“That’s too tight.” “Sorry.” Justin pulled the silk loose and tried again. “That better?” JC reached up and ran a finger between his collar and his neck, pulling a bit. He nodded. “Better,” he said to Justin’s reflection in the mirror. Justin smiled, leaning his chin on JC’s shoulder, his arms slipping down and holding JC close. “You look so good,” Justin said. JC reached back and pulled Justin closer. “So do you,” JC replied. And it was true. JC looked sophisticated and stylish in his tuxedo, the stark white shirt bright against the black suit. Justin was equally as resplendent in a dark blue suit, light shirt, and wonder of wonders, a subtle patterned necktie. Of course, Justin being Justin, his hair was spiked and liner rimmed his blue eyes, but yes. He looked very fine, indeed. Eyes locked in the mirror again. “You ready?” Justin asked. JC nodded. “You’ll be okay?” he asked, turning away from the mirror to face Justin. “I’ll be fine,” Justin said, straightening JC’s lapels. “Go do your duty.” He pushed JC toward the door of the bathroom. They exited together, JC squeezing Justin’s hand one last time before he walked down the hall. Ignoring the stares of the people walking past, Justin made his way through the small area and walked into the church sanctuary, taking a seat in the very last row of pews. The church was beautiful, Justin realized. Tastefully decorated for the wedding with bunting and flowers, but even without the extra decorations, it was a very nice church. Not that Justin had a lot of reference points for churches, he thought. The last time he was even in a church was the burned out shell of St. Mary’s in LA for a week before the cops rousted him and his gang out. Justin felt a grudging respect for Reverend Chasez for creating such a nice building. Of course, the congregation was a different story. Justin continued to ignore the stares of the people passing him, the whispers and pointing. He knew what they were thinking. That he was the one, the one the other Chasez boy was involved with. He shrugged it off. He didn’t care what people said, and he hoped that JC didn’t either. Because it wasn’t their day. It was Tyler and Kim’s. It had been a hard winter for the couple, but they’d finally decided to get married. JC was skeptical, that getting married for the sake of the baby Kim was carrying wasn’t a good enough reason. But Tyler had been swayed—not by Kim, but by his parents. It had come as quite a surprise to JC and Justin. Tyler had gone home for a few weekends, and a month ago announced that he was marrying Kim and moving back home. JC realized his parents had convinced Tyler that this was the only way to proceed, and he’d been tentative to argue against it, not wanting to damage Tyler’s newly reformed relationship with their parents. Surprisingly, Justin had kept his own opinions to himself. JC had asked him about it, but Justin had demurred, saying it was between him and Tyler. That Tyler was welcome to stay with them, that Kim was welcome to move in, that they were both welcome to bring the baby back to their place, but this whole stuff with parents and marriage was something he couldn’t say anything about. JC had thought it strange for Justin not to have an opinion on it, and as it turned out, that wasn’t quite true. Justin was brokenhearted. He loved Tyler like a brother, and liked Kim a lot, and really wanted to see the progress with the baby and knew, deep in his heart, that if they moved to Willamette Falls they wouldn’t see them as much and might even be turned against the lovers by the Chasez’s. But he couldn’t say that to Tyler or even JC. And he couldn’t figure out why he couldn’t say it. He wondered if his opinion would sway Tyler and finally decided it wouldn’t. Maybe that’s why he didn’t say anything. And maybe he was just scared that Tyler wouldn’t care what he thought. However, the decision was made. The wedding was a few minutes away. And Justin knew life would go on. A bit quieter in the apartment with Tyler gone, but less of a struggle to get into the shower in the morning. A bright side to everything, Justin thought. The pews were just about filled when Justin felt a poke on his arm. He turned, seeing the oldest woman he’d ever seen in his life standing next to him. She was decked from her head to her toes in lilac—shoes, dress, gloves, hat. A huge bunch of violets was pinned to her shoulder, and she carried a shiny black cane, which, Justin saw, was what had poked Justin. Her eyes were bright blue and vaguely familiar to Justin. “Yes ma’am?” he finally said. “You’re Justin, right?” Justin nodded. “Yes, ma’am,” he said. Those bright blue eyes surveyed Justin from his spiked hair to his polished borrowed shoes (JC’s). “Very well.” She held out her arm. “Escort me up front, son.” It finally clicked. This was JC’s grandmother. Justin rose from the pew and gingerly placed the frail arm in his. His steps were slow and measured as they walked down the aisle. The stares from the people in the pews were priceless, Justin realized. Whispers followed them, too. “Don’t pay them any mind, son,” the old woman said, patting Justin’s arm. “They’re all idiots.” Justin stifled a laugh. “It’s true,” she continued. “Look at her.” The lilac hat nodded to a woman on the left. “That’s Marge Henderson. She alphabetizes her towels.” The hat nodded to a couple on the right. “And there’s the Bunson’s. He washes his lawnmower every day, and she plays Internet bingo.” She smiled up at Justin, her eyes so much like JC’s his heart almost stopped. “See? Normal is relative, son. Who’s to say you’re not?” They’d reached the front pew where the rest of JC’s family was seated. Justin gently maneuvered the old woman into the pew and turned to leave when he was stopped by her surprisingly strong grip. “And where do you think you’re going?” she asked. “Back to my seat, ma’am,” he said, tugging a bit. She tapped the pew with her cane. “Your seat is here,” she said, scooting over a bit. “With the Chasez family.” “Mrs. Chasez…” “Don’t even go there, son,” she said, pulling Justin into the pew and forcing him down. “You’re family, as far as I’m concerned.” She grasped Justin’s hand, holding it up. “I saw a matching one on my grandson’s hand. If it means what I think it does, then you belong here.” “Ma’am…” Justin tried to argue, but was belayed as the organ began playing. A door in front opened, and out walked Reverend Chasez, Tyler, and JC as best man. They all spied Justin sitting in the front row. Tyler smiled a bit, and JC just shook his head in amazement, realizing what must have happened with Justin and his grandmother. Justin sensed someone to the left of him, and saw that Mrs. Chasez the younger had been escorted down the aisle. Her dilemma was evident in her face as she hesitated in the aisle. Did she sit in the family pew next to Justin, or sit somewhere else out of protest? The decision was made for her, though; as the old woman leaned around Justin and declared in a fierce whisper “Don’t be an idiot, Karen. Sit down.” She sat. Justin sought out JC’s eyes again, finding that same blue sparkle showing in his lover’s eyes as the old woman sitting next to him. They shared a smile, and JC nodded. Justin nodded back. The Wedding March began.