I huffed, exasperated and completely over it. “Ugh. I swear these wedding vows are going to be the death of me, Liv.”
“Read me what you have so far.”
I cleared my throat. “Okay. Here it goes . . . Pat, . . . I’m not standing here today because everything between us has been picture-perfect. How could it be, right? We’re human. I’m standing here today because you’ve shown me that love can still be real without perfection. It can still be meaningful . . .”
Her lips split flat. “Uh, that’s . . . it?”
I sighed. “Ugh! See!”
Liv held up her hand. “Okay, okay. Maid of honor is here to save the day! Um, maybe talk about how you two met. I mean, on a plane he was piloting is a good meet-cute story, right? Or something you love about him.”
“I don’t know, Liv. I’m freaking out! Should I just Chat GPT it?”
“Using AI? For your vows, Lex? Are you crazy?”
“Start simple,” Oak interjected, stepping into the frame. “You thinkin’ too much. When did you know you loved him?”
Hearing his voice was one thing, but seeing him made my heart almost stop. “O-M-G, Liv! Has he been there the whole time?”
“Girl, no. His nosy ass came in here eavesdropping. I’m in the living room. Go away, nigga. This doesn’t concern you.”
“It sounds like y’all struggling, so I was trying to help you keep it simple.”
Liv rolled her eyes but then shrugged when she looked back into the camera at me. “I mean . . . he may be nosy, but he’s not wrong.”
I smacked my lips. “So, you’re on his side?”
“I mean, let’s hear it from a man’s perspective. He’s here. Might as well use him to our advantage, right?” Liv suggested.
“What do you mean?”
“If you were getting married tomorrow, what would you say to your bride, Oak?”
“Hold up. I ain’t sign up for all this. I came in here to heat up my food.”
“Too bad! You butted in, so now you’re a part of the conversation.”
He smacked his lips. “Gimme a minute, damn.”
Liv sat back and flipped the camera to Oak. “Just say whatever comes to mind. It doesn’t have to be perfect. We know yo’ ass is just as lonely as me, nigga.” She snickered.
He leaned against the counter, staring off for a minute, trying to think of what to say. “I don’t know. I guess I might say something like . . . the day I saw you was the first time I’d ever been able to see the future. There’s something about you that will always be home to me. I don’t know if it’s because I knew you were my forever from day one, or if it’s because my fuckin’ head is filled with so many thoughts of you, I can barely call it mine anymore. In a world that thrives on chaos and instability, you are my calm. My solid foundation. The stillness that brings my soul the kind of peace I never knew existed until you came along. I love you in ways that science is still studying. Today, I vow to speak love over you even when you piss me off and hold space for you and all your moods. I vow to reassure you that you are theonlywoman I will ever need, to make sure you find any remedy you need in my arms, and to always handle your heart with care because I would rather lose my life than lose you.”
Everything remained quiet once he stopped talking. Like someone had put the entire room on mute. “Damn, nigga. What’s wrong with you wettin’ my lashes up like that? Lex, I hope you wroteallthat pretty shit down.”
I blinked back my own tears, still momentarily stuck on stupid. “Y-yeah.”
He shrugged his visibly tatted shoulders. “It was never about the perfect words. It’s about telling the person you love more than anybody in this world that you’ll love, support, and protect them until your heart stops beating.”
“Right . . .”
“And with that, I’ll let you get back to the drawing board,” Liv said.
“Okay. T-thanks, y’all. Bye.”
I ended the FaceTime call feeling a way, especially because after our last interaction, I’d told myself that he practically hated me.There this nigga goes again, rocking the boat of my heart.But I’d made my decision, and I was sticking to it. So why couldn’t I stop thinking the vows he said were meant explicitly for me?
The minute Livended the call with Lex, she turned to me with an inquisitive look plastered across her face.
