Chapter 3

Claire was quiet.

As her hair stylist pulled and plucked and dragged her hair, not the smallest wince came out of her.

She didn't react, not that any of her antics would help her out of her current predicament.

Unlike Charlotte, Claire did not have the privilege of running away, she still heavily depended on her parents for money and she was aware of how fast she would be caught off if she tried something similar. Charlotte on the other hand, despite her note was more smarter than that, Claire could wager that she had been planning to run away for months and saved up for such emergencies.

Everyone went about their business like nothing happened. Like her sister had not eloped and she wasn't the one who was supposed to be getting married.

Even her mother went back to her energetic bubbly self, like she had not been freaking out just an hour ago. Everyone was rushing to get dressed as Claire was fitted into Charlotte's dress, which seemed to be about two sizes small judging on how tight it was.

And heavy!!!

Oh Good Lords it was heavy!

Charlotte had gone for a full ballgown with a fitting bodice. Claire felt like she was going to pass out as they tightened the ropes of the dress.

Oh it was torture! Every bit of it.

For some reason, Mia seemed to be unhappy about the change of plans and was fuming in the background.

She was not happy.

Get in line!

Claire thought.

She also wasn't happy.

Who wanted to be forced into marriage? She was barely home for six hours and she was already getting fitted into a dress for her sister's wedding day.

Her father was calling to make some slight changes, while her mother was obsessing over every single detail as always.

Nobody seemed to care that Charlotte was in some far away country with the chauffeur probably wondering if her parents had the galls to call off the wedding while sipping pina colada at a beach.

She was curious to know her sister's reaction. Would she feel guilty? For passing her burden to her? Or relieved that she didn't have to face the consequences of her actions if the wedding had been cancelled.

Would she feel sorry and call Claire? Oh Claire definitely knew what was going to happen if Charlotte even dared to speak to her after the wedding, she knew the words she was going to say and she knew exactly how to make Charlotte regret running away.

" I can't breathe." Claire said as she gritted her teeth while the stylist fixed a crown on her head, she had added extensions to make Claire's hair look longer since the original style that she had in mind was much suited for long hair.

"I've done the best I could do. You're lucky you could even fit in the dress."

Claire sighed as she touched her cinched waist, she was afraid she was going to pass out from faintness.

"I think I'm going to pass out. It's so tight! And heavy!"

"You'll only wear it for a few hours, the church and a few pictures and then you'd get into your reception dress."Her mother said as she walked in and cooed.

"Oh! Darling, you look perfect, even better than I imagined!"

She said as she gently touched her arm. Claire flinched from her touch and moved away from her.

Her mother had also changed, donning a regal champagne gold dress with elegant beadings along the hem and the neckline of the dress, there was a fur shawl over her shoulders and she seemed to have a proud smile on her face as she admired her daughter.

Charlotte might have been the perfect sister, but during that moment, Claire was nothing short of perfect! The hair, the dress, her face and the way the makeup subtly but confidently brought out all her best features.

Claire looked breathtaking.

Claire turned to the mirror herself to see what the fuss was about after her veil had been fixed and she was surprised to see hersef. Shocked even! She let out a small gasp. She had never envisioned herself in a wedding dress, and even if she were to pick one, she would have never gone for a ballgown. It would have been on her list of wedding gowns to steer clear off if she ever considered being a bride because she thought it looked too poofy, and that was what she had always thought until she stood in front of the mirror in awe.

Maybe because the dress was about a size smaller it fitted Claire perfectly, the top part pf the dress seemed to fit her like a glove. Her hair was flawless and her veil was the logest veil that she had seen in a while, it was going to take some time to get used to it. Her makeup was subtle but beautiful, dark shadows in her eyeshadows accentuated her grey eyes while the highlighter brought out her full cheekbones.

"We have to work faster, everyone is already at the church. Is she ready?"

Her mother asked after receiving a call from the Laurents. The stylist looked unsure but nodded her head.

"All done."

She said as she still continued to fuss over Claire's hair.

Claire felt heavy, the dress was a full ivory lace ballgown with a nude lining and lace applique for the sleeves, it was a breathtaking dress, perfect except for the fact that it was a very heavy dress to wear. The skirt was full and the bottom of the dress had heavy beading and lace appliques. Claire was not used to it.

The next one hour, she did everything that she was told to do, she walked as gracefully as she could muster down the stairs for pictures and made her way to the car. Her bridesmaids were ready, Claire wasn't really familaiar with majority of them, they were all Char's friends and they didn't hide their pity as they watched Claire walk to the car.

At some point her mother handed her a bouquet and her father came to gush about how beautiful she looked and she barely replied to him.

It was all really happening, she was getting married.