CHAPTER 11 THE WEDDING

A year ago.

Andini just arrived in Osaka International Airport with her daughter and Tita. After they got their luggage, they rushed out of the airport. Andini saw Hasigawa assistance, Mr. Haneda he held a piece of paper in his hand with the words "Mrs. Sonata Andini from Bali". Andini waved her hand to him and he came to her to pick up them.

The car took them down the streets of Osaka city to the hotel.

" Mommy .. look .. look over there ! Is that a Cherry Blossom tree ? " Sakura pointed at some trees in the distance that were blooming beautifully .

" Yes, honey. It's a Cherry Blossom tree. The Japanese called it Sakura. Like your name." Andini explained to her.

"Yes, Mommy. I hope that I will grow as beautiful as Sakura flowers and like a Sakura tree that can shade everyone who is near it."

" Yes. You will, Baby. You will definitely like Sakura tree. " Andini smiled. She rubbed her daughter's head.

Fifty minutes later they arrived at the hotel.

" Mrs. Andini. This is my phone number. Please call me if you need me to take you anywhere. Mr. Hasigawa put me here to help you. I will go back to the office now. " Mr. Haneda said. He bowed to Andini.

" Oh, thank you Mr. Haneda. I will definitely contact you. "

Mr. Haneda said goodbye to Andini and return to Hasigawa's office.

Andini and Tita opened their suitcases and tidied up all their clothes in the hotel cupboard.

"Ding." came the sound of her smartphone. Andini touched the screen and saw a message from Hasigawa san.

"Andini chan. Welcome back to Osaka. I hope my work will finished quickly and I will meet you there soon. But Shiori couldn't come because she has to prepare herself for our marriage. I hope you can understand. Greetings from Shiori. She really looks forward to your arrival. and she also thanks you for being willing to come."

" It's okay, Hasigawa san. I understand. We will wait for you to come. Sakura said she can't wait to meet you here. She misses you so much. " Andini replied.

" Okay, Andini chan. I will come tonight and tell Sakura that I miss her too. " Hasigawa san replied.

Andini put her smartphone on the table. She continued what she's doing before.

"Is Hasigawa-san coming tonight, Andini?" Tita asked.

" Yes, Tita. He told me that he will come tonight. "

" Oh, okay. Can't wait to see him. I hope he will be happy with her, Andini. "

Andini stopped what she was doing. She looked at Tita. But her friend didn't look her. Then she grabbed Tita's shoulder. Tita turned her head. Andini saw Tita's eyes were slightly red at the edges and there were tears there. She grabbed her best friend.

" What happened, Tita? Tell me. " Andini asked her.

" It's nothing, Andini. I'm just tired. " said Tita.

" Hey. I know you very well. You won't cry because you're tired. Tell me what's wrong? "

" I.. I... I love him, Andini? " said Tita.

" Love who? " Andini was shocked. She lifted Tita's chin and looked at her best friend.

" Hasigawa san. I love him. " she whispered.

" What?? " Andini could not believe what she heard.

" I love him, Andini. " she whispered again and started to cry in Andini's arms.

" Oh, God. Tita, why don't you tell me earlier? Maybe I can help you. But it's to late now, Honey. "

" I know. I know it's too late, Andini. And I will not tell him about my feelings for him. I won't, Andini. I won't. I just hope he will be happy with her. "

" Oh, Tita. I'm so sorry for not knowing what happened to you. I'm so sorry. Can you deal with this later? Are you sure you can attend his wedding with Shiori? " asked Andini.

" Yes. I definitely can deal with this, Andini. I will pray for him and Shiori. Don.t worry. I'll be fine." she tried to smiled.

Andini held her tightly. She patted her back. She sighed. She felt sorry for what happened to Tita. But she couldn't do anything for her now.

Hasigawa san came at exactly 7 pm. He came with some of his friends and waited in the hotel restaurant at the rooftop. Andini, Sakura and Tita immediately met them there.

And when they got there, Hasigawa immediately greeted the three of them and carried Sakura. He kissed Sakura's forehead. And Sakura held him tight.

" Ojisan. I miss you so much. How long have we not seen each other? " Sakura asked him and tried to counting with her fingers.

" How long? " Hasigawa asked.

" Two years.. " Sakura said.

" Oh my God! It's been a long time we didn't meet. No wonder I really miss my beautiful niece. Hasigawa pretended to be sad.

"Don't be sad, Ojisan. I'm here now. You can carry me and hug me as much as you want now. I will stay for a month in Osaka. Are you happy now? " Sakura patted her uncle's cheek. And he kissed her cheek. Everyone there laughed at the two of them.

" Yes, Sakura.Ojisan very happy to meet you. I promise we will go around Japan and meet a lot of people here. " Hasigawa chuckled.

"Oh, Tita. I forgot there is someone who wants to know you." Hasegawa smiled broadly at Tita, then turned to his friend.

Then a man stood up and bowed his head. "Hello. My name is Ichimiya Hiroshi. Nice to finally know you." he said.

"Finally??..." Tita looked at him confused.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Ms. Tita. I've seen your picture before. " he said.

Then Hasigawa san told her that he had shown the photos of them working together in Bali.

" Oh, nice to meet you too Mr. Ichimiya. I'm Anindita Candra Kumara. Just call me Tita. " she introduced herself to him and the others.

Hasigawa introduced everyone to Andini and Tita. And of course to his little niece, Sakura.

*******

The Wedding Day.

That morning Andini, Sakura and Tita wore the kimono sent by Hasigawa. Two Japanese women helped them put on their kimonos and did their make up. The kimono was very beautiful. Andini once again looked at her appearance in the mirror. She thought that her appearance was good enough, then she looked at Sakura who had finished putting on her kimono. The little girl looked very beautiful. Since half of her blood was Japanese, the kimono was perfect for her. Then Andini took her smartphone and started taking some photos of the little girl.

After the three of them were ready, they went downstairs and out of the hotel. And then Mr. Haneda drove them to the place where the wedding was being held.

The wedding party was lively and attended by the Hasigawa and Shiori families. There were also some close friends of Hasigawa and Masaki san who came. Most of them Andini did not know.

Andini, Sakura and Tita enjoyed the food served on the table. There were lot of delicious food. While enjoying their meal, Hasigawa and Shiori approached them. Andini and Tita congratulated them both.

While they were chatting, then seen Mr. Ichimiya approached Tita. He invited Tita to chat in the garden outside the building. Andini smiled at them and waved her hand indicating they both could go. Deep down in her heart Andini hoped that Tita will be fine and will find someone else who will love her.

"Andini chan. Ichiro's parents are also here today. Would you mind if they meet Sakura? " Hasigawa san asked her.

Andini's face turned to pale when she heard to what Hasigawa san said. She didn't know what to say. Shiori grabbed her hand and patted. Tried to comfort her. Shiori also knew about Andini and Masaki Ichiro.

"It's okay, Andini san. They are good people. Don't worry. They already know Sakura's whereabouts. Takahiro has told them all about you and Sakura. They want to see you and Sakura soon. They promised not to tell Ichiro this because it's your duty." Shiori explained.

"I'm sorry Andini chan. But it's impossible not to invite them to my wedding. Considering Ichiro and I like brothers, I also consider them as my parents."

Andini nodded in understanding after hearing their explanation. She thought maybe this was the time for people to find out about Sakura's whereabouts. At least they were Ichiro's parents. She couldn't cover it up anymore. She couldn't avoid this meeting. Meeting between granddaughter and grandparents.

Then they approached Ichiro's parents in a private room. Which Hasigawa had arranged for it beforehand. Andini held Sakura's hand tightly. The little girl knew that her mommy was nervous. She patted Andini's hand.

" It's alright, Mommy. It's alright. I'm here with you so don't be afraid. " she said.

Andini smiled at her daughter. She was right, nothing to be afraid. It just a meeting. Then she walked with confidence through the room.

In the room, Ichiro's parents sat with Japanese manners. Andini approached them guided by Shiori and Hasigawa. Andini and Sakura sat with the same attitude as them. Japanese manners. Luckily she had learned about this before.

Andini bowed her head, saluting Masaki Ichiro's parents, followed by Sakura.

" With all due respect, I am Sonata Andini introducing myself and this is my daughter Sakura No Hana. Nice to meet you. " Andini kept her head down, not daring to look at the two parents.

" There's no need to be embarrassed or nervous, Andini san. Just relax. We've heard all about you and Sakura. Since Sakura is the daughter of our son Masaki Ichiro, we will consider you as our daugther-in-law. Can we hug her? " said Masaki Ichiro's father,

Andini signaled Sakura to come closer to her grandparents. Sakura approached them.

" Are you my father's parents? Are you my grandparents? " she asked her grandfather.

" Yes, Dear. We are your grandparents. " her grandfather chuckled and he looked at his wife.

" Doesn't she look a lot like our little Ichiro? She's so beautiful huh? ' he asked his wife who started to shed tears. Her wife nodded and and approached Sakura, hugging her.

" We never thought that we would have granddaughter. Since Ichiro always keep himself busy with his job. We are very happy to hear this from Takahiro, Andini san. Thank you for wanting to meet and accept us. " Masaki Ichiro's parents bowed to her.

" Please don't be like that. I should be the one thanking you for accepting us as we are. " Andini bowed to them.

Then Mrs. Masaki took out a box from under the table. She handed the box to Andini.

" Please accept this gift from us as a token of our gratitude for bringing Sakura into this world. Please never hesitate to contact us. We will support you. We hope that we can be closer in the future. And we hope that you two will visit us here often. Masaki Ichiro is our only son and it means Sakura is our only granddaughter. Please.. We are counting on you, Andini san. " she said.

Then Andini received the gift. "Thank you for accepting us as we are. We also hope to become closer in the future. I promise I will bring Sakura here often to see her grandparents. "