Epilogue
One year later
This had to be the most unconventional wedding ever—which was exactly what we’d always wanted.
I stared across the yard, glancing at the table Callum had made for Crew and Price.
Right on top was our red fondant cake in all its glory, with three tiers and a fuck ton of decorative pearls and black swirls that meant nothing but looked pretty.
Right next to the cake was our wooden box with our names burned along the top. We’d add Callum’s new last name and drop our vows into it later. We’d barely made a dent in it, only a few small sentimental items lying at the bottom. Like my one-year sober token Kathleen had given me.
Fishy and Lemon—our most recent puppy—were enjoying all the attention from our friends and family. Mom had spoiled them absolutely rotten, but how could I say no to her loving on her grand puppies?
Everyone was sitting in wooden chairs, each of them handmade by Callum. At the very front was one empty rocking chair, its spot taken by the memory of Grandpa Stanton and the mockingbird that was singing in the tree just above us.
It was perfect. Everything was perfect. There was a gentle, cool breeze caressing my face as I watched the back door like a hawk.
Any moment now.
Any moment and Callum would walk down the aisle.
Sabrina stood with her little book, waiting for her moment to shine. She’d been a wonderful addition to the newest Fire and Ice location, happily offering to officiate us on our very special, very unconventional wedding.
Music started from behind where I stood, setting my heart off into a race. It was time. It was here. Our moment was here, and I couldn’t have been fucking happier.
The back door slowly opened. Callum appeared on the other side in his classic black and white tuxedo, complete with the cutest bow tie I’d ever seen. His beard was neatly trimmed, more gray hair peeking out than when I’d proposed to him.
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray.
I knew Mom was smiling in the crowd at the song choice, most likely thinking of all the times she’d sung that same song to me as a kid.
It’d somehow become a thing for Callum and I.
When we were having a hard time, no matter what it was, we’d hold each other and sing it until everything felt okay again.
Callum made it to the edge of the platform, smiling with tears in his eyes. “Hi, baby doll.” He whispered.
“Hi.”
The moment he stepped in front of me, all I could think about was kissing him. The rings we were about to have on our fingers. The life we had waiting for us. The future that used to seem so fucking dark and useless, now full of sunshine.
I wasn’t even paying Sabrina any attention, repeating what she said to repeat eagerly. None of that really even mattered. What mattered was our commitment. Our devotion.
“Tobias, please read your vows that you’ve prepared.”
That was my cue. I pulled the pretty green cardstock—the same shade as the sheet on our first date—out of my jacket pocket, clearing my throat as I tried to make my voice stop shaking.
“Callum, I wrote most of these about thirteen years ago when I first realized I was going to marry you one day. They’re still true, so I only added a few things in the end.
“Love is a weird, fickle thing in my opinion. I felt it for you the first time I looked into your eyes and realized I saw a future in them. Which is odd because we’d barely known each other.
I guess when you know, you know. There was just something about the way you smiled that lured me in and kept me there, givin’ curiosity a new definition.
I’d started to worry it’d bordered on obsession, honestly.
Even if it did, I guess it don’t matter anymore ‘cause I’m here to stay.
” I glanced up at him, trying to remind him of how true it was.
“You have shown me that love can be fast, and it can be healin’.
It can be scary, but it can be freeing. It’s intimate and quiet, yet bright and loud.
Fallin’ in love with you is the best thing I’ve ever done.
I did it while tremblin’, I did it while worrying.
I did it while uncertain. Not because I wasn’t sure I loved you, but because I wasn’t sure if I deserved you. ”
I took a deep breath, listening to the mockingbird sing a new tune above us.
The tree leaves rustled in the ever-present wind, whispering its secrets to us.
“Love is fickle, and it’s weird because I don’t think we’ll ever think we deserve each other.
That’s just a part of it. It’s selfless, but it’s selfish.
I am selfish. I am selfish enough to cling to you for the rest of our lives and not give a single shit if I deserve you or not.
I’m gonna fight every demon, and we’re gonna win every battle because even if love is scary, lovin’ you ain’t scary in the slightest. It’s as beautiful and as pure as a white feather blowing in the wind.
I promise you, and I vow to you, that I’ll stay by your side and selfishly love you until the end of our lives. Maybe even longer.”
Callum’s cheeks were wet with tears, his hands trembling as he pursed his lips together to keep from crying out loud. I knew that face. He sniffled, huffing a soft laugh when Sabrina told him to read his.
He pulled out a matching green piece of cardstock, wiping his eyes as he looked down at it. “I don’t think these will beat that, but I’ll sure try.” His voice was shaking, and all I wanted to do was scoop him up and kiss him.
Selfishly.
He shook his head, taking a deep breath to compose himself.
“Tobi, I didn’t know that sunshine could come from a person before I fell in love with you.
Even apart, I’d look at the sky and thank the sun for giving me warmth.
For giving me you. At night, I’d search the stars in hopes I’d find you in them, and I almost always did.
You were always the brightest one. The one highest up there, surrounding the moon in all its glory.
I never knew that a person could make everything feel better at a moment’s notice until I met you.
Everyone here knows just how anxious I am, right? ”
There were nods and mumbles of agreement, much to his dismay.
“Well, I somehow always find solace in you. Even the hard days aren’t as hard because I’ve got my sunshine.
My supernova. My calm. My home. I never knew just how easy it could be to love someone until I met you.
For a long time, I thought I was broken or something, but it seems I’d just been waiting for you.
Once I’d found you? Oh, god. Papa could’ve told you just how fucking insufferable I was, asking him a million questions about love and what it felt like.
He told me that love wasn’t a feeling, but a knowing.
I’d thought he was spouting nonsense, but it actually made sense because I just knew.
I just knew. It was a cosmic explosion, and an instinct I didn’t know I’d had ingrained in me.
Loving you has been the easiest thing I’ve ever done because I don’t have to try.
I just do. I just know. My devotion and my promise to you, Tobias Weaver, is to carry your last name with pride and love you with my entire soul until our stars die. ”
Yeah, wouldn’t beat mine, my ass. I was one breath away from fucking sobbing. My entire body was shaking with the need to hold him. Love him. Kiss him.
Sabrina was thankfully much louder than our sniffles. “By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and husband.”
With our rings on our fingers marking the beginning of our next forever, we both stepped forward, grabbing each other by the faces. When our lips came together, we cried into the kiss, mixing our tears with our love. With our eternity.
With our souls.
I kissed him hard, and he kissed back just as deep. Cheers rang out through Crew and Price’s backyard, everyone celebrating our moment. The song got louder as I pressed my forehead against his, still holding his face in my hands. “I love you, Callum Weaver.”
He squeezed his eyes shut, tears pouring out of them and down his cheeks. “Fuck, I love you, Tobias Weaver.”
I grabbed his hand, turning us to face the yard. We’d won. We weren’t done fighting. We’d never be done fighting. Things would come up, and they’d rock our world for a while, but we’d already won because we were here.
We were here together.
I looked down at the rocking chair, letting out something between a laugh, a cry, and a pained groan as I noticed a perfectly white, perfectly innocent feather right on the seat. Closing my eyes, I thanked Grandpa Stanton, wherever he was watching.
He may not have been there for us in the flesh, but he’d made it.
And I felt fucking weightless.
The End.