37

"Hey Lis." Chaeyoung tried to get her attention for the third time as she noticed that Lisa was working herself up letting the nerves take over again.

Lisa had immediately started pacing back and forth once Jisoo left, the distraction was gone now so the nerves hit her again and she couldn't help it.

"Chaengie, I'm not rich. I can't focus for more than thirty seconds. I'm impulsive and reckless. So much so that I've literally been arrested and don't even get me started on the times I almost died! Not to mention I'm a literal child most of the time!

I can't read more than a paragraph of something because I get bored or I space the fuck out so I never retain anything, I'm practically an idiot!

I can't even cook toast Chaengie, freaking toast! The likelihood of me burning a kitchen down if I'm within three feet of a stove is like in the, I don't know, a really high number. See, idiot! I don't even know percentages!

I can't even walk straight. I mean I'm not straight but still. I should be able to walk straight and not trip over imaginary cracks like I do sometimes and you know better than anyone else that if you're walking next to me I'll inevitably bump into you like twenty times.

My mind is in the gutter 24/7, especially now that I'm in love with the hottest woman on earth, the hottest woman in fuckin space and the universe! I literally live there Chaengie. The gutter is my home now!

I'm a cat lady. I have an obsession with cats and you know I'd have a hundred cats if I could and I don't know how to stop that obsession because they're just so cute. I'm so obsessed that I'm literally in love with a human cat for goodness sakes! Tell me Jennie isn't the cutest cat ever? You can't, because she is. Why do you think she's the angry kitten sometimes? I literally collect cats!

I get too drunk because I don't know how to drop my pride and not take a challenge. Do you know how many times I've been wasted just because Jisoo dared me that I couldn't out drink her?! Too many to count, that's how much.

I can't win a bet to save my life!   I'm a loser, I lose. Always Chaengie."

"Lisa." Chaeyoung tried to cut in, trying to keep the amusement out of her voice at Lisa's panicked state but of course Lisa just kept on freaking out and rambling.

"I literally only own sneakers and Timbs and yeah okay I can walk in heels but I hate them so I own like one pair because they're torture devices. All I do is wear joggers and sweats and loose clothes ninety nine percent of the time whereas Jennie's always dressed to the nines!

She looks impeccable a hundred percent of the time. She always looks like she walked straight out of a photoshoot for a high end brand!

And I'm not just saying that just because she's rich and can afford fancy clothes, she just has taste. She can make you look like a million bucks under a hundred dollars you know. She did it for me once." Lisa continued with her panicked rambling.

"Lis." Chaeyoung said louder, trying to get Lisa to stop pacing.

"Do you know how many kids she's saved Rosie? The official number is twenty seven if you just count the surgeries she got them but its way waaaay higher than that.

You know how many lives I've saved? ZERO! She's a literal freaking walking saint. I've been arrested Chaengie! More than once! How many people have I punched in my life? Do you know? Cus I don't. I thought I was a lover not a fighter but oh my god I think I'm a fighter. I'm a bully. I'm a bully aren't I?"

"LIS!" Chaeyoung shouted, grabbing Lisa by the shoulders to make her stop pacing.

"She's going to change her mind! She should change her mind, what do I even have to offer her?" Lisa said in a panic. "I don't compare. She's going to realize all of this stuff and run far far away! As she should because she deserves better Chaengie!"

Chaeyoung shook her head incredulously and grabbed Lisa's hand, making her open it and dropping the necklace with the engagement ring Jennie had left in Chitthip's grave into it.

"I'm glad I decided to wait until right before your ceremony to give you this."

Lisa looked at the necklace and noticed the ring on it.

"This is beautiful."

"It is, and it's yours. It's the engagement ring Jennie bought for you."

"Oh. Okay. Wait—engagement ring? What engagement ring?" Lisa asked in confusion.

"Jennie proposed to you too. Before you proposed to her actually."

"I think I would remember if the love of my life proposed to me Rosie." Lisa said immediately. "I know I'm an idiot but not by that much."

Chaeyoung grabbed Lisa's hand and led her to the couch so they could sit down, trying to help Lisa sit still for a second so she could pay attention to what she was about to say.

"Jennie left this on your mother's grave. Jisoo and I caught her when she did it. We both knew what it meant. We didn't have to hear what she said to her to know she was basically telling your mom that she would marry you if she could.

We didn't have to hear the words to know she was practically proposing but not to you directly because she thought you should be the one to decide after everything she was forced to do to you. She doesn't know I took it yet. She doesn't know Jisoo and I both planned to give it to you on her behalf.

Don't you see Lisa? Jennie literally bought you an engagement ring, a crazy expensive one by the way, this is custom Celine, Jisoo checked. It's even more expensive than the one you got her.

Apparently Jennie reached out to them because she thought that fashion house resembles your style the most and while they do some jewelry they don't do engagement rings so you can imagine how much money she dropped on you for them to make you one, just so she could leave this on your mother's grave as a promise to be devoted to you without even telling you.

She obviously knew it probably wouldn't be there the next time you visited her so you wouldn't even see it but she didn't care because promising your mother she's devoted to you was more important. Making amends was more important. She did all of that just to show her how much you mean to her and I imagine she probably apologized for hurting you."

Chaeyoung opened the necklace and put it around Lisa's neck and then tucked it in under her button up.

"Jennie once asked me why I tried to set you guys up. Why I thought you were perfect for each other even before you two had even met and I told her that it was because you balance each other out, because you compliment each other perfectly.

Lisa, that's literally in your vows. You literally talk about how you complete each other. You wrote them yourself and I agree with every single word. Now breathe. She said yes to marrying you even before you asked her Lis, I think this proves it, don't you?" Chaeyoung asked, tapping Lisa's chest where the ring lay.

"What would I do without you?" Lisa breathed out, finally calming down.

"Should I start with the fact you'd be emotionally stunted without me and skip the million other reasons in between that show you'd be lost if you hadn't met me and end up with the most important fact that you wouldn't have met the love of your life without me?" Chaeyoung said, smiling teasingly.

"Yeah, about that, I've been meaning to talk to you about it. You don't have to buy me a birthday gift ever again. Seriously. You've already given me all of my birthday gifts for the rest of my life for introducing me to Jennie.

Honestly Chaengie, who's that good at gift giving that they would literally deliver someone's soulmate on their lap. Or, well, their parking spot." Lisa giggled. "You're unreal."

"I knew after that incident I was right about you two. Lalisa Manoban getting that angry over a parking spot, I knew it was over for you if someone could get you that riled up within seconds of meeting them."

"She cut me off!" Lisa said indignantly. "I mean, it was an accident or whatever but that parking spot was mine to begin with, why wouldn't I get angry over it? Especially after she flipped her hair at me when I honked at her."

"Lisa." Chaeyoung said shaking her head incredulously because even after all this time Lisa still didn't see it and she knew she was going to have to show her, yet again. "How did you officially meet Moonbyul?"

"She T-boned our car when she was drag racing that obnoxious rich kid who had kept bragging about his new car. You were there?" Lisa asked in confusion.

"And what's the first thing you told her when she apologized for hitting us and almost getting us hurt."

"That it was no big deal?" Lisa said, not knowing where Chaeyoung was going with this.

"Your car was completely totaled Lisa. The car that you had finally managed to save up for because you were too proud to let our parents buy you one was completely wrecked when she hit us at that light."

"Yeah, I know, and?"

Chaeyoung shook her head and started adjusting the lapels to Lisa's suit while she continued to talk. Lisa had paced so much everything was uneven.

"And she literally trashed your car on accident and neither of you had insurance so you literally lost out on all of that money in one fell swoop yet she became one of your best friends after that. You didn't even fight with her when the accident happened, you took it in stride instead of jumping down her throat."

"She tried paying me back, she just couldn't do it all at once. Plus, Byulie is cool as hell. Of course we'd be friends." Lisa shrugged. "She was super cool so there was no reason for me to get angry with her when it happened."

"Stand up." Chaeyoung said and Lisa did as she was told and Chaeyoung undid Lisa's tie so she could tie it again for her, sighing heavily before continuing because Lisa still didn't get her point. "Okay fine, what about that time we had that group date. When it was you and Suzy and me and Vanessa and Suzy's best friend and her boyfriend and that other couple that was the boyfriend's friends. Do you remember?"

"Vividly." Lisa said, making a face but standing as still as she could so Rosie could properly tie her tie.

"Of course you do, because Suzy's friend spent the entire time during the date talking about how her parents were going to buy her a BMW for her birthday and she wouldn't shut up about her summer vacation in Italy or about how her boyfriend bought her a Balenciaga purse for christmas and she kept showing off her jewelry and on and on it went."

"She was annoying, I forgot about her until just now. That girl made me cringe she was so spoiled and out of touch. I don't think she said anything the entire time that wasn't her bragging about the things she owned or the things people did for her."

"Yeah, I know. Yet you still didn't say a word to shut her up the entire time. You were too unbothered."

"Why would I care? I wasn't the one that didn't know how to pump gas because I wasn't handed everything over by rich parents and became literally useless and unable to do anything for myself."

Chaeyoung couldn't help the giggles, she had forgotten about that. The girl had been bragging about how pretty she apparently was because she got some guy to pump the gas for her once when she was running out of gas because she didn't know how to do it herself since her boyfriend or her father always did it for her.

The girl had clearly missed Lisa's, Chaeyoung's, Vanessa's, and even Suzy's derisive 'are you fucking serious you're bragging about not being able to pump gas and think you're pretty because somebody took pity on you and did it for you' looks.

"She's probably bankrupt by now. I bet she's already gotten scammed since she literally didn't know how to do anything for herself." Lisa continued.

Chaeyoung finished with Lisa's tie and put her hands on her shoulders and waited for Lisa to look at her before speaking.

"Do you remember the time they announced our class rankings once you got back into school and you were dead last considering you missed so much time and hated school anyway and half of our class called you an idiot because of it but you weren't even bothered by it?"

"I mean I was." Lisa shrugged. "They weren't wrong."

"Lisa!" Chaeyoung said giggling, shoving her lightly on the shoulder. "How do you still not understand my point?"

"Cus I'm an idiot." Lisa shrugged again, smirking now.

Chaeyoung shook her head again and tucked a stray strand of Lisa's styled wavy hair behind her ear affectionately.

"Lisa, you're not easily affected by other people, at least not enough to react to them even when they mess up or annoy you or they're mean to you.

You were too nonchalant to care about Moonbyul accidentally totaling your car yet you were livid about a parking spot for like two whole years.

You hate entitled spoiled rich people yet you said nothing to Suzy's friend to knock her down a few pegs like I know you could have yet you spent years bickering with Jennie about her privilege even though she never flaunted it.

You let people make fun of you at school for your grades and being last place for a while because you didn't care enough to engage but as soon as Jennie teased you about a failing grade on a test when we were in college you immediately jumped at the chance to tease her back.

Which brings me to my point. I knew I had been right all along. I knew she really would be something to you as soon as the laid back, chill Lalisa Manoban got riled up over a measly parking spot from a girl she'd known all of two seconds because the only time you ever got truly angry was when someone insulted me, our family, or your mom yet here you were being the brat for the first time in your life because Jennie cut you off.

It kept happening. You have always reacted to her. At first it seemed negative but I knew, I just knew you were acting out of character because ever since the parking lot thing I could tell she had a power over you, just like you have power over her.

And since you're perfect for each other, neither of you have ever abused that power. At least not for selfish reasons. You're perfectly in sync and you balance each other out and if you're seriously panicking right now thinking that's not true then remember the words you always tell me.

I'm a stupid mind reader, remember? You're stuck with a best friend that knows everything like you always say and there's only two things I know above all else. Two phrases that can never be picked apart or separated because they will always belong together.

Chaeyoung and Jisoo.

Jennie and Lisa.

It's just facts. There are no truer statements than that Lisayah. So please relax, because this is happening. She's going to marry you and like Jisoo said, you're about to make her dreams come true because her dream is you now and I know that's true for you too."

Lisa wiped a tear from her eye, the emotion hitting her a little too hard.

"You should have saved that for your best woman speech." Lisa said jokingly, trying to hold back the rest of her tears.

"Oh don't you worry, I was holding back just now. I have way more. I couldn't ruin your make up before your wedding so I have to say what I really want to say after. You just wait.

If I can even get through it because I'll be crying harder than the two of you probably so I'll have to make Jisoo finish it for me and then everyone will go from ugly crying to laughing in about three seconds flat because she won't say the 'sappy shit,' like she would call it, that I would want to say verbatim and make a joke at your expense after every line."

"I seriously love you both so much." Lisa said, pulling Chaeyoung in to another hug.

"Me too Lis. So so much. I don't know who I would be without you. I'm starting to believe Jisoo now, about me being a saint.

I must have been one, at least in my past life because how is it that I got so lucky in this life to get to meet my platonic soulmate when I was only five years old and got to spend most of my life hanging out with you, having fun with you, crying with you and healing with you, growing up with you. We've done everything together since then and I really can't imagine life without you next to me.

Then I got to meet my literal soulmate, my other half and also my twin flame because of her when I was so young. My twin flame that just so happens to be your soulmate too. I'm so damn blessed to have you three in my life.

Ever since we all came together I've felt so complete. We could all be homeless but as long as we did it together I'd still be just as happy as I am right now."

"This is holding back?" Lisa said, her voice breaking and the tears freely flowing now.

Chaeyoung hugged Lisa tighter before answering. "I'll get Somi and Chungha for us in a minute to fix it." Chaeyoung said immediately, because she was crying too and they both really, really needed a retouch at this point.

______________

"Jendeukie." Jisoo said to get her attention. She'd immediately gone back to the room once Kai found her and told her he was done with their talk and Jisoo hadn't been lying, you really couldn't leave Jennie alone for longer than thirty seconds without her freaking out.

"Hmm?" Jennie said absentmindedly, shaking her hands out nervously.

"You ready to marry the greatest idiot of all time?" Jisoo said with a smirk.

"I don't think I've ever been more ready for anything else in my entire life." Jennie said immediately.

"I'm telling Limario you agreed with me about her being the g.o.a.t of all idiots."

"I don't even care Chu, can I just go and marry my idiot already before she changes her mind! This is taking forever! It's like time slowed down or something because I swear the last minute was literally a whole hour! I counted." Jennie said matter of factly.

"First of all that makes literally no sense Jendeukie, but okay, and second of all as if she would change her mind. I could threaten Leo's life and tell her I'd kill him if she married you and she'd still do it. I mean, she'd cry for like ever about her dead son but she'd still do it." Jisoo said rolling her eyes.

"But yes, yes you can, it's time. I did have Kai park the jet at the foot of the mountain though just in case you grow some braincells and come to your senses and become a runaway bride, but like, a classy one." Jisoo joked, trying to tease Jennie out of the nerves because she could tell she was trembling a bit despite being really impatient to marry Lisa already.

"This is real right? I'm not just having the best dream of my life right now? You're here, hubby is here, I'm getting to marry Lisa. Right?" Jennie asked, wringing her hands together.

"I think it's more of a nightmare than a dream Jendeuk, cus who'd want to marry Lisa." Jisoo joked to her again to try and distract her and calm her down.

Jennie scowled at that.

"Everyone, literally everyone. Everyone wants to fucking marry Lisa! It's annoying." Jennie said grumpily. "Why can't they understand they can't have her! She's mine." Jennie said, pouting hard as if someone was going to take Lisa away any second now.

Jisoo finally stopped her teasing demeanor, knowing Jennie had finally snapped out of the nerves a bit because suddenly she was jealous and it made Jisoo want to laugh.

"Here's your early wedding gift Jendeuk, well, a part of it. It's been Lisa approved. She said it was okay for me to do it even if she loses fans but let the record show this was my idea so love me for it."

Jisoo pulled her phone out and showed her Lisa's instagram that now had several pictures posted of her proposing to Jennie and also the fake fan account that Jisoo had created just to mess with her baby cousin reposting those same pictures with a caption that said 'crying from my grave now that you're with her,' because Jisoo thought it would be way more dramatic so she could get reactions and she wasn't wrong.

"I took a screenshot of the best comments from Lisa's account and this fan account so you can print them out and put them on your wall and sleep like a baby at night knowing everyone knows Limario's all yours."

Jisoo started swiping through the comments that she took a screenshot of to show Jennie.

Lisasfanboy Nooooo!!!!!!!!

"The anguish of your enemies." Jisoo said with a smirk. "They were really emotional. That particular guy commented a shit ton of crying emojis like every hour on the hour ever since the post was up. He was pretty dramatic but I couldn't be bothered to capture all of them."

She swiped again to show her another one.

Renebaebae You're telling me she really does like girls and I missed out, this is the worst day of my life. That girl is so lucky.

"These people really are delusional." Jisoo muttered. "Lucky to marry Limario of all people? Masochists, all of them, or maybe they're just babysitters and really dedicated to the job."

Jisoo swiped again.

Yuna I'm jumping off a cliff now. Note my time of death please.

"Take Limario with you." Jisoo said as she showed Jennie that one and Jennie scowled at Jisoo for that. She grabbed Jisoo's phone and started scrolling herself after that.

Lisascat She was supposed to marry me! Wtf. Life is so not fair. I want them to get a divorce as soon as they get married but also I don't because Lisa looks so happy.

JJCL Why does that girl have to be so pretty! I can't even be mad she chose her.

IamDB It's not real it's not real it's not real. Fuck. It's real isn't it? We had no chance guys, look at the way they're looking at each other.

Somsomi0309 I was in love with Lisa twenty four hours ago and now—I—I think I —ship —them? Am I okay?

Jennie swiped again and a screenshot of a whole thread popped up this time.

Thv When is the wedding so I can object or does anyone know any good divorce lawyers because holy shit that girl is fucking gorgeous I'm on my knees.

Frederic.arnault Lisa's been gorgeous.

Thv No not Lisa! Her fiancée. I'm in love. Give me a chance Jennie!

ZKDLIN Back off I call dibs, I've already gone through her instagram and she's not just a pretty face she like, helps people and stuff. She's perfect.

Hooooooyeony You guys do realize you don't have a chance with either of them right? They literally just got engaged. Are you guys idiots? Never mind don't answer that because yes, yes you are.

"Not that one, that one's a wedding present for me." Jisoo smirked as she looked over Jennie's shoulder and read that one. "I'm showing this to Limario to piss her off. She acts like she's not the jealous type but honestly she's worse than you and that's saying a lot.

I mean, she literally punched Kai for kissing you when you were fake dating. She can't rein it in even less than you can and that's impressive, really, cus you're the most jealous person I know."

Jennie couldn't even find it in herself to scold Jisoo for wanting to do that and taunt Lisa with those posts because if she was honest with herself, she was just like Lisa.

She liked when Lisa was jealous and possessive of her and despite feeling a little guilty about it she really wanted Lisa to act out over it because she found it so flattering that Lisa would actually be jealous and possessive of her.

Jennie had felt her heart hammer in her chest that day Lisa had punched Kai for kissing her, feeling weirdly giddy that Lisa would act out like that for a 'fake girlfriend.'

She'd felt the joy bloom when she and Rosie teased the girls after Lisa's studio opening when they realized only they hadn't seen each other naked and insinuated they were going to have a one night stand together to correct that and Lisa ended up pouting at her the entire night and scowling at Rosie, looking betrayed as if they would actually do it.

There was just something about being claimed by someone that she was irrevocably in love with so she didn't even protest when Jisoo declared she was going to try and piss Lisa off with those posts.

Instead, she asked Jisoo to make sure to do it when she was present because that would be the ultimate wedding gift because she knew Lisa would just end up holding her close the entire time like someone would steal her away.

"I knew you'd love my present Jendeuk." Jisoo said smirking once Jennie asked her for that.

Jennie shrugged nonchalantly. "I'll be getting cuddles after you show her that thread. Of course I'll love it."

"Ew." Jisoo answered back with an unimpressed look and Jennie rolled her eyes at her. "Spare me from seeing those Limario cuddles, I beg you."

________________

The only reason Lisa wasn't already crying or shaking out of nerves as she waited for Jennie to come out was because she was too busy laughing at flower boy Kai's antics.

He had apparently recruited Rosie, who played a song on her guitar and sang as he frolicked and skipped around the meadow at the top of that mountain and threw flower petals up in the air from his little basket to rain on their guests, doing a silly interpretive dance the entire time.

Lisa had to admit he was actually a really good dancer too and internally wondered why he hadn't pursued that instead of whatever the hell he was doing before he took up photography.

He ended the whole thing with Felix's help, who handed him baskets and baskets of petals so Kai could make a flower petal aisle that Jennie could walk on.

The sun was setting, the sky had brilliant colors with hues of pinks and purples and oranges. It was beautiful but nothing was as beautiful as the sight before her.

Lisa lost it as soon as she saw Jennie come towards her. She completely lost her composure and started crying and she couldn't even get the words out that she thought she was so goddamn beautiful because she was so choked up but it seemed like Jennie understood what she was finding so hard to say as soon as Jennie finally got to her anyway.

Jennie herself was crying and smiling widely, the shy look she always took on when Lisa complimented her was evident on her face and Lisa knew with that one look that Jennie knew Lisa could literally just not come up with the right words to tell her just how beautiful she thought she looked and just how happy she was that they were there together because there were no human words to be able to describe it.

And with that thought, suddenly Lisa had the words that almost came close to being able to express how she felt right now when she came into that realization so she leaned in to whisper into Jennie's ear.

"You understand right? You understand that I was so speechless just now because I'd have to make up an entire new language to be able to tell you how I feel about seeing you in that dress, in front of me, about to marry me right now.

You get it, right baby brat? That those words haven't been invented yet because I'd have to have ascended to heaven and learned a divine language to be able to express everything I feel right now to be able to do you even a modicum of justice as to how beautiful you are, how lucky I feel, how surreal this all is to me because this can't possibly be my life. I can't possibly be getting to marry the girl I have no words to describe how beautiful she is."

Jennie raised a shaky arm, the one not holding the bouquet of lotus flowers to wrap it around Lisa's neck and Lisa shifted even closer to her.

"You don't need the words Lili because I can feel them. I know the words in the way you're looking at me right now." Jennie whispered back, her voice trembling from the raw emotion because she didn't know the words either so she had to pause.

She didn't know the words to be able to tell Lisa how blessed she felt right now, how loved she felt with just that look from Lisa, how she thought she could probably not eat for months and still survive just from that loving adoring look Lisa gave her because it literally gave her life.

"You already know the language. Your eyes said it all, they said everything I don't need to hear out loud because they make me feel it." Jennie pulled back a little, staring right at Lisa, still holding her by the back of her neck. "Do you understand too? What I'm saying?" Jennie asked. Letting Lisa practically look straight into her soul as she kept the eye contact.

Jennie had always hated eye contact. She'd rather get caught naked and humiliated by strangers than keep eye contact with someone because it made her feel bare and vulnerable but not with Lisa.

With Lisa it made her feel whole. She didn't cringe or flinch away from it, she reveled in it because it was like Lisa could see all of her and still love her and it's all Jennie needed to feel like she was worthy of this life, of being born.

"Yes. I understand." Lisa breathed out. "You've always let me see you. I'm so lucky that you've always let me see you."

Jennie and Lisa were facing each other surrounded by everyone they loved and both of them were crying, forgetting everything else but themselves as they looked at each other.

Chaeyoung was next to Lisa, like she was supposed to be. She shifted and walked up and asked for Lisa's hand, who freely gave it. Lisa didn't look at her as Chaeyoung tied the red thread on to Lisa's pinky, she was too mesmerized by Jennie to look at anything else but her eyes.

Chaeyoung couldn't help but cry as she did it, feeling overwhelmed herself. She handed the other end of the thread to Jisoo once she was done, who had been standing next to Jennie too and watched her do the same to Jennie so that they would be connected together for the rest of the ceremony, just like they had done themselves hours ago.

Jisoo looked at her wife and noticed she was too choked up to speak, to say what they had planned to say so she did it for her instead.

"There's a sort of myth most of you guys probably already know about, a story widely believed by most asian cultures, a story about the red thread of fate." Jisoo addressed everyone there but she only looked at Jennie and Lisa as she finished tying the thread around her baby cousin's pinky.

"A legend that when you're born, you are born with a red thread tied to you. A thread that can cross miles and mountains and people and on the other end of that thread, someone else is tied to it too."

Jisoo looked at Chaeyoung as she said the next part.

"On the other end of that red thread of fate is your true love, your other half. It is said that the thread can tangle, it can snag and get caught up, but it can never ever break or tear or rip. It is impossible to cut that thread. It may get worn out, it might wither a bit with time but it will always, always connect the two together.

You are forever tied to the person on the end of that thread and no matter what journey or choices you make in life, you are always destined to meet the person on the other end.

You will always follow the red thread eventually just as they'll follow it too and in time, you'll pull that thread and bring the other person to you or they'll pull you and you'll meet.

Sometimes you meet in the middle of the shared thread. Sometimes towards the end. Sometimes the person on one end of the thread will take longer to get there.

Sometimes one will work harder than the other to get to the end of the thread to find whose on the other end but always, always, it will never fail that the ends of the thread will meet and once that happens there is no longer a need for the thread, because the two ends will never separate again, like it was always fated to be and yet, that thread will still never go away."

"Because the souls on both ends of the thread are soulmates. They always have been." Chaeyoung finally managed to say. "They always will be, and the thread will never sever."

Chaeyoung reached for Jisoo after that because Jisoo had just echoed a part of her vows and she was already emotional from the fact Lisa and Jennie were getting married and now she was going back to her own beautiful intimate wedding with Jisoo and it was all too much and she needed her.

She needed her soulmate's touch. Jisoo went to stand behind her, holding her as they watched their friends, their family get married too.

Both Jennie and Lisa had insisted they be next to them the entire time because it just felt right. So they stood a little off to the side as the ceremony continued but never too far from them.

Lisa hadn't been too particular about the wedding being traditional. She just cared about one thing in particular, that the monk recite a certain passage from Buddhist teachings because it held so much meaning to her and the relationship she had with Jennie. She felt like it described them perfectly so she had asked him to include it.

She gripped Jennie's hands hard when he got to that part.

"If both want to see one another not only in the present life but also in the life to come, they should be in tune in conviction, in tune in virtue, in tune in generosity, and in tune in discernment. Then they will see one another not only in the present life but also in the life to come." The monk said.

Jennie immediately smiled, the more he went on as he recited it the more she knew Lisa had picked that specific passage out herself. It was very telling of their relationship, of how they came together and of what they wished for the future and of how they managed to still love each other despite all of the misunderstandings and obstacles.

Jennie leaned in to kiss Lisa on the cheek.

"That was perfect Lili." Jennie whispered and Lisa grinned harder because Jennie's eyes were shining and Lisa started feeling like despite not planning this wedding like she thought they were going to, this was way more perfect than if they had spent months planning it.

It just went to show how they would just always know what to do or say to each other and the fact someone that was such a control freak like Jennie, trusted Lisa with talking to the monk about the ceremony for the most part and made most of the decisions for their wedding spoke volumes.

"The brides would now like to make their vows." The monk said, gesturing for them to continue.

"Me or you first?" Jennie asked Lisa. "Just kidding, you know I'm impatient so it has to be me first. I need to get the words out already before I explode."

Lisa giggled at how serious Jennie looked, knowing she really was that serious.

"And I really need the time to calm my heart before I go into a panic attack about my own vows not being perfect so yes please, you first." Lisa answered her honestly.

"They will be perfect Lili, because they're coming from you." Jennie meant it, she knew they would be. Lisa always had a way with words anyway, she'd always loved that about her. The cute rambles she made always had her heart melting.

"I love you baby brat. Tell me the things you want to say to me that I'll probably never recover from. Give me the heart attack I know is coming when you express the fact you actually want to be with me and only me for the rest of our lives."

Jennie smiled harder because like she just said, Lisa just had a way with words, that alone could have been Lisa's vows so Jennie really needed to prepare her heart for when they came.

Jennie and Lisa might as well have had their wedding like Jisoo and Chaeyoung had because no one existed but themselves and they missed the giggles at their banter and the tears and every reaction in between as they talked to each other like no one else was there.

Jennie looked down shyly for a second, taking a deep shuddering breath before she started.

"Lili, I used to not believe in love let alone soulmates until I met you. I used to not believe in forever. I thought this was it. An empty life and then I would die and cease to exist. There was no after and no before and no real meaning during. There was no point in any of it for me.

No matter how much I tried to find meaning I just couldn't, it felt like endless apathy because despite the fact I felt like a decent person sometimes, I still felt like none of it mattered really because it would just end just as quickly as it started. For everyone, not just me.

I believed in a bleak life of suffering and suffocating because of my upbringing and despite me actually trying to escape samsara even though I didn't realize at the time that that's where I was and that everything I was doing was inadvertently helping me escape it because I somehow chose to try to help others when I could," Jennie paused and smiled hard because Lisa giggled at the fact Jennie was using that term just for her and she just had to take the giggles in and revel in them.

"Despite doing what I needed to do to escape hell on earth even though I didn't realize what I was truly doing I was still incomplete. I did my best. I inadvertently lived by your principles without knowing it but still I couldn't escape that emptiness.

It's so crazy to me that you were meant to be for me, because you're pretty damn perfect so it seemed impossible to me that I could have you. How could I have someone so perfect?

But eventually you showed me why I was allowed to have someone so perfect. You made me understand. I slowly came to the realization that you're so perfect to me because you're perfect for me and that's why I see you that way. That's why I always think you could do no wrong and why I feel like you have zero flaws even when I should think that you do but I just don't.

It felt unfathomable to me that such a perfect person would exist that would actually want me and love me so purely and could literally do no wrong in my eyes but that's just it isn't it Lili?

You're perfect to me because you were right, we are soulmates. We're perfect for each other. We were made for each other so how could there be any flaws when I look at you when you're my other half.

Despite me not officially sharing in your philosophy before, I somehow still managed to practice it. I thought I would be happy if I could help others and stop being selfish if I could and not give in to the temptation of money or power or greed or the need to be admired, just like you've always believed and you were right.

The only times I didn't feel completely empty was when I did that. At the time it was enough, I didn't realize I could have so much more and be so full of love because of you.

It's so funny to me that the whole reason we fought is because neither of us realized that we both believed in the same things and we both assumed the other person was selfish and self absorbed in some way.

That stupid parking spot meant way more than a parking spot because both of us believed in helping others and somehow our strong beliefs backfired on us because you thought I was spoiled and thought I took whatever I wanted with no remorse and I thought you were greedy and trying to use me and it was the very thing we both hated.

Selfishness.

We're practically one mind in our morals and beliefs despite the labels we put on them Lili but this next part I'm going to say is probably the only part where we might deviate."

Lisa highly doubted that but she continued listening to Jennie intently.

"I'm sorry for what I'm about to say. Well, not really, just a bit." Jennie said to the monk who smiled peacefully and inclined his head for Jennie to continue so Jennie turned back to Lisa.

"I know that in Buddhism attachment should be avoided, and I know it's mostly attachment to worldly things because they don't last but I also know you're not really supposed to be attached to people because apparently no one can give you everlasting happiness. People are human and they make mistakes and can't bring you true fulfillment.

Yet still. I'm so, so attached to you Lisa and I've never felt like that was ever the case for me. I've always felt happy and fulfilled with you. I think that's the only part the Buddhists got wrong. I was incomplete without you despite me trying to live the way you were taught to live even before I met you.

I didn't know happiness, true happiness until I realized I belonged to you. I know I shouldn't be attached to you but it's okay that I feel that way because I think I've hacked it.

I think as long as that love never turns selfish, as long as we help each other be a better version of ourselves and change and grow together every day it might be okay that I'm that attached to you like that.

Because we'll still live by the rules and I'll get to follow you in each life because that attachment means I'll do anything to make sure I make you happy, and that includes being a good person, being selfless, being devoid of greed and pride and selfishness because I'm so attached to you that I refuse to be anything less than what you deserve.

I refuse to be anything less than close to perfect for you so I'll never stop trying to be that even though I could never possibly achieve it but I swear to you I'll always try. I promise on this thread of fate." Jennie said, lifting her pinky up that had the red cord around it, "I promise that I'll always be good to you in every single lifetime, and that includes being good to myself, because I know.

I've blissfully come to know that I'm just as important to you as you are to me so I know that part of making you happy is making sure I'm happy too. I will always cherish that kind of love because Lili, it's not about me or you, it's not even about me and you, it's us. We're us. There can't be a me without you or you without me. We're irrevocably fused together.

There is no separation between us. Our lives aren't just intertwined, that's not big enough to describe what we are.

It's not us living our individual lives together. It's our life. We're one soul physically separated by two bodies. I believe that.

You're my literal other half so it's okay that I'm attached to you because I'm speaking in the literal sense, you're half of my soul and what's good for you is good for me and what's good for me is good for you because really, we're the same. We're us.

I wasn't just made for you, I am you Lili because we're nothing without each other.

There's nothing in this universe I wouldn't promise to do for us and from now on we get to be back together and we get to be whole again and the peace I get knowing neither of us will ever be alone again is like heaven.

This is already nirvana Lili, we made it. I love you so so much Lalisa. Thank you for following that red thread and meeting me in the middle. I'll always meet you Lisa, in every life. I swear I'll follow the thread and find you as soon as I can forever. I'll always find you so we can be whole again in every life."

Lisa tugged on the red string to pull Jennie to her, pressing their foreheads together and she whispered so only Jennie could really hear her, closing her eyes as she spoke.

"How did you manage to describe perfectly what I've felt for you ever since I fell in love with you. That was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard my love."

"I mean it Lili." Jennie whispered back.

"I do too. I feel that too. Everything you said. I feel it too. I feel like there's no me without you. I feel incomplete and that I've been missing half of my soul until I met you."

Lisa had to take a few moments to compose herself before she could say her own vows. She finally composed herself enough after a full minute so she could finally speak a little louder.

"You stole my thunder a bit baby brat, like you always do. I've always felt that way too. At least once I got over my pride and stubbornness and realized how wrong I had been.

I've always sort of had the belief that we're all just imperfect simply because we're incomplete, because we're half of a soul and we haven't found our soulmate.

There's a myth, in greek mythology about soulmates. You know I've always believed in a little bit of everything. I think we all have some of it right but we're all too busy fighting each other and trying to beat each other to come together and figure out the truth of the universe and life and whatever the true beautiful end could be.

So I believe in this a bit. Plato once wrote on the subject of soulmates. He explained that Zeus split us humans, the beings we used to be in half as a punishment for our selfish pride.

After that we were destined to roam the Earth searching for our other half, feeling incomplete until we found them and most of the time we never did.

Obviously I don't really think Zeus is up there on Mount Olympus watching us try to find each other and that he exists and is the one that split us in half but I do believe that's how we have always been born, as two halves of a whole.

I know this in so many ways because I've roamed the earth lost until I found you or you found me. I'm not sure who found who really, all I know is that I wasn't really whole until I met you.

I know this in the way you so easily fit with me even when we bickered and tried to hate each other. In the way we adjusted and bantered and made our digs over the thing we both wanted to overcome and the fact we easily picked up on each other's biggest fears but rather than making it worse we made it better despite us fighting over that specific thing.

You wanted to not be seen as a spoiled brat that had everything because no one ever looked deeper to realize that wasn't the case and I didn't want to be seen as the failing idiot, as the girl that squandered her mother's sacrifices, the mother who passed on me too soon and so I had everything to work for even harder but I was afraid to fail anyway because I never thought I was capable enough so I was crippled even more.

Even back then we were in sync. You were my baby brat, I was your idiot, and we bantered and fought over it but somehow I've always felt like picking on each others' weaknesses lightheartedly like that made us push harder to be better and face our fears and overcome them and show that we weren't actually like that.

I feel like it helped us realize we were being irrational because we both saw each other's deepest darkest fears right away.

We've always been soulmates. How could we not be considering we even caught on to each other's weaknesses and fears the first day we met?

I know we're soulmates in the way we grew together instead of apart despite everything we went through. I know it in the way we changed together despite everything that should have torn us apart but just made us stronger.

I know it in how you immediately found a way to get me to focus even back then when we didn't realize we didn't hate each other and bickered yet you paid enough attention to me to know how to get me to be productive and in the way I instinctively knew how to help you not panic when you were stressed and knew how to get you to relax whether it was over a test or work or a patient in your non profit or getting stuck in that bunker.

I know it in the way you helped me with my dream and pushed it even beyond my selfish reasons, beyond that award that I wanted so bad that despite me being incredibly grateful for receiving it, the true gift was the fact you motivated me to be better, to help others. The true gift was the connections I got to make on that trip.

I've practiced Buddhism all my life yet you're the one that got me to truly understand what it means to help selflessly and to realize the true meaning of life.

My spoiled baby brat who has never in her life taken anything for granted, who has always appreciated her blessings and instead of giving up when the hardships were always at your door you looked outwards instead and chose to be a good person and help, to always help everyone no matter how close or distant they were from you.

And yes I will always call you spoiled because you will be, because I plan on it. I plan on spoiling you every single moment of my eternal existence because I know you can't be spoiled, because your soul is too pure and now that I've found it so is mine because you're my soulmate so how can it be anything else but pure.

You're forever my soulmate.

I know it in the way that I was so nervous earlier, in the way I couldn't sit still and I panicked the entire day that you might change your mind but as soon as I saw you I was immediately put at ease because we just belong, because I was nervous since I was alone and incomplete without you but as soon as I was in your presence I was no longer alone and I could breathe and be calm.

Our soul is finally complete and it makes all the sense in the world to me that we've always just been one half of one.

Even our vows Nini, even our vows that we planned to say to each other even though we were apart when we came up with them say the same thing.

I'm whole now that I found the piece of my soul that I was missing. You compliment me, you erase my flaws by bringing me up and I erase yours because together we have no flaws. Together we are perfect. We were incomplete without each other, without the truth and understanding that we love each other unconditionally because how could we not, when we are the same being.

And just like in any life before, and in all the lives we'll have in the future when we finally come to this realization again, I have found peace and heaven on earth.

I love you my soul. My heart. My other piece of me. I'll spend all of my lives following you and making sure you know that and it doesn't matter how many lives we have to live to make it to the true heaven because to me, we're already there, and we'll always be there every single time we finally find each other."

________________

"I did a thing." Kai said to Lisa excitedly after the ceremony.

"What kind of thing?"

"A fun kind of thing."

"What thing did you do?"

"Okay you got me, Rosie did the thing." Kai admitted.

"What's the thing?!"

"Come!" Kai pulled Lisa to the edge of the mountain. "I did that thing. It was Rosie's idea but like I made it happen so I also did the thing."

"You're not serious right now." Lisa said incredulously.

"Super serious. It's going to be so fun for you guys! I've got next!"

"There's no way. As much as I want to do that thing, Jennie will kill me."

"Your wife Jennie is literally putting on the gear right now, she wants to do the thing too." Kai smirked. "Rosie's been ready for like ten minutes. Jisoo is pretending not to freak out because she doesn't want to admit she's scared of heights but she's geared up too so all that's left is you."

Lisa looked at him incredulously. "They all agreed to do this?"

"Jisoo didn't, but she's so whipped for Rosie she's doing it anyway because she was so excited. Jennie kind of surprised me because she's crazy excited about it too and I thought she wouldn't be into it. I thought she'd be scared to be honest. So go on bestie, I know you wanna do it too and those pictures are going to be epic. Gong Yoo already set up."

Lisa found herself gripping Jennie's hand with her right hand and Rosie's with her left while Rosie held on to Jisoo's.

"Hanna, Dul, Set!" Kai shouted, counting down for them.

"HOH!" They all yelled before they all ran holding hands and dove off the mountain together in their skydiving gear laughing and screaming bloody murder alternatively as they started their free fall.

FIN. (Sort of)

_________

A/N

Epilogue coming your way in five to ten international fourth dimension spacetime continuum business days.

Which basically means that I have no idea if I'll write it in an hour or 84 years. We're on me time and my mind does not reside on this plane. It's stuck somewhere between the clouds and a parallel universe so time is tricky for me.

Anyway, I've written way too many vows at this point but I'd like to know out of the four, whose did you like best in this story? You know, for science.