fic: Say I Do
TITLE: Say I Do
AUTHOR: Brio
WORDS: 4,149
RATING: PG for swearing.
SUMMARY: Unnecessary sequel to ‘Say You Will’. Oh, it’s wedding day FLUFF. Let’s see what torture I can put Dianna through this time.
NOTES: I don’t know anything about Jewish weddings. If I manage to offend anyone by not using the right terminology, then I apologise profusely.
NOTES 2: ilsu for putting up with my crap, darchino for being demanding. I thank you both. Also… I write far too much dialogue. I’m going to challenge myself to write something that contains no speech whatsoever.
Dianna slides her arms around the petite brunette’s waist, a smile on her lips as she ducks her head to kiss her fiancée, soon-to-be wife.
“Remind me again why we’re sleeping in separate bedrooms?” Lea asks, pouting as Dianna pulls away. Lea’s hands run up the taller woman’s back and rest at the back of her neck, playing with the strands of hair that have come loose from the blonde’s messy ponytail.
“Tradition,” Dianna says, leaning down again to kiss Lea, “Or something.”
“Tradition sucks,” Lea whispers, loosening her grip on Dianna as the blonde starts to kiss the brunette’s neck, “Get off… you cannot leave hickeys on my neck the night before we get married.” She gives Dianna a playful shove and reaches to open her bedroom door.
“But I can’t seem to stop,” Dianna murmurs pushing the shorter woman back against the wooden door. Lea’s eyes flutter closed and a low groan escapes from her mouth as Dianna lifts her off the ground, nipping softly at the brunette’s tan skin.
“Oh god, my eyes,” a voice calls from the end of the corridor and Dianna growls slightly causing Lea to giggle, “Can’t you girls wait until tomorrow?” Dianna lowers the brunette back onto her feet and turns to face Lea’s best man.
“I guess we don’t have a choice now,” Dianna says with a smirk, “Thanks Jon.”
“It’s a good job I was around to protect Lea’s virtue,” Jon says, winking at the brunette and opening the bedroom door, “In you go.”
“Jon…” Lea protests but he folds his arms across his chest.
“Say goodnight, Lea,” he says with a grin.
“Goodnight, Lea,” the brunette grumbles, pressing a kiss to Dianna’s cheek, sticking her tongue out at her best friend and disappearing into the room.
“See you in the morning, Di,” Jon says, hugging the disgruntled blonde before disappearing after Lea.
“Night,” Dianna calls at the closed door and walks quickly down the corridor to her own room, pulling out her cellphone before she’s even reached the corner. Her message to Lea is short and succinct: ‘I love you. Sweet dreams baby.’
The reply, thirty-two seconds later, makes Dianna grin.
‘I’ve threatened Jon with bodily harm if he comes near the room tomorrow night. I love you too. Sleep well.’
**
The next morning, Dianna wakes up to the sound of knocking on her bedroom door. She grabs her phone, ignoring the messages and missed calls listed on the screen and checks the time.
“Shit!” she exclaims, throwing back the sheets and jumping out of bed. Seconds later, she crashes to the floor, her toe catching in the sheets as she rockets towards the door. She groans and pushes herself up, inspecting the damage to her knees and the palms of her hands. Limping now she crosses the room and yanks the door open.
“Oh thank god,” her best friend removes the phone from her ear and puts her hands on her hips, “Do you have any idea how worried we’ve all been?! The wedding is in two hours… I’ve been knocking for half an hour…” Anna moves past a gaping Dianna who is still rubbing her knees. She watches as the blonde - already wearing her light blue dress, her hair already done - moves around the room pulling the curtains open, “Di, come on. Lea will kill me if I don’t have you at the altar on time.”
“Have you seen her? How is she?” Dianna asks, moving back to the bed, grimacing as her knee makes an awkward clicking noise.
“I saw her just after I finished breakfast,” Anna says with a sigh, “She looks… sickeningly in love.” Anna grins at her best friend before her face falls into a frown, “What happened to your knees?”
“I might have tripped,” Dianna says lamely, gesturing to the tangled mess of sheets. Anna raises an eyebrow and shakes her head.
“You have ten minutes to shower,” Anna says, “I’ll order room service; we can’t have you passing out during the ceremony and I’ll go find the hairdresser and tell everyone that you haven’t actually fled the island.”
“Thanks,” Dianna says, her stomach grumbling as she gingerly makes her way to the adjoining bathroom, stopping to give Anna a light kiss on the cheek.
“Shower, now!” Anna commands, pointing to the bathroom. Dianna nods meekly, still confused about how she managed to sleep through the three alarms she set on her phone.
Anna and the hairdresser, Lorraine, are waiting when she emerges, talking in low voices. Dianna is sure that they’re arguing about something and clears her throat, causing both of them to turn to look at her with stricken looks on their faces. Immediately Dianna begins to panic.
“What’s wrong?” Dianna asks, a thousand different scenarios running through her head.
“It’s the cake,” Anna says, walking over to Dianna, “There’s been an accident.”
“What sort of accident?” Dianna asks, more intrigued than annoyed by the mysterious tone of Anna’s voice.
“One of the waiters left the door to the kitchen open… and some local wildlife accidentally…” Anna pauses when the blonde holds up her hands.
“Are you telling me that our wedding cake, our wedding cake that we had flown over from Los Angeles, survived a plane ride but couldn’t last two days in the hotel’s kitchen?” Dianna asks, irritation seeping through her voice. She closes her eyes and takes a calming breath. “What kind of wildlife?”
“Parrots,” Anna says simply, “Di, I’m sorry… the chefs are already working on something else for you guys. Free, of course.”
“Anna, it’s fine,” the blonde says, exhaling deeply, remembering that this is the happiest day of her life. A ruined cake isn’t the end of the world. “It’s okay. It’s just cake.” Anna relaxes and smiles. The hairdresser springs into action, leading the blonde to the dressing table to start drying her hair. Breakfast arrives along with a bottle of champagne which Anna immediately opens up, angling the top of the bottle away from her as she pushes the cork out. It pops, pinging up towards the ceiling before ricocheting back towards the bridesmaid, smacking her above the eye.
“Jesus!” she exclaims, grabbing her forehead, “Jesusmother…” The string of expletives continues for half a minute as she dances around the room, tears stinging at the corners of her eyes.
“Are you done?” Dianna asks, vaguely amused until she sees the glare in Anna’s eyes.
“Motherfucker,” she groans sitting down on the end of the bed.
“How the hell did you even manage that?” Dianna asks, twisting around in her seat to watch her best friend rub the heel of her hand above her right eye.
“I don’t know,” Anna says, moving towards the mirror. Tentatively she moves her hand away and all three women gasp, “Oh my god.”
“Well that’s going to look great in the photos,” Dianna says, staring at the other woman’s forehead.
“I’m so glad that my wellbeing is your number one concern right now, Dianna,” Anna says with a grimace as she touches her forehead.
“You hit yourself in the face with a champagne cork, Anna!” Dianna says, “That’s the most ridiculous…” Anna silences her with another glare.
“Mark will be here soon,” Lorraine says, glancing between the two best friends, “He’ll cover it up. No problems!” This softens the looks on both women’s faces and Lorraine goes back to styling Dianna’s hair.
“I’m sorry,” Dianna says, as she catches sight of Anna in the mirror, hand pressed to her forehead.
“Me too,” Anna says with a wan smile, “Drink?” She holds up the bottle in her hand and Dianna nods her approval.
**
With half an hour to spare, Dianna is ready, dressed in a strapless floor-length white dress, sipping her third glass of champagne. Mark is still trying to cover the bruise on Anna’s forehead when there’s a knock at the door.
“Is it time?” Dianna asks, glancing at her phone, before walking towards the door. Jon is on the other side, looking concerned.
“We have a problem,” he says gravely, walking into the room. Dianna closes the door and feels her stomach clench, butterflies annoyingly as present as ever.
“Is it Lea? Has she changed her mind? Where is she?” Dianna asks, feeling as though her world is going to fall apart. Jon gives her a look as though she’s insane.
“Of course she hasn’t changed her mind,” he says, “You look beautiful by the way.” He offers her a pained smile.
“What’s wrong?” Dianna asks.
“You’ll hurt me,” he says.
“I’ll hurt you more if you don’t tell me what’s wrong right now,” Dianna says, emphasising the last two words, as she folds her arms across her chest.
“I don’t know where the rings are,” he says, closing his eyes and bracing himself for an attack that never comes. He cracks an eye open to see Dianna still standing in front of him, eyes closed, breathing in deeply.
“You lost the rings,” she states, exhaling. She tries to picture a happy place, a place where her and Lea are getting married without their friends. There are no errant champagne corks and no-one has lost her grandmother’s ring.
“Yes,” he says, “I had them last night… and now… I can’t find them. I’ve looked everywhere, Di. I’ve been all over the hotel.”
“That ring belonged to my grandmother, Jon,” she says, taking another deep breath, clenching her hands into fists, feeling a tremble course through her muscles, “What did Lea say?”
“She isn’t talking to me right now,” he says timidly, “I think she’s thinking up punishments for me.”
“She’s not the only one,” Dianna says, “I think you should go and look again. And if you can’t find them, you need to find replacements. You have twenty minutes.” He nods his head and practically flees the room. Dianna unclenches her fists.
“You’re taking this very well,” Anna observes from the make-up chair.
“After what happened on the night I proposed, I started yoga again,” Dianna says calmly, “Lea seems to think I have slight anger issues. These are minor setbacks. I will not be upset on the happiest day of my life.” She picks up the bottle of champagne and pours herself another glass, downing it in one.
Anna nods silently and exchanges a look with Mark.
**
Dianna’s fears and agitations disappear the moment she steps outside to see her closest friends and family all seated facing the ocean. Her brother is waiting, a grin on his face as he holds out his arm for her to take.
“You look gorgeous,” he says, kissing her cheek. Dianna can only smile in return as a hundred different emotions start to bubble up inside her. Together they walk towards the aisle that splits the guests into two and when the string quartet start to play, everybody turns to look at them, “What’s wrong?” Jason asks, as they walk slowly down the aisle.
“It’s the wrong song,” Dianna whispers back.
“What?” her brother asks looking bewildered.
“This isn’t what they’re supposed to play,” she says, groaning and breaking away from her brother’s arm, heading back up the aisle towards the surprised musicians. After a few terse words, Dianna rejoins her brother and the music restarts.
“Really, Di, was that necessary?” her brother asks as a few of the guests break into sniggers and whispers.
“They’ve already ruined my cake and the incompetent best man has lost the rings,” she says quickly, eyes falling on Jon at the end of the aisle, “I don’t think it’s too much to ask that I get to walk down the aisle to the right piece of music.” She plasters a smile on her face as they continue to pass the guests and spots her mom in the front row, tears already streaming down her cheeks. When they reach the chuppah, Jason kisses his sister’s cheek again and goes to join their mom in the front row. Dianna quickly surveys the guests, feeling calm wash over her again.
This is happening. She’s here, on a beautiful beach on an island, surrounded by her loved ones about to marry the woman of her dreams.
The woman of her dreams who is walking down the aisle, grinning at everyone she passes. The woman of her dreams who is pretty much dragging her dad down the aisle.
The woman of her dreams who’s wearing a dress that makes her look like a meringue.
Dianna fights to keep the look of horror off her face. After all, Lea could be wearing a garbage bag and still look like a million dollars. Lea joins Dianna under the canopy and beams up at her soon-to-be wife though the smile fades sharply when she notes the expression on the blonde’s face.
“What?” Lea asks in a low voice.
“You look like a meringue,” Dianna replies, staring at the puffy sleeves hiding Lea’s toned arms. Lea’s face falls.
“I knew you’d do this,” she says, stabbing a finger at taller woman’s chest, “I knew you’d make fun of me. You’re always making fun of me, Di. Is this all a big joke to you?” She gestures around at their guests who are staring open-mouthed at the arguing brides.
“No,” Dianna says hurriedly, reaching for the brunette’s hands, “No, sweetie, I’m sorry. Please…”
“No, Di…” the rest of Lea’s words are drowned out by a loud screeching noise. Dianna turns her gaze to the sky in confusion, dragging Lea out from under the canopy as a huge shadow falls over them. Her mouth drops open as talons wrap around her fiancée and Lea’s hand is ripped from her own. She’s pretty sure that Lea is still berating her as the pterodactyl carries her off.
**
Dianna’s eyes open far too quickly and she squints into the darkness of her bedroom. 3:24. She groans in relief, “Just a dream,” she repeats to herself, rubbing her hand over her eyes, “Oh thank God.”
Very carefully, she pushes the sheets off her body, making sure that her feet aren’t tangled up, and climbs out of bed. Through the curtains, she can see the ocean lapping against the sand, the moonlight reflecting brightly off the inky black water. She can also make out a figure sitting in the sand, staring up at the stars, long brown hair falling against the woman’s back. The blonde reaches for a sweatshirt and tugs it on before making her way quietly through the corridors of the hotel careful not to wake any of their sleeping guests.
Along with the sound of the waves, the slight breeze that chills Dianna’s almost bare legs masks the sound of her footsteps over the sand and when she drops down next to the solitary figure staring out at the ocean now, Lea screams.
“Di!” her voice is now muffled by the blonde’s hand. They glance back towards the hotel but no-one appears to have heard Lea’s exclamation.
“Hi,” Dianna says, removing her hand.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing? You nearly gave me a heart attack!” Lea asks, trying to sound annoyed at her fiancée. The grin on her face tells a different story. The brunette shifts closer to the taller woman as Dianna slides an arm around Lea’s waist, “Are you okay, baby?”
“Just a bad dream,” Dianna says, “It was quite ridiculous.” Dianna lets her fingers drag under the thin material of Lea’s shirt.
“Tell me about it?” Lea asks, shifting again. Now she’s sitting between Dianna’s legs, back pressed against the blonde’s chest. Dianna leans forwards to lean her head against the brunette’s shoulder, her hands holding onto Lea’s waist again.
“I overslept for the wedding and Anna thought that I’d run off,” Dianna starts, fingers massaging circles across the brunette’s toned abdomen, “And I fell getting out of bed, bruised my knees and hurt my hands.”
“Poor baby,” Lea says, tilting her head back slightly as Dianna’s fingers stray across a particularly sensitive patch of skin.
“Then parrots ate our cake,” Dianna says with a chuckle.
“Parrots?”
“Yeah,” Dianna turns her head slightly and places a soft kiss against Lea’s neck, “Parrots. Someone left the kitchen door open and they ate the cake. I didn’t even know that parrots like cake…” Lea’s laugh is low and causes a shiver to run through Dianna who tightens her grip on Lea, hands straying higher.
“What else happened?” Lea asks, sounding amused.
“Anna hit herself in the face with a champagne cork,” Dianna says grinning, “And I was more concerned about the photos. She wasn’t impressed.” Dianna’s teeth graze against tanned skin and Lea moans softly, “Jon lost the rings.”
“He what?” Lea asks sounding panicked.
“It was just a dream, babe,” Dianna reminds her, “You were thinking up punishments for him. I don’t remember if he actually found them or not.” Dianna frowns, “Then the band - or a string quartet?” the taller woman shrugs, “- played the wrong song while Jason walked me down the aisle and… you were dressed like a meringue.”
“A meringue?” Lea asks, pressing her body closer to Dianna’s as a stronger breeze passes over them.
“Your dress was awful,” Dianna says making a face, “It had these huge puffy sleeves and… Lea, honey, please tell me that you’re not wearing anything that makes you look like a meringue.” Lea remains silent, “Lea?” Dianna starts to kiss the back of the brunette’s neck, “You still looked amazing…”
“No-one looks amazing dressed like a meringue,” Lea says, a grin forming on her face, “You don’t have to worry about the dress.”
“Good,” Dianna says, “Just the pterodactyl then.”
“Yeah… what?” Lea asks, giggling now, “A pterodactyl?”
“It carried you in your meringue dress off into the sunset,” Dianna says laughing against Lea’s neck, “The whole thing reminded me of the night I proposed.”
“That was definitely one for the scrapbook,” Lea says shivering again as Dianna’s fingertips brush the bare skin between her breasts. Dianna’s hands drop down and rest on Lea’s thighs now, playing with the soft fabric that barely covers the brunette’s skin.
“I think you should wear this to the wedding.”
“Of course you do,” Lea says rolling her eyes. They sit in silence for a few minutes, listening to the ocean. Lea feels her eyelids start to droop as she snuggles into Dianna a little more.
“What are you doing out here?” the blonde asks, remembering that Lea’s the reason she came out onto the sand.
“Jon snores sometimes,” Lea says, placing her hands on top of Dianna’s to stop them sliding beneath the shorter woman’s shorts, “I thought I’d sleep really well tonight given how busy we’ve been, how stressed out we’ve been getting everyone here, everything organised…” Lea turns her body towards Dianna now, “I don’t sleep well when you’re not with me.” Dianna smiles at this, knowing the feeling intimately.
“Me neither,” she says, wrapping her arms around the brunette again, “And I guess it doesn’t make much sense for both of us to be awake when we could be sleeping. Together.”
“And the whole tradition thing?”
“Tradition sucks,” Dianna says mimicking Lea’s earlier statement. The brunette grins up at her fiancée and jumps to her feet, pulling the blonde with her. Hands linked together, they walk quickly back to the hotel and fall asleep wrapped in each others arms minutes later.
**
Dianna is already awake when her first alarm starts to ring. She’s already been to the kitchen to make sure that it’s completely parrot-free and that the cake is in a secure location. She’s opened the bottle of champagne, ready for when her mom and Anna make their appearance.
Since she’s not allowed near Lea’s room, under Jon’s orders, she gets him to send her a photo of the rings.
“Bit excessive, sweetheart. He knows that I‘d kill him if he lost the rings,” Lea’s message reads moments after Jon’s arrives.
She’s about to call the guitarist of the band, a close friend of Lea’s, to confirm the songs they’re playing during the ceremony when a knock on the door distracts her. Anna is waiting on the other side, grinning back at her best friend.
“Morning,” she says sweeping into the room.; her dress is clutched in one hand, a bottle of red wine in the other.
“The wine needs to go,” Dianna says shaking her head.
“But it’s your favourite,” Anna says, frowning at the label, “Just one glass…” Anna reaches for the corkscrew on the dressing table next to the champagne.
“No!” Dianna grabs the bottle from Anna’s hands and stuffs it in the cupboard next to her bed, “No red wine.” Anna quirks an eyebrow at her best friend and mumbles something that sounds like ‘bridezilla’ under her breath, “I told you what happened on the night I proposed. No red wine.”
“Right,” Anna says, sitting down on the edge of the bed, “Nervous then?”
“Terrified,” Dianna admits. Anna puts an arm around the soon-to-be-married blonde and leans against her shoulder, “But in the best way possible. Does that make sense?”
“Absolutely,” Anna says, “But you have nothing to worry about. That why I’m here.”
Dianna gives her a wan smile, as the image of a puffy-shouldered Lea being carried off into the distance clutched in the talons of an extinct flying reptile flits into her mind again.
**
The buzz amongst the guests, eighty of the brides’ closest friends and family, dies down when the band starts to play. Dianna, on the arm of her brother, is making her way down the aisle, dress flowing in the light afternoon wind. Jon and Anna are waiting for her beside the chuppah on either side of the Rabbi. Behind them the ocean stretches off into infinity, tiny boats bob on the horizon.
When they reach the end of the aisle, Jason places a kiss to his sister’s cheek and goes to join their mom, who’s already spent the better half of the morning in tears. Dianna smiles as her mom opens a new packet of tissues and glances around at their other guests. Friends from movies, from Broadway, from the television show that brought them together. Chris and Amber wave simultaneously when she meets their eyes and she grins back, clutching her bouquet of white roses tighter in her hands as she feels a lump start to rise in her throat.
She glances over at Jon when the music changes and he holds up the two rings with a grin.
“Thanks,” she whispers and he nods before turning his attention to his best friend. Dianna takes a deep breath and does the same, all thoughts of meringue leaving her mind. Her mouth almost drops open when Lea looks away from her dad and meets the hazel eyes waiting for her at the end of the aisle. Lea’s dress is similar to her own - white, long and flowing. But unlike Dianna’s, Lea’s shoulders, her perfect bronzed skin, are unblemished by straps. Her hair cascades down her back, spiralled into loose waves.
Lea’s dad kisses them both on the cheek, smiling widely at his future daughter-in-law before sitting down in the empty chair next to his wife, taking her hand in his own and reaching up to wipe away the tears streaking down Edith’s face.
“Better than meringue, right?” Lea whispers, leaning in close to the blonde who merely nods in response, “You look beautiful, baby.”
“You too,” Dianna says, grinning over at her soon-to-be wife.
**
“Ladies and gentlemen, Mrs and Mrs Agron-Michele,” the band’s singer announces. Around the marquee framed in white gossamer curtains, the guests clap and cheer as Lea takes Dianna’s hand and leads her to the middle of the dance floor. The sun is beginning to set over the ocean, the sky awash with pinks and oranges.
The band start to play, Elton’s John ‘The Way You Look Tonight’, and Dianna slides her arms around Lea.
“Hey,” she whispers. They’re far enough away from their guests that no-one can hear them talk.
“Hi,” Lea returns, staring up at her wife with wide, shining eyes.
“We made it,” Dianna replies, “No parrots… no meringue…”
“I saw you looking for that pterodactyl though,” Lea says. The blonde woman laughs, not denying that she found herself glancing warily at the skies a few times during the ceremony.
“I’d have fought it for you,” she says with a smile, “I’ll always fight for you.”
They’re joined on the floor by Lea’s parents and Dianna’s family. Lea lets out a contented sigh as she leans her head against the blonde’s shoulder.
“Lea?” Dianna’s voice is questioning as she glances down at the beautiful woman in her arms.
“Mmm?” Lea mumbles back, pressing her lips to Dianna’s skin.
“I love you,” Dianna says softly.
“I love you too,” the brunette replies, “Forever.”
AUTHOR: Brio
WORDS: 4,149
RATING: PG for swearing.
SUMMARY: Unnecessary sequel to ‘Say You Will’. Oh, it’s wedding day FLUFF. Let’s see what torture I can put Dianna through this time.
NOTES: I don’t know anything about Jewish weddings. If I manage to offend anyone by not using the right terminology, then I apologise profusely.
NOTES 2: ilsu for putting up with my crap, darchino for being demanding. I thank you both. Also… I write far too much dialogue. I’m going to challenge myself to write something that contains no speech whatsoever.
Dianna slides her arms around the petite brunette’s waist, a smile on her lips as she ducks her head to kiss her fiancée, soon-to-be wife.
“Remind me again why we’re sleeping in separate bedrooms?” Lea asks, pouting as Dianna pulls away. Lea’s hands run up the taller woman’s back and rest at the back of her neck, playing with the strands of hair that have come loose from the blonde’s messy ponytail.
“Tradition,” Dianna says, leaning down again to kiss Lea, “Or something.”
“Tradition sucks,” Lea whispers, loosening her grip on Dianna as the blonde starts to kiss the brunette’s neck, “Get off… you cannot leave hickeys on my neck the night before we get married.” She gives Dianna a playful shove and reaches to open her bedroom door.
“But I can’t seem to stop,” Dianna murmurs pushing the shorter woman back against the wooden door. Lea’s eyes flutter closed and a low groan escapes from her mouth as Dianna lifts her off the ground, nipping softly at the brunette’s tan skin.
“Oh god, my eyes,” a voice calls from the end of the corridor and Dianna growls slightly causing Lea to giggle, “Can’t you girls wait until tomorrow?” Dianna lowers the brunette back onto her feet and turns to face Lea’s best man.
“I guess we don’t have a choice now,” Dianna says with a smirk, “Thanks Jon.”
“It’s a good job I was around to protect Lea’s virtue,” Jon says, winking at the brunette and opening the bedroom door, “In you go.”
“Jon…” Lea protests but he folds his arms across his chest.
“Say goodnight, Lea,” he says with a grin.
“Goodnight, Lea,” the brunette grumbles, pressing a kiss to Dianna’s cheek, sticking her tongue out at her best friend and disappearing into the room.
“See you in the morning, Di,” Jon says, hugging the disgruntled blonde before disappearing after Lea.
“Night,” Dianna calls at the closed door and walks quickly down the corridor to her own room, pulling out her cellphone before she’s even reached the corner. Her message to Lea is short and succinct: ‘I love you. Sweet dreams baby.’
The reply, thirty-two seconds later, makes Dianna grin.
‘I’ve threatened Jon with bodily harm if he comes near the room tomorrow night. I love you too. Sleep well.’
**
The next morning, Dianna wakes up to the sound of knocking on her bedroom door. She grabs her phone, ignoring the messages and missed calls listed on the screen and checks the time.
“Shit!” she exclaims, throwing back the sheets and jumping out of bed. Seconds later, she crashes to the floor, her toe catching in the sheets as she rockets towards the door. She groans and pushes herself up, inspecting the damage to her knees and the palms of her hands. Limping now she crosses the room and yanks the door open.
“Oh thank god,” her best friend removes the phone from her ear and puts her hands on her hips, “Do you have any idea how worried we’ve all been?! The wedding is in two hours… I’ve been knocking for half an hour…” Anna moves past a gaping Dianna who is still rubbing her knees. She watches as the blonde - already wearing her light blue dress, her hair already done - moves around the room pulling the curtains open, “Di, come on. Lea will kill me if I don’t have you at the altar on time.”
“Have you seen her? How is she?” Dianna asks, moving back to the bed, grimacing as her knee makes an awkward clicking noise.
“I saw her just after I finished breakfast,” Anna says with a sigh, “She looks… sickeningly in love.” Anna grins at her best friend before her face falls into a frown, “What happened to your knees?”
“I might have tripped,” Dianna says lamely, gesturing to the tangled mess of sheets. Anna raises an eyebrow and shakes her head.
“You have ten minutes to shower,” Anna says, “I’ll order room service; we can’t have you passing out during the ceremony and I’ll go find the hairdresser and tell everyone that you haven’t actually fled the island.”
“Thanks,” Dianna says, her stomach grumbling as she gingerly makes her way to the adjoining bathroom, stopping to give Anna a light kiss on the cheek.
“Shower, now!” Anna commands, pointing to the bathroom. Dianna nods meekly, still confused about how she managed to sleep through the three alarms she set on her phone.
Anna and the hairdresser, Lorraine, are waiting when she emerges, talking in low voices. Dianna is sure that they’re arguing about something and clears her throat, causing both of them to turn to look at her with stricken looks on their faces. Immediately Dianna begins to panic.
“What’s wrong?” Dianna asks, a thousand different scenarios running through her head.
“It’s the cake,” Anna says, walking over to Dianna, “There’s been an accident.”
“What sort of accident?” Dianna asks, more intrigued than annoyed by the mysterious tone of Anna’s voice.
“One of the waiters left the door to the kitchen open… and some local wildlife accidentally…” Anna pauses when the blonde holds up her hands.
“Are you telling me that our wedding cake, our wedding cake that we had flown over from Los Angeles, survived a plane ride but couldn’t last two days in the hotel’s kitchen?” Dianna asks, irritation seeping through her voice. She closes her eyes and takes a calming breath. “What kind of wildlife?”
“Parrots,” Anna says simply, “Di, I’m sorry… the chefs are already working on something else for you guys. Free, of course.”
“Anna, it’s fine,” the blonde says, exhaling deeply, remembering that this is the happiest day of her life. A ruined cake isn’t the end of the world. “It’s okay. It’s just cake.” Anna relaxes and smiles. The hairdresser springs into action, leading the blonde to the dressing table to start drying her hair. Breakfast arrives along with a bottle of champagne which Anna immediately opens up, angling the top of the bottle away from her as she pushes the cork out. It pops, pinging up towards the ceiling before ricocheting back towards the bridesmaid, smacking her above the eye.
“Jesus!” she exclaims, grabbing her forehead, “Jesusmother…” The string of expletives continues for half a minute as she dances around the room, tears stinging at the corners of her eyes.
“Are you done?” Dianna asks, vaguely amused until she sees the glare in Anna’s eyes.
“Motherfucker,” she groans sitting down on the end of the bed.
“How the hell did you even manage that?” Dianna asks, twisting around in her seat to watch her best friend rub the heel of her hand above her right eye.
“I don’t know,” Anna says, moving towards the mirror. Tentatively she moves her hand away and all three women gasp, “Oh my god.”
“Well that’s going to look great in the photos,” Dianna says, staring at the other woman’s forehead.
“I’m so glad that my wellbeing is your number one concern right now, Dianna,” Anna says with a grimace as she touches her forehead.
“You hit yourself in the face with a champagne cork, Anna!” Dianna says, “That’s the most ridiculous…” Anna silences her with another glare.
“Mark will be here soon,” Lorraine says, glancing between the two best friends, “He’ll cover it up. No problems!” This softens the looks on both women’s faces and Lorraine goes back to styling Dianna’s hair.
“I’m sorry,” Dianna says, as she catches sight of Anna in the mirror, hand pressed to her forehead.
“Me too,” Anna says with a wan smile, “Drink?” She holds up the bottle in her hand and Dianna nods her approval.
**
With half an hour to spare, Dianna is ready, dressed in a strapless floor-length white dress, sipping her third glass of champagne. Mark is still trying to cover the bruise on Anna’s forehead when there’s a knock at the door.
“Is it time?” Dianna asks, glancing at her phone, before walking towards the door. Jon is on the other side, looking concerned.
“We have a problem,” he says gravely, walking into the room. Dianna closes the door and feels her stomach clench, butterflies annoyingly as present as ever.
“Is it Lea? Has she changed her mind? Where is she?” Dianna asks, feeling as though her world is going to fall apart. Jon gives her a look as though she’s insane.
“Of course she hasn’t changed her mind,” he says, “You look beautiful by the way.” He offers her a pained smile.
“What’s wrong?” Dianna asks.
“You’ll hurt me,” he says.
“I’ll hurt you more if you don’t tell me what’s wrong right now,” Dianna says, emphasising the last two words, as she folds her arms across her chest.
“I don’t know where the rings are,” he says, closing his eyes and bracing himself for an attack that never comes. He cracks an eye open to see Dianna still standing in front of him, eyes closed, breathing in deeply.
“You lost the rings,” she states, exhaling. She tries to picture a happy place, a place where her and Lea are getting married without their friends. There are no errant champagne corks and no-one has lost her grandmother’s ring.
“Yes,” he says, “I had them last night… and now… I can’t find them. I’ve looked everywhere, Di. I’ve been all over the hotel.”
“That ring belonged to my grandmother, Jon,” she says, taking another deep breath, clenching her hands into fists, feeling a tremble course through her muscles, “What did Lea say?”
“She isn’t talking to me right now,” he says timidly, “I think she’s thinking up punishments for me.”
“She’s not the only one,” Dianna says, “I think you should go and look again. And if you can’t find them, you need to find replacements. You have twenty minutes.” He nods his head and practically flees the room. Dianna unclenches her fists.
“You’re taking this very well,” Anna observes from the make-up chair.
“After what happened on the night I proposed, I started yoga again,” Dianna says calmly, “Lea seems to think I have slight anger issues. These are minor setbacks. I will not be upset on the happiest day of my life.” She picks up the bottle of champagne and pours herself another glass, downing it in one.
Anna nods silently and exchanges a look with Mark.
**
Dianna’s fears and agitations disappear the moment she steps outside to see her closest friends and family all seated facing the ocean. Her brother is waiting, a grin on his face as he holds out his arm for her to take.
“You look gorgeous,” he says, kissing her cheek. Dianna can only smile in return as a hundred different emotions start to bubble up inside her. Together they walk towards the aisle that splits the guests into two and when the string quartet start to play, everybody turns to look at them, “What’s wrong?” Jason asks, as they walk slowly down the aisle.
“It’s the wrong song,” Dianna whispers back.
“What?” her brother asks looking bewildered.
“This isn’t what they’re supposed to play,” she says, groaning and breaking away from her brother’s arm, heading back up the aisle towards the surprised musicians. After a few terse words, Dianna rejoins her brother and the music restarts.
“Really, Di, was that necessary?” her brother asks as a few of the guests break into sniggers and whispers.
“They’ve already ruined my cake and the incompetent best man has lost the rings,” she says quickly, eyes falling on Jon at the end of the aisle, “I don’t think it’s too much to ask that I get to walk down the aisle to the right piece of music.” She plasters a smile on her face as they continue to pass the guests and spots her mom in the front row, tears already streaming down her cheeks. When they reach the chuppah, Jason kisses his sister’s cheek again and goes to join their mom in the front row. Dianna quickly surveys the guests, feeling calm wash over her again.
This is happening. She’s here, on a beautiful beach on an island, surrounded by her loved ones about to marry the woman of her dreams.
The woman of her dreams who is walking down the aisle, grinning at everyone she passes. The woman of her dreams who is pretty much dragging her dad down the aisle.
The woman of her dreams who’s wearing a dress that makes her look like a meringue.
Dianna fights to keep the look of horror off her face. After all, Lea could be wearing a garbage bag and still look like a million dollars. Lea joins Dianna under the canopy and beams up at her soon-to-be wife though the smile fades sharply when she notes the expression on the blonde’s face.
“What?” Lea asks in a low voice.
“You look like a meringue,” Dianna replies, staring at the puffy sleeves hiding Lea’s toned arms. Lea’s face falls.
“I knew you’d do this,” she says, stabbing a finger at taller woman’s chest, “I knew you’d make fun of me. You’re always making fun of me, Di. Is this all a big joke to you?” She gestures around at their guests who are staring open-mouthed at the arguing brides.
“No,” Dianna says hurriedly, reaching for the brunette’s hands, “No, sweetie, I’m sorry. Please…”
“No, Di…” the rest of Lea’s words are drowned out by a loud screeching noise. Dianna turns her gaze to the sky in confusion, dragging Lea out from under the canopy as a huge shadow falls over them. Her mouth drops open as talons wrap around her fiancée and Lea’s hand is ripped from her own. She’s pretty sure that Lea is still berating her as the pterodactyl carries her off.
**
Dianna’s eyes open far too quickly and she squints into the darkness of her bedroom. 3:24. She groans in relief, “Just a dream,” she repeats to herself, rubbing her hand over her eyes, “Oh thank God.”
Very carefully, she pushes the sheets off her body, making sure that her feet aren’t tangled up, and climbs out of bed. Through the curtains, she can see the ocean lapping against the sand, the moonlight reflecting brightly off the inky black water. She can also make out a figure sitting in the sand, staring up at the stars, long brown hair falling against the woman’s back. The blonde reaches for a sweatshirt and tugs it on before making her way quietly through the corridors of the hotel careful not to wake any of their sleeping guests.
Along with the sound of the waves, the slight breeze that chills Dianna’s almost bare legs masks the sound of her footsteps over the sand and when she drops down next to the solitary figure staring out at the ocean now, Lea screams.
“Di!” her voice is now muffled by the blonde’s hand. They glance back towards the hotel but no-one appears to have heard Lea’s exclamation.
“Hi,” Dianna says, removing her hand.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing? You nearly gave me a heart attack!” Lea asks, trying to sound annoyed at her fiancée. The grin on her face tells a different story. The brunette shifts closer to the taller woman as Dianna slides an arm around Lea’s waist, “Are you okay, baby?”
“Just a bad dream,” Dianna says, “It was quite ridiculous.” Dianna lets her fingers drag under the thin material of Lea’s shirt.
“Tell me about it?” Lea asks, shifting again. Now she’s sitting between Dianna’s legs, back pressed against the blonde’s chest. Dianna leans forwards to lean her head against the brunette’s shoulder, her hands holding onto Lea’s waist again.
“I overslept for the wedding and Anna thought that I’d run off,” Dianna starts, fingers massaging circles across the brunette’s toned abdomen, “And I fell getting out of bed, bruised my knees and hurt my hands.”
“Poor baby,” Lea says, tilting her head back slightly as Dianna’s fingers stray across a particularly sensitive patch of skin.
“Then parrots ate our cake,” Dianna says with a chuckle.
“Parrots?”
“Yeah,” Dianna turns her head slightly and places a soft kiss against Lea’s neck, “Parrots. Someone left the kitchen door open and they ate the cake. I didn’t even know that parrots like cake…” Lea’s laugh is low and causes a shiver to run through Dianna who tightens her grip on Lea, hands straying higher.
“What else happened?” Lea asks, sounding amused.
“Anna hit herself in the face with a champagne cork,” Dianna says grinning, “And I was more concerned about the photos. She wasn’t impressed.” Dianna’s teeth graze against tanned skin and Lea moans softly, “Jon lost the rings.”
“He what?” Lea asks sounding panicked.
“It was just a dream, babe,” Dianna reminds her, “You were thinking up punishments for him. I don’t remember if he actually found them or not.” Dianna frowns, “Then the band - or a string quartet?” the taller woman shrugs, “- played the wrong song while Jason walked me down the aisle and… you were dressed like a meringue.”
“A meringue?” Lea asks, pressing her body closer to Dianna’s as a stronger breeze passes over them.
“Your dress was awful,” Dianna says making a face, “It had these huge puffy sleeves and… Lea, honey, please tell me that you’re not wearing anything that makes you look like a meringue.” Lea remains silent, “Lea?” Dianna starts to kiss the back of the brunette’s neck, “You still looked amazing…”
“No-one looks amazing dressed like a meringue,” Lea says, a grin forming on her face, “You don’t have to worry about the dress.”
“Good,” Dianna says, “Just the pterodactyl then.”
“Yeah… what?” Lea asks, giggling now, “A pterodactyl?”
“It carried you in your meringue dress off into the sunset,” Dianna says laughing against Lea’s neck, “The whole thing reminded me of the night I proposed.”
“That was definitely one for the scrapbook,” Lea says shivering again as Dianna’s fingertips brush the bare skin between her breasts. Dianna’s hands drop down and rest on Lea’s thighs now, playing with the soft fabric that barely covers the brunette’s skin.
“I think you should wear this to the wedding.”
“Of course you do,” Lea says rolling her eyes. They sit in silence for a few minutes, listening to the ocean. Lea feels her eyelids start to droop as she snuggles into Dianna a little more.
“What are you doing out here?” the blonde asks, remembering that Lea’s the reason she came out onto the sand.
“Jon snores sometimes,” Lea says, placing her hands on top of Dianna’s to stop them sliding beneath the shorter woman’s shorts, “I thought I’d sleep really well tonight given how busy we’ve been, how stressed out we’ve been getting everyone here, everything organised…” Lea turns her body towards Dianna now, “I don’t sleep well when you’re not with me.” Dianna smiles at this, knowing the feeling intimately.
“Me neither,” she says, wrapping her arms around the brunette again, “And I guess it doesn’t make much sense for both of us to be awake when we could be sleeping. Together.”
“And the whole tradition thing?”
“Tradition sucks,” Dianna says mimicking Lea’s earlier statement. The brunette grins up at her fiancée and jumps to her feet, pulling the blonde with her. Hands linked together, they walk quickly back to the hotel and fall asleep wrapped in each others arms minutes later.
**
Dianna is already awake when her first alarm starts to ring. She’s already been to the kitchen to make sure that it’s completely parrot-free and that the cake is in a secure location. She’s opened the bottle of champagne, ready for when her mom and Anna make their appearance.
Since she’s not allowed near Lea’s room, under Jon’s orders, she gets him to send her a photo of the rings.
“Bit excessive, sweetheart. He knows that I‘d kill him if he lost the rings,” Lea’s message reads moments after Jon’s arrives.
She’s about to call the guitarist of the band, a close friend of Lea’s, to confirm the songs they’re playing during the ceremony when a knock on the door distracts her. Anna is waiting on the other side, grinning back at her best friend.
“Morning,” she says sweeping into the room.; her dress is clutched in one hand, a bottle of red wine in the other.
“The wine needs to go,” Dianna says shaking her head.
“But it’s your favourite,” Anna says, frowning at the label, “Just one glass…” Anna reaches for the corkscrew on the dressing table next to the champagne.
“No!” Dianna grabs the bottle from Anna’s hands and stuffs it in the cupboard next to her bed, “No red wine.” Anna quirks an eyebrow at her best friend and mumbles something that sounds like ‘bridezilla’ under her breath, “I told you what happened on the night I proposed. No red wine.”
“Right,” Anna says, sitting down on the edge of the bed, “Nervous then?”
“Terrified,” Dianna admits. Anna puts an arm around the soon-to-be-married blonde and leans against her shoulder, “But in the best way possible. Does that make sense?”
“Absolutely,” Anna says, “But you have nothing to worry about. That why I’m here.”
Dianna gives her a wan smile, as the image of a puffy-shouldered Lea being carried off into the distance clutched in the talons of an extinct flying reptile flits into her mind again.
**
The buzz amongst the guests, eighty of the brides’ closest friends and family, dies down when the band starts to play. Dianna, on the arm of her brother, is making her way down the aisle, dress flowing in the light afternoon wind. Jon and Anna are waiting for her beside the chuppah on either side of the Rabbi. Behind them the ocean stretches off into infinity, tiny boats bob on the horizon.
When they reach the end of the aisle, Jason places a kiss to his sister’s cheek and goes to join their mom, who’s already spent the better half of the morning in tears. Dianna smiles as her mom opens a new packet of tissues and glances around at their other guests. Friends from movies, from Broadway, from the television show that brought them together. Chris and Amber wave simultaneously when she meets their eyes and she grins back, clutching her bouquet of white roses tighter in her hands as she feels a lump start to rise in her throat.
She glances over at Jon when the music changes and he holds up the two rings with a grin.
“Thanks,” she whispers and he nods before turning his attention to his best friend. Dianna takes a deep breath and does the same, all thoughts of meringue leaving her mind. Her mouth almost drops open when Lea looks away from her dad and meets the hazel eyes waiting for her at the end of the aisle. Lea’s dress is similar to her own - white, long and flowing. But unlike Dianna’s, Lea’s shoulders, her perfect bronzed skin, are unblemished by straps. Her hair cascades down her back, spiralled into loose waves.
Lea’s dad kisses them both on the cheek, smiling widely at his future daughter-in-law before sitting down in the empty chair next to his wife, taking her hand in his own and reaching up to wipe away the tears streaking down Edith’s face.
“Better than meringue, right?” Lea whispers, leaning in close to the blonde who merely nods in response, “You look beautiful, baby.”
“You too,” Dianna says, grinning over at her soon-to-be wife.
**
“Ladies and gentlemen, Mrs and Mrs Agron-Michele,” the band’s singer announces. Around the marquee framed in white gossamer curtains, the guests clap and cheer as Lea takes Dianna’s hand and leads her to the middle of the dance floor. The sun is beginning to set over the ocean, the sky awash with pinks and oranges.
The band start to play, Elton’s John ‘The Way You Look Tonight’, and Dianna slides her arms around Lea.
“Hey,” she whispers. They’re far enough away from their guests that no-one can hear them talk.
“Hi,” Lea returns, staring up at her wife with wide, shining eyes.
“We made it,” Dianna replies, “No parrots… no meringue…”
“I saw you looking for that pterodactyl though,” Lea says. The blonde woman laughs, not denying that she found herself glancing warily at the skies a few times during the ceremony.
“I’d have fought it for you,” she says with a smile, “I’ll always fight for you.”
They’re joined on the floor by Lea’s parents and Dianna’s family. Lea lets out a contented sigh as she leans her head against the blonde’s shoulder.
“Lea?” Dianna’s voice is questioning as she glances down at the beautiful woman in her arms.
“Mmm?” Lea mumbles back, pressing her lips to Dianna’s skin.
“I love you,” Dianna says softly.
“I love you too,” the brunette replies, “Forever.”