The next day.
Trinity Church!
Built in 1839, Trinity Church has over a hundred years of history. Its two bell towers rise majestically, the trident-like curves and intricate patterns on the spire making the entire structure shine brightly.
The main tower of Trinity Church, standing at 97 meters tall, is the highest church building on Manhattan Island, as if gazing into the eyes of God.
The church has been under full lockdown since last night.
Before dawn, numerous unidentified men in black suits with dark sunglasses and serious expressions started standing at every traffic point of Trinity Church.
The New York police officers, oblivious to the happenings, were stopped as well.
The answer was Federal secrets.
Ask further and you'll hear, "You are not authorized to know."
However...
Those holding wedding invitations could pass without hindrance.
Peter and Felicia.
Thor and Jane.
Tony and Pepper.
Mary and her boyfriend from Los Angeles.
The Chloes.
The Stacys.
As the melodious bells of Trinity Church rang under the morning light, guests from all corners of New York City passed through the secured roads, parked their vehicles in the lot, and walked laughing and chatting towards Trinity Church.
Inside the church at this moment, the air was filled with a mix of beeswax and lilies' fragrance, and the long chairs were spotless, with a new red carpet stretching from the door to the altar.
Beside the choir's seats, a young musician, who had been tipped ten thousand US Dollars, arrived at dawn and was gently tuning the organ's stops.
The deep notes reverberated like a warm stream under the vast dome.
However...
Unlike the guests gradually entering,
The groomsmen and bridesmaids stood at the church entrance,
with the groomsmen going right.
And the bridesmaids going left.
After all, the groomsmen needed to change into their suits, as the bridesmaids also had to head to the bride, to help dress her while also changing into their bridesmaid dresses.
In a room on the left side of the church at this moment,
Gwen, today's bride, sat at the dressing table like a piece of art about to be completed.
Helen smiled at her daughter dressed in white, a proud smile on her lips, carefully fastening an antique pearl-embedded hairpin into Gwen's now-pinned bun.
"This is your great-grandmother's, something old!" Helen's proud expression held a slight tremble of reluctance in her voice.
To match with the best man, her maid of honor Jane Foster handed over a pair of new silk wedding shoes: "Something new, may your new life shine brightly with every step."
Then Gwente took a delicate sapphire bracelet from the jewelry box and gently put it on her wrist: "Something borrowed, a bracelet borrowed from Aunt Bob."
Gwen looked at the sparkling sapphire bracelet on her snow-white wrist, smiling.
Just then,
Mary, who had rushed back from Los Angeles to attend Gwen's wedding, produced a small silver sixpence coin like a magic trick, and slipped it into Gwen's wedding shoe, then looked up at Gwen: "Though it's not trendy now, you can never have too much good luck, right?"
As everyone knows,
the London sixpence coin, according to legend, is known as the lucky charm in the shoe.
Gwen thanked her girlfriends, then with Jane Foster and Mary's help, she stood up from her seat.
Helen received the white wedding gown from the side.
As the gown was delicately lifted by Helen, passing over Gwen's head with the assistance of the bridesmaids, and slowly falling down, the room fell into silence.
It was a classic satin A-line gown, with simple lines outlining Hawk's elegant neck and slender waist, the long train like blooming petals.
Gwen did not wear much makeup, an elegantly natural look, making her appear both holy and radiant.
Nor did she wear too much jewelry, only two small pearls on her earlobes and that blue bracelet, for she knew her most beautiful accessory today would be her smile.
Dressed in the white wedding gown, Gwen looked at herself in the mirror in front.
From this moment on, the reflection in the mirror was no longer the girl Gwen Stacy, but a beautiful and determined woman, Gwen Phoenix, about to embark on a new stage of life.
Just then,
there came a knock on the door.
"Come in!"
Gwen snapped back to reality, looking at the door that had been knocked, then watching her suited father, George Stacy, push it open.
George Stacy looked at his daughter in the white wedding gown, a fleeting daze on his face, then he took a deep breath.
"Are you ready, my daughter?"
"Yes, I'm ready, Dad."
Gwen beamed brightly.
At eleven in the morning, the guests were already seated in the church.
The gentlemen wore neat dark suits, while the ladies donned various exquisite dresses, akin to a moving fashion show.
By tradition, the bride's family and friends sat on the left, the groom's on the right.
But Hawk didn't have many friends.
So...
Gwen borrowed a few friends for Hawk, and soon, the pews were filled with people, guests whispering to each other, the air thick with a warm and expectant excitement.
Hawk was already on stage, ready.
Soon.
At eleven thirty in the morning, the clock chimed, its resonant sound spreading throughout the church.
Instantly.
All conversations stopped, guests unanimously straightened their postures, eyes simultaneously fixed on the tightly closed doors of the church.
The music of the organ also appropriately transformed, playing that sacred and familiar melody.
The Wedding March!
The church doors slowly opened inward, allowing bright light to pour in.
The first to enter were the groomsmen and bridesmaids.
They walked together, the groomsmen dressed in dark gray suits, and the bridesmaids in uniform gray-blue gowns, holding bouquets of white tulips and champagne roses.
The groomsmen took their places beside Hawk, while the bridesmaids gathered on the side, leaving the center position.
Soon.
Flower girl and ring bearer entered.
Four-year-old flower girl Jean, wearing a mini version of a white tulle dress, carried a little flower basket, a little shy yet earnest, sprinkling rose petals one handful at a time on the red carpet.
Five-year-old ring bearer Cooper Barton, dressed in a small-sized suit, solemnly carried a white pillow with two imitation rings tied on it.
Immediately following was the maid of honor, Jane Foster.
She walked alone, gracefully, representing the bride's closest friend and support.
At this moment.
The Wedding March also came to a slight pause.
And then—
The majestic prelude resounded once more, simultaneously prompting all guests to rise in unison, turn, and face the entrance.
There, Gwen appeared, her arm linked with her father George's.
Sunlight streamed from the open door behind her, outlining her and her pristine bridal gown with a radiant edge, her face beneath the veil breathtakingly beautiful, a mix of shyness, joy, and resolute brilliance.
Gwen's gaze traversed the long aisle, fixing firmly on the man standing before the altar, who was equally locked in her gaze.
As their eyes met.
Gwen walked slowly yet with determination, George's arm her most steadfast support at this moment, while friends and family on either side of the aisle cast countless looks of admiration, emotion, and blessing.
In her world right now, there was only the man at the end of the aisle, tall and wearing a black suit.
Since last night's bachelor party, Hawk hadn't seen Gwen, but now, looking at her in bridal attire, he couldn't help but catch his breath.
Soon.
George approached Hawk, his tone low, tinged with a hint of reluctance yet reassurance.
"I'm entrusting her to you. Take care of her."
"I will, Mr. Stacy."
Hawk, with a solemn expression, looked directly at George, assuring him with unwavering confidence.
George formally handed Gwen's hand to Hawk, then turned and took his seat beside his wife Helen.
Hawk and Gwen then turned together, facing the altar where Father Robert of Trinity was waiting for them.
Father Robert was a benevolent elder, wearing glasses, his gaze wise and gentle.
He smiled at the couple before him and began the ceremony in a loud and clear voice.
"Dear brothers and sisters, today we gather here before God and friends to witness the sacred union of Hawk Phoenix and Gwen Stacy in marriage. Marriage is the sacred covenant established by God, the ultimate embodiment of love and commitment. It should not be entered into lightly but with reverence, cherished, and protected."
Father Robert spoke with weighty sincerity for the opening, then addressed the guests present: "If anyone here knows of any legal impediment to this union, you should now declare it, or forever hold your peace."
The church remained silent.
Father Robert waited a moment, then looked at Hawk.
"Hawk Phoenix, do you take Gwen Stacy to be your wife, to love her, cherish her, be faithful to her in prosperity and adversity, in wealth and poverty, in health and sickness, in joy and sorrow, until death separates you?"
Hawk turned his head, looking at Gwen, whose eyes beneath the veil he wished to gaze into for a lifetime.
His voice was firm, clear, filled with undeniable certainty.
"I do!"
Then the priest turned to Gwen.
"Gwen Stacy, do you take Hawk Phoenix to be your husband, to love him, cherish him, be faithful to him in prosperity and adversity, in wealth and poverty, in health and sickness, in joy and sorrow, until death separates you?"
In Gwen's eyes gleamed crystalline light, her gaze met Hawk's, not resting on cosmic stars, but filled with herself, her voice softly yet undoubtedly unwavering.
"I do!"
The best man, Thor with his hair styled like an adult, took out two wedding rings from his pocket and handed them to the priest.
The priest accepted the rings and prayed and blessed them.
Hawk then took a ring, carefully placing it on the ring finger of Gwen's left hand, repeating the vows along with the priest: "Gwen, I place this ring on your finger as a symbol of my love and loyalty, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit."
Gwen also took the slightly larger ring, her hand trembling slightly due to excitement, but steadily placed it on Hawk's finger: "Hawk, I place this ring on your finger as a symbol of my love and loyalty, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit."
Then the priest once again faced the guests.
"Hawk and Gwen have taken vows before God and all present, exchanging tokens as proof. I hereby declare them lawfully wedded as husband and wife."
At this point, the priest paused, facing guests whose expressions seemed filled with anticipation, then looking at Hawk, he said the words everyone was awaiting.
"Groom, you may now kiss your bride."
"..."