Speaking of Banks’s mother, she’s dancing with her son right now. She must feel me observing them from my spot at the bar, because she raises a hand and waves. I give an exaggerated tug of my bow tie, pretending that it’s cutting off my oxygen and she laughs, before going back to her conversation with Banks.

I look around the room at everyone in attendance. My parents are here. My brother and Candace—also known as our former neighbors. Elise’s parents. Shayna. Tobias’s therapist and his parents. An entire rugby team. Some of Elise’s classmates. People that have accepted our unorthodox relationship, despite some skepticism in the beginning.

Especially from Elise’s parents. The weekend we met them for the first time takes up an entire five pages in my scrapbook.

The napkin her mother wept into when we broke the news.

A transcript of her father’s phone call to the police.

The label off the bottle of whiskey he drank when the police informed him no laws were being broken.

A picture of their faces when Tobias told Elise’s parents how he made his fortune.

A shard of the plate that Elise’s father threw at Tobias’s head.

That was an interesting weekend, to say the least, but it ended in Elise’s parents being overjoyed for their daughter. Finally believing her claim that she’d never been happier. The final picture in that weekend’s section of the scrapbook is the six of us posing in front of our new house, a SOLD sign swinging in the breeze to our left. Since then, I’ve added a guest room onto the back of the house, so they feel welcome to come visit as much as they want from California.

Yeah, it’s hard to believe how far we’ve come with Elise’s parents in the last four years—and no one can say it isn’t still awkward when we all retire to the same room at the end of the night—but we’ve grown to love and respect each other.

Enough for Elise’s parents to attend our commitment ceremony today on the shores of Rockaway Beach.

The song ends. Elise kisses Tobias, their mouths lingering together for a moment in a way that makes my heart flip over. And then, like I knew she would, she searches me out for my turn to dance with her. Memories come flooding back from that first night we danced, at the gala. It seems like a hundred years ago, but somehow it also feels like it happened yesterday. Take up your space, she told me that night.

I like to think I’ve done her proud since then. When Crouch went to prison on kidnapping and conspiracy to commit murder charges, among many others, I filled his vacant position as Local 401 union boss. I’m a lot busier these days, but nothing can or will stop me from making time for Elise. Or my brothers who love her as much as I do. We’re a family. And we don’t merely work, we thrive.