THE BRIDES DIARY

The Bride Everyone Pitied

For a heartbeat, no one moved.

It was as if time itself had frozen inside St. Augustine Cathedral.

The organ fell silent.

The choir stopped singing.

Even the photographer lowered his camera.

Adrian Wolfe stood before the altar, his shoulders squared, his face drained of color.

"I won't marry you."

The words still hung in the air.

Sophia blinked twice, certain she had misheard him.

"What... did you say?"

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Adrian looked into her eyes.

"I can't do this."

A murmur swept through the congregation like a wave.

"Did he just call off the wedding?"

"This has to be a joke."

"Poor girl..."

Sophia's father, Victor Vale, rose from the front pew.

"Adrian," he said, forcing a smile. "You're overwhelmed. Weddings can be emotional."

He stepped closer.

"Take a deep breath, son."

Adrian didn't respond.

Victor lowered his voice.

"Don't embarrass my daughter."

Across the room, Adrian's mother hurried toward him, panic written across her face.

"Adrian!"

She grabbed his arm.

"What are you doing?"

His father followed close behind, his expression dark with anger.

"Answer me."

Adrian slowly pulled his arm free.

"I'm sorry."

His father stared at him.

"Sorry?"

"There are over five hundred guests here."

"The press is outside."

"Our business partners flew in from three countries."

"And you're telling me you're sorry?"

Daniel stepped between them.

"Mr. Wolfe, maybe we should—"

"You stay out of this!" his father snapped.

The tension inside the cathedral thickened.

Sophia remained standing at the altar.

Her bouquet trembled in her hands.

Tears slowly gathered in her eyes.

She looked at Adrian as though searching for the man she had agreed to marry.

"I don't understand."

Her voice cracked.

"Tell me what I did."

Adrian opened his mouth.

Nothing came out.

He couldn't accuse her.

Not without proof.

If he held up the diary and announced that his dead fiancée had warned him from beyond the grave, everyone would believe he'd lost his mind.

Sophia took one cautious step toward him.

"If someone threatened you..."

"I can help."

"If you're afraid..."

"We'll face it together."

For the briefest moment, Adrian almost believed her.

She sounded sincere.

She looked heartbroken.

The tears on her cheeks seemed real.

Then his eyes drifted to the engagement ring.

Elena's ring.

Sophia noticed.

Almost instinctively, she curled her fingers into her palm.

She was hiding it.

Why?

Adrian's heartbeat quickened.

That tiny movement lasted less than a second.

Most people would never have noticed.

But he did.

And once he saw it, he couldn't unsee it.

"Where did you get that ring?" he asked quietly.

Sophia frowned.

"What?"

"The ring."

"You told me it was newly made."

"It was."

"No."

His voice became firmer.

"It wasn't."

She looked genuinely confused.

"You designed it yourself."

"I know."

"So why are you asking?"

Adrian stared at her.

"Take it off."

Silence.

A few guests exchanged puzzled looks.

Sophia forced a nervous laugh.

"This isn't the time for jokes."

"I'm not joking."

"I said..."

"Take it off."

Victor Vale stepped forward again.

"This is enough."

"My daughter isn't going to stand here while you humiliate her."

Adrian ignored him.

His eyes never left Sophia.

Slowly...

Very slowly...

She slipped the ring from her finger.

She held it out.

Adrian took it.

The diamond sparkled beneath the cathedral lights.

He turned it over.

There it was.

Hidden beneath the setting.

The tiny engraved letter.

E.

His breathing became uneven.

He remembered the afternoon he had designed it.

Elena had laughed when he insisted on adding her initial where only they would know it existed.

She called it their secret.

Only three people had ever seen that engraving.

Adrian.

The jeweler.

Elena.

No one else.

His fingers tightened around the ring.

"Where did you get this?"

Sophia looked confused.

"You gave it to me."

"No."

"I gave you a different ring."

"You proposed with this ring."

"I remember every second."

She sounded certain.

Certain enough to make Adrian question his own memory.

His father sighed impatiently.

"That's enough."

He looked toward the guests.

"The ceremony is postponed."

"We apologize."

"This is a private family matter."

Reporters outside the cathedral had already begun pushing against the entrance.

News spread faster than wildfire.

Phones appeared throughout the audience.

People whispered.

Recorded videos.

Posted online.

Within minutes...

The wedding that was supposed to unite two powerful families had become the city's biggest scandal.

Daniel leaned close to Adrian.

"We need to leave."

Adrian nodded.

As he turned away, a soft voice stopped him.

"Adrian."

He looked back.

Sophia was crying openly now.

"If you don't love me anymore..."

"I'll survive."

"But please..."

She wiped away a tear.

"Don't leave me wondering why."

Something inside Adrian twisted painfully.

He wanted to tell her.

He wanted to show her the diary.

He wanted someone else to explain the impossible.

Instead, he simply said,

"I'm sorry."

He walked away.

...

Outside the cathedral, flashes from dozens of cameras exploded the moment Adrian appeared.

"Mr. Wolfe!"

"Why did you cancel the wedding?"

"Did Sophia cheat on you?"

"Is another woman involved?"

"Are the rumors true?"

Security guards struggled to hold reporters back.

Daniel opened the car door.

"Get in!"

Adrian climbed into the back seat.

The door slammed shut.

As the car pulled away, Adrian looked back through the rear window.

Sophia still stood at the cathedral entrance.

Her wedding dress fluttered gently in the wind.

She looked completely broken.

For a moment...

He wondered if he'd made the biggest mistake of his life.

Then he remembered Elena's words.

Don't marry her.

His phone vibrated.

An unknown number.

He hesitated before answering.

"Hello?"

For several seconds...

Only silence.

Then a woman's voice whispered,

"You finally listened."

Adrian's blood turned cold.

He knew that voice.

It was impossible.

Because it belonged to the woman whose grave he had visited every Sunday for the past year.

"Elena?"

The call ended.

Adrian stared at the screen.

No number.

No caller ID.

Only one notification appeared.

Private Number — Call Duration: 00:09

Daniel looked over.

"Who was it?"

Adrian slowly lowered the phone.

His lips barely moved.

"I think..."

He swallowed hard.

"I just spoke to a dead woman."