Pursuit of Happiness | Taz Skylar [1]

109. a vision

Jay was pacing. Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth he was pacing across the altar, wringing his hands in front of his body. Taz and Eddie were standing together off to the side, watching him pace and mutter to himself. When Jay reached into his pocket and drew out the vows that he'd stashed there, Taz decided that he'd had enough and forced himself into Jay's path, putting his hands on Jay's shoulders to force him to stop.

"Taz, they sound stupid," Jay complained without looking up to see who had stopped him, his eyes on the paper in his hands. "They sound dumb, I need to rewrite them now – "

"No, you don't," Taz answered patiently, gently taking the paper from Jay's hands. Jay reluctantly let him take it, anxiety etched into his face as Taz folded the paper back up. "Your vows are good. They don't need to be rewritten."

"Sorry, I just – "

"It's just nerves," Taz said, holding the folded piece of paper out for Jay to take. Jay did, stashing the paper back into his pocket again and Taz continued, "You'll be fine once Bree starts walking down the aisle, yeah?"

"Hopefully," Jay breathed.

"You will," Taz assured him, clapping his hand against the side of Jay's arm. "I have it on good authority that the dress is going to make you stop thinking for a good three seconds, at least."

"Zoe?"

"Zoe," Taz agreed, a soft laugh tumbling out of his mouth.

"Okay," Jay said, tipping his head back to stare at the ceiling and taking a deep breath. When he tilted his head back down so that Taz could see his face, he gave his friend a faint, relieved smile. "Thank you. For being here."

"I wouldn't miss this for the world," Taz said, resting a hand on Jay's shoulder and squeezing gently before he tapped his hand against Jay's cheek. Jay shoved his hand away, but the action had the desired effect; when he smiled, it came easier and less anxiously, looking less out of place on his face.

Taz opened his mouth to say something else, but stopped when a woman scurried up to the altar and right up to Jay, muttering something in his ear. Jay nodded to her, and as she retreated, disappearing as quickly as she'd come, Taz asked, "Are they on their way?"

Jay nodded. Taz tapped his hand against Jay's shoulder and then walked over to retrieve Eddie, who was standing in the aisle, his hand on the back of a chair while he spoke to a woman with dark hair curled around from her face. Eddie grinned at the woman as Taz pulled him away, all but dragging him back to the altar with him to stand behind Jay.

"Really?" Jay asked, twisting his neck so that he could peer back at Eddie, who just shrugged his shoulders in response. Jay snickered, his shoulders shaking with a quiet laugh, but stopped when the sound of a piano began to trickle through the room, clasping his hands in front of him and straightening his back.

Taz watched with Jay and Eddie as Ethan walked through the doors, a small wooden box clutched in his hands. Taz knew the boy well enough by this point to see that he looked uncomfortable in his suit, but he hid it well, walking with his head held high and his shoulders back. As he walked down the aisle towards them, Taz glanced over at Nate, sitting in the back row of the right side of the room. Nate's eyes were fixed on his son, a look of pride on his face that Taz could see as clear as day, even across the large room.