The warm spring sunlight streamed through the stained-glass windows of the small chapel, painting rainbow patterns across the wooden pews.

White roses lined the aisle, their sweet fragrance mixing with the scent of burning candles.

Eighty of our closest friends and family filled the seats, dressed in soft pastels, and waiting in quiet excitement.

String music played softly in the background as I stood at the altar in my polished suit, fidgeting with my cufflinks.

My best man, Mike, stood to my left, but right between us and closest to me stood Leo, my nine-year-old nephew, who was proudly clutching a small velvet ring box.

He wore a nice tuxedo that made him look like a miniature gentleman.

I'd insisted he be part of the ceremony, not just because we were close, but because Leo had given me something I'd never expected: perspective, warmth, and purpose.

Leo carried visible scars from a dog attack that had happened years ago. They stretched across his left cheek and down his forearm, but he stood tall anyway, beaming with pride by my side.

My sister Sophie sat in the front row, tears already gathering in her eyes as she watched her son holding himself with such dignity.

She'd flown in from across the country just for this moment, clearing her schedule, which wasn't easy as a single working mother.

I couldn't have been more grateful because this moment wouldn't have been the same without that little man here.

Suddenly, everyone stood and turned as the chapel doors opened, and the string quartet swelled into the wedding march.

The love of my life, Emily, appeared at the back of the aisle in her stunning white dress. My throat tightened as I watched her begin her graceful walk toward me. She was alone, a decision she'd made a long time ago.

But just then, Patricia and Gerald, Emily's parents, gestured urgently for me. Their smiles had completely vanished.

I frowned and kept looking at my bride, but they both started signaling for me, and I noticed others watching them too.

I stepped slightly away from the altar towards them, leaning down and whispering, "What's wrong? The ceremony has started. Can this wait?"

"No. This is urgent. You need to get that kid out of here before Emily reaches the altar," Patricia hissed, pointing her chin at Leo.

"What? Why?" I asked, looking around while trying to keep my smile.

"He can't be in the pictures with my girl, and also he's scaring the other children," she continued.

With a start, I leaned away from her.

"Hey, don't make a scene," Gerald hissed, too, especially when he saw my mouth opening, about to protest. "People are already staring. Patricia is right. He'll ruin the photos with Emily. We're asking nicely to make him leave."

"He's my nephew. My sister is right there," I whispered, trying to contain my anger while also gesturing to my sister standing by the pews on the other side of the aisle

"It doesn't matter. Get them both to leave! We don't care. He'll distract people from our daughter with that face!" Patricia added scathingly.

"Again. You want me to kick my nephew out of my own wedding? Because of his scars?"

"Yes. Now. Either he leaves, or we do," Gerald threatened.

I looked away from them to avoid shouting and noticed that Emily had finally sensed something was wrong. She was frowning, but I shook my head and grinned tightly, then turned back to my in-laws.

"My nephew is not and will not ruin anything. Leo's a big part of this family —"

Then again, the cold stares Patricia and Gerald gave him were impossible to miss. Any kid would sense what they were thinking.

Leo looked up at me with those big brown eyes and whispered, "Did I do something wrong?"

My heart shattered.

I crouched down beside him, not caring that I was effectively and openly disrupting the ceremony, and reassured him gently, "You did nothing wrong, buddy. Nothing. You're perfect."

Then, I stood and faced my in-laws again. "I'm not asking him to leave. He stays," I said sharply.

"Our daughter is your family," Patricia insisted. "You need to do what's right by her."

"She should be your priority, and she won't be happy if his horrible face is in all her pic —" Gerald cut himself off because the music had just stopped.

Several gasps echoed through the chapel. Yes, everyone had heard him, but I didn't look at anyone else.

My arms wrapped around Leo, who hid his face in my stomach, and I opened my mouth, ready to destroy these two hateful people.

But it was my bride's voice, full of steel, that spoke first. "Are you seriously asking Jack to kick his nephew out of our wedding? A child?!"

I turned to see Emily come to stand beside me.

Every single guest was looking at us. My sister's eyes were huge and hurt.

"Sweetie, lower your voice," Patricia placated, swallowing and looking around. Funny, she hadn't cared about anything when the music was on and everyone was focused on the bride.

"This is your big day. You have to be the star," she continued.

"No, don't make this about me. You're not thinking about me at all," Emily retorted, shaking her head. "You're thinking about you and your pride, and your judgy friends that I didn't want to invite."

"Emily, they're important people," Gerald hissed.

"I don't care about your stupid golf friends, Dad!" Emily yelled, a sound that echoed through the chapel. She didn't care one bit and kept going. "Or the women from Junior League, Mom!"

"Emily, you're going to ruin your wedding," Patricia chided.

"You already did that when you decided — as I walked down the aisle, mind you — that my soon-to-be husband's nephew had to leave!" she chastised. "Leo is my family now, too, and you should be ashamed of yourselves."

With everyone watching and quickly picking up the context, Patricia and Gerald couldn't say more. But their faces reddened as a tense silence fell over the chapel.

I wrapped an arm tighter around Leo, and I raised one hand to Emily's cheek, mouthing, "I love you."

She said the words back and looked at her parents again.

"I think it's time for you two to leave," she sighed. "Leo will remain right by our side while we get married, and I really don't want you here anymore."

"This is outrageous!" Gerald bellowed, suddenly outraged, even though that's what he had threatened before.

He huffed and puffed some other words before grabbing Patricia's hand and declaring, "We're leaving!"

Once they were out of sight, Leo finally leaned away from my stomach, and Emily crouched down to his eye level, showing him a bright smile.

"Hey, buddy. Why don't you take Uncle Jack back to the altar, and we'll start this all over?"

I wasn't sure if Leo would be up for it, but he wiped his eyes on one of his sleeves and grinned. "Let's do it!"

With a nod, Emily straightened and turned to all our guests.

"Everyone, we're starting over! Pretend you didn't see me walking in before," she said, and rushed back to the chapel doors.

I gestured for the string quartet to start again, and this time, watched with pure awe as my bride made her way to me. We got married without interruptions.

During the reception, Sophie thanked and congratulated me warmly, but her arms wrapped tightly around Emily.

I don't know what they whispered into each other's ears, but they were both teary-eyed when they separated.

Of course, Leo was in almost every single one of my photos, and I saw him running around and playing with the other kids. Not scaring them.

When it was finally time to dance with my wife, I embraced her like never before. I had chosen the best person to share my life with, and I promised to make her happy until my dying breath.

"Thank you for choosing us," I said into her ear.

"Always," she said, leaning back and staring into my eyes.

A minute later, the music changed to something more upbeat, and Leo ran up to us on the dance floor, grinning from ear to ear. "Uncle Jack, can I dance with you and Aunt Emily?

"Of course!" we said in unison.

Each of us grabbed one of his hands, and we moved around, singing and laughing. Sophie joined us eventually as other guests came forward to enjoy the music.

Later, as I clapped my hands and moved my shoulders to the beat, I realized we would have to deal with my in-laws later.

And boy, let me tell you, many things have happened since then. But that's a story for another time. For now, you should know that our reception was perfect, and the people dancing beside us were the only ones we needed there.