"you may now kiss the bride." the priest announced after the bride and groom had exchanged their vows with one another.
vows like i will be with you even when death does us apart and you're the only one i'll love in this lifetime and the next; a bunch of meaningless bullcrap.
unbeknownst to the crowd that was cheering and whistling for the pair of newlyweds, those were just a bunch of empty promises with no emotion or attachment whatsoever said to satisfy the so-called 'expectations' placed on them.
after the ceremony ended with the bride and groom sending the guests home with sore cheekbones and pretentious enthusiasm, the both of them got into a car that would specifically bring them to their new home together.
the drive was quiet with windows rolled down and the night breeze brushing across both their real facades, irrelevant to the one they had to put on earlier for the sake of other people and for the sole purpose of being newlyweds.
the driver switched radio channels and coincidentally, nirvana's come as you are was playing as blue steely eyes traced the moon that seemed like it too, was trying to run away from the cold and desolate night.
with his favorite rock band playing in the background, he couldn't give a concrete description of how he was feeling at that exact moment when the moon asked.
sentiment? worn out? sad? what else emotions are there left for him to list.
the car finally came to a halt in front of a luxurious looking villa with the family nameplate of kambe engraved at the front gate, above the doorbell.
"congratulations once again and have a good night." the driver bowed before taking his leave.
the two who had refused the ride till the front door of their insanely huge house were walking on either sides of the driveway in silence. the bride, who had now taken off her painful high heels was then walking bare-footed while her wedding gown dragged behind her in its own habitual dolor.
"say, why'd you agree to this marriage?"
"i could ask you the same."
"just answer the question. you're gay, aren't you?"
"what a bold assumption to make about the man that you just got married to a few hours ago." he chuckled. this time it was his turn to take off the tie that had been neatly resting around his neck, suffocating him.
"yeah, yeah. we all know this marriage thing is just a bunch of bullshit. so, what's making you go against your sexuality to the extent you're willing to marry a woman who's so out of your league?"
he refused to answer as he hummed a nameless tune whilst walking casually like a little kid with his hands resting at the back of his head as if he wasn't an adult with the oppression of people against him sexuality and the expectations of being the next ceo-in-line behind him.
"you know when our parents first set us up to meet, i couldn't help but notice there's always the same glint of sadness in your eyes. it's not the same as being reluctant because you were forced to meet someone, but just plain unexplainable sorrow; as if you're going through a really really painful phase in your life."
for a moment, he felt like he couldn't breathe, because what the woman had said couldn't be anymore accurate. he sucked in a deep breath of air, desperately trying to untangle the lump that was caught in his throat but to no avail.
he lowered his head. "yeah, i'm so sad that i feel like i could die from even the slightest flick on the forehead. fuck, why did things have to turn out this way. i miss him... so fucking much..."
maybe the moon wasn't trying to be his friend when it asked about how he was feeling earlier because he suddenly felt like it was jeering at him in mockery from above, laughing at how pathetic his life had turned out and how broken of a human being he was.
the faint peach rouge the makeup artist had put on for him before the wedding ceremony had been washed away by the droplets from his damp eyelashes.
"perhaps... i agreed to this because i thought i was ready to move on and lead the life people want and expect me to but jesus, this fucking... sucks. we still loved one another, a lot... a lot, so why did we end up like this..."
the woman tossed her heels aside and raced over to the other side of the pavement before throwing her arms around the man curled up into a ball as he wept helplessly into his knees. his pain strained cries, accompanied by the pre-winter wind whizzing past were the only audible sounds.
"i'm sure he's experiencing the same feeling you are now too, daisuke."
her voice was nothing but an incoherent whisper as her lips quivered and her arms that were around the man trembled from the immense sadness she felt from him which struck her right in the core.
just what in the world happened between you two for you to be able to cry in such misery.
❨ proofread ❩
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a/n: wrote this during my exams lol next chapter is gonna be the last :)
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grudge | daiharu
Short Storythey loved one another despite knowing that it was impossible.