His wedding was only a couple of days away. Although he had been through a lot in his life, he probably hadn't ever been as excited as he was right now. But he was also quite nervous. If something was going to go wrong, it would obviously be his fault and he didn't want such things to happen. His dear groom shouldn't have any unpleasant memories of their most important day, that was what Amane had decided beforehand.
The whole day he had been running around and taking care of things to make sure his upcoming wedding day would go smoothly. So when he finally sat at a table in a cafe with his favourite parfait, he sighed and thought he had definitely deserved it. But before he could taste the sweetness of the chocolate and the delicacy of the fruit on top of the parfait, he heard someone calling his name.
"Amane-san, isn't it desu?" A short man was suddenly standing next to him.
"Yes, I am. Who might you be?" he asked staring at the other.
"Perhaps you don't remember me, Amane-san. I am Dan Taichi desu. May I join you desu?" the man asked pointing at the chair opposite to him.
"Go ahead, Dan-kun," Amane said and put the first spoonful of the parfait into his mouth. It was perfect like it always was. Only that his darling was able to make it better than anyone; right now he would have to settle for what the cafe could offer him.
Dan sat down and sipped his tea. "What a pleasant surprise to see you desu! I heard that you are getting married desu."
"Yes, it's true. But why would you know about it, Dan-kun?" Amane was quite surprised.
"Amane-san, I'm getting married, too, desu! Well, next month to be more exact desu. I'm so happy desu," Dan beamed holding the cup between his hands.
"Congratulations, Dan-kun."
"Oh, congratulations to you, too, Amane-san. I'm happy for you and Kaidou-san - you must have loved each other for a long time, am I not right?" Dan said smiling and drinking his tea.
"It's true that we have wanted to make our relationship more official for years. And since Japan finally accepted marriage between people who're the same sex, we didn't want to postpone it any further. So we are now among the very first gay couples who get married in Japan. But how about you, Dan-kun, who is your lucky bride?" Amane was pretty curious.
Dan blushed and looked through the window. "No, I have a groom desu. Akutsu-kun finally agreed to marry me desu. But he has told me to take care of everything so I have a lot to do desu. And that is why I am happy to see you desu. If there is any advice you could give me, Amane-san, I'd be very grateful desu."
"Akutsu-kun? He was at Yamabuki, too, right? That was such a long time ago..." Amane said and ate another spoonful. "Perhaps you've been in touch with Kawamura? He's our chef and we're both pleased that he agreed to take care of the catering at the wedding reception, which we're naturally going to have right after the ceremony."
"You're right, Amane-san. Perhaps Akutsu-kun would be a little more benevolent if he knows the people we're dealing with desu. I haven't seen Kawamura-san in years but I suppose he hasn't forgotten Akutsu-kun." Dan had taken a little notebook out of his bag and was now writing something on it.
"He might be pleased to see you two. And find out that you're getting married," Amane smiled at the other as he was looking for his wallet.
"It would be so nice desu! I hope he has the time since our wedding is already next month desu... It would happen on short notice desu."
Amane had found his card and offered it to the other man. "Here, take this. If I have the time, I can give you advice on the phone. And if it's okay with Kaoru, we could invite you two to the reception. The ceremony itself is only for our families but we've invited quite a lot of people to celebrate our marriage together with us. And yes, we've even tracked down some guys from our junior high days."
Dan accepted the card and bowed a little. "Thank you very much desu! I would certainly like to come desu. Akutsu-kun might not like the idea but it would be good for him to see what it's like desu."
"That reminds me of something," Amane said chuckling. "Kaoru and I almost had a fight - you know, we typically don't fight - because he didn't like the idea of inviting Momoshiro to the reception. Their relations didn't get much better during their third year in Seigaku, as you might know. But even so, they've had to deal with each other for years and I would personally call them friends by now. And well, in the end we invited Momoshiro, too, and he seems to be coming."
"Amane-san, do you think that it is really alright to do that desu?" Dan doubted.
"As a matter of fact, Momoshiro was quite disappointed that he won't be our best man. But we're not going to have a Christian wedding so that doesn't even matter. It was a request from Kaoru's family that we'd have a traditional Japanese wedding with kimonos and all that, so I'm a little worried how it'll go..."
"Your guests don't have to wear kimonos, am I right?" Dan asked still writing something.
"It's not necessary. But it would be interesting," Amane smiled and finished eating his parfait. "Dan-kun, I'm sorry but I have another appointment I have to go to. If you want to continue our conversation, then call me or send me mail. I'll do my best to reply."
"Thank you, Amane-san! I will do that desu. And please, tell my regards to Kaidou-san," Dan said getting up and bowing to the tall redhead.
"It was nice to meet you after a long time. See you later," Amane said collecting his bags and smiled at the shorter man before he walked to the door and out of the cafe.
-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-
"Congratulations, Amane-san! Are you both now Amane-san desu?" a cheerful voice said.
"Oh hello, Dan-kun. And Akutsu-kun, too. Thank you very much. We haven't quite decided that yet. It's up to Kaoru. But I don't mind if he wants to keep his own name," Amane replied to the shorter man who was standing next to a tall, white-haired man. Both of them were wearing kimonos, and perhaps that was the reason why they looked pretty much like a father and a son. When he bowed to the taller man, he heard a mere grunt. Some people never changed...
"Kaidou-san looks dazzling in that kimono desu. You're both very handsome desu," Dan praised looking to the direction where Kaidou and Momoshiro were talking to each other. "And it seems like they are getting along after all desu."
"I asked them both to be a little more honest with each other. They are sensible adults and completely capable of getting along. Tonight proves that I was right," Amane explained smiling. "I hope two are enjoying this party."
"We are desu," Dan beamed and directed a part of his smile to the man standing idly and quietly next to him.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to go and see how my husband is doing," Amane said bowing to both of the men and gesturing to the direction of the buffet.
"Jin, let's go and see what Kawamura-san has created desu," Dan suggested tugging the taller man's long sleeve.
"Hmph," was everything Dan heard but he knew Akutsu would follow him. Tonight was certainly perfect practice for their own wedding reception the next month.
-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-o-x-
"Ack! Fsshhh!"
"It's just me, no need to look so frightened, my darling," Amane whispered into Kaidou's ear standing right behind him.
"Then don't do such things, fsshh!" the other newlywed hissed to the redhead who had playfully pinched his buttocks. Surprisingly he had felt it even through all the layers of his kimono.
"Roar," Amane growled grinning widely and fumbled the buttocks now with his both hands.
Kaidou turned around and glared at him closely. "Hikaru. Listen to me carefully now. I am so riding you after we get back home, fsshh."
"I'm not opposing, my dear Kaoru. I'll be looking forward to that ride with you. And I love it when you get excited," Amane said smiling at his husband and gave him a French kiss full of passion. And the way how Kaidou's cheeks reddened and how he let out a cute little hiss after the kiss, were everything that Amane needed to know he had married the right man.