“What are you doing trying to get in the car by yourself? We’ll help you,” Mom says with a low level of irritation.
“I birthed three children. I can get in a car.” Pó Po buckles her seat belt and faces forward.
Mom shuts the door and shoots me an apprehensive look.
With a free second to myself in the car, I check to see if any messages have come through. There’s one from Alisha.
Exciting news! One of your tweets has gone low-key viral. Looks like the hashtag is working. Yayyyy!! Have fun at the wedding! Congrats to Nina!
Our social media campaign has sparked new interest like I’d had a suspicion it would. This week alone, there have been more #LoveInTheMoonlight tags, and ever since we increased how many moon songs we pair with animal signs, I’ve answered over thirty direct messages about our services. It feels good to have an idea turn into reality. Maybe things will actually start turning around for real.
When we arrive, I find Bennett lingering in the lobby of the courthouse, looking sharp in a navy blue suit with a crisp white button-down. There’s a sweeping rush of emotions inside me seeing him here, dressed like this, looking at me like that.
“Hey, you. You look beautiful,” Bennett says. He twirls me around as he admires my robin’s-egg blue silk dress before pulling me in for a hug. I bury my face in his neck, wrapping my arms around his waist.
I steal another look at him. “You’re looking very handsome.”
“June, it’s lovely to see you again,” he says, looking excited. He opens his arms for a hug, and Pó Po seems thrilled to accept it by the way she pats him repeatedly on the shoulder as they embrace.
Bennett gently places his hand on the small of my back as we follow my family into the courthouse room at our designated ceremony time.
Inside, I pull Asher to the side before the ceremony begins. “Asher,” I say in my most serious tone.
“Olivia,” Asher says back with a hint of nervousness. We’ve never spoken directly about his animal sign incompatibility with Nina, but she must’ve told him about our conversations.
“You’re a lucky man, Asher. Treat my sister right. Don’t ever lie to her. If you do, well…” I drag my pointer finger across my throat. I adjust his tie and spin him around by the shoulders. “Don’t disappoint me.”
His eyes are wide as he nods speechlessly before hurrying back to Nina.
Both sides of family and friends gather around the bride and groom. Everyone falls silent as Nina and Asher take their places in front of the judge.
I watch behind glassy eyes as Nina and Asher read their vows aloud and exchange rings. I’m hyperaware of Bennett standing next to me, his presence overwhelming and extremely distracting. Every so often, our eyes catch, and we quietly laugh to ourselves. He reaches for my hand, our pinkies linking in private.
Near the end of the ceremony, Asher’s mother comes up to the front and gives a blessing. Both sets of parents carry sticks with a linen blanket attached by the corners and hold it over Nina and Asher. Together, Nina and Asher smash their heels against a bag, breaking the glass inside. The glass sounds like it shatters into a million pieces.
“Mazel tov!” the group cheers and claps.
Nina and Asher seal their love and promises with a kiss. Asher spins Nina into a dip, and she dramatically kicks her leg up. My little sister found her match. Another incompatible couple finding real love.
I ride with Bennett to Ming’s Garden in the San Gabriel Valley, where the family gathers for the wedding feast. This spot is Nina and Asher’s favorite weekend dim sum spot and the location of their first date. Where better to celebrate their love than the place it all started?
A waiter leads us to the private room in the back where several large round tables are set up. Seeing Bennett in an important family setting stirs in me a whole new level of nervousness.
Votives and flowers decorate the tabletops, the light from the candles emanating a warm glow throughout the room. A portable dance floor is set up in front of a microphone stand, drum set, flute, saxophone, and piano keyboard.
Pó Po grips my arm as I lead her to her seat. Walking with us is Dad along with Grandma and Grandpa, who hold hands as they shuffle toward the tables.
“What do you think all this is about?” Dad asks us. “I don’t remember paying for a band.”
Pó Po gives us a mischievous smile. “It’s my surprise for Nina and Asher,” she says.
“Has Nina seen this yet?” I gesture toward the dance floor and look around for her, but she must not be here yet. “Didn’t she specifically not want dancing?”
“A wedding isn’t a wedding without dancing!” Pó Po says in an all-knowing tone. “She’ll like it.”
Asher’s family and ours split up so the families are intermingled at the tables. Bennett offers his arm as Pó Po lowers into her seat. We take our places next to her.
I thank the waiter and ask for a couple of glasses of water in Mandarin.
“I didn’t know you spoke Chinese,” Bennett says, looking impressed.
“Not fluently. A lifetime of Chinese classes and I can order water and ask what time it is,” I say with a sigh.
Bennett nods in understanding. “I’m not fluent, either, but I’ve tried to learn. It’s not easy to pick up or practice when everyone around you speaks English.”
“Yeah. We never spoke it at home growing up. My mom can speak Mandarin, but my dad doesn’t, so…” I trail off, reflecting on this particular shortcoming. “All the Chinese I heard at Lunar Love didn’t even soak in like I hoped it would. Sometimes I have the cruel realization that I’ll never know the language my own mother grew up speaking.”
Uncle Rupert and Aunt Vivienne claim spots between Bennett and Asher’s godparents at our table.
“Olivia! How are things at Lunar Love?” Aunt Vivienne asks. “I should introduce you to my sister’s husband’s cousin’s son. If anyone can work wonders, it’s you! Things are improving, I hope?”
I shift uncomfortably in my seat, knowing Bennett’s listening.
“Stop with all that! You’re going to make her a nervous rex before her speech!” Uncle Rupert, a paleontologist with a penchant for dinosaur puns, interjects with a sly grin.
Pó Po, who by now has heard every one of Uncle Rupert’s puns, looks genuinely charmed by his humor. He looks pleased as he arranges his chopsticks across the top of his plate.
Soft music plays overhead while we wait for the bride and groom to enter.
Pó Po must sense the way I clammed up. “I’m glad you’re both able to set aside your differences to be here,” she says bluntly.
I’m startled by the callout, and we both laugh nervously.
“Me too,” Bennett says agreeably, though I remain quiet. “How did Nina and Asher meet? Did you matchmake her?”
Pó Po waves her hand. “Goodness, no! Can you imagine?” she says, elbowing me gently in my side. “Three matchmakers in the family, and you’d think there’d be more compatible couples.” She makes air quotes around the word compatible. I’m distracted by where she learned to do that, and by her unexpected dismissal of compatibility that she’s been hinting at for weeks now.