Umi's eyes widened. At finally last, the time has come for her to witness the wedding of one of her close friends in Woodstock. Moreover, she will be the one to arrange the wedding!
"R-Really?!" Umi's eyes sparkled and Eli chuckled.
"Knew it that you'd be excited of this. Yep! In fact, I already let them in and they are currently in the living room. They are waiting for you!"
"Right! Tell them that I will just finish my breakfast and will be right there!" Umi responded with excitement and delight.
"Alright, ma'am. Be sure to not eat your food for too long, and slow down so then you won't get choked. It'll be troublesome if that happens." Eli advised and the blue-haired rolled her eyes.
Eli had been acting like that towards Umi ever since the ranch was rebuilt. However, Umi liked that part of her and the fact that someone is looking out for her makes her feel so special and important.
"Yes, Ms. Eli Ayase. I will slow down in eating." Umi chuckled.
The blonde just nodded and stood up, walking off from the dining room to go to the living room.
Umi watched her leave for a moment until she is out of her sight. After that, she looked down at her plate that still has a small amount of fried rice left. Her eyes softened as she remembered the time when Kotori told her how she and Chihiro met. Up to this day, she still finds it hard to believe that such a thing exists.
The blue-haired sighed, she does not really believe in those. She thought that it is a silly idea that they had met through dreams. And by 'not believe' she meant that she does not believe that such a phenomenon will determine the fate of two people. It's the heart of the person that determines who it wants to be with. In addition, she was taken back by surprise when Kotori and Chihiro fell in love with each other thanks to the phenomenon. But that will not faze her point of views towards it.
Sure, the same thing happened to her back when she was a child. She had dreamed that she was playing with someone. A short girl whose face and hair color was blurry and the only thing she remembers is the place where they met: The Mirage Fields. She got excited because she once believed in 'young love'. Aside of that, something else has happened back then...
Those dreams disappeared when she met someone...
And even after reaching 20, she could not get dreams like those again. Up until now.
It made her think that the phenomenon does not exist.
And remembering that past made her think of Eli for some reason. The blue-haired released a short sigh and began to wonder why, of all people, it had to be Eli.
Eli is tall, sure. She is beautiful or handsome. She has that athletic built. She is independent and reliable. Everyone would try to win her heart.
Umi wanted to include herself with those people who want to win her heart but a painful fact is stopping her to do so...
That is Honoka and Eli had been seeing each other. Possibly, they could be dating.
Here comes the pain once again, it feels like being stabbed countless of times through the heart. And it is seriously getting stronger the more Umi thinks about it. To how Eli and Honoka look at each other and how the both of them form a deeper relationship is putting that kind of painful and heavy burden within her heart. But does she has a choice?
Umi shook her head, wiping out those thoughts that will disrupt her meeting with Kotori and Chihiro. She is needed to be there to discuss about their wedding, no excuses. She then finished her meal and put them into the sink. She then goes to the living room, finding Chihiro and Kotori talking to the blonde and it looked like they were having a good conversation.
Umi then put a smile as she walked nearer to them and greeted, "Hello, looks like you two are finally planning to settle down."
The trio stopped talking and looked up at Umi with smiles on their faces.
"Hey!" Eli waved a hand.
Chihiro grinned and also waved a hand, "Good morning! How's it going?"
"Good morning, Umi!" Kotori greeted back with a sweet smile.
The blue-haired nodded and went to sit beside the blonde, "Now, shall we discuss about your wedding?"
Chihiro and Kotori nodded.
"We planned to make the marriage happen 3 weeks from now and we want to ask for your permission to use the Mirage Fields for it." Chihiro said.
Umi smiled happily, "Mhm, permission granted, any themes you would want us to do?"
"Hmm... I love the flower theme! It fits the season when we first met for real!" Kotori said with a giggle.
Umi nodded and then gets a pen and paper. She began listing it down on the paper, "A flower theme or spring theme in Mirage Fields. Since we are nearing the fall season, we should make warm colors such as orange. What do you think Eli?"
The blonde hummed, "Looks okay to me but don't you think we should add something more to it to make it more romantic?"
"What? Like putting red tulips on the arch?" Umi asked.
"Bingo! Orange and red tulips are good combination!" Eli said.
"You are right about that. And maybe we can have the cloth garments be orange and red as well. We should check the Mirage Fields and visualize more."
"I had checked the Mirage Fields earlier and it is really fitting, Umi." Eli chuckled.
"Really now? Then that makes things easier!"
Chihiro and Kotori blinked and looked at each other before looking back at the duo. They then wear soft smiles on their faces before Kotori spoke:
"You know, you two are really fitting together. You two are so in sync!" Kotori complimented, making Eli and Umi blush slightly in embarrassment.
But the blonde let out a soft laugh, "Thanks."
Umi nodded, "We are just doing our best in helping each other. Two heads are better than one they said, right?" She looked at the blonde who nodded.
"Yeah!" The blonde responded.
"Teamwork aside, I am thinking about a more different thought about your relationship. Can you share to us what it is?" Chihiro asked with a smirk.
Umi's blush darkened along with the blonde. The blue-haired then shook her head vigorously and pouted at Chihiro, "Th-That's not it!"
"Awww, you both are blushing! So that means, there is something going on between you two?" Chihiro's eyes sparkled and Kotori just chuckled at her spouse's childishness.
"J-Jeez, I already have Honoka you know!" Eli also pouted at Chihiro who then blinked.
"Ehhh? You and her are dating already?" Chihiro chuckled.
"Well, we started dating after we finished the ranch." Eli said.
Kotori smiled, "Congratulations to the both of you then!"
Eli grinned proudly, "Thanks!"
Umi then cleared her throat, "Well then, shall we continue?"
Chihiro, Kotori and Eli nodded.
"Let's continue." Eli said.
Chihiro, Kotori, Umi and Eli finally agreed to the final designs for the wedding and they had finally started preparing. A day before the marriage, Eli and Umi were in the Mirage Fields, starting to put magic into it. It was a good day that time and the atmosphere in the fields hasn't changed. Though it has gotten slightly colder.
The leaves and the grasses were turning into light orange in color and the slightly cold wind is carrying and playing with the abundant of leaves, which fell from the trees.
Eli was arranging the wedding flowerbeds, placing them from each sides of the path leading towards the wedding arch that has red and orange tulips as agreed by the two. They also have helpers in preparing the tables and the chairs.
"Is it alright?!" Eli asked as she placed the last flowerbed. She then looked at the blue-haired who was standing in front of the arch, not too far from it. The blue-haired then hummed.
"Move it a little more!" Umi said.
And the blonde did so.
"Alright! Perfect!" Umi said and then went across the blonde, keeping her distance so then she could see the row of the flowerbeds and check the distances of each.
"Now, move it to the right, Eli!" Umi instructed, "Your right!"
Eli then did so.
"Great! That's enough!" Umi smiled happily.
The blonde then stood up and brushed her palms together to shake off the dirt, she then walked towards the blue-haired.
"Thank you for your hard work, Eli." Umi smiled when the blonde finally got near her.
Eli nodded with a smile, "Thank you for your hard work also. Shall we rest by the tree?" She pointed the large tree, which was just behind her and a few meters away from beside the wedding arch.
Umi nodded, "Alright then."
They then went to the large tree and sat under its enormous shade. Leaning their backs against its trunk, they began to commence a light chat. Just chatting about random things.
"You know, the wedding will be grand for the both of them and I am so proud of Kotori that she and Chihiro are finally going to settle down." Umi said and the blonde just stared at her while listening.
Eli smiled and then nodded, "I agree to that."
"Did you know that Kotori and Chihiro met because of the dream phenomenon?" Umi said and the blonde's eyes widened in shock. Intrigued by it, Eli then leaned in slightly to learn more.
"Really?"
"Mhm, when we were children, Kotori would always tell us that she had been having dreams that she was playing with someone else aside of me and Honoka. And as we grew older, Kotori had always been telling us about how she gets so anxious because she was losing those dreams, fearing that she might not meet that person. As we reach our teenage days, she met Chihiro and she began telling us just how wonderful Chihiro is." Umi chuckled and her eyes softened when she remembered those golden days.
Eli blinked, "And then what happened?"
"Well, since Kotori is really excited about meeting her soulmate, she decided to wait for that time to come until she gets to have those dreams again. Chihiro was her admirer that time and most people are already after her. Kotori turned them all down except Chihiro. Why and how you might ask. Because Chihiro had been courting her for years without telling how she really feels about her. And here is Kotori, being all dense." Umi chuckled.
Eli chuckled with her, "That sounded cute."
"It sure is. Chihiro had told us how much she loves Kotori. The both of them love each other. We know about it except them."
"True love never quits." Eli said with a smile.
"I agree to that. And by the time that we are in our 20's. Kotori told us that she is beginning to have those dreams again. To her surprise, it was Chihiro who had been in her dreams. Chihiro's her soulmate and now... here they are... getting married."
Eli nodded and then went to look at the arch. Umi also looked at it with a smile.
The blue-haired then sighed and spoke again, "You know... I had been dreaming to have a wedding like this."
Eli then looked at her and Umi looked back at her, her smile still plastered on her face, "It is every couple and women's dreams to get married here."
The blonde chuckled, "Agreed. But you know that such a thing is possible if we get to follow our dreams."
"The dream phenomenon?" Umi marked and her smile dropped before she looked back at the wedding arch.
"Eli..."
"Hmm?"
"I did say that Kotori and Chihiro found each other through the dream phenomenon. But not all couple who had met because of it gets a happy ending." Umi said.
Eli blinked.
'What's with the sudden change of mood?' Eli wondered. She could feel that Umi was feeling melancholic about the topic. The blonde then softened her eyes as she focuses her stare at the blue-haired.
Umi then continued, "My parents once followed the phenomenon. They made love that night, thinking that they were really meant to be."
The blonde just stared at her as she listened intently.
"When I had reached the age of 9, I found out that my father found another woman because of the phenomenon also."
Eli's eyes widened. 'Is such a think possible? Having two soulmates?' She thought.
Umi then giggled sadly, "But I know it wasn't true that that happened for real. There can only be one soulmate. He probably had fallen in love for real. Then, mom followed her heart also and found her own family. After that, they separated."
The blonde softened her eyes. 'It must have been hard for her...' She thought.
"I may know how the phenomenon actually works though." Umi said and the blonde blinked, intrigued about this. She is interested to know for it might help her also.
"According to scientists, this phenomenon was called SoulDream Phenomenon. It basically tells you about how your compatible partner looks like through dreams. Depending on how you feel towards the person, your soulmate could change and the one from your dreams can disappear, replacing it with the person you have feelings for. Hard to believe but it's how it is and people tend to take it too seriously."
Eli nodded; she is guilty about it since she is also one of those people who took it too seriously. But she could not blame Umi on this one. It is her own point of view and she should not judge about it. Umi may have met that person but then she could not feel the love for that person. As a result, that person disappeared and until she found the one who she gained feelings for, she will not be able to find her soulmate soon.
Umi then smiled,"Just because you have met your soulmate doesn't mean that you two were really meant to be together."
A/N: Heey guys! New chapter is up! Hope you guys enjoyed it! Votes and comments are always appreciated!