#masae

Koyomi sighs as she pushes herself off the wall and makes her way to her brother. A smile creeps itself onto the corners of her mouth as she reaches out for him, fingers surprisingly gentle against his neck as she fixes his red bowtie.

“Breathe, Reki.” Reki takes a deep breath which has Koyomi smiling even more. “You know, you could walk down the aisle in your underwear and Langa would still think you’re the most perfect, most good-looking bastard in the world.”

Reki lightly shoves his sister, who lets out a snort as she stumbles back. Still, her smile eases Reki’s nerves a little, leaving him with a matching expression. She’s right, of course she is, and Reki knows it, but still, he can’t help but be in shambles over this. This is his wedding with Langa. Dreamy Langa. Perfect Langa. His best friend first. The love of his life, for crying out loud! Reki’s actually marrying the guy! Reki is marrying Langa, and everything starts in only a few minutes! Reki has minutes before everything turns on its head and changes. Everything is changing!

“Reki!” Koyomi gives a tug on his bowtie, the shock of the jolt just enough to pull him from his spiraling thoughts. “I said: breathe. You’re gonna give yourself a panic attack at this rate, and it is not the time for that.”

“I’m fine!”

Amber eyes narrow onto Reki, and he feels himself shrink under the intensity of the gaze. While she may be smaller than him, he knows she can very well take him in a fight, and she is not above hitting him on his wedding day. Call it sibling love, if you will. But Koyomi is the definition of compact strength, and Reki doesn’t want today to be the day he learns what she’s capable of while in a dress and heels. If there’s one thing he’s learned growing up, it’s that for some weird twisted reason, the more impractical the outfit, the more Koyomi is capable of kicking ass.

“What have we been telling you for basically the entirety of your existence? About the whole ‘I’m fine’ thing?”

“That whenever I say that I’m fine, I’m actually not fine?”

“Exactly. So just—” Koyomi takes a step back, assessing her work— “take a deep breath and remind yourself that soon enough, you’ll get to see Langa. You’ll get to be all stupidly smiley and all your worries – useless worries at that! – will simply vanish. And just so you know, he’s also nervous as hell.”

“You saw him?”

Reki feels his head spin once more. This is getting more and more real as the minutes go by. What had once been nothing but a fantasy, something his 17-year-old self used to think about in bed instead of sleeping, is now his reality. To think that this had once been but a silly fantasy, a dumb princess story that was totally impossible. But as always, the universe has a way of turning the impossible into a reality, and here stands Reki, Reki who is so terribly excited and nervous at the idea of finally getting to tie the knot with his forever. He’s marrying Langa. He’s marrying his best friend. He’s finally going to be able to vow infinity to Langa, for real this time. And of course, the stress he’s been trying so hard to brush away these past few months crashes against his fickle brain, reminding him of all the ways a perfect fantasy can be burned to the ground. But also, for some strange reason, the idea of Langa also being stressed, it calms him ever so slightly.

“You should’ve seen his mom; the poor woman was trying to calm him as he kept digging through his stuff. I didn’t catch everything she was saying to him since they were doing that thing where they flip between English and Japanese, but I can assure you that he wants this to be as perfect as you do. He wants it to be perfect for you, Reki.” Koyomi’s hands are warm against Reki’s cheeks. And it’s calming, the way she holds him. It’s the same calming touch their mother has. “Your husband-to-be is also going crazy, terrified that he’s somehow not perfect enough for you.” And her smile, it has to be one of the brightest ones Reki’s ever seen. “You two dimwits are literally soulmates! You’re both idiots that need to be reminded that you’re already perfect for each other. You’re so perfect for each other that I might actually vomit from how cute you are. You’ve been perfect since the very beginning, and a wedding isn’t going to change that. So just… It’s just gonna be perfect!” Koyomi’s amber eyes shine as she squishes her brother’s cheeks, pulling a squeak out of him. “Reki! Reki, you’re getting married! You’re getting married to Langa, and he’s gonna be your husband for real! You’re actually getting married and you’re gonna have a husband!”

Reki takes a shaky breath that turns to a giggle as Koyomi practically chants the word husband over and over again. It’s like they’re little kids again, playing make-believe in the yard together. It’s like they’re children all over again, but they aren’t. They’re both fully grown adults, both with lives that are finally taking off. They’re both set for life, Koyomi graduating from university real soon and starting a job she’s been dreaming of for years, and Reki with his ever-growing brand name and a husband only minutes away. They feel like little kids as they jump and dance around the room, but they’re so much more now that they’re grown. This is so much more exciting because they’re grown.

It’s nice having Koyomi in his arms. When was the last time they had hugged? Forever ago, probably. It’s been so long since they’ve been this close; life got in the way and they forgot what it feels like to be in the same room, spending time with one another. It’s been forever since the last time it was just the two of them, even longer since the last time they didn’t bicker. Today, right now, it’s a nice reminder of how things can be. It’s nice knowing that deep down, under that annoyed exterior, Koyomi really is just Reki’s caring little sister that gets just as excited as him with things like this. She’s still his Komi, his little sister that will dance around the room. She’s still his Komi, his favorite hypewoman.

“And then there’s gonna be music and everyone is gonna enjoy themselves and mom is—”

“Where’s mom?” Reki feels himself suddenly tense, all the worst-case scenarios flooding in. “She’s not bailing on me, is she? She promised she’d walk with me, and I don’t think I can do it without her.”

Koyomi scoffs as she gives Reki one last squeeze before wiggling out of his embrace. “As if she would miss the first wedding of the family.” Warmth and serenity fills Reki at the sight of the sunshine shimmering in his sister’s amber eyes. “Mom would literally fight a zombie apocalypse to be here if she had to.”

“You…” Reki sighs, light laughter on his lips, as he pokes the girl’s cheek. “You’re probably right. But really? A zombie apocalypse?”

“What?”

“You’ve been spending way too much time with Miya.”

A smile eases its way onto Reki’s lips as Koyomi scoffs again, arms crossed over her chest. He isn’t sure if that’s a blush that’s starting to blossom under her skin or if it’s the makeup that’s now really popping under the burning summer sun, but regardless, she doesn’t seem too interested in addressing his accusation. She seems far keener on getting his last-minute touches down, one last straightening of his bowtie, a tug on his vest, and a quick and futile attempt at taming his tangles.

“There. If Langa wasn’t already so disgustingly madly in love with you – which he is, don’t try to convince me otherwise – he would fall head-over-heels in love with you right here and now.” Her eyes lock with his, a sudden look of seriousness overshadowing the glee that shimmered just moments ago. “You look good, Reki. Amazing even.” A grin illuminates the girl’s face. “My brother is the hottest groom, and Langa is one lucky man to spend forever with you.”

“Your boyfriend dared you to say that, didn’t he?”

“Oh my god, Miya’s not my boyfriend!”

“Who said anything about Miya?”

Koyomi inhales sharply before shoving Reki aside. Her heels click against the hardwood floor as she fetches the purse she had tossed onto the bed a little earlier. This time, there’s no mistaking the blush that takes over her face, embarrassment now impossible to conceal as Reki laughs. She doesn’t look very happy, but also, he knows he’s safe for the day. She wouldn’t hurt him on his wedding day, right? No, she’s not that mean. Hopefully.

“Mom’s gonna be here in like two minutes, so have fun being alone during those two long, insufferable minutes.” She grumbles something under her breath, something that weirdly sounds like needing a drink, which pulls yet another string of giggles from Reki. “I come here in peace, trying to calm you and help you get ready, and you have the audacity to blatantly attack me. The absolute disrespect!”

“I love you, Komi.”

Seeing her turn around, a slight smile pulling at the corners of her mouth, Reki can’t help the tears that start to well up at the corner of his eyes. Sure, it’s probably just because he’s an emotional mess right now, but it’s nice seeing Koyomi smile so unguardedly. It’s nice seeing her without some façade. It’s nice just seeing her, his little sister, the girl he grew up with. And when she says it back, returning to his arms and hugging him like when they were kids and needed a safe space, he melts. Reki melts, silent tears streaming down his cheeks as he hugs his little sister back.

“I love you too, Reki. And today’s gonna be perfect, just how you dreamed it would be. And,” Koyomi tightens her embrace, “I mean it when I say Langa’s super lucky to be getting married to you. No one’s better than my big brother.”

“My babies are actually getting along!”

Masae’s face glows with pride as Reki and Koyomi slowly step away from each other. Her hands are clasped over her heart, and Reki swears he sees tears forming at the corner of his mother’s eyes. He knows she’s proud of him, of Koyomi, of all her children, but seeing her like this, seeing that fond expression decorate her face, Reki can’t help but rush to his mother’s arms, melting into her. And as she wraps her arms around him, everything is right. There’s nothing quite like a mother’s embrace. There’s nothing like a mother’s love to make everything better, better than they already are.

Her hands are warm against Reki’s cheeks as she lifts his head from her shoulder. Her smile, it means everything to Reki. His mother means everything to him, and he hopes she never forgets it, not that he’ll ever let her.

“Are you ready, honey?”

Reki gives her a curt nod as he links his arms with hers. It’s now or never. It’s now and he knows it. It’s now as he turns to Koyomi, extending his hand to her as he grins from ear to ear.