~ Two Years Later ~

It was a beautiful summer morning. The flowers are all fully bloomed. There’s a constant gust of wind to cool down our skin. The garden is filled with romantic music. And everyone’s smiling and excited.

The place is so full of love. It’s a perfect day for a wedding.

“I think I’ll cry later, unnie” I confessed to Byulyi-unnie, who’s sitting right beside me.

“Yah! You’re going to ruin your makeup if that happens. You’re going to be ugly then!” she teased.

“Yongsunnie thinks I’m always beautiful so I think I can cry if I want to”

“Ah… you’ll be ugly in the pictures” she threatened, giving me a pointed look over our shared vanity mirror.

She winked at my pout as she laughed at me.

I’m in the dressing room with Byulyi-unnie as we get our makeup done. I’ll be wearing a peach chiffon dress since that’s the theme of the wedding while Byulyi-unnie will be wearing a suit on with her peach-colored tie.

It’s not legal to hold a same wedding here in Korea so today was not a wedding for legal purposes but a commemoration and a celebration of love. It’s going to be an intimate event of close family and friends as a witness of an everlasting love.

I’m excited to see what Miss Kim looks like in her dress later. I’ve seen the dress but I have not seen her put it on. She was with Hyejin this whole time and I was with Byulyi-unnie while we were preparing for the wedding. It was Hyejin who saw her with a dress on and same goes for me with Byulyi-unnie.

“Are you excited?” Byulyi-unnie asked.

I giggled at her before holding my face still for the makeup artist. “I should be asking you that. Are you excited?”

“Oh, you know I am. I could not sleep last night. I couldn’t wait for this day to come”

I smiled at the joy I could clearly see on her face. “Do you think you’ll cry later?”

“No” she confidently said. “I will not ruin my makeup for the photos later”

“We’ll see about that”

After we got our makeup done, Byulyi-unnie helped me zip up my dress while I helped her with her tie since her hands started shaking. I just laughed in my mind because I know she’s only calm in the exterior. But her insides are big balls of nerves.

“You’re going to be fine, unnie”

She sighed heavily and gave me a firm nod. “I just need to shake my nerves out”

I bet a million times that she’s going to cry later. I’m not going to say it out loud because it’ll make her nervous. I’ll just prepare a box of tissues later when she’s not looking.

“Your vows?”

She tapped her chest where her inside pocket is. “The ring?”

I pointed at my purse on the vanity table.

“Right…” She released another heavy sigh while I stared at her with a proud smile. “What else is there to prepare?” she mumbled to herself.

I gently patted her shoulder before she could walk away and pace. I brought her into a warm and tight hug, feeling her relax, which made me smile. “I’m proud of you, unnie. I’m sure Hyejin is also looking forward to this day. If she’s not nervous like you are, I’m sure that’s because she is excited”

“Thank you, Wheein-ah”

“So calm down. I got everything ready for you”

She patted my head, careful not to ruin it. “It was the best choice to make you as my maid of honor”

I leaned back to tell her I wasn’t pleased to hear that while she chuckled at my pout and pinched my cheeks.

“Did you even consider someone else in this position? Woah, unnie… I feel so betrayed”

“I’m just kidding, Wheenie. Of course I didn’t think of anyone else other than you”

“You better”

Her parents and younger sister came to wish her luck right before the start of the wedding. Sandeul-oppa also came to take a couple of pictures of Byulyi-unnie with her family before they also asked me to join them.

When it was almost time for the wedding, her family left the room to wait in the garden where the wedding will take place. I tidied up Byulyi-unnie before handing her a bouquet of mixed pink flowers. Hyejin will be carrying the same bouquet later.

“Miss Moon, it’s time for you to head out now” the wedding organizer said.

I smiled at unnie and gave her one last hug. “I’ll be close by if you need anything, okay? Don’t get too nervous”

“Okay. Thank you, Wheein-ah”

We both headed out of the room at the same time but separated ways in the hallway. I’ll be on standby by the platform and she’ll walk down the aisle with Hyejin later.

In the venue, I finally saw my girlfriend wearing her dress. She was already waiting near the platform. With the mood going on in the garden, it felt like I was walking on the center aisle even though I was just on the sides, on my way to her. Like it’s our own wedding.

“You’re very beautiful, darling” she said the moment I was earshot away. Her arms wrapped me around my waist before she leaned down to place a delicate kiss on my lips. Then she kept me at an arm’s length as she ran her eyes down my body. “You’re very beautiful” she whispered, making me both blush and giggle.

“You too, unnie”

And she was. She is always very beautiful, especially if she smiles like how she’s smiling right now. Her cheeks are all plumped up and her dimples looked way too deep in the corners of her lips.

“How’s Byulyi in your room?”

“She’s nervous but she’s trying not to show it. I bet she’ll cry later. Speaking of, I need to prepare a box of tissues for her”

She bent down to grab something underneath her chair and showed me a box of tissues. “Already got some for Hyejin. They can share this”

I giggled as I nodded at her. Thankfully, I don’t need to run around looking for tissues.

“She was already crying before she put on her makeup and she couldn’t stop. It was a huge mess in our room”

I looked closely at her eyes and saw them slightly reddish so I cheekily grinned at her. She noticed me smiling coyly, which prompted her to roll her eyes.

“Yeah… I did too. But only for a short while. Hyejin got under my nerves because she couldn’t get her makeup done”

“Awe….” I leaned my face on my shoulder and . “Are you crying because your Jinnie is already getting married, unnie?”

“Shut up”

I bent down and grabbed the box of tissues underneath her chair. “Here you go, Yongsunnie”

She was trying her best not to cry as she blinked as fast as she could… until she gave up and grabbed a piece to carefully wipe the corners of her eyes.

“I’m sure you’ll cry later too”

“Oh yes. I’m not going to deny that”

The cacophony of voices inside the room quieted down when the music started. All of us stood up and turned around to welcome Byulyi-unnie and Hyejin as they walked down the aisle. They both looked so good together that I think I’m about to cry just seeing them. The wedding just got started.

My Squirtle shell saved me from shedding more tears when she pulled me to her in a back hug.

“Don’t start crying now, baby. It’ll ruin your makeup”

I am pressing the tip of my fingers on the corners of my eyes to stop my tears from falling. “You sound like you’re holding back your tears too”

“Why do you think I am holding on to you?”

I gulped the lump down before I glanced at her. She’s chewing the inside of her cheek while repeatedly blinking her eyes. When our gazes met, we both groaned and chuckled at the same time.

“We’re bad at this,” she said.

“This is all their fault, unnie. I’m just so happy for them”

“Me too”

Hyejin is wearing a white floor-length strapless wedding gown. The flowers that decorated her hair and the flowers in her hand matched the color of Byulyi-unnie’s tie and the flowers in her hands too. Byulyi-unnie was making jokes to Hyejin so she would laugh because she had started crying already.

Watching them do that makes me smile. I know there’s no one else perfect for them but with each other.

They both greeted Byulyi-unnie’s parents at the end of the aisle. And then they headed towards us next. Miss Kim let go of me to give Byulyi-unnie a hug, which is the first I’ve seen from them.

“Make her happy, okay?” Miss Kim said, keeping it short but I can see it in her eyes. She’s looking at Byulyi-unnie in an endearing way that she much rather not say anything about. That she’s welcoming Byulyi-unnie as her sister too.

“I will, unnie”

She gave her a nod before she turned to Hyejin. And all her facial features melted. They both smiled at each other as they hugged while trying their best not to cry. Hyejin failed. And I think I can also hear Miss Kim sniffing back her tears.

“I love you, unnie”

“I love you too, Jinnie-ah.” She pulled back to look at Hyejin with her lips twisted from crying. She suddenly turned her towards Byulyi-unnie. “Go. Don’t make me cry anymore”

Our tears were all mixed with giggles. The two went up to the platform while Miss Kim went back to holding me in her arms. It’s her coping mechanism to stop crying.

I felt her leaning her chin down on my shoulder and smiled when she was still sniffing back her tears. “There, there…” I gently patted her head. “Feel better, Yongsunnie?”

She nodded before snuggling her face closer to my neck. “Yes. Keep doing that, hon”

I added a kiss on her temple to make her extra warm and comfortable.

She hugged me tighter. “Thank you. You’re the best, Whee”

The wedding party ended a little late already. Miss Kim and I struggled to contain our tears during the wedding proper. When we handed the rings, we were already crying in our seats. When the two shared their first kiss as a married couple, we cried harder by then.

Well, I was sobbing while Miss Kim was quietly crying on her own.

I’m not quite sure if I still looked like a decent human being by the time we had to take photos with them.

Jihoon was with us too. He cheered all of us and brought smiles and laughter to our faces. He’s going to be a fine young man when he grows up.

Hyejin and Byulyi-unnie will embark on their one-week honeymoon right after the wedding.

Us, we’ll be going home. Or I’ll be staying at Miss Kim’s house where Ggomo is currently waiting for us.

Two years and we’re still in the same setup. I have clothes and my things at her place. And she has hers on mine too. But in terms of progress, that’s the only progress in our relationship. And yup, Gabriella is still there.

If I’m being completely honest, I’m hoping for more because I’m tired of it. Byulyi-unnie and Hyejin are already married. Seulgi-unnie and Irene-unnie are about to be married. And I know I should not compare my own relationship with others but I’m tired of seeing everyone’s relationship progress and move forward while I’m still stuck with uncertainty.

I love Miss Kim. I wouldn’t stay if I didn't. I would’ve gone away if I did not trust her. But what am I really to her?

“I almost caught the flowers earlier”

“Hmm… The one Jinnie threw?”

“Yes”

It was Joy who caught it. Perks of being such a tall person. And Wendy-unnie was not afraid when Joy kept proudly saying that she’s getting married next.

“Did you want to get it?”

“I wouldn’t stand a chance beside Joy”

She smiled and squeezed my hand to offer her sympathies.