Chapter 2

That night, my phone buzzed again and again. Someone had added me to a group chat called 'Ellis & Alyssa Wedding Planning.'

The messages popped up one after another.

Ellis: [Since you've finally come around, stay and help plan the wedding. As for how immature you were before, your sister and I won't hold it against you.]

Alyssa: [Lena's in the group! I'm so happy you're here. Come with me to try on wedding dresses in a couple of days, okay? I'll only feel at ease if you're there to see me get married.]

Tamara Fairley: [Glad you've finally come around. Give them your blessing and stop being so stubborn.]

Dad: [Agreed.]

Kevin: [Agreed as well.]

My fingertips went cold.

Tamara had been my best friend for nearly 12 years.

Mom, Dad, and Kevin were all in the group too. I was the only one who had been kept in the dark the entire time.

When I scrolled up through the chat history, it was all of them eagerly going over plans and picking out venues. The wedding ideas Ellis had once brushed off as "too much trouble" had been used for Alyssa's wedding, down to the last detail.

I had spent two weeks begging him to make a short video for our ten-year anniversary, and he had kept saying he was too busy with work. Yet right at the top of the group album sat an eight-year anniversary video for Alyssa that he had edited himself.

The love I had held on to for ten years had long since been hollowed out by the affair they had hidden for eight.

If they knew my memory had come back, would this whole charade they were putting on suddenly seem absurd to them?

Two days later, I went to the bridal shop at the address they had sent.

The moment I pushed open the door, my breath caught.

Alyssa stood in front of the full-length mirror in a champagne gown, its long train spread across the floor and shimmering in the light.

"Isn't it gorgeous? Ellis had to ask around everywhere to get this from overseas. It's a discontinued design."

She lifted her skirt and turned halfway around, smiling from ear to ear.

A dull ache spread through my chest.

When I was 20, I had fallen for this exact dress the moment I saw it. Ellis had pinched my cheek and laughed. "When we get it tailored, we'll have our initials embroidered on the train, okay?"

Later, he told me with apparent regret that the brand had discontinued it and it could not be found anywhere in the world.

It turned out it had never been impossible to find. I just had not been worth it.

"Here's the bridesmaid dress I picked out for you." Alyssa pulled a pale gray off-the-shoulder tulle dress from the rack and held it out to me. "Go try it on. It'll look great on you."

I stared at the bare shoulder line and frowned. "I'm not wearing this."

"Lena, don't be difficult."

Ellis walked over, his voice turning cold. "Today is Alyssa's big day. Don't ruin it for everyone."

I met his gaze. "And if I refuse?"

He scoffed, then leaned in close to my ear and lowered his voice. "You think you get a choice?

"You lost your memory, so you probably don't remember how desperately you threw yourself at me. You gave me your grandmother's heirlooms, and most of your assets are under my management too.

"Unless you behave and stay with your sister and me, you have nowhere left to go."

I looked at him steadily as the last trace of warmth drained from my eyes.

The trust I had once given him had become his leverage against me.

He was so certain I would forget everything from this period once I recovered that he did not bother to hide a thing. He had no restraint at all.

He knew perfectly well that I had a long knife scar across my shoulder. I had gotten it years ago while saving Tamara, when her ex-boyfriend swung a knife at her and cut me instead. Since then, I had never worn anything that showed my shoulders.

Alyssa knew about it. Tamara knew about it, and so did he.

Ellis shoved the bridesmaid dress into my arms with a force that left no room for refusal. "Besides, did you forget? Your mom is still lying in a hospital bed because she saved you."

The words drove into my heart like a freshly sharpened blade.

He was reminding me that Mom had been hurt in my place, and that I had no right to tell him no.

Tamara came over with an armful of white roses and smoothed things over with a smile. "Exactly. You two are sisters. Being there for Alyssa on her wedding day would mean so much."

The cloying scent of pollen hit me, and my throat tightened until even breathing hurt.

In college, an allergic reaction to white roses had landed me in the ER. Ellis had stayed by my side the whole night and promised there would never be white roses anywhere near him again.

Now he stood right beside the bouquet with eyes only for Alyssa's beaming smile, without a single thought for my allergy.

For one absurd moment, I actually wished I had really lost my memory. At least then I would not have to endure this fully aware, forced to watch them grind ten years of my love into dust.

I said nothing, picked up the bridesmaid dress, and went into the fitting room.

Just as I expected, it did not fit. The straps hung loose and kept slipping down, exposing the scar. I tugged at it in front of the mirror for ages, but I still could not cover it.

When I pulled back the curtain and stepped out, no one looked up.

Everyone was gathered around Alyssa.

Dad told her she looked beautiful, Kevin praised her taste, and Tamara kept snapping photos. Even Mom, stuck in her hospital room, still made sure to like the photos.

Ellis stood beside her with his head bent, pinning on her veil. His fingers were gentle, and his gaze was full of affection.

I stood in the corner with my arms crossed, looking at my reflection in the full-length mirror. I looked like a clown who had wandered onto the wrong set, someone who did not belong there at all.

While no one was paying attention, I messaged a lawyer I knew well and asked him to handle the assets in my name. Then I booked a flight abroad for the following week.

It was time for this show to end. I was done playing along.