My Family Gave My Wedding to Their Favorite GirlChapter 3

I look at the camera in Vanessa’s hand.

Then at Adrian.

He has gone pale.

“Claire, listen.”

“No.”

That single word surprises all of us.

Vanessa recovers first.

She hugs the camera against her chest.

“It wasn’t going to show anything.”

I turn to her.

“What exactly were you planning to film?”

She opens her mouth.

Nothing comes out.

Adrian steps forward.

“I was going to make sure she stopped before it went too far.”

I laugh.

The sound comes out wrong.

“You said that about tonight too.”

Mom rolls her eyes.

“Enough. You already ruined one stream.”

Sophie folds her arms.

“Claire, when did you become this difficult?”

I look at her.

My best friend.

The girl who once promised we would stand beside each other at our weddings.

Tonight she tore my dress because Vanessa’s viewers thought it would be funny.

“You’re asking me that?”

Sophie’s face stiffens.

Vanessa’s eyes immediately fill with tears.

“I was trying to help.”

“By secretly filming me in lingerie?”

“I wanted people to see another side of you.”

“I didn’t ask you to.”

Vanessa looks at Mom.

There it is.

The same move she has used since we were children.

“I knew she hated me.”

Mom’s expression changes instantly.

“Vanessa—”

“I’ve tried so hard to be part of this family, but she’s never wanted me here.”

A tear slides down her cheek.

“She probably wishes you never took me in.”

When we were younger, this was usually the point where I apologized.

It didn’t matter what Vanessa had done.

If she cried, Mom expected me to fix it.

If I refused, I was cruel.

Selfish.

Jealous.

Once, Mom locked me in a storage room until Vanessa decided she was ready to forgive me.

Vanessa knows exactly what comes next.

She lowers her head, waiting.

I look at her.

“Yes.”

Her head snaps up.

I smile without warmth.

“Yes, Vanessa. I want you out of my face.”

Silence.

Ethan reacts first.

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

Adrian immediately moves beside Vanessa.

“This is her home too.”

I look toward my bedroom.

The room filled with Vanessa’s things.

“My mistake.”

Vanessa’s mouth twitches.

For the first time, I think she realizes I am not going to apologize.

Mom grabs my arm.

“You don’t get to insult her and walk away.”

“Let go.”

“You broke her camera tonight.”

“I knocked it aside.”

“And now you’re trying to throw her out?”

“I’m trying to leave.”

Mom tightens her grip.

“No. You’re going to apologize first.”

I pull away.

She shoves me.

Hard.

My hip hits the side of the desk.

Something sharp drives into my abdomen.

Pain explodes through me.

I gasp.

For a second, I don’t understand what happened.

Then Sophie screams.

“Claire!”

I look down.

A pair of sewing scissors lies on the floor.

Blood is spreading across my shirt.

Too fast.

Ethan’s face drains of color.

“Call 911.”

My knees buckle.

Adrian catches me before I hit the floor.

“Claire. Claire, look at me.”

I press both hands against the wound.

Blood slips between my fingers.

I have a clotting disorder.

Everyone here knows it.

Adrian knows better than anyone.

Three years ago, after a car accident, I cut my hand open pulling him away from broken glass.

The wound wouldn’t stop bleeding.

I spent hours in the emergency room.

When Adrian finally woke up, he held my bandaged hand and stared at it for a long time.

Then he kissed my fingers.

“I’ll never let you bleed because of me again.”

I believed him then.

Now my vision blurs.

Vanessa makes a small sound beside us.

“Oh my God.”

Adrian looks at her.

Vanessa is staring at the blood.

Her face has gone white.

“I feel sick.”

Adrian moves instantly.

One arm still supports me.

His free hand reaches up and covers Vanessa’s eyes.

“Don’t look.”

His voice turns soft.

“You hate blood.”

For a moment, I forget the pain.

Vanessa grips his wrist.

“I can’t breathe.”

“It’s okay. Don’t look.”

Then, finally, Adrian looks back at me.

“Claire?”

Something in his expression changes when he sees my face.

“Claire, stay with me.”

I am still bleeding.

He is still holding Vanessa against his side.

And suddenly, everything becomes very simple.

All these years, I kept waiting for one moment that would prove I mattered more.

One emergency.

One choice.

One time when Adrian would look at both of us and choose me without hesitation.

Now I have my answer.

He does choose.

Just never me.

【Word Count: 869】