She Wore My Wedding Dress

Odette's POV: When the holiday schedule came out, my fiancé, Cedric Voss, a senior attending physician, brought out his wooden box again. It held colored craft sticks for his private drawing game. "One red stick and one blue stick. Pick one without looking." I drew the red stick. Smiling, he handed the blue one to his female best friend, Sabina Keene. "Red is the color of celebration, so you can cover the emergency department's overnight shifts for the entire 7-day holiday. Blue is the color of the ocean, and I happen to have two tickets to the Caldrin Isles. I'll take Sabina away for a break." Sabina looped her arm through Cedric's. "I'll leave the work to you, Odette. I'm such a klutz, and Cedric will have to look after me at the beach. You don't mind, do you?" I closed my eyes for a moment, then demanded, "Which one of us is your fiancée?" His expression hardened. "We're all close here. Can't you be reasonable for once? Stop keeping score over every little thing." With our wedding approaching, I gave in. Then, on our wedding day, Cedric produced two more sticks. He waited until I had drawn one before saying calmly, "Whoever draws the white stick gets to wear the wedding gown tonight and stand beside me for the ceremony." I looked at the black stick in my hand, took out my phone, and canceled the reception. I was done playing his game. ***** The limited-edition wedding gown I had spent nearly 6 months trying to secure lay on the dressing-room table. Only 3 minutes earlier, Cedric had ordered me to take it off. He wanted Sabina and me to draw sticks to decide which of us would wear the gown and stand beside him for the ceremony. I objected, but he said it was his rule and that, as his fiancée, I should understand him. The wedding officiant received my message, walked onto the stage, and bowed to the guests. "Ladies and gentlemen, I regret to announce that Ms. Fenton has canceled today's wedding reception." An uproar swept through the room. Cedric stood across from me, still holding the black stick. The smile slowly vanished from his face. "Odette Fenton, who said the wedding was canceled?" "Weren't you the one who wanted to draw for it?" I looked him in the eye. "I drew the black stick. Why should I still host a wedding for the two of you?" Sabina leaned against him with one hand wrapped around his arm. "Odette, please don't be angry. My ex hurt me so badly that I stopped believing in love. Cedric only wanted to help me get over it by giving me a chance to wear a wedding gown." Her eyes reddened as she spoke, and her shoulders began to tremble. Cedric squeezed her shoulder, then turned to me with disappointment written all over his face. "You agreed to the game, so accept the result. Do you really have to drag up her worst memories? Tell the officiant to continue the ceremony. What will all our relatives and friends think otherwise?" Sabina blinked at me pitifully. "Just let me go through the ceremony with Cedric, Odette." She picked up the gown and began putting it on. I had worn it only once for a fitting, and I had even chosen the veil myself. Now Sabina was wearing it. Cedric didn't stop her. Once she had changed, he bent down and smoothed the train for her. "All our relatives are already here. We can't make them come for nothing." He looked up at me. "Did you cancel the reception just to threaten me?" "I'm not threatening you." I slipped the wedding ring off my finger. "I'm informing you that the wedding is canceled." He sneered. "Don't think you can use my love for you to force me to back down." "Cedric, do you really love me?" His expression froze, but a second later, that familiar air of entitlement returned. "I'm only helping Sabina fulfill a wish and move past her trauma. Don't make it into something it isn't." Music began playing onstage. Sabina lifted the skirt and moved to his side. Cedric placed a hand around her waist and led her out. A few scattered claps came from the guests. I turned and walked out of the hotel. My phone vibrated in my palm with a message from Callum Merrick, the leader of the Global Medical Relief Team. Callum: Your application has been approved. Dr. Fenton, are you certain you want to join us? I stared at the screen for a long time. Just 3 years earlier, I had been offered a place on an overseas relief mission. Cedric had held me and promised that he would go with me after we were married. I believed him. Sabina later took my place. Cedric said she was young and needed to see more of the world. I didn't argue. I chose to stay. This time, I lowered my head and replied that I was certain. By the time I reached the home Cedric and I had meant to share, I was soaked from the rain. I entered my birthday as usual, but the lock said the passcode was wrong. Our anniversary didn't work. Neither did Cedric's birthday. The door finally opened when I entered Sabina's birthday. Only then did I remember that Cedric had changed the passcode from my birthday to hers. Inside, my high heels had been tossed across the entryway, and the master bedroom door stood half open. The bedding set I had chosen for our marriage was spread across the bed, but the pillows had been replaced by ones in the style Sabina liked. At that moment, a new i********: post from Sabina appeared on my phone. Drawing the white stick was pure luck, and a knight always favors his best female friend. In the photo, she wore my wedding gown and leaned back against Cedric as if they were blissful newlyweds. I stopped looking and threw my ring into the trash. Late that night, Cedric came home smelling of alcohol and Sabina's distinctive perfume. He frowned when he saw me packing. "Are you finished with this tantrum? It was only a wedding. Why can't you be as generous as Sabina? She stayed behind at the hotel yesterday and smoothed everything over for you." I closed my suitcase and said slowly and distinctly, "You two are perfect for each other." His face darkened. "Odette Fenton, where do you think you're going?" "Somewhere no one uses a game to decide my life." He gave a dismissive laugh. "You'll come back on your own within 3 days." I didn't argue. My confirmed ticket was already displayed on my phone. I would be leaving very soon.