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“Emily!” Jack beamed at her as he stepped into the room. Emily looked away from the mirror and smiled at the sight of him. She could feel the nerves and excitement bubbling in her stomach as she waited to be told it was time. JJ and Garcia had already made their way downstairs to ensure that everything was ready and she appreciated the moment alone with her future stepson and his aunt.
“You look so handsome,” Emily smiled at Jack as Jessica stepped into the room. “Hi Jess,”
“You look wonderful,” Jess complimented as she passed the box to Jack. “Aaron said that you were struggling for a ‘Something Borrowed’.”
“I was,” Emily replied as she looked at the box. Jack looked slightly puzzled and Emily sat down, mindful of her dress as she explained to Jack. “It’s tradition that a bride has four things with her when she gets married. Something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue, it’s meant to bring good luck.”
“What’s yours?” Jack asked curiously and Emily smiled.
“Well, the something old is my veil, it belonged to my mother,” Emily explained as she turned her head to show Jack the veil. It had been painstakingly cared for and had been inspired by a similar veil worn by Jackie Kennedy. Of course. “The something new is my dress and the something blue is the ribbons around the flowers.”
It was also the colour of the garter that Garcia had bought for her but she and Aaron had agreed that although she would toss the bouquet; the removal of her garter would be for the two of them alone.
“So you needed to borrow something,” Jack summarised and Emily nodded.
“That’s right, and we have something we can let Emily borrow.” Jess explained. “Show Emily the box.”
Jack handed Emily the box and stood beside her as Emily carefully opened it. Nestled inside on the silk lining was a silver necklace with an opal embedded into the middle. The milky stone glinted with flecks of different colour under the lights, speckles of green, lilacs and blues danced across the stone. She had never seen it before and wondered why Jess was offering to let her borrow it. It was beautiful but the reason for this necklace didn’t seem clear to her. However as she looked at Jess who was trying to blink back tears, she understood.
“It belonged to Haley,” Jess explained softly. “She would have been so happy to see you and Aaron so happy together.”
“Thanks Jessica,” Emily replied. She understood the importance of the necklace and the unspoken impact it had. She knew it was hard for Aaron and Jack to know they were so happy without Haley being there. It was a way of ensuring Haley was not forgotten and that the promise Aaron had made to her had been fulfilled. He had been able to love again, to show Jack love and find happiness. "
It's beautiful," Emily breathed, the opal seemed to shine brighter as Jack gently touched the stone before Emily picked the necklace out of the box. With careful hands, she moved her veil over her shoulder and Jess stepped over to fasten the necklace around her neck. Jess fixed the veil back into place and Emily smiled at her reflection in the mirror.
Now she felt like a bride.
“Come on Darling, it’s time to get you hitched. Unless you’ve finally come to your senses and decided to run away with me,” Clyde teased from the doorway. Emily rolled her eyes at him through the mirror and Jess took Jack’s hand.
“We’ll see you there,” Jess smiled as Jack pouted. He got to stand next to his dad and hold the rings but he had wanted to walk with Emily too.
“I can’t wait,” Emily smiled as she hugged Jack tightly and kissed his cheek.
As Jess led Jack from the room, Clyde smiled proudly as Emily stood and swept imaginary crumbs from her dress. He still couldn't believe that she was getting married, to Agent Hardass of all people. Still, at least she had asked him to give her away. He respected the gesture and he had to admit, he had never seen her look so happy. Maybe even Agent HArdass would crack a smile for once.
“Now, Darling, this is your final chance to run. I have the jet ready, just say the word.” Clyde teased as Emily swatted at his arm. He had already been warned that he would get his ass kicked by the entire BAU team if he so much as sneezed during the wedding but he had to get at least one joke in.
“No way,” Emily replied as she felt a moment of nerves. Although she and Aaron had been together for almost two years, had lived together for over a year and had been engaged for the past ten months; the reality still seemed surreal to her. They were going to be married. They were about to have a real, actual wedding.
There was a tiny part of her that expected to wake up to discover this was all a dream. Except it wasn’t. This was really happening.
“Well, in that case, let’s get you married.” Clyde grinned as she took his arm and they walked out of the room.
Just downstairs, Aaron and Jack were waiting on her. This was the first day of the rest of their lives together. Although today was more of a formality, an official way to declare their love and promise to spend the rest of their lives together; so much planning and preparation had gone into it. It still felt like a dream. Except it wasn’t a dream.
It was even better.
Aaron could hear the music playing mixed in with the soft sighs and clicks of cameras. However he refused to turn around until the final moment. He could tell by the beaming grins on Rossi, Morgan and Reid’s faces, the excited bounce of Jack beside him that the impossible had happened. Somehow Emily had become even more beautiful than she already was. His heart pounded with excitement as he finally turned around and his breath caught in his throat as tears pricked his eyes. The impossible really had happened. Emily looked more beautiful than ever before. Her sleeveless dress clung to her and the skirt flared out. Her hair was curled around her shoulders and her veil tickled her arms down to her elbows. In her hand was a bouquet of roses and lilies and around her neck was the opal necklace he had asked Jess and Jack to give to her. Haley’s opal necklace.
Emily beamed at the sight of Aaron blinking back tears as they reached the end of the aisle. With a shake of Aaron’s hand and kiss to Emily’s cheek, Clyde passed her hand into Aaron’s and stepped back. The officiant smiled at the beaming couple as he looked at the guests and gestured for them to sit down.
“Shall we begin?” the officiant asked and Emily and Aaron beamed at one another. For once, that was a question that neither of them needed to consider an answer for. Today was the first day of the rest of their lives. And neither could wait.