Chapter 220 – Wedding

Time Stamp: Day of Takei and Akari's Wedding

(POV: Eiji Hosegawa)

Before I had realized it, my friend was getting married. The person I had known since middle school was tying the knot with an old flame of his and was finally going to be happy.

As his best friend of many years, I was extremely happy to see him marry someone he truly loved. After what he had been through, Takei definitely deserves all this happiness.

"Eiji? Are you done getting dressed yet?"

Helena came out of the living room and approached me with an impatient expression on her face. Although this was only one of her many expressions, I felt quite special to be the only person who knows all of her sides.

"I'm almost done, so don't worry about it. We'll leave in five minutes," I said.

Helena seemed to suspect that I was up to something. "What's with that goofy smirk on your face then?"

"Just thought that you were really cute."

"Thank you, but flattery won't get you anywhere."

"As cold as ever, huh?"

After high school, some circumstances happened and it somehow ended up leading to Helena and I dating each other. I used to only be able to think of 2D girls in the past, but I can now confidently say that I love Helena.

Although she puts on a cold exterior sometimes, Helena just gets embarrassed easily. That's why I love to tease her so much!

"Haaaa... you're always so cold to me. I think I'm going to find another girl to love," I said with an exasperated sigh.

"E-Eh? W-Wait, I'm not being serious! I'm just a little embarrassed about everything..." Helena stammered.

I was only joking when I said that, but Helena thought that I was being for real.

"Haha, just joking."

"Jerk."

***

Once the two finished getting dressed, they hopped in the car and started to head to the venue. There was about an hour left before the ceremony, but the two were going there early to make sure that they weren't late.

"It's surreal to see your friends get married before you, huh?"

"Does that make you want to marry me?" Helena mischievously smiled.

"Maybe?" Eiji winked. "Please look forward to it in the future."

Before they knew it, the two of them had arrived at the wedding venue. The entire parking lot was filled with cars, which was a testament to how popular Takei and Akari were as a couple.

The venue that Takei and Akari had chosen was a decently-sized church that could hold a lot of people, which was smart since there were a lot of attendees. So far, Eiji hadn't spotted anyone familiar yet, but that was all about to change...

"Hey, idiot brother of mine! You look actually handsome today!"

"If it isn't my cheeky little sister..."

Rikka Hosegawa greeted her brother as he got out of the car to give her a welcoming hug. They hadn't seen each other in a while since both were busy with work, but it was a happy reunion.

"How's it look like so far?" Eiji asked.

Rikka wryly smiled. "It's a lot more packed in there than I thought. I'll remember to not underestimate those two anymore."

"Is Ryuto here?" Helena spoke up. "I haven't seen him around yet."

"Ah, I think he's having some guy talk with Takei right now in the dressing room. Probably fussing over him or something," Rikka shrugged.

Just like how Eiji and Helena had surprisingly fallen in love, Rikka and Ryuto had ended up with the same fate. During college, a few events led to a spark happening between them and a relationship forming as a result.

"You need to control your boyfriend before Takeichi clonks him on the head for doing something dumb," Helena laughed.

Rikka sighed and held her head. "He doesn't listen to me when it comes to Takei. It's like there's a master-servant switch still inside him."

"Have you thought of him pursuing the path of men instead of women?" Eiji half-jokingly asked.

Rikka just waved off Eiji's comment as if it was an unfounded worry. "When I asked him about that, Ryuto said he only admires Takei in a worshipful way and not a romantic way."

"At least you tackled that concern at the root..." Eiji chuckled.

The three of them finished their conversation with each other and decided to head inside the venue. Only about 25 percent of the venue was filled up since it was still early, but there were still a large number of people waiting in the seats for the wedding to start.

"Speaking of which, is Arisa here yet?" Rikka asked. "I was wondering if any of you two have seen her?"

"I called her earlier and she said that she was stuck in traffic so she'll be a bit late," Helena stated. "Arisa said she'll still make it to the ceremony, but anything before that can't be guaranteed."

"What a shame..." Rikka's shoulders slumped dejectedly. "I wanted to tease her about the guy she's been seeing."

Just like everyone else, Arisa had also found her own flame once she entered the outside world. Through the mutual friendship of an acquaintance from work, she had found someone that she really liked.

"I wonder if it's fine to see Takei right now?" Eiji wondered. "Should we give him some words of encouragement before he goes and ties the knot?"

"Knowing Takeichi, he's probably a bit nervous about being in front of a large crowd, but he's going to push through that fear to make Akarin happy. Am I wrong?"

"No no, that sounds exactly spot on. You can take it from his best friend for over a decade!"

Since everyone had been friends with Takei for so long, they knew how he would think and act, which is why none of them were too particularly worried about Takei. He was a hard nut to crack, so they all believed in Takei's resilience.

"Let's go meet up with Takei anyways, I'm sure he wants to see us," Rikka suggested.

Eiji and Helena both nodded at the same time. ""Let's go see the groom!""

—

Wedding arc (1/4)

The long-awaited arc finally begins!

Mr. Serious-san: Haha, we beat them to it!

Mrs. Sugar-chan: We finally beat the idiot couple~

Author-san: Did you guys really rush your wedding to beat them...?

Mr. Serious-san: Maybe...