I already edited Chapter 6 when the wedding is mentioned, and I've made it a Western-style wedding instead of a traditional Japanese wedding. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Ouran High School Host Club belongs to Bisco Hatori, not me.
Chapter 12- My Feelings Realized
Summer has finally come, and today is the wedding day of my brother. In all honesty, I can't wait to see my brother getting married. I smile as I put on my black tuxedo, tying my black bowtie. "Oi, Hiroshi-nii," I say. "Need help?"
"What're you talking about?" he asks. "I'm fine, just a bit nervous."
I smile at him. "Don't worry," I reassure. "What are you worried about? The vows?"
He shakes his head. "Nah, I think I'm just worried in general," he tells me.
We arrive at the chapel for the ceremony, and I go and sit down in a chair. "Hey, Tetsuya!" I look up and see Renge.
"Hey Renge," I greet, smiling at her. She looks very pretty, in a lavender coloured one-shoulder dress, and her hair is tied in a side ponytail. "Wow, you look cute," I compliment.
She looks surprised for a moment. "Oh… thanks…" she says softly. "You excited?"
I nod. "Yeah. I'm excited to have a new sister-in-law," I say. "Already, Natsumi's like a sister, and now I'm going to have to get used to calling her Natsumi-nee."
She giggles. "Yeah. By the way, do you think I'm late for this?" she asks. "I'm still recovering from the jetlag after my vacation in Italy."
"Wow, you went to Italy?" I ask.
"Yeah, it's very nice," she tells me. "I went to Rome, Milan, Naples, Florence, Venice, all those places. It was really nice."
"I can imagine," I say. "This morning, my grandma was crying a lot, and I don't blame her. Not only was she happy that Hiroshi-nii's getting married, she's sad that our parents aren't here to see it. I am as well. They would've really liked Natsumi-nee."
Renge nods. "Yeah, it's definitely sad," she agrees.
"Oi, Ashida!" Hamasaki greets as he sits next to me. I smile at him. "Congratulations," he tells me.
I chuckle. "Thanks. I'm going to be a brother-in-law soon, can you believe it?" I ask. "Oh, Renge, this is my good friend Hamasaki Takumi. Hamasaki, this is my other good friend Houshakuji Renge," I introduce the two.
"Nice to meet you, Houshakuji-san," he greets. He suddenly smirks. "Wow, she's really cute. You know, if you end up dating Ashida over here, you'll definitely be treated like a queen."
Renge blushes and I give him a disbelieving stare. Before I can say anything, we all have to rise as Natsumi-nee appears. And wow, she really does look beautiful. Her hair is tied in a French twist, and she wears a long-sleeved white gown with a long veil. I see Hiroshi-nii's reaction, and I can't help but smile at his reaction. He just has a proud smile on his face, like he's happy to be marrying this girl.
After the vows and the rings are exchanged, Hiroshi-nii and Natsumi-nee kiss, and we leave the chapel for the reception at the park.
During the reception, I find myself staring at a lotus bloom in the small pond. A lotus flower… it looks very pretty in the moonlight. I turn and see Renge talking with my new sister-in-law, while looking at me occasionally. I can't help but admire her as well. She looks amazing right now. I mean, sure, she's always looked cute, but now, she looks really beautiful, like she's gone from being a delusional otaku girl to a fairly mature young lady. She's like… a lotus in the rain. She's a beautiful flower, but has flaws at the same time. But those flaws bring out some of the best traits about her, hence the rain part. The rain helps her bloom and show her true beauty.
"Oi, Ashida." I look up and see Hamasaki smiling at me. "Good job with your piano performance. I haven't seen you since that part."
I nod. "Yeah, I'm just thinking through a few things right now," I say.
He looks at Renge. "This is about Renge, isn't it?"
I sigh. "I don't know what I feel about her. I told myself that I'd never fall in love, but the more I spend time with Renge, the more I want to be with her, protect her, and just… I don't know," I say. He smiles and pats my shoulder.
"Tell me, what do you think of her?" Hiroshi-nii asks, suddenly coming up to us.
I look down. "She was very crazy when I first met her, but now, I kind of like that about her. She can be really cute sometimes, but she's really beautiful. She truly understands me, and we have a lot in common. She trusts me enough to tell her about how her mother left her, and I trust her enough to tell her about my own parents. I… I honestly, truly care about her, and I want to be there for her, no matter what," I say.
Hamasaki chuckles. "Well, there you have it," he tells me. "You're in love."
I stare at him in surprise. "Wha…? Love?" I ask. "No, Hamasaki, not again! Not after Mayumi! I don't want to be hurt again!"
Hiroshi-nii sighs. "Listen, Tetsuya. You're my brother, and I've known you long enough. What you and Renge have, this is nothing like what you and Mayumi had. Mayumi was just a crush. A crush, and you know it. She was simply using you for her own benefit, and cheated on you many times. She never took the time to understand you, to get to know the real you, right?" he asks.
I widen my eyes in realization. "You're right…" And it's true. I can't believe I never even realized already. I've done so much for Renge because I've fallen for her. But this isn't the foolish crush that I thought was love with Mayumi. This is real love.
"Then go and tell her how you truly feel," he tells me. "Now, in about half an hour, I have to go get changed, since we have a long flight to Vancouver."
I look at him in surprise. "Wait, you're going ahead with the whole hiking around Canada honeymoon?!" I ask. He chuckles.
"I've been saving up for it since the day I proposed," he says. "You'll be fine by yourself, right? Or would you rather stay at Hamasaki's house?"
"I'm fine," I say.
As we leave the park, I see Renge come up to me. "Ne, Tetsuya? My father wishes to meet you sometime this week," she tells me, giving me her address.
I blanch. Her… father? I haven't even confessed yet, and she wants me to meet her father?! What will he think of me? Will he see me as a good person, or only as a commoner? Wait, I shouldn't be worrying already. I can't control anything right now. I'll worry when the time comes.
