Three Wedding Jokes, I Said No To Him

Aurora Ashford and Sebastian Frost attempted to hold their wedding three times. Each time, they became the laughingstock of the entire city. The first time, they were halfway through their vows when Valentina Blackwell burst in with a sledgehammer. Her eyes were bloodshot. She smashed everything in sight. The sharp cracks of shattering objects mixed with the guests' screams. The romantic hall turned into ruins in an instant. Sebastian called the police on the spot and had Valentina sent to jail. The second time, as the emcee smilingly announced the couple's entrance, the large screen behind them suddenly filled with intimate photos of Sebastian and Valentina. Each photo was shockingly explicit, almost searing Aurora's eyes. Sebastian ordered someone to cut the power with a cold expression. He turned and said only, "Aurora, I'll handle this. Wait for me." Then he strode away, leaving her standing rigid among the guests. Later, she heard from others that Sebastian had Valentina thrown into a reformatory on the outskirts of the city and declared he would ruin her. The third time, a minute before they were to go onstage, Sebastian suddenly received a video call from Valentina. On the screen, she stood by the sea, smiling at the camera. "Sebastian, if I jump from here, our past debts will be settled. Okay?" Sebastian sneered. "If you're going to jump, do it quickly. I have a wedding to get to." But just as the two of them stood at the altar at the end of the red carpet, someone in the crowd cried out, "Valentina really jumped into the sea!" All around the room, phones lit up. #ValentinaJumps was already trending. The words "I do" stuck in Sebastian's throat. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get them out. He finally gave her a deep look and said, "No matter what, it's a human life. Aurora, let's postpone the wedding." The moment he finished speaking, he turned and ran out the door, disappearing in no time. Aurora suddenly lost her strength and collapsed to the floor. The surrounding whispers pierced her ears, each word cutting deep. She heard people murmuring, "This is the third time. Sebastian still has Valentina in his heart, doesn't he?" and "Poor Aurora." William rose from his seat among the guests with practiced ease. He bowed to everyone in apology and began tidying up the mess. Aurora's mother, Camilla Ashford, rushed onto the stage and steadied her. "Rory, can we just not marry him? Sebastian is completely unreliable!" Her heart felt as though it was being squeezed by a pair of enormous hands. The pain nearly suffocated her. Unwilling to give up, she took out her phone. Her trembling fingertips were about to dial Sebastian's number. She wanted to ask him to come back, to ask him what she really meant to him. But a news alert that popped up at the top of the screen froze her fingers in midair. "Valentina Blackwell Jumps into Sea, Sebastian Frost Rushes to Rescue, Old Lovers' Feud Unresolved?" Her hands trembled violently. The moment she tapped the news, a video started playing automatically. In the footage, Sebastian held a soaked Valentina. A puddle of water formed beneath them, clearly just out of the sea. His face was as pale as paper, and his voice carried suppressed hatred, yet also a trace of fear he himself hadn't noticed. "Valentina, you can't die. You haven't paid your debt yet. You're not allowed to die!" Valentina raised a hand and gently caressed his face. Her eyes held longing and pain. "Sebastian, you've hated me for so many years. If I died, shouldn't you be happy?" "No..." Sebastian suddenly tightened his arms and held her tightly in his embrace. "You can't bear to let me die," Valentina said, a bitter smile tugging at her lips. "It's because you still love me, isn't it?" Sebastian's breath caught. He opened his mouth but couldn't say a single word. He slowly lowered his head, pressed his forehead to her cold cheek, and a tear slid from the corner of his eye. Aurora's heart sank to the very bottom. How could she not understand? All these years, Sebastian's hatred toward Valentina, his indulgence of her, was only because his love ran too deep. So deep that he disguised it as hatred, but he could never fool his own heart. That love mixed with hatred made his hatred incomplete and his love impure. Suddenly, the scenes from five years ago flooded her mind. Back then, Sebastian and Valentina were the golden couple everyone envied in their circle. Even Aurora thought they would end up together. At that time, she and Sebastian had only crossed paths once. On her way to school, she was cornered by some thugs in an alley. Sebastian, who happened to pass by, saved her. He wore a white shirt, backlit at the alley entrance. Just one look made her heart stir. But she knew the vast distance between them, so she buried that tiny feeling deep in her heart and let it slowly fade. Later, Frost Industries suddenly met with disaster. Sebastian's parents, unable to bear the weight, committed suicide. Overnight, Sebastian fell from a blessed son of fortune to a destitute young man. Valentina fled faster than anyone. The very next day, she came to break off the engagement. Within two weeks, her family arranged for her to marry someone else. Sebastian refused to accept it. He went to confront her, only to be beaten black and blue by men Valentina had arranged and thrown out. From that day on, lovers became enemies. She watched Sebastian sink lower day by day, her heart aching with worry. Thinking of the favor he had once done by saving her, and of the feelings she had never voiced, she begged her parents to lend a helping hand and help Sebastian through his difficulties. She never expected anything in return. She only hoped he could pull himself together again. Sebastian did not disappoint. In five years, he forcefully dragged Frost Industries back from the brink and stood once again at the top of high society. And the first thing he did was propose to her. The proposal party was incredibly grand, live-streamed across the internet, causing a sensation. He held a bouquet of white roses, his eyes startlingly bright. Facing the camera and her, he said word by word, "Aurora, you were the one who stayed with me during my hardest times and helped me make it through. For the rest of my life, let me take care of you. Marry me, okay?" Those long-buried feelings stirred again. With tears in her eyes, she nodded firmly. Then Sebastian did the second thing. He bankrupted Valentina's parents and destroyed her husband's family. Using the cruelest means, he stripped Valentina of everything, just as she had done to him years ago. She had not been without doubt. Once, with reddened eyes, she asked Sebastian, "Do you still love Valentina?" Sebastian held her hand, his gaze so earnest she couldn't refuse. "Aurora, I feel nothing for her but hatred. The moment she abandoned me back then, I stopped loving her." Back then, she had foolishly believed him. Aurora tugged at the corner of her mouth, wanting to smile, but tears fell first. In a hoarse voice, she said, "Mom, I'll listen to you. I'm not marrying him." Camilla froze for a moment and then hugged her tightly. "Good, no wedding! I'll find you someone better. We won't put ourselves through this." Aurora leaned into Camilla's embrace. For no reason, she remembered someone long ago who had warned her, "Sebastian and Valentina are entangled too deeply. He hasn't overcome his inner demons. Marrying him will only hurt you." It turned out those words were prophetic. She scrolled through her contacts, found a number, and pressed the call button. The moment the call connected, she got straight to the point. "The thing you said before, about marrying me. Is that offer still good?"