The wedding planning took some time, with Jake being on active duty and Nova's rotating schedule.

But it got done and the wedding was suddenly upon them. Jake, along with any other member of the military attending the wedding, would be in their dress uniforms. Nova gave Natasha the option to be in her dress uniform or in a bridesmaid dress, wanting her to make the choice. Either way, Nova was just glad to have Natasha by her side as she got married.

Javy was Jake's Best Man, with Bradley and Reuban (Payback) as groomsmen, along with his brother-in-laws. It came as a shock when Jake asked Bradley to be in his wedding party, but the two had come a long way since their early days of hating each other.

But it was Nova's wedding party that took the cake. Despite having quite a few close female friends, she made a decision some would think was weird but made perfect sense for her.

JJ was Nova's Man of Honor.

JJ was the closest person to Nova after Jake. Hell, Jake would argue that JJ was closer than anyone. It made all the sense in the world for JJ to be standing next to her on this occasion.

(JJ did in fact cry when Nova asked him to be her Man of Honor. Taylor got it on video.)

Along with JJ, her bridal party consisted of Taylor, Natasha, Amelia and Mary, her roommate from college. (They had to do some more age appropriate events since Amelia wasn't 21 yet. That didn't stop them from slipping her some sips here and there.)

Nova's dress was a two-in-one. She had a removable skirt, underneath which was pants as she had a dress/pant suit combo. (Nova wasn't gonna be uncomfortable at her own reception.)

The day was fast approaching but the couple was ready to tie the knot. It was many years in the making.

☽☆☾   ☽☆☾   ☽☆☾

The wedding of the century was finally here. Ok, maybe not the century but it was still a monumental moment.

Nova was getting ready at Sarah's house, the older woman having gladly volunteered to assist the party in their makeup. Taylor had a good friend that was a hair stylist who arrived to get the women ready. Phoenix assisted where needed, as she was in her dress uniform and hair in a regulation bun.

The bridesmaids wore a beautiful shade of blue, with JJ wearing a vest and tie the same shade. Up-dos were finished, make up was perfected and pictures were taken. In no time at all, the party was driving to the Hard Deck.

Jake and Nova had decided on a beach wedding, and choosing a beach that was special to them was easier than expected.

Of course they would use the area of the beach close to their family. They had met at the Hard Deck, reunited at the bar and spent a lot of time there with friends and family.

Jake was already at the archway altar, sitting just in front of the lapping waves. Javy was keeping him calm, as this was one of the only times he had seen Jake nervous.

Maverick was meeting Nova inside the bar, before they walked down to the beach. And the photographer was there to catch the first look moment between the father and daughter.

Pete Mitchell was not a man who cried often. But looking at his daughter in her wedding dress was something he had never prepared himself for.

“Oh honey. You look beautiful,” Maverick told his little girl, tears forming in his eyes. Nova hugged her father tightly.

“You can't cry. Because then I'll cry and my mascara might be waterproof, but it's not that strong.” The two laughed before hugging again.

Once they had reigned in their tears, Maverick offered his arm. “Ready to go sweetheart?”

Nova wrapped her arm around his. “More than ever.”

Walking to the starting mark, the people in attendance rose to their feet as a soft, acoustic version of ‘I can't help falling in love with you’ (Crazy Rich Asians version) began to play. Maverick escorted Nova down the sandy aisle, towards a man he had come to see as a son. Jake wasn't the only one staring at Nova in awe. Bradley hadn't seen his sister until that moment and regardless of the fact that JJ had seen her already, the two men couldn't believe their sister was getting married.

Finally making it to the front, Nova stands in front of Jake, both of them in slight awe of the fact that they had finally made it here.

The minister began the proceedings, the couple not looking away from each other. When it was time for the vows, Nova went first.

She pulled a piece of paper from her dress pocket (yes it had pockets!) and started her vows.

“We all know I like to be prepared,” she began, making everyone laugh. “Jake, from the day we met, I knew you would be a pain in my ass for a long time.” Many people lost it at that, including Jake himself. “I didn't make it easy on you, but eventually you broke me down. And I can say without a doubt, I have never been more grateful for your stubbornness. You were determined to show me you were more than just the cocky pilot you showed everyone else. And you succeeded beyond anything I would have expected.”

Nova breathed out through her nose, keeping in tears that were threatening to escape.

“You surprised me. You really did. I am so glad to have been wrong, for once in my life. Because if you had given up, I would never have experienced the best thing to ever grace my life. You. You, Jacob Seresin, have saved me in more ways than you know.”

By now, Nova can't stop the tears.

“So I promise to love, cherish, and deserve you for the rest of our days. In sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, in good times and bad. Because you are my past, present and future. Always.”

There was not a dry eye on that beach. Jake himself had to dry his eyes before moving to his own vows.

When pulling out the paper his vows were on, he also pulled out a handkerchief, handing it to Nova. “I know you well, you're gonna need this.” Nova let out a laugh, grabbing the cloth and dabbing at her eyes.

“Nova, I knew from the moment I saw you, I needed you to be mine. Little did I know how difficult you would make it and how hard I would have to work to get the chance. But I wouldn't change a thing,” he started off.

“You are stubborn, not budging once you set your mind to something. I can't tell you how grateful I am that you budged on me. We have had our ups and downs, we've had our time away. But we always come back stronger for it. You showed me how to be vulnerable and how to break down the walls I had built up. You gave me hope for the future, that I could have something like my parents and grandparents. I had never had that before you came into my life. And I wouldn't have it any other way.”

Nova was using that handkerchief now. Jake folded the paper up and grabbed the hand not holding the cloth.

“So with all I have, I promise to love, cherish and deserve you for the rest of our days. In sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, in good times and bad. Because you are my past, present and future. Always.”

The tears were free flowing. The two joined hands, repeating the last few pieces before they were sliding rings onto the other's hand.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride!”

Jake wasted no time in that, grabbing Nova and kissing her soundly on the lips. He even dipped her for dramatic effect.

The clapping and cheering is what broke them apart, along with the sounds of JJ and Bradley gagging, despite the huge smiles on their faces.

Nova and Jake held hands as they turned towards their friends and family, finally joined as one.

☽☆☾   ☽☆☾   ☽☆☾

The reception was, of course, epic. Penny had closed the Hard Deck for the day, though many of the locals and regulars who came to the bar had stopped by at some point to wish the couple well.

Dinner was showtime, that's for sure. The speeches were the highlight of the night.

Mav went first, starting with the fact that he had only gotten to threaten Jake once. “Hey now, I was genuinely terrified after that,” Jake made his point.

“No but seriously. Nova and Jake have a love you don't see very often. And I'm sure JJ will say this as well. But I can tell you right now, Ice would be so happy for you two. Nova, you were almost as much his daughter as you are mine. And all he ever wanted was for you to be happy and loved. So congratulations to the happy couple. And many years to come.”

Glasses were raised in a toast and Nova hugged her father just a little bit tighter.

JJ and Bradley had similar speeches, along the lines of not liking Jake for a while to begrudgingly getting along to realizing just how much Jake cared for their sister. A few threats slipped in here and there but it was all in good fun, the three men true friends now.

Javy spoke of how glad he was that Nova came into Jake’s life. “I can not express just how happy I am that you actually managed to crack the Tin Man. Honestly Nova, the whining this man did when you kept denying him was getting to the pathetic stage, so thank you for putting me out of my misery and finally saying yes.” Jake almost got him into a headlock for that, but they were laughing all the same.

The surprise speech came from Sarah Kazansky, who had a piece of paper with her. “I know this will come as a surprise, but Tom always knew you two would come back together. Somehow he had a feeling that what you two had was something that transcends time. No matter how much time passed, you two would always come back together.”

Nova was holding her breath, very shocked by this turn of events. She hadn't been expecting a last gift from Iceman.

“Jake, he also wrote that you could now speak of that thing, the one that was classified between you two. But overall, he wished you two the happiest life possible, full of joy and love. He asked one thing of you both,” Sarah continued, looking at the newlywed couple.

“Live your lives to the fullest. Regret nothing and enjoy everything. Life is full of surprises, so be ready for them. Because nothing can prepare you for life. So keep fighting for each other. And have the best life you can.”

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Word count: 1,865

OMG THEY ARE MARRIED!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY ARE MARRIED!!!

Feels like just yesterday I was writing about their reunion and rough past. But our babies are married!!

There were so many ideas I wanted to incorporate but I just couldn't. Ngl I cried a little when I wrote those vows and the last minute Iceman letter? I even surprised myself with that one.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!! I know I did, despite the stress of writing it.

So I'll see you soon, for some more snippets of Nova and Jake's life!!

Bye guys!