what about the honeymoon plans?

Gerry’s words lingered in the dressing room like smoke, heavier than he intended. Jackie—inside his mother’s body—stilled against him, her cheek damp where it rested on his shoulder. Slowly she pulled back, blinking up at him with Katherine’s face, Katherine’s weary eyes. A flush crept along her throat as though she had only just realized what he was suggesting.

The silence stretched, unbearable, until his mother—wearing Jackie’s youth, her smooth skin, her long lashes—cleared her throat. Her voice was low and deliberate, as if each syllable carried weight.

“He’s right,” she said. “A wedding is one thing. We can fake our way through vows. But two weeks together in another country? Airplanes, hotel check-ins, dinner conversations… sharing a bed…” Her borrowed voice faltered, and she bit down on Jackie’s lip, her gaze flicking between Gerry and the body that should have been hers. The air thickened with tension until it was hard to breathe.

The implications struck him at once. The honeymoon was supposed to be intimacy—the culmination of waiting, of promises, of everything he and Jackie had dreamed. Now what? Lie beside his mother’s body at night, pretending not to notice, pretending not to touch? Pretend it wasn’t wrong?

Jackie, trapped in Katherine’s body, gripped his sleeve with **** ****. “Gerry, I can’t… I can’t stand the thought of you looking at me like this. Not when you’re expecting me to be the bride. How can I even—” Her voice broke, Katherine’s throat snagging on Jackie’s raw emotion, the sound too fragile, too wrong coming from lips that weren’t hers.

Protectiveness surged in him, stronger than confusion, stronger than shame. He wanted to shield her, though he had no idea how. Every comfort risked brushing too close to the truth: that this was unbearable, unstable, and might shatter with a single misstep.

His mother—inside Jackie—straightened in her chair, spine stiff, her borrowed youth granting her a strange, almost regal poise. She folded her hands neatly, and though her voice carried a steady authority, a faint tremor betrayed her. “Then we adjust. Honeymoons can be postponed. Flights rescheduled. You two stay married in name for now. Once we’ve solved this madness, you can have the honeymoon you deserve.”

Jackie didn’t look convinced. Her head bowed as she leaned into Gerry, Katherine’s body radiating a warmth that felt wrong, though the closeness was still hers. “But everyone will ask questions, Katherine. They’ll wonder why we canceled. We told them we were excited… I don’t want to lose this. Not after all we planned. Not after all we dreamed about.”

The clock ticked louder, marking the shrinking distance to the ceremony.

At last Katherine—his mother’s decisiveness carried in Jackie’s voice—cut through the silence. “Then Jackie comes with you.” Her hands tightened around the edge of her dress, knuckles whitening. “She can get an airline ticket with my money and join you there. I have plenty of savings. Buying her a seat, even a separate hotel room, won’t be a problem. Worst case, if she has trouble with the flight, you’ll be a day or two ahead of her. But the trip—those two weeks—will give us time to work out a longer plan.”

Jackie’s head snapped up, her gaze fixed on Katherine in her own body. “You’d… do that?” she asked, her voice trembling.

Katherine’s chin lifted, her tone sharp, though her eyes betrayed her resolve. “It isn’t generosity. It’s necessity. The three of us can’t keep circling this forever.”

The idea lingered in the room, strange and terrifying—yet almost possible.