°°Twenty-Six°°

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                                   May 25, 2015

       The outside sun shined through the transparent-white curtains in the room I share with Usnavi. Of course, he isn't allowed in here. At least, not yet—he'll have to wait after the wedding. My hair was tugged from left to right, the curls my hair is in bouncing along with the movements. Daniela sprayed a small amount of hairspray around my head of hair, making sure she didn't overdo it. Carla, on the other hand, placed a golden-brown artifical flower on my hair--the small decoration making the hairdo look slightly better than it did before.

       Meanwhile, the ring bearer and my bridesmaid sat on the five chairs that had been layed out in the room. My maid of honor: F/N, fidgeted with Rosie's f/c dress, handing the nine-year old the basket of red and white roses she was meant to spread out on the floor while I walked down the aisle.

       Daniela and Carla finished doing my hair, fixing their bridesmaid dresses and heading towards the five chairs.

       A knock on the door made us all look towards it. F/N stood from her crouching position and stepped towards the door slowly, peeking through the cracks she had made to see whether to open the door or not. "Mr. L/N?" She sqeaked. "Come in, come in."

       My father walked through the door, his old, tired eyes darting towards me and softening more than they have the twenty-six years I've been alive. A cracked smile broke over his chapped lips. "Mi niña hermosa! Look at you, getting married already." He embraced me in his fatherly arms. "It seems like just yesterday you were running around the house screaming 'me voy a casar un dia!'" [I'm gonna get married one day!]

I buried my flushed face into the fabric of his black coat, his welcoming arms still sustaining his little girl in a protective hug. "Te amo, papa." [I love you, dad]

"I love you too, mija." [Honey/Daughter/Baby girl (in a fatherly way)]

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The nine-year old that would be my flower girl stepped towards me bashfully, something that highly worried me since she never acts that way towards me. She always runs into my open arms and peppers sweet kisses all over my face, saying tiny 'I love you's' in between sugary gestures. Rosie's large green eyes glossed with tears—I felt my heart drop.

Her tiny arms rapidly swung around my neck, burying her face into the crook of my neck. "I love you, Auntie Y/N!" I moved my hands up and down her back as she continued to sob into my dress. The amount of mascara that had been placed to make my eyes pop began to drip down my cheeks, staining the painted pink areas.

"Honey, I'm not going anywhere." My bottom lip trembled. "You and me are gonna see each other everyday, ok? I promise."

"No."

I hesitated in softly pushing myself away from Rosie, but I did it. "No?"

"No," she started, "You're gonna live with h-hi-hi-him a-all the time because you're gonna be hi-his wif-fe."

"But, Rosie, I thou-"

The girl took my tear and mascara-stained cheeks into her tiny hands, planting a small peck to the tip of my nose. "I-I love you, Auntie Y/N—which is wh-why I w-want you to b-be ha-hap-py."

°°°°°°°°°°

Red and white rose petals landed on the ground before I delicately stepped on it with my heels. My father's arm supported mine as he escorted me down the aisle, some of the guests already shedding tears. While the soft sun shined on the distinctly placed glass decorations, I wondered what I could've done to deserve this. A wonderful family, amazing friends, the most thoughtful and selfless niece, a gorgeous wedding ceremony, and a- there he is.

The man that has made my life both heaven and hell at the same time—he means so much more than I could've ever imagined. Exactly five years ago I couldn't have imagined that the bodega owner who fought me over a coffee would become my fiancée and future husband. That he would be the man that I decided to give my entire life to, whether it be to throw away or to cherish forever. He has managed to find a way under my skin and I just can't shake him; I guess that's when you know that you'll be thinking about that person in the most unlikely moments. That you'd wake up with the thought of them and close your eyes just wondering when you'll see them again.

When I met him, I immediately fell for his eyes, but they didn't know me yet. On our first date, his humorous actions left their mark in my brain and after that I couldn't stop thinking about him. The time we separated was complete agony. Then, we came back to each other in the heat of passion and an understanding moment, one where we rid ourselves of our previous dislikes and bonded more than we had before. Literally—we had make-up sex.

And now, here we are.

I hadn't noticed that during my recall of our wondrous moments, the priest had started the ceremony and it was now time for our vows. How convenient and cliché, don't you think?

       Usnavi cleared his throat as his cheeks turned bright red. "I take you to be my constant friend, my faithful partner, and my love in the presence of the whole world. I offer you my vow to be your faithful and devoted partner, truly, through good times and bad. I give you my hand, my heart, and my promise to love you unconditionally. I vow to support you in your goals—honor, respect and cherish you as long as we both shall live."

       He cracked a goofy smile at me when he finished, his eyes softening at my glossy orbs. Usnavi wiped the tears that had escaped my eyes' prison. So much for fixing my makeup.

       The priest motioned for me to say my vows, the guests chuckling at my unaware expression. I fixed my eyes in Usnavi—no one else. At this moment, no one else mattered; everything else blurred. "I feel like everything in my life had led me to you. My choices, my heartbreaks, my regrets. Everything. And when we're together, my past seems worth it. Because if I had done something differently, I might have never met you."

       A few minutes later passed, everything became a blur as we exchanged rings and 'I do's.' The priest smiled sweetly at us. "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bri- or you can do that. Sure."

       Usnavi pulled me towards him and smashed his lips against mine before the priest could finish.

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       "A toast to the groom!" Benny raised his glass. "To the bride!" Everyone raised their wine-filled glasses. Trust me, it feels quite amazing seeing hard work pay off. I saved five months worth of paychecks just to buy enough wine bottles for our guests. "From the eight years I've known Usnavi, I have never seen him more happy. Y/N, you truly are an amazing friend, and I know that you'll bring great joy to my best pal. That is why, in my hand-" He raised a golden key, "-I hold the key to the honeymoon suite in hot-"

       Benny was interrupted by Usnavi, who rushed towards the man whilst clutching tightly onto my hand. He muttered an excited 'thank you' before grabbing the key and tugging me towards his car. "Bye!"

De Todas Las Cosas Buenas: Usnavi X Mexican-American!ReaderWhere stories live. Discover now