Work Text:
Rehearsal dinner
Aiden had never intended to become a wedding planner. He had never been one of those kids who cared about which flowers would look good with which tablecloths or what venues were astronomically overpriced in spring. Instead, the job sort of fell into his lap.
As a teenager, he worked for the catering company that Nick’s mom ran. There was always a planner underfoot, walking around with a clipboard and authoritative air, telling everyone what to do. He'd been thinking about those people and how cool they'd seemed when, one night, he'd drunkenly signed up for an online course about wedding planning.
From there, everything just kind of spiraled. He found he had knack for getting deals on venues just by talking to the owners, and enough of his friends recommended his services to each other to make him a big enough name to move to Los Angeles and start planning some big weddings.
He was fucking good at his job, but more importantly, he actually enjoyed it. It was satisfying to watch months of meetings and phone calls and emails come together into the most beautiful and memorable event of someone’s life. And it was even more satisfying to get a deal on one of the things that the wedding industry loved to overcharge people for.
Still, if you asked Aiden from high school to picture his future, he definitely wouldn’t have envisioned himself watching a groom-to-be sit slumped on the parquet floor of a bathroom in a fancy Italian restaurant.
But this was the venue that Ludwig and QT had chosen for their rehearsal dinner, so the aroma of cheese and tomatoes hovered in the air, mingling strangely with the lemony cleanser smell.
“Everybody gets stressed when it’s this close,” Aiden assured Ludwig. “But we’ve all worked so hard and you’ll be so fucking happy with day, I promise.”
Ludwig looked up at him, eyes full of distrust. His head leaned against the subways. “I don’t think this will get better.”
“It will,” Aiden said gently. “Trust me, I’ve worked with so many couples and they always end up making it work.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, man. It’ll be okay.”
“What if it’s not?”
“QT and I will be here for you.”
Ludwig dropped his head into his hands for a moment. Then he lifted it to say, “Can I tell you something?”
“Of course.”
“I think I might be bisexual.”
Aiden’s heart sank, but he simply said, “Oh. You know QT would be totally chill with that, right? You really don’t have to worry.”
“I think I knew it for a long time. And I never told her. How fucked up is that?”
“You don’t have to tell her if you don’t feel ready.”
“But I’m telling you.”
“That’s your decision.”
“I think I was scared, you know? Scared of finding that out about myself.”
Aiden nodded. “I get it.”
Then Ludwig gave him a long, searching look. “Don’t you want to know what changed?”
Tour venues ✔️
He’d been working with QT and Ludwig for about a month when it began.
As Aiden led them through the tour, Ludwig asked about the balcony view advertised on the website. Though there were many balconies in the villa, Aiden instantly knew which one he was referring to and led them to the staircase.
But when QT saw it, she immediately refused to go up because, “I’m wearing sandals, do you want me to get tetanus?” When she said it like that, Aiden had to admit that the rusting railings weren’t exactly a comforting sight.
So Aiden and Ludwig walked up the stairs together, their metallic footfalls echoing through the air. As they ascended, which seemed to take twice as long as Aiden remembered, sweat beaded on his forehead and he wished the air conditioning worked up here.
When they reached the balcony, they both agreed that the view was worth it. The orange-gold sunset poured honey over the brick paths and bougainvillea-covered walls. In the distance, mountains framed rolling hills.
But Aiden had forgotten an important detail about the balcony here: it was so small that they couldn’t have fit QT if she were there. Aiden could feel the press of Ludwig’s bicep against his shoulder, and he wasn’t sure that he was imagining the hot breath near his neck.
“Are you sure you don’t want to be here alone? I can go back inside.”
“It’s fine,” Ludwig insisted. “And the view is beautiful.”
“Yeah, it would be a great background for pictures.”
“Yep. This venue is so fucking expensive, though. I don’t know if a few nice pictures would be worth it.”
“It’s definitely on the higher end of our budget,” Aiden agreed, “but we have plenty of options that we’re touring tomorrow.”
Ludwig turned so Aiden had no choice but to look him in the eyes. “You’re really good at this, you know.”
“Why do you think I charge so much?”
Ludwig smiled. “I know, man. You’re damn good at what you do.”
And when the dredges of sunlight swept over Ludwig’s hair and the outer curve of his ear, Aiden felt the truth of those words. He was really fucking gifted at watching other people be in love.
Make seating chart ✔️
“And my sister can’t sit next to my uncle, so…”
Aiden nodded and started to adjust the seating arrangement from hell. Okay, that was an exaggeration. Every wedding had some people who couldn’t be seated near each other. But this particular wedding was extra challenging because it was on the smaller side and there were only so many possible seating arrangements he could make.
While he and QT discussed, Ludwig sipped his coffee and worked on his own laptop, only talking when someone asked him a question. At least his side was easy. Most people got along well enough, and it was just a matter of not surrounding the French-speaking people with English-speakers. But Aiden’s eyes kept drifting over to Ludwig, and he hated himself for it.
“That looks great,” QT said with both the personal approval of a happy bride and the businesslike admiration of a fellow event planner. “So what’s next?”
“Just some questions for the vendors. Is there anything you want me to ask the officiant?”
“No, but make sure the videographer watches those videos I linked you. I want a really specific style. And I know I’ve already said this, but I want the caterers to be really clear about the allergies. I don’t want anyone dying at my wedding.”
“You got it,” Aiden said, returning to his laptop and scheduling calls with those people on his own calendar.
Aiden was glad that QT could get something close to rest in these months leading up to the wedding, but he was kind of curious about what the event would’ve looked like if everything was in QT’s hands.
“I think I’m gonna get a bagel, do you want anything?” Ludwig asked after about an hour.
“No thanks,” QT said.
Aiden didn’t answer, too immersed in his work. But when Ludwig set a blueberry muffin in front of him, he smiled.
“I got one for QT, so I just thought…”
“Thanks, man.”
QT nibbled on her muffin. “Oh, these are overbaked. The topping is nice, though.”
Aiden saw no flaws with his, and when he said so, Ludwig smiled like he’d won something.
QT just rolled her eyes and asked if she should be concerned that her veil was shipping two weeks late.
Get suit ✔️
For the first few months, Aiden had truly believed that he was just projecting. That the only reason he felt soft waves of electricity when Ludwig looked at him for too long was because he’d been single for too long. But even after he started talking to a really sweet girl, the feeling persisted.
He broke it off, of course. And about five minutes after he did that, he received a text from Ludwig, which felt like the sort of sign from the universe that Aiden did his best to ignore. He replied ok, put his phone down, and tried not to think too hard about what it meant that Ludwig wanted his input on the suit fitting.
This wouldn’t be the first time Aiden attended a fitting. Once, he’d even been invited to the wedding dress fitting. But he couldn’t help but feel like this one was a bit different. For one thing, he cared about these clients even more than normal. They were funny and nice and only sent him about fifteen emails a day, which was a huge improvement from the usual two hundred.
And even though it sometimes sucked that Ludwig took two days (or, on one memorable occasion, two weeks) to respond to emails, Aiden could already tell that they’d keep in touch long after the wedding.
Assuming Aiden survived this suit try-on.
Looking at Ludwig in his suit was like looking at a sculpture made in the peak of the artist’s career. Aiden had seen the magic that a good suit could do to a guy’s figure plenty of times, but it had never been like this.
“Don’t you think the pants are too tight?”
Aiden wiped his hands down his jeans. “Do you want me to call the tailor over?”
“What do you think? Do I look good?”
You look good in anything. “You should be comfortable too, you know. I mean, you’ll be dancing in this. It’s not all looks.”
“It’s being streamed! Chat will eat me alive if I look like shit,” Ludwig said with a grin. He and QT sometimes joked about streaming the wedding, but they had already made it very clear to both the viewers and Aiden that they were having a small, private ceremony and doing a big QnA with chat a week after the honeymoon.
“From what you’ve told me, they’ll do that no matter what you wear.”
“Maybe,” Ludwig agreed, “but I still don’t like this suit.”
“So let’s get you a different one.”
The next suit, of course, was equally devastating.
Pick tableware ✔️
Ludwig was looking at a few different charger options with the same disinterest that Aiden had already seen him express towards the rest of the flatware, glassware, and plateware. He traced the scalloped edge of a silver plate and Aiden scolded himself for watching his ass.
“What do you think?” Ludwig asked, gesturing vaguely to the whole shelf.
Usually, Aiden would defer to QT, but she had a sponsored stream that she needed to do. He thought of their mood board.
“The blue toile is always nice for adding that classic feel, and it’ll go well with the florals on your table.”
“I’m sensing a but here.”
“But I’ll be so honest, the charger plate isn’t really necessary. They’re supposed to ‘protect the tablecloth’ or whatever so no one eats off them.”
“What’s the point of a tablecloth if it needs to be protected?” Ludwig looked at the silver plate like it had betrayed his trust. “And if we don’t need these, then why am I looking at them?”
“They come with the package, and most people have them. I assume QT would want them.”
He expected Ludwig to whip out his phone and confirm this, but all he did was shrug. “I like this one.”
He was pointing at a fluted glass plate the color of emeralds or rich-people grass. It was more jewel toned than the mossy green of the primary color palette, but it would pair nicely with the burgundy accents. Then again, would that look too wintery for a late summer wedding? All of the advice from his online courses and internships flooded through his mind.
“Let’s see with the rest of the setup,” Aiden suggested, taking the plate to the demo table with the tablecloth, candlesticks, florals, and all the tableware they’d picked out online so far.
With the chosen charger, the main plate and bread and butter plate did look pretty nice. Tasteful, even.
“Wow. You have a better eye for this than I thought.”
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that caveat.”
Aiden smiled despite himself.
Send invitations ✔️
“Yeah, these look great,” QT said, leaning over the counter to look at Aiden’s laptop.
They were in her kitchen, looking over the invitations. Not every client invited him into their homes, but he always got closer to the clients that bought his biggest service package, which this couple had.
And QT was an insanely gifted hostess. He’d never complimented a client’s home so many times. Or their cooking. Despite Aiden’s insistence that he could eat afterwards, QT had made him a serving of the steak she and Ludwig were having. It was, of course, amazing.
“So you’re good to send these out to everyone?”
Ludwig strolled into the kitchen, tapping on his phone. He wore that blue Dodgers hat he so loved, and a black t-shirt that Aiden couldn’t fully read but definitely said the word drugs in bold white letters. “Send them.”
“Lud, you didn’t even look at them,” QT said with her usual affectionate exasperation.
“At the invitations? Yeah I did. They’re nice. Good work, Aimen.” He gave Aiden a fist-bump and then grabbed the plate that QT had prepared. “I gotta get back to my stream, but I’ll see you around.”
QT looked back at the doorway that Ludwig had disappeared into. “You even got him to care.”
The invitations were some of the best Aiden had ever made. The elegant trellis-inspired arch draped vines over the silver words, which stood out like stars against the ink blue background. They hadn’t taken all that long to make, but Aiden was unusually proud of them.
“I’m glad everybody’s happy. Do you want me to print out a couple just for you to have as keepsakes?”
“That sounds nice,” QT said softly.
A couple hours of planning later, QT went up to her room and Aiden started to gather his things. He was about to put his laptop into his backpack when Ludwig walked in. Now, Aiden could read his shirt’s full message: sex, drugs, & Juicy Couture. It was clearly a women’s shirt, which explained the distractingly tight fit. Aiden hated himself for noticing this fucking shit.
“Stream’s over,” he said happily. “How’s everything looking?”
“Good,” Aiden said. It was the truth, but it tasted like a lie on his tongue. “Did chat pick that shirt?”
“Yeah, but I kinda like it. The fabric’s soft. Show me what you guys looked at.” Aiden nodded and did his best to ignore the way the shirt rode up as Ludwig reached across the counter to twist Aiden’s laptop towards him. He shouldn’t be looking at that slice of skin. He shouldn’t. He shouldn’t.
“You guys locked down the photographer without me?”
“He’s the one you said you liked,” Aiden reminded him, pulling up the portfolio. “We’d already picked him, we just booked it today.”
Ludwig ran his hand down his jaw. “She’s having the bridesmaids pick their dresses already?”
“She just wants to give them time.”
They talked like this for a good twenty minutes, Ludwig acting flabbergasted that decisions had been made in his absence, despite the fact that he was always busy and a wedding required about a million executive decisions.
Once they were on the same page about everything, he put the nearly-dead laptop away.
“Do you feel good about everything?” he asked.
Ludwig’s eyes dropped to his mouth. “No.”
In the crispest, most professional tone he could muster, Aiden asked, “What are you not satisfied with? I can make sure to—”
“No, no. Everything looks really good. I’m sorry, I was way out of line.”
Aiden shook his head. “Nah, man. It’s all good. Nothing happened.”
“Right. Right. Nothing happened.”
Get cake delivered ✔️
Aiden had never been so anxious about a cake before. And he’d watched a six-tier monstrosity get moved from a bakery to the venue through almost an hour of traffic.
The bakery had called him that morning to say that their ovens needed repairs and that they were truly so sorry but the wedding cake might be delayed by a day or two. When he reminded them that a wedding date was not a flexible thing, he swore that the poor worker on the other end of the line started to cry.
“It’s okay,” he said with the same tone he used on brides who were panicking over the budget, “I promise, we can figure this out.”
They did, eventually. The bakery turned out to be close-ish to the industrial kitchen where she filmed Master Baker—which she had boldly chosen to host in the same month of her wedding—so they baked the cakes there before carting them back into the fridges in their own bakery.
“Thank you so much,” Aiden told QT for what had to be the fortieth time. The bakery workers had, of course, thanked her at least a thousand times.
“I mean, it was your idea.”
“Please just accept the thank you.”
QT smiled, and Aiden felt the increasingly familiar wave of guilt settle on his shoulders. “You’re welcome. I just can’t believe how unprofessional they were. I really thought we were so careful about the cake.”
They had been. But one of the first lessons Aiden had learned as a wedding planner was that some things were out of everyone’s control. That said, he was still expected to pretend like everything was well within his grasp.
“You really saved us,” Ludwig said behind him, and Aiden expected him to be talking to QT, but he was looking at him.
“Me? All I did was encourage you to go with a bakery whose ovens don’t even fucking work!”
“Well, you got us a free cake. Free cake for the rest of our lives, maybe.”
Aiden shrugged. “That’s a nice way of looking at it.”
“I’m trying to be positive, dude. That’s what you told me to do.”
“When?”
“I don’t fucking know, honestly. But you definitely said it.”
“My point still stands, though. QT did everything.”
“Only because you had the idea. You literally drove their cakes back.”
“I have a car! Of course I had to help.”
Ludwig slapped him on the back. “I wish I could keep you. After the wedding, I mean.”
Yeah, Aiden thought unwisely, I sometimes wish that too.
Bachelor party ✔️
When Ludwig stumbled inside, Aiden’s first instinct was to scoop him into his arms like a large dog. He realized that this wasn’t the smartest decision when Ludwig began to say, “I could kiss you right now, man.”
“Nope. I really don’t think you want to do that.”
“I do! I really do.”
“No,” Aiden said firmly as he guided Ludwig to bed.
It was only once his client was in bed and Aiden felt like an under-qualified babysitter that Aiden grabbed one of QT’s beautiful velvet throw pillows and screamed into it.
What the fuck? What the fuck was he supposed to do with this? He’d been hit on by a drunk client only once before, but he hadn’t had almost a year of tense moments with her! And there was no hint of mutuality there.
This case, Aiden had to admit to himself, was clearly fucking different.
Summoning a strength he didn’t know he had, Aiden composed himself and hung up the poster with the finished wedding weekend timeline above the fireplace, where Ludwig would be forced to see it. This was a trick he’d picked up years ago, to help particularly busy and/or easily distracted couples remember all the moving parts for which they were responsible. He had, of course, omitted some of the venue’s stuff from this timeline, but the full thing was emailed to everyone involved.
Looking at the poster, all the questions that had been rising inside Aiden ever since that balcony boiled over in earnest. Did QT know? Did he want her to know? More importantly, what the fuck was wrong with him to have him thinking like this? When did he become chill with being a fucking side piece?
He held himself together just enough to text QT that was heading out. Then he walked to his car, curled up in the seat, and let himself cry.
When he returned home, he thought about calling his parents or friends. Someone, anyone to talk some sense into him. But his finger hovered uselessly over Nick’s number, refusing to make contact with the phone. After almost a minute of this, he finally admitted defeat, turned his phone off, and stared blankly at the ceiling until his eyes closed.
Rehearsal dinner ✔️
“Don’t you want to know what changed?”
Aiden hadn’t felt this much raw terror since he was ten years old and his little brother came home with an arm dripping in blood. It had turned out to be one of those minor scrapes that just bled a lot, but he suspected that his client falling in love with him was a slightly more serious situation.
“I really don’t,” he lied. “That’s personal.”
“You don’t really think that.”
“No, I do,” Aiden insisted, desperate to cling to the battered remains of his moral compass.
“You’re saying you’ve never felt it? Not even once?”
Aiden couldn’t meet his eyes. “That doesn’t matter. This isn’t appropriate on either end.”
“You think I don’t know that?” To himself, Ludwig murmured, “God, what am I doing?”
Aiden sat down next to him. “It’s only the rehearsal dinner.”
“What, you saying I can back out?”
Aiden scratched the back of his neck, wondering how wasteful a streamer could truly afford to be. “I mean, it’s technically possible. But you won’t be getting many refunds.”
Ludwig slammed his head against the wall. “I’ve scammed myself again.”
“Maybe,” Aiden said quietly, “or maybe you’ve had an important revelation at an inconvenient time.”
“It’s both of those,” Ludwig whispered. Then he looked Aiden in the eyes and said, “I want to cancel the wedding.”
“Okay,” Aiden whispered back. “I’ll talk to QT.”
“No, no. I have to do that myself. But while I’m making some bad decisions, can I kiss you?”
Guilt swirled heavily in Aiden’s gut. He’d never considered himself to be the most moral person alive or anything, and he’d kissed people who were in relationships before, but those were all good-natured jokes when they were drunk. This, on the other hand… this would be crossing a line. He’d never be able to look at himself the same way if he did this.
But when he looked at Ludwig’s face, his decision felt fucking inevitable. (God, he’d think later, what the fuck kind of excuse is that?)
“Go ahead.”