LOVERS AT CHRISTMAS EVE 1

Elowen’s POV

"It's perfect." I whispered mostly under my breath as my dress was willed in. It was everything I ever wanted. I walked closer and ran my finger through the beadings.

Jay's collection never failed to deliver excellence and I was grateful my dream was coming through. I was planning my dream wedding.

"Can I try it on?" I asked, feeling giddy.

I had personally sketched the dress myself and truth be told, it looked so much better seeing it on fabric and in 3D. Indeed my life was beautiful.

I thought to call Owen, my fiance on a video call but I figured it would be better if he saw it all as a surprise on our big day.

"I'm sorry Ma'am but this is a customized wedding dress. We can't let just anyone try it on. It was designed on special request to fit the bride's exact measurement." I frowned.

I was about to complain when I realized she was only doing her job—I smiled.

It was more comforting to know that nobody had fit my dress before me. I reached into my bag and presented the receipt I was given on order.

My greatest joy was that I was marrying the man of my dreams—no—the man of my realities. Owen and I had been together for five years and we were finally going to make forever vows before God and man.

Her voice brought me out of my reverie.

"Alright ma'am." After scrutinizing the receipt, the dress was taken off the mannequin and handed to me, two of the staff members helped try it on but something was odd. The waistline was smaller.

"What's this? I thought you said it's a perfect fit! Why won't it zip?" No matter how they pulled it together, the hip was smaller, the length too, it seemed a bit shorter.

Offended, I stepped out of the dress not willing to ruin it by using force.

"That's what I already told you ma'am, it's tailor-made to fit the bride ma'am." The same staff said.

"And I'm saying it's not my size. Can't you see that it didn't fit?" My knuckles were already turning white from her comments but I blinked back the anger.

"You're not the bride ma'am. It was tailor-"

"I want to see your manager, talking to you is only going to piss me off and ruin my mood." I wasn't going to hear the same crap.

She could have owned up and apologized that they accidentally used another bride's measurement for my dress and I would have given them time to adjust it while I pick up later but she was claiming right and even calling me a wanna be bride.

How nice.

I knew these things too well.

"Good day, I hear that you requested to see me." A man in his early thirties approached me politely.

"My dress didn't fit." I went straight to the point, I wasn't interested in reporting whatever attitude his staff had displayed.

"I'm sorry Ma'am but I think there has been a slight misunderstanding, the receipt you presented was indeed for the dress and the bride's exact measurement was used. She called for last minute adjustments." It all sounded like a cruel joke to me.

"That's bullshit! I am the damn bride and I didn't make any measurement adjustments." I was already losing my cool, people had paused their shopping—they began to whisper and stare. Some exchanged glances and gave me a disgusted look.

"Please come with me ma'am and we'll rectify this shortly."

"No, let's clarify it here and now," I insisted. People had seen the embarrassment so it was only right for them to correct their mistake before everyone else as well.

"Fine, your ID card please," The manager was still very polite.

I handed it over to him and waited for his verification process, suddenly his face twisted in confusion, he looked up at me then back at the screen in his hand.

"The last name matches but the first name here is Lilith not Elowen."

"Lilith?" I froze. I knew the name too well, our last name wasn't very popular in town so I was certain who it was.

"Lilith is...my half...my younger sister...how..." I was stumbling on my words as I tried to process what was going on.

"She's the bride on our list ma'am." Everything suddenly made sense. I was a complete size bigger than Lilith, taller too so there was every possibility it was her size but how? Why?

Lilith? Bride?

Too many unanswered questions plagued me.

Nothing made sense to me at all. I blinked severally and gritted my teeth withholding the storm that brewed within me.

After they showed me proof of the request to alter the measurements and the bride details, I left without the dress—no— without my dress.

The drive home was a blur, rage clouding my judgement. Lilith always wanted everything that belonged to me since we were children. From my toys to my father's attention and affection towards me. Initially I protested and cried that I missed my late mother but the older I got, the more I realized they were always going to favour her over me even if it hurt me.

Good, I found everyone laughing and chatting in the sitting room when I got to the house. I had long endured giving up my things for her but my wedding dress? That was the height of it.

"Lilith! Why did you change the measurements on my wedding dress?" She jumped to her feet when she saw me as I closed the distance between us but her mum stepped in between us and faced me.

"What is it, Elowen? Lilith has done nothing wrong." Typical of my stepmother to defend her princess and try to gaslight me before my father.

"Your beautiful daughter altered my wedding dress and my wedding is in 3 days and you say she did nothing wrong?" I kissed my teeth at her analysis of right and wrong.

"Elowen," My father touched my arm and I turned to him. He didn’t look so confident, he wasn't about to scold me, he was definitely about to tell me to let her have it but I had my responses lined up.

"Before you ask me to let her have it Dad, do remember my wedding is in three days and Lilith has no use for a wedding dress in the next three days." I shot back in one breath.

"There's something you need to know, Elowen." Father avoided my eyes and my stomach dropped. What new drama were they coming up with?

"Say," I braced myself for the worst.

"Lilith is getting married in three days, not you."

"What?" Father's words made no sense to me, no preparation could brace me for those words.