Things flashed by too quickly for
Ran's strangely contented mind to
follow. All he could think about was the blond's arms around him,
comforting him, making him feel like everything was going to be just
fine. He had expected a blow up. He'd gone to that place fully
expecting to get everything he'd ever done to Yohji thrown into his
face and then the door following suit.
Ran hadn't meant to seem so *needy* but… when he saw the tall, lanky
assassin at the door, his eyes drank in the sight of him. It made
him think about all the various reasons that he'd been interested in
Yohji to begin with. Then, when the golden man had put his arm
around him, the redhead sank down into the depths of relief – his
heart lightening at the notion he'd been forgiven.
And he had. Yohji had said as much on the way to the church. Of the
four people in the car; Yohji, Ran, and Sharon Kudou were the only
people who had any grasp of Japanese. The blond's mother sat in the
back seat with Ran, one of her hands holding his and giving a
reassuring squeeze. When Ran looked at her in confusion, the older
woman leaned forward and whispered something in his ear.
"Yohji is always quick to forgive the one he loves, Ran…"
Violet eyes blinked and he sat, silent and dumbfounded, staring at
the smiling face of the former ballet dancer. It was then that he
took stock of all the traits in her that had passed down to the one
he loved. Her green eyes, the easy smile, the flawless beauty… all
these things were quite evident in the older assassin. He smiled
back and nodded his thanks.
From that moment, he was simply an observer to organized chaos. The
wedding had been well planned, yes, but things were not running quite
as smoothly as everyone hoped they would. Edward was showing signs
of cold feet, prompting Yohji to make threats about ruining
Lacey's `special' day. Somewhere between having left the tailors and
arriving at the church, the young woman's wedding dress had acquired
a slight discoloration to a small spot on the skirt, easily hidden,
but annoying none-the-less.
Then, the crowning event – Jo and the priest hadn't arrived yet.
Ran watched as Sharon and Yohji took over the event, ousting the
flustered wedding planner from the building. The older woman barked
out orders and suggestions while her son saw to it that things were
taken care of. Ran watched, nearly helpless, until something
occurred to him.
"Yohji… Does your friend have a cell phone?"
The blond stopped and looked at his love, his eyes blank for a
moment. Then, his hand slapped his forehead and he started
laughing. "Of course!" Quickly, Yohji drew out his mother's phone
and dialed Josephine's number quickly. He started speaking quickly
when it was answered.
"Hey, Jo… what's going on with the priest?"
Violet eyes studied the man as he listened intently to the other
voice. Ran had always loved it when Yohji got intense about
something. The way his eyes would light up and how his entire body
seemed to radiate this strange aura… it was intoxicating. He waited
silently until the blond assassin flipped the phone closed and looked
at him. "Jo says that the priest who had been requested to perform
the ceremony ended up in the hospital last night – heart attack.
She's running to the rectory to pick up another priest who was asked
to take over the man's appointments."
Ran came forward and slipped his hand into Yohji's. "Then all's not
lost," he asked with a small smile. Just being close to the man
again was enough to lift his spirits. What had he been thinking when
he'd very nearly thrown this all away?
"Not by a long shot," Yohji answered gently, his lips pressing
against the redhead's temple. His long fingers gave a quick squeeze
to Ran's hand and he pulled away, quite obviously reluctant to let
go. "I'm going to go check and make sure that Edward didn't try to
slip out the window or something… I'll be right back."
Watching the blond disappear around the corner, the redhead's ears
caught a soft curse from Sharon's lips. The floral arrangements had
just arrived, he could tell, and she was glaring at them. "Is
something wrong, Kudou-sama?"
Yohji's mother looked at him resignedly. "I'm starting to wonder if
today is God's way of saying that the wedding is a mistake. The
flowers are all wrong." Sharon reached out and moved some of the
vases. "This arrangement was supposed to have more white roses, and
this wreath wasn't to have any color except for green and white."
Quickly, Ran moved towards the flowers and smiled. "This is
something I can take care of… Do you mind?"
"Sweetheart, if you can do something with this mess, I'll be forever
in your debt." Sharon put her hand on the young man's arm. "Not to
mention the fact that you'll score brownie points with Lacey…"
The crimson haired assassin set to work, tearing apart all the
current arrangements and reworking them together. There wouldn't
close to the original number of settings, but there would be enough
to make a beautiful showing. Ran was determined to make sure the
largest would be the most beautiful. For once, he found himself
wanting to make someone happy with his floral skills.
About ten minutes into the mess, he was joined by Yohji, who started
reworking some of the flowers on his own. They moved swiftly and
quietly, both assassin's hands snatching up necessary buds and
putting them into place.
Fifteen minutes later, there were enough arrangements to ensure that
all was not lost.
TBC