The Best Director

In an elegant suite in Santa Monica, Jessica murmured to herself at the dressing table. Tomorrow, they were going to have the wedding in the church! Reflected in the clear mirror was her makeup-free face with long eyebrows and big eyes, and her long hair cascading down. She blinked, wondering how she would manage to sleep tonight. She had to sleep; otherwise, it would be terrible to have dark circles under her eyes!

The day after they got their marriage license, on the 27th, they held a long-planned traditional Chinese wedding in Chinatown. Family and close friends, along with Wang Yang’s good friends from San Francisco, were all present. Dressed in splendid and elegant bridal attire, they went through the rituals of bowing to heaven and earth, attending the wedding banquet, and the bridal chamber hijinks, all of which was immensely festive and joyful. After the wedding, everyone stayed in San Francisco for a day before returning to Los Angeles to prepare for another grand wedding on the 31st.

After chatting and laughing the night away, Jessica had just said goodbye to her bridesmaids and was preparing to rest. However, the thought of tomorrow’s wedding excited her so much that she couldn’t find sleep. The moment she had been looking forward to for over a decade was finally happening! Although they were already married in a civil ceremony at San Francisco City Hall and had an unforgettable Chinese wedding, she felt deep down that she was no longer a “fiancée” but a “wife.” Yet, walking down the aisle in a wedding dress into the holy church had been her dream since she was little; how could she not anticipate it with both excitement and nervousness?

It’s so beautiful! Jessica gazed at the ivory white wedding dress beside the wardrobe, her face brimming with elation. The wedding dress, tailor-made for her by Vera Wang, hung on the rack, with off-shoulder design, pleated skirt, organza hem, and a crystal belt… It was just too beautiful! This was the ceremonial wedding dress, while the elegant and simple long gown beside it was for the reception.

Thinking of tomorrow’s scene, she felt her face flush with excitement. She shrugged her shoulders proudly, her hands covering her cheeks that were hot with excitement. In the quiet room, only the sound of her heartbeat thumping could be heard.

Would life after marriage be any different? How could she be a good wife, how could she make him happier? She turned her eyes, LOVE? SEX? Suddenly thinking of something, she let out a clear, embarrassed laugh. She looked at herself in the mirror, pouting her lips, opening her mouth, sticking out her tongue. Her right hand lifted the fabric over her rising bosom, making a funny face with wide eyes and pursed lips. Why did they have to be so “YOUNG”? A bit bigger would be good… not too big, though…

If only they were perfect like this… Using her hands, she measured in front of her chest. After thinking for a bit, she giggled foolishly and shook her head. Then she wondered, what would it feel like to be pregnant? What would it be like to have a baby next year? She slowly conjured an image of a plump baby in a bunny costume crawling on the floor, with Danny bustling about, taking care of the child. Adorable! She slowly pondered their honeymoon, what they would look like when they were old, the early days when they first met…

“Dear Yang, I used to really hate and feel ashamed of being a girl. Why was I so ugly? Why was I always sick? Why didn’t I have the courage to fight back? Until I met you, you told me I wasn’t ugly; you said I was your good friend, that you would protect me. Suddenly, I felt that I was just a girl, and I liked being a girl because you are a boy…”

Thinking of the contents of that letter, those childish and disordered words, Jessica rested her elbows on the dressing table and supported her chin, her face beaming with a smile. She didn’t know how much time had passed when there was suddenly a knocking sound at the door. She came back to her senses, got up, and opened the door, immediately smiling upon seeing who it was: “Mom.”

“Sweetheart.” With a tender smile, Kathy walked in, and they both sat down at the dressing table. Knowing her daughter’s feelings all too well, as she was already someone’s wife and about to get married again, Kathy asked with a smile, “Can’t sleep?” Jessica nodded, fanning her cheek with her hand, and said, “I’m a bit nervous.” Kathy patted her daughter’s hand, laughing gently, “Mom was the same way, thinking about this and that, and really looking forward to seeing your dad.”

Jessica nodded in deep agreement, exclaiming, “Yes! That’s exactly how it is!” Kathy stood up, picked up a comb from the table and started to gently brush her daughter’s long hair again. She said, “Jessie, don’t be nervous or worried, Wang Yang is a good boy.” Jessica hummed in pride, looking at herself in the mirror and smiling, “I know… Mom, I just don’t quite know, how should one be a good wife? I want to be the best.”

“Just follow the wedding vows, and that will be the best,” Kathy tapped Jessica on the head, expressing a mother’s worry, “What Mom worries about the most is that you don’t understand how to cherish, this being your first love. But it is because it’s first love, and Yang is a man you can entrust your life to, that’s very rare.” Jessica nodded silently: “I know, I know…”

She shrugged again, smiling helplessly, “I feel like he’s too nice to me, I don’t know how to respond! Should I tell him to stop being so nice? Or should I anger him? No! I should be nicer to him…”

“When you said you wanted to get married a few years ago, why were your father and I so worried? You were immature, possibly not understanding how to be considerate and cherish each other.” Kathy chuckled as she gently combed her daughter’s hair, recalling, “When your dad just retired and started his business, he didn’t have time for me, and I had to work several jobs to support the family. Later, when I didn’t need to be so busy anymore, Mark still didn’t have time for me.”

“Mmm, sigh…” Jessica couldn’t help but sigh, thinking back on those hard times, and affirmed, “That won’t happen again.”

“That’s not the point,” Kathy tapped her head and said, “You have to learn to be understanding of these things. Yang is an even busier person, like a madman.” Jessica burst into brittle laughter, “That’s just how he is, I tell him ‘Give it your all! Don’t mind me!\'” Kathy laughed, “Many women feel that their husbands are busy all the time, busy before the wedding and still busy after. Neglecting her, and even though they think ‘he’s doing it for me, for our family,’ the woman actually still feels resentful… Jessie, this is wrong, feeling that the husband you deeply love is neglecting you is already a mistake…”

In the bedroom, the two shared heart-to-heart conversations, a mother imparting lessons to her daughter, interspersed with cheerful laughter.

“Hahaha! Who will battle with me!!” In a spacious suite on a different floor of the same hotel, the men’s horseplay ensued. Wang Yang, after pinning down Zachary’s wrist, leaped up energetically, incessantly pounding his chest with his fists, bellowing like Tarzan, “Hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo—!” Everyone in the room, part of the groomsmen group, burst into laughter. Wang Yang pointed at Joshua, shouting, “Josh, come on! I’m going to teach you a lesson, stop thinking about your sister all the time, she’s mine now!”

The crowd included married men like Tom Willing, those like Zachary who were in a dating standstill, singles… only Joshua and Alexis were in a brother-sister romance. The group continued to laugh and throw punches, “Teach him a lesson!!” Joshua clenched his fists and charged, growling, “Yang, you’ve angered me! Today I will show you why they call me King Kong!”…

“Dang, dang, dang, dang… dang, dang, dang, dang…”

In the Santa Monica Catholic Church, under the brilliant lights and solemn atmosphere, rows of long wooden chairs were filled with formally dressed guests who were family, relatives, and friends of the bride and groom, all wearing smiles of blessing. Portraits of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and Mary the Mother, rendered in stunning colors, towered high above in the clerestory windows, appearing all the more mystical and dreamy under the sunlight. An elderly priest in a black robe stood behind the white altar, with long white candles burning on either side.

Since Wang Yang was not a Catholic, this was a ceremony of blessing rather than a nuptial mass with the rites of matrimony, and thus there was no choir of children singing the mass, but a pianist played the “Wedding March.”

On the red carpet, Jessica, dressed in an ivory white wedding gown with a delicate veil draped over her head, slowly proceeded arm in arm with Mark Alba towards the altar, her sweet angelic smile casting a shadow on all other women in the audience, including the three bridesmaids Eileen, Roland, and Alexis, all holding bouquets. Standing before the altar in a smart suit, Wang Yang couldn’t help but take a deep breath at her beauty…

“Alexis looks so beautiful…” The three groomsmen Joshua, Zachary, and Harry George stood by the groom’s side, with the brother in the brother-sister romance only having eyes for his peaceful and gentle girlfriend.

As the music came to a halt, Mark Alba at the altar handed his daughter’s hand to the tall and handsome young man before him. He smiled and then sat down in the first row on the left, next to Kathy; on the other side was the father of the groom, the mother of the groom, the bride and groom’s grandparents, and everyone in the church watched with smiles as the couple joined hands and turned to face the altar together. The priest began to recite solemnly, “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen. Everlasting and loving Lord, life and eternity, creator of all things beautiful…”

The elderly priest first recited prayers and then the wedding vows, “From this day forward, for better or worse, for hope or disappointment, for riches or poverty, for joy or pain… no matter the circumstances, you must bravely face life, respect and love each other, and never forsake the vows you make today.” He also gave God’s blessing, “Initially, God created man alone, and afterwards, He made a woman to help him. Through this union, God blesses humanity. Marriage is God’s arrangement, and wedding is a lifelong covenant. The wife should not remarry as long as her husband lives, and the husband should not remarry as long as his wife lives…”

Wang Yang and Jessica listened quietly. She glanced up at the towering figures of God, Jesus, and the Virgin Mary and silently thought, “I will! I will be the best wife.”

“Finally, I wish your marriage to be filled with purity and love, to be blessed with happiness and fulfillment. Today your hands are joined, hearts united, may this continue every day from now until forever. And I hope that as time passes, your love will grow stronger, not weaker. Today, under God and Jesus’s blessings, you are united as husband and wife. Your future married life will be full of God’s blessings, receiving His grace. Now that you both have heard the teachings of The Bible, if you are willing to join together, please swear before the Lord Jesus.”

Hand in hand, Wang Yang and Jessica smiled at each other, then heard the old priest asking if they were willing to marry, echoing the ceremony they had previously at the San Francisco City Hall.

“I am willing.”

“I am willing.”

“Never to forsake this vow…” Watching Wang Yang and Jessica hold each other’s right hand and take their solemn oaths, he slipped the wedding ring onto her choking-up finger, and they embraced and kissed in happiness. Rachel, dressed beautifully among the guests, let out a gentle sigh, feeling something in her heart finally settle. She smiled slightly, revealing two dimples, wishing you happiness! However, Natalie’s figure was nowhere to be found in this flower-filled church.

“3, 2, 1——!”

Under the bright sunshine, the wedding reception post-ceremony in the tree-lined, scenic church grounds of Malibu was joyfully under way. Compared to the limited capacity of the church, the reception had many more attendees, with nearly all invited guests present. Among the 500-plus guests, stars and celebrities were easily spotted, covering the film, music, sport, business, and fashion industries, shining brighter than the recent Golden Globes red carpet.

Will Smith and his family were laughing and talking with Chris Gardner and his son, Robert Downey Jr. and his son, Meryl Streep’s family, newly minted Golden Globe Best Actress Charlize Theron with her boyfriend Stuart, Scarlett Johansson… Robert Zemeckis, Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks… Kevin Spacey and Blogger CEO Evan Williams were discussing something, Daniel Wu and Joss Whedon were debating character issues in “Firefly,” Mark Strong, Chris Wedge… and Danny was also joyfully playing with several other dogs.

Because Wang Yang and Jessica had declined all offers from entertainment magazines to photograph, while photographers were capturing every aspect of this grand banquet, no news reporters were present, unless they were guests. This allowed the stars and celebrities to relax their postures a bit more, catching up with old acquaintances, making new ones, and networking. Some discussed business, others drank, all enjoying the wedding party.

At this moment, under the stone-built little stage stood an array of fashionable and beautiful single women, the three bridesmaids Eileen, Roland, Alexis, Scarlett, Mamie Gummer, Charlize Theron, Emily, Annie Darren, Rachel… Atop the stage, Jessica in her white wedding dress, finished the countdown laughing, then turned her back and hurled the bouquet with force. Sisters, girls, I have found the best man in the world, may you find your best, good luck!

“Ah!” “Yah!” “Oh!” The sound of excited screams and laughter arose as women who either hoped to find their ideal husband or simply joined in the fun naturally looked up. The white lily bouquet rose to a high point in the clear blue sky before quickly plummeting down as the women reached up to catch it.

“Rachel!” “Rachel got it!” “Wow!” “Congratulations, Rachel!”…

The bouquet soared into the air and fell back down, landing right in the hands of Rachel who hadn’t even jumped for it. She laughed and sniffed the bouquet, then hoisted it high again, prompting an instant buzz of laughter and chatter from the surrounding beauties. From his spot on the lush green lawn, Wang Yang couldn’t help but chuckle, “Rachel!” Next to him, Joshua let out a groan, covering his face and wailing in anguish, “Oh God, why wasn’t it Leah!” Suddenly recalling something, he hastily added, “Hehe, Yang! Is it your turn now?”

“Haha, Yang, it’s your turn now!” Tom, who was sipping a beer, immediately echoed with a laugh, and Zachary, Michael Pitt, Harry George, and the rest of the young men were all eager to see the Best Director crawl under the skirt. They cheered loudly, fearing he might try to weasel out of it. Wang Yang laughed and raised both hands before heading towards the ladies, “OK, OK! This is what completes the wedding!”

Today’s wedding party would feature performances by bands and stars, communal dancing, cutting of the large wedding cake, and other festivities. Besides the bride tossing the bouquet, another tradition that couldn’t be missed was the groom tossing the garter, which was bound around the bride’s thigh and to be retrieved by the groom from under the wedding dress, using his teeth no less.

“Magnificent Yang, Magnificent Yang, Magnificent Yang!” A chorus of male and female guests started chanting boisterously, while photographers focused on capturing these splendid moments. The cameras were aimed at the lawn where Jessica, with a radiant smile, sat on a wooden chair, and Wang Yang knelt on one knee in front of her, his hand lifting her right ankle as he used his other hand for support on the green grass. He then plunged his head under the long wedding dress as the crowd erupted in laughter and cheers, “Ohhh!”

Once under the skirt, he saw a pale blue lace garter tied around her slim and toned right thigh. A mischievous grin flashed across Wang Yang’s face as he opened his mouth wide, planting fierce kisses on the gap of her thigh, to which Jessica suddenly let out a laugh, amazed, “Haha! Haha!” From a few steps away, the crowd chanted, “Magnificent Yang, Magnificent Yang!” After several kisses, Wang Yang finally bit onto the lace garter and dragged it down.

Soon enough, everyone could see him pulling the garter down Jessica’s calf and ankle, successfully separating it. He stood up, laughing with a sound of glee, and amidst the applause of the crowd, he raised the garter and waved it, shouting, “Done! Now, those who want it, follow me!”

“3, 2, 1——!” On the small stage, with his back to a crowd of single men below, Wang Yang counted down and then threw the balled-up lace garter with force. The garter unfurled lightly in the air and then floated gently back down.

“Wow!” “Back off, it’s mine!” While most of the boys reached out to catch it in a playful commotion, Joshua roared and, with all his might, pushed past a few people beside him, leaping from the ground and extending his right hand towards the garter that had captivated his gaze. That feeling! His palm tightened, and Joshua shouted with excitement, “Haha! I got it, I got it!” Like snagging a rebound, he landed and swung his elbows left and right, fiercely protecting the garter in his hands.

“Joshua!” “Ooh, congrats, Joshua!”… Zachary and others jovially slapped his shoulder, as Joshua beelined straight for Alexis on the other side, triumphantly shouting, “Leah, I got it!” Stepping off the stage, Wang Yang and Jessica watched all this and shared a laugh, sealing it with a kiss.

The wedding party had been a whirlwind of song and dance from morning until afternoon. As dusk approached, amidst cheers and applause from family, close friends, and guests, Wang Yang and Jessica boarded a convertible white wedding car, already packed with luggage, and drove off the estate to begin their honeymoon journey. As for everyone else, they could choose to leave or stay to continue enjoying the evening’s celebration.

“Come back——! Danny, come back!”

Under the glow of the setting sun, on the stone path between the verdant lawns, Danny ran frantically, chasing the wedding car adorned with the Chinese “double happiness” symbol, a “Just-Marry” sign, and decorative knots of good fortune. In his round eyes was the sight of Jessica, the passenger, and Wang Yang, the driver.

“Danny, be good! Come back! Ah——” Jessica waved and shouted, only to see the relentless Danny trip and fall, then pick himself up and continue the chase. She suddenly felt a lump in her throat, yelling, “Bye-bye, be good! See you in a month!” (