The March sky above Liren shone with a clear, bottomless light.
By four in the afternoon, the air had turned crystalline, and thin, gauzy clouds hung like a veil over the garden where the ceremony was being prepared.
A tender breeze brushed against faces, carrying neither cold nor heat.
The air was filled with the scent of pale roses and white lilies; the sunlight slid over the silk of the tent like living gold.
If there ever was a perfect day for a wedding — this was it.
At the entrance to the garden, framed by garlands and ribbons, stood a photo wall.
Inside it — countless frames, large and small, adorned with flowers and shining threads.
In each one — two figures in wedding suits, looking at each other with warmth.
They were the grooms — Kang Jihan and Ryu Seonyeon.
So Raon, who had arrived early, stopped in front of the photo where the couple's foreheads touched.
He smiled faintly and murmured to himself,
— In the end, they really did it.
Rows of elegant seats lined the white aisle, decorated with lace and fresh blooms.
Only half were filled — but the other half belonged entirely to children. Their laughter rang through the air, light and bright.
Raon watched the little ones chase each other across the lawn and nodded with a soft smile.
— Kids really do make everything livelier. One of them equals ten adults.
Next to him stood Lo, who had taken off his sunglasses. His eyes were red — as if he had just been crying.
Holding a framed photo in trembling hands, he said hoarsely,
— This day… it's finally here. I've waited too long.
Raon turned, surprised.
— You… cried?
The answer was unexpected.
— Of course! Because today is the day of my liberation! — Lo threw his arms wide. — All the suffering, the nagging, the endless torment — it's finally over! I'm free as the wind!
Even Yi Hoon, usually the most reserved of them, nodded silently in understanding.
Raon, Lo, and Yi Hoon exchanged glances and then looked up toward the blue sky in unison.
— Jihan, — Raon smirked, — always did have a flair for the dramatic.
And indeed — if one remembered the previous year, it had started exactly like that.
That was the day Jihan stormed into the Liren BioTek laboratory shouting,
"Ryu Seonyeon proposed to me! We're getting married!"
Everyone thought he'd finally lost it. No one took him seriously — after all, he'd said the same thing dozens of times before and had been rejected every single one.
Raon had only sighed and replied,
"Fine. But first remind Seonyeon he has a blood test scheduled today."
"It's true!" — Jihan shouted. — "We're flying to Liren City for the rings!"
The lab fell silent. Then, in desperation, Jihan grabbed his phone, switched to speaker, and said,
— Seonyeon, tell them yourself!
From the receiver came that calm, even voice:
"Yes. It's true."
"What?" everyone echoed in disbelief.
"We're getting married. Why not, if it can be made official?" — Seonyeon replied.
There was a stunned pause.
Lo turned to Raon and muttered,
— Incredible. Synthetic voice technology has come so far — I almost believed it.
Jihan grabbed both Lo and Yi Hoon by the collars and growled,
— Watch your mouths! And start shopping for wedding gifts!
Raon sighed deeply.
— Congratulations, I suppose… but why so sudden?
"Because happiness doesn't wait," — Jihan said firmly. — "We're leaving tomorrow."
And so it happened. Three days later, the headlines read:
"First officially registered same-sex union in Liren City."
***
— It felt more like a kidnapping, — Raon admitted now, watching the curtains flutter in the breeze. — He literally dragged me onto the plane.
— And I had to find the ceremony venue, — groaned Lo. — It had to be "not boring, not cliché, like in a K-drama but still elegant." I nearly went gray!
— We drove across half the country, — Yi Hoon added.
Lo threw his hands up.
— And after all that, he picked the first hotel I'd shown him! At first he said, "Too plain." Later: "We'll take it — it looks like something from the dramas Seonyeon loves." I thought I'd lose my mind!
Raon laughed quietly.
— Still, the result was worth it.
Indeed, the wedding site — perched on a hillside overlooking the Liren River — was breathtaking.
Soft flags fluttered, floral perfume drifted through the air, golden light shimmered over everything. It was perfect.
That day, Liren BioTek glowed not only with success, but with peace.
Since the fall of Nebra Labs and the global scandal that followed, the company had become a symbol of redemption.
Lee Kaneun was hailed as a hero, Liren BioTek as the embodiment of justice.
And yet, despite expectations, the wedding was quiet.
No journalists. No strangers.
Only those who had truly been there from the beginning.
— The fewer people, the warmer the celebration, — Raon said.
***
When the officiant — Oh Rian — tapped the microphone, the garden fell silent.
— Mic check… all right. Dear guests, we'll begin in one minute.
He was visibly nervous, wiping his palms on his jacket before grinning into the mic.
— It's unbelievable, but today we have two grooms. One of them — my hyung, Ryu Seonyeon. And you know, he's been looking for love for two hundred years. Truly a masterclass in patience!
The audience burst into laughter. Even the children clapped.
— And the other, Kang Jihan, — Rian continued — is a man apparently determined to spend the rest of his life proving that persistence really is terrifying power.
Music began to play. All heads turned.
Jihan appeared first — tall, sharp, and composed in a sleek black suit.
His steps were confident, almost military.
He looked like a general returning from victory — proud, focused, lips pressed tight.
Then came a figure in white.
Seonyeon walked slowly, bathed in gold light.
His suit gleamed like it was woven from morning mist.
Copper strands of hair brushed his forehead, and his smile — warm, serene — made the whole garden fall silent.
— Oh, gods, — Lo whispered. — He looks like an idol.
Yi Hoon simply nodded.
When Seonyeon reached him, Jihan instinctively took his hand.
They exchanged a glance — and that look said more than any vow could.
Lee Kaneun ascended the stage, leaning on his cane.
— Today, — he said, — I see before me two people who walked through darkness and remained light. To me, you're both like sons.
He paused, eyes soft with affection.
— If you ever fight — sleep in the same bed. Promise?
— Yes, sir! — Jihan barked, earning a wave of laughter.
— And if Seonyeon gets angry — don't vanish without calling, — the old man added, winking.
Seonyeon laughed; Jihan flushed crimson.
— Then, — said Rian, — as a symbol of love… please, kiss.
Laughter, cheers, clapping, children chanting: "Kiss! Kiss!"
And then — a small movement.
Seonyeon and Jihan leaned toward each other.
At the instant their lips met, the wind lifted rose petals into the air, spinning them in a dance of scarlet and gold.
Beneath that glowing sky stood two figures — one in black, one in white.
Their rings shimmered; their smiles were radiant.
Raon watched and whispered,
— They really found their light.
Lo added quietly,
— And their freedom.
And somewhere above the garden, in the clear March air of Liren, the wind whispered —
"At last."