Chapter 1
When the day came to pick up my wedding dress, the bridal shop manager looked apologetic.
She said Jason Carter had already taken the main custom wedding gown.
Anna Dawson, my grandma, wearing her reading glasses, stared blankly at the empty display case.
Jason's call came through. "Em, Olivia Lane's graduation show dress got ruined. I figured the main wedding gown would fit her, so I let her borrow it to help her out.
"It's a runway show. Take Grandma to look at the reception dresses first, and don't lose your temper in the store."
I stared at the label on the display case. "That's my custom-made wedding dress. You're letting her wear it for her runway show?"
Jason sounded a little helpless, as if he were trying to soothe me. "She only gets one graduation show in her life. She's really struggling.
"You're always so thoughtful. Can't you let it slide this time? It's a dress."
Anna saw my eyes turning red and sighed.
On my social media feed, Olivia had posted a selfie video of herself wearing the main wedding gown.
I sent Jason a message: [The wedding's off. Let her have the dress as her graduation gift.]
After I sent the message, the chat stayed quiet for a long time.
The spotlights in the display case were still on, their cold white light shining down on the bare mannequin.
The handmade wedding dress I'd waited three months for was supposed to be hanging there.
The manager stood behind the counter, gripping her measuring tape, looking helpless and unsure what to do.
She looked at me, then at Anna, lowering her voice. "Miss Dawson, Mr. Carter said he'll cover the cost, or you can pick the fanciest dress we have in stock."
I didn't blow up.
I kept my eyes on the label stuck to the bottom of the mannequin.
It said: [Jason Carter & Emily Dawson, Custom-Made for You.]
"No need," I said, looking away and slipping my phone into my bag.
Anna made her way over, feeling her way, her thin hand gripping my wrist.
Her hand was shaking.
"Emmy," Anna said, her voice hoarse, "let's not look anymore. Let's go home."
I turned to steady Anna and nodded at the manager. "Since he took the dress, bill him for the remaining balance. I won't bother with the reception dresses either."
The manager opened her mouth, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she lowered her head in embarrassment.
As I pushed open the bridal shop's glass door, Jason's reply finally popped up.
It was a voice message.
I tapped it open, and his voice came through the receiver with a helpless little laugh in it. "Come on, Em, don't make a scene. Take back what you said.
"Olivia's show is about to start. Once things settle down here, I'll take you out to your favorite sushi place tonight, okay? Consider it my apology."
The background was chaotic, with the director shouting instructions, and Olivia's gentle voice chiming in, "Jason, can you help with my zipper?"
The voice message cut off abruptly.
I didn't reply.
I hailed a cab and took Anna home.
The city blurred past the window as Anna leaned back in her seat, silent the whole ride.
As we were almost home, she gently patted the back of my hand. "Emmy, if you're unhappy, then don't marry him. Grandma can take care of you, no matter what."
My eyes burned for a moment, but I forced myself not to cry. "I know, Grandma."
When we got home, the coffee table in the living room was still piled with half-filled wedding favor boxes.
The red velvet boxes were embossed in gold with our initials. It's J&E.
Last night, Jason had been sitting on the carpet, helping me stuff chocolates into each box, one by one.
He said, "Em, once we're married, I'll shift my company's focus back home so I can spend more time with you."
But today, he gave my wedding dress to another woman.
I grabbed a black trash bag.
I swept all the wedding favor boxes, both the finished ones and the half-filled ones, along with the stack of invitations with names already written on them, into the bag.
My phone buzzed.
It was the wedding planner calling. "Miss Dawson, we need to finalize the flower arrangements for the venue. Do you want white roses or champagne roses?"
I tied the trash bag shut and tossed it outside. "Neither."
The planner was stunned. "What do you mean?"
"The wedding's off," I said calmly. "Figure out the venue fee and any penalties per the contract, then send me the bill."
There was a brief silence on the other end before the planner asked, "Miss Dawson, did you and Mr. Carter have a fight? Maybe you should talk it over?"
"There's nothing to discuss," I replied and hung up.
My phone buzzed with a new notification.
Olivia had posted an update.
It was a ten-second video.
In the clip, she stood right in the middle of the runway, wearing the wedding dress that was meant for me, the train flowing behind her, every spotlight focused on her.
The caption read: [Thank you, my knight, for making my impossible dream come true.]
In the last two seconds of the video, the camera panned down to the audience.
Jason was right in the center of the front row, his gaze locked on Olivia, applauding for her.