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“What’s up with you?” Nancy asks, handing TK a pack of gauze pads as they begin the restock of the ambulance from the B Shift.
“Huh?” TK answers, pushing the gauze into the shelf at the side of the rig, swearing to himself when one falls out.
“You’ve been weirdly mopey since you arrived” TK sits down on the stretcher and Nancy leans against the door studying the clipboard in front of her.
“Carlos and I had a thing this morning”
“Trouble in fiancé paradise?” Nancy teases looking up for a moment.
“No” TK grumbles, stepping down from the vehicle and brushing past her, snatching the second box of gauze, and stepping back up into the rig.
“Oh relax, what’s the thing?”
“We went to a family lunch at the ranch on the weekend and his Tia Lucy put all these ideas in his head about what we should be doing for the wedding”
“Ideas? Like what?” Nancy queries as she grabs another box of gloves and throws them in TK’s general direction.
“Like traditional stuff and superstitions that I will never understand but he’s just so happy that they are contributing to the wedding he’s decided to do all of them. So now he’s going to stay at his parent’s house before the wedding and I need to find something I can wear that’s old and blue”
“I think it’s something old, new, borrowed and blue”
TK casts a withering look her way, “Whatever! I just don’t get this stuff”
“So, you object to doing a few weird wedding traditions?”
“No. It just seems like they’re more important that the getting married part now. It’s weirding me out” Nancy turns to grab multiple packs of bandages and hands them over, motioning to the vehicle again to get him moving.
“He wants your wedding to go off without a hitch, what’s the big deal, dude?” TK makes a frustrated noise and pushes the refill of bandages into the appropriate spot.
“Doesn’t exactly scream confident in the idea of marrying me, does it if you think we need to do all these things to ensure the success of our wedding and marriage?”
“You’ve been kidnapped, shot and taken a swan dive into a frozen lake to get hypothermia. He might have a bit of a precedent that you’re a bad luck magnet” Nancy shrugs at him when he narrows his eyes at her.
“That doesn’t mean anything bad is going to happen at the wedding”
“What’s the harm in having some extra good luck?” TK sighs, nodding at Judd as he makes his way over to them.
“Tommy wanted me to tell you she’s got held up on some meeting, so she’ll be late for shift”
“Thanks,” TK says and then gives Judd a searching look
“What?” Judd asks, crossing his arms in front of him.
“You had a wedding,” TK says slowly, and Nancy huffs out a laugh next to him.
“Yeah, seem to remember that happening” Judd answers, one corner of his mouth raising in amusement.
“You know what? Never mind” TK mumbles and reaches out to collect the next item from Nancy.
“Out with it, Strand,” Judd says in his no-nonsense and TK just rolls his eyes at the use of his last name.
“Did you do any of the traditional, superstitious stuff?” TK asks and Judd’s face turns to confusion.
“The superstitious stuff?”
“Yeah, like not seeing each other until the aisle on the wedding day, carrying your partner over the threshold and apparently burying bourbon where you’re going to get married so it doesn’t rain”
Nancy lets out a short boisterous laugh from next to him “Wait, burying bourbon for it not to rain? I call bullshit on that one”
TK can’t fault her reaction, especially when he’d openly laughed when Carlos had brought it up to him, thinking it was some kind of joke.
“I call bullshit on all of them, but my fiancé doesn’t share my opinion,” TK mutters before turning back to Judd “So?”
“Hate to tell you kid, but we did all of those and more”
“Great” TK sighs, Nancy just stares at Judd for a few moments.
“You buried bourbon to control the weather?” Judd shrugs in reply
“Good old-fashioned Southern tradition, Gillian. It worked, so don’t knock it”
“Or your wedding day was just sunny because you got married in Texas! It’s like the 4th sunniest US State” Nancy points out, voice raising as Judd turns away from her, walking back into the lounge.
“Please tell me you aren’t going to be burying a bottle of bourbon,” Nancy asks TK and TK shrugs at her.
“Carlos is from Texas. I think I might be burying a bottle of bourbon”
---------------------------------------------
“Dad, I’m serious. I can last one night without him” TK laughs but slides the door to the loft open anyway and then covers his eyes quickly when he sees Carlos in front of him.
“You’re not meant to be here! Don’t jinx this! What are you doing?!”
“I thought you didn’t believe in any of that?” Carlos asks and TK sighs.
“I don’t, but you do. You’ve been telling me about all these things nonstop for a month”
“I know” Carlos replies, and TK frowns at the sadness seeping into his voice “And it just means I can’t see you tomorrow. It’s still tonight yet”
“For like another half an hour. Cutting it fine, Reyes” but TK slowly lowers his hands and falls into the hug Carlos reaches for.
“You’re meant to be at your parent’s house,” TK says and Carlos hums into his neck, not replying for a moment. “Carlos?”
“I’m good” Carlos assures him, and TK pulls back, tilting his head in question.
“Really? I’m about to marry you tomorrow. Try again, baby” Carlos smiles flashes before he looks down at his hands nervously placing them on TK’s chest.
“Nancy said I’ve been driving you crazy with all the wedding traditions”
TK reminds himself to give a stern word to Nancy the next time he sees her on what words are meant to be between them.
“I wouldn’t say driving me crazy…” TK falters at Carlos’s bland look and grimaces. “Maybe a tiny bit crazy”
“Why didn’t you say something?” Carlos asks and TK sighs when he sees Carlos’s full dejected look, complete with the brown eyes he loves so much.
“I was going to.” TK grabs Carlos’s hand, still resting awkwardly between them “but I realised it doesn’t matter. You could say you want us to dance naked in a field before our wedding and I would do it if it meant you were happy”
“TK…”
“No, No. I’m serious. I can go with you and plant a bottle of bourbon in your parent’s yard so it doesn’t rain. I can let you carry me over a threshold, or I’ll carry you” TK stops, smirking at Carlos when he tips his head to look at him “I can go a night without you because after all of this I get a lifetime of you. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for that”
Carlos’s eyes are glassy when he finishes and TK slides his hands up to loosely wrap around his shoulders, “Yeah?”
“Yes” TK confirms “but I’m not wearing the cowboy boots”
Carlos laughs at him and TK brings his hands to Carlos’s neck, pulling him into a soft kiss.
“You have to go” TK whispers when they break apart and Carlos sighs softly.
“Or I could just stay here. Last night as fiancés” Carlos’s hands hit low on TK’s hips and TK pushes him away.
“Oh no. I do not need the wrath of my future mother-in-law or the blame if anything somehow manages to go wrong tomorrow”
Carlos puts his hands up in surrender and backs towards the door “Okay, okay”
“I’ll see you tomorrow” TK tells him “I’ll be the one at the end of the aisle with all my good luck charms in place”
Carlos’s answering grin beams with happiness “I can’t wait”