Some Things Cannot Be Fixed, They Can Only Be Carried

Epilogue - No Matter What; You Keep Going

"That's all you can do in this world, no matter how strong the current beats against you,
or how heavy your burden, or how tragic your love story.
You keep going."
- Robyn Schneider

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August 21st 2018

A big promise.

A big, beautiful promise.

I didn't think I would ever see one being made, not with my own eyes at least.

I didn't see myself dressing up in neat clothes, giving Haruka a matching outfit too, before walking to the Iwatobi shrine where we've all drawn so many fortune notes before each big game, every opportunity we got. Until just one month ago, I never would've thought something this special and sacred to happen in a place this important to me and all of my close friends.

I didn't expect to gather here, waiting at the bottom of the shrine's stairs, surrounded by all of my friends and strangers I didn't even know excised in the first place.

I never expected that everyone would be getting together, all of us, for this special occasion. To see Nagisa walk down the a flight of stairs, away from the small shrine, wearing a white kimono decorated nicely with pale pink flowers, holding a bouquet of the same flowers in his hands.

Followed on the foot by nicely dressed and happily crying family members. Cheered on by friends who've gathered on the side of the stairs, throwing cherry blossom petals in their honor.

Nagisa's being guided by Rei, who's got the flower pedals in his hair and a wide smile on his face.

They look so happy, I can see their smiles from afar, getting bigger and wider as they start to reach the bottom of the stairs. This is where we're gathered; the small group of people closest to Nagisa and Rei, the people who may congratulate them the soonest of all friends.

Nagisa and Rei pause at the bottom of the stairs, and now that they're standing under the arches and surrounded by all of their family and friends, they know there's one thing left to do. Nagisa leaps himself into Rei's arms, Rei's barely able to catch his falling friend, causing their big moment to look somewhat clumsy; very on brand for those two, to slightly mess up the kiss of the whole wedding.

That's about the only thing I did see coming today; I just expected them to probably miss the big kiss, the one that came right after the big ceremony with just their families. Other than that today's completely unexpected to me. It's only been one month that the invitation was suddenly on our doormat, and Haruka and I had been invited to a "smalltime wedding" at Iwatobi shrine on August 21st. Up to that moment, I would've never expected Nagisa and Rei to marry; not when they're just twenty-three years old and to my knowing have just known each other for about five years.

I didn't expect them to have a wedding with so many people, while calling it a "smalltime wedding".

And I certainly did not expect them to marry on an unlucky date like today; the 21st of August.

But they were sure about it; they said they wanted to make a special date, not just a sad day each year, it would become our friend-group's big and happy, and a little sad and nostalgic, anniversary; it sounded to me like something that Nagisa had come up with, but Rei went all in too, saying that he agreed with Nagisa and that it should become a day when we could get together, with all of us, each year and drink one together and smile and laugh and possibly cry a little too.

That's what they're doing now as well; mixing all emotions with each other. Rei and Nagisa still manage to shed tears, even when they're almost tumble over from laughing so hard.