เรื่องสั้นแนว Tragic Love Romance และนิยาย Male POV ในฉาก Ambiguous

My mother and sister never liked me. The only son they ever truly cared about was my older brother, Lucian Vieri. Before she married me, Serafina Valcieri, the only daughter of one of the most feared syndicates in the country, was always the one who stepped in when I was cornered, mocked, or blamed for things that were never mine to carry. She never said much. She just made people back off. Then she married me. Then, not long ago, Lucian shoved me off a ski slope. I said he meant to kill me. My mother called it an accident. My sister said he had only been trying to save me. Only Serafina believed me. When I woke up in the hospital, I heard voices outside the door. “Who told you to do it like that?” Serafina said, her voice low and cold. My mother answered in a panic. “Lucian’s leukemia can’t wait. If Cassian learns the baby isn’t his, everything falls apart.” Then Serafina said the words I still can’t forget. “I chose him, and I married him for my own reasons. But Lucian still needs this child. If anything had happened to Cassian, none of you would have walked away from it.” I stood there in silence, listening to every word. The child my wife was carrying was never mine. It had been conceived through IVF to save my brother. And the marriage I had trusted from the beginning had never belonged to me alone. I had spent my whole life coming second to Lucian. I just never thought Serafina would be the one to prove it. If no one truly wanted me, then I would leave.

The clock was ticking with twelve minutes left before the ceremony was supposed to begin. The wedding car that my bride, Teagan, and I sat in stopped at the curb. The church doors stood open a hundred yards away, ready for our arrival. My parents and relatives were gathered outside with the officiant, photographer, wedding coordinator, and the rest of the bridal party. The wedding coordinator’s voice came through my earpiece. “Parker, you’re clear to head in. We’re starting at 9 sharp.” I was about to tell the driver to go when the door of the groomsmen’s SUV behind us swung open. “Hold up. I forgot my tie.” That was enough to halt the entire procession. Teagan unbuckled her seat belt and stepped out. “Oh, no! It won’t look good in the picture if a groomsman is missing a tie.” Standing by the SUV, Luke looked at me with a smile. “Parker, have the driver wait a minute. I can’t show up at your wedding in a white and collar sticking out. I will make you look bad.” He then turned to Teagan. “Don’t I have a spare tie kept with you? Can you help me find it?” Teagan nodded and dumped her bouquet on me, just to dig through the bags at the back of the car. Silence gripped the air. My mother’s face went white. I held the bouquet, my eyes fixating on Teagan. “We’re going to be late for our wedding, Teagan. We can still make it if we go now.” Teagan frowned. “I’m already here anyway. What’s a few minutes?” As Teagan went on a mission to get Luke a tie, I broke into a smile. Turning around, I held my phone and texted a number I had almost forgotten. “Don’t you want to marry me? Be at the church at 9. I’ll be waiting for you.”

Claire was known for her strong sense of principle and her strict adherence to rules and punctuality. Everyone knew she never made exceptions for anyone. Yet, when it came to getting married, she had stood Mark up eight separate times. The first time was because her friend from college, Ryan, returned after eight years living abroad, and she had to pick him up at the airport. The second time, Ryan slightly burned his finger while cooking, so she abandoned Mark on their way to the city hall just to check Ryan was all right. The third time, Ryan’s son fell ill, and she rushed over in a panic to drive the kid to the hospital. Now, this was the eighth time. Once again, she was a no-show. All she gave Mark was a rushed phone call, saying, “I have an emergency. I’ll be late.” Mark watched as everyone who came after him got married until the clerk behind the window tapped on the glass. “Son, where’s your fiancée? We’re closing soon.” Just as he was about to dial her number again, a text from Claire popped up on his screen. [I can’t make it to the city hall this afternoon. Let’s do this another day.] As Mark read the message, an indescribable pang of sadness hit him. He was about to put his phone away and leave when a new Instagram feed update caught his eye. It was a post from Ryan uploaded just moments ago. In the photo, Ryan was beaming at the camera. Right next to him stood Claire, holding his son in her arms and gazing up at Ryan with tender affection. The caption read, “Leo wanted to spend the day at the amusement park. A big thank you to Claire for keeping us company the whole time!”

We finally made it to the County Clerk's Office with only fifteen minutes to spare before they stopped processing marriage licenses. Our friends were already gathered at the bottom of the steps, urging us to go inside. "Come on, get in there! After everything you two have been through, you finally made it in time for the eighth try!" My best friend, Ryan Chapman, had red-rimmed eyes as he reached over and straightened my tie for me. I was just about to walk inside when Chester Snyder, Melissa's childhood friend, suddenly spoke from the back seat. "Wait. My lucky bracelet broke. I need to fix it first." I stopped. Melissa stopped, too. "Okay. No rush." Chester lowered his head and began adjusting the bracelet, then looked up at me with a smile. "Don't worry, Zane. I will have it fixed in a minute. "I made these lucky bracelets especially for the two of you. They are supposed to bring good luck and help keep your marriage smooth." When he finished, he casually handed his phone to Melissa. "Can you hold this for me?" Melissa took it without a word. The chatter around us suddenly died. The friends who had been cheering us on moments ago exchanged uneasy looks. I looked at Melissa. "Melissa, the County Clerk's Office stops processing marriage licenses at five. "If we go in now, we will make it just in time." Melissa frowned and glanced at the time. "I'm already here. A few more minutes won't make a difference." I watched her stand beside the car, patiently waiting while Chester fixed his bracelet. Then, suddenly, I smiled. I lowered my head, took out my phone, and sent a message to a number I knew by heart. [You said that if the eighth attempt failed, you'd consider giving me a chance.] [Get to the County Clerk's Office before five.]