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Michael paced back and forth, trying to burn off nervous energy. From across the room, a voice snapped, "Would you stop that? You're driving me batty."
Michael stopped and threw a glare at the offending party. "Well I'm sorry, Em, I'm nervous. How much longer now?"
Emmett crossed the room and hugged Michael. "Only about another two hours."
"ARGHHHH! I can't. I have to see him." Michael moved toward the door only to find Justin blocking the doorway. "Please move. I need to see him." The door guard only shook his head.
"Sorry Michael, you know it's bad luck for you to see Brian before the ceremony." Justin said from his post.
"But I haven't seen him since yesterday. My mother wouldn't even let me call him this morning. I just need to hear his voice." Michael knew he was whining, but he couldn't help it.
"Michael, you'll see him." Emmett tried to calm his friend. "Now, shouldn't you start getting dressed?"
Michael looked down and laughed. He hadn't realized that he'd been trying to leave the room while still in his underwear. "Fine, you win. I can't walk through the hotel in my boxers. You can move away from the door, Justin."
Justin only shook his head again. "No, I'm not moving."
"Brothers are a pain in the ass." Michael stomped off toward the bathroom, followed by Emmett.
Emmett watched Michael shave and try to do something with his hair. "Honey, I think that's a lost cause."
"Thanks a lot Emmett. For everything. Brian and I couldn't have planned this without you." Michael met Emmett's eyes in the mirror.
Emmett stopped primping and blushed. "Ah honey, you know I love throwing parties. And that's all this is. A big ole party."
"I know. I just had to thank you."
"Well, you're welcome sweetie." Emmett hugged Michael tightly. "Be happy. That's thanks enough."
Michael walked into the bedroom and pulled his tux out of the closet. "Am I crazy, Em?"
"Of course you are. It took you two and a half years after you proposed to get married. Why is that?" Emmett finally asked the question that he'd been wondering about.
Michael laid his tux on the bed and sat down on the couch. "We didn't want to interfere with everyone else's ceremonies, and then we wanted Makinna to be able to participate." Carl and Deb's wedding had been the start of a slate of commitment ceremonies. First up had been Ted and Emmett, then Justin and Ethan, then even Vic and Matthew. Brian and Michael were the end of the line.
Emmett and Justin smiled at the thought of their precocious niece. Less than eighteen months old and she already had everyone wrapped around her pinkie. Makinna was Michael in a female body. Alternately shy and gregarious, she never met a stranger she couldn't charm. She had her father's warm chocolate eyes and his ever-expanding heart. Brian's promise to her the night she was born had been kept. She got everything she wanted and most things she never thought of. Michael tried hard to keep Brian in line, but it was a lost cause. She would bat her eyes and everyone would run to do her bidding.
If Makinna was the queen of the family, Gus had grown into its king. Together they ruled their kingdom with laughter and charm. At eight, Gus had perfected the art of not getting into trouble even when caught red handed. All it took was a flash of his father's smile and hazel eyes. Even Brian was not immune.
"Where is the little angel anyway?" Justin wondered who'd been conned into trying to keep Makinna out of the cake and presents.
Michael's smile was an evil one. "We had to draw names among those who weren 't already occupied. Poor Carl."
Granpa was Makinna's favorite subject. While everyone else had learned to at least pretend to say no, Carl couldn't do it.
Emmett and Justin exchanged worried glances. Finally Emmett spoke up. "Carl? I think I'd better check and make sure everything's ok." Emmett quickly left the room to make sure the room was still standing. Makinna and Gus could cause a trail of destruction worse than any hurricane.
Justin moved away from the door and sat down next to Michael, who'd grown quiet. "You ok?"
"Yeah, just a little sad."
"Thinking about Ben?" Justin knew where the sadness was coming from. Ben had been gone for nearly four years now, but his absence was still strongly felt.
Tears started forming in Michael's eyes. "I know, I shouldn't be dwelling on the past. Today's a happy occasion." Michael's hand drifted to the cool metal on his chest.
Justin placed his hand over Michael's. "You're allowed to be a little sad. Brian would understand."
Michael took a deep breath and stood up. "Ok, pity party's over. I need to get dressed."
A quick glance at the clock told Justin that they had about an hour before the ceremony. Turning to Michael, he pulled his face into a stern expression. "If I leave you alone, will you promise to stay here?"
Michael smirked at Justin's attempt to be serious. It didn't fit the bouncy twink. "I promise little brother."
"Good." Justin hugged Michael, then walked out the door.
Michael walked over to the mirror so he could see as he tried to tie his tie. "Shit, I should have gotten the clip on."
"Here, let me." Suddenly, a strong hand stalled the movement of Michael's fingers. Michael met a pair of deep blue eyes in the mirror. Spinning around, he couldn't speak.
Deft fingers made short work of Michael's tie, then moved down to stroke the lapel of his tux. "Looking good, Michael."
Finally, Michael found his voice. "B-B-Ben? But you're..." Michael's voice trailed off.
"Dead. I know. I was there." Ben's eyes sparkled with amusement.
"But, what are you doing here?" Michael's eyes drank in the sight of the face of the man he'd loved so much. It was the beautiful, healthy face he'd fallen head over heels for, not the wasted skeleton he'd become. It had hurt so much when he'd lost him. Tears started streaking down his face.
"I came to watch you and Brian get married. After all, I'm partially responsible."
"How can you be responsible for Brian and I getting married?" Michael couldn 't believe he was standing there talking to Ben's ghost.
"Do you remember when you and I talked about you falling in love again?" Michael nodded, not trusting his voice. "Well, I knew that it would be Brian, but I couldn't tell you that. You wouldn't have believed me. But I saw it. I could tell by the way that he watched you that he'd finally realized the depths of his feelings for you. So, I told him that he had my blessing. Not that it would have made much difference to him."
Michael smiled, "Oh, I think you would be surprised about that. So, you told Brian that he could have me?"
"No, I told Brian that if you were happy, I'd be happy." Ben's hand reached out and touched a tear falling from Michael's eyes. "And do you really think that it was coincidence that led the two of you to buy matching necklaces? I planted the idea in both your heads." Ben's hand drifted down Michael's chest to rest on his necklace, feeling the strong heartbeat beneath it.
"Thank you, Ben." Michael moved into Ben's outstretched arms, feeling the final piece of his grief and guilt seep from his body. There was nothing left but remembered joy and love. "I love you Ben."
Ben's soft voice answered, as if from a distance. "I love you too, Michael." Michael felt Ben fade away, leaving him alone again. But this time, there were only tears of happiness.
For a minute, Michael thought he'd imagined the whole thing, but then realized that it really didn't matter. He'd finally completely let go of Ben and he felt lighter. Glancing at his watch, he cursed. It was almost time.
Suddenly, the door burst open and two whirlwinds fell through the opening. A small brown haired demon in a white chiffon dress was followed by a larger demon in a black tux that matched Michael's. "Daddy!!!"
Michael dropped to one knee and held out his arms. "Hey Angel. Where's Granpa?" Makinna didn't answer, just threw herself into her Daddy's arms.
From behind Makinna, a long suffering sigh escaped from Gus. "Daddy Michael, he gave up. He said that he was too old to chase after us."
Michael's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Gus, who is supposed to be watching you?" Everyone in the family knew better than to leave these two unsupervised.
"Me." From the doorway came the heavy breathing usually associated with much more enjoyable activities. Michael looked up and saw Melanie.
"That's good. After all, they are your children." Michael stood up; Makinna still wrapped around his neck.
"AH!! My genes had nothing to do with creating those two. Do you know why Carl gave up?"
Michael's eyes rolled heavenward, asking Ben for the patience to deal with his children. He did that a lot. "What did they do?" Michael's inquiry was made in the tone of some one who really doesn't want to hear the answer.
"Makinna disappeared. We found her hiding under the table the gifts are on, trying to open them. And Gus was standing look out, handing them down to her." Melanie tried hard to be disapproving, but it wasn't going too well.
"Makinna?" Michael's voice was stern, but gentle as he looked down into eyes that matched his own. His daughter's bottom lip started quivering and her eyes were filling with tears.
"Sowwy Daddy." She leaned over and kissed Michael on the cheek and all thoughts of discipline left him.
"Yeah, sorry Daddy Michael." Gus's hazel eyes held a promise to behave that Michael knew he couldn't keep.
"You two will be the death of us all." Michael kissed Makinna's cheek, then bent down to kiss Gus. Gus wiped his cheek with the sleeve of his jacket.
"Yuck. Do you have to do that Daddy?" The combination of innocence and maturity in his son always caught him off guard.
"Yes, I do. Now, are you ready?" Michael set Makinna on her feet and took hold of her hand. "Mel, where are her flowers?"
"They're waiting by the entrance to the room. Now, for the last time, are you sure you want to do this? You know how she gets." Not for the first time, Melanie wondered what had possessed Brian and Michael to allow Makinna a starring role in their wedding.
Michael laughed. "Yes Mel. Gus will be there to help her and it's a short walk. Gus won't let her get out of control, will you son?" Michael pinned Gus with a stern look.
"No, Daddy Michael. I'll make sure she does what she's supposed to do." Michael didn't know why he had a hard time believing Gus, but decided that it didn't matter. Whatever happened today, it would be perfect.
"Ok, I'll take them out. Where's your best man?" Melanie's eyes scanned the room for Justin.
"He left a few minutes ago, he'll be here." Michael kissed his children's cheeks again and sent them off with their mother. "Boy Wonder where are you?" Michael started pacing again.
"I'm right here. It's time. You ready?" Justin smiled at Michael's obvious signs of nervousness.
"As ready as I'll ever be." For the umpteenth time that day, Michael placed his hand over his necklace for strength.
As they headed for the room where the ceremony was being held, Justin gently teased Michael. "Your last chance to run. We can be in New York in five hours."
Michael smirked. "Yeah, like you would leave Ethan behind. When do you two leave?"
Justin smiled, almost regretfully. "In two days. We won't be here when you two get back."
"Justin, email is a wonderful thing. We can still work on Rage and you'll be home in a year."
"A year in Australia? Why did I agree?" Justin started pacing.
"Because you love Ethan and he got an amazing opportunity. Conducting the Sydney Philharmonic is a big deal." Pride threatened to burst from Michael. "And Brian and I will come visit, I promise."
Justin hugged Michael fiercely. "Send pictures of the kids, ok?"
"Sunshine, hands off." They'd been so engrossed in their conversation that they hadn't heard Brian and Ted approach.
"No. I can hug Michael if I want." Justin laughed and moved to hug Brian. "Now, where are my adorable niece and nephew?"
Four men exchanged concerned glances. "Mikey, who's got them?"
Michael sighed. "It was Carl, but you can guess how that ended. Last I saw them, Mel was heading this way with them."
A frazzled Melanie heard the end of Michael's comment. "Yeah, well your beautiful daughter had other ideas. She saw a party down the hall and had to poke her head in. And of course, the anniversary couple thought she was just adorable. She was dancing with the guest of honor."
"Makinna, you want to throw the flowers, don't you?" Brian bent down to eye level with his daughter. She turned those powerful eyes on her and smiled. For Brian, it wasn't Makinna's bottomless brown eyes that got to him, it was her blinding smile. It was the same smile Michael flashed when he was happy.
"Uh huh." Her small head nodded up and down furiously. "Where my flowers?" She looked accusingly at her father, as if sure he'd hidden them from her; which he had.
"Here they are Angel." Michael walked over to the table next to the door and picked up the basket stashed out of her reach. "Mel, you can go tell Ethan that he can start anytime, then find your seat." It was a tradition that started with Deb and Carl's wedding; Ethan always played the wedding march on his violin, even his own.
Relieved, Melanie passed responsibility for her children off to their fathers. Anything that happened now was their problem to deal with.
"Gus, you ready?" Gus had decided that he was too old to be a ring bearer, but he wanted to be in the wedding, so he was an usher with one responsibility. Makinna.
"Yes Daddy Brian." He turned to Makinna. He heard the music start and as a old hand at weddings, knew what it meant. Michael handed Makinna the basket and watched his children walk into the banquet room.
Everything was fine for the first five feet, and then Makinna caught sight of the crowd watching her every move. A born performer, she had to milk it for everything it was worth. Rather than tossing the petals, she decided to arrange them on the carpet, one at a time. Gus tried valiantly to convince her that it was fine to just throw them, but she was having none of that. And Gus couldn't help it, he was as much his sister's slave as the rest of the family. He burst into laughter along with the hysterical crowd.
Michael and Brian were leaning against each other, trying hard to regain their composure, but it wasn't working. Finally, Michael managed to choke out one word. "Justin."
Understanding perfectly, Justin and Ted pulled themselves together and headed down the carpet. When Justin reached Makinna, he swept her up into his arms. "Come on you."
"Unca Jus. Pwetty flowas." Makinna's problems with her r's only made her seem even more adorable.
"Yes, you little minx." With Makinna safely perched in Justin's arms, they made their way down to the altar, where Emmett was waiting to perform the ceremony.
Outside, Michael and Brian managed to stop laughing. "Brian, if I didn't know better, I'd swear that she carries your genes. She has your need to make a show of everything."
"Oh right, blame me. It's always my fault." Brian noticed that everyone had reached Emmett. "Ready?"
"Always have been." Michael took Brian's hand in his own and they headed down the aisle toward their future.
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