A/N: Ooh, did I have a hard time getting this started! I know exactly where I want the story to go and how I want it to end, but getting there without rushing it is the hard part. I hope you enjoy this final fic in this particular story line, and if you're just joining us, it'll help to read Crazy Game and Dirty Little Secret first. Enjoy!

Casey McDonald stared at the doors of the church from the cool interior of the dark car. Through the tinted windows, she took in every tiny, minute detail: the weathering on the painted wooden doors, the white, gauzy ribbon wound around the handrails, the ruby-red rose petals scattered on the stairs and blowing in the wind. The trees, ancient and gnarled, were adorned with large bows made of soft tulle. Each element etched itself in her mind, preserving itself for all eternity.

She looked at the clock. It was nearly two o'clock in the afternoon, the twentieth of June, two thousand and twenty. According to the swirled script on the ornate, ivory invitations, the matrimonial ceremony was moments away. The mothers would be processing down the aisle in minutes.

She needed to go inside.

Casey waited until the stairs were empty before opening her door. She thanked the driver and exited the car, gathering her silver-blue accoutrements. She took care in her steps, not wanting to trip in her impossibly high heels. Pace by tiny pace, she minced her way to the staircase. She hesitated briefly, letting the warm spring sunshine wash over her. She breathed deeply, savoring the lake-bitten air, and continued her careful hike up the stairs.

She paused at the doors to the sanctuary. She was nervous, breathless, and couldn't help but fiddle with the small, white handkerchief in the palm of her slightly sweaty hand. A million thoughts rushed through her mind, swirling around and making her dizzy. The heady scent of gardenia steeped into her head and she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to calm herself down.

She opened her eyes, taking in the blurry scene through the stained-glass doors of the church. People milled around, making small talk, catching up, reuniting. Casey picked out the people from her past, her classmates from SJS Thompson High School. She picked out the soldiers, dressed in their mess kits; some were also adorned with ceremonial sabres. She idly wondered how her former classmates—many of whom never left London after graduation—were enjoying Kingston, Ontario.

A warm breeze wafted through the outer doors, and Casey closed her eyes. The wind kicked up the ends of her gently curled hair, bringing with it another faint breath of gardenia and jasmine. Casey breathed deeply again, trying—and failing—to calm the butterflies in her stomach. The breeze felt nice against her skin, and she savored the draft of air on her bare shoulders. This was a big day, and nervous energy filled her to the brim, threatening to spill over at a moment's notice.

Casey opened her eyes and glanced around the foyer. The florist did a good job with the flowers, she mused, scrutinizing the scene. Heavy mahogany tables positioned on either side of the glass doors held crystal-clear fishbowls filled gardenia, jasmine, lily, and delphinium blossoms floating in water. A small guestbook, long since abandoned by a young, distant cousin, sat on another mahogany table to the left of the sanctuary's entrance.

Casey stared intently into the church and caught sight of the groom. He was breathtakingly, painfully handsome in his wedding garb, and she smiled to herself. Visions of her life danced before her, both her past and her future. Memories flooded her mind: the first time she saw him. Their first date. The years of playfulness and friendship. The times of awkwardness and silence. Living together. Singing together. Cheering him on at hockey games. Some of the same moments that sustained her over the last decade fortified her now, and her smile broadened. They had some good times, some amazing times, and no matter how old they got, no matter where life took them, she would always remember those first tenuous times from their teenage years with happiness.

A light, celebratory tinkling floated through the lobby. The pianist had begun to play the selected preludes, and the white noise of chatter died down as the guests settled into their pews, waiting for the procession in expectation. The small chapel was full, with only a few seats remaining on the groom's side, and a soloist began to sing an aria in Italian. A latecomer breezed in, barely taking notice of Casey as he rushed to find a seat before the blushing bride walked down the aisle.

The bridesmaids, dressed in floor-length, ruby-colored dresses, gathered behind Casey. They flitted about, adjusting each other's midnight-blue sashes and fussing over the bride. One fixed her veil, another fixed her train, still another handed her the bouquet. Through the watery glass, Casey watched as the groomsmen filed onto the altar from a side door, looking slightly uncomfortable in their ceremonial waistcoats and dress pants. They lined up next to the groom and peered down the aisle, waiting expectantly for the bride's attendants. Casey caught sight of the party and felt her heartbeat quicken. This was the moment for which she had been waiting for several long years, and here it was, just moments and steps away. The air rushed out of her lungs forecefully, and she drew in a staggered, excited breath.

Casey flicked a small speck off her dress and smoothed the pale satin down over her body. She threw her shoulders back and gripped her trappings more tightly. It's time that I got in there, she thought, smiling as the preludes shifted in time and melody.

The doors to the chapel opened, and Casey's eyes locked with those of a smiling Sam Richards as she stepped into the center aisle.

A/N: AHHHHHH! I know! Cliffie!

Also, thanks for all the feedback on the finaly chapter of Dirty Little Secret, if you read it. I know it ended kind of weirdly, but it really needed to in order to play into this fic. Plus, some of the backstory written into this story will explain why it ended the way it did.

Like I said before, I'm really having some trouble getting this fic started, so if there's anything that's really off, let me know and I'll take those notes into consideration. Keep watching for the next chapter, coming very soon!