She is so amazing, Aaron thought as he saw his beautiful bride walking down the aisle. He was completely enamored with the way she was basically glowing in the light of the beautiful, old church that was packed with close friends and family. He never really thought that this day was going to come. It was one of those things he had longed for and wished for, but he had just about given up hope on the search when Shelby walked into his life. He supposed he should thank Carly, his beloved lab for introducing them. He had wished she could have been here. It was weird to have a dog at a wedding, but stranger things had definitely happened. In the end he was outvoted. He smiled at the thought.

Shelby looked so beautiful in her wedding dress and he had to fight the tears that were threatening to roll down his face. He had never been happy enough to cry before and it was a surreal experience for him, but the event unfolding before his very eyes was something that he was not equipped to handle. As she came closer to him-- a beautiful, sweet smile on her face—he found himself replaying the events of the past several months over in his head.

After the fiasco with the sex tape that Chelsea had sent to Shelby, he had confronted her. Chelsea had been a little pissed that she had neglected such a vital piece of evidence in her trickery, but she had laughed the whole thing off. Too bad for Chelsea that she was set to fight one of his friends in an upcoming match.

Vanessa Daniels was a top ranked female MMA fighter that Aaron had known for years. They had never been anything romantic, because their relationship felt almost like brother/sister. She truly was the little sister that he never actually had. When Vanessa heard about what Chelsea did she made it a point to punish her in the ring. It was a brutal beat down of a fight, with Chelsea enduring a career ending busted knee.

Aaron had not asked Vanessa to do that and he had actually felt pretty bad that it had happened, but Vanessa was very protective of him when it came to women and she had gone out of her way to make sure that Chelsea paid for what she did.

He looked over at Vanessa and smiled. She smiled back with pride. She had loved Shelby from the moment she met her and the two had become fast friends, which was very important to Aaron. He did not have that many truly close friends, but Vanessa was one of them.

Shelby reached the end of the aisle and was now standing in front of him. He reached up and grabbed her hand gently, taking it in his and watching her small hand disappear in his large grip. She smiled that amazing warm smile at him and he felt the first tear roll out of the corner of his eye. He smiled as a wave of relief fell over him.

It was the type of relief one feels when you realize that what you have so desperately wanted and longed for has finally arrived and it is even more spectacular than you thought it could be. Shelby’s face lit up even more when she saw the tear stream down his face.

As the minister spoke Aaron blocked out most of what was said. He was too caught up in looking into Shelby’s eyes and the amazing times they’d enjoyed together over the past six months and the wonderful times that were surely to come in the future for them.

That night they would be heading towards their honeymoon destination—The Bahamas. Aaron had always wanted to go there and so had Shelby. Aaron had travelled fairly extensively during his fighting career, but he had not gone outside of the country except for a few fights in Mexico and Canada. He had never travelled anywhere exotic, and he was looking forward to a great getaway with the love of his life.

The hardest thing for him and Shelby was going to be letting go of work, but he was proud of Shelby. She had worked extra hard to get caught up with all of her clients so she could take the week off for their honeymoon vacation. He admired the way Shelby worked so hard at something she was passionate about. She was so determined in everything she did and he knew there was nothing out of that woman’s grasp if she wanted it. It was great how they could just immerse themselves in their work and not see or talk to each other for hours on end, and when they came together it was like they had not even been apart.

If someone had sat him down and explained to him when he was younger that this is what love was supposed to feel like then he wouldn’t have been in such a hurry to make it happen, and he wouldn’t have wasted so much time and made so many mistakes with women who were obviously not right for him.

But he guessed it was all for the best. Everything he had done and everything he hadn’t done or achieved had all brought him here today. He thought about all of the what ifs in his life and how each decision—no matter how big or small—had altered his life in some beautiful way to carefully bring him to this moment at this time. It was all so perfect. He was not a deeply religious man, but at times like this he had to believe something higher than him was behind the wheel.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to unite Aaron and Shelby, two pure souls who have found each other according to God’s beautiful plan. At a time like this we are reminded of what it means for two people to unite themselves together and to make a pact—an eternal commitment—to each other before all of us and before God.”

The minister’s words filled the air in a hauntingly sweet, almost musical, sing song monotone. Aaron found himself feeling faint for the briefest of moments, and then it was gone. He wondered if Shelby felt it.

“When two people make this pact together they are forsaking the affections of all others and allowing their bodies, minds, and spirits to become one person. They will stand as one person for the rest of their Earthly days and into the afterlife where they will remain united forever. The pairing of these two children of God that you will all witness today is perhaps the greatest gift our maker gave us. It is the ability to fall in love with another and the privilege of sharing one’s life with that person. The Lord, our God did not want man to be alone. He has foreseen it and he has made it so.”

Aaron was starting to feel that the minister was laying it all on a little thick, and as cheesy as what he was saying felt, Aaron found himself tearing up more when he realized it was a perfect analogy for the way he felt about his bride.

Aaron thought about the plans he and Shelby had made together for the next few years. They figured they would both want a bigger house for the two of them and the children they planned on having. It was something both of them had always dreamt of—having children— and Aaron was looking forward to it more every day. They did want to take a few years and enjoy just being a free couple who could come and go as they pleased. There was a lot of the world neither of them had ever seen and they both wanted to, but eventually children were going to be in the picture.

Aaron found it funny how when he was younger he never saw himself as a dad, or even a husband, but as the years rolled by he started feeling like there was something missing from his life. He had a lot of love to give and he had a lot of guidance to share. He felt he had gained so much knowledge about life over the past few years and he didn’t want that wisdom to go to waste. Shelby would be an amazing mother as well. She was so caring and so nurturing, once you broke down the walls she had constructed around herself to keep the world at bay. He had somehow been able to do that and once he was inside those walls he never wanted to leave. It was the perfect place to be, with the perfect woman.

After the ceremony they partied it up at the reception. Shelby and Aaron had launched themselves out onto the dance floor. Aaron had never considered himself much of a dancer, but the spirit grabbed him and he found that he could not stop dancing. He was having too much fun and feeling way too good from the endorphin rush of getting married. As soon as the minister said to kiss the bride, Aaron had been on that high. It was all over and the nerves and excitement had built to a final crescendo that finally exploded.

And the alcohol probably helped a bunch. Both he and Shelby drank a lot that day, but not too much—they did want to remember the wedding day, after all.

The next morning they were on a plane heading for the Bahamas. The flight was so smooth and Aaron was so happy that they had decided to fly first class, even though it was twice as expensive. They had decided to splurge and make it happen.

As they approached the end of their flight and they could see the Bahamas islands coming up in the distance, Shelby reached over and grabbed his hand. He turned to look at her and got lost in the beauty of her eyes.

“I love you,” she said.

“I love you, too.” Aaron kissed her sweetly.

As they walked off the plane they were taken in by the culture of where they had arrived. Aaron was used to beautiful sunny weather, living in Phoenix Arizona, but he was amazed by how blue the ocean looked when you were that close to it. As they rode towards the hotel and resort where they were staying he marveled at the crystal clear, blue water that reflected the sunshine back at him. It was breathtaking to say the least.

As far as he could see there was nothing but blue, so much so that it was impossible to tell where the sky and the water split apart. They stretched on in an endless direction of mingling blues and sunshine. As he watched this vision it reminded him of how it was a perfect metaphor for the journey that he and Shelby were embarking on.

He was no longer alone and neither was she. They were two shades of blue that had come together at last to create their own distinct shade of blue. It was uniquely theirs and no one could ever interrupt it and nothing could ever separate the gleam from the blue.

It was time for the next step.