With love

She eyed herself cautiously as she passed by the tall windows, her reflection vaguely visible in the dusty glass.

Why her high school friend had been so keen on marrying her surprise boyfriend (who had magically appeared out of thin air, for some reason) on this windy autumn day was beyond her, not to mention the fact that the wedding was held miles away from the parking area.

Her feet were already hurting, her ankles sore and her hair (which had cost like 600 Munny to do - she was quite sure her hairdresser had ripped her off -) was all over the place.

She was a mess, she could tell from that cautious glance at the windows. Even so, she stood her ground, simply because she had to, and finally opened the heavy mahogany doors with her shoulder. Nothing else could go wrong anymore; she had arrived, at the very least.

She thought wrong.

As she looked up, at all the heads turned towards her, including the groom and bride and the freaking priest, she realised she had probably remembered the wrong time.

She was late. Way too late.

She took a deep breath, made a little bow at the soon-to-be-married couple and shook her messy hair over her shoulder, straightening herself.

Cursing inwardly, she walked down part of the aisle with her last pieces of shredded dignity, trying to be as fast and silent as she could be as the priest continued his speech after clearing his throat.

Finally, she had reached the aisle, taking her place next to another friend of Naminé, who gave her a questioning, slightly angry and cross look. She gave an awkward smile and wanted to vanish into the ground for all eternity.

She didn't know where to look; all eyes seemed to be glued to her and it made her feel terribly insecure.

As she raised her gaze just a little to avoid those stares, however, she made eye-contact with the best man, the brother of the mysterious groom.

The blonde seemed rather amused, a tiny smirk playing around the corners of his mouth. Even so, he averted his gaze right away, pressing his lips together somewhat, as if to keep himself from laughing. She flushed a bright red as she moodily stared at the painted ceiling. How had she overslept? How had she forgotten the time? She had thought she was one hour early! No wonder she hadn't seen anyone else on their way to the ceremony.

Even so, he averted his gaze right away, pressing his lips together somewhat, as if to keep himself from laughing. She flushed a bright red as she moodily stared at the painted ceiling. How had she overslept? How had she forgotten the time?

She had thought she was one hour early! No wonder she hadn't seen anyone else on their way to the ceremony.

Due to her embarrassment, the ceremony flashed by.

She was vaguely aware of the rings that were brought by a small child she had never seen before, the vows were over before she realised that was what they were doing (she already wondered what the notes were for) and sooner than she had thought it to happen, the happy newly-weds were bursting out of the hall.

She followed them along with the other bridesmaids, ignoring the whining pain in her feet, resisting the urge to turn her ankles in circles to try and relieve the pain a bit. What would she tell Naminé?

The couple, however, was flooded by the other guests who wanted to congratulate them and she let out a soft sigh of relief. She wouldn't have to justify her stupid mistake for at least an hour, so it seemed. She should think about what to say… the truth? A lie? What lie? Excuses? What excuse? She suppressed a sigh.

She wouldn't have to justify her stupid mistake for at least an hour, so it seemed. She should think about what to say… the truth? A lie? What lie? Excuses? What excuse? She suppressed a sigh.

"That was quite the entrance," an amused low voice said somewhere close to her ear. She jumped slightly, pressing her free hand to her heart as she turned to face the best man, who grinned down at her.

"Thanks for reminding me," she retorted with chagrin. "If you hadn't said so, I might not have realised I was late in the first place."

He wasn't fazed in the slightest by her temper as he extended his hand to her. "Lucky I said something then. The name's Roxas, by the way."

"Kairi," she said, a little curt, shaking his hand.

She had stopped caring about the wind at all. It was having its way with her hair anyway; she knew she should've kept it as short as she did when she was younger.

The only thing she felt slightly sad about was the wasted Munny.

She could have spent it on something better. Like more comfortable shoes.

"Seems like you weren't notified about the weather, either," the guy said, glancing up at the sky a little before giving her a teasing look from the corner of his eye, the same smirk as earlier curling his lips upwards.

She managed a strained smile. "Well, I'm glad I can be your source of amusement today."

"Sorry," he said, sounding genuine, something shimmering in his sky blue eyes. "I'm not really laughing at you. It's just—" he stopped talking rather abruptly, hiding his mouth behind the back of his hand as he averted his gaze. Then, as he glanced back at her, he burst out into laughter.

"No," she said sourly. "You must be laughing at the priest's mismatched tie. I see."

He shook his head, carefully breathing out, the sound of his laughter still in the small sigh. "No, it was your face, well, your expression, really," he clarified. "I just keep imagining it and it's the funniest thing I've seen all year."

"All year?" she said, this time a bit bewildered.

His grin softened into a vague smile. "Yeah. You should be honoured."

She glanced back at the newly-wed couple, who were still talking to the other guests, who had lined up to be able to congratulate them. She wasn't quite sure how to respond, so instead, she changed the subject. "So, the groom's your brother, huh?"

"Yeah," Rosas said, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his trousers. "It was a bit of a surprise, really," he said almost thoughtfully. "All of the sudden the girl's name popped up and he was talking about marrying her."

"I know," she said, quite surprised. She had thought that for the family, it would've been less of a surprise, even though she was Naminé's friend and she had been baffled to hear the news. "We hadn't heard much about him either. I guess they were convinced quite quickly, then."

"I think they tied the knot too soon," he said, a sharp edge to his voice. "We'll see how long they last."

"They're married," she said, strangely flabbergasted by his words.

"So?" he said, glancing back at her. "That doesn't mean people stay together for the rest of their lives."

"But… what about 'until death do us part'?" she said, her eyes wide as she took in the guy. His gaze seemed strangely sympathetic, almost as if he pitied her. "Marriage isn't really like that anymore, Kairi."

There were strange jitters in her stomach as he said her name, though she was a bit cross with him for saying such a thing on his brother's wedding day. "It's your brother," she protested quietly as an elderly couple passed them to get in line.

"That's why I'm saying it," he said with a shrug. "Sora's impulsive."

He said it as if it was an explanation of some sort, but as he kept quiet afterwards, she shook her head. "Naminé's not like that. I'm sure they'll be happy together."

"Wanna place a bet on it?" he said, raising his brow slightly.

"It's your brother's marriage!" she scolded him. "Don't you dare place bets on it!"

He smiled, his expression softening a little. "That's true," he said. "Well, we'll see, then."

"We should congratulate them," she finally said after a small moment of silence. "I need to apologise, too."

"You sure need to," he said, his voice a bit strained before he burst out into laughter again.

She didn't mind so much now, finding him strangely... bitter. If he laughed like that, his features relaxed and he seemed years younger, all traces of shadows hovering over any expression he made gone with the wind.

"C'mon," she said, smiling along just a little, giving his elbow a small nudge. "After you."

She watched him politely kiss Naminé on the cheek before he went to pat his brother on the back. She took a deep breath and wrapped her arms around her friend.
"Naminé! Congratulations! I'm so—"

"Where were you?" her friend said in her ear, a bit accusing. "I thought you might not be coming! Why the heck were you so late?!"

"I'm so sorry," she apologised as she let her friend go, keeping her hands locked in hers. "I must've made a mistake regarding the time. I'm so sorry. I've already been scolded by the best man, though," she added, making a head gesture to the blonde. "So don't worry. I'm so happy for the two of you, though. I wish you all the best."

Naminé gave her a bright smile, though a couple of tears escaped her. "Thank you."

"Be happy together," she ordered the couple, as Sora wrapped an arm around Naminé's waist, grinning widely. "Okay?"

She gave Sora a kiss on his cheek. "Take care of her."

"Will do," Sora promised.

She left them as the line had still not quite come to an end, and she found herself looking over to find the blonde brother of the groom.

She didn't know many people here, surprisingly. Either Sora's family was huge or Naminé had some family stuffed away in the back of a country she had never mentioned before, but she was surrounded by unfamiliar faces, all similar as they were all giving her judging looks.

"Kairi! Wait up!"

She turned around to see Selphie head her way. "Oh, hi, Selphie!" she said as she greeted her friend, who whacked her against the head upon arriving.

"Ouch!" she said, shielding her head from further attacks. "What was that for?!"

"How could you be late at Naminé's wedding?!" Selphie said angrily. "That was uncalled for! You were a bridesmaid as well!"

"I know!" she said, cringing a little. "I'm so sorry! I honestly thought I was on time!"

"They rescheduled," Selphie said, massaging her forehead. "Like a week ago."

She stared at the brunette. "What?"

"You didn't get the memo? Oh, Kairi…"

"I didn't hear of that! I swear! There's no way I'd oversleep my friend's wedding!"

"Well, at least you were in time for the exchange of the rings," Selphie said with a sigh. "What happened to your hair?"

"The wind happened," she said, a bit upset now. "Look, I already told Naminé I was sorry, okay?"

She finally spotted the blonde guy at a standing table in the corner, who was on his own. She almost felt relieved. "Oh, I'm sorry," she quickly added before Selphie could continue to scold her. "I've got to go."

She rushed over to his table, his gaze following her on her way. There was that amused shimmer in his eyes again as he suppressed a smile. "Back again?"

"Yeah," she said whole-heartedly. "Even so, would you mind moving over to a sitting table with me?"

"Why?" he said a bit confused before he glanced down at her shoes. "Oh, your feet, huh?"

"Not necessarily," she lied stiffly. "I can walk just fine in heels."

He smiled. "Is that so? Then surely you won't mind standing around a bit longer."

"Oh, come on, don't be such a jerk," she complained quietly. "Fine, they hurt. Can we go sit down now?"

"Sure," he simply said as she surrendered. He led the way to an empty sitting table as most people were still standing around, exchanging pleasantries and greeting one another.

"It's quite busy, huh?" she said as she immediately sat down, taking off her heels and hiding her bare feet under the table, sighing in relief.

He chuckled a little at her before sitting down too, eyeing the crowd. "Yeah. That was to be expected, though."

"How come?"

"We are quite a strange family," he said with a shrug. "Sora's my half-brother."

"Oh," she said, glancing around once more. "Now it makes sense."

"So, why are you here again?"

She glared at him. "I'm Naminé's friend," she said, raising her brow.

He shook his head. "No, I mean, why are you here with me?"

"Oh, that," she said, her anger fading as quickly as it had come. She sighed as she sunk back into her chair. "The bride's too busy, my other friend was mean to me and everyone else hates me now, except for you."

"Who said I didn't hate you?" he said calmly.

"Oh, you probably do," she said, rubbing her sore feet. "But at least you laugh right into my face instead of behind my back, that counts for something."

"I see," he said, smiling again. "Don't worry, though. I don't hate you," he added nonchalantly as he glanced at the bride and the groom, happily chatting with Naminé's parents. "I've known you for less than two hours."

"People are usually faster in judging others," she remarked thoughtfully. "Ten seconds can be enough."

He rested his elbows on the table, tilting his head to the side as he rested his cheek on top of his folded hands. "It was enough for them, apparently."

"Sora's your half-brother, right?"

"Yeah," he said, glancing back at her. "We share the same father."

"What happened to your mother?"

"Divorce," he said with a crooked smile. "Just one of the many shattered fairytales."

"I'm sorry," she said, pitying him for having grown up in a broken family as she had always happily lived with both her parents, who were the best of friends after all those years.

"Don't be," he said, averting his gaze again. "It's been quite a while ago."

Though everyone was mingling, no one came to sit at their table. He didn't make a move to greet anyone either and she wondered why; he had been the groom's best man and yet he seemed as much of a stranger as she was.

"So…" she said slowly, watching his crystal blue eyes flash back to her as soon as she spoke. "What did you do on your brother's wedding to make everyone avoid you?"

She had anticipated a certain crossness but found it fair as he had pissed her off as well when they had just met. To her surprise, however, he laughed. "Becoming the best man," he said, his laughter softening into a smile. "Sora insisted, though, and he's the only one in our family I can get along with, so I thought I'd do him a favour."

"Really?" she said, a bit surprised. The bitterness started to make sense. "How about your father?"

The look he gave her was rather strange; his expression seemed harsh, but the blue in his eyes had melted and seemed warm. "I wanted it to be how you said it would be. My father disagreed; he had found someone younger he wanted to spend his time with."

"Ah," she said softly. "I see."

"I was seven, I had nothing to say," he said with a chuckle as she glanced at the newly-weds. "I lashed out at everyone. No one has forgiven me for that," he added with a shrug. "Well, it's how things are, isn't it?"

"I don't think that's hardly fair," she said as she shook her head. "Or were you really mean?" she added a bit teasingly. "Did you laugh at them the way you did at me?"

He smiled, seeming a bit relieved as she changed the subject. "Something like that," he said, copying her teasing tone. "Now that you mention it, I guess it is only natural for them to dislike me."

She nodded severely. "I will probably have to go to therapy to get over it."

He laughed. "Might try a different hairdresser while you're at it."

"Hey!" she said, touching her hair a bit cautiously. "It looked good when I got out of the hairdresser's chair!"

He raised his brow. "How come I don't believe you?"

She huffed as she rummaged in her bag. "I have a picture here on my phone, give me one second."

As she finally got it out and scrolled through her photo gallery until she found the one of her hair, she triumphantly showed him. "There! See! It was pretty before!"

"Oh," he said as he narrowed his eyes at the picture. "So that's what it was supposed to look like."

"Oh, shut up," she said, flushing a bit as she put the phone away. "I had no idea today was one of those days."

He smiled. "Me neither."

She smiled back at him. "Yeah, I feel bad for you, being stuck with me."

"Stuck?" he said, slightly amused.

"Oh, yeah," she said as she slid back into her painful heels, making a face. "I don't care where you go, I'll be stuck to your side like glue because everyone else is scary," she added jokingly though part if it was true.

"Hmm," he said thoughtfully. "I may have encountered my first stalker, then."

"I did not say that!" she said indignantly. "Don't make me sound worse than I am!"

He laughed. "Sorry, first impressions tend to last."

"What?!"

"Introduce yourself again, then," he said, his laugh audible in his voice and extending his hand to her. "Hi, I'm Roxas, I'm the brother of the groom."

She smiled as she shook his extended hand. "Hi, my name's Kairi Hikari, I'm an old friend of Naminé. Nice to meet you."

He let go of her hand and hid his grin behind his hand. "Sorry, it doesn't make a difference."

She threw a napkin at his head. "Stop it, you bully!"

He caught the napkin in his right hand, still laughing. "Sorry, sorry, I swear I'm usually not like this."

She believed him on his word.

He had had this grave expression on his face at some times during the ceremony and the bitterness that he carried with him showed on his face as clear as daylight.

Still, he seemed so much more carefree and happier when he laughed like this. His crystal blue eyes, which had seemed to be almost a metallic kind of blue before, had warmed up and even the corners of his lips were turning upwards almost permanently.

She could only smile back at him. "Well, they say laughing makes you live longer. Can't wait to see you become an old man. Then I'll take revenge and take your walking cane from you, running away laughing while you stumble after me."

"Ouch," he said, grinning. "That's harsh. Besides, I don't believe I'm that much older than you are."

"I'm twenty," she said with a smile.

He smirked. "Twenty-seven."

"Damn," she said, leaning back a bit. "I think I can already steal your walking cane."

"Don't exaggerate," he said nonchalantly. "I'm not even thirty yet."

"Isn't it weird that your younger brother is already getting married?" she wondered genuinely.

"A little," he admitted as he glanced at the couple again.

"Is there no one you'd like to get married to?"

He chuckled. "Nope. Have been on my own for years."

She leaned forward, resting on her forearms. "Does it worry you? To be on your own?"

He glanced back at her, his eyes resting almost lazily on her face. "Hmm… a little, I suppose. Even though I don't believe in finding someone to spend the rest of my life with, I guess I have never succeeded in beating the hope down."

She smiled at his honesty. "I see. It worries me too," she said quietly as she averted her gaze to her now married friend. "I'm almost jealous that she already found it. I sometimes wish I could look into the future and see what it brings me."

"You're still very young," he remarked almost gently.

"That's what they all say," she said with a sigh, glancing back at him with a smile. "And before you know it, you're twenty-seven," she added teasingly.

He chuckled. "Not going to lie, that's how it went for me."

She laughed heartily at that statement. "Well, I think you're a great guy," she said with a small nod. "I'm sure you'll find someone who'll change the way you look at these things."

"Really?" he said, raising his brow. "You should know my friend has tried to hook me up with a girl every few months and none of them were even close to the one you're describing."

"I want to say you're not giving them enough of a chance," she said with another sigh. "But I have the same thing - with guys," she specified. "I think what we want differs."

"And there's a 'whole ocean of the same fish'," he added with a crooked smile.

She giggled. "Oh, that's just mean."

"I'm not even joking," he said indignantly. "I swear to God, every Jessica, every Melanie, every Erica, they are all the same."

"Good thing 'Kairi' is not a usual name, then," she said teasingly. "I'm sure you'll remember me."

He chuckled. "Oh, I'll remember you, all right. Standing there in the doorway, this look on your face, yep. Never going to forget that."

"Yeah," she muttered darkly as a waitress put two glasses of champagne on their table. "You tell that to the next Monica you see."

He laughed again. "I will for sure, don't you worry about that."

An older man stood up from the crowd, gently tapping his glass with a spoon to gain everyone's attention.

"Ugh," Roxas groaned. "Here we go."

"Your father?" she guessed as she studied the older man. Though his hair was grey, he was unmistakably Roxas's father. They had the same jawline and the same crystal blue eyes.

"Yeah," he said, his expression sobered down. "He's been preparing this speech ever since the girl came over. Just like Sora."

She smiled a bit as the father took a deep breath, nervously fiddling with his notes. "He's nervous."

He glanced at her, she could see it from the corner of her eyes, but she had already done so much wrong on this wedding, she thought she'd do this right and pay attention to the speech.

It was a bit chaotic and all over the place, but it was well-meant and she now knew slightly too much about her friend's husband. It had amused Roxas greatly as the groom hid his embarrassed face in his napkin.

"Well," she said, pressing her trembling lips together to try and stop herself from laughing as they applauded anyway. "I'm now awfully familiar with your brother."

"Poor Sora," Roxas laughed heartily. "To come back to your former question, no, I'm very glad I'm not married yet. Jesus, that was rough."

It was now Naminé's father's turn, who kept it short, simple and sweet. She had seen the man a few times before and knew he was as quiet as Naminé was, so it did not surprise her.

"I'd rather vote for that speech on my wedding," she said to him, chuckling a little as they applauded again. "Saves a lot of time and embarrassment, might make me cry, though."

"At least you won't cry tears of embarrassed terror," Roxas pointed out. "The tears Sora is crying right now."

The groom had slightly recovered but still seemed red from top to toe.

"I'll hire you if I'd want to cry those tears," she said with a chuckle.

He gave her a little bow with his head, smirking. "I'm honoured."

She grinned back at him. "I'll come at your wedding, too, to make some self-deprecating jokes and make fun of your age. You know, the usual."

Before he could reply, everyone was standing up to make a toast. They quickly grabbed their glass to toast along.

"Oh," she said after taking a sip. "This is not so bad."

"Indeed," he said with a thoughtful hum. "So my little brother does have taste after all."

"Of course he has," she said with a smile. "He's married to Naminé, after all."

He had been taking a sip and choked on it as he burst into laughter.

She patted him on his back as he coughed. "What the hell, man?" she said, though she couldn't help but smirk a little. "You're the one with no taste."

"Oh, shut up," he finally said in-between breaths as they sat down. "Wow, I nearly died."

"God punishes at once," she said sternly. "So beware."

"There are as many opinions as there are people," he said dignifiedly. "That's why he's married to her and I'm here choking on my drink."

She giggled. "Fair point, mister."

Everyone then became quiet as the couple opened the first dance and she couldn't help but smile as the two kept glancing lovingly at each other. She wished the fate of the two lovers would be different from the fate of Roxas's parents.

As the first song started to fade, Roxas clasped his hands together and closed his eyes firmly. "Please God, don't let it be me. Don't let it be me. I know it's polite, but don't let it be me. Pick Jerry."

She hid her grin behind her hand and as the couple split up to take other people to the dance floor, she started to cry with laughter as Naminé headed over their way to pick Roxas up.

He cursed through his gritted teeth as Naminé took his hand and glared over his shoulder at her.

She simply waved at him, wiping her tears away with her free hand, still laughing at his misfortune.

He wasn't a bad dancer, though, and as the dancers split up again to find new partners, she knew she had brought his wrath on herself.

"Fine," she said as he extended his hand to her with a devilish grin. "I guess this is only fair."

"Oh, you bet it's fair," he grumbled as she rested her hand on his shoulder, feeling his warm hand on her back. "I could hear your laughter from across the room with the music as loud as it is, you awful woman."

She giggled, feeling strangely comfortable being as close as she was to him. "Your expression was indeed the best thing I've seen all year," she said warmly as she repeated his words.

"Then you must've had a lousy year," he said, though he was smiling.

As the pace of the song slowed down, she rested her chin on top of her hand, moving just a little closer to him.

She had barely noticed his hand sliding down her back a little. She was a little distracted, though.

"Who is that girl?" she then said as she saw the head bridesmaid glare daggers at her. "The girl with short, black hair?"

He turned them around so he could have a look. "It's Xion. A friend of Sora's, I think."

"She's one to hold a grudge," she commented with a soft whistle. "She still wants to rip my guts out."

"That's not because you were late," he replied softly, leaning closer to her ear so no one else could hear it. "The only reason she became head bridesmaid was because Sora promised it was an opportunity to get together with the best man."

She leaned back a lit to glance at his face with a raised brow at his grin. "So you're busy tonight, huh?"

"Oh, heck no," he said easily, gently tugging her back towards him. "I never liked her much anyway."

She chuckled, glancing at the raven-haired girl, who was whispering with another bridesmaid. "You really are a rebel, huh? Busting myths, truths and dreams alike. Roxas Dream Buster Strife."

She could feel him smile against her hair. "All I would ever aspire to be."

"So does that mean that if I catch the bride's bouquet, I won't get married next?"

He chuckled. "I dunno if you could catch it in the first place since you're always… just a bit late."

She huffed, though she smiled. "So what if I can catch the bouquet?"

They separated as the song ended and he tilted his head as he studied her thoughtfully. "Hmm. Well, if you were able to catch the bouquet, I guess I would be so baffled I would consider taking you out."

She raised her brow again, crossing her arms. "That's too weak a proposal to me," she said teasingly. "You are taking me out on a date if I catch the bleeding bouquet."

"Deal," he said, grinning now. "But only if you catch it."

"Well then," she said, curtsying a little for him. "Thank you for the dance, sir, but for now I have to leave as I have duties elsewhere."

"You're excused," he said amusedly.

She left him as the bride got up on stage, highly flushed as she waved a little embarrassedly at the crowd of ladies gathering down the stage. She had been with Naminé in high school and knew the girl had a surprising far throw from their PE sessions together. She positioned herself slightly at the end of the crowd, a bit to the left as Naminé's throws were a little off to the side.

She wondered whether she really wanted to catch it; she had had a fun time so far, but was she really going to —

She glanced over her shoulder, just for a moment, and met his gaze again. He was grinning and gave her a thumbs up.

"Go get 'em!" he shouted over the mass of people and she raised her hand to him, turning back to the stage again.

Oh, she was getting it. She had to get it now.

The bouquet fell down, almost in slow motion and she reached, reached, reached —
Got it.

"I GOT IT!" she screamed, turning around in victory. "I GOT IT! WE'RE GOING ON A FLIPPING DATE, STRIFE!"

He was laughing as everyone seemed quite confused and she flushed a bright red with embarrassment.

He didn't seem to care as he crossed the hall and wrapped his arms around her. "Look at that," he said cheerfully. "I've never seen a girl nearly break someone else's nose to try and go on a date with me."

She whimpered as she hid her face against his shoulder. "Please forget everything that just happened."

"What? No way," he said, laughing. "This is one I'll look back on my deathbed."

"Is the other girl okay?"

"Yeah, it's not that much blood, anyway."

"What?!" she said startled, looking up to see whether the girl in question was okay, only to have him catch her chin and press a very gentle kiss on her lips.

"Kidding," he said breathlessly. "I didn't really see anyone else, to be honest."

She blinked twice, completely flabbergasted at the butterfly touch. "Not even Xion?"

"The girl whose nose you broke?" he suggested helpfully, a burning look in his eyes.

"Oh my Gosh, seriously?" she gasped, turning again, only to have him stop her again to kiss her once more.

"No," he said with a smile. "Not even Xion."

"Are you teasing me right now?" she stammered.

He cupped her face in his hands and brushed his lips over hers in a little rougher fashion. "No," he said quietly.

"Oh," she said, her eyes closed as she chased his lips. "Good."

She could feel him smile. "Want to get out of here?"

"Yes," she said, her eyes fluttering open. "My feet hurt and I want to be with you."

He pressed another quick kiss to her lips and grinned widely. "Yeah, same. Totally."

"Dad," she whispered to her father as they stood in front of the large, wooden doors. "I dreamed I was late. Again."

"We're quite on time, dearie," her father said soothingly. "Besides, we can't start without you, so I hardly think you're late."

She bounced a little on top of her toes. "I'm nervous. But excited, at the same time."

"C'mon," her father said with a chuckle as the man at the door gave them a nod. "Let's go, it's finally time."

The doors opened as excited jitters in her stomach took over her voice, her heart throbbing in her throat.

Then, however, she saw him standing there on the altar, grinning back at her as he always did.

All of her nerves calmed down at that sight; they had belonged together, somehow.

Even he felt it; proposing to her after a mere year of dating.

It was just right to do so and this was going to be their moment, finally.

Well, he was going to murder his father in a bit because his father had prepared a speech and she was going to try not to cry as she was saying her vows, but still, it was their moment today.

As her father kissed her on her cheek and she joined his side, the priest opened their wedding, greeting everyone who had come.

"You're on time," Roxas whispered cheerfully in her ear as he wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Only because you kicked me out of bed this morning," she whispered back.

He pressed a very soft kiss on her cheek as the priest went on with the ceremony.

She cried during the vows, his father did do the speech and Roxas nearly went berserk on him, they almost forgot to get other people on the dance floor and she accidentally threw her bouquet at top speed in Sora's face.

He was moving out of tune, on a way different rhythm than the music that the DJ was playing, but she couldn't care. She rested her head on top of her hand on her shoulder and his hand was somewhere on her lower back, his thumb of his other hand gently stroking over hers.

"You know," he said quietly in her ear. "I said I didn't believe in this, but that I did hope for it. I don't deserve this at all."

She planted a small kiss on his lips. "You deserve it most of all, my love."

He smiled, moving their intertwined hands to stroke her cheek. "If you had looked like this when we first met, I don't think I would've been able to talk to you."

She grinned triumphantly. "I told you I could look pretty. At times."

"You looked pretty," he said earnestly. "You look… otherworldly now. Mrs Strife."

She giggled gleefully. "That sounds so weird! A good kind of weird, honestly, but still weird."

"I'll make you used to it," he promised her, pressing his forehead against hers. "Because it makes me strangely happy. Weirdly happy, but a good kind of weirdly happy."

"Don't mock me," she said laughing, but he simply pressed his lips against hers.

"My love, I'd never mock you," he said with a smirk. "Maybe when we're eighty and you fall over when you steal my walking cane. Then I'll mock you big time."

"Are you sure we'll be together until then?" she said with a gentle smile.

"No," he said with a genuine grin. "Because I have, unbelievably so, found my someone to grow old with. For real."

"How corny of you," she said, shaking her head, though she stood on her tiptoes to kiss his forehead. "Where did my cynic boyfriend go?"

"Oh, he," he said with a laugh. "He got married, strange, huh?"

He then gently stepped away as the final song ended and brought their intertwined hands to his lips to kiss the back of her hand. "Well, then, are you ready to live the rest of our forever together, Mrs Strife?"

"I'll never be late for that, Mr Strife," she said warmly. "Until death do us part."

"Oh, come on," he said teasingly. "I'll come back to haunt my brother and I'm not going to be doing that by myself."

"How romantic," she said laughing, tugging at his hand. "Come on, we're going home."

- Updated -

Sorry about the repeating paragraphs. Something must've gone wrong while I edited in the document on the site. Sorry! I hope it's fixed now.

Happy New Year everyone!

I wish you all the very best for 2018!

Just a little one shot to round off this year and I hope you had a good one!

Here's to another year full of inspiration, passion and more sappy stories.

Lots of love,

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