BLOOM [OHSHC]

Epilogue 2 - Let Them Eat Cake

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 "Thank god we eloped."

Twisting my unassuming wedding band around my pinky finger—a new anxious habit I picked up over the course of the last year—I tried my best not to smile at my husband's little quip in the middle of our best friends' wedding ceremony.

Now in the midst of their destination wedding, Haruhi and Tamaki stood at the altar without friends flanking the wings, opting for a non-traditional wedding from start to finish... which was incredibly on-brand for them.

Instead, I settled for elbowing my husband in the ribs. "Shhh," I hissed through taut lips, trying to be discreet. "Just watch."

"We truly dodged the proverbial bullet," Kyoya continued, his lips hardly moving. How was he so good at this? "Why would we subject ourselves—and our loved ones—to this torture? Why spend inordinate amounts of money for a single day that only the two of us need to remember?"

"It's a celebration of their love, Kyoya. Let them celebrate," I murmured. Beside me, Mei fidgeted with the buttons on her suit jacket; I placed a hand over hers, gently guiding it to her lap, where we laced our fingers together. "We just celebrated our love more... quietly, that's all."

"And furthermore, I had to take the weekend off of work to witness them kissing for hours on end," Kyoya complained, obviously not finished with his laundry list of irritations. His entire demeanor portrayed nothing but poise and cheerful elegance, while every word from his mouth dripped with boredom and exasperation.

Quietly, I put my hand over his and squeezed his knuckles. "You needed a break from work, dear. Today broke your, what, forty-five day streak?"

"...Forty-seven."

"Forty-seven, how could I have forgotten such an important number," I said, teasing my spouse. "But the point remains, you needed a break, Kyo-Kyo. And this was the perfect distraction."

"I've asked you a million times, dear—"

"The nickname stays or I go."

The furrow in Kyoya's brow made a brief appearance, but disappeared when he sighed, deciding that his cute-ass nickname was not the hill he wanted to die on. "Alright."

"Alright." I smiled, still keeping up my unperturbed expression despite having missed the last two minutes of Haruhi and Tamaki's ceremony. It seemed they were reciting their vows already.

Kyoya leaned back over, and said, "And another thing. Why do we have to listen to their vows? We wrote ours and let each other read them... why have all of your friends and family know all of the secret things you promised your spouse? It's barbaric and an invasion of privacy."

This one I actually knew. "There's a historical precedent. You say your vows in front of your friends and family so they can help you adhere to the promises you're making," I explained under my breath. "That way, you have people to hold you accountable. It's also a tradition."

"One could simply keep their promises. Then there's no need for accountability."

"One could also shut up and be happy for his best friends."

"You're my best friend."

"I meant besides me, you ding-dong. Now shush."

The rest of Haruhi and Tamaki's ceremony went smoothly. We stood and clapped as they made their way back up the aisle, and I whistled with two fingers in my mouth, tearing up at the sight of my friends being so happy.

"Are you crying?" Kyoya murmured in my ear, his tone light and teasing.

The rest of the guests started filtering out of the ceremony room, heading to cocktail hour before the reception could begin. I elbowed Kyoya and shook my head. "No... I'm just... rehydrating my cheeks. That's it. It's awfully dry in here." Out of curiosity, I peeked over my shoulder at him and found him crying too. "Okay, maybe I am crying," I said, hugging him tightly.

"Perhaps I am as well," he admitted, burying his face in my hair. "I thought I'd be impervious," he sniffled, "but I am so happy for them."

"Me too," I laugh-cried before pulling Mei into our hug too.

Mei rolled her eyes, but let me sling my arm around her waist, Kyoya's arm going around her shoulders. "You two are disgustingly in love."

"Correct," Kyoya and I said in unison, making Mei fake barf while we laughed.

An all-too-familiar voice cut in. "Get a room, lovebirds! Stop forcing us to witness your love in 4K!" More arms joined our group, and I peeked up, finding Kaoru and Hikaru beaming back at me.

"We couldn't let there be a group hug without us," Kaoru added.

"Us too," said a low voice. Mori and Honey appeared out of nowhere, also throwing themselves into our cuddle puddle.

Honey screeched, "I've missed you guys!"

"Me too," I laughed.

"We need to add Tamaki and Haruhi," Hikaru said.

Kaoru nodded. "Host Club alumni, heave ho!"

We steered our group hug out the same doors, searching for the last two puzzle pieces of our reunion. It didn't take long for us to locate our friends, who roped us into taking photographs with them.

I found myself nostalgic for the moment as it happened — the sun set behind us, gleaming off of the rippling water of the Seine. Tamaki and Haruhi radiated with the light of a thousand suns; the twins were pulling pranks and goofing off, loosening everyone up; Honey and Mori told stories of their recent campus shenanigans, delighting us all when we heard Takashi had a girlfriend; Kyoya's hand was on my hip, his smile effortless and real; Mei laughed harder than I'd heard in months. My heart filled with warmth, with light, with love. I knew this would be a core memory.

I knew this love was everlasting.

I knew, without a doubt, that this family was mine.