Forever and always

Alex forgot to breathe as Max mouthed, "Forever and always."

He remembered all those times they had been together. All those times they had fought together, the times they had survived death, all that hiding to even kiss, because relationships among members were prohibited. Alex's eyes welled up as he remembered all the happy moments they had been able to steal together among the experiences of near death.

He looked towards Max and found tears leaking from his ocean blue eyes as well. They seemed like water overflowing from an ocean.

Max finally let out a smile and wiped his tears laughing through them, as he extended his hand and Alina placed Alex's hand in his and kissed him on the cheek.

She then went and stood to one side a little behind the priest.

As Max helped him on the chapel, Alex looked around the church for the first time.

There were literally a handful of people on the benches. There was Steve, his childhood friend and Steve's mother. There was another woman who had been best friends with his and Alina's mother.

The priest, after performing some rituals, asked both of them to speak their vows.

Max smiled and took Alex's hands. He spoke, tears again welling up in his eyes, "Alex, for so long, I had hated what I was. Everyone around me told me that there was something fundamentally wrong with me because I liked boys. At one point in time, even I began to believe in them and completely gave up on myself. I wondered if I would ever find my love, my soulmate.

Then, seven years ago, I turned towards a profession to numb my pain. But instead, I found everything I had been looking for my whole life. You were the one person who accepted me for what I was. Loved me for who I was. And I, am eternally grateful to you for that. I cannot offer you much in return for rescuing me from myself, but I can promise you this. My love, my soulmate.

I will continue to carry my love for you in my heart and fulfill all our dreams, forever and always."

Alina wiped away her tears as she laughed. This Hadum really was too good with words. No wonder he had stolen her brother's heart.

Alex also wiped away his tears and spoke, his voice on the verge of cracking, "Max, I won't say that I wasn't happy until I met you or felt a piece of me missing. That won't be true. Because I had the most loving family anyone could have. I had a caring mother and a beautiful sister.

But still, I felt I was meant for great things. It was in search of this thing that I came to find you. I always thought that I had my life all planned out. Like life was a book, it would work out exactly the way you wanted it to. But my life never did. And the most beautiful of these deviations from my plan is you.

I now realize that maybe my life isn't meant for what I thought it was. Maybe everything doesn't go according to our plans.

But that's all right. Because I now realize that the most beautiful things in life are unexpected.

Max Hadum, I am glad you came barreling into my life. And I will be grateful to you and love you, forever and always."