I slowly open my eyes and take in my surroundings. That's right, we're back on tour. Back in Melbourne, Australia, and in a hotel room. My back is pressed up against a chest that I can only hope belongs to Benji - I went clubbing last night, so I'm not entirely sure. I lift the covers so I can see the arm wrapped around my waist, and I'm slightly relieved to spot the familiar tattoos - not that I really thought I would've cheated on him anyway. The arm pulls tighter around me and I jump a little. Since when was he awake? "Good morning, beautiful," he murmurs softly, propping himself up on one elbow, "got much of a hangover?"

I shake my head. I don't feel sick, and there's no headache, so I'm good. Even if the last thing I remember was Billy talking about what a cool idea it would be for he and some girl he'd just met to get married. "Benji, Billy didn't marry anyone last night, did he?"

He laughs. "No, Paul and I stopped him."

I roll onto my back so I can look up at him better, and he immediately lowers his lips onto mine, and I trap his labret between my teeth for a second before letting him pull away. "Did we sleep together last night?"

He shakes his head no, but his cocky smirk is twitching at the corners of his mouth. "But you did try to kiss me in front of a rather large crowd of people."

I groan and slap my forehead. "What'd you do?"

"Pretended you were falling over and hugged you. Then you started groaning 'Why won't you kiss me, Benji?', but I don't think anyone else heard that."

"Thank God."

He lays his head back down, facing me, and I roll onto my side to face him, but before I know it, my eyes are drooping again. I've just made the decision to fall back asleep when I hear his voice again, floating through my semi-concious state, so I'm not even sure that I'm hearing him right. "I wish we could get married."

My eyes snap open. "What did you just say?"

He pulls me closer, so our noses are touching. "I said, I wish we could get married. Why, don't you want to be with me forever?"

The doubt and hurt in his eyes makes me want to cry. I've never seen him look at anyone quite like this before. I guess it's because he loves me more than anyone else he's ever been with - but then, I never thought of love as something that can be measured. I brush my lips on his. "Of course I do, Benj," my lips form a little half-smile, "but the thought never crossed my mind. Why do you wish we could get married?"

That damn cocky grin is back. "'Cause I'd love to see you in a little white dress."

I laugh and jab him in the stomach. "What makes you think it'd be me in the white dress?"

Before I have a chance to protest, he's grabbed both of my arms and pinned them above my head, and he's lying on top of me. His lips push hard against mine for a brief moment, and then he pulls away, chewing lightly on my bottom lip. "Because you're the bitch," I gasp, pretending to be insulted, "and I'm the butch. And you know it."

I just laugh, fighting the urge to arch up into him. "Well, maybe the dress can be arranged."

He raises an eyebrow and laughs. "You're so my bitch."

I smirk. "Jackass."

"Girly man."

"Scooby snack."

"Crotch grabbing frog zombie."

I gape at him for a second and then burst out laughing, and he grins at his triumph before leaning down to nip at my neck. "So, when am I going to see you in this dress?"

An evil grin spreads across my features as I come up with my devious plan. "Oh, you'll see."

He's going to freak out. I've been hiding away all night, and after I'd informed Billy of my plans, he'd agreed to keep Benji busy so he wouldn't figure anything out, or burst in when I was getting ready.

I check myself out in the full-length mirror. My dress is white, of course, and goes down just past my knees - any further and I thought it'd be too restricting - in this flowy, shimmery material. I'll be damned if I know anything about fabrics. It has thin straps rather than sleeves, and I can't help giggling at them, they look so much like bra straps. And, of course, I've got a short veil that falls over my face, concealing my heavily eye-lined face. I would've done my hair, but this damn tiara would've just messed it up again. My legs are waxed, of course, I always do it so I can show off my tattoos. I thought getting them tattooed was painful, but fuck, I hate going to get them waxed.

There's a knock at the door. "Who is it?"

Billy's muffled voice calls out through the door. "It's me."

I can't help but be a little suspicious. "If you're alone, come in."

He pokes his head in, and then bursts out laughing. I laugh with him, then pick up a tube of mascara and toss it at him half-heartedly. This only makes him laugh harder as it hits the floor a couple of feet in front of him. "Man, now you even throw like a girl."

I pull a face and turn around, looking over my shoulder. "Billy, does this dress make my ass look fat?"

He covers his mouth, stifling his laughter, and I hear Benji's voice. "Billy, where the fuck is Joel?"

Billy mouthes the words "five minutes", then quickly slips out of the room. I pick up a tube of lipstick and fondle it for a moment, then set it back down again. I'm not willing to go quite that far.

A few minutes later, I hear the music start up. That's my cue. I leave the room I'm in and hurry down the hall. I'd decided against the high heels, and now I'm glad I chose white Chucks instead. I ignore the stares of the people I pass and stroll right on up to the doorway, hiding just out of sight. I can see Benji from here, and he walks over to say something to Billy, looking nervous, and Billy just shrugs, but I can't hear what they're saying. Finally, "Once Upon a Time" ends, and I walk out into the bright lights of the stage and start to sing, pulling back my veil. "You come in cold, you're covered in blood..."

Everyone erupts around me. There are kids crying with laughter in front of me, and the rest of the band has stopped playing. I turn around, and Benji's sinking to his knees, slapping his thigh in hysterics, and Chris has fallen off his stool, knocking it over in the process. I shout into the microphone, putting one hand on my waist and jutting my hip out in the most gay pose I can possibly make. "What? What's so funny?"

And everyone just keeps on laughing. I grin to myself, and then start laughing as well, it's contagious. Paul's now on his knees beside my brother, patting him on the back to calm him down. It's not working. In fact, it seems to be making it worse - Benji's now actually rolling around, clutching his stomach. I smirk and face the audience. "You like my outfit?"

There's a chorus of cheers, shouts of agreement, and wolf whistles, and I do a little twirl on the spot. Benji's finally composed enough to stand, and he stumbles over to me, still bubbling with laughter as he manages to speak into my ear, pushing the microphone away so he can't be heard. "You look ridiculous, Joel," he slips his arm around my shoulder and poses for the audience, and cameras flash, "but fucking sexy. My beautiful bride."

I grin. "You think you can play now?"

He looks over his shoulder. Billy and Paul are on their feet now and capable of holding their guitars, at least, and Chris is now upright on his stool. "Yeah, but don't blame me if I start giggling when I'm singing."

"Giggle? Benji, you're the butch, you never giggle."

He leaves my side and picks up his guitar, stepping up to his microphone. "Sorry about that, folks, we were under the false impression that Joel was going to be here, not Joelle."

I just laugh as Benji starts playing again. "You come in cold, you're covered in blood..."

Straight after the show, I retreat to my dressing room. I wonder how long it'll be before-

Benji bursts in behind me and kicks the door shut behind him, tears pricking his eyes as he fights with the part of his brain that sees my current state as humourous. "You look even more beautiful in the light, Joelle."

I pout as he slips his arms around my waist. "Hey, I'm still Joel," I wrinkle my nose up, "I suppose you'd prefer I was a girl?"

He shakes his head and tugs my veil off of me before planting a kiss on the tip of my nose. "No, definitely not," he grins as he uses the Australian term he learned from some TV show, "you're a huge hunk-a-spunk, Joel."

I lean in to kiss him, but he pulls away from me. "Wait, I have something for you."

He reaches into his pocket, hiding the object in his hand, and takes my hand in his other. His eyes gaze deeply into mine, and a smile plays at his lips. Not his usual cocky grin, but a real, happy smile. "Do you, Joel Madden, take me to be your not-so-lawfully wedded husband?"

The really pathetic thing is, I think this dress is pumping me full of eostrogen. I sniffle as I try to hold back real tears. "I do."

We're silent for a moment, then he nudges me. "Hey, you have to ask me the same question."

I blush a little. "Oh. Right," I press my forehead against his and begin to speak, but it's barely more than a whisper. "do you, Benjamin Madden, take me to be your not-so-lawfully wedded," I pause and chuckle, "wife?"

The whole affair seems so silly, but I know he's dead serious about it. He takes a step back and lifts my left hand to his lips, kissing each knuckle before he slips the ring he's been hiding onto my finger, and I peer down at it. It's just a simple silver band, but upon closer inspection, I notice it has words engraved into it. "I do," he murmurs softly, "and it says 'Building castles in the sky'."

I tug him into my arms and hold him close, kissing his ear, his jawline, his neck, wherever I can possibly reach, and then as soon as he pulls away the slightest bit, I press my lips hard against his, tasting my own salty tears as they flow down my cheeks and onto my lips. His hands reach up and brush my tears away, and when we pull away I'm practically blubbering. "I love you, Joel."

I look at him through blurry eyes, but I can see every detail anyway. I can close my eyes and still see every detail, right down to the way his lip is trembling ever-so-slightly, and that sparkle in his eye. I even know exactly what he's going to do next, and I start singing with him. "Just the two of us, building castles in the sky, just the two of us..."

Benji and I.