[Groom's Suite] [Wedding Venue]
Jack stood in front of the full-length mirror wearing a perfectly tailored black suit, white dress shirt, and dark tie. From the outside, he looked calm enough.
Then he checked his watch again.
Woody Harrelson noticed from the armchair near the window, though he didn't say anything immediately. Matthew Perry sat on the couch beside him, adjusting one of his cufflinks while Jack straightened his tie for what had to be the fourth time.
Jack stepped away from the mirror and walked toward the window. The groom's suite overlooked part of the estate gardens, and from there, he could see workers moving around the reception hall and ceremony lawn. Chairs had already been arranged beside the lake, flowers surrounded the arch, and staff members were making final adjustments before guests started arriving.
Everything seemed fine.
Jack watched for another few seconds before turning around.
Woody finally spoke. "You've checked outside about five times since we got here."
"I'm making sure everything's going smoothly."
"You hired people for that," Matthew said while lowering his hands from his cufflinks. "Quite a few people, actually."
Jack walked toward the table and picked up his glass of water. "I know that."
Woody glanced toward Matthew before looking back at Jack. "You nervous?"
Jack took a drink and shook his head. "I'm fine."
Matthew smiled slightly. "That wasn't exactly convincing."
Jack lowered the glass and leaned against the table. "I'm getting married in a couple of hours. I think I'm allowed to be a little restless."
"Absolutely," Woody said. "I'd be more concerned if you were sitting there completely relaxed."
Jack looked between them. "Good. Then we agree that there's nothing unusual happening."
Matthew gave him a knowing look but decided against arguing.
For a few seconds, the room became quiet. Jack glanced toward the window again, though this time he stayed beside the table.
Woody watched him before speaking. "Honestly, kid, I think you're doing better than most guys would be doing in your situation."
Jack raised an eyebrow. "I'm already worried about where this conversation is going."
Woody smiled faintly. "I'm serious. Think about where you were a few months ago. Nineteen years old, successful career, new house, beautiful girlfriend, whole world pretty much sitting there waiting for you."
Matthew gestured toward Jack while continuing the thought. "Then your girlfriend tells you she's pregnant, which is usually around the point where a guy your age discovers an urgent lifelong calling somewhere three states away."
Jack gave them a flat look. "This conversation is becoming incredibly uplifting."
Woody ignored the interruption while leaning forward slightly. "Seriously, plenty of nineteen-year-old guys would've run for the hills so fast they'd leave smoke behind them. Suddenly you're talking diapers, doctors, sleepless nights, college funds, car seats, and having another human being depending on you for basically everything."
Matthew leaned back against the couch. "And then you learn you're having twins."
Jack rubbed his jaw while staring at both men. "I'm very aware of that, thank you."
Woody laughed. "That's exactly what I'm saying. You found out Haley was pregnant, stood in front of both families, pulled out a ring you'd already bought months earlier, and asked her to marry you."
Matthew nodded thoughtfully. "That takes guts, questionable cardiovascular judgment, and an impressive tolerance for public humiliation if she'd said no."
Jack stared at him. "She wasn't going to say no."
Matthew held up both hands defensively. "Obviously she didn't, which is excellent because a rejected proposal in front of both families would've been the worst thirty seconds of your life."
"Now here you are, getting married before most guys your age have figured out how to separate whites from colors without turning every sock pink," Woody said, gesturing toward Jack's suit.
Jack studied him for a moment. "Are you two trying to comfort me or stress me?"
Matthew considered the question while Woody glanced toward him as though they genuinely needed to discuss their strategy. He finally shrugged with a thoughtful expression. "I think we accidentally started with comfort and took a hard turn somewhere around run for the hills."
That earned a quiet laugh from Jack.
Woody smiled as well. "The point is that nobody expects you to have everything figured out because you're getting married today. You're still going to wake up tomorrow as the same guy."
Jack looked toward the window again. "Except married."
"Except married," Woody agreed.
Jack rubbed his thumb slowly along the edge of the glass in his hand.
"The weird thing is, marrying Haley isn't what I'm nervous about."
Matthew's expression shifted as he watched him. "Then what is?"
Jack was quiet for several seconds before answering.
"Everything after today."
Woody didn't interrupt.
Jack looked toward the ceremony lawn through the window. "Tomorrow morning, she's my wife. Then a few months from now, those babies are here, and suddenly I'm responsible for two kids who depend on me for everything."
Matthew nodded slowly.
"I know I can provide for them," Jack continued. "Money isn't the issue. We've got the house, doctors, everything they could possibly need. That part's easy."
He paused before looking down at the glass in his hand.
"It's the rest of it. Being a good husband. Being a good father. Making sure Haley doesn't feel like she has to deal with everything by herself. Making sure the kids actually grow up knowing me instead of hearing that Dad was busy working all the time."
Woody eventually stood and walked toward Jack.
"You're thinking about those things before the kids are even born," he said. "That's already a decent place to start."
Jack looked at him.
Woody placed a hand against his shoulder. "You're going to screw things up sometimes. Haley will too. Every parent does. You apologize, you learn something, and you try again the next morning."
Matthew stood from the couch and straightened his jacket. "And if the biggest problem you've got today is worrying whether you'll be there enough for your family, I'd say your priorities are pointed in the right direction."
Jack released a slow breath and nodded.
Some of the tension that had been sitting between his shoulders since waking that morning finally began to loosen.
Woody gave his shoulder a small squeeze before stepping away. "Besides, you've still got a few months before the twins arrive. Today you only need to handle one major life event."
Jack smiled. "That's supposed to make things easier?"
"A little."
Matthew glanced toward the clock on the wall. "And before you start worrying about the next twenty years again, maybe focus on remembering where you're supposed to stand when the ceremony begins."
"That part I know."
Woody nodded approvingly. "Then you're doing fine."
Jack turned toward the mirror once more. His tie was straight. His jacket sat perfectly across his shoulders. The ring was still safely inside his pocket, exactly where it had been every other time he checked.
He reached inside anyway and felt the small box beneath his fingers.
Matthew noticed but didn't say anything.
Jack withdrew his hand and looked toward the window.
Somewhere on the other side of the estate, Haley was getting ready. In a couple of hours, she'd walk toward him beneath the floral arch beside the lake.
By the end of the afternoon, Haley Dunphy would be his wife.
Jack let that thought settle without trying to race beyond it toward tomorrow, the twins, or everything that would come afterward.
Woody was right about one thing.
He didn't need to figure out the next fifty years this morning.
He only needed to be ready when Haley reached the end of that aisle.
--
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