LOVE THAT NEVER FADES
Chapter Thirteen

The Wedding

Four hours had passed by, and Annie was helping Rose put on her wedding dress. Annie was wearing a lavender dress, which was short-sleeved and was low cut. Annie was buttoning the back of Rose’s dress, which looked beautiful on Rose. The short sleeves were off her shoulder, and it was low cut. Once Annie had finished buttoning Rose’s dress, Rose turned around and smiled. Annie stared at her in shock and smiled.

"Wow, Rose," Annie said. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you," Rose said, smiling.

"How would you like your hair done?" Annie asked.

"Down. That’s the way Jack likes it," Rose said.

"Okay," Annie said, taking the veil from the bureau. The veil was white, with little diamonds and pearls on it. The veil was short, but also noticeable. Annie handed Rose the veil, and Rose took it, placing it on her head before fluffing her curls. Rose added a touch of Annie’s perfume, which she had borrowed. Rose stared at herself in the full-length mirror and smiled. "You’re going to take Jack’s breath away with your beauty. I know no man could ever resist you." Rose laughed.

"But I’m already taken. I just hope that the other men understand that," Rose said.

"Don’t worry. They will," Annie said. Annie looked at the clock on the wall. "We’d better get going now. We have fifteen minutes."

"This is it. I’m going to be married in fifteen minutes," Rose said.

"You’ll do fine. Just remember, you’re marrying the handsomest man on earth," Annie said. Rose laughed. She hugged Annie.

"Thank you," Rose whispered. Annie hugged her back.

"Anytime, Rose," Annie said. "Let’s go." Annie and Rose left Jack and Rose’s apartment and left the building, heading towards the small church.

*****

Jack had just put on his tuxedo and was now looking at his reflection in Mike’s full-length mirror. They had fifteen minutes to get to the church, and Jack was becoming more nervous every second. Mike had already gotten dressed and was waiting for Jack.

"Come on, Jack. We don’t wanna be late!" Mike called out.

"I’ll be right there!" Jack called out. Earlier, they had gone to the barber shop to cut Jack’s hair, which was now shorter, but strands still fell in his face. Jack pushed the hair out of his face and sighed. In less than fifteen minutes, he and Rose would become man and wife, something he had never expected to be. He never would’ve thought that he would be married to a beautiful girl like Rose. He never would’ve thought that he would be married, period. He wasn’t the marrying type, but with Rose, he knew he would be. He loved her, and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. Jack took one last look at himself, then left Mike’s bedroom.

Jack and Mike left the apartment building and began heading towards the church that Jack and Rose would be married in. As they were walking, Jack began to get more anxious to become Rose’s husband. He took a deep breath and calmed himself down, telling himself that Rose wanted to become his wife, and that nothing would ever come between them. Before he knew it, they were in from of the church. Jack sighed and climbed the stone steps until he reached the front entrance. When he opened the double doors, he saw a white carpet covering the aisle, and he saw more than thirty people in the church. Jack was confused as to who the people were, but walked down the aisle with Mike by his side.

When Jack reached the altar, he turned and faced the people who were staring at him. He saw Ruth smiling at him. Jack smiled back and looked down the aisle. Mike was standing beside him, smiling as well. Jack saw the minister standing in front of the altar, smiling at him. Jack smiled back and watched as the minister made his way to the center of the altar, holding a book in his hands. Just then, the double doors opened, and a light tune began to play as Annie walked down the aisle, a bright smile on her face, holding a small bouquet in her hands. She walked down the aisle with small, graceful steps, reaching the altar and standing at the opposite side of Jack. Just then, the bridal march began to play, and Jack stared at the double doors as they opened and revealed Rose.

There he saw her, wearing a beautiful white dress, smiling at him. She had a beautiful veil on her head and was holding a bouquet in her hands, one more elegant than the one Annie was holding. She began walking down the aisle, not taking the smile off her face. Jack watched as she came closer to where he stood. He saw tears glistening in Rose’s eyes and smiled. He held out his hand, and Rose took it, letting Jack help her the rest of the way. Rose handed her bouquet to Annie, who smiled at her, taking it. Rose smiled back and looked at Jack. They faced the minister, who smiled at them.

"We are gathered here today to join these two people in holy matrimony," the minister said. "Who is giving away the beautiful bride?" Ruth stood up and smiled.

"I am," Ruth said.

"Very well. This special evening will bring these two people together. Now, if anyone in here feels that these two shouldn’t marry, speak now, or forever hold your peace," the minister said. Jack and Rose didn’t dare to look back, but waited to see if anyone would object to their marriage. Luckily, there was silence. Jack squeezed Rose’s hand and smiled at her. "All right. Do you, Jack Dawson, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold, to love and to cherish, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death tears you apart?" Jack smiled and stared into Rose’s eyes.

"I do," Jack said, loud enough for the minister to hear. Mike handed him Rose’s wedding ring, and Jack placed it on her ring finger on top of the engagement ring.

"Do you, Rose DeWitt Bukater, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, to love and to cherish, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death tears you apart?" the minister asked Rose. Rose looked up at Jack and smiled.

"I do," Rose said, her voice shaky with her tears of joy. Annie handed Rose Jack’s wedding ring, which Rose gracefully put on Jack’s left ring finger. Once she had, she held Jack’s hand with both of her hands and smiled up at him.

"By the power invested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride." The minister smiled. Jack and Rose smiled as well, and they kissed. At first, it was just a small kiss, but it soon grew into a loving kiss, for it was their first kiss as husband and wife. Once the kiss ended, Jack and Rose hugged. "I would like to introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Jack Dawson," the minister said. Jack and Rose heard applause fill the room and turned around to find everybody standing up. The minister led Jack and Rose to a table, where they were to sign their marriage certificate. Once they had, Jack took it and put it in the breast pocket of his jacket. Jack and Rose held hands and walked down the aisle together as man and wife. Once they were outside, Jack kissed Rose and spun her around.

"We did it!" Jack exclaimed happily. "We’re married!"

"I know!" Rose said. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Jack said, kissing her. "I always will."

Just then, they heard the double doors open, and everybody came out of the church, going towards Jack and Rose to congratulate them. Mike and Annie went towards them.

"Congratulations, Jack. I knew you could do it," Mike said, patting Jack on the shoulder.

"Thanks," Jack said. "Now I’m the happiest man alive."

"You’d better be. You’ve got a good-looking wife now," Mike said. Jack laughed and held Rose close to him.

"Congratulations. I knew you two could do it," Annie said, smiling. Rose smiled and hugged her.

"Thank you for everything. You don’t know how good a friend you really are to me," Rose said, looking at Annie with tear-filled eyes. Annie smiled.

"I’m glad to be of help, Rose, really." Annie smiled.

"Annie, just out of curiosity, who are these people?" Jack asked, referring to the people who stood outside of the church. Annie smiled.

"These are just people I know. I decided that it would be best to have a goodly number of people at your wedding," Annie said. "Besides, you two are my friends. I couldn’t just let you have a small wedding. You two deserve better than that." Jack and Rose smiled.

"Thanks," Jack said, smiling.

"Okay, guys. Let’s head off to Freddy’s Italian Place!" Mike said. "They’re waiting!"

"We’ll be right there, Mike," Jack said.

"Okay, Jack," Mike said, walking towards the restaurant.

"Annie, why don’t you lead the guests to the restaurant? Rose and I will be at the restaurant shortly," Jack said.

"Okay, Jack," Annie said, smiling. "Don’t be gone for long, though. We need our guests of honor, you know."

"Don’t worry. We’ll be there," Jack said. Annie smiled and went over to the guests, leading them to the restaurant. Once they disappeared from sight, Jack turned to Rose and lifted her up, kissing her. He slowly spun her around and looked at her face. "So, Mrs. Dawson. How does it feel to be a married woman?" Rose smiled up at him as Jack set her down.

"Wonderful," Rose said. "How does it feel to be a married man?"

"Perfect. Especially since I’m married to a very remarkable woman," Jack said. Rose smiled and tiptoed to kiss him.

"I love you, Jack Dawson," Rose said.

"I love you, too, Rose Dawson," Jack said. With that, they kissed once more. "Come on." Jack held out his hand. "Let’s go to our reception." Rose slipped her hand in his and smiled.

"Certainly, Jack," Rose said.

Jack and Rose walked down the block to the restaurant where their reception would take place. Once they reached the restaurant, they went inside to be greeted by applause and cheering from the guests who had been at the church. Jack and Rose just smiled. They had never expected that strangers would actually be happy for them. Besides, Jack and Rose didn’t know the guests, but they were glad that they had come to their wedding when they had probably had other plans. Mike stood up in the middle of the restaurant and smiled.

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention, please?" Mike asked, loudly enough for the cheering guests to hear. "I would like to introduce to you, for the first time ever, Mr. and Mrs. Jack Dawson!" Mike clapped his hands together, as did the rest of the guests. Jack and Rose smiled and went to hug Mike, who hugged both of them back. "Okay. Now the newlyweds have to have their first dance as husband and wife."

To Jack and Rose’s surprise, music began playing. It was a soft tune, but the tune made Rose cry with joy. Jack took her hand and led her to the middle of the floor. Jack placed one hand on the small of her back while the other held her hand tightly. Rose looked at him and smiled as they began swaying back and forth to the beat of the music.

While the music was playing, Rose drifted off to another world. All the memories that she had made with Jack came to her, and she smiled. She remembered dancing with him at the third class party, remembered kissing him at the bow, remembered him drawing her nude, and remembered him making love to her. Rose sighed happily as she leaned her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

Jack, too, drifted into another world. All the memories had come back to him, and Jack smiled. He had enjoyed the days he had spent with Rose onboard the Titanic. Those memories would be in his heart for the rest of his life. Jack could remember the kiss they had had at the bow, and the drawing he had made in the sitting room of Rose’s suite. He could never forget how he had made love to Rose. He had been so nervous that night that he had thought his heart would pop out of his chest from beating so hard.

Jack and Rose danced to the song that was playing and stayed close together until the song was finished. Once it had, Jack leaned down and kissed Rose with all the passion in him. Rose wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tighter. Soon, they broke apart and took their seats beside each other at the table where Mike and Annie were sitting.

*****

The night passed quickly, and before they knew it, it was ten minutes before midnight. Half of the guests had left, leaving only Jack, Rose, Annie, Mike, and a few of Annie’s friends. Jack and Rose got up, as did Annie and Mike. Jack and Rose had had a wonderful wedding, and knew that it would stay in their hearts for as long as they were breathing. Jack was about to lead Rose out of the restaurant when Mike stopped them.

"Jack, I told you before that I got you a wedding present," Mike said. Jack smiled.

"I guess I forgot," Jack said, going back to Mike, Rose right beside him.

"Okay," Mike said. "I know this is a lot, but you two need it more than I do. Besides, I’ve got a whole bunch of them." Jack and Rose were confused as to what Mike was talking about. "I gave you a hundred thousand dollars for your wedding present."

"What?" Jack asked, a little louder than expected. He closed his eyes and calmed himself down. "Mike, are you out of your mind? That’s a lot of money. You can’t give it to us."

"I knew you were gonna say that, but Jack, it’s your wedding day. Besides, as I told you before, I’ve got a whole bunch of it. I don’t really need over five million dollars, so I gave you a hundred thousand. It’ll last you a lifetime. You two need it more than I do. I didn’t know what else to give you, so I gave you money," Mike said. "Besides, I’ve never met a person who didn’t care for my money, but cared for who I am, and I appreciate that, Jack. You’re the greatest friend a man can have, and I’m glad that you’re my friend." Jack smiled and hugged Mike. "Congratulations, Jack. I’m happy for you."

"How am I ever gonna repay you?" Jack asked. "I mean, that’s a lot of money to give to a person."

"There’s no need to repay me. It’s a gift. Okay?" Mike said. "It’s your wedding day, so I decided that it would be a terrific wedding present." Jack and Rose just looked at each other and smiled. "Well, what are you two waiting for? Get on out of here and go home. You don’t need to stay here. Besides, you two gotta have your wedding night, you know." Mike winked at Jack, and he blushed.

"Well, okay, Mike. Thanks for everything, really. One day, I’m gonna pay you back for all this," Jack said.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you don’t need to do that?" Mike asked. "It’s a wedding gift. A present for both you and your lovely wife. I told you before that I’m not taking it back, and I’m serious. I’m not taking it back." Jack smiled.

"Well, thank you very much, Mike. We really appreciate it," Jack said.

"No problem," Mike said. "Now, get on out of here!" Jack laughed and held onto Rose’s hand, leading her out of the restaurant and back to their apartment building, where they went up the stairs to their apartment to start their new life as Mr. and Mrs. Jack Dawson, a married couple.

Chapter Fourteen
Stories