On my wedding day, my fiancé Lucas’s best friend Sienna showed up wearing my wedding dress and made videos. I watched the entire ceremony through a livestream. Lucas even fed Sienna champagne mouth-to-mouth while his friends cheered them on. The wedding host held up the microphone, working the crowd: “When are you going to bring out the real bride, Lucas? If you keep stalling, she’s probably crying by now!” Lucas swirled his glass with a laugh: “She’ll be fine. She can’t leave me anyway. I’ll just sweet-talk her later.” I turned off the monitor and walked up to Lucas carrying a portfolio: “Mr. Harper, Miss Winters. Congratulations on your nuptials. This is my gift to you.” The portfolio contained my spring haute couture designs prepared for Harper Group. I tore it to pieces in front of all the guests. “I’m officially announcing that Smith Corporation is terminating its contract with Harper Group. All collaborations are void.” Lucas, your nightmare has just begun. “The groom may now kiss the bride!” the wedding host Ethan shouted. Lucas smiled and planted a kiss on Sienna’s hand. The next second, Sienna suddenly stood on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pressed her lips against his. The room went silent for a moment. Then whistles and cheers erupted. “Lucas, taking it that far! Sienna, why don’t you substitute for the wedding night too?” Sienna looked at Lucas: “How are you not even surprised? I’m not satisfied with that reaction. Do it again!” Suddenly someone shouted. “Stop teasing them, or the real bride might get angry and run away!” Lucas said with a smile: “What’s she got to be angry about? Sienna and I grew up together. We’re just joking around.” Sienna hooked her arm through his and stuck her tongue out at the crowd below. “Exactly. Lucas and I have been friends for over twenty years. We kissed plenty of times as kids. When Lucas was seven, he promised to throw me a wedding. This time he’s just keeping his promise, or else he’d turn into a puppy.” Another round of laughter. Ethan was the smoothest of their friend group. He grabbed the microphone to smooth things over. “Looks like our Sienna is more eager than the bride! But that’s okay, we all know Lucas and Sienna are tight as can be. They can take a joke!” He paused and raised his voice. “The bride definitely won’t be mad, right everyone?” “Right!” The cheering nearly lifted the roof. Ethan gave a signal, and immediately someone brought over two glasses of champagne. He pressed them into Lucas and Sienna’s hands. “Come on, this toast is to your twenty-plus years of friendship!” Sienna’s eyes suddenly reddened, her voice catching. “Lucas, in the future… you can’t forget about me just because you have a wife.” Lucas publicly ruffled her hair. “What silly talk. You’ll always be my most important friend.” The two intertwined arms and drank it all. The room thundered with applause as many raised their phones to record. The wedding march changed to “Auld Lang Syne.”
Lucas pulled Sienna by the hand toward a dining table, constantly getting shoulder pats along the way. “Lucas, Sienna’s really something! You really don’t want to marry her?” Lucas laughed and punched the guy’s shoulder. “Get lost, stop talking nonsense.” But he never let go of Sienna’s hand, escorting her all the way to Mrs. Harper’s side. He leaned down to tell Sienna: “No more fooling around, okay? Emma’s still waiting for me. Just sit next to my mother.” A guest asked in confusion. “Who is this young lady?” Mrs. Harper smiled and pushed Sienna forward. “This is Sienna, Lucas’s childhood friend. She’s like our own daughter. Today we really have her to thank for livening up the atmosphere. Otherwise how could the wedding be this lively?” Sienna sweetly raised her glass. “I’m Sienna. I’m happier than anyone about Lucas getting married. The bride will be out soon.” She was charming, making a round of toasts that delighted all the elders. Mrs. Harper suddenly removed the jade bracelet from her wrist and slipped it onto Sienna’s hand. “Good girl, thank you for your hard work today.” That bracelet was a Harper family heirloom passed to daughters-in-law. Last month Mrs. Harper had personally given it to me, saying to wear it on the wedding day. I didn’t accept it, claiming it was too precious and I was afraid of damaging it. The truth was I wanted to save it for the most important moment. Now it adorned Sienna’s wrist, jade-green and translucent against her snow-white skin. Sienna gasped. “Mrs. Harper, this is too precious…” “If I’m giving it to you, wear it. Later, I’ll pick out something new for Emma.” Mrs. Harper pressed her hand down, eyes full of affection. All the guests at the table saw it, their expressions varied. Someone teased. “Mrs. Harper, why didn’t you just have Lucas marry Sienna directly?” Mr. Harper laughed heartily. “If Sienna married into our family, we’d be laughing in our sleep!” Sienna blushed and hid behind Lucas, who laughed and stood in front of her. “Mom, Dad, stop talking nonsense. I don’t even see Sienna as a woman. I only want to marry Emma for the rest of my life!” I laughed coldly, looking at my watch. It was already forty-four minutes past the scheduled wedding time. Yet no one had asked where the bride was. My phone screen lit up—a message Lucas sent five minutes ago. [Emma, Sienna was just joking, don’t take it to heart.] [I’ll have them restart the wedding ceremony now.] The phone’s glow illuminated the dim corner of the dressing room. Sienna’s livestream account was still on. The camera pointed directly at the wedding venue. The comments kept refreshing. [Holy shit, is this not the bride? She’s gorgeous!] [Wait, it’s Lucas’s wedding? He’s so handsome! They look perfect together!] [Hold on, isn’t today supposed to be Lucas and Emma Smith’s wedding? How is Sienna the bride?] [Anyone who knows them? They just said the girl in the wedding dress is Lucas’s friend of twenty-something years. It’s for views, just messing around. The real bride is backstage.] [This isn’t cool. The real bride must be fuming.]
[Mad about what? Emma was the homewrecker anyway. If it weren’t for her, Lucas and Sienna would’ve been together ages ago.] My finger scrolling through the screen paused. In the frame, Sienna leaned over to straighten his tie. The comments exploded again. [Can someone explain what actually happened?] [In college they were inseparable, okay! Everyone thought they were a couple.] [Then Emma appeared. Who knows what tricks she used, always clinging to Lucas.] [I was in Emma’s class. She was so poor back then, always eating the cheapest cafeteria food, clothes washed until they were faded. Lucas probably just felt sorry for her, then got caught.] [Isn’t this the classic rags-to-riches story? Look at that wedding dress she’s wearing—millions in custom design. She couldn’t afford it without latching onto the Harpers.] My nails dug into my palms. The camera suddenly swept across the main table. Some society wife was praising the jade bracelet on Sienna’s hand. Mrs. Harper held her hand, saying something with a smile. Comments cheered. [This is clearly the mother-in-law’s approval!] I closed my eyes. Thinking back to last month, that afternoon when Mrs. Harper personally handed me the bracelet. “Emma dear, this bracelet is a Harper family heirloom. By rights it should go to the daughter-in-law.” “But you’re young, and gentle-natured. I don’t know if jade suits your taste?” I thought Mrs. Harper was being considerate of me. Turns out she already had a more suitable candidate in mind. The comments were all praising how good they looked together, saying Lucas and Sienna were a match made in heaven. A match made in heaven? I laughed out loud, the sound jarring in the empty dressing room. My phone buzzed again—a message from my college roommate. [Emma, did you see the livestream? Don’t listen to those people talking nonsense! Lucas was the one who pursued you back then!] Yes. Lucas was the one who pursued me. Sophomore year, I was noticed by a sculpture professor who wanted me to switch majors, but I refused. The old professor was so angry his beard bristled. He made me clean the sculpture studio as punishment. Lucas was hiding from a girl who kept confessing to him. He ducked into the sculpture studio and locked the door. I was so startled I dropped the rag in my hand into the bucket. He froze, then walked over. “Cleaning all alone on such a cold day?” I ignored him and kept moving the heavy plaster blocks. He watched me for a while, then took the broom from my hands. “Let me do it. You rest.” After that he kept appearing around me. He would say: “Emma, why do you always eat alone? Join me.” “Your hands are so skilled. Whatever you make must be beautiful.” “The moment I saw this necklace, I thought it would suit you perfectly. It’s yours.” I rejected him many times. But he never minded. “Emma, I won’t give up. You’re the first girl I’ve ever liked.” The phone screen dimmed, then lit up again. Someone posted photos from my college days. Wearing a plain white shirt, expression cold. [Look at how shabby she was.] [I heard her parents died young. She was raised by her grandfather. Marrying into the Harpers is her rags-to-riches moment.] [Would the Harper parents even agree? They’re from completely different worlds.]
[What choice do they have? Maybe it’s a shotgun wedding. She does have decent looks.] The comments got increasingly vulgar. I originally thought the Harpers had no class prejudice. But now I realized. At Mrs. Harper’s age and with her scheming mind, she couldn’t possibly miss what Sienna was doing today—disrupting the wedding under the guise of jokes. She was just happy to let it happen. Using Sienna’s hand to put me in my place. To let me know that compared to a rich heiress like Sienna, I was nothing. And Lucas too. He was confident I wouldn’t back out of the wedding over this. So he let Sienna do whatever she wanted. Twenty years of childhood friendship? Doesn’t see her as a woman? More like he wanted to have his cake and eat it too under the guise of friendship. Finally, Ethan raised the microphone and called my name. “Let’s give the warmest applause to welcome today’s true star—” Just then Sienna burst through the dressing room door. “Emma, why are you still here?” Her voice was sickeningly sweet. “They’re about to toss the bouquet outside. Come play?” I closed my lipstick and turned to look at her. “Toss the bouquet?” I smiled. “Without the bride present, who’s the bouquet for?” “That’s why we need you.” Sienna stepped forward and affectionately linked arms with me. “I know you probably don’t care for all those stuffy wedding rituals anyway. Come on, I’ll go out with you. Let’s play a game, okay?” Without waiting for my answer, she pushed me into the spotlight. I signaled to the staff I’d arranged to follow me with the items. This wedding had completely turned into a farce. No one cared about the bride’s entrance. I walked casually alongside Sienna. As we walked, I asked: “What game do you want to play?” “Catching the bouquet!” She held up the lily of the valley bouquet to my face. “If I catch it, Lucas has to grant me one unconditional request. If you catch it…” She paused, her smile deepening. “I’ll give you back the bracelet Mrs. Harper just gave me. Fair, right?” She deliberately stopped and looked toward Mrs. Harper. Mrs. Harper’s expression changed. “Nonsense!” She walked over quickly, first glaring at me before turning to Sienna. “Sienna, that bracelet was my gift to you. How can you use it as a wager?” Then she looked at me. “Emma, Sienna likes to play around. You don’t need to humor her.” The room fell quiet. Everyone was watching me. I laughed lightly. “Mrs. Harper, Miss Winters proposed both the bet and the game. She also skipped all the original wedding ceremony steps. I think she’s quite eager to play this game.” Mrs. Harper was speechless. I stopped looking at her and turned to Sienna. “Since we’re playing, let me add to the stakes. If you win, I’ll give you a big gift.” Sienna’s eyes lit up. “What gift?” “You’ll find out soon.” A space had already been cleared in the banquet hall. Their friends formed a semicircle, ready to catch the bouquet. She showed a confident smile and stood in the center of the crowd. The groomsmen exchanged glances and inconspicuously positioned themselves behind her. Ethan began the countdown. “Three.” The groomsmen quietly moved forward half a step. “Two.” Sienna was already rising on her tiptoes. “One!”
I threw it hard backward. The bouquet arced through the air. The groomsmen all jumped at once, hands reaching in the same direction. Sienna was protected in their midst. Someone batted the bouquet, and it spun mid-air. The lily of the valley flew over all the reaching hands, heading straight for Lucas. He caught it instinctively, with barely a second’s hesitation. He directly stuffed the bouquet into Sienna’s hands. The room went silent for a second. “Man, I thought Lucas would side with his woman, but turns out he’s thinking of our Sienna first.” “You’re done for. Careful the missus doesn’t let you into the wedding chamber tonight.” “What’s to fear? Our Sienna’s wearing a wedding dress too. If there can be two brides, why not two wedding chambers?” “Right, right. With Sienna and Lucas’s revolutionary friendship, worst case Sienna makes another sacrifice.” Only when the suggestive cheers erupted did Lucas realize what he’d done. He looked at me, face full of awkwardness. “Emma, don’t mind it. She’s been eyeing this bouquet all day. If I didn’t give it to her, she’d make a scene again.” Sienna hugged the bouquet, cheeks flushed, playfully punching Lucas. “Listen to you, making it sound like Emma’s so petty. She’s always been the most generous, right, Emma?” I looked at her, suddenly remembering how in college she’d done the same thing—using an innocent tone to say the most hurtful words. Back then, Lucas had specially flown abroad to prepare my first birthday gift, bidding on a pink diamond necklace. The next day it was around Sienna’s neck. I stared at that necklace in shock. Lucas rubbed his nose. Before he could speak, Sienna said in an envious tone: “I’ve had my eye on this necklace forever. There’s only one, and he snagged it first. Lucas said I could borrow it for a while. That’s okay, right, Emma?” She stuck out her tongue then. “Emma’s so generous, she definitely won’t be mad.” Lucas chimed in from the side. “Exactly. It’s just a necklace. Next time I’ll pick an even better one for you.” But I never received any necklace after that. That pink diamond eventually just sat gathering dust in Sienna’s jewelry box. “Emma? You’re not actually mad, are you?” Sienna’s voice pulled me back. I smiled gently and said softly: “It’s just a bouquet. Why would I care?” Lucas suddenly looked at me. He seemed to sense something. He was about to walk toward me when Sienna grabbed his arm. “You just agreed to grant me one unconditional request. Come closer.” I watched as Sienna stood on tiptoes, lips pressed against Lucas’s ear. His ears instantly turned bright red. He tried to dodge sideways but was pulled back. I stood at the edge of the crowd, taking it all in. Lucas’s lack of hesitation. Sienna’s sense of entitlement. The smile on Mrs. Harper’s face. The guests’ suggestive jeering. I turned and walked toward the mobile display that had been sitting in the corner of the banquet hall. My heels clicked softly on the marble floor, but step by step, I cut through the crowd. The noise gradually died down. All eyes turned to me. I stopped in front of the display, hand on the edge of the red silk, and yanked it off. “Mr. Harper, Miss Winters. Congratulations on your nuptials, and congratulations to me for finally having nothing more to do with the Harper family.”
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