them near her heart before she sat them preciously in her lap. She took the other box from Sun with a grateful smile. Inside was a traditional South Korean hair pin, with a beautiful ivory colored Madonna lily adorning the top.

"I wore it on my wedding day, and I would like for you to have it or wear it on yours. It's borrowed so, you know." Sun hinted with a laugh.

Kate would never dream of keeping something so precious to her union with Jin away from her. She pulled Sun into a tight hug. "Thank you."

Margo smiled at the moment between the two women, then turned to her grandson, who had disappeared from Kate's side. "Time for something blue. Aaron?"

Kate pulled herself away from Sun as Aaron approached her holding a blue baby blanket. She gasped at the sight of it. It was his baby blanket, an older one that she remembered buying shortly after they were reintroduced into the world as the Oceanic Six. She had been swaddling him with old, tattered cloths from the Island, but she felt he needed something softer, better. She had gone into a small consignment shop and found it in the baby section. She was told by the shop owner that it was used to swaddle other precious children that were unexpected gifts to their parents. It was perfect.

"Baby, where did you find this?" Kate asked, touching gingerly at the fabric in Aaron's tiny hands.

"He didn't find it. I did." Margo stood next to the child, holding Kate's veil gingerly in her hands.

"This is your veil Kate," Margo started, as she sat back down, bringing Aaron up with her, "and embedded within some of this lovely embroidery work over the flowers and at the edges are threads and cloth from this very blanket. Jack will be wearing a pocket square from some of the material. I thought the two of you would like for a piece of Aaron to be up at the altar with you."

Kate shook her head in disbelief, then looked down at the tiny, blonde-haired, ice-blue eyed angel she grew from the second he landed in her arms. He stared up at her with so much love, so innocent and sweet, she felt she could burst from it. She reached down to take his chubby face in her hands and peppered him with kisses all over his face, easily delighted by his squeaks and squeals.

"You think of everything, don't you?" She teased Margo with a joyful, tearful laugh, close to another emotional overhaul.

Margo giggled as she wiped gently at the tears threatening to flow.

"Lets get you ready my dear."

Jack stared into the mirror of the guest bathroom, deciding long ago that the bride should have the entire master on-suite for herself and her guests. His shave was close, leaving a bit of stubble just like Kate insisted she liked. He smiled at how often he had to search for his electric razor in their master bath. The thought of her lifted his face into a warm and reminiscent smile.

'I'm so glad you changed your mind. I'm so glad you're here.'

He was glad too. Taking the steps to be with Kate and fully embrace his connection to Aaron empowered him to go after everything he wanted out of his life. Most pressing on the list was to make her his wife. She made his heart ache for things he never had before and gave birth to the idea that he could actually have them. The idea was becoming a reality with every step, large and small.

He had already moved in with her months ago, and had no issue selling his condo and making this house their home. Their lives were melding without much effort, the long hours he kept at the hospital not very different from the long hours he spent taking care of everyone on the Island, seeing her only in random spurts of time he would steal away for her, until she forced him to slow down for longer than a few hours.

He knew that she respected his career and his place at the hospital, his name alone bringing in patients that provided the opportunity to perform cutting-edge surgeries, a lifeline for prestige and recognition the hospital expected of him and he expected of himself. Even with all of the rare cases loading his surgical schedule, he couldn't pull himself away from any patient who needed him. He also knew that she expected more time for her and Aaron, and he gave it without any prompting or prodding on her part. His experience and seniority allowed him to adjust his schedule to afford the time she needed from him and the time he wanted from her and the nephew he was only beginning to get to know.

Aaron was such a sweet child, he thought. He grew and changed every single day, and was inseparable from him most nights when he was home early enough to spend time with him and read to him before bedtime. They were building a rapport, a routine that was soothing to both of them. Whenever he looked at him, held him, he knew that he would do anything to protect him. He was learning how to be a father with every step, clumsy and otherwise. It was a role he found suited him.

His thoughts turned to his bride again. His role as the main focus of her every sexual desire suited him just fine as well, making him certain she would make a widow out of herself at her pace before he could marry her. He had been a willing participant in her seductive snare every time, and would take her until she was exhausted and panting heavily for breath. Their game of who could last longer creating a bit of a tie each time as they found themselves coming together right before they knew they were too tired to continue. He would watch her throughout until the moment she exploded around him, silently hoping that they created their child in that very instant, glued to each other and quivering to sleep.

In those moments, and even in the simple ones throughout the day, he could feel that all-consuming ache inside of his chest, to live a full and happy life with this woman who ripped him to shreds with how much he loved her. She was the only one who could give him that to his heart's fullest desire, and he would love her for the rest of his life for it.

They had been rethinking the decision to stay so close to the city, the media scrutiny and need for privacy already an issue for them, but becoming a bigger one. Kate wanted a slower pace and was more than open to purchasing a house together. She had already picked her perfect home, mulling over the decision excitedly for weeks, landing on a large, newly-built and very expensive property in Northern California over and over again in their search. She tried not to make a big deal about it, the price likely scaring her off. They decided to wait until after the wedding to make a decision about it, but she didn't know that he already had.

He smiled at the plans he made for them as he moved into the adjoined guest bedroom, already dressed in the slacks of his tuxedo, comfortable at his waist under a belt. A white muscle shirt covered his chest and back, not quite ready to put on the rest of his attire quite yet. He looked at his watch, clocking the time. They were a little more than an hour out from the start of the ceremony.

He heard a knock on the door before it came slightly ajar with a slight turn of the knob.

"Hope you don't mind that I snuck in with Margo and Aaron." Sam Austen's scratchy baritone greeted through the crack in the doorway.

"I don't. Get in here." Jack gestured with a smile.

Sam moved in, approaching Jack for a tight hug, the kind reserved for family. "How you feeling'?"

Jack nodded. "I feel good."

"Where's our girl?" Sam asked.

"She's upstairs getting ready. Our friend Sun and my mother are no doubt helping her with everything."

"Not many people here to help you though." Sam pointed out, gesturing towards the space, empty except for Jack and his tuxedo jacket, a small suitcase, and other accessories.

"Our friends Hurley and Sayid are on their way." Jack offered.

"Anyone else by way of family?" Sam asked.

"My grandfather Ray was supposed to come, but he recently came down with pneumonia. His caregivers highly recommend that he stay put and rest. He really wants to be here but he's entirely too weak and not very coherent these days." Jack took a pregnant pause, his face cracked with sadness, but he tried to hold it back.

"I think we're nearing the end soon."

Sam approached him slowly. From his conversations with Kate, he knew that Jack had recently lost his father, but to lose his grandfather too, and with such a sliver of time in between. This had to be devastating for him, even in light of a wedding.

"I'm so sorry." Sam offered, planting a sure and steady hand over his shoulder. "You've been through the ringer, kiddo."

Jack jerked away slightly, his head hung low, his balled fist pressed into his mouth as he coughed away the huge lump in his throat. Sam sensed the emotional struggle, and immediately felt guilty. He almost pulled away, but felt that Jack might need someone to hold him upright. He kept his hand on him and had the other ready to catch him if he decided to let the emotions tear him apart.

"Was it something I said, son?" Sam asked cautiously.

Jack kept quiet for a second, then shook his head as it still hung low. He eventually straightened up, his voice strained, but trying its best to not appear so. "My father used to call me that all the time. Kiddo. I used to think that word would never sound the same to me ever again. But just now, it did. In the best way."

Sam continued to hold his hand over Jack's shoulder, squeezing lightly as he took a few more minutes to collect himself.

"Well, you're gonna be my kiddo any minute now, so if you don't mind, I'd be beyond honored to carry the torch."

Jack looked over at Sam, fresh tears in his eyes. They knew what the moment meant. If Jack ever needed a father figure, a male elder to call on for advice, encouragement and understanding, Sam was up for it. Not only had he reconnected with Kate, he dotted on his grandson and was overjoyed at the idea of this strong, decent, intelligent and loving man for a son. Not only was Jack marrying his best friend, lover and soulmate, he was close to admitting to Kate that he wanted to adopt Aaron and was being offered a father he could call on. Their riches were multiplying.

"I don't mind at all." Jack wiped at his tears as Sam used the hand on his shoulder to acknowledge the moment.

They were quiet for a time, a comfortable, contemplative quiet. There was so much love, respect and admiration between them they had to clear their throats and step away to allow it space in the small room.

Jack walked over to pull on his dress shirt, buttoning it up, and fiddling with one of the cuffs, folding it to prepare for the cufflink. Sam picked up a cufflink from atop a shelf in the nearby wardrobe. They were nice, he thought, but they weren't the ones he would wear today if he had anything to say about it.

"I don't think you're gonna need these, Jack. Two pairs of cufflinks is a little excessive, yeah?"

Jack turned, confused, but then noticed the small, black velvet jewelry box that sat next to the cufflinks he planned to wear.

"What did you do?" He laughed nervously, stalled by even more emotion welling inside his chest.

Sam approached him with the box, and placed it in his hand. "What any father would."

Jack took a deep breath, preparing for another emotional onslaught. He opened the box to find a very sophisticated set of sterling silver cufflinks. They were infinitely better than the ones he had chosen to wear.

"You can't say no to these, Jack. They're heirlooms. Plenty of Austen men started their lives off with the women of their dreams while wearing these. I wore them, so did my father, my grandfather and great-grandfather before him."

"Sam, I—I don't know what to say." Jack hesitated, awestruck by equal parts gratitude and unworthiness.

"Say you'll wear them and keep them for when Aaron gets married someday." Sam urged him. "You are one fine man, Jack. I've questioned a lot of Kate's choices over the years, but you are not one of them. I've never seen her happier. You keep her that way, which I know you will, and throw a few more grandkids in there, and a couple of fly-fishing ventures to sweeten the deal, you just might become my favorite person ever."

Before Jack could respond, they were interrupted by a knock at the door. Jack knew exactly who it was and invited Hurley inside.

Hurley stepped into the room with the biggest smile on his face. "Dude, I knew this day would come."

"Hello to you too Hurley." Jack said as he was pulled into a bear hug.

Jack gestured to Sam, his face gleaming with pride. "Hurley, this is Seargent Major Sam Austen of the United States Army, Kate's father. Seargent Major, this is Hurley."

"How are you, sir?" Hurley asked, straightening his back at the official greeting, extending his hand nervously. Sam found that he was going to like this guy too.

"Loosen your slacks, kid. This one likes saying all of that to tease me." Sam playfully slapped at Jack's arm as he dodged him with a hearty laugh.

"I should be asking you how you are. You're front and center with the happy couple, right?" Sam asked, taking Hurley's hand and shaking it.

Two weeks before, Hurley had been asked by Jack and Kate to officiate their wedding over dinner in their home. It only took less than a minute for them to ask him, but they spent the next twenty minutes consoling him as he cried uncontrollably at the invitation.

"Why yes I am." Hurley admitted proudly. He would never forget the honor they trusted him with. "But not before I give this to the groom, from his bride."

Hurley pulled out a velvet jewelry box, one much larger than the one that carried the cufflinks.

Jack passed Hurley a look and he read it with ease. "She wanted to do this for you, Jack. And don't ask me what it is, I was just tasked with picking it up and giving it to you today. Scout's honor."

Jack took the box, still suspended in a state of disbelief, and opened it. The watch face was sterling silver, very expensive but not in a showy way, in a way that showed how special the gift was. The band was patent black leather, very comfortable and durable. It was a gorgeous piece he could see himself wearing every day.

Jack turned the face in his palm, reading the inscription on the back, the words choking him up instantly.

'I have always been with you. – Kate'

Sam and Hurley gave Jack a minute to take it all in, watching as his eyes filled with tears as he stared down at the inscription, dreadfully unsure if it was real. A ragged puff of air blew from his chest as the memory flooded his mind. His plea to her that his plan to protect them and the Island would never sell if she wasn't by his side seemed to have ignited a fire inside of her for him to understand just how she was always with him.

And always would be.

Then, he watched her disappear into the darkness as stealthy as she had appeared, and with her, any doubts he had about her place in his life and his place in hers.

Jack blew out another long, deep breath, his shoulders slightly shaking with emotion as the tears fell down his face.

Sam grabbed at his shoulder again, offering another comforting squeeze. Jack looked up, the love he felt for Kate bleeding from his deep, warm eyes, and down his face.

"Lets get you ready, son."

It was really harsh for me to stop there, I know! But next up: J+K's WEDDING.