Chapter Text
"Let me get this straight, you want me… And Kaz, to jointly plan your wedding?" Inej questioned, surprise lining her features as she poured the milk into her and Jesper's lattes. There was a pause, and Jesper met her eyes again with a half smile.
"Look, I know how it sounds. Hear me out, though? You're my best friend, Kaz is Wylan's best friend, therefore my future husband's dearest - other than me of course. You two know us better than anyone. How cool would it be for you to help us, rather than some stuffy Kerch wedding planner?"
Inej sighed, Jesper reached across the counter for his latte and took a sip."Cmon Inej, imagine how much fun it will be!” As he sat back down, Jesper added another point to his growing case which momentarily took Inej back to her day. In a courtroom, this would be something along the lines of ‘Kaz and Inej- wedding planner proposal vs Inej’s sanity’. “Oh, and technically we’re supposed to be asking you both at the engagement party, so keep this between us for now.”
"Jes.. I love you, and of course I'll help with this. But doing it jointly? With a guy I really don't know?" Or really like for that matter. She wrapped her hands around her own mug.
Jesper smiled at her thankfully. “Kaz is always busy with work stuff anyway, Inej. Likely he won’t spend too much time helping,” he replied.
“Hopefully Jes, hopefully.” Inej sent up a silent prayer to the saints, hoping that with Jesper’s unwavering support and a bit of luck to keep Kaz at bay she would have enough patience to plan it all.
“Wow, two social calls in one week, Kaz. This must be some kind of record,” Jordie teased as he knocked on the door ahead of Kaz.
“Perhaps I’ll make it three, and Dirtyhands could make a showing at your wife’s brunch club?” Kaz replied, injecting just a little of the Barrel accent into his voice.
Jordie feigned shock and laughed. “I’ll have you know, little brother, that Els would be delighted to have you there. Imagine the amazing gossip she would get!” Kaz rolled his eyes at that. That would be great for my reputation-- ‘Gang boss seen fraternising with mercher wives at Els Schenck’s brunch club’ splashed across the front page of the Ketterdam tabloids.
“Well, I suppose your wife’s always been a rebel, she married you, didn’t she?”
Jordie laughed again. “She did, and she’s the best thing besides your business acumen that has ever happened to me.”
Kaz couldn’t quite help the faint expression of disgust that reached his features. “You’re almost as bad as Wylan and Jesper, brother.”
“Oh, c’mon Kaz, I’m not even being that romantic. Not that you’d know. Your idea of romance is eight stacks of kruge and a busy night at the Crow Club,” Jordie replied, rolling his eyes.
Kaz scoffed. “I’ll have you know the Crow Club is in fact quite a happy mistress-” He was cut off by the door opening.
“Sorry for taking so long. Been trying out a new recipe and it went a bit… well… off the wall,” Wylan apologised. Wylan’s white baking apron was covered in some sort of gelatinous substance in a rainbow of colours.
Wylan opened the door wider, and the brothers went in. After divesting themselves of their outer clothes, they followed Wylan in. During his early years of knowing Wylan, the kitchen had always been a daunting industrial space, all grey and functional as it suited the former master. However, after the house officially became Wylan’s he had had the place stripped and redone, the only metallic tones left were those of actual cooking devices. If there was one word Kaz would use to describe it now, it would be warm. The counters and cabinets were of a warm oak. with copper brass finishings everywhere. The renovations had also made it smaller, cosier. It meant that the high counter breakfast table was of a tighter fit than previously, but Kaz knew it had brought Wylan a sense of comfort. Currently, the table was covered in various utensils with various measuring cups and bowls scattered around.
Jordie looked down at the table and then back Wylan. “Does it at least taste good?” Wylan’s face flushed slightly as he turned his gaze towards the back wall. Kaz took the small lapse in conversation to sit at his favourite chair before his brother did.
“Yes, the small piece that is not strewn over my kitchen did; however when I said it exploded off the wall, I meant it literally”, Wylan replied, pointing Jordie towards a spectacular mess towards the back of the kitchen where the modern (Kaz personally disputed it being called art) piece Wylan had commissioned for the wall had more texture than the last time he had seen it.
“Oh. Perhaps Alys might be able to assist?” Jordie suggested, and Wylan shrugged and turned away from them, opening one of the higher cabinets and pulling out a bottle of expensive Ravkan kvas and three glasses.
As Kaz heard the sound of Wylan closing up the cabinets in the background Wylan added, “You both might want to be sitting down for this,” He was fighting joy in his voice, holding onto a thread of patience not to be eager not to break the happy news Kaz wagered he had to tell them.
Kaz raised his eyebrows. “It’s a bit early for you, Wy.” Wylan nodded, a smile threatening to break his face in two. As he poured their drinks, Kaz raised an eye towards Jordie and then he broke into a knowing half-smirk as Jordie perched on the seat next to him.
Wylan put the bottle down and sat down opposite them. “Jesper proposed and I said yes,” Wylan said happily, raising his glass in a toast. Both Kaz and Jordie did their best to fake surprise, though they had already known in advance. Their other social call this week had been only a few days before when an excited and terrified Jesper had told them both of his plans.
“Congratulations Wylan,” Jordie said, raising his glass as well. “Welcome to the adventure of a lifetime.”
“Here’s to the fantastic tax breaks Jesper is now bringing to the table,” Kaz improvised as they clinked their glasses together. Wylan laughed at his words, Jordie scoffed.
“So Wy, how did he do it? Need to know if he one-upped mine or not,” Jordie asked, and Wylan was all too happy to recount one of the happiest moments of his life. With Jesper’s flair for the dramatic, Kaz mused, I imagine it wasn't too hard for him to have the best proposal event in the family. He didn’t mention that to Jordie though, letting Wylan tell the story instead.
“So, I was surprised. I hadn’t thought that we would get engaged so soon, but sometimes when it’s right, it’s right you know? It was our first anniversary, and he proposed on the day. And very close to where we first met! The level of organisation it took must have been incredible. It isn’t the kind of thing Jesper is naturally good at, but he did it just to pull out all the stops for me.” Wylan began and the three of them retired to the living room for Wylan to recount it in full.
It was early evening, and Wylan had been finishing up some design plans for a new business acquisition of Jordie’s. It had been a long day, but a productive one. Jesper had come striding in with a customary end of day tea and chocolate for him, but he had seemed even more excited and jittery than usual.
Wylan started to open the drawer under his desk and pull out a wrapped present when Jesper quickly raised a hand to stop him. “No, no. No exchanging anniversary gifts yet. We’ll do that tonight, Wy, I’m taking you out,” Jesper announced, winking at him in a way that tended to short-circuit Wylan’s brain.
Wylan stopped and shut the drawer the gift was in. He took the warm mug from Jesper carefully before pulling him in by his collar for a quick kiss. Jesper always tasted a little of the smoke from his gunpowder, chased by the cherry Pepsi that he was partial to. More than that, every kiss seemed to make the imposing Van Eck mansion a little less imposing and more like home.
Jesper laughed and hummed happily at being gently pulled in by his boyfriend. The angle was awkward; Wylan’s low chair meant Jesper was nearly doubled over with his height. But they couldn’t care less.
“I assume you like that idea, then?” Jesper asked, pulling slightly away between kisses so that he could form the words.
“Yes,” Wylan replied simply and pressed a quick peck to his forehead before opening his arms. Jesper wrapped his arms under Wylan’s and gently pulled him up and hugged him happily in return. After one final squeeze, Jesper's eyes narrowed in focus.
“Right, we gotta get ready. We need to leave around seven-ish.” Jesper stated.
Wylan laughed. “Alright, alright, going, Mr. Fahey.”
As he left the office to head for a shower, he heard the echo of Jesper shouting, “Don’t call me Mr. Fahey, Wy! That’s my dad!”
After a quick shower, Wylan quickly dressed, keeping a close eye on the time. He had chosen a classic cut suit as a base, tailored with an elegance that even Kaz would approve of. He paired a white shirt with the deep midnight blue jacket and trousers. Wylan then looked through his collection of ties and picked out a light pink bowtie. It was an ensemble that he had only recently become comfortable with wearing.
Growing up, his closet had been filled with a drab array of greys, blacks and occasionally a splash of the Van Eck green. Mainly this had been directed by Mercher customs, but even more so when your father had one of the dullest colour palettes, even amongst the Merchant Council. But after meeting and dating Jesper, who was a breath of fresh air in both style and personality, Wylan, with Jesper’s assistance, had grown the confidence to experiment with more colour. As it turns out, he liked it and it suited him.
Quickly, Wylan passed by the office to grab his anniversary gift for Jesper and a matching small satchel to put it in. As he headed down the stairs, he could hear Jesper pacing around the parlour downstairs. Hmm, must be quite the plans we have tonight . He headed into the parlour where the footsteps were originating from, Jesper turned around to look at him, his mouth opened as if to say something before he stopped, gazing at what Wylan was wearing.
Wylan couldn’t help a satisfied smirk at that reaction. “Speechless, Jesper Llewyln Fahey? I didn’t think it was possible.” Jesper smiled back. He looked as sharp as ever, wearing almost the inverse to Wylan– a bright pink suit with various blue accents throughout it. And, of course, his rings, so many glints of silver and gold that only Jesper could have managed to pull it off. Tonight Jesper had swapped out his usual silver hoops for a pair of miniature rose gold pistols, finished off with a pointed blue-toned ear cuff on his right ear. He had, though, stuck with his usual gold bar just above his right eyebrow.
“You don’t look so bad yourself,” Wylan said, reaching out to loop his hands through Jesper’s, then pausing. Jesper had some sort of silk garment in his hands that he hadn’t noticed prior. He raised an eyebrow.
“It’s a surprise,” Jesper explained, his voice soft. “Trust me?”
“Always,” Wylan replied. It was the one thing in this life he could always count on. He moved to stand in front of Jesper, who tied the blindfold over his eyes. It was smooth and fairly comfortable to wear, other than the fact that he could only see darkness broken by a bit of light that leaked through the bottom.
“Take my hand. We’re driving there, but I’ll help you get in and out of the car,” Jesper said, leading Wylan through to the garage. Once they were in the car and driving, Wylan’s thoughts began to drift to where they might be going. He could hear the heavy traffic of downtown Ketterdam, then the quieter winds as they drove away from the hustle and bustle. Wait, I wonder if we’re heading to the Joost Harbour Club?
Eventually, the car came to a stop as Jesper pulled into a parking spot. He opened the door for Wylan once again and guided him out. It was a cool Spring night, but there was a light breeze in the air.
“Alright, you can take the blindfold off.” He could hear the eagerness and glee in Jesper’s voice as he did as he was told.
His hunch had been correct; they were indeed at the Harbour Club. The large terrace, usually filled with various tables of patrons, was empty. Instead, there were candles everywhere. They were scattered on top of various furniture; the bar, various chairs and tables of differing heights. Seen altogether from a distance, they looked like a collection of fireflies. In the middle of the sea of light was one of the most romantically set tables that Wylan had ever seen.
“Oh, it’s lovely. Thank you, and where we had our first date as well,” Wylan said, tears threatening to spill over with the weight of his emotions. What did I do to deserve this wonderful man? To regain some control over himself, he immediately pulled Jesper into an embrace, holding him as close as he could.
Jesper was an anchor, keeping Wylan tethered to the magic in the moment. A few moments passed, and Wylan felt the Jesper loosen the embrace as he manoeuvred them into a half embrace, Jesper snaking one arm around Wylan’s waist. Jesper guided them down further into the terrace and towards the set dinner table. Instead of the bistro-style usual dining setup of a club table, there was a heavy pristine white table cloth draped over the table, crisply folded out at the edges and topped with a heavy set candelabra in the centre with taller candles than those elsewhere in the room. To the left of the table, there was a small vase with a bouquet of purple roses, which were a constant wave of lilac awash with the light of the candles.
“Happy anniversary, Wylan. Let’s get some food,” Jesper beamed, holding out the chair for Wylan to sit and then he manoeuvred underneath the table, coming back up with a champagne bucket and Jesper wrangled the wine bottle from the ice. Gently, he placed the bucket down beside them and slightly began pouring them both wine. Wylan shuffled slightly, reaching within his suit jacket to grab the satchel from earlier, but almost stopped himself from doing so.
“I- Jes. You know you’re the most mesmerising person I’ve ever met? Right?” Jesper began to cut in but Wylan held up a hand.“You are. Thank you for doing this. And thank you for just being you. I love you more than anything. Happy anniversary,” Wylan said softly, handing Jesper the wrapped box. Jesper smiled, took the box in hand, ripped the wrapping paper gently and opened the gift. His eyes widened in shock and awe.
The most difficult part of the gift had been carefully moving out Jesper’s medals one by one so that he wouldn’t immediately realise they had disappeared for a few days. They were almost as precious to Jesper as his various Olympic pistols. With some sleuthing and help from Inej, however, Wylan had managed to sneak them out three days ago. The final result was an ode to Jesper’s success, a case of medals displaying the triumphs he had achieved. The box was inlaid with the mother of pearl.
“Wy– wow. thank you,” Jesper replied, surprised. Jesper set the gift on the table and gently pulled out one medal with one hand, and reached over to grab Wylan’s hand with the other. Wylan was weighted under the pull of his gaze as he placed the medal on the centre of his chest, and brought Wylan’s hand on top of it. Wylan could feel the gentle bite of the heavy, cool metal digging into his palm gently.
“There’s nothing quite like the thrill of standing on top of a podium Wy, but even that doesn’t come close to this. Happy anniversary,” Jesper stated quietly and put his head forward to hold it against Wylan’s and they stayed like that, breathing in each other’s breaths for a long time. After a while, they sat back down to eat their candlelit table. After a moment or two, Jesper took out his phone and rapidly typed before putting his phone back in his jacket pocket before giving Wylan a toothy grin. “The food should arrive in a few minutes.”
From around the back of Wylan’s peripheral vision, he could hear the faint sound of a trolley being pushed towards them, and slow if precise footsteps behind them. After a few moments, a food trolley was approaching them and pushing it was the one person Wylan did not expect to see tonight.
“Joost?!” Wylan asked surprisingly, darting his head towards Joost and the food and then to Jesper. Wylan only knew him really from his younger days when his father had attempted more clearly to involve him in the Van Eck business. He was now in his early thirties if Wylan were to guess, all long-limbed and wispy in a way that adulthood had never quite moved from him. The one change Wylan could note was the faint showing off a subtle moustache on his upper lip. How on earth is the owner of this place helping to serve us. Before Wylan could ask any further however, Joost himself cut in as he made his way to the table and placed the trolley beside them. “Don’t Wylan. Please for the sake of my sanity, do not ask,” Joost pleaded. Wylan could see Jesper fighting a smirk across the table.
Joost bent down towards the tray and pulled out two bowls with covered trays on them, and put them respectively in front of Wylan and Jesper, following that he pulled out the required cutlery. After that was done, Joost sighed loudly before looking towards Jesper. “The rest of the food is in the tray, are we now even Jesper? Can I leave?”
Jesper’s smile was now nearly splitting his face in two before Wylan could see him smoothing out his features. “Thank you Joost, yes we’re even. You can go,” Jesper replied and Wylan could see the relief forming on Joost’s features. Joost nodded to Wylan in acknowledgement and turned to walk away, as the steps echoed further away though Joost added in farewell. “Goodnight, happy anniversary to both of you. Jesper please use the keys in the trolley to lock up when you’re done.” Wylan then heard the sound of a car door being slammed.
“What the hell was that, Jes?” Wylan asked, looking over their dessert and meeting Jesper’s eyes. Jesper looked a bit sheepish.
“Joost owed me a favour. So I called it in, but I did contribute somewhat to cover the cost of losing a night's worth of paying guests,” Jesper replied as he began to lift the lid off his covered bowl. The candles had burned out slightly, meaning that Wylan couldn’t quite place the dish from sight alone across the table. The aromas began to reach from Jesper’s uncovered bowl, however carrying hints of various vegetables and pork. “Snert?” Wylan asked Jesper, curious.
“Only one way to find out.” Jesper held his gaze as he removed the cover from his bowl, and his guess was confirmed to be correct. Wylan smiled heartily, and Jesper reacted with a half-smirk.
“Why Snert?” Wylan asked between sips of the soup. He could almost hear the gears turning in Jesper’s head quickly. Jesper paused briefly, staring down more at the floor than at him. It was only for a moment, but it was something Wylan realised Jesper tended to when he was about to discuss something from his past. Wylan waited patiently, as he would ever for Jesper.
“When I first came to Ketterdam, I was doing everything and anything I could to make the most of living in a big city like I never had before. It was amazing, mostly. Well, apart from the gambling- but. I was never alone, I was always with the crowd. But I missed Da badly, and I missed home. And I wasn’t sure when Inej was going to be coming to Ketterdam. So I wasn’t alone, but I was still lonely and homesick more often than I ever would have admitted at the time. There was one good friend at the time, the one who probably saw what I couldn’t and just took me aside to check I was alright. She introduced me to Snert, though I think my first reaction was questioning the use of so many peas but anyways, we’d always go for it. Although it wasn’t my Da’s cooking or anything, it made me feel closer to home somehow,” Jesper explained, looking back up to Wylan.
Sometimes I forget how strong Jesper really is and how far he has come and I have to try not to ever forget that. Wylan grabbed Jesper’s hand, and squeezed it gently as he met his gaze.
“Thanks for sharing that, it means a lot. I know that it isn’t the easiest thing to do.” Wylan felt the gentle squeeze of Jesper’s hand back in response, and Jesper’s face lit back up into his usual, easy going smile as he went back to his food. Wylan felt his own face widening into a smile also, continuing to eat the delicious soup.
The rest of the dinner sped by in a blur, more and more delicious dishes that Joost had either prepared himself or his best chefs had. Wylan felt thoroughly wined and dined, in the most wonderful way possible. The lighting had faded, only some of the candles still holding which cast them in the blue wash of the Ketterdam night. Wylan assumed that they were heading home, but as soon as he was thinking that he could see Jesper’s half smirk.
“Let’s have a moonlight walk, merchling.” Jesper stood and held out his hand once again, and Wylan laughed.
“Like we’re in a Midsummer’s Night Dream?” but he stood up all the same. Jesper would make a great Oberon. Wylan took his hand and they began to walk up one of the paths, the shadows flickering in the background.
“A nice night, hmm?” Jesper asked as they began to head away from the club and terraces and down the surrounding garden paths. “Romantic.” They walked in silence for a while, heading deeper into the gardens. They began to slow as Jesper led Wylan down off the main path and into a grove of trees.
“Where are we going?” Wylan asked.
“One more surprise Wylan.” Jesper said, without turning around as he led him further inside the grove. There was further artificial lighting inside, set in a large circle around the clearing. Someone had clearly spent time setting this up, and he had a guess who it had been. As they went further in, he could see something set up on a display board of some sort.
They approached the boards and he could see various pictures of various chemical elements. The periodic table and chemicals had, over the years, became a second language to him. He looked back at Jesper, and Jesper pointed to an old school voice recorder that had been placed near the board.
“There are instructions. It won’t take you long to figure it out, but I think you’ll like it.”
What on earth is this? Wylan grabbed the recorder and pressed play, he heard a neutral voice begin to speak.
“Welcome, Wylan Van Eck to Jesper’s final anniversary surprise. In front of you, as you can see, are pictures of various chemical compounds. Your goal is to figure out the message.” Wylan laughed.
“Alright, let’s see if I can get this or not.” There were six images of six different elements, as he began recognizing each one by one and recalling their chemical abbreviations on the periodic table. They were tungsten, iodine, lutenium, americanum, rhenium and yttrium. He then began thinking aloud, “W- for tungsten, I for Iodine, Lutenium- Li? No it’s lu. Americanum is Am, but there’s an arrow so… so it’s reversed? Ma-, then Rhenium which is Re- and finally more simply yttrium- y. ‘W-I-Lu Ma-re-y’.” It took a second for Wylan to string the message together. He froze for a second in shock after he’d said it out loud, then turned around to find Jesper smiling nervously.
Wylan dropped the recorder, barely registering the soft drop on the grass as Jesper slowly descended onto one knee. “Turns out, arranging the periodic table into ‘Will you marry me, Wylan’ was much harder than I thought. But anyway. Wylan Van Eck, chemist and music extraordinaire. The kindest and best person I know. Will you do me the biggest honour? Will you marry me?” Jesper opened the small green box in his hands.
He did this, set this up all for this– all for us. Not just for our anniversary, but to begin the rest of our lives. Wylan felt his cheeks flush, and he beamed. His initial surprise was ebbing, replaced by radiant joy. He slowly knelt to a level with Jesper and took his face in his hands. “Of course, Jesper. Yes. A million times, Yes.” Jesper sighed with relief, taking the ring out of the box and holding it out so Wylan could look at it more closely.
“It’s a tungsten band, with two small strips of platinum around the top. So, durable, but with a bit of flash.” Jesper explained, sounding a little shy.
“I love it. Tungsten is one of my favourite elements, “ Wylan replied with a soft smile. Jesper slid the band on Wylan’s left ring finger.
The ring looked like it belonged there.
“I knew that. That’s one of the reasons I had it made in tungsten.” Jesper said, looking down.
“How did you find out?” Wylan asked curiously because it was a topic that had never come up between them.
“Kaz told me. He pays closer attention than most people realise, it seems, to what’s really important to people, you know?” Jesper answered.
“He does,” Wylan agreed. He just doesn’t want the world to know how much he actually cares beneath all of that character and bravado.
Wylan leaned in to touch his forehead to his boyfriend’s - no, his fiance’s .
Jesper laughed. “Perhaps one day we’ll tell our grandchildren about this night. Imagine how cool we’ll sound.”
Wylan laughed at that. “ I think it’s more likely they will think we are the nerdiest people alive, proposing with the periodic table,” Wylan pointed out.
“Fair, I will have a medal on hand to counteract that then.”
Wylan nodded, happiness radiating. A mix of love and contentment spread through him. His nerves and his neurons broadcasted that this was good, this was right. “I can’t wait.”
“Wow,” was all that Jordie could reply with after Wylan finished the story. Both Kaz and Wylan laughed at that, and Wylan clapped Jordie on the back gently.
“I’ve been one upped.” Jordie stated, staring dumbfounded at his own empty glass. Kaz hummed in agreement, reaching over to grab the bottle of kvas to examine it.
“This is new, Wylan, where did you get it from? It’s good. Went down quite smoothly considering none of us here are native Ravkans,” Kaz commented, still reading the label on the back.
“Oh yeah, it was a present from Inej. A celebration present,” Wylan replied. Kaz nodded, pouring them each another drink. Jordie finally shook himself out of his daze, and picked up back again on the thread of conversation. “Amazing proposal Wylan, very happy for you. Inej? That’s Jesper’s friend, right?” Jordie queried.
“More like family, to be honest, but yes. She and Jesper are out celebrating themselves as we speak. That reminds me, I’ve got something important to ask you two– different questions, but they both relate to the wedding.”
Kaz caught Jordie’s eyes, raising an eyebrow, but Jordie replied for both of them. “Go for it. Anything, Wylan. Always.”
Wylan smiled at that, folding his hands in his lap and he first turned to Jordie.
“Well- uh me and Jesper haven’t decided quite on certain logistics yet, but considering my actual father is, well… you know. I’d like my mother and well- if you would like, you to walk me down the aisle.”
Jordie beamed at that, and he stood up to hug Wylan tightly. The tears were beginning to fall as they embraced each other as Kaz smiled. Look how happy and soppy we’ve gotten, he thought, but it’s damn well what we deserve, especially Wylan.
“Thanks, Jordie,” Wylan replied softly. “That means a lot,”
After a few moments, the two of them broke apart and poured another shot of kvas. Wylan turned to Kaz. “Don’t think you’re getting out of happy, teary hugs Brekker,” Wylan warned with a laugh, and Kaz smirked.
“Kaz Brekker, my best friend in all of the world, will you do me the honour of being my best man?” Kaz chuckled a little at the wedding-esque proposal but nodded, opening up his arms for Wylan to quickly hug. There had been a time when he wouldn’t and couldn’t have initiated anything close to this, but over the last few years, Kaz had learned, with help, that it was good to open up to others.
“And I want to ask another favour from you, though this one is more optional. If you wanted to, would you be interested in helping plan the wedding?”
Kaz was surprised and a little perplexed. “Me?”
“You manage a gang, three shell corporations, and several charity foundations at once, Kaz, and you know me better than anyone. Who else?”
Kaz considered it fora moment. “On my own?” He saw Wylan’s eyes drop slightly. The next part will be something I don’t like, then.
“Uh, it would be with Inej. A partnership, as such. We figured that would reduce the load and represent both our interests,” Wylan replied, sounding very businesslike.
“Interesting choice Wy, interesting choice,” Kaz sighed, summoning every bit of the nonchalance he had learned after nearly a decade in various board rooms. The things I do for my family.
He could feel Jordie’s eyes burning into the back of his head. “Will I at least get the lead on it?” Wylan knew him well enough to realise that would be one of the more important aspects of him running a job like this. Christ Kaz, don’t call this a job. It’s your best friend’s wedding, not everything is a heist or a corporate takeover . Wylan shuffled slightly in his seat and Kaz could almost hear the wheels turning as he decided how to frame his answer.
“I mean, you have more event experience anyway. So based on that, you’ll end up naturally taking the lead on a fair bit of it anyway,” Wylan said evasively. Damn, he’s becoming too much like me. Kaz smiled slightly to himself at that and simply nodded.
Jordie had finished stumbling about pouring them all another shot in the background before adding, “I’ve seen you negotiate with managing directors thrice your age when you were barely growing whiskers, Kaz. Surely you can manage this, or hell, maybe you could even charm her?” Jordie asked half-seriously, and Kaz felt his jaw harden when Wylan laughed.
“Kaz? Charming? To a lawyer, yes. Perhaps to the tables at the Crow Club or some poor, unsuspecting tourist from Fjerda, sure. Not to Inej Ghafa,” Wylan stated firmly, before realising the tactlessness of his comment. “Uh, I mean-”
Kaz put a hand up briefly to stop him, before putting on a half-smirk. “Perhaps not a lawyer, but I remember many of your coworkers finding me quite… what was the word?” Kaz paused momentarily for dramatic effect, something he had learned from watching various magic shows on the Lid. “Enthralling,” Kaz finished off, and Wylan closed his eyes and groaned audibly in frustration.
”As in Wylan’s actual co-workers?” Jordie asked. Kaz beamed.
“Yes, he showed up early to lunch once and I don’t know, some of the interns took a shine to him and it just spread from there, “ Wylan sighed, exasperated Jordie handed them both another drink in response.
“Alright, enough debating the depth of Kaz’s charm. We can do that any other time. This is a night to celebrate Wylan finding unending happiness, love, and success. Let’s drink to that,” Jordie said, in what Kaz had dubbed his ‘stern older brother voice’ when they’d been younger.
They all raised their glasses again and clinked them together in celebration. But Kaz couldn’t help but feel a slight prickle on his neck, a feeling like there was something more to come. It was similar to the feeling he’d get when chasing down a potential investment or planning a heist. However this time, he wasn’t able to pinpoint why.
Inej felt lightheaded and light on her feet as she and Jesper reached the front door of the Van Eck residence, leaning on each other to stay upright.
“Jes, I’m going to need you to take a little bit more of your own weight while I get the door open,” Inej whispered gently but firmly, manhandling her best friend onto the wall near the door. Jesper nodded briefly, grunting slightly as he half collapsed onto the wall.
Inej snickered, unlocking the door with Jesper’s keys which he had handed over to her earlier that night for safekeeping. Jesper had been right on that front, Inej reflected as she put the heavy, old fashioned key in the lock. It stuck slightly, but with some effort, the lock turned and the door swung open. She pocketed Jesper’s keys again before jolting him back to awareness with a poke.
“Alright alright, I’m coming!” Jesper groaned, but he got up on his own volition and walked through the door. Inej shut the door behind them as they made their way into the empty foyer. Jesper had made it halfway through before turning his eyes towards her and walking back, swaying a bit but thankfully staying upright.
“Thank you ‘Nej, for celebrating properly with me. Even at our old age,” Jesper slurred, beaming down at her and holding his arms out slightly, their long-established signal for a soul-crushing hug. Saints, we’re not even 30, though I suppose we’ve been friends for a long time at this point. Inej wrapped her arms around Jesper’s torso, squeezing tightly as he hugged her back and rested his chin on top of her head.
“Always, Jes. Plus you deserve to celebrate, “ Inej said, her voice slightly muffled by most of her face being hugged into Jesper’s chest. Jesper hummed happily at that, but she then felt a slight tremor go through his body. Uh oh.
Jesper released his arms quickly and dropped a quick kiss to the top of Inej’s head before rushing towards one of the downstairs bathrooms. “Love you ‘Nej, pick any room. I need to puke some of those tequila shots outta me.” Jesper’s voice faded as the door to the bathroom closed. She shuddered. Those tequila shots had been the final coffin nail in ending their night.
But it had been a fun night, something they hadn’t done in a long time. Between work and other commitments, Inej hadn’t let her hair down in a long time. But with Jesper, she trusted herself to let go enough to just have fun, and Jesper trusted her enough, in turn, to make sure they didn’t steer close to any of the various casinos along the staves. He’s been sober nearly four years, but that doesn’t mean it gets any easier. Especially when you add alcohol into the mix.
Despite Jesper rushing off to deal with the consequences of their celebration, she would take her time before picking one of the various spare bedrooms scattered about the house. Inej gathered some of the pillows up on a nearby sofa and settled herself in. She would wait until her best friend emerged again, just to make sure he was alright. In the meantime, Inej let herself relish the giddy, happy feeling in her heart and bones, a kind of awe at how much life had changed and how far they both had come.