Time Setting: Ryuugazaki Rei and Nagisa, ages 27 (Fall)

The autumn of that year came both quickly and slowly, as if it knew it was being fervently waited upon, but also as if it was gently teasing those waiting for it. All throughout Iwatobi, the leaves of its many trees gradually turned a vibrant variety of oranges and reds, bringing a crispy and warm glow to the port town.

And as twenty-seven-year-old Ryuugazaki Rei looked out the window of the inn that had been borrowed for what was bound to be one of the most important days in his life, he saw the star-shaped leaves of the elegant maple trees in the grove and could not help but marvel at how beautiful the season seemed. The way that the golds and rubies and burgundies seemed to mingle and dance together in the autumn breeze charmed the blue-haired man, and his violet eyes took on a shine when he also saw the occasional flashes of white that fluttered among the leaves—butterflies.

He had been sitting next to the glass, cheek propped in one hand and admiring the scenery, when he heard a knock from outside the waiting room.

"Come in!" After the brunette gave the call, the door opened and a chestnut-haired man with hazel eyes and smart under-rim glasses entered. Once he saw Rei in the room, a boyish grin spread across his round face.

"Looking good, Ryuugazaki!" Komura's eyes twinkled good-naturedly as he approached Rei. "You feeling nervous for today?" At this question, the brunette gave him a slightly jittery smile.

"It's my wedding day, Komura. Even I can't pretend I'm not nervous!" Although he had forgotten the nervousness for a while as he looked out the window, the feeling came back after the brunette's former classmate and friend mentioned it. Seeing Rei self-consciously readjusting his glasses, the brown-haired man laughed and sat down on one of the spare chairs in front of him

"Yeah—I remember you always got real jittery before big events like this, even though you always tried to cover it up by trying to sound confident." His teasing voice caused Rei to cough in indignation and his cheeks to color slightly in embarrassment.

"For your information, Komura-kun, I was not as 'jittery' as you are implying! As you may recall, I overcame the nervousness each and every time!" he huffed. Noticing that in his embarrassment he had slipped back into using honorifics with his name—Rei had come to drop the –kun over the years, although he had never stopped using polite speech to address Komura—the brown-haired man laughed silently in his head.

"Really? You sounded pretty jumpy when Hazuki's older sisters showed up here just now. Even though you've known them for all these years!" At the mention of the three Hazuki daughters, Rei's cheeks turned a darker red, the flush traveling all the way to his ears as he sputtered out an answer.

"Th-that was becau—th-they were asking i-inappropriate ques—i-it's none of your concern, Komura!" Indeed, even after eleven years, the Hazuki sisters still took to teasing Rei to flustered shambles and still enjoyed doing so just as much. It was during those eleven years that the brunette came to understand what their little brother might have gone through as a child, with his older sisters constantly teasing him to tears and dressing him up like a girl back then. But at the same time, Rei had also learned over those years just how much the sisters cared about their baby brother. And although the three women had poked fun at Rei with rather embarrassing jokes and questions about matters that should probably stay private, they had also given him their blessings before they left the waiting room, saying that they were counting on him to make their 'favorite little brat' happy (even though it did come with a cheerful 'Or else' from Naomi).

"It's only because you give them plenty of material to tease you about," Komura replied jokingly. "Even back in high school, you were so obvious about your feelings for Hazuki—to think that you only got more obvious over the years." At this statement, Rei's mouth dropped open in flustered surprise.

"Obvi—I was not!" He knew he sounded like a grade-schooler, but he couldn't help the childish protest that fell from his lips. Komura let out another laugh before he settled down, his hazel eyes taking on a nostalgic look.

"It's been a real long time since then, huh? Meeting you in high school—and meeting Hazuki in junior high." Crossing his legs on the chair, the bespectacled man propped his chin in one hand thoughtfully. "Back when I first saw Hazuki, I never thought that I'd become close enough to him to attend his wedding." Knowing what his friend was implying about his fiancé's past, Rei's violet eyes took on the slightly somber look that they always did when the subject came up. Even though he knew that Nagisa had resolved his feelings about that time recently, sometimes Rei still found himself wishing he could have been there for the blonde during those days.

"I'm glad that you did." His voice rang quiet but sincere as he looked at his old friend. "Because I wasn't around for him back then." The hazel-eyed man regarded the groom with thoughtful eyes.

"But you were, Ryuugazaki." He smiled at Rei. "In one way or another—otherwise, I don't think that Hazuki would ever have approached me. And when you started attending Iwatobi High with him, he changed even more." The man's eyes twinkled behind his silver glasses as he said the next words teasingly. "You were just too dense back then to notice."

"That's—that's just—" Rei flushed. "I was young back then, all right? We both were!" Hearing the protest, Komura rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

"You both still seem young to me now—after all these years, you two are still such a pair of lovesick teenagers." Grinning, he remembered a particular day in the spring when Nagisa had been acting off at work. "He was completely out of it the day after you proposed, you know—there were rumors going around that he even wrote the word 'marriage' on the blackboard during one of his lesso—" His words were cut off when another knock sounded at the door.

"Rei, it's us!" Hearing the familiar voice, Komura stood up from his chair.

"That must be Tachibana-senpai." Turning to Rei, he gave his friend his trademark boyish grin. "I'll be watching from the pew later, Ryuugazaki!"

"Hol—wait a minute, Komura! Just what did Nagisa do at the middle school?!" Laughing, the brown-haired man waved off Rei's flustered worries and walked towards the door.

"I'll tell you when you two come back from your honeymoon. Good luck later!" Winking, Komura opened the door and stepped out, exchanging short greetings with the tall green-eyed man that stood in the doorway before disappearing down the hall. As Makoto entered the room, Rei could also make out a raven-haired man following behind him. Momentarily pushing his previous conversation aside, the blue-haired man smiled at his two former senpais and teammates (and for that day, two of his best men), who had also become two of his closest friends over the years.

"Haruka-senpai, Makoto-senpai—you both look great." Upon hearing the compliment, Haru turned his head slightly to the side and Makoto let out a laugh.

"It's not often that we wear suits, so you must not be used to us looking like this." Because Makoto worked as a kindergarten teacher and Haruka worked as an illustrator for children's books, neither of them had very many occasions in their lives that called for formal wear. "You're looking pretty handsome yourself, Rei! I'm sure Nagisa'll swoon sometime during the ceremony," Makoto continued, smiling at Rei. Hearing these words made the blue-haired man blush.

"That's—this isn't that much, Makoto-senpai—" At the moment, Rei was dressed in a smart, form-fitting black tuxedo with a white satin tie and a lavender collared shirt that brought out the color of his violet eyes. Next to his lapel, a single white daisy was tucked into the chest pocket, nestled in a yellow silk handkerchief. Knowing the blue-haired man's modesty that tended to surface when he was feeling bashful, Makoto smiled encouragingly at the brunette.

"You're the groom, Rei. You can afford to be more confident today like you usually are—it'll make you a little less nervous!" His green eyes twinkled. Next to him, Haru opened his mouth.

"Rei. Relinquish yourself to the wate—to your feelings. Today you'll be able to fly."

"…Haruka-senpai, were you just about to say 'water'…?" Hearing the raven-haired man's usual abstract advice made Rei laugh a little, despite his nervousness. His friend's love for water had not changed a bit during the years—Rei knew the older man even brought his illustration work to his bathtub, because he had once seen the raven-haired man sitting there with his usual swimsuit on, working his tools of the trade over a large washboard propped on the edges of the tub. "But thank you, Haruka-senpai, and also, Makoto-senpai. It means a lot to me that you both are here today—" Rei blinked when he realized that his third best man wasn't there.

"By the way, where is Rin-san?" he asked curiously.

"Oh, Rin went over to Nagisa's waiting room just a few minutes ago," Makoto explained. "He said he'll drop by here a little while after."

"We already saw him a while ago, so we're here now," Haru added. "We were waiting for you to finish talking to Nagisa's sisters." Rei nodded in understanding.

"Was…did he seem fine?" His violet eyes glowed a little with nervousness as he asked this question. Although he was able to hide it better than Rei did, the brunette knew that the blonde could get surprisingly nervous or worried at times. And if the things he had heard about marriage blues held any substance, then…gulping, the violet-eyed man mentally shook his head, willing himself to clear his head of any disproportionate concerns. He was getting married to the man in just a few hours now, and he knew it was no time to doubt the person he had chosen to spend the rest of his life with. As if reading Rei's mind, Haru gave the blue-haired man a knowing stare as he opened his mouth.

"He did seem nervous. But he looks happy." As Rei's eyes widened, the older boy's blue eyes took on a sincere glow. "Around you, he always does." Except for when the two of them fought with each other, but the raven-haired man refrained from mentioning that point now—over the years, he had developed a little more delicacy as to what he chose to say or not say in certain situations. Hearing these words made Rei's cheeks glow with a rosy hue as he looked at the older man with slightly wide violet eyes. .

"I…I do hope I can make him happy, being by his side." The words fell in a soft murmur from Rei's lips. Makoto and Haru exchanged a glance, and as if they were telepathically connected, both of them remembered the same series of related events from their shared past. It was Haru who spoke up first.

"He had nightmares, you know. After you nearly drowned in the ocean at the training camp. He woke up crying every night in the tent until we left for home." Noticing Rei's violet eyes widening, then beginning to cloud with guilt, Haru went on speaking. "The point isn't that you should be chewing yourself out for it after eleven years. The point is that he would never have been the same without you—and he knows it. He probably knew it even before that training camp, considering what you two have been through before me or Makoto or Rin even met you. And you should know that by now." The simple but direct nature of the raven-haired man's words struck a chord in Rei, whose throat suddenly felt a little choked as his lashes fluttered slightly. Next to Haru, Makoto smiled gently at his blue-haired friend as he too opened his mouth.

"You're good for him, Rei. And he probably thinks you're the best there is for him. Otherwise, neither of you would have gotten this far, I'm sure." His green eyes took on a nostalgic look as he thought about a different night in the same summer. "When the five of us went on that summer trip to the Shimashima Islands, he told us something—that he was in love with you but didn't want to tell you, because he thought his feelings would get in the way of your new start." At this new revelation, Rei's violet eyes grew wide—just how much had happened at those islands that he did not know about?

"That—that's not—" he stuttered out, suddenly overwhelmed with strong feelings. "That couldn't have been further from the truth! It was all thanks to him that I even—"

"We know." Makoto's voice interrupted gently. "We knew. But at the time, he didn't. Just like you didn't know about his feelings for you." He offered the blue-haired man an understanding smile. "You do know the phrase 'Love makes you blind'? Back then, it was like that with the two of you, all the time." His green eyes crinkled slightly as they regarded Rei with a motherly-brotherly glow. "That was how much he treasured you, Rei. And that still hasn't changed."

"Yeah—forget about confessing. From the way he was looking at you after the relay at regionals, I thought he would just ask you to marry him on the spot." Though Haru's tone held dry humor, it also held a hint of brotherly affection that told Rei he cared about his younger blonde friend. From beside him, Makoto laughed slightly.

"You're right about that—especially from that time on, he started looking at Rei like the way you look at water, Haru," he teased. At this comment, Rei flushed red and Haru frowned slightly.

"Oi—my eyes never look that mushy!" "Mu-'mushy'?!" "Ahahaha!" Once Makoto burst into laughter, Rei's own embarrassment started to fade, and he also started to laugh. The slight pout stayed on Haru's face, but his blue eyes softened as he watched his two best friends. Once the two of them calmed down, Makoto's eyes crinkled with a smile as he regarded Rei.

"Neither of you are more or less deserving of each other—things like that aren't important. I know that if it's you two, it'll be all right." His voice was sincere in addressing Rei. "You and Nagisa both—you're two of the best friends that I have ever had. I hope you two are happy together."

"…Makoto-senpai…" Noticing that Rei was starting to tear up, Haru nudged the tall man in the side.

"Oi, Makoto—save the tear-inducing congratulations for later." Just as he was saying this, another knock sounded on the waiting room door. Giving a start, Makoto blinked back the tears that had started to form in his own green eyes.

"Look at that—you have another visitor, Rei." Dabbing slightly at his eyes, the tall man gave Rei an encouraging grin. "We'll see you out on the altar later!"

"Rei. Remember—even if you faint later, Nagisa will probably pick you up."

"Haru—!" "Haruka-senpai!" Ignoring the protests from both his friends, the raven-haired man shot Rei the slightest of grins as he pushed Makoto towards the door. When they opened it, they saw a blonde woman in her early sixties standing in the doorway.

"Oba-san!" Recognizing Nagisa's mother, Makoto smiled warmly at the woman. "It's been a long time—how have you been?"

"Why, if it isn't Makoto-kun—and Haruka-kun, too!" Mrs. Hazuki smiled back at the two men. "It's been quite fun living overseas, but it hasn't been the same with you children around!" Her burgundy eyes twinkled as she looked at her son's best men, before they traveled over to her son's husband-to-be. "Although it must have been a relief having me out of the way for the two of you, Rei dear!" Even though her tone was joking, Rei flushed as he drew himself up to protest.

"That's—that's not true at all, ma'am! Nagisa-ku—Nagisa missed you dearly—" As the blue-haired man fell into flustered shambles, Haru and Makoto took the time to clear the area for the groom and his soon-to-be mother-in-law. The door clicked shut as Hazuki Nanami smiled warmly at the blue-haired man.

"Always such the gentleman, aren't you, Rei dear?" Upon hearing her comment, Rei stopped his fervent protests, his cheeks still flushed pink. "All these years that I have known you, I see that still hasn't changed."

"That's—" Rei's violet eyes blinked in embarrassment as he looked down at the floor. "I hardly deserve your praise, ma'am…" Hearing the earnest modesty in his voice, Mrs. Hazuki stepped forward and patted him gently on the shoulder.

"You deserve all the praise you can get, dear. You're honest and polite and capable—if it's you, I know you'll look after that hopeless son of mine," she added light-heartedly, the fondness in her voice as she mentioned Nagisa giving away the contrary nature of her last four words. Upon hearing her say this, Rei blinked as he felt tears pricking at the back of his eyes again. Seeing Mrs. Hazuki before him with her graying blonde hair and her face, all of which had aged over the years except her burgundy eyes that had maintained their youthful twinkle, he was reminded of just how much Nagisa took after his mother. All of a sudden, he felt so grateful towards the blonde woman in front of him—for giving birth to Nagisa, for raising him into the beautiful person he had become—for giving Rei permission to have her one and only son.

"Are…are you sure you're all right with it, ma'am…?" The brunette's voice shook as he struggled to blink back his tears. "Letting someone like me stay next to your son…in…instead of someone who might be better for him…" Hearing the quaver in his words made Hazuki Nanami's eyes soften.

"My son would wholeheartedly disagree with every word you just said, dear. You know it. He'll be happy in your hands—and that's all the proof I need to know that you are every bit worthy of him." She smiled at Rei, a motherly glow in her now slightly moist eyes. "You're such a sweet child, Rei. You're as good as a son to me now. And I wish for your happiness just as much as Nagisa's—I hope you understand that." Dabbing a little at her eyes, she smiled in a bright way that strikingly reminded Rei of a certain blonde's brilliant smiles.

"As long as you are together, it'll be a wonderful road for the two of you, I'm sure!"

After hearing those words, it was all Rei could do to not burst into a sob right there in the room. Letting a few tears flow from his violet eyes, he gulped down his heaving breaths as he managed to choke out the only sincere response he could think of.

"…Thank you…!" Grabbing Mrs. Hazuki's hands and squeezing them in his own, the brunette man continued to heave out his answer.

"Thank you so much…for giving birth to him…for raising him into the person he is…for allowing me to stay with him…thank you…!" Mrs. Hazuki's eyes widened in surprise—then, they crinkled up in a teary smile as she replied.

"Thank you too, Rei. Thank you for finding him…for saying that you'll make my child happy…!"

As tears were shed and thanks were exchanged in the waiting room inside the inn, a white butterfly that had been perched on the windowsill fluttered its wings as it took off. It flew past the room that held the blue-haired man, passing some more windows until it landed on the shutters of the waiting room window on the opposite side of the inn.

The chatter of women's voices filtered through the glass as the butterfly's wings came to a standstill. In the room beyond the glass, there was a blonde man who was seated in front of a dresser with a mirror, his eyes closed and his brow knitting slightly from the ticklish sensations on his face as the two women next to him dusted his cheeks with some rosy powder. Sensing him squirm, the redhead of the two frowned slightly as she swatted the man on the shoulder.

"Nagisa-kun! Stay still for just five seconds, would you? We're almost done!" Opening his large burgundy eyes, the blonde man turned to his friend, pouting at her words.

"But Gou-chan, you said that like fifteen minutes ago!" twenty-seven-year-old Nagisa whined. "And are you sure you're not making me look girly or something?" To be honest, when the red-haired woman had first suggested that he put on a little makeup for the wedding, he had been slightly uncomfortable with the idea—it brought back too many nightmarish memories of his childhood days, when his sisters had used to 'doll him up' with their cosmetics and parade him around in girls' clothes.

"Geez, Nagisa-kun, I told you—you look perfectly and totally male, all right? Even I wouldn't mess with you on your wedding day!" As Gou huffed out these words, the other person next to Nagisa, a woman with sandy hair pinned back in a loose bun and light blue eyes, began rummaging excitedly in her bag for her camera.

"Just wait, Hazuki-kun—I'll be taking a quick little snapshot!" Knowing from the woman's personality and the cheerfully calculating tone of her voice what she might do with the 'quick little snapshot', Nagisa's hand shot out and stopped his friend's arm in a tight grip.

"Don't, you, dare, Hana-chan!" His burgundy eyes were glaring daggers at his former high school classmate. "There's no way you're selling pictures of me in makeup to Rei, not when I don't even know how I look yet!" Hearing the implications of his remark, Gou frowned a little before rolling her red eyes at the blonde.

"Well, why don't you take a look at yourself already, then? We're really finished this time!" Blinking, Nagisa remembered the mirror in front of him and turned back towards it. Once he saw his reflection in the glass, his burgundy eyes widened in awed surprise.

Staring back at him was an undeniably attractive blonde man, with high cheekbones and an oval-shaped, youthful-looking face. The soft rosy-bronze powder that dusted his cheeks brought out the golden tone of his slightly tan skin and nicely complimented his golden blonde locks, the bangs on one side partly gelled back while the rest of them fell in arches over his round forehead in a dashing way. The rosy glow in the man's cheeks also gave accent to his round burgundy eyes, which were lined with a bit of eyeliner that was just thick enough to make them pop out. The way that Gou had tweaked the line a little at the end and smudged it gave them a look that was slightly more mature than Nagisa's usual—if he lidded his eyes, Gou knew, he would look irresistibly seductive to a certain blue-haired man. Aside from these changes, they had not done much—the blonde's nose and brows had a nice arch, his lips were a natural rosy tone, and they had kept the eye shadow at a bare minimum so the look would remain more natural than heavy. Seeing those rosy lips fall apart in surprise, Gou smiled triumphantly as she placed her hands on her hips, and Hana enthusiastically turned on her digital camera, which she had whipped out in the short time that Nagisa was marveling at his reflection. Even when he heard the contraption click with a flash, the blonde couldn't bring himself to protest.

"So? Wanna start thanking me now?" Upon hearing Gou's teasing voice, the blonde man turned around and threw his arms around her.

"Gou-chan—Gou-sama! You're amazing!" he squealed in delight.

"…I suppose I should just give up on you calling me 'Kou'—considering it's been eleven years." Sighing, Gou grinned as she patted Nagisa on the shoulder. "Since it was me who dolled you up, you're guaranteed to knock some socks off—and hopefully some tuxedo tops, too!" Her red eyes started sparkling as she began imagining all the deltoids and triceps she would see if that actually happened.

"Ever the pervert, aren't you, Gou?" Next to her, Hana laughed as she teased her best friend. "Though it would be a pretty big scoop if, say, the two of them and their best men stripped down to swimsuits at the wedding! Now that would be the talk of town for quite a while!" Seeing the woman's blue eyes also sparkle, Nagisa rolled his eyes at the both of them, trying to look as sarcastic as possible.

"You guys're both perverts, from what it sounds like to me!" But he followed up his words with a good-natured smirk. At this challenge, Hana's light-blue eyes narrowed teasingly at the blonde.

"Oh, really? It's funny that you were jealous of this pervert here once, then!" Upon hearing this accusation—and remembering what it was she was talking about—Nagisa's heart thumped as his cheeks started to turn bright red.

"Tha—that's ridiculous! Why would I be jealous of you out of all peo—"

"Oh, there's no use trying to hide these things from me, Hazuki-kun—you should know that by now!" Hana's eyes twinkled as she teased the blonde. "Komura-kun told me all about it—the fact that I wasn't there in the classroom to see it for myself will forever be one of my greatest life regrets!" Though, seeing the sandy-haired woman clutch her hands to her heart with dramatic remorse, it didn't seem like she was feeling anything like regret at the moment. The flush traveled to Nagisa's ears as he stood up indignantly from his chair.

"That's—okay, so it was a little misunderstanding! What's wrong with that—I was only sixteen back then! Besides, it was Rei-chan's fault for acting so misleadingly!" As both Hana and Gou tried not to laugh, the blonde continued his words huffily. "Anyways, Rei-chan was totally in love with me even then, so you stood no chance anyways!" Hearing this last remark made Hana burst into laughter.

"It's hilarious how little you've changed, Hazuki-kun—ahaha!" She genuinely thought it was cute how twenty-seven-year-old Nagisa could still get flustered or jealous over things that had happened in the past. The sandy-haired woman knew that Rei was just as bad—even before Komura had mentioned the lunchtime incident to her, she had noticed his sixteen-year-old self give her somber looks when she was interacting with Nagisa, and she could imagine him showing the same kind of reaction as his fiancé if she teased him about that past now. "Don't worry, Ryuugazaki-kun's all yours—he already was from the start, anyways!" Hearing the teasing in her voice, Nagisa puffed up his slightly flushed cheeks as he responded.

"Like I didn't know that before!" he muttered in a small voice that sounded happy. As Hana and Gou exchanged amused looks, they heard the door of the waiting room being thrown open and a familiar voice coming from outside in a casual drawl.

"All right—where's the little terror that's getting married today?" The three of them turned to see twenty-eight-year-old Rin standing in the doorway, one arm slung against the frame, the hand of the other arm tucked casually into his suit pocket. Upon seeing his red-haired best man, Nagisa's face lit up.

"Rin-chan!" As the blonde greeted him happily from next to her, Gou's face took on a slight frown.

"Onii-chan! You're at a wedding today—I told you not to loosen your tie! And your suit's unbuttoned, too!" As the red-haired woman stepped forward and started adjusting her brother's clothes, the casual look slid off Rin's face and was replaced by one of faint embarrassment.

"Oi, Gou! What's the deal—it's not like the ceremony's started yet!" he protested—but his protests fell on deaf ears as Gou gave him a look that was 99% percent successful with intimidating most men around her, even her own sibling who was an Olympic swimmer and had dealt with some pretty intimidating obstacles in his life.

"You're the best man, onii-chan—you could stand to carry yourself like one!" Finishing her work, she brushed off the shoulders of his suit as a finishing touch. "There—now you look presentable!" After glancing at the clock, she turned to Hana. "Hana-chan, didn't you say that Yamazaki-kun was coming around this time?" At the mention of her former classmate, the sandy-haired woman blinked her eyes.

"You're right—I almost forgot! Let's go to the parking lot and pick him up!" As Yamazaki had always been bad with finding his way around places and the parking lot was a bit far from the grove area, they had decided to go and fetch the orange-haired man.

"We'll be going then, onii-chan, Nagisa-kun!" Turning to the blonde, Gou winked at her friend. "Go break a leg out there later, Nagisa-kun!" The remark was accompanied by a cheery wave from Hana, and soon the two of them left, closing the waiting room door behind them. Nagisa giggled as he looked at Rin, who was rubbing the back of his head in a disgruntled gesture but with fond-looking red eyes.

"Wow, Rin-Rin, you've still got such a sister complex!" he teased. At that, the redhead's eyes glinted dangerously as he shot the groom a deadly look.

"You're lucky you're getting married today, brat, because that makes it two things that I'm restraining myself from killing you over." Letting out a tch, Rin's face relaxed as he studied Nagisa. "Was Gou the one who made you up?" In response to his question, the blonde nodded cheerfully.

"Yup! Thank god it wasn't my sisters who did—" Shuddering slightly, Nagisa looked at his best friend as he linked his hands behind his back a little shyly. "Do…do you think Rei-chan will like it?" Any other day, Rin might have made a joke out of the question and told him he looked like Hikita Tenko or something—but seeing his younger friend looking nervous and considering that the day was what it was, the redhead's expression softened.

"Yup—he'll definitely get that gross look on his face when he sees you." Rin smirked. "Maybe he'll even piss his speedo ass, he'll be so damn nervous!" He could just imagine it—the blue-haired butterfly swimmer stuttering over his vows or stumbling on his way up the altar, his face turning tomato red and his violet eyes getting that characteristic panicked look of his—the redhead thought it'd be hilarious to see just how nervous the brunette could get at his own wedding.

"Geez, Rin-chan! Don't tease Rei too much!" But Nagisa's words were followed by a laugh as his cheeks took on a rosy glow. Humming slightly, he tilted his head back a little as he leaned back on his feet.

"Ah~ I wonder if I'll make him happy?" He smiled a little, the smile quietly pondering. "I sure hope I will…!" Hearing the slight uncertainty in the blonde's voice, Rin rolled his eyes a little as he opened his mouth.

"You'd break Speedo's heart if you're not with him." His words were blunt but his tone was soft. "You should've seen him in Tokyo—I won't say something overrated like 'he was an empty shell without you'. But even a complete idiot could see a huge-ass piece of him was missing—he's only returned to the ridiculous theory-obsessed butterfly-suit-wearing little smart-ass he is because he came home to you." The redhead remembered the days back in his and Rei's college years in the city—during the rare times when both of them had been free to meet up, his friend had always seemed a little subdued, his violet eyes had always seemed far away, and the few times that he had seemed to perk up were at the mention of a certain blonde that they both knew. As he saw Nagisa's burgundy eyes widen, Rin rolled his own eyes once more. "And I don't have the slightest clue why you're looking so damn surprised about that—if I have to hear one more time about how much he misses your ass, I swear I'll handcuff both of you to a goddamn steel post and burn the key. There were so many times when I'd have thrown his ass on the next train to Iwatobi if I could've—that was how bad his wifey 'I miss my husband back at home' vibe was back then." Rin snorted—just the thought of that pining look on Rei's face got on his nerves.

"Anyways, feel free to stick to Speedo like glue for the rest of your life—as long as you keep your private shit private." Rin shuddered at the prospect of getting the front-seat view to any of that 'private shit'—and he definitely didn't want Gou anywhere near said shit. "So long as I'm concerned, you two actually drive me less insane when you're together—happiness and all that crap be damned." Seeing the tsundere front he was putting up with his blunt words, Nagisa smiled at the redhead, his burgundy eyes glowing with gratitude.

"Thanks, Rin-chan." Though his voice was a little quiet for the blonde, the words were said in all sincerity. "It means a lot that you care." A little taken aback by the younger boy's departure from his usual boisterous and joking self, Rin blinked slightly before letting out a tch and turning his head to the side in embarrassment.

"Whatever. Just go out there and get hitched already—all this mushiness is giving me the creeps." And when Nagisa laughed at that, the wrinkle in the redhead's forehead was only a little deep.

When a knock came from outside the room, both men turned their eyes towards the door.

"Come in!" Nagisa called out cheerfully. His eyes widened a bit in surprise when the door opened and he saw the person standing in the doorway. When Rin saw who it was, he coughed slightly and gave the groom a knowing look.

"See you at the altar then, kiddo." The redhead bowed his head slightly towards the unexpected visitor before he made his way out of the waiting room. Even as the door closed shut, Nagisa's startled burgundy eyes remained on the man standing before him.

To be honest, he had not expected Rei's father to turn up at his waiting room alone—maybe at Rei's, but not at Nagisa's. It was not because the blonde thought Mr. Ryuugazaki didn't like him—but even eleven years after Nagisa and Rei had first come out to Rei's parents, Nagisa still found it a little awkward to interact with Rei's father one-on-one, without either Mrs. Ryuugazaki or Rei there to mediate. Maybe it was because out of all four of their parents, Mr. Ryuugazaki had been the last adult to give his approval on their relationship ten years ago—not that the blonde had not been grateful all the same. Or maybe it was because of the man's personality—although Nagisa would not exactly call him unfriendly, Rei's father had a certain conservative, reserved air about him. When that factor was combined with the fact that, analogically speaking, it was his boyfriend's father to Nagisa as what a girlfriend's father would mean to most guys—in other words, a person to be wary of at all times—it was more than enough to make the blonde feel cautious around the man. But he was the father of the person Nagisa loved and would marry in a few hours, and if the blonde hadn't wished to get along with Mr. Ryuugazaki before, then he definitely did now. Putting aside his slight discomfort, Nagisa smiled at the dark-haired man.

"Good evening, Mr. Ryuugazaki!" he said cheerfully, but made sure his tone wasn't too loud or casual. "I hope you didn't have a hard time getting here—I just spoke to oba-sa—Mrs. Ryuugazaki about an hour ago, and she said you would arrive here separately because of some last-minute business that came up. I'm glad you made it here before the wedding started!" The blonde had never felt comfortable enough around Rei's father to call him 'oji-san', although he had called Mrs. Ryuugazaki 'oba-san' even before he had first started dating Rei. And Nagisa loved Rei's mother, who had grown to dote on him like she would over her own son. Just some minutes ago when she had visited his waiting room, Ryuugazaki Reina had given him a warm hug and given him her tearful thanks and blessings—and the blonde had almost burst into sobs right then and there. It was a good thing that he had not had any makeup on then, or else he would have ended up looking like a mess. As Mr. Ryuugazaki cleared his throat, Nagisa's attention returned to the father of his fiancé.

"Hardly. I took a taxi, so it was quite simple getting here." The man's dark eyes met Nagisa's burgundy ones and held their gaze for a few seconds before moving on to another point in the waiting room. "Are you, ah, finished with preparations? If I'm intruding on them, I can leave—"

"No, not at all!" the blonde replied quickly. "I'm more than prepared, sir—I was just speaking with my friends before you arrived, so it's fine!"

"Oh…I see." After Mr. Ryuugazaki offered his brief response, an awkward silence settled between the two men. Just as Nagisa was about to open his mouth to break the silence, he heard Ryuugazaki Rihito's voice speak up first.

"I—I know you may not feel as comfortable around me as—well, as you do around Rei's mother." Hearing this statement made Nagisa's eyes widen, and the blonde was just about to fall into an internal panic session when Mr. Ryuugazaki continued. "And I understand why you would feel that way—so there's no need to look so worried…Nagisa-kun." The blonde blinked as he heard his given name fall from the middle-aged man's lips—for the longest time, Rei's father had always addressed him as 'Hazuki-kun', so this was the first he had done otherwise. Naturally, Mr. Ryuugazaki also seemed unused to the action, as he hurried on to his next words.

"What I am trying to say is that—that I think you know I have been distancing myself a little from getting to know you properly." Not believing what he was hearing after all these years, Nagisa could only gawk and listen as Rihito continued. "But it was never because I dislike your character or any such thing—I hope you understand that." Something in the man's expression, awkward but apologetic, reminded Nagisa of his younger son, and when the blonde realized this something in his heart softened.

"Of course not, sir." His voice was soft but understanding. "I don't blame you for—well—for hesitating about our relationship." The last three words came out a little haltingly as Nagisa's tone took on a nervous quality. "I mean, I know you probably never expected your son to—well, to date a man, much less marry one, but—" The blonde let out an awkward laugh at this point before continuing. "But I…really love him very much, and he told me he wanted to be with me forever…" His burgundy eyes softened with a look of love and adoration as he thought of the man he loved. "So I do hope that…that you're okay with me being the one, Mr. Ryuugazaki." Nagisa's voice took on an unsure but earnest quality. "I might not be able to give him the same things that…that a wife might be able to give him, but I—I really do want to make him happy, so—" As his voice cracked a little with emotion, the blonde cursed himself for the tears that threatened to prick his eyes once again. He wondered if it was a Ryuugazaki thing, the uncanny ability to induce emotional tears from him in one way or another—knowing how awkward it might get if he broke out sobbing at the moment, the blonde swallowed and pursed his lips to keep himself from crying.

"—I was afraid that he would never recover." When he heard Rihito's quiet admittance, Nagisa looked up at the dark-haired man. "When he first decided he would never really step outdoors again, I thought that it was just a phase—he was just a child, I thought, and even though he was shocked from what happened, I thought that he would get over the event sooner or later. That was the only reason why I agreed with Reina that he could be homeschooled instead…" Pausing, he took a moment with closed eyes before he went on.

"But six years passed from then…and it was only then that I realized I didn't understand my son at all. I couldn't understand him—that one night that I told him to start attending high school, he looked at me with hard eyes for the first time in his life, and even then, I only realized that it wasn't just a phase. It was only when I spent some time away from him that I really thought about what he might have gone through. It was only then when I realized for the first time that all those years I hadn't really done a single thing to help him." Rihito's hand tightened into a fist as he went on, his voice a little shaky now. "I was only forcing my own ideals on him instead—and when I finally understood that, I felt powerless. To think that I couldn't do anything to help my own son—that I was just pushing him away…I even thought that he might never be himself again, even if he did go back outside." He took a deep breath before opening his mouth again.

"When I learned it was you who brought him back outside, I was genuinely grateful to you—although I may not have expressed my gratitude as much as I could have. It was only after he met you that my son was able to move on—and at first, I didn't realize the extent to which you influenced him. But the more I thought about how he used to be afraid of getting close to others and shut himself away, and the more I saw how he changed after that summer years ago, I was astonished. I learned—even before the two of you came to me and Reina and told us about your relationship—that to my son, you were an irreplaceable person." As Nagisa's eyes widened, Rihito hesitated before saying his next words. "But even then, at first, I wondered about the two of you—whether your relationship was something that I should give my consent for." His dark eyes glistened with memory.

"I had an older cousin in the past, on my mother's side—and when he told the family about his sexual orientation one day, they cast him out." The breath caught in the blonde's throat as he understood the implication behind this surprising piece of information—if he had known about it, Rei had never mentioned the fact to him before. "He cut ties with them, left before I could even say good bye to him. After all those years that he took care of me—he was like an older brother to me, and I couldn't do anything more than watch him go." His fist tightened at his sides.

"At first, I thought that the family was right—that he was at fault because he was who he was. For the longest time, I was a product of the rigid environment of that family—and it was only after meeting my wife that I started thinking differently." Rihito turned his solemn gaze back towards his son's fiancé. "I won't say that I'm a hundred percent comfortable with the idea itself, even now. But when the two of you came to confess about your relationship, I thought about the both of you—and I thought that maybe, what you had was something like what I found with my wife. And after all the times that I was already not there for my son, after seeing him so happy—I didn't want to chase away the one person in his life who found him and gave him the hope he always needed. Even if you are male." Clearing his throat, Rihito continued.

"The reason I was late in giving you my consent was because I was tracking down my cousin—before I decided to do so, I wanted to talk to him about a few things—and also apologize to him for the past as well. I regret that the both of you had to wait for it—it must have left you on the edge, worrying about what my response would be." As he said this, the dark-haired man smiled apologetically at Nagisa.

"…Oji-san…" As the blonde's eyes started to become a little moist, Rihito's own dark eyes started to glaze with tears as well.

"I didn't mean to ramble. All I really wanted to say…was that I'm thankful for everything you did. For bringing my son outside again—for being by his side for so long. I know I'm late with giving you my thanks—but try to understand the feelings of this awkward old man." A single tear started streaming down the side of his face as he choked out his next words.

"Please—continue to take care of my son. Continue to make him happy—be happy next to him. You'll have my gratitude for life—" After these words, the dark-haired man could not bring himself to speak further, as more tears began flowing down his cheeks.

"…Don't…don't cry please…oji-san…" It was then that the tears began to flow down Nagisa's cheeks as well. "I…I promise…I'll never let Rei be alone again. I'll make him happy…I will…I promise…!" Forgetting for the moment that his makeup was probably getting stained, the blonde continued crying as he dabbed furiously at his eyes with the back of his hand. "So…please give him to me…!"

"…All right." Rihito managed to choke out an answer. "As long as you keep that promise…!" Upon hearing the answer, a smile, this time not nervous or forced but genuine, spread across Nagisa's tear-stained face as he said the next two words.

"I will…!"

Later, when Ryouji came to get his father from the waiting room, he didn't say anything about Rihito's or Nagisa's swollen eyes. A few minutes after Rei's brother escorted his father out, Gou and Hana came back in with Yamazaki, and although the former swim club manager was appalled by the ruined makeup on the blonde's face, she managed to fix it up again quickly in time for the wedding ceremony.

…

For Rei, the grove outside was somehow more beautiful than the scenery he had seen through the waiting room window. As he felt the autumn breeze dance through the air, heard it ruffling the brilliant red and orange and golden leaves of the trees with their rich dark-brown trunks and graceful branches, saw the occasional white butterfly flying through them now and then, the blue-haired man couldn't help but feel wonder at how breath-taking the world outside seemed this day.

But of course, that did not mean that the brunette was not feeling nervous at all. On the contrary, his legs were already feeling a little shaky as he stood arm in arm with his mother behind a makeshift curtain, waiting to receive the cue of the music and walk down the marked aisle in the grove towards the altar. As if sensing his nervousness, Reina smiled up encouragingly at her son.

"Are you not ready to be given away, Rei? Shall I hold onto my son a little longer?" Her playful tone made Rei smile, despite his nervousness.

"You know I'll always be your son, Mother. No matter what." He unlinked their arms for a moment to give his mother's hand an affectionate squeeze. "In fact, now you'll have three sons—that's what Nagisa said to me the other day." At the mention of the blonde, Reina's eyes crinkled up with affection, violet orbs twinkling behind dark blue lashes.

"Then Nanami and I are the two luckiest mothers in the world." Her warm smile showed that she meant it. As the music finally sounded, mother and son linked arms once more. "Are you ready now, dear?"

"Yes." Rei smiled back at his mother. "Let's go…!" They turned around and moved through the gap in the curtains, stepped into the aisle in the grove.

Unlike traditional weddings, the seating in the pew was mixed. As he walked down the aisle with his mother, Rei saw his colleagues from work seated with some of Nagisa's fellow teachers from Sanada Middle School, his friends from his college in Tokyo next to Nagisa's friends from the local college, and more friends and family distributed here and there throughout. They had been chatting and getting acquainted with each other before the ceremony began, and now all of them were silent as they watched Rei travel down the aisle. In the first few rows at the front, Rei saw Komura pat Yamazaki on the shoulder as the orange head was already bawling, Hana lending him her handkerchief as she was blinking her own moist light-blue eyes, with Gou next to her and blowing her nose on a handkerchief. In the row behind them sat a few of Rei's underclassmen from their swim club in high school, who gave the groom cheerful fist-pumps as he met their eyes. Even some old friends from Samezuka High were there—among them a grey-haired man with sky blue eyes, who smiled and waved at Rei from his seat, as well as a taller orange-haired man with tan skin and hazel eyes that were staring in a particular redhead's direction (Rei resisted the urge to roll his eyes good-naturedly, as the man's feelings for said redhead were still so obvious even though they were still unrequited). In the first two rows sat the Hazukis and the Ryuugazakis—the three Hazuki sisters either crying or near tears already, Ryouji seated next to one of them with a calm expression on his face, and Rei's own father seated in the front row. Rei wondered if he had imagined that his father's eyes seemed a little red and swollen—but at the moment, he was too nervous to cast a second glance after the smile that he had initially given his father. Turning back to the altar, Rei saw his three best men standing next to it. Makoto smiled at Rei encouragingly, Haru gave Rei a nod with his knowing blue eyes, and Rin shot him a grin full of shark-like teeth. After smiling back at his best men, albeit a bit shakily, Rei returned his focus on not tripping over the steps as he climbed them. With a small squeeze of the hand, Rei's mother gave her son a last smile before releasing his arm and stepping back towards the pew. To his credit, Rei only stumbled a little as he made his way up to the altar, and he was pretty sure his face was only a little red as he stood up straight before the officiant, then turned his body towards the aisle.

"Now, enter the second groom." Rei blinked as he heard the officiant speak—for some reason, the man's voice sounded familiar. But he had been wearing a hat low over his face, so Rei had not been able to discern his facial features. He had started to feel slightly puzzled when he heard the sound of the curtains swishing open once more. The brunette's eyes immediately focused back on the end of the aisle—and when he saw the blonde man walking down it with his mother, his violet eyes widened and the breath caught in his throat.

Dressed in a crisp yellow collared shirt with a neat black tuxedo and white satin tie that both matched Rei's, also with a white daisy tucked into the chest pocket with a purple handkerchief, Nagisa looked smart and extremely handsome. His golden-blonde locks that usually curved over his face were now partly waxed back, the half-do-up flattering the oval shape of his face. His cheeks were tinged with a rosy blush, his captivating burgundy eyes seemed to stand out more than usual as they glowed warmly under his blonde lashes, and the corners of his rosy lips were turned up in a slightly nervous but happy smile, bringing out the endearing dimple in his cheek that had remained there over the years. It took Rei a while to realize that he was gaping, and as he quickly shut his mouth, the brunette could feel the heat in his cheeks rising rapidly as he stared in awe at his husband-to-be. The blonde actually looked a little shy under Rei's gaze, after he initially took Rei in with his own eyes and reacted with the same sort of captivated surprise that the brunette had shown towards him. They both broke eye contact now and then, their eyes wandering back to the pew at the guests seated in the rows. But whenever they met each other's eyes, they smiled lovingly at each other each time.

It was when Nagisa was passing the first few rows that he noticed his sisters crying. And when he saw his eldest sister Natsuki shed a few tears as well, the blonde could not help but tease her about it—she had rarely shed any tears in front of him after all. Perhaps Nagisa should have foreseen that Rei might start crying as well, but as it turned out, his calculations had not traveled that far—nor had he foreseen that he himself would also burst into tears as well (and later, that Natsuki would catch the event on camera). Nagisa thought that he had seen Gou look a little appalled through her own tears, and once the redhead rushed over to the blonde with a pack of cleansing tissues and did her best to make him presentable again, she only smacked him lightly on the head and scolded the both of them for tearing up so early into the ceremony—which caused another round of laughter to ripple through the guests in the pew. Once his mother sent him up to the altar with a cheerful smile and a pinch to her son's side, the blonde's face was now almost makeup-free—not that there had been a lot on him to begin with. But to Rei, it didn't matter—the blonde still looked breath-taking to him, and the brunette's violet eyes shone with tenderness as they gazed at the man standing before him. He saw Nagisa flush a little as the blonde's own burgundy eyes shyly met Rei's, and after a while, both of their cheeks were tinged with a rosy glow.

"One, two, three!" All of a sudden, the two men had heard their mothers' voices shout in unison. Suddenly, both of them felt a pair of hands pushing their backs towards each other—knowing they would collide, Rei's arms instinctively reached out to catch Nagisa, and the two of them barely managed not to fall over as their torsos landed against each other in an awkward hug. As both of them were men, neither of them had expected that there would be a giving-away part in the ceremony, but apparently, they were wrong—however playful and informal it was. As the guests laughed, the two grooms stood frozen in their embrace for a little while before breaking apart—Rei's face red as he gaped at Reina in surprise and Nagisa shooting Nanami a look of disbelief, his ears turning pink. But after a while, they also started to laugh as well until the laughter subsided a while later.

Once they were both facing the altar, the officiant began voicing the call to gather.

"Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here, in the presence of this company, family and friends—" As the officiant began to speak, Nagisa's burgundy eyes immediately widened in surprise. "—that Ryuugazaki Rei and Hazuki Nagisa may be united in matrimony—" Slowly, the officiant raised his face up from his book, and as the hat fell back on his head, it revealed a familiar crop of thinning auburn hair. "Marriage is the promise of hope between two people who love each other sincerely—" As the thin face and twinkling hazel eyes presented themselves, Rei's mouth fell open five stories and Nagisa's eyes grew to the size of goose eggs as he burst out,

"DAD!" With the exclamation, the guests in the pew started murmuring amongst themselves as they cast curious looks at the officiant standing at the altar—who was actually Mr. Hazuki in a hat and black robes. Not batting an eye but smiling at the very surprised couple, the auburn-haired man continued his statement of purpose without missing a beat.

"—who honor each other as individuals, and who wish to unite their lives and share the future together—" As Mr. Hazuki spoke, Rei and Nagisa exchanged surprised glances, which soon turned into smiles as they turned back to face the altar.

The remainder of the ceremony up to the vows and ring exchange went without a hitch. However, it was during the family blessings that Nagisa noticed how little of Rei's family were present at the ceremony. He knew that there were not many family members on Rei's mother's side, but he had heard that the family on Rei's father's side was quite extensive. A pang went through the blonde's heart as he remembered what Mr. Ryuugazaki had mentioned earlier—that his cousin on his mother's side had been shunned from the family. He also remembered how Rei mentioned that his grandfather on his father's side had had close to no relatives before marrying his grandmother.

A little shocked at the speculation that was probably true, Nagisa turned somber eyes towards Rei, as if to ask a question he thought he knew the answer to. But as if he had read his mind, the brunette smiled gently at the blonde as he reached over and squeezed his hand in his own. That single gesture was enough to communicate everything—that it was okay, that the only thing that mattered at the moment was the fact that he loved Nagisa, that he had chosen the blonde and would be happy with him regardless. For the nth time that day, the older man felt the back of his eyes prick with tears—but he did not let them fall, choosing to squeeze Rei's hand back and smile softly at him instead. And later, it had definitely been comforting when Mr. Ryuugazaki gave them his earnest blessings—along with Reina, and Ryouji, who offered the comment that his support was 'worth the support of the whole damn world', making the couple and the guests laugh.

After the blessings came the exchange of vows. Finally turned towards each other, hand in hand, Rei and Nagisa gazed at each other with unconcealed fondness as Mr. Hazuki went through the vows.

"Ryuugazaki Rei, do you take Hazuki Nagisa to be your wedded husband,
To live together in marriage.
Do you promise to love him, comfort him, honor and keep him
For better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and health
And forsaking all others, be faithful only to him
So long as you both shall live?"

"I do." Rei's voice rang out solemnly as he kept his eyes on the man before him.

"Hazuki Nagisa, do you take Ryuugazaki Rei to be your wedded husband,
To live together in marriage.
Do you promise to love him, comfort him, honor and keep him
For better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and health
And forsaking all others, be faithful only to him.
So long as you both shall live?"

"I do." Nagisa's own voice was earnest as he gazed back at the brunette with loving eyes.

After their vows, they exchanged rings, simple gold bands with their initials carved on the inside. Nagisa felt Rei's hand tremble slightly as he placed the ring on the blonde's left hand fourth finger, and when he saw that the brunette's violet eyes were glowing with emotion, he gave the man a loving smile as he himself slid Rei's ring onto his finger, his heart warm and thumping pleasantly in his chest. Mr. Hazuki also smiled at the two grooms as he opened his mouth.

"I now pronounce you man and husband. You may ki—" Before the auburn-haired man was even done speaking, Nagisa felt an arm wrap around his waist and dip his body down. The blonde was only able to let out a squeak of surprise before Rei leaned down and kissed him—and the brunette never pulled stunts like this when he was in front of others. Blushing and feeling his heart thumping against his ribcage in a happy rhythm, the blonde closed his eyes and kissed his now-husband back, too busy enthusiastically returning the affection to notice or care that some guests in the crowd were whooping amongst the applause and camera flashes were going off everywhere. When the two of them would not stop kissing and heard Rin shouting at them to continue it somewhere else later (away from his sister's eyes), they ignored the redhead and stayed in the kiss for ten more seconds until they finally pulled away from each other—both with flushed, smiling faces.

At last, they were joined with each other for life. And as the two husbands stared at each other in the grove that autumn day, they felt a warm thrill run through them—at the prospect of the coming days that they would share together, by each other's side, giving each other all the love and happiness they deserved.

…

It was now evening, and now the full moon peered out from behind a few wispy clouds in the dark sky, illuminated by the golden light of lanterns hanging around the vicinity. By then the guests had relocated to the outdoor parlor of the inn for the wedding reception. Nagisa and Rei had finished greeting all the guests, and as the band played its music they were slow dancing among the other guests, their arms around each other, Rei's cheek leaning into Nagisa's hair and Nagisa's cheek pressed against Rei's neck. Feeling content and warm in the brunette's arms, the blonde moved slowly and lazily as if he was in a trance—at the moment he felt that he never wanted this dance to end, if it meant he had to let go of Rei.

"Feeling tired?" Rei's voice asked as they slowly stepped across the parlor in their dance. At his question, Nagisa shook his head slightly, his hair rubbing against his husband's cheek.

"Nope—well, a little. But I'm feeling more happy than tired." The blonde smiled against Rei's shoulder. "I just wanna keep dancing with you." At this, Rei's heart melted a little once more, and he smiled into his husband's hair as he pressed a kiss to it with his lips.

"You taste like hair gel." Hearing the teasing in Rei's voice, Nagisa laughed.

"My sisters helped me set my hair—though I wouldn't let them touch any makeup around me," he added as an afterthought. Now it was Rei's turn to laugh.

"Who put the makeup on for you, then? Was it Gou-san?" he asked.

"Yup! Gou-chan was all like 'You better knock off some tuxedo tops with this look so I can see some muscles!' and Hana-chan even tried to take pictures of me with makeup on." At the mention of pictures, Rei's ears perked up slightly—and as if he had sensed this, Nagisa frowned a little as he drew himself back a little to look up at Rei.

"Don't think about buying those photos, Rei-chan—she always rips you off and I didn't get to check how they turned out beforehand!" Though he was flattered that the brunette would still purchase photos of him from his ever-scheming classmate (he had learned previously that this hobby of Rei's had started only a month into the brunette's new start at Iwatobi High School), his worries still stood regardless. "If you want photos of me, all you have to do is ask, Rei-chan! Plus, I'd wear just about anything and pose just about any way you ask me to!" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at his husband with a grin on his face, which sent a blush through the blue-haired man's cheeks.

"Actually, my motives were more—innocent than what you're implying, Nagisa." Coughing a little, he smiled down at his husband. "It's not that I don't like seeing posed photos of you—but I also like the ones where you're being more spontaneous and doing things without noticing the camera." He reached out with a hand and caressed the blonde's cheek affectionately. "And in the case of today, it was a rare occasion—seeing you with makeup on, that is. Although I couldn't see it close up, you looked beautiful." The impact of the compliment, paired with the brunette's smile, made Nagisa's own cheeks flush pink as well.

"Should I do it more often, then?" he asked shyly. "Put on makeup, that is?" He had also liked the look that Gou managed to pull off for him—and though he would probably not use it every day, he was more than prepared to get lessons from the redhead, if it meant that Rei would tell him he was beautiful. Smiling, Rei shook his head.

"Maybe occasionally, if you want to. My favorite look is still your natural one." His violet eyes traveled down the outlines of the blonde's face, as if they were taking in every feature in detail. "You look beautiful, with or without makeup—stained makeup or not," he added in a teasingly affectionate voice, remembering how Nagisa had burst out about not wanting to cry because he would ruin his makeup during the ceremony. Hearing these words made the blonde's cheeks grow hot as he came to a standstill in their dance and buried his face in the crook of Rei's neck.

"…Geez, Rei-chan. It's only been a few hours since the ceremony!" Nagisa mumbled. "It's too early to be making me fall for you all over again…!" At this confession, the good old butterflies in Rei's stomach emerged once more, making his heart flutter and his own cheeks glow. Leaning over next to the blonde's ear, the brunette whispered back a husky response.

"If that's what it takes to keep you by my side, then I'm more than prepared to do it over and over, Nagisa-kun." Now he could practically feel his husband blushing—and he definitely felt the blonde's heart thumping in his chest, which was pressed up against his own torso.

"Rei-chan—you even tacked on your old nickname for me!" Hearing Nagisa wail made Rei smile. "That's so not fair~~!" The brunette laughed as he pulled his husband back into their dance.

"You never fight fair yourself, Nagisa-kun," he reminded the blonde good-naturedly. "If I had to live to see the day you fight fair, I'd say I'd have to live much longer than the average life span dictates." At this claim, the blonde's cheeks puffed up slightly.

"Hmph—you should, then! You should live to be over two hundred, and by then you'll definitely see it!"

"Two hundred years? Next to you?" Rei teased. "I don't know if I can stay sane all those years."

"What—you don't want to?" The blonde pouted. "You're the one who proposed to me first!"

"I thought it was 'forever', Nagisa." As his husband murmured these words, the blonde stopped dancing again and stared wide-eyed at Rei—his Rei, who always blushed and stuttered and melted into a pile of nervous mush when he happened to say cheesy lines like this. Well, the blue-haired man was blushing all right, but right now he seemed more composed than Nagisa himself, whose face felt like it had erupted into flames as his mouth fell open and closed like a gaping fish.

"Rei-chan—I don't even—did you drink a little too much champagne earlier? Is that why you're being so cheesy without being all nervous and stutter-y like you usually are?" To his credit, Rei only looked a little affronted by the question as he replied to Nagisa.

"Well, we're married now—we got married just a few hours ago, if I do need to remind you," he said with mock pompousness, pushing his glasses up with one hand as he did. "And I would think I can start being more honest with my affections for my husband?" He smiled gently at the blonde, violet eyes softening around their edges. "There's no need to hesitate anymore—I've already admitted how much I feel for you in front of everyone today. We're not the awkward teenagers we used to be anymore." Flushing in response, Nagisa nestled his cheek against Rei's shoulder once more.

"You sure about the last part, Rei-chan?" Meeting Rei's eyes, the blonde smiled, burgundy eyes twinkling. "There are still times when I sure do feel like I'm fifteen again around you. Isn't it the same for you?" His smile widened when Rei's face flushed a little—he took delight in feeling the brunette's pulse speed up against his cheek. "The blushy, stutter-y, awkward teenager version of you is one of my favorite, you know?"

"O-oh—is that so, now?" Nagisa let out a mental chuckle as he heard his husband stuttering slightly—he knew that no matter how cool as a cucumber Rei acted, the endearingly nervous and awkward side of the man would always be there. "Is that why you made me strip down to a speedo merely fifteen minutes after we said our vows?" At the unexpected question, the blonde started laughing out loud this time, his shoulders shaking as he giggled hard against Rei's shoulder.

"Don't blame me for it, Rei-chan! It was mostly Haru-chan, Mako-chan, and Rin-chan's idea!" he lied, the wide grin on his face betraying his words. The whole event had been nothing if not hilarious—Rei had been the only one of the two grooms to be surprised when, in the middle of making congratulatory speeches, Rin had suddenly declared that he and the other two best men would perform a song in honor of the occasion. To Rei's much greater surprise and Nagisa's glee, all three of them had stripped down to nothing but swimsuits and bow ties—for Haru and Rin, it had been done in about five seconds while they glared at each other competitively, and for Makoto, it had been done more slowly with a not-so-slightly red face and embarrassed eyes. They had then whipped microphones out of nowhere as they started singing 'Splash Free', complete with background music and their original choreography. Sometime during when Rei was busy gawking at his three best friends, Nagisa had also stripped down to his tie and the swim trunks he had worn underneath his tuxedo and joined the three of them, singing in a loud cheerful voice as he threw a wink at Rei from the stage.

And while the guests had started to laugh and hoot, a stupefied Rei had been whisked away by his grinning underclassmen from his high school swim club—who had somehow forced him to change into nothing but a bright yellow speedo with a penguin on it and successfully brought him back to the grove and onto the stage. Really, the brunette had been nothing short of mortified and had mostly just stood frozen and beet-red in the middle of the stage as his best men and husband danced and sang around him. During the performance, he had glimpsed some of the guests' reactions—Yamazaki who was hooting and cheering enthusiastically, Komura who was watching with an amused twinkle in his eyes, Hana who was taking pictures right and left as if she were a reporter (Rei knew his reputation was pretty much doomed now), and Gou squealing with sparkly eyes at all the muscles. The two younger Hazuki sisters had been laughing and catcalling as Natsuki also took pictures of the event, and both his mother and Mrs. Hazuki had been smiling widely as they laughed and clapped to the music. It had been bad when Rei caught sight of Ryouji's smirk from the pew as he leaned back and watched as if he were seeing the most ridiculous but amusing thing on earth. But it had definitely been worse when he had met eyes with his father, who looked just as surprised as Rei had felt, with his dark eyes wide and his mouth fallen open in slight shock. That was when Rei truly felt he wanted to dig his grave right then and there and bury himself alive—he had genuinely started to think he reached the peak of embarrassment in his life that moment.

But as it turned out, he was wrong—Rei had turned aghast when he saw his underclassmen bring out a kiddy pool full of water out of nowhere. He heard Makoto shouting at Haru as the tall man restrained his childhood friend from leaping off the stage and into the water. Meanwhile, Rin and Nagisa were singing the last few lyrics of the song, and as both of them shouted out "SPLASH FREE!" they grabbed each of Rei's arms and threw him into the kiddy pool. And that had been the ultimate peak of the brunette's mortification—as he coughed in the water and struggled in the rubber pool, hastily resurfacing and gasping for breath, he had heard the guests burst into laughter as they applauded the performance. Just as he was starting to think he could start a fire with the full-body blush that hit him, Nagisa had jumped into the kiddy pool with Rei and hoisted him up by the hand. This time, the blonde had been the one to dip Rei down by the waist and plant a movie-star kiss on his surprised mouth. And after that—well, the blue-haired man had turned into just the mortified, stuttering pile of awkward teenager that Nagisa loved seeing. And as he saw Rin laughing, Makoto looking embarrassed but smiling fondly, and Haru's eyes seeing nothing but the water in the kiddy pool as he was still being restrained by the tall brunette, Rei had still wanted to disappear off the face of the earth. But after a while, it had been something like touching for the brunette, when he thought of how his best friends had planned the whole thing out to congratulate him and Nagisa.

Of course, Nagisa had also planned this out with them. And Rei had been the only one of the five to not know about it. And even now during the reception, as he danced with his husband in the parlor, Rei was not any less embarrassed about what had happened. The brunette gave Nagisa a pointed look as his face showed no sign of cooling down anytime soon.

"You absolutely did plan it all out with them," he said accusingly. "I know that look when I see it—you are absolutely, positively 100% guilty of what happened, Nagisa-kun! I mean, that speedo was yours, the one that you lent to me back when I first joined the swim club!" At this accurate observation, his husband only laughed harder, momentarily slipping out of Rei's arms to double over, clutching his stomach with his hands as he did.

"Ahahahahaha—it was totally hilarious how nervous you were, Rei-chan! You should've seen your face—ahahahahahaha!" As his laughter rang through the parlor, some of the guests cast them curious looks as they danced around the two husbands—most of them smiling at them before returning to their dance. Feeling their stares, Rei's ears turned an extra dark shade of beet-red as he began sputtering.

"Nagisa-kun! This is absolutely not funny at all! I mean, this was our wedding, everyone saw—" He shuddered to think what his next dinner with his parents and Nagisa would be like, after the two of them returned from their honeymoon. "Why on earth would you have done something like tha—"

"Isn't it obvious why?" Perking up, Nagisa smiled brightly—and the smile turned devious as his eyes lidded in a way that still made Rei gulp and want to do unspeakable things to the blonde at a not-so-appropriate moment for said things. Leaning up next to the brunette's ear, the older man whispered, "It's because I wanted to see you in a speedo, of course." The seductive voice sent shivers down Rei's spine as his face erupted into flames at the blonde's honesty. Drawing back with an innocent smile, Nagisa chirped, "It's been too long since I saw you wearing one, you know?" And to the blonde's delight, that last added statement was enough to draw out the stuttering pile of awkward teenager in his flushing husband once again.

"Nagisa—th-that is—you are just—" After wringing his hands slightly, Rei gave up and dropped his head in defeat, ears a very vibrant red. "This is so embarrassing—" Seeing the brunette all flustered made something soften in Nagisa's heart. The blonde's burgundy eyes took on a captivated look as he leaned up and cupped Rei's cheek in one hand.

"But I absolutely adore you when you're embarrassed, you know?" he said softly. "I always get the urge to kiss you on the spot when you do." For a moment, Rei was at a loss for words as he met Nagisa's large burgundy eyes, eyes that always reminded him of maple leaves in the fall, which were shining with unconcealed fondness behind their long blonde lashes. Opening his lips slightly, the brunette responded with the only three words he could think of at the moment.

"I love you." Rei's voice was a loving whisper as he gazed into those eyes, in which he saw the whole world. And although it wasn't the first time Nagisa heard those words from the brunette, they struck a chord in him as they always did, sending a series of warm flutters through his heart. The blonde's entire face glowed with a smile that took Rei's breath away.

"I love you, too." Nagisa's voice was also quiet, but just as earnest, his cheeks tinged with a rosy blush.

Rei leaned down, gently cupping Nagisa's cheek in one hand, and sealed the blonde's soft lips with his own in a tender kiss. And for that uninterrupted moment, as the leaves of the maple trees danced in the evening breeze and the moon shone gently overhead in the sky, both of them felt as if they held the world in their hands.

When they broke apart, they met each other's eyes and both of them let out a few happy laughs. They then started dancing again, and had been swaying together for a few minutes when Nagisa felt a hand tap him on the shoulder.

"May I have a dance?" a voice asked from behind him. Nagisa and Rei turned to see a light-haired man with tanned skin and a tall build—he looked to be about the same height as Rei, maybe even a little taller. Both of them thought that he seemed familiar—but neither of them could remember if there had been anyone like this person on the guest list. The angle of his face made it so his bangs were falling over his eyes, and the husbands could not place a finger on what it was about the man that struck the nostalgic feeling that suddenly appeared in their hearts. But at the moment, the person was extending his hand, and Nagisa did not want to be rude and refuse a guest who had come to their wedding. So for the moment, he exchanged a look with Rei before smiling politely at the stranger and nodding.

"Sure!" Winking at Rei, the blonde said cheerfully, "Don't let your eyes wander while I'm gone, Rei-chan!" At this, the brunette blushed, drawing back from Nagisa as the blonde went to dance with the guest. But almost as soon as he did, Rei started to worry a little. Although the person had seemed familiar, it seemed that Nagisa did not recognize who he was either—had he been right in letting the stranger cut in during their dance? As a feeling of nervousness and a little bit of suspiciousness settled in him, he kept his violet eyes on his husband and the guest as they began to dance together.

Meanwhile, Nagisa was going through his head, trying to figure out who the guest was. It didn't help that the man's hair was falling over his face—he could not get a clear view of the man's eyes as he tried not to stare too obviously, only glancing now and then at the stranger's face for what he hoped was a polite amount of time. But after he still had no luck with identifying the person, Nagisa wondered if he should just straight-up ask who he was. Before he could, however, the stranger opened his mouth.

"It's been a long time, hasn't it, Hazuki-san?" There was that familiar voice again—Nagisa almost frowned as he was trying to figure out where he had heard it before. "I wasn't present at the ceremony because I arrived late today, but I heard from the other guests that it was fun. Congratulations on getting married!"

"Ah, uhm, thank you!" Nagisa replied, as his head spun. "Actually, I'm Ryuugazaki Nagisa now—although I'm still also a Hazuki, of course!" he added, with a grin.

"Oh, you took your husband's surname? I apologize for the mistake, Ryuugazaki-san, I didn't consider that factor just now."

"Oh, it's all right!" A rosy glow tinted the blonde's cheeks as he heard himself being referred to by his new surname for the first time that day. It reminded him of how he and Rei had discussed about whether or not to take each other's surnames one afternoon. In the living room of the yellow house, Nagisa had firmly declared that he wanted to take Rei's name—he had been quite set on doing so from the start. He had promised that he would never leave Rei alone again, and as proof that he would belong to Rei for life, the blonde had insisted on having the same surname as the younger man. Now he was half a Ryuugazaki, as well as half a Hazuki—and he was proud to show off the fact. "It's only been a few hours since we got married, so I understand!" The guest smiled as his stare wandered over to the blue-haired man, who he caught watching them as he leaned against a wall nearby. Seeming flustered by the eye contact, the brunette immediately turned his head away, blushing slightly in embarrassment. Chuckling in his head, the stranger returned his attention to Nagisa and opened his mouth.

"I always thought Rei-kun might take your surname instead—after all, he was already completely infatuated with you the last time I saw him." Nagisa's eyes widened a little as he heard Rei's first name slip so casually from the guest's lips. "I mean, he got jealous so easily that time when you hugged me in the hospital. It was kind of cute, really, seeing him get that frown on his face after you left!" At the stranger's words, Nagisa blinked as his burgundy orbs grew wider. Had he just mentioned a hospital? As his thoughts were racing, the stranger went on in a slight undertone. "And actually, he's looking at us right now—he looked a little worried there for a moment." A mischievous smile graced the stranger's lips as he leaned over next to Nagisa's ear and whispered his next words in it.

"Say, Ryuugazaki-san. Would you like to test your husband a little?" Nagisa blinked in surprise—before he could even respond to the question, the stranger suddenly took him by the waist and dipped him low, bringing his face close to his…

"Excuse me, sir—just what are you doing to my husband?" As Rei's stiff voice sounded from behind them, both Nagisa and the stranger straightened up—the blonde still looking surprised and his cheeks faintly pink as his husband grabbed him by the hand and tugged him to his side away from the guest. "I would appreciate it if you were not so forward with him—"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" The stranger let out a light laugh as he pushed his bangs to one side while putting up his other hand in apology. "I was only catching up on old times with Nagisa-san—I apologize if I made you misunderstand." The grey, almond-shaped eyes that were finally revealed were twinkling, and as Rei and Nagisa saw them, their mouths dropped open and their own eyes started to grow in size. "I've been living abroad for quite a while now, so it seems that the liberal culture there has been infused into my behavior!" As another round of laughter escaped from the man's thin lips, it clicked first for Nagisa.

"…Oh my god…!" His burgundy eyes wavered in awe as he looked at the man before him. "I can't believe it…it's you…!" A bright smile spread across his face as his eyes started to fill a little with tears. "You're back…you're finally back…!" At the blonde's words, the guest gave him a smile tinged with a bit of boyishness.

"Finally, you recognized me. You were making me sweat a little when I started thinking you wouldn't at all!" His twinkling grey eyes then turned to Rei, who he also grinned at. "It's been a long eleven years, Rei-kun!" His smile was wide and dazzling as he said his next words.

"As you said, the world outside has been really beautiful!"

And then, it finally clicked for Rei as well.

"…Yuuto…?" The name fell from Rei's lips like a memento that had been dug up from his childhood, as if he was summoning memories from the past and laying them out in the present. "Oh god…it's you…it really is you…!" His violet eyes grew even wider, if that was possible. "You're here…but how…how did you…I lost contact with you…I mean, after all this time…!" Seeing the surprise and disbelief in his old friend's face made Saionji Yuuto's eyes twinkle.

"Of course. I could hardly miss my precious friend's wedding in its entirety!" He grinned cheerfully at the brunette, who had also started to tear up. "Although I did miss the ceremony—sorry about that, my plane was a little late coming in. But I'm here no—" Before he could finish, the light-haired man felt two pairs of arms throw themselves around him. His grey eyes widened as both Rei and Nagisa started sobbing and attacking him with an onslaught of words.

"You're back…! You're finally back…!" "Thank God, you look so well now—and so tan!" "You were all right in America, right? You had fun all those years, right?" "Did you become a marine biologist like you always wanted to? What took you so long to contact us?" "I can't believe it, Rei-chan—I really can't believe it…!" As the two men were babbling like children, Yuuto also got a few tears in his eyes.

"Yeah—I'm finally home…!" He smiled at his friends from the past, his grey eyes glistening. "Congratulations, you two—I really hope you guys are happy together..!"

As the couple continued to sob through the fateful reunion, a white butterfly flew into the distance, its wings fluttering under the light of the moon as it shone on the world in the dark sky.

They went to the British Isles for their honeymoon, where it was known that a population of Purple Emperors dwelled in the woodlands. And although they were tired and had some scrapes and dirt on them by the end of the day, they had been happy to see so many butterflies of the species that they had only ever seen in an old picture encyclopedia of bugs. It had been beautiful, the sunlight that filtered through the treetops and illuminated the wings of the butterflies, making them glow an iridescent purple. And Nagisa had been absolutely delighted when one of the butterflies landed on his finger—thankfully, Rei had a camera at hand and was able to take a snapshot of the moment. The photo was later put in a picture frame and placed on their bedside table next to another photo, in which another purple butterfly had landed on Rei's glasses, to the brunette's apparent surprise.

The two weeks that they spent in the isles passed by in a vibrantly happy flash. Soon, they were back home, standing on the porch in front of the yellow house that Mr. and Mrs. Hazuki had decided to give to them. At the moment, Nagisa had a triumphant smile on his face as he held a flustered Rei in a princess hold in his arms. His violet eyes furtively glancing around, the younger man's cheeks were beet-red as he sputtered at his husband.

"Nagisa-kun, put me down! The neighbors could be watching—"

"Nope! If I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna do it right!" Although the blonde had to admit that Rei was a little heavy, he stifled his grunts as he reached out with a hand and swung open the front door. "All right, now—stepping over the threshold!" he announced loudly in a sing-song voice as he dramatically carried Rei over the porch and into the genkan. "Tada!" It was only then that he let his husband down, and as the brunette fell to his feet in relief, he turned a pink face towards the blonde.

"'Tada'—really, Nagisa-kun, you're making too much of a fuss!" he protested in embarrassment. "We've been living here together for years—"

"But that and this aren't the same!" the blonde piped up. "Or what—you think being and not being married are the same things?" Seeing the blonde pout, Rei quickly opened his mouth.

"Of course not—that is not what I meant at all!" he said, feeling flustered. "It's just, we're in our late twenties, and we've known each other for years, and there's really no need to—" He was cut off mid-sentence when Nagisa pulled him down by the collar and silenced his lips with his own. Drawing back with sparkling burgundy eyes, the blonde smiled up at Rei, the searing grin sending flutters through Rei's heart.

"We're home now, Rei." His voice sounded happy. "Our home!" Seeing his husband glowing with happiness made Rei smile gently as well.

"You're right. It's our home." For the millionth time, he felt grateful to the Hazukis for giving their house to them—he felt that he would not be able to thank them enough even if he thanked them over and over for the rest of his life. And for the zillionth time, he felt even more grateful to have Nagisa by his side—the person who was home itself to Rei, who he felt that he could not cherish enough even if he had multiple lifetimes to do so. But he was determined to try, and as the younger man pressed another kiss to Nagisa's lips, he heard the blonde giggle in pleasure as he melted into Rei's arms.

"Say, Rei-chan, wanna go to our room?" By 'our room', the blonde meant his bedroom, which they would make over into a bedroom for two. "Let's go look at your favorite tree!" Rei's lips curved up in a fond smile as he nodded.

Minutes later, they were seated in front of the window in the bedroom, leaning against each others' shoulders as they took in the view outside. They watched the maple tree that had stood in the Hazukis' yard for years—its elegantly rising trunk, gracefully winding branches, the crimson and orange and golden leaves dancing in the afternoon breeze. His burgundy eyes reminiscent, Nagisa squeezed Rei's hand, which was intertwined with his own on the floor.

"It's still the same view as seventeen years ago," he murmured as his eyes wandered over the tree, down to his yard, over the fence, and to the lavender house next door—where the window of Rei's bedroom seemed to stare back at him. "Except I haven't seen you at that window in a long while." When Nagisa pointed this out, Rei laughed a little next to him.

"Would you like me to go back over there?" he teased the blonde—who made a face at his husband.

"Of course not, silly! I'd much rather have you here, right next to me—you know it!" As he nuzzled his head against Rei's side, the younger man laughed again.

"It might be kind of romantic—something like a scene out of Romeo and Juliet. And you have quite the unexpected soft spot for those kinds of things, Nagisa." At this comment, the blonde flushed a little as he made a face at Rei.

"Don't compare us to them—there's no way I want us to end up like those two!" Leaning back against Rei's side, the blonde thought about it. "Does that mean I'd be Romeo, then? I did climb that tree once to get you to come out—though I wasn't exactly Mr. Handsome proposing back then." He giggled, eyes softening with nostalgia as he remembered his ten-year-old self braving the height of the tree, clumsily scooting forward on the branch and extending his hand out to a younger Rei.

"…Are you implying that I'd be Juliet, then?" Rei sighed. "Well, regardless of that—I'll admit that I do miss the conversations we used to have through our windows." His smile was tinged with a little longing as he thought of those days, which had already become brilliant jewels in his memory. Eleven years could go by so fast, as he was finding out, especially when he was spending them at Nagisa's side.

"Hmm—I suppose you could pop over there now and then, if that's what you're missing," Nagisa offered, albeit a little grudgingly but with a grin on his face. "But I definitely wouldn't let you stay there for too long!" He turned to look at Rei, those burgundy eyes glowing like iridescent autumn leaves with sunlight shining on them, a soft smile on his face.

"I'd drag you out over and over again, if that's what it takes to keep you by my side." At this comment, Rei felt his heart melt yet again—the fondness in his violet eyes grew as he gave the blonde a smile that Nagisa found absolutely dazzling.

"You wouldn't have to—I'd come back on my own. Over and over again," he said softly, repeating Nagisa's words. What he said made the blonde's burgundy eyes widen—then return Rei's smile by tenfold, his face glowing with unconcealed adoration and bliss.

"Let's be happy together, Rei-chan." He gently squeezed Rei's hand in his own. "No matter what." Rei smiled as he squeezed the blonde's hand back.

"Absolutely." And the word he murmured back was every bit true.

Sitting in the room a few feet away from the couple was Nagisa's bedside table. On its surface sat recent photos of the two of them at the wedding, along with older photos from their years of living together, as well as a couple from their high school years. There were also two photos of their younger selves as children—they had been placed side by side so it looked like their adolescent selves were facing each other. These photos were later joined by the photos they took at the British Isles—and a little afterwards, one that they took of themselves smiling in the yellow house after coming home from their honeymoon.

Next to that particular photo stood the globe with the silver figure of a penguin with a butterfly perched on his beak, with the red leaf-shaped sparkles gathered at the bottom. Later that evening, Rei picked up the globe and gave it a shake, his eyes reminiscent as he watched the miniature leaves drift inside the glass. He then looked outside the bedroom window at the maple tree, seeing in his imagination a ten-year-old boy with golden-blonde locks, a round face, and overflowing burgundy eyes perched on one of the branches, his smile full of crooked teeth brightening the scenery outside. He also imagined his ten-year-old self sitting on a branch, a book propped open on his lap and a quiet smile on his face as his violet eyes wandered from the pages towards the blonde. And as he heard his name being called, turned around to see the blonde man standing in the doorway with a bright smile on his face, the brunette returned the smile with a loving one of his own.

Whether it was behind or outside the glass, Rei knew then, the world between them would always be beautiful—as long as they were together.

-Fin.

And it has really come to an end! *starts pulling out the tissue box*

First of all, I'm sorry that this chapter was late. I said it would take about a week, but as it turned out, there was an onslaught of school assignments that turned up out of nowhere, so this last chapter came out in small bits at a time ;v; It drove me crazy that I couldn't write extensively in one setting at a time, and although I finally had free time this weekend to continuously write about half of it, I hope that the content didn't seem too choppy. Thank you for waiting to read this chapter! I'm not really sure if I'm satisfied with how it turned out. Since it was the last chapter, I hesitated a lot about what I should put in and what I should take out. But I hope you still enjoyed it! If you guys have anything you are confused or curious about that wasn't answered through this last chapter, feel free to leave questions or comments! :)

Though I don't know if I did the whole story justice with this ending, it makes me happy that you guys saw the story to its finale. Like with The Window, I had a really good time writing all these drabbles, and I was thrilled with the continued interest and support from you guys. I can't say this enough, but thank you so much for reading this fanfic! It's been a really great experience sharing my writing with so many people, which I haven't really done before this series, so it means a lot to me that my readers enjoyed the story. *fills a river with tears* Knowing how much fun I've had writing Reigisa, I will definitely be back with more of them in the future, and probably with some other pairings as well ^^. I'm already smiling at just the thought of it hehe x3

Looking back on it, I can't believe this extensive fic all started from a random impulse I had during summer break. But I'm super glad now that it came. Again, for everyone who read my story, thank you so much! See you guys again soon! ;)