“You all ready?”

Justin’s head whipped around to the doorway the voice had emanated from. Leaning against it, his mother stood there yawning in her dressing gown.

“Hey. Told you there was no need to get up.”

“What’s the world coming to if I don’t see my boy off, huh?”

Sleep still laced her voice but Lynn managed a small smile. It was earlier than it perhaps needed to be but Justin wanted to get on the road as soon as possible. The first available flight would bear him back to Los Angeles, where he would stay put this time. He told his parents not to bother waking up to say goodbye, there was no need, but she ignored him. In any event she would have wanted to be up to see him off, but as it turned out she’d slept badly anyway.

“Nah - you should sleep while you can, you got a late one ahead.”

Lynn’s eyes travelled critically over her son’s tall frame. The words were nonchalant, but she couldn’t imagine that they were a true reflection. It didn’t take a trained psychologist to know that his behaviour in the last few days was something to do with the wedding that was now upon them, but he hadn’t opted to let her in on what he was thinking. His strange reappearance a few days ago must have something to do with Reese, she guessed, but Justin had evaded her gentle prying. Whenever she started broaching the topic he found somewhere else to be. His eagerness to leave so early seemed related.

“Not planning on being too late tonight,” she said with a lightness of tone that matched his. “So do you go straight into rehearsals or do you have a couple of days first?”

“Tomorrow,” he replied. Eventually he’d decided to take Johnny up on the club show offer. It was only a handful of gigs, but he could use a project to sink his teeth into. This was a quick win.

“Great. You look set, do you have time for a quick bite or do you need to get straight out?”

“I’ll grab something at the airport, thanks.”

“Okay.” It felt incredibly disloyal to watch her son departing with his head hanging down. In a few hours’ time she would be at an event celebrating the cause of it. Lynn would never refuse to go, for the sake of both Elizabeth and Reese, but she dreaded it. It was awkward to say the least. “Sweetheart…”

“Yeah?” Justin looked back at his mother expectantly.

“Are you sure you don’t need to talk?” It would be ridiculous to ask if he was okay.

“There’s nothing to say, Mom.” The shrug was melancholy but determined. This wasn’t a subject he wanted to discuss but she wouldn’t let him out of the door until he’d allayed her worry. He might as well cut to the chase. “I messed up, she moved on. So as long as she’s happy then it’s all good, I’ll deal with it.”

More than ever she wished he would tell her what happened. At the time she and Liz spent many fruitless hours discussing the possibilities, but neither of their children would divulge. This was the most he’d ever said. It bolstered her suspicion that he’d done something wrong. Of course you didn’t like to imagine that your child was at fault, but shame was the only thing that might explain his reticence. The secrecy was too strange.

“But you came back here for her.” It was stated not asked. “You can’t tell me you’re fine.”

“I’m not.” Zipping his bag shut, he grabbed his hoodie and yanked it over his head. “But it’s okay, I’ll deal with it. Honestly, Mom, I’m good to just take what I can get. We’re friends again and that’s more than I could’ve hoped.”

“Alright.” It was not alright but she was forced to accept it.

“Honestly, Mom,” he repeated. “It’s okay. And don’t feel like you have to sit there being miserable on my account today, have fun.”

That was an unlikely prospect. “Alright.”

Justin gave her a look that told her he didn’t believe her.

**

They hadn’t even left the house, and Reese was already fed up of the photographer.

That was unfair. He was a perfectly nice man doing exactly what he was hired for. She was just already sick of having her picture taken. Camera shyness wasn’t normally a problem for her before but today it was no good. Every time she saw the lens aiming in her direction she worried about what she looked like. That was particularly silly when the whole idea was to get candid photos of the preparation. She wasn’t supposed to look perfect yet, that was the point.

Sitting on a stool in the kitchen (it had the best light and most space), half of her hair was in rollers. A mercifully taciturn stylist was carefully applying her mascara. She must be used to nervous brides who didn’t want to talk. Instead Reese’s eyes kept skirting around the room to the buzz of activity. Nadine’s short hair didn’t need much styling, so in no time at all she was in her gown and ready to rock. Jenna found getting ready more of a challenge since Will kept pestering her, but Dean was wrangling both him and Daisy. It looked like the photographer got some nice shots of them as a family.

Reese was the only one who wasn’t ready. The make up was now done. The hair would be pulled back and pinned and then she’d be released to step into her dress. In half an hour or so, she’d be on her way to the church.

Oliver stepped into the room looking handsome. She hadn’t seen him in any suit except his dress uniform for a while, but the classic tux suited him. All he needed was to shrug on his jacket and he’d be good to go. Idly she wished she’d been one of the sons - it would make getting ready a lot quicker.

“Cars are here.”

“Great, thanks Ollie.”

Eyeing her as if he wanted to say something, he apparently thought better of it. That was for the best, with an audience it wasn’t the best time for any familial chats. Instead he gave her a nod.

“You scrub up nice, sweets.” The smile was in his eyes rather than on his lips.

That was the closest he’d ever come to approving of what she was about to do, so she took it gracefully. Hopefully the hair and make up did look good even if she was still sitting there in her robe.

“Thanks. Lucky for you nobody got your face so you still look nice too.” Okay, maybe not that gracefully.

His eyes ducked down and he shook his head with a sheepish smirk. “Touché, sis.”

She was then distracted by the cloud of hairspray that was suddenly in her face, so Oliver left her to it.

**

The house was quiet now, only two inhabitants and one photographer left. Everybody else had been bundled into cars and whisked away to the church. John Bennington was standing at the bottom of the stairs, fidgeting from foot to foot with his hands stuffed in his pockets. Though he’d seen the results of the coiffing Reese had disappeared into her bedroom to get her outfit on and was yet to re-emerge. He’d expected her to come downstairs after everyone else, could only suppose she was taking a few minutes to gather her thoughts. The photographer was waiting to take pictures of them getting into the car and setting off (and unbeknownst to John, to capture his reaction to seeing his daughter in full regalia for the first time).

Finally the moment came, and the shots the photographer snapped started with awed surprise before melting into a proud beam. With a small bouquet of white roses in one hand Reese was making her way down the stairs in a lace and pearl decorated mermaid gown. Her hair was neatly swept back from her face but left hanging loose in curls, and her veil was pinned into the back with a small comb. Unfortunately she was being so careful as she came down the stairs in the form fitting dress and tall heels that the camera was getting more frowns than smiles as she descended.

“Well,” John said as she finally reached the bottom. “Look at you.”

“Am I spiffy?”

“You’re the spiffiest thing I ever did see, sweetheart.”

He reached out and folded her up into a hug. The warm sturdiness and the familiar smell of his cologne made Reese feel five years old again, as if he’d scooped her up like she was Daisy-sized. Releasing her from the hug, he took her spare hand in his and squeezed.

“You ready to rock?”

“Let’s go.”

The ride to the church wasn’t long, so there wasn’t much time for last minute pearls of wisdom. John didn’t particularly feel that he had any, anyway. Reese had seen plenty of the world by now and done all manner of things, was about to embark on yet another, so he was of the opinion that if she needed his advice she’d ask. Besides, she seemed preoccupied with her own thoughts. Normally his children were chatterboxes on car journeys, all five (maybe it came of constantly having to compete with each other to be heard), but now she was mutely watching out of the window. Clearly the bride was nervous.

“Dad?”

“Yes baby?”

“Can I ask you something personal?”

He chuckled. Was he a stranger or her father? How much more personal did your relationship need to get before you stopped asking if you could enquire into personal matters?

“Sure.”

“Mom said when you were engaged, there was a problem over your job and if you needed to move.”

“That’s right,” he answered. “Got lucky and something opened up close to home.”

Reese fiddled with the bouquet in her lap, looking down at the roses. The florist had pinned a small pearl into the middle of each flower.

“What would you have done if it didn’t?”

“Oh that’s easy, darlin’. I’d have got something as a stop gap until there was an opening in a better location.”

Her eyebrows rose slightly in response. When she spoke to her mother it sounded like a serious dilemma, even a potential deal breaker, but her dad was completely relaxed about it. His hand waved it off dismissively and he answered without hesitation.

“Oh really? Mom said she wasn’t sure if you’d have just gone anyway.”

“Huh.” John’s lower lip pursed outward in exaggerated deliberation. “Never knew that. Well, far as I was concerned it wasn’t a question. Don’t get me wrong, I might’ve still pushed for a move, but I’d never have gone without her. Why do you ask?”

“I was thinking about me and Drake moving and it came to mind, that’s all.”

“Well, it’s just that thing, isn’t it?” He reached out and squeezed her hand. “There would’ve been other jobs, but there was only one Elizabeth Lavelle.”

A soft, wistful look came into Reese’s eyes. “Never tagged you for such a romantic.”

“Hey, your old man has been known to have a sweet spot on occasion,” he replied. “But I couldn’t say it was some romantic gesture because it wasn’t really a purposeful decision that I made. It never seriously crossed my mind that there was any option which didn’t involve your mom.”

“No?” That was interesting, because from what she said it crossed hers.

“No.” He paused briefly to consider it further. He’d never thought about it like that until she asked. “I guess when somebody’s it for you, you don’t stop having your own life and your own plans but they become a big part of them. Which, as far as fatherly advice to your little girl on her wedding day goes, that’s probably best I can say to you. Don’t stop following your own paths; just make sure you factor each other in.”

Reese went to lay her head on her father’s shoulder, then remembered her hair and thought better of it. “You know I always had this picture in my head that you’d spend the entire drive giving me fatherly advice.”

“Nah.” He patted her knee. “Of all my children, you’ve always been the one who needed my advice the least.”

“Really?”

“Really,” he replied. “Dean took far too long to grow up, though he came good in the end like I knew he would. Oliver’s a good boy but never really known his direction… wager Clark’s going the same way.”

Reese’s silence was her agreement. Dean did go through a few wilderness years before he straightened himself out. Some might put it down to finding the right job or meeting Jenna, but she thought those were consequences not causes. He’d got his head on straight and the rest followed. Oliver she always felt joined the forces needing some time to test himself (though it turned out it suited him, she’d lay bets on him staying). Time would tell with Clark, but they were similar personalities.

“Sam… well, kid’s always had a habit of playing it too safe. That’s why he looks up to you so much, you know. Thinks you’re brave.”

She snorted. “Hard to think of Sam looking up at anything.” He was absurdly tall. All her brothers were, got it from their mom’s side of the family, but even they looked short next to him.

“Mark my words, girl, your little brother looks up to you - as well he might. You’ve known what you wanted since you were seventeen, and you’ve got a knack for when to shoot for it. Even now you’re about to go off and do it again. Ollie’s got guts and Sam’s got sense, but you got both and that’s a powerful combination. That’s why I don’t worry about you, even when you’re the other side of the country. Sam could stand to have a little of your adventure in him… even if it meant I had to go see the principal less about him than you.”

Reese flushed. Trace would be pleased – there was at least one person who understood he wasn’t the real mastermind of all those escapades.

“Nah, I didn’t need to spend this drive telling you what to do,” John finished with a tap of her nose. “You always knew how to figure out it for yourself, and that makes me proud.” 

He couldn’t know it, but this little chat had been exactly what she needed. “Thanks, Dad.”

They fell back into quiet for the remaining five minutes of the journey. The bride sat primly in her seat, hands clasped around her bouquet in her lap. Staring at the flowers she slowed her breathing and compelled herself into a state of calm. All she was concentrating on was inhaling and exhaling. The butterflies in her stomach were trying to fight their way up into her chest but through sheer force of will she kept them there. Aside from nearly making her cry, her father’s speech had reminded her that she’d earned some trust from herself in her own instincts.

When they pulled up outside the church Nadine and Jenna were waiting for them. John exited the car and then extended his hand back in to assist her. She grasped it gratefully; the dress was constricting her movement and the heels were higher than strictly practical. Jenna fussed around her, pulling the veil over her face and straightening out the small train. Looking around, for the first time Reese appreciated how many people were in attendance. The lot was full of cars.

Nadine smiled excitedly at her. Despite her general attitude to marriage, she was actually looking forward to this day she’d helped so much in planning. “You ready?”

“In a minute. Can you just go get Trace for me a second?”

All three of them looked at her like she’d said something insane. “Umm, hon, we need to get in there.”

“I know,” Reese replied. “It’ll only take a minute.”

“But…”

“Please just get me Trace.”

Nadine worked very hard to withhold the expletives resting on her tongue. It was going to be tricky to do this discreetly and without causing some stir amongst the groom’s party. Not to mention it involved her having to converse with her second least favourite person.

“Alright, I’ll go.”