It was awful. Well, not entirely, Lisa admitted to herself. The wedding ceremony itself was beautiful. And much to her surprise, her stubborn, pesky editor got all teary-eyed as Seulgi and Irene exchanged their vows. She explained herself when she handed her the handkerchief she'd placed in her breast pocket with such care by saying, "They seem so happy. They're obviously deeply in love."
Lisa merely grunted and hoped the ceremony wouldn't be as long as Mina's had been last year. She only had the one hanky.
Fortunately, Irene's minister wasn't as long-winded as the Hirai family's minister had been. Still, Lisa practically ran Jennie out of the church the moment it was done. Or tried to. Their escape was stalled by the bottleneck that formed at the exit as each and every single guest paused to wish Seulgi and Irene well. The couple had exited the church first, as per the custom, and were now standing atop the church steps, speaking to everyone as they left.
Of course, Jennie would insist on congratulating them and wishing them well, too, which Lisa thought was ridiculous. She didn't even know them! But the woman ignored her attempts to urge her down the stairs, and stopped to wish the couple happiness.
Irene and Seulgi weren't surprised Jennie was at the wedding, of course. The family grapevine was as healthy as ever. And much to Lisa's irritation, Irene was one of those social people who liked everyone and liked to talk. Seulgi was hampered with the same affliction, so they couldn't just say thank-you and let Jennie go. No. They had to actually speak to Jennie and ask if she was having a good time in Jeju.
Lisa felt herself tensing as she waited for her answer. She was vaguely surprised when she laughed and said, "Oh, yes."
Seulgi seemed equally surprised. She asked, "You mean, my sister is actually entertaining you?" As if Lisa were some sort of heathen, incapable of being a good host.
"Yes." Jennie nodded cheerfully. "She and your mother, too. Dara took me shopping and to the spa today. And last night, Lisa and I played Blood Lust Two until all hours of the morning."
"Oh!" Irene exclaimed. "Isn't that a wonderful game? Seulgi is so talented. Although I thought she'd drive me crazy with it when she was designing the end sequence. It gave her trouble."
"Seulgi?" Jennie glanced from Irene to Seulgi uncertainly.
"Yes. It's her game," Irene explained. Then she glanced at her sister-in-law with surprise. "Didn't you tell her it was Seulgi's game?"
"Yes, I'm sure I mentioned"
"No, you didn't!" Jennie exclaimed with a light slap at her arm. "Oh, my God! Why didn't you tell me?"
Lisa scowled. her editor didn't notice; she'd already turned back to her sister.
"I can't believe it! I love Blood Lust, both One and Two. They are amazing!"
She rambled on, gushing over Seulgi in a way Lisa found annoying, then suddenly stopped with a small gasp, before saying, "Oh! I just realized, the primary characters in Lisa's last book were named Irene and Seulgi. And Seulgi was a game creator, too. Oh, wow." She gave a laugh and grinned at Irene. "The next thing you'll tell me is that you're a coroner like the woman in the book."
Lisa, Seulgi and Irene all exchanged glances and shifted uncomfortably.
Jennie's eyes widened at their silence. "You aren't, are you?"
"I like to base stories as much in reality as I can," Lisa said to break the silence.
"But you write vampire books." Jennie sounded bewildered.
"Well, within reason," she amended, then took her arm firmly. "Come. We're holding up the line."
Lisa hurried Jennie to her car, saw her inside, got in herself and immediately turned the radio on. She cranked the volume up high to prevent conversation and drove to the reception hall where the wedding dinner was to be held. In her rush to get there, where she hoped Jennie would be distracted and forget the odd coincidence of the characters in her books matching her real-life family, Lisa somewhat exceeded the speed limit. As a result, they were one of the first to arrive.
