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"Phew, I'm glad I made it back in time. The bathroom line was longer than I thought." Matthew whispers as he takes his seat on the edge of the pew beside Gunwook.
"Just in time hyung" Gunwook replies, glancing at the time written on his phone. There was less than a minute before the ceremony was scheduled to begin, confirmed by the crowd around him steadily ending their conversations and finding their way to the assigned seating. From the corner of his eye we could see Hao hyung waving to one of their company's managers and heading back in Gunwook's direction.
Just as Zhang Hao made himself comfortable on Gunwook's right, the volume within the hall crescendoed to a silence. Gunwook followed the crowd's lead, craning his head backwards to watch as the Church's double doors slowly parted, to reveal the groom and his best man. As the performance director made his way to the altar, Gunwook appreciated how dashing the groom looked today. The man had always worked in the background to ensure that Zerobaseone's stages and live events were of the highest calibre, thus today Gunwook felt grateful to watch as the man took the spotlight.
The rest of the wedding procession followed one by one. Gunwook took the moment to enjoy the ambient romantic music that paired the idyllic atmosphere that buzzed through the room. He could see that both his hyungs also felt affected by the jovial mood, holding soft smiles on their faces.
Pachelbel's Canon signaled the Bride's entrance, accompanied by her proud father. Gunwook joined the crowd gazing in awe of the Bride's radiance, complimented by her stunning sleeveless dress which reminded him of flower petals. The expression on her face matched that of her soon to be husband, eyes affixed on him across the hall's expanse. No doubt slightly nervous, but mostly excited for what this moment signaled. The start of the rest of their lives with each other.
At that thought, Gunwook felt the tears beginning to prickle on the corners of his eye. He knew that he often got too emotional about many things, but he thinks that should surely be exempt from judgement today. More than ever, he's aware that he was in a transitional stage in his own life, the difference being that he wasn't exactly surrounded by sentiments of happiness.
As the father and daughter made their way to the altar, Gunwook's attention snagged onto Matthew, equally transfixed by the Bride's radiance. Gunwook let himself focus on the way the Church's warm lighting fell on Matthew's head, lending a subtle shine to his honey brown hair. Gunwook's vision travelled down to Matthew's eyes.
In the three and a half years they had known each other many things had changed. Many parts of themselves became tougher, hardened, by the brutal demands of the kpop industry, pushing themselves to be better everyday. Some parts gained a softer edge, brought about by the unexpected spark they would find for each other But Matthew's eyes, the brightness that rested within them had not changed one bit since the day he first laid eyes on them.
As the bride and groom proceeded to exchange vows, Gunwook clung onto every word and the hopeful tone the two shared. Once the couple had traded their promises and kisses, Gunwook felt compelled to gaze over at Matthew once again. Today Gunwook would make a promise to himself too. That no matter what happened, that no matter what was to come, he would keep holding hope. He certainly owed it to the nine of them. Especially to Matthew and to himself.
The pews erupted into clapping and cheering as the newlyweds made their way back down the aisle together. Gunwook retrieved his phone from this pocket, needing to capture the joyous occasion.
Although he initially began recording the bride and the groom as they graciously thanked the guests on both sides for attending, Gunwook soon found himself positioning his camera towards Matthew. He was sure that one day he would look back at the video to relive the moment once again, remember just how happy he was. Or maybe one day he would relive this moment in a different way. Perhaps from the aisle rather than the pews. Perhaps hand in hand with the man standing before him.
~~~
It was only when the couple reached the end of the hall and began to pose for photos did Matthew and Gunwook decide to sit down. Another manager seemed to spot Hao, leading them to leave their seats to meet for a conversation.
After a couple minutes of watching the newlyweds being posed and the cameras blinking, Mattew slides his left elbow to rest on the ledge in front of him, angling himself to face Gunwook. Gunwook mirrors him, patiently waiting for what Matthew has to say.
"Don't you just love the flower arrangements. The calla lily's just look so beautiful in the bouquets." Matthew says as he beams with excitement.
"Someone who's their flowers today. Have you been cheating on me with a florist." Gunwook teases, unable to resist the temptation of watching Matthew get flustered.
"Hey stop making fun of me. Let a man go down his rabbitholes of flowers and their meanings and which ones work best for my dream arragement." Matthew retorts, playing with his hair like we always does when he gets excited to tell Gunwook something.
"Oh yeah" Gunwook replies, suddenly filled with curiosity to know the extent of Matthew's research. "What do these lilies symbolize?"
"Well several things. Namely devotion, rebirth and renewal." Matthew lists, eagerly sharing his interest.
"So in your dream wedding arrangement, will there be Calla lilies too?" Gunwook prods, needing to imagine this dream bouquet of Matthew’s. He knew he needed to commit the answer to memory.
"Well maybe, but they for sure aren't going to be front and centre like in the bouquets today. I know it's a bit basic, but when we have a wedding of our own, I hope we could have white roses as the main flower. You know why. But I'd also love to have our birth flowers surrounding them, snow drops and lilies of the valley. I think it's such a beautiful coincidence that they are all white..."
Gunwook kept listening as Matthew continued on about the flowers, but he found himself repeating a certain few of Matthew's words to himself. Although they knew that they both wanted a Wedding in their future, this was the first time Matthew had said it out loud.
Gunwook felt his heartrate increase as his mind raced with more thoughts of their future wedding. The promise that he had made himself only a couple of minutes ago seemed so much more achievable as Gunwook allowed himself to feel comfortable in the possibility of a future with the man he loved. That in a world of uncertainty, their commitment to one another could be unwavering.
As the other guests within the wedding hall began filing out, Gunwook and Matthew made their way to look for Hao in the foyer. Matthews walks ahead of Gunwook, stepping out the hall first. Gunwook stops right before the threshold.
"What are you waiting for?" Matthew asks, realizing Gunwook had stopped walking.
Gunwook reaches out, taking Matthews hand into his own before stepping over to join him. "I just know that our's will be perfect."