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Mix stared at himself in the large mirror before him, adjusting the pristine white suit he had carefully chosen for the wedding. It was a custom-made Italian design, tailored perfectly to his frame—the suit of his dreams. Yet, as flawless as he looked on the outside, he never imagined this day would actually come.
While applying the final touches—a bit of concealer and some lip balm—his mind drifted back to everything that had led him to this moment.
Mix first met Earth back in high school. He had just moved to Bangkok, dragged along by his father, a powerful businessman running a conglomerate in Lampang. His father had been assigned to oversee a branch in the city, and now they were here—the last place Mix ever wanted to be. He hated leaving his friends, his old school, and most of all, his grandmother, who now lived alone in another city. But Mix never really had a choice. His father’s word was law, and as the obedient heir, he had no option but to follow.
On his first day at the elite new school, the first thing Mix heard was a warning: stay away from the heir of the Watthanasetsiri family—the rebellious boy who was nothing but trouble. Strangely, that only made Mix more curious. The Watthanasetsiris were among the most powerful families in the city. How could their son so easily defy his parents’ strict authority?
Their first meeting wasn’t planned. Mix, running late to his first math class and completely lost, wasn’t paying attention to where he was going. He bumped hard into someone—a tall, broad-shouldered figure.
Earth despised everything his last name stood for. All he wanted was to live like any other 17-year-old—going to parties, sneaking out late, and enjoying life. Not attending charity events full of people more interested in showing off their wealth than in the cause itself.
But Earth’s life turned into a nightmare the moment his parents found out he had been seen holding hands with another boy on school grounds—Khaotung, his almost-something at the time. He would never forget how his father treated him like he was the family’s greatest shame, how his mother sobbed, wondering where she had gone wrong, or how they threatened the other boy, a scholarship student, into silence.
Earth agreed never to be seen with Khaotung again if it meant his father would leave the boy alone. Hell, he even promised to go along with an arranged marriage if he didn’t "fix himself" by the time he was 26—his father’s words, not his.
But Earth didn’t let that break him. If he was destined to be the family disappointment, then so be it. If he couldn’t love without ruining his parents’ reputation, then he’d make damn sure they wouldn’t be admired by high society either.
It started small—failing a math test, skipping homework—but soon escalated to school fights, weekly suspensions, and countless threats of expulsion. Yet Earth wasn’t afraid. He knew the weight of his family’s name would keep him safe. His father would find a way to keep him in the best school in the city. And he was right.
At some point, he couldn’t tell when exactly, the look of disappointment in his father’s eyes became a victory for him. Knowing he could irritate his father without putting anyone else in harm's way gave him a sense of power. His father could never truly punish him—he was the sole heir. Lucky or cursed?
It was supposed to be another normal day—arguing with teachers, throwing punches in the courtyard, skipping classes—until someone suddenly crashed into him. Earth was ready to pick a fight until his eyes met the stranger's. The boy had large, round eyes that seemed to hold entire galaxies. He was slightly shorter, with dark hair falling softly over his forehead, contrasting with his pale skin and rosy cheeks. Earth had to admit, the kid was easy on the eyes.
"Careful. You should watch where you’re going. You could get hurt. You new here?"
Mix hurriedly bent down to collect his fallen books, mumbling a quiet "sorry." Earth crouched down to help, their fingers brushing lightly.
"I was distracted trying to find my math class. I really didn’t see you. I’m sorry." Mix apologized again, this time taking in the taller boy more clearly. His sun-kissed skin, his athletic build, and that damn dimpled smile—he looked like a Greek god.
"Math class? I can take you there. I was heading that way anyway."
A lie. Earth couldn’t remember the last time he actually attended that class. To be fair, Ms. Margot was a pain.
"By the way, I’m Pirapat. But you can call me Earth, like the planet." He grinned, extending his hand. So this was the so-called demon student Mix had been warned about? God, his heart had never raced this fast.
"Sahaphap... but most people call me Mix." His voice was small, his cheeks flushed. He had only recently started to understand why he was the only one among his friends without a Playboy magazine collection or his first kiss. It hadn’t been long since he realized how his heart beat faster watching Justin Bieber music videos—or how he might have liked that cute boy from the toy commercial when he was seven. A secret he planned to take to his grave.
Their friendship started innocently enough—a new kid being helped by the school troublemaker. Odd, right? But Mix couldn’t have asked for a better friend. He wasn’t a fan of clichés, but every time Earth brought him snacks, helped with his art assignments—Earth was surprisingly talented, unlike Mix, who lived for logic and numbers—or when they simply sat in silence, Mix felt those infamous butterflies in his stomach.
Soon, their touches lingered, their gazes dropped to each other’s lips, and damn, that scared Earth. He couldn’t stop thinking about Khaotung and how everything went wrong. But this felt... right. Mix felt right.
The breaking point came in their final year when Luke Ishikawa, the school’s football captain, started flirting with Mix. Earth had never wanted to punch someone so badly. And that was saying something—he had considered punching his own father more than once.
So, one October Friday, Earth dragged Mix into a secluded corner of the library during lunch—a spot always empty at that time. Mix was confused. Were they eating somewhere new today? Why?
"Phi, why are we here? You—" Mix couldn’t finish. Earth’s lips crashed into his. His first kiss. Instinctively, Mix dropped the sandwich he was holding, his arms wrapping around Earth’s neck.
Earth couldn’t hide the victorious smirk when Mix kissed him back. He was scared, but more than that, he was determined. Mix made him feel things he never had before. Earth knew then and there—he was going to fight for this love. Hell, he already felt like he was going to marry and have kids with the smaller boy in his arms.
After that first kiss, it didn’t take long for Earth to ask Mix to be his boyfriend. The proposal came with a silver ring, adorned with a small diamond in the center. Simple, yet beautiful and delicate—just like Mix in Earth’s eyes. The rings were the result of Earth’s hard work at one of his father’s companies. He refused to use his allowance money, a small detail that made it even more special.
One year had passed, and the couple was happier than ever. High school was finally over, students were applying to different universities, and Earth was gradually becoming the respectful and well-mannered boy he had once been, thanks to Mix. That same day, Earth’s parents had praised him for his good behavior, saying they were finally getting their son back. Mix, meanwhile, had excitedly shared the news of being accepted into a university in Chiang Mai to study veterinary medicine—his dream. Earth felt it was time to confront his fears and introduce his boyfriend to his parents. After all, he was of age—what could possibly go wrong?
Everything. Everything went wrong the moment Earth’s parents laid eyes on Mix. But it wasn’t as bad as when they discovered Mix’s last name. The Watthanasetsiris were the main rivals of the Wongratch family, and the idea of their children being in a relationship? Absolutely not.
Earth believed he had never witnessed an argument as vicious or seen his father as furious as he was that night. His father screamed at the patriarch of the Wongratch family, and then at his own wife, blaming her for the "abomination" their son had become. Vanity and rivalry had placed hatred and power above love.
In the backyard, two souls made silent promises, bound by the same feeling. As Mix sobbed into Earth’s chest, soaking his shirt, Earth whispered vows of love and "forever" into his ear. Even though both knew their last names would never merge into one, and that forgetting—or never meeting—the boy now clinging to his shirt as if Earth were a life vest might have been for the best, Earth couldn’t fathom it. How could he, when Mix was his everything? When Mix was the one who had shown him what life and love truly meant?
Mix never believed in coincidences, but he couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh at the irony. Twenty years later, he now stood in his best suit at the altar, clutching tightly to the small box containing the ring Earth had given him in high school. Silently, he prayed for the union to be blessed as he watched a beautiful young woman with dark hair and sun-kissed skin walk down the aisle in her long white wedding dress, looking like a Disney princess brought to life.
The young woman held her father’s hand instinctively, squeezing it tighter as she tried to hold back tears, careful not to ruin her makeup. Her smile stretched from ear to ear, and Mix’s heart warmed at her happiness. Then he raised his eyes to the father of the bride.
Earth was radiant. The older man had aged like fine wine, and Mix couldn’t help but smile at how much father and daughter resembled each other. The small eyes, the sharp jawline—it was as if the girl were Earth in a wig.
“Dad, I think I’m going to cry…” Mix was pulled from his thoughts by the voice of his son—the groom—beside him. “Did you feel like this when you saw Mom walking down the aisle too?”
“Wait until they take the pictures first,” Mix teased, skillfully dodging the second question. He loved his ex-wife dearly—as a friend. She had been his best friend, but the arranged marriage and the bitter years spent pretending to be someone he wasn’t were hard to forget.
When Earth handed his daughter to Mix’s son, asking him to take good care of his little girl, Earth’s eyes met Mix’s. Then they fell on the box clutched tightly in Mix’s hands. A sad smile formed on his face.
Who would’ve thought the two last names would indeed come together as one? But not in the way Earth and Mix had ever imagined. Mix never thought Earth’s daughter would become his daughter-in-law. And Earth never dreamed Mix’s son would call him "Father" in the most unexpected way—as his son-in-law.
When the ceremony ended and the reception began, all the families gathered for the moment when the bride would toss her bouquet. Mix stood in a more secluded corner, observing from a distance. But his solitude was interrupted when he felt a familiar presence behind him.
Earth stood there, smiling at him, holding two glasses of champagne. He extended one toward Mix.
“Still your favorite?”
“You could say that…” Mix smiled, surprised Earth remembered his preferences.
“It’s funny, isn’t it? This whole situation... Our union coming through our children instead,” Earth said with a humorless chuckle, sighing softly.
Mix was ready to ask Earth not to bring it up, not to mention it—at least not in the middle of their children’s wedding celebration. They were here for them, after all. But before he could say anything, the countdown for Earth’s daughter to toss the bouquet began.
Instinctively, Mix reached out as the bouquet flew toward him. The world seemed to go silent, everything around him paused. He was trapped in a bubble, the weight of the flowers in his hands almost overwhelming. His gaze found Earth’s again, who was grinning at the scene.
There was no fighting destiny. Life had brought them here, uniting them once more.