Chapter Text
The day Will asked Connor to marry him, and Connor said yes, Will could have walked on air. There was no hesitation in Connor’s response, no pause to think about it. He knew what he wanted, and what he wanted was Will and their life together, so much so that Will had barely gotten the question out before Connor was saying yes and launching himself into Will’s arms. He didn’t have a ring to propose with – somehow he didn’t think his mother’s engagement ring would fit his boyfriend’s finger – but he had rolled together a ring from paper, meeting Connor on the roof balcony for a quiet moment after a very long day.
“Of course, I want to marry you, sunshine,” Connor had said, holding Will close and kissing him fiercely. “You better put that ring on me before it blows away, though.”
It had barely fit, only sliding as far as his first knuckle, but Connor had kept it even after they’d replaced it with an actual wedding band. He had a special place for it on his side table, a little glass box he’d had made with their initials, and Theo’s, so he could keep it safe, a symbol of their mutual decision to share this life together.
Of course, the day that Will married Connor Rhodes in front of their friends and family was even better. It was easily in his top three moments in his life, right after holding Theo for the first time and right before their first kiss.
It started out like literally any other day, waking up to Theo clambering all over them because she was awake and excited for the day, especially because it meant she got to wear the suit they’d bought for her. The attendant at the shop had tried to convince Theo that girls should wear dresses, especially to such occasions as a wedding, but Theo had shut her down with hands on her hips and a firm no .
“I wan’ a wear a thuit like Daddy and Papa,” she had said, and Will had shrugged when the attendant had looked at him.
“She wants to wear a suit, she can wear a suit.”
That morning, she sat on Connor’s back and then laid sideways so she was partially on Will as well before she said firmly, “it’s time to get up.”
“It is,” Will agreed. “Are you excited?”
“Yeah,” she said. “Very excited. There’s going to be cake.”
“There is going to be cake, you’re right,” Will said, “but are you excited to see your daddies get married finally?”
“Oh. Yeah, that too.”
He chuckled and glanced over at Connor who had the sweetest smile on his face, looking at him and Theo in front of him. He was still mostly asleep, Will could tell by the drag in his blinks, slow and gentle like a cat who trusts you, and Will loathed to disturb him yet, but Theo was wiggling on top of them, excited to get the day going.
“Alright, future whale watcher, how about we go get breakfast started for Papa?” Theo gasped and flung herself off of Will, always willing to help, and raced out of the bedroom without looking back at him. He turned back to Connor and smiled. “Hey sleepy.”
“Hey,” Connor said, his voice a small creaking sound in the silence of their room.
“I’ll bring you coffee, but you should probably get up and shower so we can get to the venue on time.”
“You’re right,” he admitted. “But I believe I’m owed a kiss first.”
Will leaned over without argument just to kiss him on the lips softly.
“We’re getting married today,” he said in the small space between them.
“We are,” Connor said, his voice just as low. “You’re going to be my husband today.”
“And you’re going to be mine.”
Connor grinned at him, and Will found himself a mirror of that smile, facing this future together for once. Then, before he could say anything else, he heard the tell-tale bang of pots as Theo most likely was trying to pull a skillet from the cabinet she could actually reach. The minute she’d learned that she could open cabinets to find secrets hidden inside when she was a year old and crawling around his apartment had been one of his least favorite discoveries. Will sighed and kissed Connor once more.
“Duty calls.”
“Go be super dad. I love you.”
“Love you.”
Will headed out of the bedroom to catch up with their daughter and make sure she wasn’t destroying his kitchen.
Connor was nervous but the kind of nerves that bubbled like champagne in his chest. He was anxious to get married and be married to Will Halstead, and finally be able to hold his hand in front of the entire world, and his father, and say this one is mine. He wanted to have the footing with the state of Illinois to adopt Theo, too, as his own daughter, because since the minute they’d spent just a single afternoon together at Will’s apartment, Connor knew. This was the rest of his life. He wanted to wake up to Theo sitting on top of him, and he wanted to hold her while she was sick, and spoil her so rotten. He wanted her, and he wanted Will, and he wanted this life that they were crafting every single day.
The problem was that he didn’t know how to say that to Will in front of the entire church of friends and family they’d invited to celebrate with them. They’d agreed to write their own vows, which Connor still loved the idea of, except that he’d come across the startlingly discovery that he had writer’s block. The blank page of his notebook, or the notepad app on his phone, or the back of an envelope, was entirely too daunting. He knew how he felt, and he had known it for years, long before they’d become anything official, when they were just sneaking around to get off. How could he possibly take his heart out of his chest and put it down on paper in a way that did his feelings justice? Could he wing it, though, standing up in front of the crowd? Could he let his heart spill out of his mouth so easily?
“Papa,” a small, bubbly voice startled him out of his thoughts, and when he turned towards it, he couldn’t help but smiling. Theo Halstead was a perfect little bundle of joy, especially in her deep navy suit that she’d picked out herself to match the ties that Connor and Will had decided to wear. He knelt down as she flung herself into him, catching her around the waist and lifting her up onto his hip. She giggled, and he reached up with his free hand to push a loose curl of her brown hair behind her ear. He’d have to fix her hair again before he let her loose as their flower girl, and her tie was left loose around her neck, probably for Connor specifically to tie it. “Are you ‘cited?”
“I am, sun drop. Are you?”
“I am!” she said, wiggling in his arms and he laughed. “Daddy said you can tie t’is?”
Connor set her down and knelt down in front of her. Her dark eyes peered at him, and he smiled to himself. He was so in love with this little girl, and he couldn’t believe when he’d fallen into bed with Will all those years ago, he’d ended up with a daughter at the end of it, a perfect, wonderful little girl who wasn’t afraid of the world yet. She was bright, and funny, and whip-smart, and someday, she was going to take on the world.
“Let’s see,” Connor said and he set his hands on her shoulders. “Do you want a bow tie, or a long tie like me and Daddy?”
She set her finger on her chin and tapped it thoughtfully, looking at him and his tie tucked into his jacket.
“Long,” she decided after a long minute of contemplation. “Like you and Daddy!”
“That’s my girl,” he said and pulled the two ends of the tie into place against her chest. “So, you remember what to do when we get into the church?”
“Flowers!” she said excitedly, and even though he had her tie in his hands, she waved her hands in a whirlwind of movement, nearly knocking him in the face.
“Oh, careful, baby,” he said. “Remember what we said? Calmly, slowly, it’s not a race.”
“Not a race,” she agreed, even with a small frown. He didn’t like making her frown, but he knew that if they let her, she’d run down the aisle at top speed, throwing petals directly at faces.
“Tell you what,” he said quietly, dropping his voice down to be conspiratorial with her, “if you can follow directions and behave, I’ll put you on my shoulders and we’ll race Uncle Jay at the party.”
She gasped and stared at him hard in the eyes, trying to see if he were lying or tricking him. He would never, but he knew that school had been a little rough on her and her spirit. She didn’t fit in the rigidity of school, the rules and the expectations, and the adjustment had been slow and unpleasant for all of them with a lot of tears involved.
“Really?”
“Really, baby,” he said softly. “You know I wouldn’t lie to you, right? I wouldn’t lie to my best girl.”
“I’m your only girl,” she reminded him, and he laughed. That much was true, he knew, and he poked the end of her nose. It made her giggle and her eyelashes fluttered against her cheek as she wiggled in place. There was a lot of energy in her little body, and she was almost always moving to try and get it out. “Promise we’ll race?”
“I super duper promise.”
“Good.” She nodded, and looked down at her tie as he started back up, adjusting the lengths and then beginning to pass one side over the other. “Huh.”
“What’s up, sun drop?”
“It’s not like tying my shoes,” she said.
“No, it’s a different type of tying. See this,” he said, and he gestured to the tie already settled at his throat. “This is what we’re going for. See how it’s just a knot with a long bit here, instead of two loops that meet? Because of that, you have to tie it a different way. Do you want to help me?”
“Yeah,” she said confidently, and he smiled at her. He reached up to his own tie and loosened it before he pulled the knot free of itself before settling the length of fabric over his shoulders in front of him. He showed her using his own tie how to fold the ends over each other until they pulled them through into two neat little knots. Hers was surprisingly well done considering her age and inexperience, and he smiled wide at her as pride swelled bright and hot in his chest like the sun rising. “Did I do good?”
“Oh, baby, that’s perfect! I’ll even say that that is better than Daddy’s.”
She gasped and her eyes grew wide with disbelief.
“Really?”
“Really,” he cooed, and he leaned in to kiss her cheek as he tucked her tie into her vest and straightened the knot. “I bet Daddy would love to see your tie now, and you can tell him what I said.”
She jumped up and down in her place before turning and taking off out of the room. He could hear the dress shoes clacking on the wood floor all the way into the next room where Will was getting ready, and he heard the sound of Will’s laugh. Connor closed his eyes, and listened. It was his favorite sound.
“Hey, how’s it going in here?” Mouse asked, stepping into the room. “Almost ready?”
“Oh, yeah. I’m good. How’s the Halstead clan?”
“Excited to get going, I think,” Mouse answered, and leaned against the door. “You look nice. How are you actually feeling?”
“Nervous,” Connor admitted, and he looked at Mouse. They could have crossed paths a millon times as kids, the Gerwitzes and the Rhodeses were cut from the same cloth, and yet it took meeting Will and Theo to finally get to know each other. “I didn’t write any vows.”
“Oh, buddy,” Mouse said. “What are you going to do it?”
“Wing it, I guess,” Connor said. “I know how I feel, and I know what I want, so I’m just hoping I can get that out into words when it’s time.”
“Or you’ll choke.”
“Or that, yeah.”
April and Natalie, who had bullied their way into planning the wedding, swept into the room next, in complementary gorgeous dresses and taking steps in time with each other. It was incredible, and terrifying, and Connor grinned at them.
“Is it time?” Connor asked.
“It is,” Natalie answered, and gestured Mouse out first. “You and Jay will be following Theo up the aisle so you better head out.”
“Make sure she doesn’t windmill the flowers into anyone’s face, please,” Connor said.
“Oh, buddy,” Mouse said, “I wouldn’t even stop her if I could, that sounds incredible.”
Then, he was gone from the room, leaving Connor with Natalie and April.
“Your tie is crooked,” April said, stepping up to him and reaching up to adjust his tie.
“Oh, yeah, I had it right, but then Theo wanted to learn so I showed her how without looking in the mirror.”
“That’s cute,” April said, smoothing a hand over the tie and the front of Connor’s suit. “You ready?”
“More than anything,” he said. “God, I’m so ready to be married to this man. We’ve gone through so much, and I’m just – I want to be married to him, and be a part of his family.”
“Oh, sweetheart,” April said, and she set her hand against his cheek, brushing her thumb gently against his skin. “You already are. You know that, right? You and Will have been a family with that little girl for years. This is your family, and all you’re doing today is swearing it in front of everyone, but that doesn’t change the fact that you have been a family for a while.”
“Thanks, April.”
“Now, c’mon. We have a wedding to put on.”
Will stepped out of the prep room as Jay and Mouse walked down the hall and into the chapel following Theo who was moving at a skip towards her position at the end of the aisle. The music started playing as Theo took a basket of flowers from Maggie with a little bow of her head. He was so distracted by his daughter that he didn’t notice that Connor had followed Natalie and April out of his own prep room until he heard Connor sigh.
“Oh, hey,” Will said.
“Hey gorgeous,” Connor said. Will let his eyes track down Connor, from his bright blue eyes catching the light streaming in front a window at the end of the hall to the trimmed beard and the well-fitted suit. He looked so impossibly good, and Will paused in place, unable to look away from the man he was marrying. “God, look at you.”
“Speak for yourself,” Will said, and he found himself drawing closer to Connor, as if pulled by a magnet. It had been like that since the day they’d met. He reached out to press a hand palm flat against Connor’s chest, feeling the soft fabric of his suit jacket over the firm muscle underneath. “Can you believe we’re getting married today? Right now? We finally made it?”
“We finally made it,” Connor agreed, reaching up to lay his hand over Will’s. “It’s here.”
“Thank God, I couldn’t go another day without calling you my husband,” Will said, and he stepped into Connor’s space with the intent of kissing him, just to be caught by Connor’s hand over his lips. “What?”
“If I kiss you now, I’m not going to stop, and we have a wedding to attend. Our wedding. I think it would be rather rude to stand up all of these wonderful people who came out to celebrate, huh?”
Will sighed, and pressed a kiss into Connor’s fingers.
“Yeah, that sounds good. That sounds perfect.”
Connor threaded their fingers together over Will’s chest, and then led him by hand out into the chapel as the music swelled, their friends and family looking to them with love in their eyes. He squeezed Connor’s hand, and they walked down the aisle together. When they reached the altar, Theo standing at the end with her basket of flowers almost empty, they paused in front of her. She lifted the last handful of petals and Jay grabbed her around the waist as she flung it so they rained over Will and Connor in a white and blue shower. The congregation laughed, and cheered, as Jay and Theo stepped aside, over to the three empty seats left for them and Mouse.
He was glad that Natalie and April had decided to help them out, because if it had been up to Will or Connor, they would have been at Molly’s or city hall, anywhere that would’ve fit the three of them, Mouse, and Jay. That’s all they needed. Except, looking out over the group of people they’d managed to gather, he couldn’t imagine anything better. It wasn’t a huge group, the church small, but it was enough. It was more than enough.
“Alright, are we ready, gentlemen?” Father Mason asked, voice low and quiet as he spoke just to them.
“Yes,” Will answered, meeting the priest’s eyes. “Absolutely.”
Father Mason nodded, and then turned to address the congregation.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today in the sight of God to witness and celebrate the holy union of Connor and William. These two separate people have chosen this special time and place to be married to each other. The decision to marry is not entered into lightly, but rather is undertaken with great consideration and respect for both the other person and oneself. If there is anyone in attendance who has cause to believe that this couple should not be joined in marriage, you may speak now or forever hold your peace.”
He paused, and Will waited, terrified that someone might burst in and ruin this, but the moment paused, Father Mason nodded, and continued.
“The heart of marriage is the taking of another person in that person's entirety, with the good times and the bad times, the sad moments, the happy ones and the taking of that person as a friend and companion for life. It is not something that just happens, a good marriage is created. In a good marriage, the little things are the big things. Do not take one another for granted. Do things for one another, not with the attitude that it is a duty or sacrifice, but in the spirit of joy and giving. Develop the capacity to forgive and forget. Do not look for perfection in your partner. Create an atmosphere in which each of you can grow.
“The essensce is love and love is one of the highest experiences that we as human beings can share. Love adds meaning to our lives. One of the greatest things we can do is to love another human being as a husband and wife love each other. Marriage symbolizes the sharing of two lives. Yet this closeness will not diminish the character or being of either individual partner. As your marriage continues to grow, your understanding of each other will continue to expand.
“Time and togetherness will gain for each of you a deep knowledge of each other. Today's marriage ceremony signifies the beginning of a lifetime of wonderful human experiences to be shared as a husbands. Connor, do you take William to be your lawfully wedded partner from this day forward; will you love, honor, and cherish him? Hold him up in good times and bad, and love him as you love yourself for as long as you both shall live?”
“I do,” Connor said, and Will grinned.
“William, do you take Connor to be your lawfully wedded partner from this day forward; will you love, honor, and cherish him? Hold him up in good times and bad, and love him as you love yourself for as long as you both shall live?”
Will barely kept his tongue in the middle of Father Mason’s question, trying so hard not to interrupt.
“I do.”
“Now we celebrate the love that Connor and William have for each other and as family and friends you give social recognition to their intention to permanently accept the other by reciting their vows they have written themselves. Connor,” the priest said, and turned his attention over to Connor.
“Right. Okay, uhm, I didn’t write anything, because every time I sat down and tried, I thought that I couldn’t possibly sum up my heart in words. I’m still not sure I know enough words to convey how I feel for you, and the life we’ve built together. When I wake up every morning, I’m so unbelievably happy to see your face next to me, and hear Theo, our daughter, our daughter in the next room, and know that this is all that I’ve wanted to be, and have for so long. I used to think that becoming a surgeon, and opening the Trauma OR in the ED was all I needed to be happy and successful, but I was wrong. That’s not what’s made me happiest, not even close. If I stopped being a doctor tomorrow, I wouldn’t mind, because you and I, and her,” he said, pausing to look over at Theo who was smiling brightly up at them before he turned his attention back to Will at the altar. “This is all I need, Will, and I would give up everything in the world to keep you two at my side, safe and sound right where you belong, especially after all the ups and downs that we’ve survived. I want to wake up next to you every single morning for the rest of our lives, and I promise I’m going to do everything within my power to give you and our family the life we deserve, because I’d rather give up everything before I gave us up.”
Will lifted his hand up from where he clutched Connor’s and wiped away the single tear tracking down his cheek, and cleared his throat.
“I love you,” Will said, and Connor gave him that perfect sweet smile that always wrapped his heart up warm and safe. He didn’t have to worry about anything when Connor gave him that smile. “I did write something, but I actually think I left it in the car, so. What I wanted to say, though, was that I could not have asked for a better partner to have beside me through life. I could not have asked for a better dad for our daughter, and that’s really what solidified how I feel about you, the way you didn’t just accept us but you embraced us as a duo, and opened your life up to us. There’s no one else in this world that I would trust with Theo the way I do you, and there’s no one else I’ve been able to trust with my heart the way that I have been with you. I only know what true, real, storybook love is because I met you. I only know what trusting someone with my whole being is because of you. You gave Theo and I a place to not only land when things get tough, but a place to belong, and I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am for that. And I know you’re going to tell me that I don’t have to, that’s what a partner is for. You can put your argue mouth away during my vows, sweetheart.”
Connor’s mouth closed and the slight pink blush along his cheeks was so perfect with the afternoon light coming through the stained glass windows around them.
“I’m yours, Connor, and I always will be for as long as you’ll have me. I’m so so grateful that you saw a broken-hearted wreck of a man and decided to love him the way that you do, with your entire chest, because you have changed my life for the better in every conceiveable way. I’m going to spend the rest of our lives at your side and I hope that I can give you just a fraction of the joy you’ve given me so far.”
“Beautiful,” Father Mason said with an easy smile. “Now to exchange the rings.”
They both turned towards Jay who stepped forward with the twin ring boxes they’d picked out, one noted with a small ribbon hanging from the closed box stamped with a W and the other a C, and handed off to them. Will felt the velvet underneath his fingers and then ran his thumb over the W on his ribbon while he waited.
“Connor, please repeat after me.”
Connor said, “Will, I give you this ring as a symbol of my eternal love for you, and my unbreakable connection to you. With it, I promise to love you, cherish you, and stand by you in good times and bad, for as long as I live.”
He opened the ring box, and took out the smooth dark metal band from the soft silver velvet. Without fumbling, he was able to take the ring in between two fingers and trade the box into his other hand, slipping it back into his pocket. Then, he held Will’s hand and slipped the ring onto his finger, right where it belonged, and it fit perfectly. Even though they had had the rings specially made and sized to their specific ring fingers, there was still some apprehension in Will’s chest that the world might show him that he wasn’t meant to do this, that Connor wasn’t meant to be his. However, it slid right on, and Will sighed softly in relief.
Father Mason nodded, and then turned to look at Will this time, “Will, please, repeat after me.”
“Connor, I give you this ring as a symbol of my eternal love for you, and my unbreakable connection to you. With it, I promise to love you, cherish you, and stand by you in good times and bad, for as long as I live.”
His hands didn’t shake as he expected them to, because he was sure of this. He was so, so sure that this was the right decision for him, and Connor, and their family. Of course, he wanted to marry Connor. There was nothing he wanted more. He slipped the ring onto Connor’s finger, and it was perfect, sitting there on his dextrous, beautiful hand, showing the world what Will wanted to shout at the top of his lungs. Connor Rhodes had agreed to marry him.
"Connor, William, having proclaimed your love for one another, founded in your unity, in the sight of myself and of these witnesses, it is my pleasure to pronounce you, by the power vested in me by God and the state of Illinois, married as one! You may now kiss your partner.”
Connor pulled Will in first before Will had time to react, and kissed him, mouth that perfect collaboration of soft and firm against Will’s, hands sliding from his hands to his sides and around to his back to press him against his own chest. Will gripped Connor’s lapels and held them close to himself, as if Connor might try to slip away while everyone watched, as if he hadn’t promised himself to Will for the rest of his life, as if Connor weren’t actively trying to pull Will into him until they were one body. Will hummed into Connor’s mouth, licking against his top lip just a bit, and Connor groaned just enough for Will to feel it more than anything else.
Then, Connor pulled away and rested his forehead against Will’s. It was perfect, so perfect, staring into Connor’s eyes, all the love and affection that resided there echoed in his own chest.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it is my greatest pleasure to present to you the newly united Connor and William,” Father Mason said, and reluctantly, they pulled apart to face the crowd that cheered for them. Will paused, looking out over everyone, this small gathering of their loved ones, made up of coworkers, friends, their family, their daughter.
As if sharing a thought, Connor crouched down a little and gestured towards Theo. That was all that she needed, bolting from beside Jay in the front row and straight up the altar step, into Connor’s arms. He caught her and lifted her up into the space between him and Will. Will leaned in and pressed a kiss to Theo’s cheek just as Connor did the same. She giggled and threw her arms up around their necks.
“Connor and William have asked that you join them for the reception beginning shortly at Molly’s for dinner and dancing. On behalf of the happy couple, I thank you all so much for coming,” Father Mason said, but Will was too wrapped up in the here and the now with them, holding onto each other with Theo hoisted between them. He had never been happier, but he knew that this moment, here with them, this was just the beginning.