Wedding Betrayal, I Took His Empire

Every guest's eyes locked straight on Jeremy's smug grin. He lifted his elbow and nudged me gently, firm enough to feel, not hard enough to hurt. "See how thoughtful Sarah is? She even bought me underwear for you to give me. Honey, you should learn a thing or two from her!" Sarah blinked, then huffed a laugh. "Well, what can I say? I was born to worry about others. Good thing I know exactly what size he needs!" They hugged like two old bros, leaving me, the actual bride of this wedding, a total outsider staring in. On the most important day of my entire life, I was the laughingstock of every single person in that room. I squeezed every last ounce of strength I had just to keep a smile on my face, my fingers cramping around the fabric of my wedding dress. It felt like if I let go, the tattered shreds of my dignity would shatter completely. The wedding had to keep going. I couldn't let all the hard work I poured into planning this wedding go up in smoke. So, I held my wine glass, hooked my arm through Jeremy's, and started walking from table to table to toast the guests. But Sarah stuck right to our sides like glue. Every time I went to lift my glass to speak, she beat me to the punch. "Today's Jeremy and Wenna's big day! Let's drink till we can't stand! Wish them a lifetime of happiness and healthy babies soon…" Her fingers wrapped so tight around her wine glass her knuckles turned bone white. Her voice shook, and tears welled up and spilled over her lash line. Jeremy pressed his lips into a thin line, and a flicker of unnoticeable heartache for her flashed across his eyes, so quick you'd miss it if you blinked. It looked like he was dying to yank the sobbing Sarah straight into his arms right that second. My own wedding had turned into nothing more than a test that let these two finally admit their feelings for each other. I couldn't lie to myself anymore. I couldn't take it any longer. I ripped my arm free from Jeremy's, and slammed the entire contents of my wine glass straight into both of their faces. "What are you crying for? You're gonna cry all the good luck right out of this day?!" The second the words left my mouth, dead silence crashed over the entire venue. Sarah waved her hands wildly, scrambling to explain, "Wenna, don't get me wrong! I'm just so happy for you two, that's all, I didn't mean anything…" Jeremy slowly furrowed his brows, that usually gentle tone of his laced with tightly leashed irritation. "Sarah is your best friend. She's just emotional for you on our wedding day. Why are you causing a scene on our big day?" He stepped right in front of Sarah, shielding her with his whole body, like he was terrified I'd do something to hurt her in my anger. The agony of being betrayed by the two people I trusted most, my fiancé and my best friend, tore through my chest, and hot tears poured down my face before I could stop them. "Our wedding? Jeremy, you do know this is our wedding! If I wasn't the one in the wedding dress, I bet everyone here would already think Sarah is the bride, wouldn't they? "What kind of person sends her best friend's groom underwear embroidered with her own name, on the wedding day? Do you two think I’m completely brainless?" Jeremy pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and dabbed at Sarah's face. Only after he finished did he pin me with a gaze so cold it could freeze blood. "She's your best friend. Everything she does is for your sake!" Forcing her way into our anniversary celebration? That was for me. Pressuring me into wearing a wedding dress that didn't even fit? That was also for me. They'd forced their way into every one of our private dates, turning our couple time into a miserable three-way circus. I wanted none of this phony 'love' or fake friendship that hid behind the phrase 'it's for your own good.' I smashed my wine glass on the floor, then stormed back to the fitting room to tear off this revolting wedding dress. The second I finished pulling on my regular clothes, the door slammed open hard. Jeremy and Sarah stood side by side in the doorway, both staring at me with the exact same look of helpless exasperation. "Wenna, I only did all this to help you and Jeremy get closer! How can you think so badly of us?" Sarah nudged Jeremy’s shoulder with hers. "Isn't that right?" Jeremy looked at her, a soft, indulgent smile spreading across his face. "It is.... Honey, you've known Sarah for over ten years. Even if you don't trust me, you should trust her, right? Be good, go put the wedding dress back on." When I didn't move a muscle, Sarah stepped toward me and bent down to pick up the wedding dress I'd left crumpled on the floor. Her low-cut bridesmaid dress gaped open as she bent, and a tattoo right above her bra cup, dead over her heart, stabbed straight into my vision. It was Jeremy's name. And on Jeremy's chest, there was an identical tattoo matching the one stitched into that underwear. All this time, when I had no clue, they'd already marked each other with permanent, unerasable marks. A sick, dizzying wave of absurdity crashed over me, and bitter stomach acid churned and burned its way up my throat. I shoved both of them out of my way hard and bolted for the bathroom, where I heaved until my whole body ached. Jeremy followed right behind me, patting my back impatiently while spilling one annoyed complaint after another. "Sarah is your best friend. How can you be so cruel and hurt her like this? If you don't even trust your own husband and your own best friend, why don't you just plant a tracker on me and spy on me every second of the day? That'd solve all your problems, huh? "Sarah only has your best interests at heart from the bottom of her heart. Don't bite the head off the person who's only trying to help you out! If we really had something going on, would I even be standing here marrying you today? Use your head for a second!" I lifted my head, and my hollow, empty gaze locked onto Jeremy, who stood behind me in the bathroom mirror. "Jeremy. I'm not an idiot." I gritted my teeth, my voice tearing out of my throat like a ragged snarl. "On our anniversary, you wrote Sarah's name on the cake! Every single piece of clothing you ever bought me was the exact style she likes! When we went shopping for wedding rings, you bought her a ten-carat diamond, and you tried to pass it off as a gift, wishing she'd find a good man soon. You think I didn't notice every single damn thing you did!?" All those little moments that never added up before suddenly clicked together in my head, and now they laced together into a single tight knot that clamped right around my throat, cutting off my air. I'd lied to myself over and over, telling myself he was only kind to Sarah because he loved me, but day after day of heartache and pain had forced me to face what was right in front of me. I scrubbed the tears off my face roughly, and stared straight into Jeremy's cold, indifferent eyes. "I'm done, Jeremy. Both of you make me sick. Get the hell out of my life. Both of you." He didn't say a word back to me. Instead, a ragged, broken sob drifted in from the bathroom doorway. Panic flashed across Jeremy's face, and he immediately sprinted off after that fleeing slender figure.