I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You – A Very Lovely Gingaman Wedding
Chapter 1: Anticipation and Memories
San Domingo Japanese Catholic Church, Ginga Forest, outskirts of Nagoya, August 2003.
Hikaru, the young warrior who was Ginga Yellow, stood nervously at the altar. He was sweating a bit profusely, though not much as to have himself drenched in it and stink all over. He had a black coat and pants on with a yellow shirt and white bow tie underneath. Beside him is his best man Hayate, Ginga Green, who he considers a bona fide "Big Brother" out of all the other male Rangers in the team. Hayate also had a black suit and white bow tie on but with a green shirt underneath. He and Miharu had wed four months back in April, a few years after she supposedly came back from the dead following Hayate's final duel with Shelinda. Elder Orghi was the presiding minister overseeing the ceremony.
On rows of pews sat Gouki (Ginga Blue who's beside his beloved Suzuko), father and son duo Haruhiko and Yuuta Aoyama (who took the Gingamen in as their own family), Hyuuga (Bull Black who felt bittersweet about this big day as he's about to witness a very special admirer finally tie the knot not with him but with one of his younger "Battle Brothers"), Masami (Hyuuga's girlfriend, that schoolgirl he saved from the clutches of Balban forces one time), and Miharu (Hayate's childhood sweetheart and now-wife). Ryouma was not among the attendees – He had a very special role in the ceremony, the one to give away the bride to the groom.
The atmosphere grew tense with every passing minute. Sure, the team was no longer fighting the Balban, and peace had returned upon the land once again. Still, everyone (including the groom himself, Hikaru) felt like pacing up and down inside the church. All of a sudden, the room grew silent. Everyone sat with eyes focused towards the front of the church, specifically Hikaru, Hayate, and Elder Orghi.
Then, a very sweet song started to blare on the stereos securely installed up on the corners of the church. It was "I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You" by Tina Arena and Marc Anthony, the love theme from the 1998 swashbuckler action movie The Mask of Zorro. It starred Antonio Banderas as Alejandro Murrieta ("New Zorro"), Catherine Zeta-Jones as Elena De La Vega (the daughter of the old Zorro), and Anthony Hopkins as Diego De La Vega ("Old Zorro"). The duet by Arena and Anthony was a resonating track for all lovers out there who wanted some kind of audio motif with strong hints of "that Spanish flair" at weddings and ballroom dances everywhere.
Hikaru and his bride-to-be always loved the living bejesus out of that flick and had watched it maybe around 20 to 30 times already, especially during those nights where they were just by themselves at home. No friends to bother them from time to time. Just him and her...Saya, Ginga Pink, the most beautiful girl on the planet. Hikaru's childhood sweetheart, best friend, rival, and teammate rolled into one living being just as oh, so sweet as a Mister Donut pastry. And, now, Hikaru feels like the luckiest man on Earth to have her heart for all time for the rest of his and her lives.
The intro drum roll, cracking of a whip, and church choir singing in the background took everybody back to their battles with various monsters and the Balban commanders. Even the whip crack took Hikaru back to his final duel with Biznella, the evil merchant from hell, as it was reminiscent of swords clanking and clashing. As bit as traumatic that battle was, somehow, he was able to shrug it off and compose himself. Then, came the melodic Spanish guitar riff, which then gradually made the aura more serene.
Then, the door flung open. A light can be seen shining from the outside, a very clear afternoon sky seeping through the church halls. Ryouma, donning black coat and pants with a red shirt and white bow tie underneath, slowly walked with Saya hand-in-hand. Saya looked very beautiful with her strapless wedding dress, her hair splendidly tied into a "Cinnamon Roll" style bun, and gold "2-hearts" pendant dangling around her neck (with one heart bearing one pink diamond while the other bore a yellow one as her grand show of love for her childhood sweetheart Hikaru). Her face was partly covered with an elegant transparent white veil, and she was carrying a bouquet of white jasmine flowers. Everyone turned back to stare that Ginga Pink, who was about to be with Ginga Yellow for all time; they were all stunned.
Hikaru gulped in sheer nervousness as he stared into his future wife's eyes. Hayate just patted him on the shoulder and grinned with steadfast assurance beside him for a bit of encouragement. That's what "Soul Brothers" are for, right? Saya stared back into the eyes of her future husband and smiled from ear to ear. She was excited and a bit scared at the same time. Ecstatic because she couldn't wait to spend the rest of her life and start a family with Ginga Yellow. A little frightened because both of them didn't know what the future holds. But, hey, at least, they survived countless battles with the Balban, right? So, in a sense, there wasn't really any reason for them to freeze like ice in the face of life's many uncertainties. Elder Orghi just calmly looked at Saya and Ryouma walking down the aisle, bible crossed between his hands in front of him.
Slowly, Saya and Ryouma paced themselves down the aisle to the tune of Arena and Anthony's duet.
Moon so bright, night so fine
Keep your heart, here with mine
Life's a dream
We are dreaming
In Hikaru and Saya's collective minds, they looked back to the days from when they were kids. Saya was born five months before Hikaru. Hence, her tendency to be a bit more mature than him. Elder Orghi presided over their baptisms as well as that of the other Gingamen. The pair's parents would have them play on each other's cribs, and they playfully experimented on each other about how to love unconditionally, amid the occasional biting, pulling, pushing, laughing, and even crying.
Raise the moon, catch the wind
Ride the night, 'till the end
Seize the day
Stand up for the light
Apart from coming into the world, Hikaru and Saya could recall a very profound memory - When they were both five years old, they were swimming in Ogumo River one time. Saya hadn't fully grasped the concept of keeping afloat. And, so, she struggled to do so. She found herself screaming for help while taking in water, choking, and coughing all over, fighting for air.
When Hikaru saw her struggle in the water, he hurriedly swam towards her, wrapped one arm around her as she was drifting in and out of consciousness, and dragged her back to land. It was approximately two to three yards back to ground when Saya drifted away and Hikaru had to bring her back. But, they did get back.
As soon as they got off the water, Hikaru laid Saya flat on her back. She was quite unconscious. For some odd reason, the future Ginga Yellow let his instincts take over his mind as adrenaline rushed through his veins and into his brain. He gave Saya a couple of breaths, placed his hands on that vital spot between her chest and abdomen, and pumped down 15 to 20 times.
"Come on, Girl. Don't you die on me!" Hikaru thought to himself as tears flowed down his eyes, trying to resuscitate Saya as desperately as he could. What would both of their parents think if she did pass? He'd blame himself for the rest of his life. But, he cannot (and never will) afford that. The first set didn't work. Then, came the second.
"Come on, Dammit!"
It must've been on the 16th or 17th chest pump when Saya's chest and mouth bloated. She coughed up and suddenly spat out water on Hikaru's face, for which he quickly turned away, shielding his face with an arm while he yelled, "Ew! Gross, Girl!" Immediately, he had her turn over on her left side to fully get all the water out of her system. Thank the Star Beast Gods, she's alive!
I want to spend my lifetime loving you
If that is all in life I ever do
One time, the pair climbed up on trees. They were trying to mimic Tarzan and Jane from that jungle novel. Hikaru stood in the middle of what seemed like a not-so sturdy branch while Saya clung onto the edge closer to the tree trunk. It must've been 10 feet above ground where they were at. Just as Hikaru did his own rendition of the famous "Tarzan Yell," the branch snapped, and he found himself really screaming as if he was about to splatter into a hundred pieces of blood and guts on the ground.
He fluttered his hands as if to try to become a bird. Suddenly, he felt a tight grip on one hand. It was Saya. He was flustered with a good deal of fear coursing through him. She pulled him back to safety near her and hugged him tight. They both cried. "Never do that again, you stupid, stupid boy!" She shouted through the tears. "I'm so sorry I almost died in your sight here and there," he replied while choking on his own tears. "Just don't do it again. Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!" She screamed repeatedly as she started banging her fists everywhere on him. All he could do was do deflect her flurry of angry fist-hammering on him and hug her back as they continually cried.
Heroes rise, heroes fall
Rise again win it all
In your heart, can't you feel the glory?
Another time, a group of older, unruly kids from another village were picking on Saya. She found herself sitting on a fetal position and covering up her head, trying to drown out the insults and some shoves while she cried. Hikaru stepped in and tried to pick the perpetrators off with some "Improv Kung-Fu," only to be ridiculed by them.
The unruly kids then ganged up on Hikaru and away from Saya, beating him senselessly to the ground while hurling various insults at him. They unzipped their pants and peed on him as the ultimate insult. Although, he didn't cry throughout the ordeal even after the bullies left. As soon as they were done, Saya rushed to Hikaru and comforted him. She then picked him up to get him home and cleaned up. Not a word was said throughout that process.
Throughout joy, throughout pain
We can move worlds again
Take my hand
Dance with me
Hikaru and Saya were 16, both on their third year of homeschooling at their village. They were about to get through their intermediate warrior training. One of the lessons taught by Elder Orghi was that of not just being a warrior but to be of either a proper gentleman or proper lady. And, that entailed learning how to dance. Admittedly, Saya was the better one of the two as she had done so with Hyuuga coaching her for a good deal of time.
This somewhat got Hikaru jealous every now and then. Every time he visually showed it, his head would redden like some sort of pressure cooker, and Ryouma, Hayate, and Gouki would just silently gossip among themselves and chuckle (while looking the other way) as to not aggravate him any further.
Then, one day, as Hikaru was shuffling through FM stations on his radio, he stumbled upon a very catchy pop-dance tune. That tune was "Coco Jamboo" by German Eurodance group Mr. President. Despite sounding modern, it also had some tribal melodies incorporated. As soon as he heard it, he started coming up with his own moves, which would be a good combination of Disco, Cha-Cha, Waltz, and Salsa (but with an electric flair to it). He'd draw diagrams of all the steps on his notebook as soon as he came up with each. With a good passing of time, he started to become a confident dancer.
After suffering a teeny weeny bit of humiliation from seeing Saya and Hyuuga dancing together, Hikaru finally got the courage to ask Saya for a dance. She accepted the offer, and the two rehearsed thoroughly before holding a demonstration in front of the other Gingamen during another one of their nighttime team camping trips. Around a camp bonfire, Hikaru set down a boombox that he brought with him during the trip. He then inserted the singles tape (that he acquired through means he couldn't disclose to anyone, one of his personal, little secrets) into the cassette slot and hit the play button. As the song started, Saya joined him, and everybody (including Hyuuga) started clapping to the tune. Ryouma, Hyuuga, Hayate, and Gouki were amazed at just how somewhat tribal "Coco Jamboo" was (albeit being a dance song).
As soon as the female vocalists started singing, Hikaru and Saya unleashed a flurry of twists, feet taps, and turns, all synchronized with sheer precision. During the Waltz portions of their dance, they stared into each other's eyes with mad determination as they held onto one another, very eager to deal a very flashy finale to everyone during their presentation. Even Hyuuga was amazed and started cheerfully hooting at them.
Upon the last "La-la, yeah, Coco Jamboo, la-la, yeah," Hikaru held Saya in a dynamic Waltz pose, her in a slanted dangling position as he held her and one pair of their arms turned away. They stared at everyone with playful intent. The site grew silent, and, then, a hearty round of applause and cheers emanated from the other male Gingamen. The pair returned to the group circle and sat beside each other for the rest of the night. Hyuuga got up to give Hikaru a gangster hug for a job well done.
"Bro, I'll be completely honest with you - I couldn't have done what you did. You just may very well be one of the best dancers in the village now," Hyuuga complimented Hikaru as both men hugged. "Thanks, Matador!" Hikaru shot back with hearty gratitude. The former then sat back on his spot, and everyone just enjoyed shooting the breeze among themselves, eating the meals they brought with them, drinking any bottled drinks they had from their cooler, or singing along while Ryouma played his ukulele and Hayate played his flute. Song variations included "Live is Life" by Opus, some Queen songs like "I Want to Break Free" and "A Kind of Magic," and "You Sexy Thing" by Hot Chocolate, the very latter which would make any of them laugh out loud while singing.
All that time, the rest of that night while camping, Hikaru and Saya just held each other close as they had fun talking and singing with the other Gingamen. That is, until it was time to go to bed for everyone. The boys would have a big tent for themselves while Saya had a separate one for herself, per unwritten rule of the land.
I want to spend my lifetime loving you
If that is all I ever do
I will want nothing else to see me through
If I could spend my lifetime loving you
Days after Hyuuga took the "Forbidden Flower Fruit Punch" (which would make him lose his Earth power) and especially after he briefly took Saya hostage in front of everyone by knife point, Hikaru had to peacefully think in solitude by taking a bath by himself at Mizuoka Lake one evening. The lake was just a good 5 minutes worth of walk from Silver Star Ranch, the team's forever home away from Ginga Forest. Sometime during his bath, Saya popped out of nowhere and surprised him. It was that very same night when she told him how she truly felt about him as she shed her clothes alongside him and joined him in his bath. She recanted about how he saved her from drowning when they were little and opened up about her worries towards Hyuuga, the latter concern which Hikaru quickly helped soothe as he held Saya in his arms while both of them were butt naked in the water.
It was also the same night when Hikaru and Saya finally made love on the grass by the water, losing their virginity to each other (unbeknownst to anyone but another male Gingaman). They pounced on each other like mad beasts, wolf and wildcat, respectively. At the end of their consummation, Hikaru let loose inside Saya as they let their hottest desires peak at that moment. Thankfully, she took a couple of birth control pills (as she didn't want to get pregnant by him so soon, not until a great deal of time following the Balban's defeat).
There was a lot of fondling, laughing, crying, hugging, caressing each other's faces and hair, kissing, worries, excitements, and deeply sincere exchanges of "I love you's" that night. Ginga Yellow and Ginga Pink had finally realized that they were made for each other, a match "Made in Heaven," to be quite fancy about it. After making love and taking a bath, they walked back home...only to find Gouki eating his late night snack of milk and cookies. The pair had a funny yet awkward exchange with the big guy, although Gouki told them not to worry as he wouldn't tell anybody else about their blossoming secret love. Hikaru and Saya understood as Gouki himself had been going gaga over school teacher Suzuko. They cautiously went back to their rooms but not without a final cuddle and kiss in silence. Since then, they didn't speak anything about love for the remainder of their quest as warriors (as they had to solely focus on vanquishing the Balban once and for all).
The music faded halfway in a slowly gradual manner, before Arena and Anthony's bridge portion, as Ryouma and Saya stopped right before a few small stairs in front of the church. Saya walked up the stairs. She faced Elder Orghi and bowed to him in the most respectful and graceful manner. She then turned to face Hikaru, the young man she was about to spend the rest of eternity in this world with. Now, the main part of the ceremony was about to start.