#muse; lexie montgomery | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

pocketfulofmuses · 5 years ago

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Who: Tristan, Tobias, Lexie, Tobias & Aidan Where: Starts at the apartment of Tristan & Tobias and leads to the courthouse When: 7/25/19 About: Tristan & Tobias elope and flew to California with Lexie and Tommy

It was early afternoon, and Tommy was supposed to be at work. Instead, he found himself all but kicking his brother's door down in his fury. He hadn't been this mad at Tristan in a long time-- he'd made his peace with the family's line of work and his brother's involvement in it. But that day at work, one of his colleagues asked how Liam was doing, and Tommy had stared at him blankly. He was hurt to be left out of the loop, scared for his family, worried that Tris might be in danger. But it all came out as anger at his twin.

He grabbed Tristan by the collar of his shirt and yanked him off the couch. "How long have you known our cousin was in a coma? When were you gonna tell me? You fucker!"

Lexie sat in front of the coffee table, across from Tristan and Tobias, magazines spread out all over the surface of it. Ever since she strolled into Bryan's office and asked to be put into the business she had been spending a ton of time with Tristan and whenever Tobias or Tommy were around, she would use the wedding as an excuse of why she was always hanging around. "Okay so we are covered on the caterer and the dessert.. we should figure out where we are doing this at.." before she could keep going Tommy busted the door down and had Tristan up off the couch in a matter of seconds.

Tobias scrambled up off the couch and moved to grab Tristan while Lexie moved over to Tommy to try and pull him off. "Babe, come on.. let go of him."

Tristan had been trying to keep his mind off the threat to their family and the state Liam was in, and he and Lexie had agreed not to tell Tobias and Tommy the details. He should have known it would come back around to bite them. Before he could even make a comment on the venue choices, his brother had stormed in and yanked him off the couch. When it came to fights, Tris could go from zero to one hundred in a snap, and he seemed to bring that out of his brother too.

"You always think you know best, huh?" Tristan snapped, shoving his brother back away from him. "Maybe you could trust me for once, asshole!"

Tommy lunged at him again, ready to throw down, but hands were holding both of them back.

Lexie kept a grip on Tommy's shoulders to keep him from lunging at Tristan. "Don't you two ever just use your words?" A part of her felt guilty for not keeping Tommy in the loop but with how these people were if she kept him out of it. He would stay safe. She moved in between the space and put her hands on Tommy's chest. "Take a deep breath. Please."

Tobias held onto Tristan, holding him back as he moved his hands down to his man's waist, tugging him closer to keep him from trying to get to Tommy. "He's just frustrated. Don't get too angry, Tris." He muttered into Tristan's ear.

Tommy knew she had a point, the two of them were never good at just communicating even at their closest. It was why things tended to blow up for them. Tommy let out a sharp breath through his nose, knowing he had to calm down before one of them took a swing and they didn't speak for months again. That wasn't what he wanted. He put his hands up in a sign of truce, eyes still blazing at Tris.

Tristan clenched his fists opened and closed, opened and closed again at his sides before he let Tobias tug him back. "Alright, alright," he huffed, settling a little further against his fiance. He looked across the space they'd created at his brother. "I'm sorry," he admitted. "I should've told you...we were trying to protect you...don't fucking hit me."

Tommy might have huffed a laugh at the plea to not hit him, but one word caught his attention instead. He turned to look at Lexie, his brow furrowed in confusion. "We?"

Lexie moved back behind Tommy so she could keep her hands on him to keep him from lunging at his twin brother, she was actually relieved when Tommy listened to her when it came to the truce and how they need to keep their hands to themselves. Sometimes the twins acted like two year olds. She lifted her gaze up to Tristan, her lips parting when the word we came out of his mouth.

Tobias held onto Tristan as he lifted his gaze up to Lexie as well. He didn't know much about what was going on with the family business either so the whole finding out their cousin was in a coma was new to him as well. So his hands dropped from Tristan and he glanced at Tristan then at Lexie but he knew the blow was much bigger to Tommy than it was to him.

Lexie lifted her gaze to Tommy as she looked down at her hands for a second. "Tommy…" she looked back up at him as she pressed her lips together. Her sister had been tangled up in the business before she ran off and her father was embedded in it so.. "I'm sorry.."

Tristan realized his mistake the second it left his mouth, and he muttered "Ah, shit," to himself. He glanced over at Tobias, an apology in his eyes without him having to say the words. A lot went unspoken about what Tris does for the family, for Bryan and Liam, and Tobias had always seemed okay with it. Or at least tolerated it and understood. He knew they could talk just the two of them later, because Tommy was likely about to blow again.

"You knew…" Tommy was saying to Lexie. His eyes cast over to Tris for a moment, who was grinding his teeth hard, then back to Lexie. "The head of our family got beaten almost to death, he's supposed to be untouchable...You two…" Tommy let out a long stream of air and walked a few paces away, tugging his hands back through his hair. "You just have to get mixed up in this family shit, don't you? You have to put yourselves in the middle of shit that could get you killed." He turned his gaze to Tobias, looking for an ally. "You're okay with this, Tobias?"

Tobias shoved his hands into his pockets, hearing what Tommy was saying about the head of the family was almost beaten to death and he just found himself staring at the area in front of him before looking at Lexie. Did she get mixed up into all of this too? Was that why she was always here? He had to wonder now what Tristan was doing with his nights and the fact he knew nothing about it was enough to make him want to double over in pain.

Lexie turned to look at Tommy as he started to pace. "It's family, Tommy." She thought about everything the O'Shea's had done for her after her father died, all the nights she hid out with the twins when her father was drunk and abusive. She lifted her gaze up to her boyfriend before moving towards him. "You gotta understand.." She started to say until he turned his attention to Tobias who looked like he was going to be sick.

"I didn't know any of it." Tobias found himself mumbling as he moved back a few steps. He knew Tristan was in this family but he never really thought about any of it. "I.." before he could say anything, the front door was opening again.

"You two do realize you have phones to answer -.." Aidan trailed in, looking at his phone before lifting his eyes to see Tommy and Tobias standing in the living room as well. "Oh…" He cleared his throat as he shoved his phone and hands into his pockets. "Sorry. Just doing a headcount." He was going by all the people who were working for them and letting them know retaliation was going to happen and to make sure not to go anywhere alone. It also didn't help that no one could find Danica and Hunter's brother in-law was shot dead in her apartment. He turned his gaze towards Lexie and Tristan before moving towards the kitchen. "I'll let you guys finish up.."

Tristan saw the look on his fiance's face and immediately felt a wash of guilt, his stomach twisting. He could take Tommy's wrath and Lexie's blame, but he'd never wanted to be the cause of that hurt in Tobias's eyes. "Baby, please…" he said, not even sure what he was begging him for in that moment. Tobias knew he was a soldier for Bryan, but maybe he'd just never realized the extent of what that meant. Tommy did though, which was why his eyes still flashed with anger.

"Family, right," Tommy huffed at Lexie's words before whirling towards Tristan again. "What about me? What about him?" He gestured to Tobias, blinking hard as tears stung his eyes. "We're your family, Tris."

Tristan felt a lump in his throat as he looked between the two most important people in his life. "Of course you are," he told Tommy. "This has all been about protecting you."

"Don't give me that shit!" Tommy yelled, his eyes red and glassy. But before Tristan could utter any kind of response to his brother, or comfort his fiance, the door flew open again.

He literally threw his hands in the air in frustration. "Not a good time, man!" he told Aidan.

Tommy looked at Aidan, and something dawned on him. "Oh my god," he said. "That's why Ashlyn left...You're all in danger, so Bryan sent them away. I'm a fucking idiot." He stormed passed them all, giving Aidan a dark look. "I need some fucking air." He went through the kitchen to the little metal landing that led to the fire escape ladder.

Tobias found himself moving away from Tristan even with the pleading. He didn't know what to say or how to even breathe at this point. How could he have been so fucking naive? He glided his tongue along his lower lip, moving his hand out of his pocket and moving it down his face. He only lifted his eyes to look at Tommy before turning his gaze to Lexie who looked like she wanted to be swallowed up and all he wanted to do was ask her how involved in this she was because if she was defending Tristan in this. "Why are you defending this?"

Lexie turned her gaze to Tobias, looking at him before shrugging her shoulders. She wasn't sure if her being in tangled up in this was something that should come up now and Tommy seemed to be only upset with Tristan. So, she stood there instead of uttering a word because she didn't know what to say about any of it. Her head turned when Aidan came strolling in about a head count and it made her want to kick him. She knew something was different about him since he was kidnapped but this was crazy. "Aidan.." she gave him a look before looking at Tommy again. "Tommy…" She exhaled, moving after him.

Tobias stood there. He had been a fucking idiot too. How could he have not pieced all of this together? He moved towards the chair, grabbing his jacket. "Me too." He said softly, moving to the front door. "And don't follow me." He turned his head to look at Tristan, opening the door and walking out. He slammed the front door and moved down the stairs to get to his car.

Aidan leaned against the kitchen counter, looking at Tommy when he walked by and gave him a dirty look. He tried to stop Lexie but she pulled her arm away from his touch and went out the window to get Tommy.

"Tommy, please. You're not an idiot." Lexie said as she crawled out the window and onto the fire escape.

Tristan spared a glance at Aidan that just said help me with his eyes. Now he realized why Aidan had been keeping Ash at a distance, why he had once said that he didn't know how much longer she'd put up with him. He decided not to go after his brother yet, but like hell was he going to listen to Tobias's plea to not follow him.

Tristan ran after him, letting the door swing shut loudly behind him. "Baby...baby!" he called, stopping Tobias before he could get in his car and drive away from him. "Please just talk to me. Please."

Tommy was gripping the railing tight, his hands hurting from it, remembering nights when Tris would convince them all to share a joint right there on that ledge. He swallowed hard, not turning to look at Lexie when she joined him. Instead he gazed up at the blue sky, blinking hard, hoping gravity wouldn't pull the tears from his eyes. "You know I left because of all this," he reminded her, thinking back over five years ago. "I always knew Tris would fall into it, even after what happened to mom, but you too?"

Tobias stopped when Tristan moved in front of him. He stared at his fiance, thinking about Liam being in a coma and the fact Ashlyn had been sent away because of the dangers rolling into Chicago. The fact Tristan didn't tell him any of this made him feel like a moron for thinking their relationship was different. He turned his gaze to look past Tristan, moving his hand to the door handle of his car to have something to hold onto. "What do you want me to say, Tristan?" He turned his gaze back to his fiance.

Lexie stood behind Tommy as she kept her hands to her side. She turned her head to look up at the sky too, the simple nights all of them would have at this apartment. It honestly was something that should have been happening throughout the years. Her eyes moved to the back of Tommy's head when he talked about why he left. He left shortly before her father died and her sister ran off. She exhaled as she thought about everything Bryan did for her while Tommy was gone. How she was one of the people to help stitch up all the wounded. If she had been honest, she had been apart of it since the moment Tommy left. "I'm aware." She said softly. "If we are being honest. I've been apart of it since the moment you left."

"I'm sorry," the apologies kept tumbling from from his mouth. "I told you you were way too good for me." It was supposed to be a running joke they had together, something Tris has been working on getting over. But now it seemed abundantly clear that he was just a thug after all, and Tobias deserved better. "I help Bryan out when he asks me to," he began, trying to explain. "I man the bar a lot, where everyone meets and stuff...Sometimes I beat people down who need a message sent. Lately I've just been Aidan's backup, or protection for Ash. I don't even know everything that's going on, but Bryan doesn't have me do much…" It didn't sound good, he knew. Tris took a step towards him, reaching up to touch Tobias's face. "When this is over, when Bryan takes care of whatever this threat is, I'm done. Okay? I'll get a real job, I won't go back to the bar, I...I'll take care of you."

Tobias gave him a look at the joke he was trying to make. That wasn't his problem. The job wasn't the problem, it was the fact Tristan never told him about any of it. He moved his hand up to Tristan's wrist to stop him from touching his cheek because he knew the second his fingers touched him that he would be a puddle because that was the effect Tristan had on him. He moved Tristan's hand back to his own body as he shook his head. "My problem isn't the fact you work for your shady family. I knew that the moment I came into your life and we became something." He said softly, dropping his hand from the handle of the door. "It's the fact you've kept me in the dark about everything. I didn't know how serious things were. I didn't know people in your family were getting hurt or dying. I didn't know your life was in danger, Tristan!" He raised his voice slightly which wasn't something he ever did especially with Tristan. "You left me in the fucking dark and that… that is not okay with me."

Tommy put his head in his hands as her words sunk in. He hadn't been able to cope with his mother's death, he and Tris were fighting, it had been so much easier to just run away and not look back. "Don't tell me that," he muttered, heartbroken. He finally turned to look at her, his eyes still red though no tears had fallen yet. "You two, and dad, are all I've got, okay? You're all I care about. And this shit, the family, I get it. But it got my mother killed. And I can't lose anyone else that I love."

Tristan felt about ready to crack, hearing Tobias's words and seeing the look on his face. "I thought...I thought I could keep you safer, the less you knew," his voice was rough. Tristan didn't have his brother's control, and tears were already running down his face. He dropped his hand to his side when Tobias made it clear not to touch him. "I'm sorry," he said again, swallowing with some effort. "But I'm a nobody, I'm not in any real danger, or Bryan would've sent me away too." It was something he had to believe, the reason why Bryan held back and gave him less and less to do. "If you wanna go, baby, I'll get us away from here, just say the word and we're gone."

Lexie turned her head to look away from everything, wanting to get themselves out of the conversation and forget it was even happening. She understood where he was coming from but this was all she knew since he left. Being around Tristan and the pub. She walked over to the railing to stand next to him, putting her hands on it as she leaned against it. She inhaled as she closed her eyes, tilting her head down at his words. She lifted her head to look at him, seeing the red eyes. She moved her hand to his face, putting the palm of her hand right up against his cheek. "I know." She said softly, looking at him. "But people who have been there for me and who took me in when my dad died. They are in danger, Tommy. We are all in this shit whether we are actively in it or not."

Tobias shook his head again, crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't care. If you would have ended up dead because of this shit… What am I supposed to do, Tris?" His voice cracked as he turned, feeling the sting behind his eyes. "Who would have explained any of it to me?" He asked softly before looking back at his fiance. "Do you think you could even do that? Would we even be safe?"

Tommy looked over at her, not wanting to believe how true her words were but feeling it deep inside. "Is it worth your life? To be there for them?" He asked, voice rasping. "Can't they handle themselves? I mean...We're all just kids compared to them, they've been doing this all their lives." He thought about Bryan, even Hunter, who seemed to have no choice but be part of this life. He tipped his face into her hand, taking comfort from it but mostly just feeling useless.

Tristan didn't know what to say. He knew the danger he signed up for years ago when he joined Bryan's ranks, but back them he never thought he'd be getting married, never thought he'd be someone to lose. "You're not gonna lose me, baby," he told him, reaching for his hands. He wished things could be easier, simpler for them. That they could be a regular couple whose only worry was their wedding venue. "I know, I'm a piece of shit," he muttered. "I'm so sorry, baby. I don't know, I don't know if we'd be any safer, but if you wanna go I'll go with you."

Lexie didn’t know what to say to that because she wasn’t sure. Besides Tommy and Tristan, she didn’t have anyone and when Tommy left all those years ago. All she had was Tristan who was deeply embedded in the whole thing. She didn’t really think she had anything to lose. She moved her fingers across his cheek, brushing her fingers down his cheekbone to his jaw as she put her fingers against his chin. “I don’t think my life is on the line. All we’ve been doing is helping out Aidan.” If she was being honest, it was honestly all her and Tristan had been doing lately and she was mostly doing it to keep an eye on Aidan, knowing Ashlyn would want her to more than anything. “Ever since he came back.” Her head turned over to the window, wondering if Aidan could hear her before looking back at Tommy. “Nothing is worth losing you so if you want me out.. I’m out.”

Tobias shook his head at his words. “You don’t know that.” His eyes lifted up towards him. “Did anyone know you were going to lose Liam?” He asked. He moved his hand over to him, taking his fiance’s hand and lacing their fingers together. “You are not a piece of shit. I just want you to include me in these things, Tris..” He moved closer to him, putting his other hand up onto Tristan’s face. “I’m okay if we stay but you have to tell me everything, Tris… Everything.”

Aidan popped his head out of the front door, turning to look over at Tristan. “I know you guys really have to talk this out but I came here for a reason. We really have to talk, Tris.” He gave him a look before shutting the front door again and moving to the couch. He had already poked his head out and told the other set of lovebirds he had to talk to them. He told Tommy he was more than okay to sit in on it but Aidan had to tell Tristan about Adam and about the fact Danica was missing and was probably already dead.

Tommy closed his eyes, shaking his head. "I don't know...I don't know what I want, I just…" Tommy took her hand off his cheek and kissed her palm. Then Aidan popped his head of the the window and Tommy sighed. "Okay, we're coming."

Out on the street, tears were streaming down Tristan's face, and he clutched Tobias's hands. "I know, it's all so fucked up and I don't even know why all this is happening…" He nodded when Tobias asked him to tell him everything from now on. "I promise, baby," he said earnestly, reaching up to rub the tears from his face. Then Aidan came outside to get him, and Tristan nodded at him. "Yeah, got it." Before they went back inside, Tristan turned back to Tobias and cupped his face to kiss him for a moment.

Lexie let her eyes close for a second when he moved her hand off his cheek to kiss it. She pressed her lips together, biting down on her lower lip as a few tears slipped from her eyes which was something that almost felt impossible lately. She opened her eyes and turned her head over towards Aidan. She had forgotten he even shown up but it felt like the only time she had seen him lately was when he had bad news. She exhaled as she moved towards Tommy again, moving up and pressing her lips against his. She pulled back and brushed her fingers against the strands of his hair on the back of his neck before moving away from him and climbing back in the window. She moved towards the living room and stood in front of the coffee table, folding her arms. “Alright, Walsh…”

Tobias didn’t know how to feel about any of it. All he knew was Tristan had a heart of gold and would do anything for his family even things his twin brother had been uncomfortable with. He knew the majority of what had happened to their mother but he didn’t think to tie it with the family business until Tommy had pointed it out, well, not in actual words but it was a feeling Tobias now had. He turned his head to look over at Aidan, furrowing his brow. It was also weird being around Aidan lately too but he knew the man had been acting the same way towards his best friend as well. He turned back towards Tristan and kissed the other man back, moving his hands to his waist to tug his fiance into him. He pulled back after a second and took his hand, tugging him towards the living room where everyone seemed to be standing now.

Aidan stood up from the couch when Tristan walked in, his hands moving into his pockets as he turned his gaze towards Lexie then towards Tristan. “Adam is dead.” He said, although he was more than sure neither one of them even knew about the hunt for the mole in the family because of what had happened to Liam. He knew Bryan was trying to keep certain people at arm's length, whether it was to keep them safe or keep them in the dark he wasn’t sure but he had gotten the go to come tell both of them everything that was going on.

Tristan let out a breath after Tobias kissed him, murmuring "I love you," against his lips, before turning back towards the apartment and walking back inside holding Tobias's hand. Once they all sat around in the living room again, Tristan sat next to Tobias on the couch, sandwiched between him and Tommy.

"Who's Adam?" Tommy asked, looking around for clarification.

Tristan looked up at Aidan, confused. "He's worked for Bryan since...well at least as long as I've been around...What happened?"

Lexie stood at the end of the couch right next to Tommy, her hand to his shoulder as she started to push her thumb gently into his shoulder blade to massage it. It was a nervous habit, her always having to do something with her hands when it felt like something bad was coming. Her eyes resting on Aidan, trying to figure out his words. It didn’t make sense for Adam to be dead, especially since he was one of the people in the inner circle. “Yeah, what Tris said..”

Tobias sat there, turning his head over to look at Tommy because he honestly had the same question but now this whole thing felt surreal. At least when he didn’t know how bad it really was, it was something he was oblivious to and now it was something he had to face head on.

Aidan looked down at his feet before looking back up at him. “He was working for the..” He turned his head to look away from them as he played with the usb stick in his pocket before pulling his hands out to get his fingers away from him. “The family that took Lucia and I.” He glided his tongue along his lower lip. “He’s the reason Liam is in a coma.”

"He was a mole?" Tristan blurted out. It seemed crazy, that someone so close to Liam's inner circle had been a traitor the whole time. He gripped Tobias's hand tighter, realizing that he was right, they might not really know the danger they were all in.

Tommy held his hand up as if he had a question in class. "Um, who the fuck are these people?" He asked, looking pointedly at Aidan. "People that kidnap us and kill us...and what, Bryan knows nothing?" He was feeling furious again but tried to reign it in, feeling some small comfort in Lexie's touch.

Lexie let out a shaky breath at the confession, thinking about all the nights she spent in the pub, cleaning up and alone with Adam. She turned her head away and let out another breath, pressing her fingers lightly but in a tense manner into his shoulder. “Adam was a mole?” She turned her head even though Tristan had asked the same question. “He has spent the last five years with us, Aidan.” She used her other hand to move it to her stomach. “How does something like that happen so easily?”

Aidan parted his lips to say something back at Lexie but Tommy held up his hand and it only brought confusion all over his face. “They have a hacker or something on their side because we haven’t been able to figure a single thing out.” He would have given up the usb stick but he knew what they were capable of and putting his girlfriend on the line was out of the question to him. He glided his tongue along his lower lip. “He wouldn’t give anything up but he had a girl and she spoke fluent Russian so we know the family is Russian.” He shook his head. “That’s not it though.” He exhaled. “Uh, Lucia went to check on Danica this morning. They found uh.. Mason Hudson shot dead.. Turns out Mason is Hunter’s brother in law.” He pressed his lips together. “And Danica is missing.”

Tobias stared at Aidan for a second before shaking his head a little. “Danica isn’t even involved in the family business.” He had only met the girl a few times but after Julian died, it was like she didn’t want to be near anyone in the family. “Why the hell are they picking up people who have nothing to do with this?” His head turned to look over at Tommy, the twisted feeling in his gut coming up again. His hand moved towards Tristan’s, giving it a squeeze the second he touched it.

Tristan let out a long breath in a hiss, letting the news all settle in. Someone they'd trusted, who'd been with them for five years, someone he'd been alone with and never thought a thing about it, had betrayed them. "Was Adam working for them the whole time or did they like, turn him against us?" He asked, before realizing that it probably didn't really matter. Tristan’s grip on Tobias's hand tightened, and dread twisted the pit of his stomach. Danica and Mason were outliers in this, not even really part of the family, and it made him terrified for Tobias and Tommy. If this Russian family just wanted to hurt them, it looked like they'd take anyone away from them.

"Danica is Julian's sister," he told Tommy, seeing the confusion on his face. "He was one of ours, pretty high up too, and he'd been with Lucia Winters…" he trailed off, biting his lip and thinking.

Tommy just shook his head, trying to piece it all together and feeling overwhelmed. "What do we do, Aidan?" He asked. "Would we be safer all together?" He looked over at Lexie, part of him wishing he could just take them all back to California with him.

Lexie was letting all the news settle in. She didn't realize how bad this whole thing was. She didn't realize anyone could be killed because of this other family and the fact that Adam had been turned because how could they let someone into the inner circle without knowing who they really were. Her head turned to look at Tristan, thinking about what had happened to Julian, of course, none of them knew the real truth of it all. Just that he was killed in front of Lucia.

Tobias stared in front of him, feeling Tristan grip his hand tighter. He felt kind of numb about all of it. How was he supposed to feel, knowing this was everything Tristan had been tangled up with and the fact it was possible for any of them to lose their lives. Was Danica still alive? He turned his gaze to Aidan.

Aidan exhaled. "He was working for them the whole time." He could feel the USB stick, burning a hole in his pocket along with the burner phone. He shook his head as he looked down at his feet, pulling the items out of his pocket and putting them on the table. He knelt down in front of the table and shook his head again, staring at the phone and the stick in front of him.

Lexie's eyes moved to the stuff on the table then up to Aidan. She took a step forward, her hand slipping from Tommy's shoulder. "What is that, Aidan?" She felt a twisting inside her stomach when Aidan lifted his head to look up at her. His eyes were screaming in defeat because this room was full of people he knew he could trust with his life and she could see the pain of not wanting to spill all of his secrets out.

"I don't know." He said after a second, clicking his fingers against the surface of the coffee table. His eyes moving to Tristan. "This. This is why I pushed everyone away, Tris." He gestured to the items on the table, knowing telling the four of them could lead to anything. "When I was in that room. After I watched the guard kill my father… after the man left me alone to get.." he cleared his throat. "He gave this to me on the last day I was there. He told me he was going to call this phone and he expected me to pick up.. do whatever the task was or he was going to kill Ashlyn." He just kept his eyes on Tristan. "Get out." His voice was soft before moving to Tommy. "Just pack up and leave. Because they hold the vulnerable emotions we all have and I don't know…" he turned his eyes back to Tristan. "I don't know what he wants from me but I can't be the reason Ash is dead."

Tristan leaned in, watching as Aidan took a few items out of his pockets and placed them on the table for everyone to see. He looked from the usb stick and the phone, up to meet his friend’s eyes, all the pieces sliding into place suddenly. “Shit…” he muttered, taking in a breath. “Look, it’s gonna be okay, Aid--”

“Okay?” Tommy cut in, clearly starting to panic. “He’s getting blackmailed to do, who knows what!” Tommy turned from his brother to look at Aidan. “What if they tell you to finish the job with Liam? What if, if they tell you to go after Bryan?”

“Tommy…” Tristan started, but didn’t know what to say, so the rest just came out as a sigh. “Ash was sent away, she’ll be safe wherever they are, right? Maybe you should...just tell Bryan the truth.” Tris looked from Aidan, over to his fiance next to him, letting the advice to just get out sink down into his bones. He didn’t want to leave Aidan, or Bryan, when they needed help the most. But he wasn’t willing to risk Tobias’s life. And it was clear that these people were okay going after anyone, anyone that would hurt the O’Shea family by losing. He let out a long breath and leaned back into the couch, pressing the heels of his hands hard into his eyes, trying to think. “Fuck fuck fuck…”

Aidan went to shake his head because none of it was okay. How could it be? He turned his gaze over to Tommy, knowing it was possible the man would have him do any of what Tommy was listing. He moved his head into his hands and actually wanted to start laughing because of the relief off his shoulders or how much this could get him in trouble. "These people are capable of anything, Tristan. They don't care who they kill as long as they get what they want." He shrugged his shoulders. "We are trusting the Italians to take care of her and Braeden. I'm not really sure how much lower we can get." He shook his head. "and telling Bryan about any of this. I don't know how much this family is listening in on."

Lexie took a few steps towards Aidan and moved down to kneel next to him. "You can't keep this in anymore, Aidan. It's obviously eating you alive." She moved her hand to his shoulder. She couldn't imagine what she would do in his shoes but if this family had threatened Tommy, Tristan, or Tobias.. She would probably feel the same way as him, burying it all in and pushing the three of them away. She turned her head over to look at Tris. "I know I would do the same thing as Aidan if they threatened Tommy.." her eyes moved to Tommy.

Tobias glanced at the stuff on the table before glancing around them. "Well, I know for a fact none of us are Russian." Bad joke to ease the tension. He thought about Olivia and her family, wondering if they could be targets but he highly doubted it. He turned his head over to Tristan, putting his arms around him and turning to look over him at Tommy. "Maybe Aidan's right. Maybe we should leave."

Tristan let out a huff of air through his nose, reaching for something Aidan said that he could reply to, when it all felt so terrifying. “Siding with the Italians is the least of our worries right now,” he pointed out. “The truce has been solid for a while, we’re all in this together--hell, Ash told me that Bryan and Lucia are practically inseparable. So she’ll be fine with them, Aid.” He sighed and shrugged, not sure if telling Bryan about it was the right thing or not. He leaned into Tobias’s side when his fiance’s arm came around him, his mind reeling with thoughts.

Tommy worried his bottom lip with his teeth, a nervous habit. He didn’t know what to say to Lexie, his heart pounding and his gut twisting. The thought that she could do something he’d never thought she was capable of, if he was threatened...he didn’t want to think about that. He looked over at Tobias, seeing the distress his brother was also in, wondering about just leaving. “I still know people in LA,” he offered. “I could get us settled somewhere, but…” He shook his head, it all sounded so crazy. His thoughts raced ahead, imagining it--he’d easily get a job at his old firm again, make enough money to support them, find them a place, Tristan would protect them. “Tris…” he turned towards his twin, his voice cracking a little, blinking against prickling in his eyes again. “What about your wedding?”

Tristan looked at Tobias, his heart sinking at the idea of putting it all off any longer. “We’ll figure it out.”

There was a silence in Aidan, knowing Tristan had been right when he talked about how inseparable Lucia and Bryan had been. Honestly, the male was waiting for the other shoe to drop, a part of him couldn’t stop thinking about the fact Lucia had probably been in the room next to his and it was more than possible she was given the same things as him or was told to get close to Bryan in order to take them all down but.. He had to admit he was more paranoid than usual. Especially when it came to being close with the people in this room and his own girlfriend. He inhaled as he lifted his head up towards Lexie, shaking his head. “You don’t know the things I’ve done.” He said quietly, thinking about the man he brutally killed a few months ago.

Lexie turned her head to look at Aidan, there was a part of her who wanted to pull him into her arms and hold him. She wanted him to know any one of them would have caved to the pressures to protect the ones they loved. She turned her head over towards the love of her life, seeing him start to chew on his lower lip which made her stand up from where she was and move over to him, putting herself on his lap and wrapping her arms around his neck. She honestly would never be sure what she would have done in Aidan’s place but all she knew was all those long nights alone with Adam was starting to hit her all at once. She put her head on his shoulder, brushing her nose against the crook of his neck.

Tobias turned his head over towards Aidan. Honestly, a part of him knew how Tristan felt when he came home with bruises all over his face. His fiance would have taken matters into his own hands if Tobias had let him. He moved his hand towards Tristan, giving his hand a little squeeze as he turned his head over to face him. “Let’s go get married now.” He said softly. “We go get married.. Pack up our stuff and leave this crap behind. LA sounds like a good place for all of us to start over and stay out of all this until it’s over.” He knew it would be hard to let Liv know about what he was doing but he couldn’t live without Tristan and if anything happened to him in this town he would never forgive himself.

Tristan pursed his lips at Aidan’s words. He’d been suspecting that Aidan had been into something all those nights he’d asked Tristan to cover for him if anyone asked. He’d done his best to look out for him like Bryan asked, to have his back and protect him, but it was clear now why Aidan had been pushing him away. “Bryan wouldn’t blame you,” he pointed out. “Whatever you did, was to keep Ash safe.”

Tommy didn’t know what else to say, but when Lexie slipped into his lap he just put his arms around her and bent his head down. All he ever wanted was a quiet, normal life, but his last name always prevented that from being the case. That was why he had tried to run away from it all. The thought of running again turned his stomach, but if the people he cared about came with him this time, it would be different. “We need to take Dad with us, if we go,” he said, turning to Tris. “We can’t leave him here alone.” Colin may not have ties to the family business anymore, but he was still Desmond O’Shea’s brother, and if this other family was going after people close to Bryan, he might be a target. Getting their dad to leave the store behind would be tough, but he had to believe that they’d all come back, hopefully sooner than later.

Tristan couldn’t help the little gasp he let out when Tobias suggested they just get married. “Babe...you said you didn’t want to elope,” he said, but that was before things were so dire. “We’ve been planning this for a year…” Then he shook his head, a smile blooming on his face. “But, yeah, yes. We have all the important stuff, right? We can do it today if you want.” Grinning, he grabbed Tobias’s face and kissed him hard but briefly. Then he turned to everyone else in the room. “Okay, all hands on deck, we’re throwing a wedding, people!” he said excitedly, before pointing at Aidan, who he suspected might try to escape. “Not so fast, Walsh. You’re on official bodyguard duty.”

Aidan didn't murder the man who killed his father to protect Ashlyn but he wasn't going to say what he did. He was more than sure Tristan had somewhat of an idea of what he had done. "Yeah I don't know." He knew how much Bryan had been

pissed about the Adam thing he wasn't sure how Bryan was going to say about the information he had in his pocket the whole time.

Lexie let herself relax against Tommy, pressing her nose against the crook of his neck. Her fingers moved up towards the back of his neck, playing with the strands of his hair. She knew taking his father would be important so she lifted her head from his shoulder and kissed the side of his head. "I'll go wherever you go." She muttered against his ear. "We will convince you father."

Tobias let a little smile come along his lips. "Yeah, well… Life tends to be a little crazy.. might as well join it." He laughed as he nodded his head. "We get married today and run away to Cali." He kissed Tristan back, moving his hand to the back of his head to keep their lips together. He exhaled when Tristan pulled away to face everyone in the room. His fingers moved to his lips and laughed a little, standing up. "Let's do this, people."

Aidan was planning on getting up and leaving until Tristan pointed him out about staying to be the official bodyguard. "Alright. I have to check in with Bryan but we can have a wedding."

Despite how much was still uncertain and frightening about everything going on around them, Tristan couldn’t help but be filled with a sudden giddy excitement. It didn’t really matter how he married Tobias in the end, as long as they were married. They could always have a big party sometime in the future, but for now it was just about them. “Okay, no one else is invited except who’s in this room,” he said, standing up next to Tobias. “And Dad.”

Tommy gave Lexie a little squeeze, glad to hear her words that she would go with him no matter what. He’d been worried she might want to stay here and go down with the ship like Bryan, so escaping to LA with her was a relief. He laughed a little at how excited Tristan got at the idea of throwing their wedding that day, and he shook his head in amusement. “Okay, what do you need?”

Tristan opened his phone to the list of wedding things that he’d been keeping and started rattling it all off. “We have the tuxes, just need to pick them up,” he said, glancing up at Tommy and Lexie. “Best Man, you can wear that,” he said, gesturing to the suit Tommy had worn to work that day anyway. “Lex, run a comb through your hair or something,” he teased.

“Where do you think we should do this thing?” he asked Aidan, trusting his judgement on what would be safest. “We got the marriage license, we just need a Justice of the Peace or something to sign it.”

Eyes going wide, he turned to Tobias. “Shit, rings, we need rings!”

Lexie slid off Tommy's lap when he had asked what Tristan was going to need because all she wanted was to be around Tommy at this moment and maybe find some time to make this up to him. She tugged her shirt down and moved her hands up to her hair, ruffling her fingers through it. "I could always make my hair worse." She flashed a grin at Tristan before winking at Tommy. Her head turning to the door as she thought of where she would go pick up the tuxes.

Tobias knew Travis and Zooey were probably busy and he didn't want to explain to them why they had to move up the wedding. "Calm down." He laughed softly as he moved to their bedroom real quick and came out with a box. He opened the box, flashing two rings. "I picked them up last week." He smiled up at Tristan.

Aidan sent Bryan a text message about how he was with the gang, shoving the phone into his pocket he lifted his gaze up towards Tristan. "We can just do it. Someone get ordained online."

Tommy laughed at Lexie’s quip to his brother, feeling a little lighter in the wake of this distraction. “We can get the tuxes,” he offered, watching as they all started to scramble to get things done. He leaned up to see where Tobias was running off to until he came back with the rings.

Tristan beamed, mentally checking one more thing off his list. He leaned in to see the simple white-gold bands then looked back up at his fiance. “They’re perfect,” he told him. Then he turned towards Aidan when he suggested that one of them could just get ordained online. “No, it takes 24 hours,” he said. “We’re gonna have to go to city hall…” He looked back at Tobias. “You know anybody?”

"Tommy and I are going to get the tux. You guys just text us and tell us where to meet you." Lexie wanted to get the tuxes before the store closed because she knew how important it was to get the wedding done that night so they could all rush home to pack up. She reached out and took Tommy's hand, tugging him towards the door.

Tobias let a smile come along his lips as he nodded his head. "Yeah. I was going to show you later tonight." He glanced up to look at Tristan before turning his head to Aidan. He parted his lips as he turned his head to look at Tristan. "I don't know anyone who could marry us."

Aidan watched both of them. "We could go to City Hall. I highly doubt the family plans on coming to take down a wedding. Right now their main focus is getting back at Bryan and Lucia. And they are using Danica to do it." He shrugged. He knew how horrid it all sounded but he didn't exactly see it being that horrible.

It was crazy to think that Tommy had left work to run home and punch Tristan in the face, and now they were running around to get his brother married. But he guessed it was about par for the course with how crazy their lives had gotten. He took Lexie’s hand and let her drag him out of the apartment. “This is nuts,” he said with a laugh as they made their way to the tailor. Once they were in the back of a cab on their way, he looked over at her. “You really want to come to LA?”

Tristan waved away Aidan’s words, not wanting to think about Danica right now. “Happy thoughts, man. Happy vibes,” he teased. “Okay, we’ll go to City Hall and beg someone to perform a quick ceremony,” he went on, going over to Tobias’s desk where they had the folder with the marriage license. “Do we need anything else?”

Lexie laughed as she nodded her head. "It is so crazy." She couldn't believe the two of them were going to get married tonight. It felt surreal. She got into the back of the cab and turned her head over towards him. She slid closer to him and moved onto his lap, ignoring the mutters of the taxi driver begging her to sit down in her own seat. "Yeah, I do." She leaned down and kissed him, putting her hands on each side of his neck.

Tobias made a face at Aidan with his words, not believing he went all negative on them. He held onto the rings and shook his head. "We can have Aidan film it with his phone so we can show everyone who missed it later." He said as he looked over at Aidan who was standing there and waiting for them to go.

Tommy blushed bright red when she climbed into his lap and the cab driver grumbled at them, but all he could do was meet her lips and kiss her back. LA was going to be totally different with his little family in tow, he couldn’t help but wonder what his old friends there would think, but they honestly weren’t that important. His hands settled on her hips until the cab pulled to a stop and the driver cleared his throat loudly at them to get out. “Um, thank you sir--” Tommy stammered, handing him the money and a large tip. Tristan had texted them on the way, and he looked at his phone as they walked into the tailor shop. “We’re meeting them at City Hall...I hope they find someone to do it today.”

Tristan smiled and nodded at the idea of Aidan filming the little ceremony for everyone who was missing it. “C’mon,” he said with a grin, gesturing for Aidan to follow them as they hurried out the door with the marriage license and the rings. Tristan chattered in the car as Aidan drove them all the way to City Hall, reminding Tobias of all the crazy ideas they’d found on Pinterest and talked about for their wedding day. “But this is better than all that,” he insisted, reaching over for Tobias’s hand.

Lexie couldn’t help but grin at the fact he was turning bright red. When the cab came to a stop and the cab driver cleared his throat to get them out of the cab, a chuckle left her lips. She got out of the car off of Tommy’s lap, adjusting her dress to pull it back down so it wasn’t too high up. She waved to the cab driver and chuckled once again as she turned to look at the front of the store, moving behind the cab and onto the curb as she turned to look over at him. “Have some faith in love, Tommy.” She moved over to the front door of the store and grabbed the handle, pulling it open.

Aidan shook his head as he moved out of the apartment with them, getting into the driver’s side of the car. He started up the car and started driving them to City Hall as Tobias turned his head over to look at Tristan. “I think it’s better to.” He leaned in and kissed Tristan, putting his hand on the back of his head.

“Alright, alright,” Tommy agreed with a chuckle as he followed her into the shop. When someone came up to help them, Tommy quickly told the man that the order was either under O’Shea or Warren and that they were in quite a hurry. The worker went to the back to look, and Tommy glanced over at Lexie with a hopeful look. “Um, sorry for before,” he said. “I overreacted and--Tris makes me crazy sometimes.”

Tristan smiled against Tobias’s lips, kissing him before nuzzling his nose against him for a second. “So...LA, huh?” he asked, making sure Tobias was okay with the idea of packing up and leaving. Tristan wasn’t leaving much behind, he was taking everyone he cared about with him and his job wasn’t even a real job. Tobias was the one who was putting things on hold. Tristan thought of something then, and leaned up between the seats to talk to Aidan. “Hey, you gonna be okay here by yourself?” he asked, not liking the idea of Aidan staying behind but knowing he would.

Lexie walked into the shop and stood there, waiting for them to grab the tuxes. She leaned against the counter, turning herself to look over at him as she lifted her gaze up to his face. She shook her head at his words. “Don’t apologize for having emotions, Tommy.” She moved closer to him, moving her finger through his belt loop and tugging him towards him. “You know.. It was actually kind of sexy.”

Tobias let a smile come along his lips against the kiss as he pulled back to look at him. “Yeah, LA.” He nodded his head. “I think it would be good for us. Call it a honeymoon. I’m sure Liv wouldn’t mind if I took some time away from here. I’m glad she is no where near any of this because her and her family are finally now on track.. I couldn’t imagine tearing it down.” Aidan turned his head over towards him when he pulled up to the City Hall, he nodded his head as he looked at him. “Yeah, you don’t need to take care of me anymore.”

Tommy blushed crimson again, looking down at her between their height difference as she tugged him against him. “Stop,” he muttered through a quiet, nervous laughter. He leaned down to kiss her briefly, then the worker came back out with two garment bags on hangers and he backed away. “Let’s take a look before we go,” he said, opening one of the bags to see the white tux and smiling. “I still can’t believe my brother’s getting married.”

Tristan nodded, smiling as he laced his fingers through Tobias. “She’d give you a good recommendation, too,” he pointed out. “I feel bad, you and Tommy have worked so hard to build your careers.” He trailed off with a shrug, hoping everything would work itself out in the end. It would be easy for Tris, all he was was a bartender. As they parked, Tristan punched Aidan in the shoulder. “You’re always gonna need me, asshole, so shut up,” he said. “I just mean...you better watch your back, man, or Ash will kill me.”

They all headed inside City Hall, and Tris looked around trying to figure out where to go. They got in the line for inquiries and he bounced on the balls of his feet as they had to wait. When they finally got up to the front of the line, Tristan flashed a smile. “Hi, we need a Justice of the Peace to marry us, as soon as possible, it’s an emergency.”

The lady raised her eyebrow. “A marriage emergency?” she asked in a bored voice, looking at them.

“Yes,” Tristan insisted. “We already have the marriage license, we just need someone to perform it.”

The woman just shook her head. “You need to make an appointment,” she said, tapping her pen against a sign next to her window about appointments.

Tristan sighed dramatically. “Please, there’s gotta be someone free--”

The lady tapped the sign again, hard, with each word she spoke, “Make. An. Appointment.”

Lexie let a smile come along her lips when she noticed how red he was getting. "Stop?" She kissed him back as she put her arms around his waist. "I love you," she muttered before turning her head to look at the bags of tuxes. She opened one of the tuxes to make sure it had Tobias written on the tag. "I got Tobias's tux." She turned her head over towards him. "I know I'm still feeling surreal about the whole thing."

Tobias shrugged his shoulders. "I don't mind it. I've liked my career so far." It was true. He enjoyed being the campaign manager for Liv and the fact she won felt even better. He moved to get out of the car, standing there to wait for Aidan and Tristan.

Aidan turned to look back at him. "Yeah, I will be." He would. He would never look at what the USB stick had on it and he just hoped the phone would never ring. He got out of the car and went up the stairs with them towards the window. He stood behind the boys, staring straight at the lady behind the window.

Tobias moved his gaze to the sign, exhaling. "Please." He pleaded with Tristan.

Aidan tapped on their shoulders, trying to get them both to part and when they did he moved up to the window, leaning against it slightly. "Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are?"

Tommy, still blushing and flustered, felt lit up by her words. He muttered, for the first time in his life, “I love you too,” then pressed their lips together. It’s brief and quite innocent, because they’re in public and he can be a bit of a prude, and the worker is coming back towards them, so Tommy just decides to focus on the suits in their hands while his ears burn. “Well, uh, they look great, sir--” he stammered to the employee, before Lexie grabs his hand to lead him out. “Thank you!”

Tristan was about to lose it on the City Hall lady, when Aidan brushed them aside and he stepped over to let his best friend up to the window, his jaw dropping a little. He’d been expecting Aidan to bang his fists on the table and get all intimidating, Tristan has seen him do it before. Now, he was watching Aidan Walsh seduce a woman about 20 years older than him.

“Oh, well, this is a new hairstyle,” the cougar-lady cooed, fluffing her hair a little. Her hand came back down to settle on top of Aidan’s with a coy smile.

Lexie let a smile come along her lips when he said the words back; she couldn’t believe how simple she said it but she had to let him know how she felt especially after everything that had not even an hour ago. She moved back from him, holding the tux in her hand as she lifted her gaze up to the worker, giving him a small smile. “Yeah, they are great.” She took him out of the store and glanced around. “We should have made the cab driver stay.”

Tobias turned his head to look over at Aidan, arching a brow at him because it honestly shocked him as well. Usually, Aidan did everything he could to be intimidating and now he was standing there and flirting with the woman at the window.

“I can tell. It really works for you.” Aidan muttered, turning his hand so his hand could be on top. He moved his fingertips lightly against her wrist as he leaned in a little closer. “Look.. I know it’s not professional or it breaks the rules but my two friends back here.. We just found out one of them is sick and all they want is a happy and healthy life together before it gets worse.. You think you could break the rules this one time? I’d really…” He brought her hand up towards his lips, giving it a kiss. “Appreciate it.” He looked up at her from under his eyelashes.

Tristan had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing as he watched Aidan work his magic on the lady, catching Tobias’s eye and nearly losing it. He couldn’t even make some comment or pretend to be dying, because he knew he’d ruin it, so he back up a step and put his hand over his mouth.

“Oh, alright,” the lady said, batting her eyelashes at him and swooning when he kissed her hand. “In the name of love, I suppose. Third floor, he’s on lunch but I’ll tell him you’re coming.”

Tristan pumped a fist in the air and mouthed yes! to Tobias, just as Tommy and Lexie burst through the doors behind them. “Third floor, come on!” he called to them, rushing everyone towards the elevator. Tommy followed them, holding the elevator door open for Aidan. “What…is going on?”

“Thanks sweetcheeks.” Aidan winked at her before moving away from the counter, walking after both of the boys.

Tobias honestly couldn’t believe Aidan had been able to do it, his hand nudging into Tristan’s shoulder as he finally was able to laugh after they moved a few feet away from the window. “Holy crap, that was amazing.” He turned his head when he saw Lexie and Tommy rushing in. He moved into the elevator with Aidan right behind him.

Lexie turned her head to look over at them, panting as she finally got into the elevator. She glanced around at the boys before looking over at Tommy. “Yeah, what he said.”

“Aidan just seduced an old lady for us!” Tristan burst out once the elevator doors shut. He doubled over in laughter for a few moments, having to actually wipe tears from the corners of his eyes and catch his breath. Tommy just shook his head at the three of them, puzzled but amused, until the doors opened on floor three.

They followed the signs for the Justice of the Peace office, and everyone came to a halt outside. Tristan hitched a thumb at the restroom across the hall. “We gotta get changed,” he said, holding his hand out for his tux. “Tommy, you’re on ring duty. Everyone else, uh, just tell the dude we’re coming.”

Lexie turned her head to look over at Tristan who bent over and laughing as hard as possible, it actually brought a smile to her face because it had been a while since Tristan laughed like that and the fact Aidan did something that wasn’t dark and mysterious for the first time in months.

Tobias took his tux from Lex, giving her a one arm hug before moving to another bathroom so Tristan wouldn’t see him in it. Aidan gave Tristan a nod, moving to go find the guy who was going to marry them.

“C’mon, you gotta help me tie my tie,” Tristan said to his brother, who nodded as he stuck the rings in his pocket. They just locked the door behind them, not bothering with stalls since the twins had changed in front of each other a million times in their lives. Tris handed Tommy bits of his clothes as he got into the white tux, then stood up to straighten it all, the tie loose around his neck.

“Come here,” Tommy said, chuckling as he balled up his old clothes. Tristan never learned how to tie a tie, because he always had Tommy to do it. Tommy avoided his gaze during the intimate moment of tying his brother’s tie, clearing his throat lightly. “You nervous?” he asked him.

“Fuck yes,” Tristan said with a laugh. “I’m getting married in like two minutes.”

Tommy shook his head, laughing too. “You guys are great together,” he told him, finishing his tie and then clapping him on the shoulder. “I’m really happy for you.”

Tristan beamed, but didn’t say anything, just stepped over to look at himself in the mirror. He’d never worn a tux before. “I forgot shoes,” he said with a sigh, tipping his regular Converse to the side to look at them with the tux.

“Yeah, but it looks good,” Tommy assured him. “It looks like you.”

Tristan let out a long breath. “Okay, I’m ready.”

Tobias stood in the bathroom, looking at himself as he tried to tie his tie. Lexie knocked on the door and pushed it open. “Hey you,” she said to him as she walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind her, moving over to him as she held her hand out to him. “Let me see.” Tobias exhaled as he held out the tie to her, feeling his hands start to shake.

“Someone is nervous,” she teased him as she put the tie on him, tying the tie around his neck as she moved her hands towards the jacket, fixing it as she gave him a little pat. “Yeah, I’m nervous… I never imagined how fast this day would come and all the wedding planning and the family drama..”

“It’s going to be fine. You guys are perfect together.” She moved her hands to his as she gave his hands a squeeze before moving behind him to look into the mirror. “Are you ready?”

“More than ready..” Tobias said with a smile on his face. “The only sad thing is my best friends aren’t here.”

Lexie put her hands on his arms and inhaled, moving her gaze up to look at him. “I am no Travis but I’ll stand by you.”

Letting out a breath, Tristan opened up the door with Tommy right behind him, holding the garment bag with Tristan’s old clothes rolled up inside over his arm. He let Tristan go before him, waiting for the two of them to see each other. Tristan felt a little silly, knowing they picked out the matching white tuxes together so they both knew what they looked like. But it was different, seeing his fiance in it right before they tied the knot. He stopped in his tracks when Tobias came out of the other bathroom, his breath caught in his throat as it all hit home at once.

“Holy shit,” he muttered, “we’re getting married.” He went towards Tobias, reaching to take both his hands and look him over with a smile. “Baby, you look…” he exhaled again, chuckling nervously, “amazing.”

He looked up as the office door in front of them opened to Aidan standing with the Justice of the Peace that they’d stolen from his lunch break. Tristan turned, offering Tobias his arm. “You ready?”

Tobias exhaled as he walked out of the bathroom, his eyes landing on Tristan almost instantly. His lips parted slightly as he sharply inhaled at the sight of his fiance. He chuckled a little as he moved to meet his man. His hands moving to his as he looked down at them. Honestly, he was so nervous he wasn’t even sure what to do with himself.

“Holy shit, we’re getting married.” He repeated as he lifted his eyes up towards his face. “I could say the same thing about you.”

“More than I’ve ever been ready for something in my life.”

“Me too,” Tristan said, a smile growing on his face and his stomach still fluttering with nerves. They walked in, arms linked, towards the officiant who was waiting for them.

“Keep it short and sweet, I take it?” the guy asked, smiling at them as they approached.

Tristan nodded. “We can’t wait another second.” He turned to face Tobias, holding both of his hands and looking into his face as the officiant started a brief spiel, using their full names on the marriage license.

“Would you like to say any words of your own?” he asked them, and Tristan took a short breath. They hadn’t written their vows yet--or at least, he hadn’t, he wasn’t entirely sure if Tobias did his on his own--but he decided to just speak from the heart.

“From the moment we met, I knew you were gonna be special to me,” he began. “And somehow, I managed to convince you to keep me around.” He chuckled a bit. “You stood by me through the ups and downs, the good and the bad. You taught me how to be patient--well, more patient. And you taught me what it feels like to be loved for who I am. I love you more than I can put into words, Tobias, and I’m gonna spend every day the rest of our lives showing you.”

Tobias let himself walk into the room with Tristan on his arm, his head turning to look over at him as his hand gave his arm a squeeze, the nerves radiating through his entire body and the urge to vomit was almost overbearing. HIs body turned to face his future husband as he nodded his head to what the man who was marrying them said.

HIs lips parted to say no because he was completely unprepared to speak from his heart at that moment but the second the man in front of him took a deep breath, his lips shut and his eyes were glued on the man he loved with all of his heart.

HIs eyes were completely betraying him at this moment, the tears stinging in them as he cleared his throat with a little chuckle as his thumb brushed along the back of Tristan’s hand.

“Tris,” he said softly as he glanced down to look at their hands. “You came into my life at a time where I honestly didn’t think I was worthy of more than I had, I was a small town boy in a large city, trying to push his way into the political world and I got a little lost along the way, making some mistakes.. But the one mistake I didn’t make was taking you home that night.” He cleared his throat, glancing at the male who was standing in front of them to marry them. “You dealt with a melt down of mine a few weeks into our relationships and still fought to keep me. I never..” He cleared his throat to keep himself from getting a dry throat because of the tears in his eyes. “I never thought someone could love me the way you do and I’ll never let that go. I’m going to spend the rest of my life, making I’m worthy of the love you give me.”

Tristan’s heart was pounding, in excitement, nerves, and disbelief that this all came together so fast. His hands were trembling a little, and he gripped Tobias’s hands tighter, his eyes fixed on his fiance’s face. Tobias’s words hit home, and he felt everything they’d been through together wash over him in a wave of love. He nodded, his eyes teary, when Tobias wondered aloud if he was worthy of being loved like this.

The officiant brought their attention back when he asked if they had rings to exchange. From behind them, Tommy cleared his throat, tears flowing openly down his face as he came forward to give them both the rings.

“You big sap,” Tristan muttered, but his heart was soaring.

“Shut up and get married already,” Tommy said back teasingly, with a sniffle.

They each held one of the rings, waiting for their cues.

The officiant addressed Tristan first. “Do you, Tristan, take Tobias to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

Smiling wide, Tristan slipped the ring onto Tobias’s left hand. “I do.”

Tobias couldn’t believe the day had come, the two of them were finally getting married and everything was going to be right in the world. He kept his eyes on Tristan, doing his best to keep the tears from falling from his eyes but not succeeding whats so ever. He moved his thumb along the back of Tristan’s hand.

His eyes lifted up to look at Tommy, a smile coming along his lips as he turned his head back to look at Lexie who was crying as well.

“I love you guys.” She muttered as she lifted her eyes up towards him, giving him the ring.

“And do you, Tobias, take Tristan to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

Tobias let a smile come along his lips as he slipped the ring onto Tristan’s left hand. “I do. I really fucking do.”

Tristan didn't even wait for the officiant to make the official pronouncement, he just rushed in and cupped Tobias's face in both hands and kissed him. It felt like something so simple, and yet bigger than all of them. He brushed the tears from his husband's cheeks and smiled against his lips. When they parted he let out a breath and tipped their foreheads together. Behind them everyone was cheering for them, and Tristan had never felt happier in his life. "I love you so fucking much," he murmured before a giddy laugh escaped him.

Tobias didn’t even have time to let a grin come across his face before Tristan’s lips were on his. His hand moved towards the back of his head, threading his fingers through his husband’s hair, his lips moving back against his. When Tristan parted their lips, his eyes flickered up to look at him as she moved both of his hands up towards the back of Tristan’s head. “I love you so fucking much.” He muttered. He pulled his head away from Tristan, glancing around at them. “Who is ready to get the fuck out of here?”

#muse; tobias warren #c: tristan o'shea #muse; lexie montgomery #c: tommy o'shea #muse; aidan walsh #panswaywardmuses #not expecting anyone to read this lmaooo

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