act four: what really matters most
The rest of the day continued almost like a blur, with only small, random moments leading up to the wedding itself standing out in particular for me in my memory. Yet with all the memorable things that happened on that day, from the preparation at its start to the reception at its end... I will forever remember our moment in the middle of it all, the moment we made our committment to that bright and promising future.
"I, Dominic Pericolo..."
Everything in my life, everything that mattered most to me up until that very moment... nothing had such an importance to me as the words that were leaving my mouth at that time, and to this day there is almost nothing that can compare to that day of ours, and what it meant to me.
".. do take Suki Minamoto..."
Not a single title reign, not a single "five-star match"... there was nothing in my professional career to compare to that one day in my life that stood out over so many others.
"... to be my lawfully wedded wife..."
I found it hard to speak those words that day if only for the sheer emotion they contained for me... and as those first few verses escaped my lips I knew that every last thing I was about to say would be all the truth contained within my very heart. My vows for her went on for a short while, but in the time that they lasted, I felt what seemed to me to be an incredible burden lifted from my chest, as if all the strain of holding back that raw emotion had finally passed.
And as I stared into those two beautiful eyes I still find myself getting lost in to this day... I realized that, to me, the rest of the world had completely ceased to exist in its entirety. As much as it did mean to me to have everyone show up, and as much as I truly did care for the fact that my family and friends had all shown up in such numbers... the fact was that they had all became nonexistant to me, they had all faded from my own personal reality.
A reality that centered around the world of one woman, a reality that seemed focused on her and her alone.
As I stared forward, all I could see was her eyes, and all I could hear was her words, and that... that was all I truly needed.
"I, Suki Minamoto..."
As the days passed on into weeks and into months, the subject of our wedding and our subsequent marriage were never too out-of-place in any of our conversations. Suki did at one point even explain to me her own view of that moment we'd shared in front of everyone, and she'd revealed to me a circumstance for her much similar to my own.
"... do take Dominic Pericolo..."
For her, that day was a culmination of everything that had gone on between us over the years, just as it had been for me. For her, that day... that day was the most important day to her since the day she realized that I'd loved her just as she'd loved me.
"... to be my lawfully wedded husband..."
As such, her own vows were made just as powerful as my own, as though this shared link of ours had lead us to pour our souls onto paper for each other for that day. She struggled through the words that threatened to choke her up from their emotion and found herself drifting into her own reality, which seemed to be centered around me just the same as mine was for her. It was euphoria, if I were to call it anything at all... a pure euphoria for the two of us that felt like it would never, and should never end.
Yet for all the devotion we'd felt to these realities of ours, the one true reality beckoned for our return as the pastor spoke up after our finished vows to address the crowd in his announcement.
The ceremony was completed, and at that point, there was only one thing left to do...
"Mr. Pericolo, you may now kiss your bride."
At the end of it all... I had found my one true happiness. It was a happiness that had been meant for me from the beginning, a happiness that I felt God had placed for me to receive since the day Suki and I first crossed paths together... and it was a happiness that far surpassed anything that I'd ever experienced in all of wrestling.
And, in time... with Suki's help, I was made to realize that I still had more experiences waiting for me in the ring, and I didn't have to hold back from them any more than I had to before we were married. I realized that I still had a career left to finish work on, and a wife who would not be content until she saw me fulfill the last remnants of a dream I'd held since childhood.
Because, you see... I'd be happy regardless of my decision with the NLCW, if only for the fact that I'd found my one true happiness in the woman of my dreams. Yet there was something there that was calling for me, something that told me I really was still needed for the federation... and it was a call that, if I wasn't willing to answer right away, Suki would be more than willing to push me towards.
She believed in me... she still does, and she still pushes me to succeed. Every single day, she shows a determination in my strength alone that I've never seen duplicated by any wrestler in the whole of our business. She believes in my ability to accomplish the things I'd missed out on from the NLCW, and you know what? Because of her... I believe in that ability too.
When it comes down to it, though, if I'm going to aim to try and accomplish as many as I can... I'm going to have a very, very long road left to go, with many stops along the way.
Still, despite all of that... I feel confident in my future, and I know that with these hands of mine, I'll be able to build a better tomorrow for myself, Suki, and our family. She's managed to light a fire in my spirit over this whole ordeal... and I don't see that fire dying any time soon.
Not when there's still so much left now to be done... not by a long shot.