Chapter 4

Emily practically dragged me toward the chapel. I stumbled, nearly crashing to the floor several times.

My parents and Sean walked right beside us, acting as if they didn't see a thing.

When we turned a corner, my arm slammed hard against the sharp edge of the wall, sending a wave of numbing pain through my arm.

I gasped.

The next second, Emily let out a sudden, terrified scream.

Grandma's weak, pained groans suddenly drifted from Emily's phone.

"Oh my god! Grandma is having a heart attack!"

"What?! Doctor! Call a doctor, quickly!" my parents screamed in a panic.

My heart squeezed with terror, and I lunged forward blindly.

"What's wrong with Grandma?"

"Emily! Tell me! What happened to Grandma?!" I screamed.

The pained groans on the phone suddenly stopped.

"Chloe, why are you screaming at me?" Emily whined, pulling her hand back as if I had terrified her.

I slapped her hand away and roared, "Emily, put Grandma on the phone right now! I need to know she's okay!"

Emily burst into tears.

The atmosphere instantly turned incredibly tense.

My parents rushed to comfort Emily.

"She's fine, she's fine. The doctors are already there."

"Chloe, why are you taking your anger out on your sister?"

"Grandma's heart attack wasn't Emily's fault! If you had just behaved and gone through with the wedding, Grandma wouldn't have gotten stressed out in the first place!"

A violent shudder ran through my body, a freezing chill seeping deep into my bones.

"Alright, Mom, Dad, stop it," Sean said, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and rubbing it gently.

"Chloe is just worried about Grandma."

"Let's just finish the wedding quickly, and then we'll go straight to the hospital to see Grandma. Be good, okay?"

Before I could protest, he swept me up into his arms and carried me into the chapel.

The priest began to speak, restarting the ceremony.

The raw skin glued under the blindfold burned with a dull, throbbing pain.

I clenched my fists, wanting to scream and stop the wedding.

But Grandma's weak groans still echoed in my ears.

As I hesitated, the heavy double doors of the chapel swung open.

Emily grabbed my hand in excitement.

"Chloe, Grandma is here!"

"She insisted on seeing you get married with her own eyes. You can't let her down!"

I lifted my head in confusion, seeing nothing but blackness.

My parents' voices quickly chimed in.

"Chloe."

"Your grandmother literally dragged herself out of her hospital bed just to see you get married. You can't break her heart."

"Yes, Chloe."

"Hurry up and start the wedding!"

Everyone was pushing me, suffocating me.

I reached out blindly, my voice trembling. "Grandma?"

A rough, calloused hand grabbed mine.

"Grandma, is that you?"

I squeezed the hand tightly, desperately seeking the warmth I remembered.

I remembered all those cold, rainy nights when everyone else was busy pampering Emily, while Grandma would hold me close, humming lullabies and patting my back, telling me I never had to be afraid.

"Yes, dear," a raspy voice replied.

My entire body went rigid.

I violently snatched my hand back.

"You're not Grandma."

"Emily, where is my grandmother?! Where is she?!" I screamed in terror.

"Are you all having fun playing with my life like this?!"

Sean grabbed my trembling shoulders.

"Chloe, Grandma is still at the hospital. She's fine."

"We just wanted you to be happy, so we hired an actress to play Grandma so you could finish the ceremony."

I let out a low, broken laugh.

Grandma had loved Sean like her own grandson.

She had even passed down my grandfather's precious heirloom jade pendant to him.

Back then, Sean had knelt before Grandma and sworn that he would never lie to me as long as he lived.

And now, he had hired an actress to pretend to be her.

I shoved Sean away with all the strength I had left.

With a heavy thud, Sean stumbled back, hitting the wall with a muffled groan.

"Sean! The wedding is off!"

I bolted toward the exit. Since I couldn't see, I crashed headfirst into a pillar and collapsed to the floor.

But I forced myself back up, stumbling and dragging myself toward the doors.

Suddenly, Emily's piercing wail echoed from behind me.

"No!"

"Grandma... the doctors said... they couldn't save Grandma!"

My entire world shattered. I collapsed to the ground, completely paralyzed.

"No... that's not true... it can't be..."

Emily rushed over and shoved me hard.

"It's all your fault, Chloe! Why did you have to make such a scene at your own wedding?!"

"Why did you have to stress Grandma out and kill her?!"

I lay on the cold floor, my forehead throbbing from where it had hit the tiles.

I forgot how to fight back.

My parents' harsh rebukes rained down on me.

"Chloe, you are such a disappointment."

"Grandma loved you the most, and you literally stressed her to death!"

Even Sean stood over me, his voice dripping with disappointment and blame.

"Chloe, Grandma is gone. Are you still going to throw a tantrum?"

"The wedding is postponed. Go home and think about what you've done."

The sound of footsteps faded away, one by one, leaving me entirely alone.

I slapped myself hard across the face.

It was me. I killed Grandma. It was all my fault.

I broke down, sobbing and laughing like a madwoman. With a wild, desperate surge of strength, I clawed at the blindfold, ripping it off my face.

When my eyes finally adjusted to the light, the scene before me made my breath catch in my throat.

Sean was walking away in the distance, wearing a casual t-shirt and jeans.

The groom's suit that I had handpicked for him was being worn by Jared, his best friend.

Jared was looking back at my pathetic state, unable to suppress a mocking laugh.

"Hahaha..."

"Chloe, I forgot to tell you. Sean already had a wedding ceremony with Emily earlier today. He asked me to fill in for him to finish yours so you wouldn't feel left out!"

I froze, burying my face in my hands as a hollow, agonized scream tore from my throat.

My parents, my sister, my husband...

In the end, I was the only outsider.

My tears seeped into the raw wounds on my face, and the burning pain snapped me back to reality.

I wiped my face, dialed a familiar number, and forced my voice to remain steady.

"Get here in fifteen minutes. I'm marrying you."