A/N: So I started this piece a while ago, based off some spoilers at the time and Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know", and I finally found the inspiration to work on it again! If you haven't listened to Darren Criss' rendition from Glee, do it now. I dare you not to be moved. I originally was going to make this a one shot but it took on a life of its own and it's now a multi-chapter AU Ethina piece, my first one (yay!), but it's going to be short. I'm thinking that it'll only be about 5 parts. So, with that being said, I hope you like it! Please review/leave comments!

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And if you have a minute, why don't we go
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go?
Somewhere only we know…

"Somewhere Only We Know" – Keane

Chapter 1 – Oh Simple Thing, Where Have You Gone?

He always knew that she would be a vision in white.

Her dress was simple, shorter than traditional ones. The hem of her dress hit right above her knee as she sashayed towards him in that small chapel. Her hair hung in soft ringlets at her shoulders with only the adornment of a white hibiscus flower tucked behind her left ear. The chapel was filled with candles, bathing her in a rich glow that took his breath away. Through his travels, he had seen many things, things that would render any man speechless.

But nothing that compared to how beautiful she looked that night.

He grasped her hand just a little bit tighter, doing everything in his power to not snap at the priest for not talking faster. This priest needed to hurry up before she came to her senses and changed her mind. She let out a small chuckle and squeezed his hand at his obvious tension, wordlessly telling him that she wasn't going anywhere.

"Do you, Kristina Adela Corinthos-Davis, take Ethan Lovett to be your husband? To love, honor, and cherish in good times and in bad? In sickness and in health? And forsaking all others? 'Til death do you part?" the priest asked.

"I do." Kristina said, never taking her eyes off of him.

Ethan let out a long breath, one that he didn't even know that he was holding, at her affirmation. He felt the corners of his mouth curl up into a smile. He wanted to save this moment, bottle it up, and keep it forever. Because in this moment, within these walls, she wasn't daughter of a rival family and he wasn't a lieutenant for the very family that made it their mission to destroy her family. She was his and he was hers.

"And do you, Ethan Lovett, take Kristina Adela Corinthos-Davis to be your wife? To love, honor, and cherish in good times and in bad? In sickness and in health? And forsaking all others? 'Til death do you part?" the priest asked, turning to him.

"I do… with all of my heart." Ethan exhaled.

There were no wedding bands to be exchanged since this wedding was a spur of the moment decision but he did have a ring for her. He had been carrying it in his pocket for the past three weeks, waiting for the right moment to give it to her. He could see the tears begin to well up in her eyes as he slid the diamond ring onto her finger and felt them on his cheeks when she kissed him after they had been pronounced as husband and wife.

"I wish that we didn't have to be a secret…" she sighed.

He looked over at his wife as they pulled up to a stoplight. Her eyes were sad as she looked ahead. Thirty minutes into their marriage and he was already failing her. Reality was slowly starting to sink in. The reality of stolen glances, fleeting touches, and nights spent in safe-houses that they would have to go back to. No rings or vows could change that.

"Are you sorry that we got married?" he asked.

"No! Of course not, Ethan. I just wish—all I want is to go to sleep in your arms tonight and wake up with you in the morning without worrying if someone is going to catch me coming home late. I just want to be your wife in every way possible." Kristina said.

Her fingers were interlaced with his and he quickly brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it softly. He knew that things weren't going to be easy for the two of them. They never had been but he was greedy. He wanted all of her even when he knew it wasn't possible. He wanted her to wear his ring and to belong to him. He needed it.

"Listen to me, you're my wife now. My wife… in every way that it counts. Don't ever doubt that, Kristina, ok?" he said.

"Ok, I won't…" she breathed.

"And it's only for a little while… just until this situation between the Zaccharas and your father calms down and it will. After that, we'll start living our lives together… just like we promised." he said.

The light turned green but Ethan waited for a response from her. She brushed a tear from her cheek with her free hand and squeezed his hand with her other one. They could do this. They had gone an entire year, living in the shadows and only acting on their feelings for each other far away from the prying eyes of their families. They could hold on for just a little bit longer if it meant that they got to spend the rest of their lives together. Kristina leaned over the center console and pressed her lips to his. Her lips lingered until the light turned red again.

"I love you, Ethan…" she whispered.

Her forehead was pressed to his and his heart was beating so fast and hard that he could hear it ringing in his ears. His hand crept up behind her neck and pulled her lips back down onto his. The way that he needed her should've scared him and it did but he was more afraid of a life without her.

"I love you more…" he rasped.

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As soon as she pulled into her father's driveway, Kristina threw her car into park and slumped over the steering wheel, sobbing. Saying goodbye to Ethan had been harder than she thought it would be. She knew that he had obligations to take care of and was coming back for her in a few hours to take her away for their honeymoon but it didn't make it any easier to drive away from him. She twirled the ring around on her finger, watching it as it caught the moonlight. She missed him already.

"Kristina? Is that you?"

She quickly wiped her eyes and climbed out of her car, shrugging on her peacoat. Her father was standing in the doorway, hands shoved into his pockets and his mouth in a set line and Kristina swallowed hard: he was not pleased.

"Are you incapable of answering your phone?" Sonny growled.

"Not now, Dad… I'm really tired." Kristina sighed.

"Oh, we're gonna do this right now. You know the rules. You can't just run off and disappear for hours, Kristina!" he cried.

She pressed her fingertips to her forehead. She couldn't deal with this. Not right now. All of her emotional energy was focused on missing her husband, aching to feel his arms around her and his lips on hers as they were just an hour ago. She had no energy to give to her father and his overprotective nature.

"Dad… please, can we just talk about this later?" she begged.

"Not until you tell me where you were! Kristina, these are dangerous times that we're in… you know that the Zaccharas are waiting for a chance to strike at me and Anthony Zacchara has no concept of what's sacred. You remember what happened to Brenda." he said, his voice suddenly turning grave.

It had been almost six months since they buried Brenda, the first casualty of this bloody war. She remembered dancing with Ethan and smiling until her face hurt at Brenda and her father's wedding. They had all been so happy that day. And it only took eighteen months for that to all go up in flames. Her father locked himself in a room for three days straight and when he finally emerged, he told Kristina that she was never going to see Ethan again.

And it was only after two weeks of being apart, Ethan told Kristina that he was in love with her.

"I can't lose you like I lost Brenda, Kristina…" Sonny said, resolutely shaking his head.

"I'm not some helpless little girl anymore, Dad!" she cried.

"You are still my little girl! And I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe! Even if you don't like it!" he shouted.

Kristina's hands curled up into fists at her sides and she swiftly turned on her heel, heading in the direction of the front door. This was just too much to handle right now and surely if she stayed any longer, she would say something to him that she would surely regret. Sonny, however, was right there, hot on her heels as she stormed out of the house.

"Where are you going?" he demanded.

"Sam and Jason's… I'm not staying here tonight if you're going to act like this!" she spat.

She tore out of the driveway in her car and headed back in the direction of town. She couldn't wait to get out of this town and just be with Ethan again. The world was rid of chaos and seemed calmer when she was in his arms. He was just magical like that. She made a wide turn into the parking lot of Jason's building and pulled into an empty space. She would have to tell Ethan that there was a slight change in plans for their honeymoon and he would of course ask her if everything was alright.

He worried about her too much as well.

She climbed out of the car and fiddled with her keys to arm the alarm. Her car beeped, indicating that it was locked, and Kristina found herself losing her balance, slipping on something wet and falling to the floor.

"Ow! Ugh, what the hell—" she began, as she stood up.

She could barely get out the phrase when she saw the blood on the hem of her white dress. The fall had hurt but nothing was broken and she didn't feel any cuts or scrapes on her skin. The light flickered overhead and she followed the reflection all the way around to the back of a black SUV. There was someone there. Her limbs shook violently as she drew closer and closer to the body until that body was no longer a body, but a person, one with blue lifeless eyes and a chest riddled with bullets.

"Oh my god!" she screamed.

It was Jason.

And he was dead.