Getting Married – Part 3
0Tuesday, continued …
Hou Yi and Anna Jones followed Official Song down the corridor that he motioned them to follow, leading them into the Civil Administration Bureau to complete the necessary formalities for the issuing of their marriage certificate.
The longer they walked down the corridor, the more overwhelmed Anna became with what was about to happen, especially in the absence of her parents. She had only agreed to obtain their marriage certificate here based on a lie, but despite her strained relationship with her parents, she had wanted them to be with her on such an important occasion.
Hou Yi noticed Anna wasn’t coping well and paused as he bent down to whisper to her, “I can guess what’s bothering you. You’re wishing your parents were here. Don’t worry. I arranged a special booking for a room that films the issuing of marriage certificates. While I did it to confirm the wedding with my father and grandfather, it now has a more important purpose. You can show your parents this video so they can see their little girl getting married, even though they’re not here.”
Anna looked up at Hou Yi, recognizing that he was giving her something she hadn’t expected—her parents being able to see this special day. Even though the arrangement wasn’t initially made for that reason, Hou Yi understood its significance to her. She contrasted this with the arrangements made by Lu Jinhu, which had been all about him and his parents, with nothing for her.
Anna thought about how she had once convinced herself that she was in love with Lu Jinhu, and now she realized how selfish he had been. Yes, Hou Yi was selfish, but unlike Lu Jinhu, he was capable of thinking of others. Anna felt relieved that at least she was getting a good deal by marrying Hou Yi compared to what she would have faced with Lu Jinhu.
Official Song, who had been leading them down the corridor, noticed that the couple wasn’t following him. He turned around to see Hou Yi and Anna standing in the middle of the hallway, gazing into each other’s eyes, oblivious to the world around them. He was surprised because what he saw was so full of emotion, and by all accounts, Hou Yi was a cold person who never displayed such affection publicly.
Official Song looked at his watch and realized if he didn’t get them moving soon, he couldn’t complete all the formalities before the next couple’s turn. Normally, for almost anyone else, he would make them wait for CEO Hou, but he knew for this couple, he couldn’t. The young bride only had weeks to live due to incurable cancer, and the young groom just wanted to legally call her his wife. The families had agreed despite the pending tragedy.
Reluctantly, Official Song walked up to the couple, who were still oblivious to his presence, “Sorry, CEO Hou, Miss. Normally I would let you take as much time as you needed, but the room is needed after you. I could put them off, but the circumstances are such that I can’t for the young couple involved.”
This broke Hou Yi and Anna from their thoughts about what they were about to do. Anna blushed, realizing that Official Song must have thought they were so much in their own world that they forgot everything else.
Hou Yi stated, “No problem, Official Song.”
With that, Hou Yi and Anna followed Official Song into the room where their marriage certificate would be issued.
