Chapter 9
In the end, the day had come.
“Haa…”
A wedding with my own older sister…
It may be a cosplay wedding, but the clothes and venue are real.
The private wedding hall I’d never been to before looked like a set from a drama.
Apart from the staff member officiating, it really was a wedding just for the two of us.
The groom was me. The bride was my sister.
“For a dream… we’ve already come way too far.”
I finished getting ready in the waiting room, giving myself one last look in the mirror.
I straightened my clothes and checked my hair for any stray strands.
I took one slow, deep breath.
“Phew… haa.”
It was time.
Time to go get my bride.
I opened the door, left the waiting room, and walked down the hall to the room.
I gave a light knock on the large door marked ‘Bridal Suite.’
“Yeees~”
“Come out. Let’s go.”
“Okay!”
Bouncy footsteps sounded from beyond the door, and then it swung wide open.
My sister was wearing the same wedding dress we’d picked on Tuesday, and she was still… beautiful.
“Ugh… I’m so nervous.”
“Do you have to be? It’s not like we’re really getting married.”
I wasn’t one to talk.
I could hear my own heart pounding loud and clear.
“Haven’t you heard? You practice like it’s the real thing. Your big sis always takes things seriously.”
“That’s news to me.”
“So, how do I look today? I’m super nervous, so only say nice things.”
“…It suits you.”
“A little more.”
“You look like someone getting married today.”
“But I am getting married, aren’t I?”
“I mean, you look like someone getting married for real.”
“That’s what I mean.”
“…Yeah.”
Enough wordplay.
I held out my right arm for my sister.
Looking at her as she smiled and linked her arm through mine, I said,
“Let’s go.”
“Oh… why are you being so formal?”
“Are you finally treating your big sis like a big sis?”
“I’m treating my wife like a wife.”
“Only now?”
“From now on.”
“Until when?”
As we slowly headed for the wedding hall, we chatted about silly things as usual.
Until when… Yeah. How was I supposed to answer that?
“That’s a little hard to answer.”
“What’s hard about it? You just say, ‘Until death.’”
“If you mean just for today, I can say that.”
“Good grief… How did I end up marrying such a small-minded man…”
Small-minded…?
I don’t know. Maybe I was being too petty.
“Sorry about that.”
“If you’re sorry, tell me.”
“Tell you what?”
“Here, repeat after me. Until death.”
“One year.”
“Hey!”
“Go in first.”
Before I knew it, we’d arrived at the wedding hall.
I pushed the door open and told my sister to go in first, but—
“Together!”
She pushed open the door on the other side and said we should go in together.
I had no reason to refuse, so we went inside together.
The hall wasn’t as spacious as the ones I’d been to for other weddings.
But the straight path running down the center was unmistakably an aisle for the bride and groom.
At the end, the officiant who would lead the ceremony was waiting for us.
“Let’s go.”
My sister didn’t answer.
Instead, she gave my arm a light squeeze and held on tight.
One step forward.
A white shoe stepped forward beside me, matching my awkward stride.
Come to think of it, I’d hardly ever walked in step with my sister.
Even when we were kids, I’d run ahead, then turn back whenever she got winded and had to stop.
I never imagined we’d walk together like this, as husband and wife.
One more step. And then another.
As we followed the aisle, we soon reached the end of the platform.
Soft classical music, something I felt I’d heard somewhere before, played in the background, but I couldn’t hear it.
“What are you doing? Hurry up and stand there.”
“…Ah.”
My sister gave a small laugh and nudged me.
We’d even rehearsed earlier, so what was I doing?
They’d told me the groom stood on the left from the guests’ perspective.
I’d found it a little fascinating that the groom stood on the left in both the East and the West.
“Groom, Lee Hyunjun.”
“Yes.”
“Bride, Lee Hyuna.”
“Yes!”
My sister was standing in front of me now, holding the bouquet we’d prepared in advance as she looked at me.
White lilies. She’d said they were her favorite flowers.
Their meaning was pure love.
“First, I’ll ask the groom.”
Here it comes.
“Do you swear to love the bride standing before you forever?”
“…Yes.”
Fuck.
“Next, I’ll ask the bride.”
Even with her mouth hidden behind the bouquet, my sister couldn’t hide how excited she was.
If the person in front of me weren’t my sister, I’d find her so… lovable.
Unfortunately, the fact that she was my own sister kept my feelings from going that far.
Still, I couldn’t deny that she was incredibly beautiful.
“Do you take the groom…”
“Yes!!”
She answered in a cheerful voice before the officiant could finish.
She’d been so well-behaved during the rehearsal, so why was she acting like this now?
“Uh… yes. Next, we’ll exchange rings.”
We brought the same ring I’d used when I proposed.
It was a simple silver band, with no decorations or inscription.
Of course, we’d practiced this earlier, too.
First, I took the ring from my pocket and stepped forward.
I approached my bride, who looked like she could die of happiness and was desperately trying to hold back her smile.
“…Until death do us part.”
I’d complained about whether we really had to say that, but in the end, I did.
I slipped the ring onto the left hand she held out, then stepped back.
Now it was my sister’s turn.
“…Here, in this place, I vow my eternal love.”
Her voice was so calm and serene, it was hard to believe she’d been trying to suppress a laugh just moments ago.
My sister took my left hand with her left and slid the ring in her right onto my ring finger.
“……”
My sister, putting the ring on my hand, and me, quietly watching her.
Our eyes met.
“…Why?”
I asked, wondering if she had something to say, but instead of an answer, she gave me a faint smile.
It was a subtle, hazy smile, a little different from the bright one she usually wore.
Is it weird to think my own older sister is beautiful?
I’m sure it’s just the atmosphere.
The bride in a pure white wedding dress, holding a bouquet of lilies, is smiling at me like this.
Of course she’s beautiful, right?
“Now for the last part.”
“Okay.”
Some people might think this wedding feels a little lacking and dull.
It’s true. We deliberately skipped a few parts.
For example… the kiss that’s usually part of a wedding.
My sister understood that, too.
Instead, we came to an agreement on something else.
“Here.”
My sister held out her hand a little.
…Well, she wasn’t exactly holding it out that much,
but it was our wedding day.
I took the hand my sister held out.
Then I slowly bent down and kissed the back of her hand.
“…Heh.”
Hearing a small laugh, I lifted my head slightly and saw my sister, who’d finally failed to hold back her laughter.
Was she amused by the situation, with her younger brother kissing the back of her hand?
Or was she just so happy she could die?
“May the path ahead of you both be filled with happiness and good health.”
With the officiant’s closing words, the wedding was over.
Compared to getting our makeup done, putting on the dress and tuxedo, and even rehearsing from the morning, it had certainly been short,
but short and inadequate weren’t the same thing.
“…Let’s go.”
“Okaaay.”
Unlike when we’d entered, this time I offered my left arm to my sister.
My sister demurely linked her hand through my arm and held the bouquet in her other hand.
“Why are you being formal?”
There were no guests, but maybe it was the atmosphere. Without thinking, I whispered.
We continued our quiet conversation as we slowly walked back down the aisle.
“Because you’re my wife.”
“Until when?”
She turned around the question I’d found difficult to answer earlier.
But my sister answered so easily, as if it were nothing.
“Until death.”
“Easy to say.”
“It’s hard to say, too, you know?”
“You knew that and still asked me to say it?”
My sister giggled.
And once again, we reached the door.
“What’s today’s date?”
“April 9.”
“April 9. Don’t forget, okay? Our wedding anniversary.”
“Got it.”
“Until death!”
Yeah. I could at least remember that.
Even if I didn’t know how many times we’d get to celebrate this day together.
“Until death.”
***
The wedding was over in less than thirty minutes.
But we spent almost an hour taking pictures afterward before finally heading home.
I never thought I’d live to see the day I gave my own older sister a princess carry.
“Why did you bring that?”
“Hm? What?”
“The bouquet. It’ll wilt soon, so you should’ve left it behind.”
“Honey… You’ve never gotten flowers as a gift, have you?”
“……”
“You’ve never given flowers as a gift, either, have you?”
“It looks weird when guys give each other flowers.”
My sister carried the bouquet into the kitchen, then filled a vase with water. I had no idea where she’d found it.
Then she put the lilies in.
“Will they stay alive if you do that?”
“For… maybe two weeks at most?”
“What? That’s all?”
“At least we can look at these pretty flowers a little longer.”
“We can just buy new ones.”
“Will you buy them for me, honey?”
“…Yeah.”
“Really? You promise?”
It wasn’t that hard to bring her flowers.
I’d only made that small promise, but my sister smiled brightly at me.
“Do you like flowers?”
“Of course! There isn’t a woman who doesn’t like getting flowers as a gift.”
“Besides lilies, what other flowers do you like?”
“Hmm… Any flower you buy me, honey?”
I felt a sudden heaviness in my stomach, even though I hadn’t eaten anything.
Is romance or marriage always this cringey?
Or is it because it’s my sister?
“Anyway! I’m going to bed early tonight.”
“Why?”
“While my husband’s at work tomorrow, your big sis has to go to the hospital.”
“The hospital?”
“Oh, it’s just a regular checkup! I’ll have to go from time to time from now on, too.”
A checkup… Right, my sister’s illness wasn’t minor, so it wasn’t really strange.
Still, I was a little worried.
And since she kept trying to hide how sick she was, I couldn’t help being curious.
“Then I’ll go with you.”
“Tomorrow’s Friday. You have work, don’t you?”
“The fridge at the restaurant broke, so we’re closed tomorrow.”
“Really? Then should we go together?”
“Sure.”
“Great!”
It wasn’t like we were going on a date to the hospital, but my sister seemed strangely excited.
She went into the bathroom, saying she’d get ready for bed first.
I went into my room, took out my phone, and made a call.
“Hello?”
‘Hyunjun? What’s up?’
“Manager, I can’t make my shift tomorrow.”
‘All of a sudden? Why?’
“Uh… Someone in my family is sick. Pretty badly.”
My sister is family.
And my wife is family, too.
‘Oh, is that so? Can’t be helped. All right.’
“Yes, thank you.”
‘But next time, bring your girlfriend in.’
“…I’ll hang up now.”