The 50's
“Darling? Are you in here?”
“Oooh uh, just a sec hun!”
A beat and a small noise of affirmation from outside the kitchen door, mixed with a soft humming that reminded Brooke for all the world of the opening theme to I Love Lucy.
Tying on an apron around her waist, she stole a look around the room- admiring just how well the finishing touches she’d placed on it had come out. The entire place felt homey, warm, safe… and just what she needed.
With an awed smile, she noted the monochrome tone everything around her had taken on.
The next thing to catch her attention was the outfit.
Circle dress with a shawl neckline, wrist length gloves combined with sheer nude stockings with something she could just tell was a garter holding it up- kitten heels adorning her feet.
She observed her typically honey blonde, voluminous locks done up into pin up curls and with a wave of her hand added a thick rhinestone hair comb, smiling brightly.
Lashes thick with mascara, dark lipstick- all a bit more sophisticated then she’d have gone for typically but if she didn’t feel absolutely beautiful in that moment- well… she’d have been lying. Even that little scar just below her left eye had… disappeared.
Everything was absolutely perfect.
She turned at light footsteps coming up behind her, feeling a warm pressure pressing against her eyes as a pair of sturdy hands covered them. She laughed lightly and widened her eyes innocently as she rotated to wrap her arms around Jake’s waist.
“You look…”
He smiled sheepishly as he searched for the words, and Brooke felt her heart melt at the sight of him. Reaching a hand up to cup his cheek, she leaned in and kissed him quickly before pulling away, almost business like.
“I don’t suppose there’s any way of convincing you to take the day off?”
With a regretful frown Jake shook his head no, glancing out the window where a few of the neighbours had gathered around the town square (why they chose a spot so close to the hustle and bustle of the small town Brooke wasn’t sure) , seeming like they were discussing… something. Probably matters anyone else would have found boring but Jake was a special case.
“I could try…”
Complete with a look that could only be described as puppy dog eyes.
“Go on dear. Let me know if they’re saying anything interesting”
Doubtful, but Jake’s bright expression as he kissed her lightly before running out the door could almost make her believe for a moment that they were about to announce the most fascinating thing in the world.
One of the many, many things she loved about him. His love for the small, simple things in life.
Humming softly to herself (god that song really was catchy wasn’t it…), she set about doing the dishes, which quickly turned into a game of how quickly she could get the objects around the kitchen flying about and into their proper place.
Spoiler alert: it all went extremely fast, though she didn’t need much time to contemplate what her next move was. The fridge was near empty, and so she steeled herself for a quick walk into town. In and out- just grab some groceries and leave.
Truth be told, she loved socializing. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was just the least bit off. As she locked up the house and headed for the store, she admired the view of town. It was quiet, idyllic and absolutely perfect.
The grocery store itself was a bit more hustle and bustle, and Brooke quickly filled a basket with food, barely noticing anything around her- which proved itself to be a fairly big mistake when she felt a light tap on her shoulder.
“- Chlo?!!”
“The one and only! How are you?”
Brooke smiled brightly, but before she could respond there was another voice cutting in.
“Oh Brooke! Congratulations on the new house! How did you manage to move in so quickly? It feels like just yesterday you popped over and told me you were moving, and to that house no less.”
Brooke frowned slightly as she glanced at Madeline, thinking of her house. She really was rather proud of it.
“What about the house?”
Madeline laughed lightly, probably something about Brooke’s expression. It was rare for her to get defensive but she really did love this house, and didn’t exactly see what was wrong with it.
“Oh the house is lovely hun- it’s just that it’d been on the market less than a month before you got it. You must have had a… compelling application for it to be handed over, I know for a fact a few of the neighborhood ladies mentioned their husbands had put in for it. Lots of competition”
Brooke let out a small sigh of relief. So that was all…
“Ah, yep! I can’t blame them, it is a lovely spot to settle. Me and Jakey must have gotten lucky, that’s all”
Chloe nodded approvingly with a small sigh, and Madeleine frowned.
“Speaking of Jake… how long have you two been married? I’ve never seen a wedding ring after all… and you two did come here in quite a rush!”
Shit. Her mind racing, Brooke glanced down at her hand- pulling off her glove moments later. Sure enough, sitting there on her ring finger was a thick gold band with an intricate pattern engraved into it, diamond sitting in the middle of it.
“Oh, I assure you I’m married-”
- well, in thought and spirit. But either way, she was too relieved at the quickness of magic as she watched Chloe and Madeline coo over the ring to think about that.
As the relief gave way though, she began to imagine if this… didn’t have to be a lie. A genuine, happy marriage with a guy she loved in an amazing home…
“Well, I should be going! Have a good day you both-”
Jake was waiting for her once she got home, giving her an amused smile as he took in her expression.
“- long day sweetheart?”
Brooke laughed and took a seat next to him, kissing his cheek softly.
“The longest. Anything interesting happen down in the square?”
Was he… blushing? Admittedly it was absolutely adorable, if a bit confusing.
“There may have been something regarding the both of us…” he admitted, voice low and soft.
“Oh, before you continue I should probably tell you…”
‘Well the thing is-”
A moment of silence from both of them before…
“- people think we’re married”
Another brief, admittedly justified silence, Brooke meeting Jake’s eye for a moment before bursting into laughter, hiding her face in Jake’s chest.. After a hesitant pause Jake joined in, the two of them not stopping for a long while.
“Would that be such a ludicrous idea?”
Brooke shyly peered up at him, holding up a hand to show him the ring.
“I mean, the idea of this didn’t exactly come out of nowhere…”
He took her hand, observing the ring quietly before holding out his own hand.
“I’d nearly forgotten you can do that. If you’d like, perhaps a matching set is in order?”
Brooke looked at him, seemingly able to read his mind. Lips quirked up into a small as she focused, a ring appearing on his left ring finger as well. Jake practically glowed with excitement as he looked at it, then her
“- I do. Do you?”
“... I do”
With a small kiss, the happy couple sealed their promise to one another in a way that while unusual, meant more to them than any ceremony ever would.
Just as time itself seemed to fast forward.