MARK RUBBED ALONG HIS jaw as he rounded back to the table to cross off the last item on his very long list. The pencil in his hand got set aside, yet his mind remained unsettled.

He heard three short knocks from behind and made his way towards the sound, twisting to unlock it and swinging the door open. He blinked slightly at the person who raised a brow at him.

"I can't sleep," Norah voiced out as she stepped into the room while he closed the door after her.

"Thank god... Me neither," Mark admitted, letting out a long exhale. He ran a hand through his already messy hair with a nervous chuckle. "I mean, I've been walking laps around here-"

"Wow. I can't sleep because you're not beside me, and you can't sleep because of nerves?" she deadpanned, her hands on her hips. "How very romantic of you, Mark Sloan."

"Well, that, too, of course," he smiled sheepishly back at her, and she shook her head with a small sigh.

With a teasing look slowly forming on his face, he lowered his head and caught her lips with his as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He grinned into their kiss, carrying her up while moving them towards the bed.

"You sure you should be here the night before..."

"Screw traditions, but as long as you and I don't tell a living soul, we'll be great," she mumbled as her back collided with the soft mattress, "Especially April, though, she'll nag the crap out of us."

He rested his head on his side of the pillow, staring into her eyes that, he swore, were shining in the dim room; she would say his were glimmering through the moonlight that shone in through the glass window.

He turned to lay on his back, and she moved closer to him, resting her head on his chest while her arm draped across his body. He hugged her and placed a kiss on her head.

Lub dub... lub dub... lub dub... lub dub...

He could tell that she was about to fall asleep, but his mind was still swimming with too many things at the same time.

He could hear the faint laughs of people a distance away, the clashing of the waves not too far from the resort they were staying in, and the breathing sound from the woman right beside him.

"Kai's almost two and a half," he spoke up, breaking the peaceful silence, and she lifted her head to him. The growing smile on his face was hinting at her something-which, of course, she knew what it was. "Laurie, I know you can read my mind."

"Indeed, and I know what you're hinting," she narrowed her eyes at him. His eyes started to glow, and she scowled at him but reached up to kiss his jaw. "Three years is a nice gap, huh?"

"Mm-hmm."

"But love, can't you just wait like, literally, one more day?"

He snorted and shook his head, his hand already travelling to the hem of her shirt. "You know that's not possible."

"I also know that you're suggesting this because you're nervous as hell," she stated with a shrug, and he chuckled.

"Well, you're not wrong... but can you blame me?" he asked, staring into the eyes that he fell in love with, over and over again; a smile tugged on his lips as the words came out dreamily,

"We're getting married tomorrow."

The four words were enough to make her give in, and she connected their lips into one. "And you're not permitted to faint."

❦ ❦ ❦

THE BRIDE SAT IN FRONT of the mirror. Norah lowered her eyes to her phone, where she was close to breaking her record in Subway Surfers. The heat of the curling iron radiating beside her seemed to not bother her, at all.

Cristina, Meredith and Arizona were helping her with the final touches before Norah changed into her wedding dress. Cristina was occasionally passing the bride sips of alcohol-which was highly disapproved by the latter.

Jackson had knocked on the door of the changing room before peeking in, having to be assigned to make sure that everything was going per schedule. Norah could see that he had a reluctant look on his face, most likely because of being bossed into action by April.

She could not deny that allowing April Kepner to help plan their wedding was the right decision to make.

"Hey, Jackson," Norah called out before he went away again, "Make sure you have pepper spray ready. It's with Alex. Get it from him."

Jackson hung by the doorframe, narrowing his eyes in confusion. "Pepper spray? Why...?"

"If Mark doesn't cry, spray the tears out of him," she explained, and his eyebrows shot up surprisingly. A thought crossed her mind. and she clicked her tongue with a smirk. "Or you can slip a tiny crab in his pants."

"That'd be fun to watch," Cristina snorted.

Arizona, however, looked fairly horrified at the idea. "That's like, cruel..." she stated, "and overly dramatic."

"It's Norah and Mark. That's reasonably dramatic," Meredith claimed before shooting Jackson a look to go do as requested.

"Alright... I'll get the, um, pepper spray..." he finally caved and closed the door after him.

When Norah accidentally tripped over the barricade in her game and lost, she let out a deep sigh-one that raised a shared questioning look among the three other women.

"Look, Norah, you have not freaked out today, so... do you wanna freak out?" Meredith queried, but the brunette shook her head.

"Tim is... was... supposed to walk me down the aisle. And he's, well..." Norah muttered, staring at her reflection in the mirror with a sad smile. "I just... need a minute, I guess..."

"Oh, sweetheart, please don't get all sappy and cry now," Cristina deadpanned, setting the curling iron aside. "That makeup took a long time to-"

"You'll have your minute," Arizona cut off her words, throwing her an unamused look. She walked over to her bag and searched for something before pulling out a familiar item with a grin on her face. "I personally think this shade of blue goes with your dress."

The light blue and coral-coloured bracelet was set neatly on her wrist, making her smile widely.

"He's here," Arizona reassured the brunette, the latter needing to breathe back a tear that was threatening to fall.

"He is," Norah nodded, "They are."

As she went to change, the three bridesmaids made a mutual agreement, and Meredith secretly slipped out of the changing room.

❦

MARK GENTLY TRACED the silvery line on his chest as he stared at his reflection in the mirror. The scar was something that he had grown to accept as a part of him.

It reminded him of the horror, but it also reminded him of love.

It reminded him of the four days of suffering while they were stranded, the pain from forcing himself awake and the agony of listening to the screams; she broke his heart which reminded him that he still had one.

It reminded him of the nights she would turn him away from the bathroom mirror when she caught him in his state and place small kisses on his chest; she neutralised his hatred of the permanent mark.

It reminded him that his heart did not give up on him and that it had brought him here, to this day, to tie the knot with his one great love; she and their family was all that mattered.

He buttoned up the dress shirt neatly, making sure not to unknowingly misbutton his top. The tie around his neck felt impossible to tie, mainly because he seemed to always be able to look for a fault in the knot.

The door behind him knocked once, and Derek walked in. His eyes narrowed at the man who was, once again, pulling off his tie to do it again.

"It's... uneven," Mark explained whilst trying to compose himself. "And I want it to be perfect..."

Derek finally gave up after watching the third attempt and walked up to the groom, prying Mark away from the mirror. "You're gonna end up untying and retying it for the rest of the evening," he deadpanned and took the fabric in his hands.

Mark stood quietly-though nervously-as Derek perfected the knot, sending him an unamused look with a brotherly smile behind it.

"This reminds me of my middle school graduation," Mark mused, attempting to calm himself down by talking.

Derek snorted at the memory. "There was no way I would've let you go with your tie looking like that," he laughed, "That was so hideous... There."

Mark turned to look at the mirror while lowering his collar, a grin finally tugging on his lips. "I'm getting married," he muttered to the man behind him.

"I really never thought Mark Sloan would see this day," Derek admitted, and they shared a laugh. "Alright, Callie's waiting for you outside, and Jackson brought you a drink. Arizona came over from Norah's to make sure you're doing okay, and I'm glad I was here to save your tie."

"Yet another memory to rub it on my face in the future," Mark rolled his eyes dramatically before furrowing his brows. "Do not tell Norah this."

A moment later, the door knocked again, and this time, Meredith rushed in. "Hi, I need my husband for a while," she quickly uttered before pulling the man away from the room.

"I'll be right back!" Derek called out, "Congratulations, again!"

❦ ❦ ❦

"DEREK? WHY ARE YOU here?" Norah quirked a brow at the man who had just walked into the room, making her stop her steps in pacing. "Mark didn't bail, did he?"

"What-bail? Of course not. He's hopelessly in love with you," Derek snorted amusingly with Meredith walking in after him, "Besides, I would personally send him to his grave if he did that."

"Always like a big brother, huh?" she grinned, and he shrugged back, returning her smile.

Derek let out a long exhale as he walked up to the brunette. "Tim was supposed to walk you down the aisle," he prefaced, and her face softened knowingly. "He can't be here today, but we both know he's here, just not... physically."

"Yeah, he's probably somewhere laughing at you for smudging your makeup just now," Cristina piped in amusingly, humouring up the mood.

"Oh, he'd probably convince me to get married in a pair of Converse..." Norah chuckled before narrowing her eyes. "I mean-"

"No!" Meredith snapped immediately, shooting down the idea.

"Alright, alright. Now, the serious question remains: what if I trip?" the brunette questioned, her tone serious.

"Don't."

"Wise words, Cristina, wise words..."

"Here, liquid courage, not that you need it..." Cristina passed the drink to Norah, who gladly took a sip through the straw. "Sweetheart, just don't trip on your own wedding, really. I swear I'll be the first to laugh."

"Alright, come on," Derek chuckled, extending his arm to the bride before she could fire back. "Let's get you married."

Norah flashed a final glare before Cristina opened the door for them to exit, her and Meredith following closely behind.

"You know, Mark is so freaking out right now," Derek whispered to Norah, who fought back from snorting. "He retied his tie thrice before I stepped in..."

❦

"ARE YOU FREAKING OUT...?"

"What do you think, Avery?!" Mark hissed back at the man before seizing the bottle of beer away from his hand; Jackson and Callie shared a look as Mark shrieked, "My best man is missing!"

"Shepherd bailed on you?" Jackson quirked a brow at the groom rather amusingly but was met by a glare that was intense yet anxious. Mark took a large gulp before nudging the cold bottle back.

"I've been his perfect best man, and he can't even be by my side at my wedding," he ranted, searching frantically for something to dry off the water droplets on his hand. "No, he was here, and now he's gone, and I have no idea where he is, and it's starting soon, oh god-"

"Yep, he's definitely freaking out," Callie nodded firmly and handed him a napkin to wipe his hand.

It was two hours before sunset, and the sky had cleared out, giving it a vibrant shade of blue with a hint of orange near the horizon with a mix of purple in between. There were small white clouds above their heads, and it was windless; the weather was complimenting them well.

Lamps were placed along either side of the aisle runner, where the candles within had been lit; wooden chairs were sturdily arranged where guests were mostly seated; a wooden boat packed with an assortment of drinks and liquors sat idly on the fine sand, where Mark refrained from running up to.

He recalled the day he suggested this wedding theme idea, wanting it to be an absolutely memorable event. Needless to say, she was beyond thrilled.

Warm sand, fresh air, brilliant sunset-their beach wedding was flawless.

The guests were made up of mostly the hospital staff and some family and friends. There were a few empty seats, too, which they agreed to spare; specifically, there were four-Timothy and Lexie up at the front, Jace next to Kirian and George near Alex.

It was also Norah's idea to put a card on top of their seat, stating: 'If you're here, make a WOO! and please don't let it rain'.

"Oh damn, it's starting," Mark mumbled to himself, his eyes flying wide as he positioned himself. "Okay, I'm not permitted to faint, so I cannot faint..."

"Mark, you're not gonna faint," Callie mentally face-palmed while he readjusted his tie... again.

The guests were in awe when Zola and Sofia walked in, tossing the flower petals in every direction. The two girls were not really sure what they were doing, but they knew to follow the instructions given and have fun.

Kai followed closely behind them as a ring bearer; him in his little tuxedo nearly made Mark melt at his spot ("Avery, you better hold me up if my legs give out."). The boy picked up one of the petals on the floor and balanced it on his head with a giggle that caught everyone's hearts.

"'I'll be right back' my ass-where the hell is he?" Mark muttered under his breath, still searching for the person in question as his nervous jitters rose to his chest. He was more than glad that he had to go through this only once in his lifetime.

Where the hell was Derek Shepherd when he needed him the most?

But his question got answered the moment the bright white dress made her presence, her arm laced through Derek's.

Mark felt his eyes stung almost immediately as what he deemed the angel-like bride walked down, her steps soft and her eyes never leaving his. She was beaming from ear to ear, the grin on her face matching his.

Jackson gently lowered the tiny crab he had caught back down the sand and shoved the spray bottle away in his pocket.

"Mark, you might wanna close your mouth," Derek advised in a whisper, and the groom did as told, not even realising that his mouth had gaped open.

Mark was indefinitely speechless; the feelings coursing through him from head to toe were infinite. Norah accepted his hand as she stepped to the altar together; Derek grinned proudly at both of his best friends, who had finally gotten the happiness that they well deserved.

As the ceremony continued, the officiant's words seemed to be partially drowned out at Mark's side as he failed to keep his eyes off her; she knew he was staring, of course, she had always known.

Norah glanced at him briefly with a raised brow, and he returned her with a guilty smile. Their interaction, though small to themselves, were noticeable by everyone else.

"You may now exchange vows and rings!"

Mark blinked away his tears slightly as Derek passed him the ring; Norah felt like she was floating on clouds as she took the wedding band from Cristina. The best man and maid of honor both had smiles on their faces, mainly to mock the two who clearly were on the verge of freaking out.

"Shy-nee!" Kai let out a squeal at the front row, letting everyone break into small laughs at the boy's cuteness. Sofia had sent him a stern look while Zola laughed at the boy's words.

"I, Mark Everett Sloan, take you, Honorah Arielle Lawrence, to be my wife," Mark spoke while sliding the ring onto her finger, "With this ring, I promise that I'll be right by your side every time you wake up. I promise that you'll never have to face the world alone, that I'll catch you if you fall and lift you high in my arms. I promise you that every promise ever made, and every one to come, shall never be broken. And, above all, I promise you that I will love you because you are the one, had and always will be the one."

The bride had to blink away her tears that were already blurring her vision; Cristina had whisper-yelled at her not to ruin her makeup now while Meredith playfully shoved her.

"Oh god, how do you want me to beat that, huh?" she hissed softly, and he chuckled, knowing very well that there was no way she would miss the chance to add wrongly-timed humor into their ceremony.

"I, Honorah Arielle Lawrence, take you, Mark Everett Sloan, to be my husband," Norah spoke, sliding the band onto his finger, "With this ring, I promise that even if the world puts us through hell again, I would be right with you when we make it out on the other side. I promise that I'll always be by your side when the sun meets the sky. I promise to love you and cherish you for every moment to come. And I promise you, we are perfect because you, too, are the one and only. You're the one, love. You're my one."

Their vows would be deeply engraved on each other's hearts; love had never felt so overwhelming all at once.

"By the power of your love and commitment, and the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may now kiss the bride!"

It did not take them another second before their lips met each other's; it was a whole new, heightened sense of bliss pumped through every cell in their bodies.

Derek never missed out on the opportunity to wolf-whistle at them. Meredith and Cristina both had warmed feelings in their chest with a shared grin. Callie and Arizona were holding the kids up, the three young ones were clapping and giggling at the top of their lungs.

Aunt A, Uncle M and Brandon were near the middle of the guests, absolutely adoring the pair. April was sobbing hysterically, while Jackson sent her worried looks as Alex gave her a comforting squeeze on the shoulder. Kirian had a wide grin on his face, a somewhat amusing one, too, while he passed the box of tissues to Nina. Bailey looked like a proud mother brimming with tears.

In Ghost-Land, George was smiling brightly at the bride and groom; Jace had a hand resting on Kirian's as he sat on the chair next to him. He smiled at the pink band around Kirian's wrist, one that the latter had never taken off.

Timothy was rubbing the side of Lexie's arm; the latter was crying uncontrollably and silently cursing under her breath that her tears were still flowing.

His other hand was gently caressing Sofia's hair. Even though he could not physically feel it, it was more than enough. He had the broadest grin on his face ever, with a hint of his signature cheekiness to it, too.

"She would... laugh at me i-if she... saw me like this right... now," Lexie muttered through her sobs, sending Timothy a glare when he burst out laughing.

"Nor definitely would," he offered and earned a smack on the arm before she rested her head back on his shoulder.

"Hey, we should do what the card says and haunt them a little. That'll be fun," Jace suggested, gaining the attention of the others. "Let them know our presence."

"You know, I like you better when you're all shy and awkward, bullet-hole," Timothy taunted, and George nodded in agreement.

"Bullet-hole, I hear?" Jace narrowed his eyes, "At least I didn't have a brain bleed."

"From a plane crash," Timothy emphasised before shrugging. "At least we didn't get hit by a bus."

George let out an offended gasp at the mention of it. "That's rude. I have, like, seniority here," he scoffed while the three others snickered, "Literally!"

Timothy snorted before looking back forward. The pair had just pulled away from their kiss, their lips slightly swollen but their faces beaming like never before.

He had a glad look, seeing his sister being the happiest she had ever been, with his brother-in-law, who was the cause of it.

"Way to go, Mark. I'm impressed."

The cheers and laughs finally quieted down as Mark and Norah locked their hands together, slowly walking down from the altar.

With the gentle breeze on their cheeks and the sunset being the most beautiful one they had ever witnessed, they started down the aisle with more rose petals scattered at them.

"Family and friends, I present to you our newlyweds-Dr Mark Everett Sloan and Dr Honorah Arielle Lawrence-Sloan!"

━━━━━

I believe that the highlight of this chapter is Tim, Jace & George making dead jokes 😌