Disclaimer: I do not own the God Eater franchise but I do have control over original characters and storylines.
AN: woohoo 366 views, thanks to all who viewed this FN guys. It means a whole lot.
The week before
While Thomas started working on the three course meals, James started stitching the dresses and suits for everyone. Soon enough, the couple decided on a church in Osaka as it was near the beach which the both said they liked a lot.
On the other side, James was having trouble moving forward with his own plans as well. If Ayame hanging around him and looking at all his work wasn't enough, Alisa now added herself to the mix. At first, three people weighing in on the subject was cause for concern but the trio were able to work out a system.
The good thing was that his form of relaxing came from talking to Ayame after they finished work and were getting ready to sleep. In the weeks leading up to the wedding, he learned more and more about the girl which greatly changed his earlier impression of her.
Soon enough James gathered all the teams in the lounge to announce the pairings. Kanon and Brendan, Gina and Shun, Karel and Licca, Soma and Tsubaki and Kota and Ayame.
"Wait doesn't that mean Alisa's left out?" asked Tatsumi
"Actually James and I are paired together", she stated in a matter of fact tone.
"Oh what's this?" asked Kota with a cheeky grin while he gently nudged his friend "Didn't you say that you wouldn't be paired with anyone because of all that work?"
"Yes but with the current pairings Alisa was the only one left out and I couldn't let her be alone on the wedding", he explained "So I offered and she accepted."
Of course what he didn't say was that one of the reasons she accepted was that Alisa insisted on them having at least one dance together. There were a few other reasons but he chose not to dwell on them for too long.
"Alright, I'll be sending you the dresses and tuxedos tonight", continued James "Tomorrow we'll be taking a plane to Hokkaido and staying in the dormitory near the church. Thomas and the others will be flying in separately along with all the decorations."
"Luckily there are no aragami in the Hokkaido district and things have quieted down over here so that's good. Also we'll be arriving there a week before the wedding to take that time to go out and enjoy the sights. I heard that its one of those rare places in the world that even the aragami stay away from".
Once that was done the group dispersed. James stated that he would be spending the day on decorations so he would be indisposed of for the rest of the day.
"Aww, here I was hoping that James and I could pair together", said Ayame with a huff when it was only her and Sakuya in the lounge.
"Ok, I have to ask; why are you taking such an interest in James?" asked the veteran.
"Promise not to laugh or judge me?" she asked and her sister nodded.
"I think… no I've definitely fallen for him", she replied and Sakuya narrowed her gaze
"See you're judging me", cried out Ayame.
"Well of course I would", said Sakuya "You know your track record".
In Sakuya's mind, her sister was never the type that wanted to settle down. She tried to be serious in all of her relationships but there was always something or the other that caused her to end the relationship.
Eventually there came a point where she never had a committed relationship so hearing her say those words troubled Sakuya a lot. As much as she cared about her sister, she did not want her to go after James.
"I know my track record looks like it but truth be told, he's different from the others".
"Different how?"
"You know what I mean", she said "You noticed it as well right? James is… a very dependable person".
"One thing I want to ask, James is he a good guy? Does he have any skeletons in the closet?"
Sakuya carefully pondered that question. On the surface he was a well-rounded person. Sure he lacked certain social skills and couldn't cook for his life but he was a capable person in all aspects.
There was however the feeling that he was hiding something about himself and she could not shake it off. This was evident in the way he planned his missions and his skill when it came to fighting. Being adept in combat was not something that someone at his age should be which is what baffled Sakuya to no end. It gave the impression that James was hiding something, the question was just how big of a secret would it be?
"Well he sounds good on paper but he's a real work in progress", she replied finally. Truth is there was another reason why she didn't want them to get together but that was not something she wanted to think about.
"Hmm", said Ayame stroking her chin "Weirdly enough that's not a bad thing. In this day and age who isn't completely great in relationships?"
"Don't worry though", she added "I promise not to do anything to steal the spotlight from you sis."
The journey to Hokkaido wasn't all that eventful. They all had their luggage and were fully ready a full two hours before the flight. When the party landed, they headed to the dormitory then divided into two teams. One team spent their days touring the old city while the second team (James) started working on decorations and ensuring that the church and reception area were ready for the day.
As the days drew closer, more and more of the couples friends and well-wishers started arriving. The night before the wedding was when both parties would spend one last night of fun outside but seeing as that wasn't an option given the state of the world, both the bridesmaids and the groomsmen opted to spend the night partying in their rooms.
Of course with all this going on, James sat outside of the dormitory with the tablet. Despite being miles away from the computer at the far east, he still had a good signal. With this he did his best to catch up on any work that had to be put on hold.
Everything for the wedding was set and ready, all that remained was the day in question which meant there was nothing he could do. So he set his sights on his other project, eager to get some progress on it.
Trouble was, he was so focused on what he was doing, that he failed to notice someone coming up behind him.
"Hey James", shouted Ayame so loud that the teenager was completely caught off guard by this. This caused him to toss the tablet in the air and he quickly caught it then turned to her in surprise.
"What was that for?" he asked with a frantic tone in his voice.
"Sorry, I got bored with what they were doing", she said and stood next to James "So why are you playing the role of gate keeper tonight when you should be partying with the guys".
"Sorry, there are plenty of things that still need to be taken care of even at this hour", he replied "Plus I have to make sure both sides keep their distance".
"Oh?" she said with a cheeky grin "You thinking there might be some late night rendezvous?"
"We're in a romantic place to celebrate the most romantic act in human culture", he replied "Of course a couple of people are going to get swept up in the romance of the whole thing and it's my job to make sure that doesn't happen."
"James you ever thought of taking a day off?" she asked casually
"Sometimes yeah but then I remember how bored out of my mind I'd be", he replied "By the way, what are you doing here?"
"I had a feeling that there would be at least one person among our little group not having fun", she replied "And looks like I was right".
"Well", he said looking at his tablet "I know it's not fun or anything but it's still something to keep my mind occupied".
"Hey Ayame", called a familiar voice from Sakuya's room "What are you doing outside *hic. Come in and have more funnnn".
"Well I should be going", she said lowering her head "That reminds me, James, tomorrow, you and I one dance".
"Wha… but"… he was unable to finish his sentence as Ayame gave him a quick peck on the cheek then darted back to the party.
