When My Right Ear Heard the Truth

I had just taken off my headphones when my fiancee, Seren Arden, stepped out of the room.

She stopped when she saw me. "When did you get here?"

I looked up at her. "Just now."

Ronan Holt came out behind her, wearing his usual easy grin. "Hey, Adrian. We were just messing around in there. You didn't happen to hear us, did you?"

He deliberately moved to my right side, where he knew I had trouble hearing.

Seren frowned and shot him a look. "Do you ever stop fooling around?"

Ronan shrugged. "My bad. I wasn't thinking. Can't blame me for forgetting Adrian's got a bad ear, though. I'll make sure I stand on his left next time."

A few of the bridesmaids and groomsmen nearby laughed.

I looked at Seren. There had been a time when anyone making a joke about my hearing would have wiped the smile straight off her face.

She used to tell me there was nothing shameful about not being able to hear properly. The people rude enough to mock me for it were the ones who should be embarrassed.

She simply took the sheet with our wedding vows from Ronan's hand and passed it to me. "Don't read too much into it. Ronan just doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut."

I took the page from her. It was covered in edits, whole lines crossed out and rewritten. I'd originally written, "Thank you for being my right ear all these years."

Ronan had changed it to, "Thank you for putting up with me all these years."

A few raindrops had soaked into the paper, blurring the ink along one edge.

Seren noticed and reached for it. "I'll have someone print you another copy."

I stepped back before she could take it. "Don't bother."

Her hand froze in midair.

"Adrian Corbett." The moment she used my full name, I knew she was annoyed.

Beside us, Ronan cleared his throat. "Yeah, that's on me. Guess I took the joke too far and stole your thunder."

He gave an awkward little laugh before adding, "It's your wedding, after all. I only came to help, and somehow I ended up making everything about me. Can't blame you for being pissed. My fault."

Something in his words seemed to remind Seren that we were still standing there in front of everyone. She walked over and took my hand. "Come on. It's pouring out there again. We should head back before it gets worse."

Her palm was cold against mine. But all I could think about was what I'd heard earlier.

"The invitations are already out. What am I supposed to do, call off the wedding now?"

So that was it. Seren wasn't marrying me because she wanted to. She was marrying me because backing out now would be too much of a mess.

I gently slipped my hand out of hers. "It's fine. I'll get back on my own."

Seren stared at her empty palm, her expression darkening. "What's wrong with you now?"

Now.

That one word landed harder than it should have. A faint ringing started in my ears.

Ronan stepped forward, lowering his voice. "I seriously didn't mean anything by it. Look, why don't I just apologize to him?"

Seren put out an arm to stop him. "Don't. Adrian isn't that petty."

Ronan raised an eyebrow at me. "See? She still can't stand to see me take the blame."

Seren quickly moved half a step away from him, a flicker of discomfort crossing her face. "Adrian, he's talking nonsense."

I nodded.

She kept looking at me, as if she were waiting for me to say something else.

I didn't. I simply folded the paper with my vows and slipped it into my pocket. "I'm heading out."

Seren stopped me. "The wedding is in three days. Can you please stop acting like this?"

My gaze dropped to the bracelet around her wrist. I'd given it to her for her birthday last year. Now the same bracelet hung from the hand blocking my way, and for some reason, it looked less like a gift and more like a shackle.

I looked back at her. "Seren, I'm tired."

Her frown deepened. "If you're tired, go home and get some sleep. Don't start acting up now of all times."

Ronan leaned out from behind her. "Hey, Adrian, there's a ton to rehearse before the wedding. If you're not feeling up to it, I can always fill in for you. I did a pretty decent job with the vows just now."

Someone laughed again. Seren didn't laugh this time. But she didn't tell him to stop, either.

I looked away from her and picked up my headphones.

Ronan must have knocked them earlier. One side of the adjustable headband had been jarred loose, and when I put them on, the right ear cup sat crooked. Wind slipped through the gap.

I stared at them for a couple of seconds. Then I adjusted them as best I could, covered my ears, and walked out into the rain.

Behind me, Seren's voice carried faintly through the downpour. "Enough with the sulking, Adrian. If you actually walk away from me today, don't expect me to come chasing after you again."

I stopped for a moment. Then I kept walking.