CONTENT WARNING: there is a very brief allusion to mondo's backstory as established in chapter 22— specifically, to the sexual abuse. it is VERY brief and is in no way explicit, but better safe than sorry! i wouldn't want the line to catch someone off guard if they'd rather not think about that sort of thing right now.
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"Are you sure it's okay?"
"For the six hundredth time, ya look great. C'mon."
Kiyotaka studied himself in the side mirror of Mondo's car and adjusted his tie once more. He wanted everything to look perfect. Even if he'd relaxed quite a bit, that aspect of his personality remained.
"It's likely that I'm only going to be a best man once," Kiyotaka argued. "It's not like I have any siblings. I have to look presentable!"
"I thought you were the maid of honor?"
"That's— Shut up!"
Kiyotaka gave his boyfriend a half-hearted shove and then took a moment to squint at him. Mondo Oowada looked like a different man in a suit. None of his tattoos were visible, and he'd removed his earrings. Getting his hair to imitate something even mildly formal had been a pain, but it was neatly combed back and away from his face and pulled into some kind of wavy ponytail.
"I hate this fuckin' thing," Mondo grumbled, pulling at the edge of one of his own sleeves when he noticed Kiyotaka's gaze there. Kiyotaka weakly punched him in the chest. "Woulja quit hittin' me?" He chuckled.
"You just hate wearing actual sleeves," Kiyotaka mocked. Mondo smirked at him.
"Well, yeah, but if you had guns like THESE—"
"If you flex I'm breaking up with you."
"You wouldn't dare."
Kiyotaka wasn't very good at pretending to find Mondo annoying anymore. He pressed into his side and planted a kiss on the underside of his jaw. It felt almost naked without the stubble he'd gotten so used to, but he had been the one to make Mondo shave for the occasion, so he couldn't complain.
They linked arms and made their way up the dirt path together. There was not yet any sort of sign that designated the place as a sanctuary. The owners still weren't sure what to call it. Kiyotaka could hear distant chatter (and what sounded like piano music) that told him he was headed in the right direction. Not that he needed the direction— being part of the bridal party meant that he'd been there for a lot of the planning and a brief rehearsal.
Before they could reach the venue proper, though, they heard the screeching of tires and another car rolled into the lot behind them, and a bit too quickly at that. The occupants spilled out and ran after them. It took Kiyotaka a moment to recognize two of them.
"Bro!" Daiya greeted his younger brother with a fist pound. "Promise I won't mess up your hair," he mumbled, likely thinking that only Mondo could hear him, and they both laughed. Daiya usually greeted Mondo by wrestling him under one arm and using the other hand to tousle his hair. It was likely just to remind him that he was still the taller one, and that he was still in charge.
Daiya had brought along his favorite employees. Kiyotaka had seen them a few times since first meeting them, but never like this. Ibuki's hair didn't have those odd horns and Leon wasn't wearing his piercings. They looked like different people that way. Ibuki, especially, looked like someone else, or like something was missing. Kiyotaka had apparently forgotten that she didn't actually have horns.
"Ibuki does know when and how to tone it down," she joked. Then she moved one shoulder, and it jostled the large item that she had strapped to her back. "But only when it comes to the clothes! Music doesn't take take instructions from anybody."
Kiyotaka wasn't sure what that meant, but Ibuki would know about that more than he would. He had been promised that she was a very talented guitarist and trusted the word of those people. There was one other musician that he hadn't met yet. It was a small "band", but good enough for such a small occasion. Daiya seemed to be helping Ibuki out by carrying her speaker.
When the group set off together and Kiyotaka caught a glimpse of the venue proper, he gasped at the setup. Sonia had thrown the rehearsal dinner at a little restaurant in town, where she'd explained that the venue's finished state was a surprise. And she and her people had outdone themselves with such a small budget. It was a little fairytale, with string lights and lacey ribbon everywhere and wooden benches for aisles. The usual white wedding arch had been replaced with something more akin to a wisteria trellis fashioned from branches, the draping purple flowers forming a canopy. Many birds had made themselves at home already, like Gundham's very presence made a place feel safe for them, and they seemed a proper part of the picture. More notable than all of that, though, was the fact that they'd somehow gotten a proper piano out there. It sat on a small platform on the grass.
"H-Hello!" Kiyotaka greeted somewhat weakly as he ran to the instrument. Mondo and the others waited for him by the table where they were meant to sign in and leave their gifts and donations for the sanctuary. "How on earth did you manage this?"
The pianist, a pretty young blonde woman, paused what she was doing to look up at him and smile.
"I'm not so sure myself. I was just told that they would take care of it. And they did! I would have just brought along my keyboard otherwise, but it's definitely much nicer to have a real piano. Nothing quite matches the sound, and it's really romantic!"
"I took care of that," a booming voice announced from just behind Kiyotaka. He turned and was greeted with a somewhat familiar face. The pianist, meanwhile, beamed at the newcomer. The kind of smile that said 'Oh! I should have known you would do something like that'.
"Oh, um... Nekomaru, right?" Kiyotaka clarified that he was remembering the man's name correctly before shaking his hand. Nekomaru squeezed too hard if only because his hands were likely bigger than Kiyotaka's head. "I guess someone like you could move a piano without too much trouble."
"I did have help, from Akane and from some others and a makeshift cart, but you aren't wrong!" He laughed his superhero-esque laugh, loud and boisterous. It scared away several of the birds.
"Do you know the bride or the groom, or are you just tagging along with Akane? I know Mondo invited her," Kiyotaka wondered aloud.
It was a strange way to throw a wedding, for sure— word of mouth invitations where most of the guests were friends of friends, only bound together by loose threads of coincidence and occupation. But he understood why Sonia had chosen to do it this way. She and Gundham were looking to form a circle. Sonia needed a new family to replace the one she had escaped. And so she had thrown out a wide-ranging rope in the hopes that it would draw the right people to her. He hoped that it would work.
As if to answer the question, Nekomaru patted the pianist's back, and she smiled up at him.
"As a matter of fact, I am a friend of a friend of the bride's, and so is Kaede," he said. "Sonia is good friends with our mutual friend Hajime."
"Oh— that guy. I met him at a few of the functions. Like the rehearsal dinner," Kiyotaka recalled. He was part of the bridal party. And he seemed like a nice enough man, though they hadn't had much time to talk and he always seemed deep in thought about something. He had been very un-surprised to learn that Hajime worked as a counselor. He simply had that sort of presence about him and gave pretty good advice. "You all happen to know her through him."
"We're coworkers!" The pianist, who Nekomaru had referred to as Kaede, said cheerfully. "We all teach classes at the community center."
"Right, right. Where you met Akane," Kiyotaka said, and Nekomaru nodded. "Are more of your coworkers showing up?"
"Aoi's coming, right?" Kaede looked to Nekomaru, who nodded. "She teaches swim classes," she further explained. "Nekomaru teaches several fitness and self-defense classes and Hajime is our counselor! All of our classes and services are made to be accessible for those with low incomes."
"...Huh." Kiyotaka paused. Something tugged at the back of his mind— an inkling, for lack of a better word— but he chose to set that aside for the moment. "Sounds like fun. It must be nice to get along with your coworkers so well."
Kiyotaka definitely didn't miss his old office or his awful coworkers. He could have said that he missed Chihiro, maybe, but they had managed to remain friends despite Kiyotaka's decision to quit. She was still a friend of Mondo's, too. The three of them had even gone out for lunch together a few times. Kiyotaka was expecting Chihiro to arrive any minute now, in fact, as he had invited her, and she had informed him that she was bringing a guest of her own.
"It's the best," Kaede agreed. "I do love performing, but nothing beats sharing music with others. It changes people's lives and I love giving that to people."
She smiled again. Kiyotaka couldn't help but smile back. Kaede was infectiously positive, it seemed. Maybe all of the community center's teachers got along so well just because she was there among them.
Kiyotaka rejoined Mondo soon enough and apologized for the delay by linking arms with him and sticking close to his side as they introduced themselves and chatted with the various guests. They were treated like guests of honor. Sonia had told the story over and over again and people knew how heavily involved Kiyotaka had always been. Many of the new faces lit up with something like recognition when Kiyotaka introduced himself. The swim class girl, Aoi, was a bit rambunctious, but also ridiculously nice. Chihiro arrived wearing a suit, for whatever reason, and in the company of a woman tall and muscular enough to give Nekomaru a run for his money. Chihiro introduced her as her personal trainer.
"I got Chi started on the fitness thing, and we're still gym buddies, but I'm not a professional," Mondo explained. Kiyotaka hadn't heard anything about this, as to his knowledge, Mondo and Chihiro still worked out together at least once a week. He knew that they met up, at least, even if he didn't know what they were doing together. Mondo gestured at the tall woman before Kiyotaka could ask, who bowed politely. "Sakura, though— she's the real deal, alright? Could probably kick my ass."
"I... don't doubt that." Kiyotaka turned to Chihiro and raised a questioning eyebrow. "So. Why the suit? If you don't mind my asking, that is."
Chihiro laughed sheepishly.
"Oh, this?" She did a little twirl. "I'm just, uh, trying something out. I'll tell you about it later, okay?"
"Um. ...Okay."
It seemed like a benign exchange, and maybe it should have been, but something buried in Chihiro's expression said that it was a far more serious conversation than she was letting on. The knowing glance that she exchanged with Mondo only furthered his suspicions. When Kiyotaka asked him about it, though, Mondo insisted that it wasn't his place to talk about it. He was frustrated at being kept in the dark, but he did admire that Mondo was a man of his word. He had apparently promised Chihiro that he would keep his mouth shut and he had every intention of keeping that promise. Mondo would explain what they had been up to later. "Man's honor".
Guests continued to arrive. Mondo had invited his dog sitter, of all people, only to find that said guy already knew the groom and had been invited anyway— the two of them frequently volunteered at the same shelters and ran into one another at fundraisers. Makoto was a friendly guy. Kiyotaka had met him during the rehearsal dinner, at which point he'd been told that Makoto was not just a guest, but a groomsman.
"I was kind of surprised that he asked me," Makoto admitted, fiddling with his suit collar, "but I don't think he knows a lot of people, and he's always been a good guy, so I don't mind. It's my understanding that he doesn't know the other groomsman all that well either. The best man is a good friend, though."
Kiyotaka nodded in understanding. He would likely find himself faced with a similar dilemma if he were to get married anytime soon. He couldn't invite his parents, obviously, and he had no other family, and he had yet to form a new circle of his own. Sonia and Gundham were doing the best that they could, at least, and he admired Gundham's assertiveness even if it sometimes came off as presumptuous.
Akane arrived before long, and she had a friendly exchange of banter with Mondo before joining Nekomaru, who was still keeping Kaede company. Ibuki and Daiya had joined them and were in the process of setting up Ibuki's electric guitar speaker. Kiyotaka didn't know how that kind of sound would blend with a traditional piano, but he was intrigued nonetheless. It seemed to suit the couple— an edgy and modern sound combined with a classical and elegant one.
The mingling was nice, Kiyotaka thought. He hadn't been able to relax around this many familiar faces in such a long time. The word "party", once, had meant hours of being paraded around by his parents and forced to court women he had no interest in, and only to be scolded afterwards for something that he had somehow managed to do wrong, because they just couldn't ever let him be right.
Mondo saw that his mind was wandering and firmly gripped his shoulder, startling him out of that thought pattern.
"Hey," he laughed. "We're all havin' fun here, okay?"
"Right. ...You're right." Kiyotaka gave his hand a grateful squeeze. Just then, his phone buzzed. A quick check of his screen confirmed that it was time. That Sonia needed him. Kiyotaka grabbed Mondo's arm again and pulled him close enough to talk quietly into his ear. "Sonia's ready for me. The ceremony will start soon. You should sit down with everybody else."
"Already, huh?" Mondo laughed again. And Kiyotaka knew why— it was all a bit disorganized. "I'll try an' corral these people. You go on ahead."
Kiyotaka gave him a quick kiss of farewell before he ran back, back towards the parking lot and through another smaller path into the trees until he arrived at a cabin. It wasn't the one that Sonia and her almost-husband lived in. It was more like a welcome lodge for the whole of the place. An entry point where they would one day build an arch. The structure definitely needed some love before it could serve as an information desk, but for now, it was the bride and groom's preparation zone. Kiyotaka was careful to take the door near the back of it, as he had been instructed.
The inside of the cabin (more of a shack, really) was dusty, and there were gaps and holes in the floorboards in desperate need of repair. The glass in the windows needed polishing and the screens would likely have to be replaced. The door creaked on its rusty hinges as Kiyotaka had to practically force it open on its crooked frame. It was a run-down building and it provided a stark contrast to the sight that awaited him once he was safely inside.
"Sonia!" He ran forward and greeted his friend in an embrace. If he didn't know better he would have mistaken her for some sort of elven princess. "You— You look— This is—"
He didn't have the right words. Years of repression and keeping quiet meant that he still wasn't the best at expressing himself, try as he might. He laughed and let the bride pull him into a hug instead. She didn't squeeze too light, likely in an attempt to protect her outfit and her makeup.
"You do not have to say anything," she assured him quietly. She squeezed his hand and they shared a private smile. "I'm just glad you're here. I didn't want to bother you until it was necessary, seeing as you came with a date and all." She winked. After a long moment in which they both absorbed the atmosphere, she did a little twirl. "Do you really like it? I was afraid that it might be a bit too minimalistic. Considering the way that I was raised, that is. My parents would have had me in a ball gown so gaudy it would hurt to look at. You betcha!"
"I'm telling you, it's perfect," the only other woman in the room said emphatically, ignoring Sonia's admittedly strange-sounding use of common expressions. This woman, too, was someone that Kiyotaka recognized from the rehearsal dinner. A redhead named Mahiru. She was holding something that Kiyotaka hadn't expected to see there.
"...Is that a camera?" Kiyotaka groaned at his own question. "I-I mean— of course it's a camera, but—"
"I knew what you meant," Mahiru laughed, holding up the object in question. "I'm also the wedding photographer! I'm doing it for the exposure just this once, mind you."
"How are you supposed to take pictures when you're standing up there with the rest of us?"
"I'm gonna get plenty at the reception, but as for the ceremony, all I really HAVE to capture is the kiss, right? I'll just find a good spot when that time comes. A little awkward, maybe, but it'll work out alright." Mahiru almost waved off his concerns before smiling at Sonia. "I had to do a bunch of shoots for her family. Stuffy rich people portraits, you know. It's not my style— I definitely prefer happy occasions like this one. I like taking pictures of people's smiles most of all."
"Well, then. If you say that you can handle it, I trust that you can. You're the professional." He gave her a quick bow that was meant to be polite. She snickered as she returned the gesture. Kiyotaka didn't know what was so funny to her.
Hajime, too, was in the room. It was a smaller bridal party than one usually saw, but Kiyotaka imagined that Sonia wouldn't trade the amount of love and support in that room for anything else. Sonia didn't need much more help getting ready. Kiyotaka helped her adjust some of the flowers in the crown on her head, but Mahiru had done a good enough job of everything else. Kiyotaka was surprised to hear that Hajime and the others had gotten the dress made for her at an absolute steal of a price. And while it was a bit simple, Sonia made it work.
"I hope that this mascara holds up," Sonia joked as Mahiru gave her veil some final adjustments. "We searched far and wide for the best waterproof brand! I just knew I would likely cry at some point."
"I actually used to cry a lot," Kiyotaka admitted sheepishly. "I haven't been that way in a long time, but... today could always change things." A part of him hoped that he could keep it together. He was still, technically, somewhat early into his relationship with Mondo, and he didn't want the man to get the impression that Kiyotaka was emotionally unstable.
But, hell, maybe he already had an impression like that and it hadn't changed things one bit. Mondo had stood by his side while he crashed his car three times and faked an entire engagement and punched his own dad in the face, and if those things hadn't scared him off, it was likely that nothing ever would.
It was unfortunate, but Sonia's parents weren't attending this wedding, and so the task of walking her down the aisle had been left to Kiyotaka. No parents on Gundham's side, either— just a memorial photo of his mother perched on a special seat in the front row. She had passed away after a long battle with chronic illness and Gundham didn't like to talk about it. He didn't like to talk about his estranged father, either. He'd refer to him as a "demon" whenever he came up. Kiyotaka didn't know what that meant in any literal sense, but he could relate to that kind of feeling.
A door to the side of Kiyotaka burst open, and out stumbled a vaguely familiar man with bright pink hair. Kiyotaka's brow furrowed as he tried to place him from... somewhere. He didn't know. The intruder took a moment to catch his breath (apparently at the sight of Sonia and not from any kind of physical exertion) before he spoke.
"I-I just came to let you guys know that Gundham is ready to go," he blurted out. "Guy's fussy about wearing a tie properly for some reason, but we've got it under control now."
Sonia smiled knowingly.
"You had to let him wear his scarf on top of the suit, didn't you?"
The pink-haired man let out a sheepish laugh.
"How did you know?"
"He doesn't like it when people can see his neck. I'm not sure why. I think he may have some insecurities that he has yet to divulge to me..."
"I-I'm sorry to interrupt, but do I know you from somewhere?" Kiyotaka interjected. The other man looked at him a bit strangely, squinted, and then nodded.
"Not really, but I think I remember seeing you. At Daiya's place, right? The shop?"
"Oh!" Kiyotaka scoffed at his poor memory. He was unusually hard on himself for forgetting things, which was another habit he would have to break in time. "Right, right. You're a friend of Mondo's, then, aren't you? How is it that you also know Gundham?"
"Maintenance." He shrugged. "This place feeds a whole lot of plants and animals. There are animal feed and water irrigation systems that I helped set up. He posted something online about not having a lot of money but being willing to actually help with the labor and supplies, so I thought, hey, why the hell not? If I'm gonna do cheap work for anything, an animal sanctuary seems nice. Decided to buy myself some karma."
"And we have every intention of repaying you more properly once the place is on its feet," Sonia added. She smiled somewhat deviously as she flexed a bicep. "And now I can help, too!"
"You sure can," the man agreed. Kiyotaka didn't miss the undertone in his voice. Something between admiration and jealousy. He kept eying Sonia. And she was a beautiful woman, so it was easy to understand, but Kiyotaka had trouble keeping his laughter contained. One of the groomsmen had a bit of a crush on the bride.
"Well, then, it's nice to meet you, um..." Kiyotaka offered his hand for a polite shake, but his head drew a blank at the man's name. His hand was grasped firmly and Kiyotaka noted many calluses there, likely from years of manual labor.
"Kazuichi," he said. "And you're Kiyotaka, right?" He snickered as soon as Kiyotaka nodded. His smirk was all too familiar for Kiyotaka's liking. "Y'know, I was at the shop the morning after the bar thing."
Kiyotaka's face flushed.
"Oh, god," he sighed. Kazuichi laughed.
"Hey, nobody was judging you! We were all making fun of Mondo."
"Why?!"
"Dude." Kazuichi rolled his eyes. "I don't know how you didn't catch on earlier. That guy was SO smitten with you. It was ridiculous! He was like a teenage girl dreaming about her favorite member of some boy band or something! I'd never seen a grown man act like that!"
Kiyotaka gaped at Kazuichi for a long moment.
"Really?"
"Totally."
"I might have to keep that information up my sleeve. ...To embarrass him with at an opportune moment, of course."
"You do that." Kazuichi gave a sort of salute and nodded at the others before he returned to his side of the building. Kiyotaka laughed as he shook his head once he was gone— it was a small world, he thought. Or, perhaps, it wasn't all that small, and Kiyotaka and the others had been fated to meet certain people. Fate had very stubbornly planted Mondo in his path on many occasions and it could likely do the same with others. Which made him curious about something. He turned to Sonia.
"How did you meet Gundham anyway? You've never actually told me."
"Oh?" Sonia giggled. "It was one of those fundraiser balls my parents threw for an animal hospital. He was there with an advocacy group to donate a generous sum he had raised on his own. I might have hardly noticed if not for— well, my parents were being especially overbearing. I had gotten yelled at and went to hide in the foyer and cry. He found me there.
"I... told him that I was fine, and that he didn't have to stay, but he sat beside me until I was ready to go back out. He didn't say much, but I thought the gesture was kind. I was lying when I said I wanted to be alone and he knew that somehow. A-And I suppose you could say that the rest is history!"
"That's... really sweet!" Mahiru choked. Kiyotaka nodded his agreement. He had expected something strange, considering who Gundham was. Thinking on it, it made sense that he could pick up on silent cues when he wanted to. Animals couldn't talk. Bizarre and overbearing and crude as he could be, Gundham did care about the little things that couldn't protect themselves.
Kiyotaka wanted more details— he suddenly felt like one of the gals, wanting to gossip about romance the way that he did in that moment— but first things first, he had to help his friend get married. It was time. They heard the distant musical queue and the vibrating cell phones signaling the start of the ceremony. The cabin door opened and closed.
He paid close attention to his phone and counted off the pairs. First Gundham and his best man. Mahiru left to walk with Makoto. The uneven proportion of genders meant that Hajime and Kazuichi had to walk together next, though they both, thankfully, seemed unbothered by it. His throat seemed to close as the cabin emptied out. He knew that once the other "couples" had walked, Makoto's younger sister would be scattering flower petals from a basket as she made her way to her brother's side. He felt like the music was getting louder despite not having moved yet. He was barely aware of Sonia's hand on his back, keeping him grounded, reminding him to stay in the present moment.
A beat. Another vibration. Showtime. Kiyotaka and the blushing bride exited the cabin together in a nervous rush of inelegant movements.
No big deal, Kiyotaka told himself as he linked a careful arm with her. They had practiced this part, at least. Just breathe. And don't cry! He took a deep, deep breath to steady himself and straightened his back. Sonia squeezed his elbow, just once, and very briefly, but he knew what she meant and neither one of them had to say anything more about it. Then, he marched forward, careful to match her pace.
Ibuki and Kaede knew what they were doing. The music somehow blended naturally. So much so that it faded from Kiyotaka's ears and was replaced by his own heartbeat. The others waited in their seats. Kiyotaka caught sight of Mondo's head peering around for a glimpse of him. He was able to see, when he got closer to him, that Gundham had allowed Mondo to sit in the front row and hold his late mother's portrait in his lap, and he did so tenderly.
Gundham must have felt like his mother was lonely in that chair. And Mondo knew loss— he had lost his innocence a very long time ago without any say in the matter. Mondo knew pain. And so he guarded her carefully, as if guarding her with his life. As if providing for her the protection he had so often been denied.
He tried not to look at Gundham. His expression was what Kiyotaka had expected, but he understood that that look was not meant for him, so he allowed Sonia to have it on her own. It was about them. He felt her frame tremble slightly against his just before they parted. Not from fear, and not from apprehension, but likely from something akin to exhilaration. He already heard one of those telltale sniffles that told him someone was trying not to cry. At least it wasn't him! He refused to break so early.
Sonia kissed Kiyotaka's cheek before allowing him to take his spot amongst the "bridesmaids". He flashed a warm smile of gratitude at Mondo, letting his gaze dwell briefly on the photograph he carried, before he cleared his throat and turned his eyes to the officiant.
Neither Sonia nor Gundham was a religious sort, so they hadn't opted for a priest. Their officiant was a longtime friend of Sonia's family. Admirably, he had broken off his relationship with Sonia's parents upon hearing her side of the story, and he had gotten himself ordained just for this occasion. He winked a subtle wink at someone in the audience. Likely the lavender-haired daughter he'd brought along— a smart and very pretty girl, but a bit strange and eerily quiet.
...Which was, apparently, just fine. This wedding was a testament to oddballs. Kiyotaka was having a difficult time keeping a straight face as he faced one of them directly. Under any other circumstances, he might have screamed at the sight of the best man, now standing across from him, that had evaded him for so long. But he wasn't about to cause a scene. So he pretended, as best he could, that he was not being stared down at by a broad behemoth of a man that made both Nekomaru AND Sakura look like schoolchildren, with a wild mane of hair and an ill-fitted suit, and with a curious nature about him that made Kiyotaka feel like a puny ant under a magnifying glass. Of course that was what Gundham's good friend would look like. Why on earth had he expected a normal person?
He met the best man's eyes. And the giant smiled at him. Kiyotaka was disarmed as quickly as he had armored himself. Because the man had the smile of a gleeful puppy dog. Not a serial killer, and not a caveman. Kiyotaka smiled back. Maybe he shouldn't have jumped to conclusions.
For whatever reason, Kiyotaka remembered little of the actual ceremony. He spent most of it looking at his friends and at the crowd when he could sneak glances at them and imagining what the future might be like. At some point he got distracted wondering if he ought to get married sometime, and about what that would be like, and about what kind of a wedding he would want to have. He'd never really been allowed to think about that. In the previous version of his world it had never been his decision and his parents would have arranged every little detail.
Sonia had sort of wanted to write her own vows, but Gundham had been to shy to do so himself, and she didn't want to be the odd one out, so they stuck to the standard ones with alterations here and there. Love didn't always have to be about flowery speeches and grand gestures, though. Kiyotaka knew that Sonia knew what she was doing because she took the time to remove a single, special flower from her bouquet, one that looked different from the others and that had been bugging Kiyotaka, and she gave it to Mondo— to the Tanaka that hadn't made it to the occasion. And she didn't say anything about it. Gundham apparently hadn't known she had prepared such a measure, but he wasn't particularly surprised, either, and Kiyotaka thought that said a lot of things.
Despite how nice everything else about the ceremony was, though, Kiyotaka just knew that it would all be overshadowed by one particular detail. When it came time to exchange the rings, everyone looked around for a ring-bearer and it occured to Kiyotaka that he had not met one. Gundham, meanwhile, whistled. And shortly after he did so, a pillow seemed to scurry across the grass as if on its own. Only when it was very close could Kiyotaka see the thing that had everyone else laughing. The rings were being presented by a small entourage of hamsters. Kiyotaka knew he'd seen the fat one in a picture at least once. The hamsters brought the pillow close, and Kiyotaka took it from them as Gundham tossed each of them a sunflower seed from his pocket.
Then, of course, was "I do", followed by "you may now kiss the bride". Mahiru, true to her word, had to run away from the bridal party to the center of the aisle to snap photos. Kiyotaka hoped that her shots wouldn't turn out blurry.
He had known in advance that he would probably cry, but he hadn't expected to do it as openly and as frequently as he did that evening. Kiyotaka broke somewhere around "I do", and he wasn't able to quickly stop the tears once they stared falling. He thought, for a moment, that he was losing his mind or something. But Mondo squeezed his shoulder as they walked together to the reception area, the bride and groom off on a separate journey back to the cabin in search of more comfortable dancing clothes.
"You've been holdin' back a while," Mondo whispered into his ear. "Don't sweat it. 'Sides, it's not like you're bawling."
"I-I know, I just..." Kiyotaka tried to delicately wipe away a teardrop with a handkerchief that the pianist had given him. "I just didn't want you knowing I was such a sap this early on."
"You're not a sap." Mondo firmly patted his arm, and he now had Kiyotaka wrestled almost entirely into his grip. "You're just intense."
Kiyotaka grinned wide enough that it hurt his cheeks, and for a second he thought he might cry all over again at the knowledge that Mondo had been paying such close attention for so long. He'd used that phrasing a long time ago, when Mondo had picked him up from the bar.
"Yeah," he agreed. "...Yeah. Intense."
"You were a lot worse at the bar anyway."
"H— Hey!" Kiyotaka was beginning to think that Mondo liked it when Kiyotaka punched him or something. "I happen to know a thing or two about what happened after the bar, you know. I was talking to Kazuichi about it."
"We should hurry n' join the others," Mondo said abruptly. He tried to act all cool about it, but Kiyotaka didn't miss the redness dusted across his cheekbones. He would have to harass him about that later.
The "reception area" was just a field of grass. Which wasn't to say it was not a very nice one— Gundham's cozy little home was visible a short distance away, and a path ran through the middle, and on either side were gardens and pens full of animals. There were tables set up with white sheets across each and other tables full of food. Kiyotaka could see the makings of Gundham's vegan barbecue with the grill already set up. It did look like real meat, and everyone that Kiyotaka asked about the rest of the dishes could note little difference. He'd been unconvinced when Gundham had first proposed the idea, but he apparently did know what he was doing.
"No, he REALLY does," Kazuichi said, bewildered, through a mouthful of some pasta dish. "I'd forget about the merchandising and the donations and sell whatever this recipe is."
Kiyotaka glanced past Kazuichi's shoulder. There was a system of pipes set up throughout the vegetable garden.
"That was you, right? The irrigation setup?"
Kazuichi didn't even bother to look. He'd seen it all before. He was probably tired of looking at it.
"Yeah, yeah. Nothing too special, but it's cost-effective. He's not exactly drowning in money. The really impressive bit is my fully automatic feeder! ...It's not done yet, though. That's gonna take a while."
As Kiyotaka conversed with Kazuichi, Mondo set the photograph of Gundham's mother atop a very small table with nothing else on it. A pedestal just for her, Kiyotaka guessed. Makoto's sister added the rest of her flower petals around it and then it looked quite nice.
There wasn't assigned seating here. That sort of thing, Sonia said, reminded her too much of the formalities and politics of wealth. She reappeared wearing a shorter and more casual white dress, though her crown of flowers remained intact, and Gundham had disposed of his suit jacket and tie and rolled up his sleeves to reveal heavily bandaged arms. People sat wherever they wanted to, getting to know those they hadn't had the time to meet. Mahiru seemed to snap pictures every time she saw someone laughing, and there was a lot of laughter to be had. It was a fun, rowdy group.
There was live music, too. Which had arrived in the most fantastical of ways— the horizon had been clear, and then Mondo had gotten Kiyotaka's attention, and he looked back at that clear vision to find it obscured by five figures and a piano. Nekomaru had gotten Sakura and Daiya and Akane and the best man, Gonta, to help him, and they'd loaded the piano onto some sort of cart, and they'd picked it up and carried it all this distance just so that Kaede could continue to play for everyone. Kiyotaka was certain that Ibuki was about to explode as she scurried to grab her instrument and join in. And since there was a microphone meant for the various toasts and speeches, it turned into some kind of (mildly drunk) karaoke contest. Neither the bride nor the groom objected. In fact, it looked like they were having a great time. Gundham's normally heavy brow lifted and then he looked almost friendly.
There was dancing, of course. The standard couple's first dance, and the speeches Kiyotaka and Gonta had both prepared. Kiyotaka nearly collapsed when he was finished with his. He'd almost made the mistake of locking his knees. Then just about everyone danced, whether alone or in pairs or in groups. There was a conga line full of very intoxicated people at one point. Kiyotaka, ever the buzzkill, made sure to ask that everyone had designated drivers. Gundham's barbecue was a hit and he seemed to feel comfortable behind a grill. As strange as that was for a strict vegan.
Kiyotaka made new friends that evening.
He felt it was safe to say that. He exchanged phone numbers with people who seemed to genuinely like talking to him. Most of the attendees already respected him for his role in making the wedding happen. Others, he was surprised to learn, respected the fact that he had punched his dad in the face. Kazuichi, in particular, as he wasn't very fond of his own father.
"I did a lot worse to mine," Daiya said lowly in Mondo's direction. They shared a knowing laugh and high-fived one another under the table. Daiya seemed embarrassed when he realized that Kiyotaka, too, knew what he was referencing.
The sun began to dip before long. It was a lovely day, with hardly a cloud in sight, but the evening brought with a bit of chill. Kiyotaka added Mondo's suit jacket on top of his own, draping it over his shoulders like a cape. And as the end of the evening approached, and all of the toasts (planned and unplanned) had been made, and everyone had gotten the singing and the dancing and the stories out of their systems, people started to gather together in bunches. Like a brief reunion before they all had to part ways once more.
It was a bit melancholy somehow. Kiyotaka had to remind himself that "goodbye" was not always a "forever" word.
"It's nice to see all of your hard work come to fruition, isn't it?" The lavender-haired girl remarked, looking over the landscape at the tables and decorations. She had introduced herself as Kyouko, and it was the first time she had said much of anything to Kiyotaka. "Sonia told me about it."
Kiyotaka feigned humility and waved the comment off.
"It's not like I did everything. Sonia really did do most of it herself. I just... wanted everything to go perfectly, you know? I kind of can't help it."
"That's not always a bad thing," Mahiru assured him. "I'm picky about my shots. But sometimes you can get yourself too worked up, you know? Everything went just fine. Everyone had a blast."
"I have to be honest— it's been a lot more fun than I expected it to be," Makoto admitted. "Most weddings are so stuffy. This is more like a real party."
"And Sonia looks beautiful," Aoi said emphatically, squeezing Kiyotaka's shoulders and shaking him back and forth. These girls, for whatever reason, were determined to lift Kiyotaka's spirits. Even though they were already very high. Sonia must have told them all that he was an anxious sort.
"She sure does," Kazuichi agreed dreamily, earning himself a sharp elbow from Ibuki.
"Watch your mouth, would you?! That's the bride! The BRIDE!"
"...I didn't have anything to do with the dress," Kiyotaka explained, choosing to ignore those two and hoping that Kazuichi's wandering eyes wouldn't affect his work on Gundham's property. "I just lent her a bit of money for her overall expenses. I believe it was technically Hajime that picked it out? He found the designer, anyhow."
All eyes were on the counselor. He blushed and held up his arms defensively.
"I-I just have a good eye for these things!" He stammered.
The ploy worked, at least. Kiyotaka was free of the many pairs of smothering eyes on him and sighed in relief. He didn't dislike any of the girls. He just needed a bit of a breather. Mondo, eying the distracted crowd to make sure that he and Kiyotaka still had their privacy, tapped his shoulder and leaned in.
"Speakin' of money... ya didn't lend Sonia too much, did you? You'll need some set aside while you're job hunting." He winked. "Not that I don't plan on takin' care of ya."
"Since when do you lecture me about finances?" Kiyotaka joked. "...In all seriousness, it was a very small loan."
"Right. You must be rubbin' off on me." Mondo draped an arm around his shoulder and pulled him in close. "You're gonna be real spoiled once y'move in. Promise."
Ah. That's right. In all of the commotion of the day he had nearly forgotten— his lease was about to run out. And he had decided not to bother renewing it.
In only about a week, he would move all of the packed cardboard boxes in his kitchen into Mondo's house.
And then they would live together.
It was both terrifying and exciting. Kiyotaka had never dated anyone for such a long time, much less moved in with a partner. He was looking forward to being together and afraid that the proximity would drive a wedge between them. He was afraid, just a little bit, but had decided to stop letting the fear of change dominate his life. It had once trapped him in places where he was quite unhappy.
"I had better be," Kiyotaka replied. He tried to sound confident and flirtatious and he failed, but that was alright. Mondo was used to it.
Nekomaru and the other big guns decided to stay behind to help with cleanup and assured Kaede they would take care of the piano. Kiyotaka bid the bride and groom and Chihiro very fond farewells. Mondo did the same for his brother, Akane, Kazuichi, and Makoto.
They all promised to reunite soon. Mondo took Kiyotaka's hand firmly in his own. Kiyotaka marveled at the callouses there, like physical symbols of the hard work that Mondo did. Mondo let him keep the suit jacket, too, and Kiyotaka laid it over his own chest like a blanket once he was safely in the passenger's seat of Mondo's car.
Then Kiyotaka, for what may have been the first time in his entire life, managed to fall asleep in the car. And no one woke him.
He had earned the rest.
————
A/N: back from the motherfuckin dead y'all i know you missed this bitch of a story but anyway. i'm actually not too sure how i feel about this one? figured i was overthinking it and i should just fuckin write bc i can always try and fix it later, but i don't really like the way it flows, because earlier in the story, it would definitely have been split into multiple chapters bc of the many different conversations and interactions. before, each chapter was kind of one "scene" focused on one conversation. but i wanna stick to my nice even chapter numbers instead of expanding it and therefore delaying it again and coming up with more chapter titles, so here we are. it was always gonna be hard bringing this many characters together! the chapter, to me, feels choppy and lacking in something important, but it has its moments.
ps: the kazuichi detail was added to help appease the wounded soudam devotees. he's gonna continue working at the sanctuary and getting to know gundham more, and who knows? maybe sonia doesn't mind sharing. (to clarify, i like both pairings but don't have especially strong feelings for either one and also like them as an ot3. i'm also planning a soudam oneshot and i think that should be pretty cute.)