The Big Day

It wasn't until the alarm went off that he even realized he'd fallen asleep. He'd been rather certain he wouldn't be able to sleep at all, much less drift off so quickly. Obviously he'd been more tired than he realized. At least he hadn't had another dream like the one the night before.

Groaning, he reached over to turn off the alarm. He had three hours to get ready and get to the church for the wedding. Shoving himself up on the bed, he ran a hand through his rumpled silver hair... and blinked as he realized the unsettled feeling in his stomach was completely gone.

Granted, the hangover had long since worked itself out of his system. He was starving, in fact, since he hadn't eaten anything all day yesterday. But it was more than just that - it felt oddly like a weight had been lifted from him while he slept.

Staring at his reflection in the mirror over the dresser, Ohtori prodded at his own subconscious, trying to figure out what had happened. Why aren't I panicking any more?

And slowly, the answer came to him in the form of a certainty, a conviction in his actions, that he'd never had before. Because I'm probably not going through with it, that's why, he realized. The thought should have made him guilty, or at least nervous, but it didn't. He felt strangely calm, and as he kept studying himself in the mirror he realized he was smiling slightly.

"I'm so stupid," he said aloud to himself. Sighing, he laid back down and closed his eyes. The mind worked in mysterious ways. He'd often gone to sleep on a problem, only to wake and find the solution hovering in the back of his mind. Apparently this was no different.

How could he not have realized before this how unfair he was being? To himself, to his family, to Meiko's family, and especially to Meiko. Yesterday when he'd believed Shishido returned his feelings, he'd been ready to call the whole thing off. Did the fact that it had turned out to be a fantasy really change that?

He was gay, and that wasn't going to change any time soon. Or ever. Oh, he liked women well enough to at least be sure he could do his 'duty' by Meiko, but how was that fair to her? He'd been seeing her mostly as an object, a doll-like creature with no feelings of her own. But of course she must have hopes and dreams. Who knew why she was agreeing to this marriage? Maybe her family had pressured her into it. Or maybe she just didn't think she had any better chance of finding someone herself.

But he'd seen enough of her personality to know that she was something of a romantic, with her sweet, shy nature. She probably had all kinds of fantasies about them falling in love, becoming one of those arranged marriages that turned into lasting love. At the very least, she wasn't expecting to be bound to someone who could never truly think of her as anything but a kind of sister, who would always be pining after something - someone - else.

He had to tell her now, before the wedding. Before they irrevocably tied themselves to each other and it was too late for her to change her mind once she knew the truth.

And who knew? Maybe she'd be okay with it, maybe they'd be able to come to some kind of arrangement. Satisfying both their parents, but with an understanding between them that they'd have the right to pursue their own interests. That wouldn't be so bad, if he couldn't have Shishido. At least he wouldn't be lying.

But he had to call her, right now. Knowing the way women were, she was probably already deep in the middle of getting ready. The longer he put it off, the harder it would be for them to stop the proceedings.

Opening his eyes again, he fairly bounded out of the bed. He felt a million times better about everything, though his heart still ached when he thought about Shishido and what he would never truly have. Well, that was nothing new. He could deal with that. Now, where the hell had he set his phone down this time?

Since he knew it had to be within reach of the bed, his search didn't take nearly as long today. Which was a good thing, since he'd turned it off and therefore there wouldn't be any convenient calls to help him locate it. He finally found it under his bed, just out of easy reach; he'd probably set it on the night table and then knocked it off when reaching out to shut off the alarm.

Kneeling, he squeezed his arm into the small space between the frame and the floor and fished around for it. He grimaced at the feel of all the dust bunnies under there. There were disadvantages to not having a traditional futon, the main two of which were that it was hard to clean, and things always got lost beneath the bed.

Instead of his phone, his fingers closed over a small, round object. Thinking it might be a coin, he dragged it out. No sense in throwing money away, however small the denomination. When he brought it into the light from the bedside table, however, he was surprised to discover it was a button.

He froze, heart stopping. It was just an ordinary dark blue button, a bit of navy thread hanging from its holes. Gods knew he'd lost enough buttons from his own shirts over the years, and more than one of them had evaded his attempts to find where it had rolled to. There were probably half a dozen buttons under there.

Except he didn't own any dark blue shirts - the colour looked horrid on him. And it looked an awful lot like the buttons that had been on Shishido's shirt two nights ago.

Slowly, he shifted from his awkward kneeling position so he was sitting on the floor, back against the bed frame, staring at the innocent button in his palm. At first he thought the ache in his chest was just the usual pain thinking of Shishido and that dream brought on, but then he actually remembered to start breathing again.

"Why?" he whispered, eyes wide and heart pounding frantically. Why would Shishido have lied to him? How could his partner, his best friend, have slept with him, run out, and lied to him about it?

He swallowed hard. Had it not meant as much to Shishido as it had to him? Had it been that bad, that Shishido had felt the need to flee? To pretend it had never happened, so that Ohtori wouldn't ever press him about it?

For a long moment the panic overwhelmed him again, making him tremble as he choked back a sob. His fist clenched around the button hard enough that the edges pressed into his flesh, and he felt a slight trickle of blood.

Before he totally lost it, however, another possibility occurred to him. What if Shishido had just been.... scared? Ohtori had never actually told him how he felt, had in fact been very careful to make sure they'd both be able to write this off afterwards to drunken excess. Shishido had just taken that one step further. Perhaps to protect himself, his pride. Perhaps even to protect their friendship, fearing that having slept together would make things awkward.

Or maybe, just maybe, the impossible really was true and Shishido had done it to protect his own heart. Ohtori had no idea how he could have missed signs of Shishido feeling that way about him for the last ten years... but he was holding in his hand solid proof that, at the very least, Shishido was not nearly as straight as Ohtori had always believed. And if he'd been wrong about that, what else might he have missed?

Scrambling to his feet, Ohtori all but ran for his closet. He had to know, and that meant cornering Shishido in a place where he couldn't run, couldn't dodge the question. And he knew exactly how to do it.

By the time he arrived at the church, wedding guests were already gathering. He paused to greet his parents, bowing slightly to his father and touching his mother's hand gently to reassure her. "I'm sorry for my behaviour yesterday," he apologized sincerely. "It was a very bad day for me all around."

"Are you feeling better, Choutarou?" his mother asked anxiously, catching his hand and staring up into his eyes. They had the same eyes - like milk chocolate mixed with amber, sweet and dark. "Your friend said they'd been too hard on you the night before. What on earth were you thinking, going out that night?"

"I didn't mean to get quite that drunk," Ohtori assured her dryly. "Not an experience I intend to repeat, I can tell you that much. Are Shishido and Atobe here?" He was hoping Shishido wouldn't be; he wanted to face the older man on his terms, and he needed just a little more time.

"Your friend Atobe is here," his father told him. "He's been organizing the seating for the guests who've already arrived. I haven't seen Ryou-kun, however."

"Thanks," Ohtori said, smiling at his father. Internally he winced a bit - if this went the way he rather thought it would, it would probably be a while before his parents were this polite to him again. But it couldn't be helped. "Excuse me please, I have to go get ready."

He bowed again and headed for the room off to the side that had been set aside for the groom and groomsmen. The formal tuxedo Atobe had bought him - he'd insisted that no friend of his was going to get married in clothes worn by half a hundred people before him, and ended up paying for not only the men's tuxes but the bridesmaids' and bride's dresses as well - was waiting for him there, and he hurried to change into it.

Somehow it didn't surprise him to find a man who claimed to be Atobe's personal valet waiting there to help him into it, either. He had to laugh as he allowed the man to help him dress. Any affair involving the charismatic heir to the Atobe fortune inevitably ended up with Atobe's influence all over it. He suspected a good deal of the decorations had been paid for out of his friend's pocketbook as well. Meiko certainly hadn't protested, and her parents had been ecstatic to say the least.

At least it meant he didn't have to wait for Atobe - or worse, Shishido - to show up to help him into his clothes. He thanked the man, checked the corridor to make sure it was empty, and slipped out of the room.

The bride's side of the wedding party had several rooms set aside for them. He could hear the high-pitched chattering and giggling from several feet down the hall, and it made him feel a little bad that he was about to turn the day on its head for them. He knocked briefly, and after a moment of surprised silence there was a shuffle on the other side. The door opened a crack, and one of the girls peered out.

"Ohtori-san!" she exclaimed, and he heard a muffled squeak of dismay behind her. Quickly she moved so that her body blocked the doorway completely, presumably to prevent him from getting a look at the bride. He hid a smile. The action would have been more effective if he hadn't towered head and shoulders over her.

"You can't come in," she scolded him softly. "You mustn't see her before it starts."

"I know, it's bad luck," he agreed. "But I really, really need to talk to her. In private, right now."

"Can't it wait until after the ceremony?" the other bridesmaid asked from where she was standing in front of the bride, hiding her as best she could. "You'll have plenty of private time then."

"No, it really can't wait," he insisted. He looked past her, and saw Meiko peeking out at him past her friend. He caught her eyes. "Please, Meiko-san, it's very important that I speak to you now."

After a moment of whispered discussion with the friend that was shielding her, she nodded. "All right, Ohtori-san, if it's that important. Hana, Risa, will you please leave us alone for a few moments? Go fix your own dresses, it's probably your only chance to do it."

Giggling again and giving him looks that made it clear what they thought he wanted to see her alone for, the two girls scurried off into one of the other rooms and closed the door behind him. He had no doubt they'd be listening at the keyhole, but he intended to keep his voice low enough for them not to be able to overhear it.

Stepping into the room, he closed the door and moved towards her, taking a moment to study her as he went. She really looked radiant in her dress, with her hair up off her face in graceful swirls and artistic makeup turning her face from merely pretty into breathtaking. She looked up at him with slightly uncertain black eyes, the very image of a perfect Japanese bride. "What did you need to speak to me about, Ohtori-san?"

Resting his hip against the side of a nearby table, he cleared his throat. "I, uh, have a confession to make." Although he was certain this was the right thing to do, the words still didn't come easily. "I'd ask you to hear me out, and at the end if you still want to marry me, I'll do it," he promised. "I owe you that much."

Her eyes widened in alarm, and she lifted a gloved hand to cover the little 'o' of surprise that her mouth made. "I don't understand."

Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Ohtori braced himself. Hopefully she wouldn't do something awkward like scream or break into hysterical sobbing. "The truth is, I'm gay. I've been in love with Shishido-san for years." Her eyes went impossibly wider, but thankfully she didn't interrupt. "I agreed to this marriage because I wanted to make my parents happy, and I like girls well enough to be able to give you children. But I realized that it wasn't fair of me to ask you to go into this without knowing that there is no way I will ever, ever fall in love with you. And that I will almost certainly end up breaking at least one of my vows to you."

"Are you..." her voice was trembling, but she didn't raise it much past a whisper, matching his quiet tone. "Are the two of you..."

"Not exactly," he admitted wryly. "There was... something happened two days ago that made me realize I couldn't go through with this as things stand. But even if nothing ever happens between him and I, that doesn't change what I am. Can you live with that?"

"I..." Tears filled her eyes, and he did feel bad for being the one to put them there. She really deserved better than this. "I can't. I'm so sorry, Ohtori-san, but I can't. Maybe if it were Hana you were marrying she'd be okay with it - she's always been very forward. But I want a chance for my husband to love me."

"You have nothing to apologize for," he assured her hastily. "This is entirely my fault. I should have been up front with you right from the start. Though, if you'll forgive my saying so," he touched one of her curls gently, "if you want love, an omiai isn't the best way to find it. You're a beautiful girl and you have a wonderful personality, and if I had to be married I'd definitely want it to be to someone like you. You can do better."

She ducked her head. "But everyone will be so angry with me for calling it off," she whispered tearfully. "And if I leave, father will have to pay restitution to your parents."

"Well, then let me be the one to stand you up," he offered. It wasn't a good situation for her no matter what they did, unfortunately; having him leave her would make it seem like she wasn't good enough somehow, and having her leave him would make her seem flighty and irresponsible. And probably get her in a great deal of trouble with her parents.

"Meiko-san," he added when she was obviously torn, "Anyone who would be put off by the fact that I left you for a man is far too shallow to deserve you, anyway. They wouldn't be any better a husband than I would. Maybe worse. You can do better than that. And this way your parents can't be as angry at you." His would be furious with him, but it didn't matter nearly as much to him.

"All right," she agreed, biting her lip. "What should I do?"

"Just stay in here," he told her. "There's something I need to do before I leave, it's very important. I promise I will be the one to walk away, but you might have to stall a little bit until they come give you the 'bad news'. Maybe say your dress got a little torn and you're stitching it, or something."

She nodded and, to his surprise, reached down and slipped the hem of the dress over the heel of her shoe and tugged until the hem came undone. Then she unraveled it further, giving him a watery smile as she did so. "This way it's true, so Hana and Risa can't say anything. You'd better go. Thank you for being honest with me, Ohtori-kun."

"Thank you for being so understanding," he thanked her sincerely in turn. "I promise I'll make it as easy on you as I can. Good luck, Meiko-san. You're going to make someone a stunning bride one day." He smiled at her as she blushed at the compliment, and hurried out of the room.

Only one thing left to do. Reaching into his pocket, he touched the button he'd tucked in there for courage and luck. I can do this. I just have to get him to be honest.

It was almost time for the ceremony to begin. He and his two groomsmen should be gathering right about now. Sure enough he saw Atobe and Shishido talking just outside the room set aside for their preparations, both already in their own tuxedos.

Ohtori's breath caught briefly at the stunning sight of Shishido in a tux. His hair had grown out again years ago, and he had it swept up in the same high ponytail he used when playing tennis. His long bangs fell to either side of his face, softening the sharp planes there. He was beautiful, though still in a very masculine way. His heart beat a little faster as they turned and caught sight of him.

"Choutarou! There you are!" Shishido scolded him. "I was starting to think you were gonna sleep in again today. I've been trying to call you, but your phone's off."

"It fell under my bed, I couldn't reach it," he admitted sheepishly. That startled his partner into a brief laugh. "I'll fish it out later."

"That's so like you," Shishido shook his head. "I suppose we should be grateful you didn't spend the whole afternoon searching for it."

Studying him, Ohtori was perversely pleased to see that the pinched look he'd had yesterday was even more pronounced today, as were the sleepless circles under his eyes. He looked like he was thinking about being sick - and it made Ohtori's heart soar. There was only one reason he could think of for Shishido to be so desperately stressed right now. The only thing left was to get him to admit it.

"We need to get out there," Ohtori said. "Atobe, can I speak to you for just a moment please? Shishido, you go on ahead."

The look in Shishido's eyes before he turned away was mingled disappointment and relief, and it took Ohtori a moment to realize it was probably in response to the fact that he'd stopped calling him 'Ryou'. Gods, if I'm right, it must have just about killed him to hear me say that the next morning, he thought, his heart going out to his partner all over again. No wonder he paused before answering me.

"Something wrong?" Atobe asked as Shishido headed into the main part of the church. "You were coming from the bride's side. You didn't try to see your bride before it was time, did you?"

"I did speak to her," Ohtori shrugged. "Now I need to speak to Shishido, in a way that he can't get away from me. Could you just... pretend not to be listening, or something?"

"Aan?" Atobe made an inquiring noise, arching an eyebrow at him. Seeing the determination in Ohtori's eyes, the curious look turned into one of something close to satisfaction. "Good. I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to put an end to this travesty myself. I believe I'd better go oversee the ushers taking the last guests to their seats. Don't take too long, Ohtori-kun, or you'll find yourself married whether you like it or not."

A little stunned, Ohtori watched him stride away, already snapping his fingers to catch the attention of the ushers. Atobe had known? Like, not just guessed, but really known? Well, as he'd remembered yesterday, the older man had always been uncanny at reading people. And he was one of the few people who had seen Ohtori and Shishido's relationship right from the very inception.

Shaking his head, he reminded himself that the clock was ticking. Meiko would only be able to stall for so long. He headed for the main part of the church, where Shishido was waiting at the front for him. Glancing around, he saw his parents up at the front. Jirou was sound asleep on the shoulder of a somewhat irritated Mukahi, while in the row behind them Oshitari seemed to be teasing Hiyoshi about something. Kabaji was just a few seats over from them, with Taki and some of the other former Hyoutei tennis team. Not far from them were his friends from his classes and the university tennis team, plus the rest of his family. He felt a little bad for dragging them all out to this. He'd have to apologize later.

"Where's Atobe?" his partner asked as he got close enough to talk without anyone else overhearing. Shishido looked a little green around the edges, and Ohtori could read his tension in the way his shoulders were a little hunched, his expression forced and his hands clenching and relaxing at his sides. If they'd been going into a game with Shishido in this condition, Ohtori would have feared for their chances of winning.

"Where else? Supervising," Ohtori grinned at him, and Shishido gave him a weak smile in return. He took his place next to his best man, for all the world as if he expected his bride to show up any moment. "We've still got a few minutes, and he won't be late. That would be imperfect of him."

"You seem a lot calmer today," Shishido noted, a flash of something resembling misery passing through his dark blue eyes before he turned to face the front.

"I am," Ohtori agreed with another smile. "I'm making the right decision."

"Good." The word sounded like it had been forced through gritted teeth, and Ohtori could tell from the way the muscles were bunched at the side of his partner's jaw that the older man was clenching it. Shishido took a deep breath, then added in a somewhat more normal tone, "I'm glad you're happy."

Ohtori looked at him for a moment. If he was wrong, this might just be the end of their friendship. If he was right - it might be the end of their friendship, but the beginning of something much, much better.

"Ryou?" Shishido visibly flinched, and Ohtori had to bite down on another smile.

"Yeah?" his partner asked, glancing at him briefly before turning his gaze to his cufflink. Ohtori gripped the button in his pocket tightly, and prayed he was right.

"Was it real?" he asked softly, wanting to be sure nobody but Shishido could hear him.

Startled, Shishido's gaze was jerked back to him as if his head were on strings that Ohtori had just yanked. Wide, almost panicked blue eyes stared into his. "What?"

"You know what I'm talking about," Ohtori asserted, now certain. There was no reason for that reaction unless he was right and it really had happened. Now, if only Shishido's reasons for hiding it were what he hoped they were. "Was it real? You owe me that much, at least."

For a long moment Shishido just stared at him, and he could see his friend trying to find some way out of it. Finally he sighed and looked at his cufflink again. "Yeah, it was real," he admitted gruffly.

"Why did you try to hide it? Why did you lie to me?"

"Are you kidding me?" Shishido's voice was bitter as he gestured slightly at the church around them. "You're about to get married, Choutarou. I never should have done that. Wasn't fair to you or her."

"You regret it, then?" Ohtori pressed. "You think it was a mistake?"

"Hell yeah I think it was a mistake!" Shishido squeezed his eyes shut, pinching at the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have done it, and I probably shouldn't have lied about it once I did do it, but it's done. I'm sorry."

"Ryou?" Again the flinch, as if Ohtori had been yelling instead of almost whispering. "If I weren't about to get married, would it still have been a mistake?"

There was that panicked look again. "What difference does it make?" the older man muttered. "You are. End of story. We could play 'what if' till the earth starts going around the moon, it won't change anything." He shook his head. "Look, I won't ever say anything to her, okay? Or even to you again. Forget about it."

"If I weren't getting married, would you still regret it?" Ohtori insisted, gently but firmly. "Answer me, Ryou." Shishido said nothing, staring at the cross over the altar as though it held the answer to the question of life itself. Ohtori's voice turned fierce. "Shishido Ryou, if our friendship has ever meant anything to you, answer the question!"

"Asshole," Shishido all but spat back, barely keeping his voice at a level where Ohtori's parents wouldn't hear them. "You bastard, you're going to make me say it, aren't you? Never pegged you for the sadistic type, Choutarou."

Another person might have been hurt by the words; Ohtori knew his partner too well to react to the lashing out that always happened when Shishido had to admit to a vulnerability of any kind. "Answer me, Ryou. Would you still regret it if I weren't about to get married?"

"No, damn you." Shishido sounded broken, and Ohtori's heart ached for him. He wished there had been an easier way to do this, but there hadn't been time. He'd needed to get Shishido in a place where he couldn't just stalk off to break the conversation, and if he'd waited until after announcing that the wedding was off Shishido would have blamed himself for Ohtori calling it off. "No, I wouldn't regret it. I'd be down on my knees praying it wasn't a one-time thing, but I wouldn't regret it. Happy now?"

"Very," Ohtori murmured back, voice full of barely repressed joy. Shishido gave him a disbelieving look, probably wondering how his good-natured partner could possibly be taking pleasure in his obvious anguish, and Ohtori grinned back at him. "It makes this much easier to do."

"Knowing I'm in love with you and miserable makes it easier for you to get married?" Shishido sputtered, his voice starting to rise. Ohtori's parents were giving them sideways looks, and he thought he could see dawning horror in his mother's eyes. She'd always been more perceptive than his father. He gave her an apologetic smile.

"No," he told his partner. Before Shishido could evade him, he caught the shorter man's chin in his fingers and kissed him, quickly but deeply. Stunned, Shishido just stared at him when he let go. Behind them, there was the sort of shocked silence that follows a disaster too horrific for the crowd to imagine. Smiling into it, Ohtori told him, "It makes it easier to do this."

With that he turned and calmly walked away, ignoring the uproar that broke out throughout the church. He could hear his father calling after him, his mother making panicked excuses to the accusations Meiko's parents were flinging at them. Still smiling happily, Ohtori walked back down the aisle, not turning to either side, and out the doors into the nave. He wasn't sure if Shishido were following him or not; it didn't really matter. Either way, he'd done what he needed to do. Shishido would catch up with him sooner or later, demanding answers.

Sure enough, he'd hardly taken two steps towards the main church exit before the doors slammed open behind him again, and he heard familiar running footsteps. Even in dress shoes, he couldn't mistake that gait anywhere. He'd heard it too many times on the courts. He turned at the hand on his arm, and smiled again at the wild expression on his partner's face.

"Choutarou! Damn it, you can't just walk away from your own wedding!" the older man insisted.

"Watch me," Ohtori replied serenely. "Anyway, I promised Meiko I would be the one to leave her at the alter so her parents couldn't be as mad at her, and she probably wouldn't have been able to stall much longer."

Clearly struck speechless, Shishido just gaped at him, hand still on his arm. Ohtori was severely tempted to lean over and kiss the confusion out of his eyes, but he restrained himself. They still had a lot of details to work out before he'd feel comfortable doing something like that casually. After all, they weren't officially in any kind of relationship yet.

"I cannot believe you just kissed me in front of a church full of people," Shishido said, apparently deciding to try another tack. "Did you really just do that, or did I imagine it?"

"You know, I ought to let you think you dreamed it," Ohtori said, a flash of anger crossing his own eyes before he smiled again. "You hurt me pretty badly, making me think it was all a dream, you know."

"I..." Shishido hunched his shoulders in a defensive posture, and dropped his hold on Ohtori's arm at last. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I thought you'd be horrified when you realized I'd taken advantage of you like that. That it would ruin our friendship."

"Oh, Ryou." Unable to help himself, he reached out to touch his partner's cheek. He realized with some surprise that his hands were shaking in the aftermath, as the enormity of what he'd just done caught up with him. "You know, you'd have saved us both a lot of pain if you'd stayed that night like I asked you to. I was so ecstatic that it seemed like you really wanted me back, and weren't just indulging me."

"You..." Slowly, so slowly it hurt to watch, hope crept into Shishido's eyes. "It really wasn't just one last experiment?"

"I wanted one memory to carry me through," Ohtori whispered. He wasn't aware of moving, but somehow Shishido's face was closer than it had been. "Something to hold on to, one moment of real pleasure. I love you, Shishido Ryou. I've loved you since... since junior high, I think. Definitely since high school."

"Choutarou..." A calloused thumb brushed against Ohtori's cheek, and he was surprised to realize he was crying. The stress and hurt and even the joy of the last two days was catching up to him. "You big dumb idiot," Shishido murmured, his voice more gentle than Ohtori had ever heard it before. "You should have said something. You know I'm a moron about emotions. How could you think I wouldn't love you back?"

"It's about damn time you two figured it out!" A strident voice came from behind them, making them both jerk apart and turn to stare. Mukahi was grinning at them, and arrayed around him were the rest of their former Hyoutei teammates, from a sleepy Jirou to a smirking Atobe. The only one missing was Kabaji.

"Honestly, the way you two moon over each other all the time, you both must be halfwits not to have figured it out before this," Hiyoshi added, as Ohtori gaped and Shishido stared at them.

"Aww, I dunno," Jirou put in his two cents, yawning from where he was draped over Oshitari's shoulder. "I was kinda looking forward to doing the whole 'I object' thing!"

"You'd just have slept through it," Mukahi snickered. "I was gonna do it, though. If you two were gonna wait this long to figure it out, couldn't you have waited a few more minutes?"

Ohtori finally found his voice. "Did everyone know but us?" he blurted out, shocked. Atobe had said earlier... and now they were talking about interrupting the wedding...

"Since the beginning of high school," Oshitari confirmed with a sly smile. "Though some of us realized it considerably earlier than that. You were rather obvious about it."

"And none of you bothered to tell either of us?" Ohtori's voice cracked in distress. "I almost made the biggest mistake of my life, and you were just going to let us both be miserable?"

"Hey, we were gonna object!" Mukahi protested with another grin. "There's a time and place for these things, you know."

"The two of you needed to figure it out for yourselves," Atobe cut into the teasing with a dismissive wave of his hand. "It would have been meaningless coming from us - you probably wouldn't have even believed us." Ohtori had to admit that was likely true. "Though if you hadn't shown signs of calling it off yesterday, I was considering arranging some sort of disaster that would postpone the ceremony and force you to take more time to consider it," Atobe admitted wryly, making Ohtori stare at him again.

"You're all a bunch of assholes," Shishido swore at them, but when Ohtori turned to him he found his partner was grinning. "C'mon, Choutarou, let's get out of here before they rub off on us." He grabbed Ohtori's hand and squeezed tight, and the younger man gave a shaky laugh.

"Yes, you'd best leave before they start going to the side exits to go around and come after you," Oshitari said placidly. "And Kabaji can only hold the main door for so long. I can hear them shouting in there."

Ohtori had to laugh at the image of their mountain of a friend fending off relatives and wedding guests, guarding the door like the entrance to a fort. "We'll find appropriate ways to say thank you later," Shishido muttered, glaring at them all but without his usual heat.

Atobe stepped forward, and held out an envelope. "There's no reason for my wedding present to go to waste, since it's non-refundable," he said, smirking at them as Ohtori reached out and took it curiously. If Atobe had been planning to disrupt the wedding, why had he gotten an unrefundable present? "The limo outside will take you to the airport, and everything you'll need is in the suitcases in the trunk. I'm sure the two of you will enjoy a cruise much more than you would have with your blushing bride, Ohtori-kun."

Realizing that Atobe had, in fact, intended it to be the two of them who took what was undoubtedly a honeymoon cruise together, Ohtori flushed and shook his head in wry thanks. "Hey, looks like Ohtori's the blushing bride," Mukahi snickered. "I bet he's totally the..."

Hiyoshi hit him on the back of the head, mercifully silencing him. "Some of us would rather not think about the mechanics, thank you," he muttered, and made shooing motions at Ohtori and Shishido. "Hurry up, or the horde in there really is going to catch you."

Laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of it all, Ohtori tugged at the hand Shishido was holding and they ran out the doors together. As they burst out into the sunlight, Ohtori squinted against the sudden glare and saw that there was indeed a limousine with the Atobe crest on the side, waiting with the rear door being held by the doorman.

"Bloody Atobe," Shishido said, but there was laughter and a hint of awe in his voice. "I can't believe him. I can't believe you!" He climbed into the car, and stared as Ohtori slid in after him and the door closed. "How did you know? You sure as hell didn't suspect anything yesterday. What made you realize?"

Having expected that question, Ohtori opened his other hand and showed him the button he'd pulled out of his pocket. "It's a good thing you were even more impatient than I was," he murmured as Shishido's eyes widened in realization. "Though I was planning to tell Meiko the truth anyway. I figured she'd probably call it all off once she realized I was gay and could never love her."

"I don't believe it," Shishido murmured, reaching out to brush his finger over the button. "Guess it's a good thing I was in too much of a panic to make sure I had all the damn buttons. Gods, Choutarou," he looked up at Ohtori, seeming stunned. "Is it really real?"

"Yes," Ohtori said, leaning forward and capturing his lips in a fierce kiss. "It's really real. And this time neither of us is denying it." He pulled back and grinned, holding up the button. "I was thinking of having it put on a chain, what do you think? It can be my new lucky necklace."

"I think I might just see if I can find one of the other ones after we get back, and make one of my own," Shishido murmured wryly. "I've never been much for necklaces, but then I've never owed a button this much before, either."

Ohtori laughed and they kissed again. Shishido's fingers wrapped around his and closed over the button, holding it securely in both their hands. Ohtori grinned into the kiss as he realized he couldn't imagine a better, more perfect wedding day than this.

Two Days Left One Day Left The Big Day Omake!

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