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"What are you thinking about, Yura?"
Otabek was the kind of man that worried too much but mainly out of pure and sincere love. For him, there was no one better but the man across the table. And to think they had come all this way; all those fights, misunderstandings and yelling had led them to this moment.
Yuri was sitting right across the table, legs crossed in perfect elegance. His cheeks hurt from smiling but he couldn't stop it, even if they were in public. Otabek was the light of his eyes and he was lucky enough to be a few hours away from marrying him, tomorrow morning he would part ways with this wonderful man, only to join him later at the altar.
"Just... about when we met. You, bumping into me and staining my fav shirt with your coffee, I still can't believe you wanted my number after all the insults I threw at you!" He chuckled, making his eyes sparkle by the sweet memory.
The Kazakh licked his lips and laughed along his fiancee, nodding in agreement "Yeah well... you can say I've been, literally, crazy about you from the very start"
The Russian's heart melted by those words and the world seemed to vanish around him, Otabek had that effect on him and now that he was older, he had let the man grow on him, teach him how to connect with his own emotions and yet...
"You fucker, how do you even come up with those cheesy lines?!"
Though, Otabek could only stare at the red tint on Yuri's cheeks because he was the only one responsible for that. Nobody managed to make his stubborn fiancé blush as easily as he did.
"It's always about you, Yura. Thought you knew that by now" Reaching across the table, the black-haired man took the blonde's delicate hand in his, squeezing it lovingly "You always get my better side"
The atmosphere around them was perfect, a small restaurant just around the corner, nothing too fancy. Maybe this was their last dinner as an engaged couple but they had never needed much to be happy, being with each other had proven so fulfilling already.
If both men were honest, they were feeling torn. Time was passing rather slow to their liking, both wanted to flash forward and say 'I do' already, though they also wanted nothing more than to make this beautiful moment together last longer.
Otabek let out a heavy breath as he arranged his tie for the hundredth time in the last 10 minutes, clearing his throat he turned to his friends who were accompanying him that day.
"How do I look? It feels weird... " He wasn't complaining about the design of his tuxedo, in fact, he loved it, he guessed it was the entire situation.
First, he had woken up alone; sleeping with Yuri and waking up to that beautiful face for the past few years, it's what kept him in a good mood. Everyone would say, that out of all other days, today he shouldn't need anything else to feel content though it has just felt... well, exactly that, weird.
Leo chuckled at his friend, who was clearly just nervous as hell. He should be, this was his wedding day after all.
"You look fine" He said with a somewhat condescending tone, but it was kind of weird to play a reversed role. Otabek was usually the composed one, while the others around him just went through life impetuously.
"Handsome as hell, man!" Jean Jacques cut in, elbowing Leo and giving him a disapproving look, he should cut the Kazakh some slack.
Turning to the full-length mirror in the hotel room, he let those words sink in and he couldn't stop his mind from wandering to his soon to be husband getting ready in another room of the hotel.
Thinking back to the moment he decided to propose made him smile, it had been such a typically Yuri response. Indeed his fiancé was one of a kind, he couldn't love that about the blonde any less because, if the Russian's personality were to change then he guessed their love would have been either impossible or a lost cause.
Taking a deep breath, Otabek nodded at his reflection "I'm ready"
"Let's take a selfie!" Leo was quick to take out his phone when he heard those words and Otabek was taken by surprise, although he guessed it wouldn't hurt anyone.
"Oh, ok"
JJ laughed along "Come on guys! Let's do the JJ style!"
A sudden knock made the Kazakh turn his attention from the phone to the entrance door, with a frown he went to it, without wasting any more time he stepped aside and let Nikolai into the room.
"Excuse me, but can I talk to you for a minute, Altin?" The old man looked calm, serene even, so Otabek relaxed his shoulders. He was about to run out of the room thinking something might have happened to Yuri.
"Sir" He said intrigued.
"It's about Yura... I just want to confirm something with you, boy. I want you to..."
JJ and Leo knew this was between his friend and his future father in law. In order to be polite and give them some privacy, both left the room to join everybody else downstairs at the salon where the wedding was going to take place.
The entire place had been decorated so simply that it was exquisite. Clearly, Yurio had a very nice taste.
White and pale pink were the theme colours, which contrasted perfectly with his green eyes and blonde hair. Everyone could tell that everything had been meticulously planned and arranged; the flower arch by the altar, transparent chairs that imitated glass, Greek-style pillars adorned with white roses from top to bottom.
The fabric hanging from the ceiling just added to the magic of the moment, some pieces were pearly white while others were pale pink, hiding the lamps but clear enough to let just the right amount of light through. Beautiful and breath taking.
Inside another room in the hotel, Yuri kept fidgeting with a random petal that had fallen from his bouquet, his hands were sweating so much. He felt like running, he wanted to close his eyes and be rescued by his knight in shining armour. He chuckled at himself, that was such a stupid thought since he was about to get married to that same knight.
Yuri could feel Yuuri arranging his hair carefully and he was starting to get impatient, as usual.
"Cut it out, Katsudon!" He tried to slap the Japanese's hands away "My hair looks stupid!"
The black haired man could only smile sweetly at his friend, remembering his own wedding and how incredibly nervous he had been. He had wanted everything to be perfect, forgetting that the man he was going to join in the altar was already all that and more.
He could totally understand Yuri's young and fierce heart.
"Yurio, your hair looks stunning and perfect!" But that just got him an annoyed huff from the Russian "It's your wedding after all"
The blonde bit his bottom lip before reaching a hand up to play with some loose tresses, that had managed to escape the loose braids his friend had plaited for him. A sudden heavy feeling permeated his chest, making it a tad difficult to breathe. It made him squirm on his place, he hated feeling this uneasy.
He knew he was furiously blushing and the thought of Yuuri seeing him but not saying a word, it was embarrassing. He was thankful for the Japanese's silence nevertheless.
"Katsudon... how did you do this so calmly? I feel like my heart is going to burst out" Letting out a shaky breath, Yuri looked up when he felt a familiar hand on his shoulder, reassuring him that this was just one more step to happiness.
Nothing could mitigate his bubbling emotions, there were so many and some of them were so foreign to him. The blonde needed Otabek, he needed to hear that soft voice telling him to calm down and think. He knew what to do, though, without the Kazakh around, it was proving to be somewhat difficult.
Phichit exited the elevator and quickly made his way towards Otabek's room, his steps muffled by the carpeted door. Once he reached the groom's room, he knocked lightly on the door before opening it.
"Excuse me, Otabek" He saw Nikolai in there and it raised so many questions inside him, either way, he shrugged them off. It was not his place to prod in somebody else's conversation "It's time."
"Thanks, Phichit, we'll be there in a minute"
Nikolai was grateful that his grandson had found such a polite man, he was willing to be a little late to his own wedding, only to listen to an old man like himself. The elder man patted the Kazakh's shoulder and turned to leave, he had already expressed his worries to his future son in law.
"Remember what I told you and you promised me, son. Don't ever forget that."
Otabek nodded, even if it was to the man's back, as he retreated from his room. Making sure everything was in place, one last time, the 24-year-old Kazakh took a deep breath to reassure himself and finally left the room. It was time to get married.
The Thai boy accompanied Nikolai downstairs and left him by the elevator which Yuri wouldn't take long to appear from. He was the wedding photographer and since Otabek was already by the altar, he had to rush and fulfil his duty. Oh, he was so excited about it all!
A few minutes later, a very emotional Yuri met his grandfather, who was tongue-tied with how beautiful his Yuratchka looked. The blonde was no longer a teenager, nor a baby but Nikolai saw no difference between 21 or 10 years old. Under his eyes, Yuri would always be that comically angry, little boy.
Yuuri hugged his friend one last time, against Yuri's wishes of course, though the Japanese knew that it had been very well received. He went ahead, across the hotel lobby to find his way into the ballroom, where his own husband was waiting for him eagerly.
When Yuri and Nikolai where by the salon closed doors, the soft murmurs of people filling the chairs made the blonde let out a shaky breath, he was doing it. He was finally marrying the guy of his dreams, the future father of his children, his best friend. Content with that train of thought he stepped closer to his Grandfather, accepting the little peck to his cheek, which helped him calm down momentarily.
A soft melody announced the start of the ceremony and everyone in the salon got up from their chairs, Otabek turned towards the door and waited. Which was proving to be so difficult, he wanted nothing more than to run down the altar and kiss his future husband.
What he wasn't expecting, was the flood of emotions as soon as his Yura came to view. Have you seen those videos going around the internet? The ones melting everyone's heart, where the grooms cry at the first glance of their bride. This was no different, his serenity and composure went flying through a window.
JJ put a hand to Otabek's shoulder, smiling. Leo chuckled as he stood by his friend on such an important day, glad that the Kazakh was able to let his true feelings out at least once. Nobody judged Otabek's tears, not today.
Yuri, on the other hand, he couldn't look up. He was holding his Grandfather's arm like a lifeline as if the floor would suddenly disappear under his feet and swallow him whole. He was a jumbled jar of emotions right now, there were too many for him and in a different scenario, he would be yelling by now.
With his heart about to burst out of his chest, he didn't notice when he had reached Otabek until Nikolai handed him over. Finally, their eyes met and Yuri couldn't stop his own tears when he saw his boyfriend's red eyes.
Standing here, in front of each other, the world didn't matter. They were in their own little bubble, admiring and loving every single little thing about each other.
As the Judge spoke, the moment came. Exchanging rings, Otabek could only think back to his hotel room and the eternal promise that he and Nikolai shared now.
"Promise me to take good care of Yurachtka... for me..."
Vows were exchanged and while the Judge said some last few words, Yuri and Otabek gently reached for one another, holding their hands by their pinkies. A new life awaited them, together they would grow old and give meaning to their lives, though for the Kazakh, there wouldn't be enough days in his life to sharing with the love of his life.
"I promise"
You can go and check out SALMON's art here (That mini story is, like I said, what inspired the entire OS)