The bachelor's party was meant to wrap up in just a few hours, but somehow Kael had decided to stretch it into another day.

I was sitting at the airport café, sipping the bitter coffee that had gone cold far too quickly, when my phone lit up with a notification.

Out of habit, I tapped it open.

Someone had posted a series of pictures. They were in a club with bright neon lights even though the sun was high outside.

Music pulsed in the background of the short videos, glasses clinking, people laughing.

And there, in several of the pictures, was Kael.

Kael… and Lyandra.

They were standing far too close, heads tilted toward each other, their smiles too intimate for comfort. In one shot, she had her hand on his shoulder, and he wasn't exactly pushing it away.

They looked like a couple.

My lips curled into a faint, humorless smile.

I wasn't surprised.

Disappointed? Yes.

But shocked? Not anymore.

As I scrolled through the images, I found myself remembering how it had all started.

Kael and I had met back in high school. I had been a shy but determined student, focused on grades but willing to try new things.

Lyandra had been my best friend since grade school, though "best friend" felt like a fragile title now.

She had always been… competitive. Jealous, even. It had started with little things like copying my clothes or trying to outshine me in group projects, but I told myself it was harmless.

That was what friends sometimes did. I tolerated it because, deep down, I didn't think she could ever really hurt me.

I met Kael during the school's annual sports fest. He was on the basketball team, all easy charm and quick wit, and I hadn't thought much of him at first.

But somehow, we ended up sitting together during a lunch break, talking about music and favorite movies, laughing like we had known each other for years.

We started dating a year later.

That was when Lyandra began to weave herself into our time together. At first, it seemed harmless.

She would join us for group dinners, help Kael plan little surprises for me. But then, something shifted. The way she looked at him wasn't the way a best friend should look at her best friend's boyfriend.

And every now and then, she would say something sharp and subtle little digs that made me feel like I was the one being unreasonable.

By the time we all reached college, I often found myself in situations where Kael and Draven would look at me as though I were the villain.

As though my discomfort was unjustified.

It was only now, years later, sitting here in this airport, that I could see the truth clearly.

Lyandra had been trying to take everything from me, piece by piece.

I exhaled slowly, forcing my hand to put down the phone. My chest felt tight, but I refused to let it crush me.

It was fine. I told myself I was letting it go. All of it.

My phone buzzed again. This time, it was Mom.

"Are you about to depart?" she asked as soon as I answered.

"Yes," I said, my voice calm, almost detached.

"Good. I'll be waiting here," she replied softly.

I nodded, even though she couldn't see me. "Alright, Mom. I'll see you soon."

Hanging up, I gathered my things. The boarding call echoed through the airport, and I stood, walking toward the gate.

I didn't look back.

---

The next day, sunlight spilled through thin curtains, casting a sharp glare on Kael's face. He groaned, turning over. His head was pounding, every heartbeat drumming against his skull.

And then he froze.

Lyandra was there, curled up beside him, tangled in the sheets.

She looked peaceful, content even, as though the world outside this room didn't matter.

"What the hell…" he muttered, running a hand down his face. His memory was a blur. The party. The drinks. The club. And then… nothing.

Before he could piece it together, his phone started ringing on the nightstand. The shrill sound made his headache worse.

With a low growl, he grabbed it and answered without checking who it was.

"What?" he snapped, his voice gravelly.

The voice on the other end was just as sharp. "Where the hell are you, Kael?!"

He frowned. "Who's this—?"

"Don't you know the voice of your father? Never mind. The wedding is about to start. You're not here, and the guests are already waiting. When are you coming?"

Kael sat bolt upright, the blood draining from his face.

The wedding.

His wedding.

His stomach lurched, panic clawing up his throat as he hurriedly rushed out to prepare.

"No… no, no. How the hell could I forget my own wedding?"

His heart slammed against his ribs so violently he sat upright at once, cold sweat forming on his forehead.

"Sh*t…" The curse left him like a broken whisper.

He had not called me yesterday. Not even to give me a heads-up about his extended bachelor's party. Not a single message to check in, not even to confirm if everything was fine.

He had thought he would have enough time to talk to me at night. Who would have thought that he would not even have time to go home since he had been too drunk?

He rubbed his temples, panic clawing at his chest.

His eyes darted to the chair where he had tossed his clothes, but nothing there looked fitting for the ceremony. There was only a crumpled shirt and jeans. Both even smelled of liquor.

His suit, his shoes, and everything he needed for the wedding were at the other hotel where the preparations were held.

Kael cursed again and stood, rifling through the closet with trembling hands. He tried to look for something to wear, at least decent enough to attend his own wedding.

"Why are there only pajamas and bathrobes here? I can't wear these."

His movements were frantic, tugging hangers one by one. The pounding of his heartbeat was louder than the persistent ringing of his phone in the background.

The sound gnawed at him until he could no longer ignore it. He snatched the phone off the dresser, ready to shut it up, when movement beside him caught his eye.

"Kael…" Lyandra's voice was soft, husky from sleep, curling like smoke around him.

She slid from under the sheets, her skin pale and glowing, her hair messy in the kind of way magazines tried to capture but never quite succeeded.

The blanket clung to her curves, slipping dangerously as she reached for him, her hand brushing along his arm.

"Come back," she murmured, clinging coquettishly, her lips pulling into a lazy smile. "I'm tired… Let's sleep more. You don't have to rush. It's only… an event. Nothing important."

Kael froze.

The ringing continued, shrill, but all he heard now was her voice and its playfulness, its dangerous sweetness. He turned his head to really look at her, and that was when his stomach turned to stone.

There were marks.

Red, intimate marks trailing down her neck, on her shoulders, on her thighs barely covered by the sheet.

Marks he recognized, because he had put them there.

The sight hit him like ice water. His mouth went dry. His lungs forgot how to breathe.

He staggered back a step, cold crawling across his skin, and shoved Lyandra's hand away with more force than he intended.

She gasped softly, blinking as if she couldn't believe it.

"Kael?" Her voice cracked with grievance. "Why did you push me away?"

Kael's jaw clenched until it hurt.

"Because it's my wedding day, Lyandra," he snapped, his voice sharp, cutting through the air. "My OWN wedding. How could you say it's not important?"

She bit her lip, her expression shifting instantly, the corners of her eyes misting as though tears would fall. She looked pitiful, fragile, as though he had struck her instead of just rejecting her touch.

But Kael did not fall for it.

He turned his back on her, dragging on the only suit jacket he could find even if it didn't match. He bent to yank on his shoes, fingers trembling as he tied the laces with clumsy haste.

Behind him, the bed creaked.

"So you're really going?" Lyandra's voice wavered, edged with panic now.

Kael didn't answer. He shoved one arm through his sleeve, reaching for his watch.

"You'll leave me here, alone?" she pressed, her voice rising as her desperation broke through her carefully constructed innocence. "After… after what happened last night?"

Kael froze.

Her words slashed through his mind, ripping open the haze he had tried not to think about. His head turned slowly, his eyes landing on her sitting there with the sheets wrapped tightly around her, her wide eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

"You can't," she whispered, hugging herself. "You can't just leave like this. Not after last night."

He stared at her, heart hammering, throat closing. "Lyandra…"

She shifted, letting the blanket slip further down her shoulder, baring the faintest glimpse of the red marks again.

"It was my first time," she said softly, almost brokenly, though her eyes shone with something more cunning than grief. "I gave it to you, Kael. How can you… how can you just walk away from me like it meant nothing?"

Kael staggered a step back.

He remembered me. He truly loved me. If not, how could our relationship have lasted this long? Yet he could no longer crave my touch, as if it were something he had long grown bored with.

And then here was Lyandra, staring at him with that mixture of vulnerability and manipulation, tethering him with invisible chains.

"Don't say that," he growled under his breath, dragging a hand down his face.

"It's true," she pressed on, voice trembling as if the weight of the world sat on her shoulders. "You held me, Kael. You touched me like I was yours. And now… what? You'll just leave me as if I'm nothing? As if I didn't matter at all?"

"Stop it," he snapped, his voice breaking with strain. "Just. Stop."

But she didn't. She pushed further, leaning forward, her tone a perfect mix of broken and alluring.

"Do you know how much it hurts? To give everything and be left behind like some… some mistake? If you walk out that door, Kael, what am I supposed to be? Who am I supposed to be?"

His hands shook as he jammed the last shoe onto his foot, his chest tightening until he could barely breathe.

"This… this was a mistake," he muttered hoarsely, more to himself than to her.

Her face crumpled, though the sheen in her eyes was sharp enough to cut glass.

"So, I'm a mistake now? You'll regret saying that, Kael. You will."

He looked at her one last time, torn between guilt and fury and sheer horror, before tearing his gaze away and storming toward the door. His movements were clumsy, frantic, almost violent as he grabbed his keys and shoved his phone into his pocket.

Lyandra's voice rang out behind him, sharp with desperation. "Kael! If you leave me like this, you'll regret it for the rest of your life!"

Her words chased him as he slammed the door shut, his breath ragged, his hands numb.

It still took Kael an hour to arrive at the venue.

By then, his parents were already restless. They were smiling, exchanging pleasantries with the guests, but deep inside they were already embarrassed.

They had always been so conscious of how people looked at them, so aware of their family's reputation.

When Kael and I got together, they were adamant on separating us. They said I was just an ordinary person and what they needed was a woman from a strong and wealthy family.

Despite their opposition, Kael still chose me. So, I could tell that his love was true for me. This was also the reason why I deeply fell in love with him.

I didn't want to cause any rift between him and his family, so I revealed my identity. I never flaunted my origins and didn't want people to look at me with hidden intentions.

Only then did I tell them that I was a daughter of the Belmont Family.

Their treatment of me changed since that day. I didn't mind it at the time, but I should really have considered it.

When they learned that Kael and I were about to get married, they were very happy and could not help but flaunt it.

And on this day, the day that was supposed to mark the joining of two families, all they could do was sit and wait while their son was nowhere to be found.

Everyone had been waiting for two hours already. The elder who would be officiating the ceremony was already standing at the altar, holding his book, glancing at the doors from time to time with growing impatience.

Guests were already seated, murmuring among themselves. Laughter had died down into whispers, whispers that slowly sharpened into gossip.

At first, Kael's parents were proud. They had basked in the compliments about the venue.

The chandeliers dripping with crystals, the flowers that painted the hall in soft shades of ivory and blush, the music that floated like a dream... it was majestic, it was expensive, it was everything a fairytale wedding was supposed to be.

And they hadn't even lifted a finger for it.

They hadn't arranged the flowers. They hadn't chosen the drapery. They hadn't even bothered with the food.

They didn't know how much sweat and sacrifice had gone into making this day happen.

They didn't know that every small detail, the gilded invitations, the carved wooden chairs, the lace-covered tables, had cost me countless sleepless nights personally decorating.

They only knew that people were praising the beauty of it, and so they smiled as though it were theirs to claim.

But as the minutes stretched, pride turned to unease.

As the whispers turned into obvious stares, pride became humiliation.

"Where are the bride and groom? Are they still not done?" one asked.

"I'm not sure. I didn't even see any of them while I was walking around passing time."

"Do you think the ceremony has been cancelled?"

These murmurs brought more shame, so the couple decided to wait at the entrance so they would know firsthand when Kael and I arrived.

One hour passed before Kael finally appeared.

There was a sharp turn of heads, the wave of relief that swept across his parents' faces when they spotted him at the entrance.

They rushed toward him, smiling at first because he was finally here, because maybe now things would proceed as planned.

But that relief was short-lived.

Their smiles cracked the moment they stood close enough to scold him. Their voices were low but sharp, filled with the anger of parents who had been forced to endure shame in front of hundreds.

"Kael, what on earth took you so long?" his father hissed. "Do you realize how long everyone has been waiting?"

His mother's voice followed, sharp and trembling with fury.

"Two hours, Kael! Two hours! The guests are restless, the elder is already at the altar, and you. Where have you been?"

Kael was still breathless from hurrying over, his shirt slightly wrinkled as though he had thrown it on without care.

His hair still smelled faintly of alcohol, though he had tried to mask it with cologne.

"It's fine," he said. "Everything is fine."

But it wasn't.

His parents pressed him again, this time their voices rising above the quiet murmur of the guests.

"And where is Serena? Where is your bride?"

Kael froze.

He didn't have an answer.

He fumbled for his phone instead, pretending calm, pretending control. He excused himself with a forced smile, telling them he would call me. Telling them not to worry, that everything was under control.

But every call went unanswered. He tried to send texts, but he was surprised that I had blocked him.

Still, he tried again and again, as if by chance one of his calls would go through.

His parents grew restless. Their voices, once scolding, now turned into panic.

"Where is she, Kael?" his mother pressed, her voice breaking. "Now that you're here, we only need Serena. Where is she? Is she on the way?"

Kael wasn't able to answer. He had no idea where I was. We hadn't met for an entire day. His father suddenly became suspicious.

"What did you do?" his father demanded, though the words came more like a growl of fear than an accusation.

But Kael didn't answer. He wasn't sure what to tell his father.

And suddenly there was a sound.

A car.

The sharp purr of its engine cut through the restless whispers. Heads turned at once toward the entrance.

Kael sighed in relief, as though that single sound had saved him. He thought that I hadn't answered because I was already in my gown and it would be difficult to carry my phone as well.

Everyone rushed toward the doors, relieved that finally the bride was here. They were all tired and hungry from all the waiting.

The car parked slowly, its polished surface reflecting the bright lights of the venue. The doors opened, and every eye followed with bated breath.

A hush fell over the hall as a figure stepped out.

And walking out of the car was a bride.