The Wedding That Ended Us

After her boyfriend bailed on their wedding, my best friend broke down crying and begged my fiance to step in and save the day.

Blake Keller comforted me gently. "Dawn, Noelle and I grew up together. We've been close for years—closer than family, honestly. Today is just for show. Besides, our wedding's next week anyway, so think of it as a rehearsal in advance."

I felt terrible for my best friend. After struggling with myself for a long time, I finally gritted my teeth and nodded.

Just like that, I watched with my own eyes as my boyfriend, who was supposed to be the best man, became my best friend's "groom."

At the wedding, Blake held Noelle's hand, his eyes filled with affection. When the officiant asked whether he was willing, he answered even more firmly than he had when he proposed to me.

I kept telling myself not to take it seriously, that it was just an act and I should not overthink it. That was what I believed—until after they exchanged rings.

The officiant smiled and said, "You may now kiss the bride."

The crowd instantly started cheering, urging them to kiss.

Blushing, Noelle hurriedly reassured me. "Dawn, don't worry. We'll fake it with the camera angle."

I believed her. But in the very next second, Blake lifted her chin and deeply kissed her for real in front of everyone.

Behind Closed Doors

The moment he kissed her, the entire venue exploded with excitement.

It wasn't a fake angle, and it definitely was not a quick, harmless peck either. It was a deep, passionate kiss, lips and tongues tangling together.

I froze where I stood, my face draining of all color.

"Oh my god… are they really just acting?" one of the bridesmaids beside me whispered softly. "They're way too into it."

Indeed, they were way too into it, so much so that even I almost started believing they were the real couple.

Thunderous applause erupted from the crowd below the stage, and someone shouted, "One more!"

Noelle hurriedly pushed Blake away and turned toward me with a flushed face. But she had barely opened her mouth when Blake grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her again.

I lowered my head and stared at myself in the bridesmaid dress, bouquet still clutched in my hands. Tears nearly spilled from my eyes.

The unbearably long kiss finally ended.

Noelle immediately ran over to me. "Dawn, I'm sorry. I really didn't know…"

Before she could finish, Blake grabbed her wrist and pulled her protectively behind him. "Dawn, it was just acting. You agreed to this from the start. You can't blame Noelle."

He said it with such a straight face that I suddenly seemed like the unreasonable one.

Noelle quickly added from the side, "Dawn, Blake and I really don't have anything going on. You're the one he loves."

'The one he loves?'

He knew perfectly well I would be hurt, yet he still kissed another woman right in front of me.

Furious, I lifted my skirt and ran out of the wedding hall.

If this had happened before, Blake definitely would've chased after me to comfort me. But this time, he never showed up even when I cried in the cold wind for nearly half an hour.

After wiping the tears from the corners of my eyes, I finally headed back toward the banquet hall.

As I passed the hallway, the dressing room door sat slightly ajar, faint noises drifting from inside. And then my entire body went rigid, for on the sofa inside the dressing room, Blake and Noelle were tangled together in a half-dressed mess.

Noelle's skirt had been shoved up to her waist, their heavy breathing filling the room with unbearable intimacy. With a flirty glare, she slapped him lightly. "Blake, are you insane? What if Dawn finds out?"

Blake did not look worried at all. Instead, he let out a low chuckle. "We've been sneaking around for two years already. If she were going to find out, she would've done so by now."

At that, he tightened his grip around her waist and shoved her harder beneath him. "Besides, we're married. Sleeping with my own wife isn't illegal, is it?"

'Two years together? Married?'

Ice flooded through my entire body, and my breathing turned heavy.

Noelle stopped resisting and pressed herself closer to him. "If not for the baby, I'd never marry you! You're supposed to marry Dawn next week. Have you figured out what you're going to do yet?"

My nails dug viciously into my palms as I fought back the tears threatening to fall.

'The baby she's carrying… is Blake's?'

Blake wrapped an arm around her, his eyes gentler than I had ever seen before. "I'll just make a fake marriage certificate. Dawn trusts me too much to ever suspect anything. And even if I marry her, so what? I'll still belong to you…"

Noelle let out a soft cry. "Careful… The baby."

"Relax. I'll be gentle…"

The obscene sounds that followed stabbed straight through my chest until it hurt so badly I could barely breathe. Staggering backward several steps, I braced myself against the wall and gasped for air.

One was my best friend of four years in college. The other was the man I had loved for five years. The two people I trusted most had been sleeping together behind my back, hiding it all beneath the excuse of being "close friends."

…

A long while later, Blake finally walked out holding Noelle's hand. The moment they saw me, panic flashed across both their faces, but Noelle reacted quickly and grabbed me.

At a glance, I spotted the hickey blooming across her collarbone.

"Dawn, I'm sorry. Blake got really carried away earlier. I already scolded him for it." She turned and glared at Blake. "Hurry up and apologize to Dawn."

Blake immediately reached over to wipe my tears. "Dawn, it's all on me. I didn't think about your feelings."

I stared into his sincere-looking eyes and remembered the way he had kissed Noelle. The way he had looked at her. The way he had been a hundred times more invested than he had ever been with me.

My hand clenched tightly as I raised it, about to slap Noelle across the face. But Blake grabbed my wrist at once and shoved me away. "Have you lost your mind?"

The force sent me crashing into the wall, pain exploding across my back as my vision darkened. "Blake… are you and Noelle really just friends?"