A lot of things happened since then. I told my family that I’m dating Bobby. My mom can’t even hide her happiness. She was jumping from joy, like a mom that just won a lifetime voucher from the supermarket. My sister said that she was kind of expecting it when she heard I met him in college the first time. My dad was mostly quiet at first. I thought he would disapprove, but when I saw how he treated Bobby. I knew deep down he was not against it. And that is good enough when it comes to my dad.

And today is my sister’s wedding and I was one of the bridesmaids. Bobby was elated when he heard that my sister is getting married. He was, of course, invited to the ceremony.

I was behind the big door, standing behind a back I know so well, his hair black, combed back making some of his grey hair peeking through, hand in hand with a woman dressed in white, so beautiful it brought tears to my eyes.

When the door opened, my dad take one leading step, turning his head to meet my sister’s eyes as his own glistened. He took careful step one after another, walking my sister down the aisle. Tears threatened to well up in my eyes. I blinked the tears away, not wanting to get emotional before the ceremony starts.

It is then time for the bridesmaid to step out of the door. I was nervous to walk in front of the people and I can feel the anxiety kicking in. I took a deep breath before stepping out of the door. Once I take one step outside, I was greeted by the yellow sunset with perfect breeze, and I take in everything around me. The line where the sky meets the sea and the sea’s yellow colour from the sky’s reflection can be seen. It’s as if all nature’s perfect colours are set specially as a background for this memorable day. Guests are standing under a glittering subtle lights hanging from the overhead flowers and vines. The sounds of the waves crashing can be heard I was walking down nervously when I caught the eyes of the guy I was so in love with. His eyes immediately turned into a crescent moon, and he mouthed ‘you look so beautiful’. A smile escaped my lips as warmth filled my heart.

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The ceremony went really well. It was now the dinner time. I found Bobby in the crowd and we dive into the food immediately. And when it comes to food, Bobby is all out. Sometimes I wondered if I was in the same rank as food.

Bobby’s parents were also invited. I saw his mom talking to my mom and what surprised me is that during the dance, I thought I saw Bobby’s mom and dad were dancing together.

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After the ceremony is finished, Bobby and I decided to take a stroll near the beach.

“You look so beautiful today” he breaks the silence as we walked hand in hand.

“Well, thank you. You look handsome yourself, mister.” I complimented him back.

“Time passed by so fast, huh. Now your sister is married”

“I know right. It’s still hard for me to believe” I said.

We were again walking in silence, listening to the sound of the waves crashing to the shore.

“Thank you for the past 8 months” this time, I was the one who broke the silence.

He stopped in his track, facing me.

“Thank you. And I want to spend more and experience even more things with you in the future” He said, eyes softening.

“Me too. Let’s experience a lot more together.” I replied him smiling. I was about to start walking again, when he pulled my hand. And I faced him once again.

“When I saw your sister walking down the aisle, I can’t help but think about the future. Our future. I want to make our relationship right. I want us to grow. I want to be with you always. I want to experience, not just more things, but all things with you.”

His eyes glistened under the dark sky. It is shining so brightly, even brighter than the blinding stars painted above us.

While getting lost in his eyes, he said the words that have been reflected through his actions these past months. The words that I unknowingly long to hear was blurted out of his mouth.

“I love you”

My eyes are filled with tears and before I can even try to stop it, the tears fall upon my cheeks. The words that I’ve always wanted to hear from someone I love. Suddenly all the memories from when I met him again came flooding back like a scrolled film. A lot of things happened since then. I’d crushed on someone. Hard. Then I got my heart broken. I got hurt.  I learnt a lot. I’ve changed. I fell in love. But this time, that person loves me back.

I took a step towards him and buried my face on his chest as I felt his protective arms enveloping me in a warm embrace.

“I love you” I replied. And as if saying once is not enough, I said it once again. “I love you”

Not wanting to lose, he said, “I love you. I love you so much it’s insane!”