Whiteboards and Whispers

It was a quiet Tuesday night. The twins were asleep, Charlotte was tucked in after insisting on reading three bedtime books, and the house was still—except for the soft sound of Lucy flipping through a magazine on the couch.

Tim came in from the kitchen, two mugs of tea in hand. "Decaf chai. No sugar, just how you like it when you're trying to sleep but still craving something warm."

Lucy grinned. "You know me too well."

He handed it to her and sat beside her, glancing down at the spread of open wedding magazines and a crisp white notepad with bullet points scribbled across the top.

"Wait..." he narrowed his eyes. "Is that... a wedding checklist?"

"Maybe," Lucy teased, taking a sip of her tea. "I was thinking... we finally have a routine, the babies are almost six months old, Charlotte's thriving—maybe it's time?"

Tim's face lit up. "You mean—actually plan the wedding?"

She nodded. "For real this time. No more delays. I want to be your wife, Tim."

His heart swelled. He leaned in and kissed her forehead. "Well then. Let's do this."

⸻

A Few Days Later – Planning Begins

They set up a whiteboard in the living room while Charlotte "assisted" with colored markers and the twins gurgled in their bouncers.

Venue?"Something outside," Lucy said. "Maybe a vineyard or a garden."

Guest list?"Keep it close. Friends, chosen family. We've had enough drama," Tim muttered, to which Lucy laughed in agreement.

Charlotte wrote "ME!!" in pink next to "flower girl" and underlined it.

Dress fittings, catering tastings, vows—they started to build it all together, piece by piece. They laughed over ridiculous cake flavors and shared a quiet moment when Lucy found an old photo of her dad, who passed before Charlotte was born.

"I think he would've loved you," she said softly, handing Tim the photo.

"I would've liked to meet him," Tim replied.

⸻

That Night

Later in bed, Lucy curled into Tim's chest, her fingers tracing light patterns on his arm. "Do you think we'll actually make it this time? Down the aisle?"

He kissed her temple. "We've already made it, Luce. Everything from here on out—it's just celebration."

She smiled against him. "I like that."