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“Evanee? Are you ready?” I turn around as I hear Luke outside and, after taking a last glance at my reflection in the mirror, I walk towards the wooden door and open it for Tom’s publicist and best friend. “Hey,” I mumble shyly while he smiles at me and takes me in from head to toe. “Wow...you look absolutely incredible!,” he says, gently taking my hand and making me swirl around once.
The fabric of my dress rustles with the movement and I let my hand run over it, enjoying the softness underneath my fingertips. “You think so?,” I smile, looking back up into Luke’s gentle face and he nods. “You do, Evanee. He’s going to be speechless, believe me. And you know Tom. Making him shut up is quite a difficult thing to do.” I laugh quietly as he winks at me before offering me his arm. “Ready to go?,” the young man asks, lovingly, and I take one last breath. “Yes...Yes, I am.” Carefully, he turns towards me once more, lowering the fragile veil over my face. “Make sure you enjoy it. Every single second,” he breathes and slowly we walk out of the room and through the small cloister towards the front door of the church.
I fiddle with my flower bouquet as we stand in front of the huge, wooden door with the creaking metal hinges. I can hear people talking on the other side, the voice of Tom’s mother, so full of pride, and those of his sister’s teasing him lovingly echoing from the whitewashed walls inside. I realise that nobody is going to sit on my side of the aisle. There’s nobody left who could fill these seats, tears of joy and pride in their eyes. For a moment, I drop my gaze to the grey pebble stones underneath my feet, scrunching as I step on them with my white heeled shoes.
“You okay?,” Luke mumbles, looking at me as he places his hand gently on my back. “Yeah..yeah, I’m fine,” I reply, lifting my head. “Just nervous.” I can hear him smile as his hand strokes over my back. “Don’t be. This is your day, yours and Tom’s.” I nod, biting my lip to keep the tears from falling. “I know, Luke. Thank you for being here today. For doing this. It means a lot,” I whisper, looking at the tall man next to me, taking the role that the bride’s father normally has - giving her away in front of the altar. He smiles again, one last stroke over my back before the doors slowly open, the music begins and I rest my hand in his.
I know what I expected upon entering the little, country church and it is definitely not that. On Tom’s side of the aisle, there is his family as I predicted. His dad and mum, his sisters, aunts and uncles, everyone who needs to be there to witness this special day. But instead of facing empty seats on the other side, they look straight at Tom’s friends, our friends. There are Chris and Elsa, Robert and Susan, Jeremy, Scarlett, Mark and Sunrise, Chris and Lara and so many more. “You didn’t expect empty seats now, did you?,” Luke whispers with a cheeky grin as he leads me slowly towards the altar, towards my fiancé, towards Tom, the music guiding our every step.
In the corner of my eye, I can see Tilda and Ben, my bridesmaid and his best man, before I focus only on him, on his silver-blue eyes, clouded by tears, his ginger hair glowing golden in the afternoon sun shining through the old, stained-glass windows of the church. Every step I take closer to him is a step closer to this new chapter of my life. A life of safety and happiness and most importantly love.
“Soooo Mrs Hiddleston...,” he whispers in my ear as he approaches me from behind and I can literally hear the massive, mischievous grin on his face. “Yes, Mr Hiddleston?,” I feign innocence and lean onto him as his strong, defined arms wrap themselves around me. “May I have this dance?,” he breathes against my skin, the scent of his cologne and single malt whiskey lingering in the air. “With pleasure,” I smile, turning around in his embrace before he leads me to the dancefloor.
“This was definitely the most perfect day of my life so far,” Tom whispers against my hair after a while, his right hand lingering on the small of my back while the other is clasped around my right, holding it close to his heart. “And of mine,” I breathe, looking up to him, taking in every freckle, every scar, every tiny hair of his neatly groomed goatee.
“You do know that I’ll never let you go, right?,” Tom mumbles, swaying around with me to the soft Jazz tune playing in the background. “I was hoping you wouldn’t,” I reply, lovingly, allowing my hand to wander from his shoulder to the soft curls at the nape of his neck.
“I love you so much, Evanee. So very much. And in a few months there’ll be a mini-you and...and I cannot wait for that moment to come where it’s just you and me and our little one, cuddling in bed on a Sunday morning.” He’s got tears in his eyes; tiny, glistening diamonds shining in the corner of his eyes and as they slowly make their way down his cheeks, I kiss them away, one by one, tasting the salty drops on my lips.
“I never knew a man could make me this happy, Tom. I never knew I could love somebody else so much that I would give everything for him, for his happiness and love. I never knew I would one day become the happiest woman on earth. But here we are and all your family - our family - and friends are here to celebrate this day with us. Whatever happens in the future, I will be by your side and when I earlier promised to love and to cherish you till death do us part, then I meant each and every word of that,” I answer, quietly but earnestly and he smiles.
It’s not just any kind of smile, though. It’s one of those heartwarming smiles that make the sun shine longer and the stars twinkle brighter. It’s a smile full of love and happiness, full of appreciation and pride. It’s a smile full of hope and plans for the future. It’s a smile meant for me and for her and for us.
It’s a smile I will never ever forget.