He Forgot Our Wedding, So I Walked Away Forever

My boyfriend was used to living alone, and more often than not, he simply forgot I existed.

When the concert tickets went on sale, he bought exactly one.

I'm sorry. I'll go by myself this time. We'll go together next time, I promise.

Halfway through a trip, he vanished without a word.

I'm sorry. I suddenly felt like heading south to see the ocean, and I forgot you were even here. I'll make it up to you next time, I swear.

I kept making excuses for him. Oscar Weiss was an orphan. He'd lived alone for over twenty years.

Having someone suddenly in his life was bound to take some getting used to.

Then came the day of our wedding photo shoot, when he forgot me all over again and walked out the door without me.

"Lucille Simmons, I'm sorry. Let's reschedule the photos for another time."

By the time I read his text, I was already standing at the bridal photo studio.

I watched, frozen, as Oscar tucked his phone away and walked toward a woman in a wedding gown. Gwyneth Pruitt.

Gwyneth wore a wicked little grin.

"Did my dear best friend fall for your lies again?"

Something mocking flickered across Oscar's face.

"What lies? I'm just used to being alone. I forgot I had a girlfriend, that's all."

That was the moment it finally hit me.

Every single time Oscar had "forgotten" me, it had been a betrayal.

Fine. If he loved forgetting me so much.

Then I'd give him exactly what he wanted, and disappear from his world completely.

I turned to leave, fighting back tears, only to have a staff member step into my path.

"You must be the temp Chen sent over to help, right? Just call me Anne James while you're here."

She shoved a light reflector into my hands.

When I just stood there, dazed.

She pushed me off to the side of Oscar and Gwyneth.

"Hurry up and hold that reflector. Get in position. We've got a tight schedule today, so let's move."

Oscar's gaze settled on me.

His brow furrowed, and he came striding straight toward me.

"You"

My heart slammed against my ribs, and without thinking, I felt a guilty urge to run.

Even though I wasn't the one in the wrong.

Just as I braced for him to recognize me, he suddenly thrust out a hand and shoved me backward.

"What is wrong with you? Can't you tell you're stepping on the gown?"

I landed hard on the floor, the impact knocking a sharp hiss out of me.

But he just crouched down, dabbing carefully at the black scuff on the gown with a wet wipe.

"Do you have any idea what this dress is worth? Could you even afford to replace it if you ruined it?"

I looked at the gown on Gwyneth's body, and a coppery sweetness rose in my throat.

That antique wedding gown was a gift my grandmother had left behind.

My grandmother had worn it at her wedding, and so had my mother. It meant the world to me.

And Gwyneth, the girl I'd grown up with since childhood, was tilting her head and smiling at me.

"So sorry. My fianc just loves me so much that he gets a little protective. He didn't scare you, did he?"

Anne hurried over to apologize on my behalf.

"I'm so sorry. The girl's just a temp we called in last minute. She didn't mean it."

Only then did I notice that the baseball cap and mask I had on matched the studio staff's exactly.

No wonder they'd mistaken me for one of them.

I should have walked away. Instead, as if in a trance, I raised the reflector.

And watched Oscar and Gwyneth strike one intimate pose after another, right in front of me.

The tears spilled out before I could stop them.

Everyone assumed I was moved by the happiness of the couple.

The makeup artist standing beside me sighed.

"Mr. Weiss really is a wonderful husband. He had every inch of this set arranged by his own people. He said he wanted to give his wife the most beautiful photos possible."

My hand froze around the reflector.

This set was something I had designed myself, three days and three nights of work to put it together.

To commemorate the eight long years Oscar and I had spent in love.

During a break in the shoot, I stood with my head bowed, trying to pull myself together.

Then Oscar pointed at me.

"Hey, you. My fiance's ankles are aching from these heels. Give them a rub."

The words had barely left his mouth.

Gwyneth's foot was already resting on my leg.

She reached down and swept the skirt aside. The tip of one long, manicured nail snagged on the lace trim of the hem.

With an impatient jerk, she yanked it free, and the lace tore clean through.

My breath caught, and I shot to my feet.

Gwyneth went sprawling flat on her back, the pain bringing instant tears to her eyes.

"Oscar..."

Oscar's face darkened in an instant.

"You crazy woman!"

His palm cracked across my cheek. The mask flew off my face, and a smear of red bloomed at the corner of my lip.

My face was bare to the air.

"Lucille?"

Gwyneth clapped a hand over her mouth and gasped.

Panic flickered across Oscar's face for only a heartbeat before his brow snapped into a frown.

"Lucille Simmons, you followed me here all along. Why didn't you just show yourself?

"So you disguised yourself as staff just to watch me make a fool of myself?"

I wiped the red from the corner of my mouth.

A bitter laugh escaped me.

Twisting the blame onto me. It was a move he never tired of pulling.

Every time I caught him doing something wrong, he'd find some way to dig up a fault in me instead.

I used to think my patience could hold this relationship together.

But now I could see it plainly. His heart had been given to someone else long ago.

"Oscar, since you and Gwyneth already finished your wedding photos, congratulations. I wish you a happy marriage."

With that, I turned to leave.

Gwyneth chased after me and caught my hand.

"Lucille, you've got it all wrong."

She bit her lip, her glistening eyes the very picture of fragile innocence.

"I really was just passing by. I saw that Oscar had forgotten about you again, and I only wanted to help the two of you."

"These photos will all be edited afterward to put your face in."

Oscar stepped up beside her.

"Gwyneth is the best friend you've known since childhood. You're the one who introduced us in the first place. Surely you wouldn't suspect her?"

His eyes raked over my figure, a barely concealed distaste threading through his voice.

"And really, take a look at yourself. You think a body like that could even squeeze into a wedding gown?"

"She was kind enough to help you out, and instead of saying thank you, you deliberately got back at her and shoved her to the floor."

Oscar's gaze settled on Gwyneth, soft with concern.

My heart gave a sudden lurch, and the pain of it felt sharp and real.

Oscar knew. He knew perfectly well.

This past year I'd put on twenty pounds on purpose, so I could donate bone marrow for him.

And yet he was holding Gwyneth's figure up against mine, humiliating me in front of all these people.

I let out a cold laugh.

"Should I be thanking her too, for kissing and clinging all over my fianc?"

"Take all the time you want with the photos. I won't be sticking around."

Gwyneth's face went pale.

"Lucille, aren't these just the standard poses for a wedding shoot? Don't think so lowly of us."

I wrenched my hand out of Gwyneth's grip and said, each word deliberate and clear.

"Our friendship ends right here."

Gwyneth's tears fell the moment I finished speaking.

I didn't soften. I turned on my heel and walked toward the exit.

"Gwyneth, ignore her."

Oscar reached out to stop her.

"I'd like to see how long she can keep up this tough act. Sooner or later she'll come crawling back, begging me to make up."

When I heard that, my steps only quickened.

It was the middle of the night before Oscar finally came home.

He carried a takeout container in his hand.

"You went the whole day without eating again, didn't you? I went out of my way to bring you seafood porridge. Hurry up and have some while it's hot."

I sat on the couch and didn't move.

An hour ago, Gwyneth had updated her social media feed.

"He said I worked so hard being the bride today, so he wanted to spoil me."

The photo with it was the two of them together.

Oscar was flashing a peace sign, his hands wrapped in gloves slick with red chili oil, and the bowl in front of Gwyneth was piled high with crawfish, all peeled and ready.

But in eight years, he had never once peeled crawfish for me.

He'd said, "Lucille, these are a pianist's hands. They're not for menial work."

Listening to the water running in the bathroom, I picked up my phone and sent a message to my boss.

"Mr. Gilbert, I've thought it over about the overseas posting to France. I'll take it."

I shut off the screen.

I got up, walked to the dining table, and lifted the lid off the bowl of porridge.

A few cabbage leaves floated in the golden broth. Every last piece of fresh shrimp and abalone was gone.

I let out a small, bitter laugh.

What was I still hoping for?

Gwyneth watched her figure. Whenever she had porridge, she only ate the seafood out of it.

This bowl was obviously her leftovers.

Oscar came out of his shower, saw the porridge on the table untouched, and immediately shouted toward me in the bedroom.

"Lucille, what are you sulking about now?"

I ignored him and packed my clothes and belongings into the suitcase, one piece at a time.

A loud slam.

He stormed into the study and shut the door.

Every time we fought, he moved into the study and froze me out.

Waiting for me to back down and come make peace.

But this time, once I finished packing, I lay down on the bed and closed my eyes.

This love, where the feeling only ran one way, I didn't want it anymore.

Early the next morning, I woke to the noise coming from the living room.

I got dressed and stepped out of the bedroom.

Gwyneth was holding out the wedding gown, freshly dry-cleaned.

"Lucille, I already took the gown to the shop and had it cleaned, and I fixed the torn lace too."

I unzipped the garment bag.

The whole gown had been altered top to bottom. There was nothing left of what it used to be.

Seeing my face fall, she explained sweetly.

"The cut of this gown was so dated, but lucky for you, your best friend's a designer. I redid it for you in the trendiest style there is right now."

"Try it on and see if it fits. Anything that's off, I'll fix it again."

I was shaking with rage. My palm cut an arc through the air.

"Gwyneth! You did this on purpose!"

"You knew exactly what this gown meant to me, and you destroyed it!"

I put everything I had into that slap.

Gwyneth's head snapped to the side.

"Lucille! Are you out of your mind?"

Oscar rushed over and rammed me aside with his shoulder.

"Gwyneth stayed up all night fixing your gown. Forget being grateful, how could you raise a hand to her?"

"Look at yourself in the mirror. You're acting like a shrew!"

Once Gwyneth got her bearings, she trembled and cried.

"Oscar, my face hurts so much. Is it scarred"

"I'm taking you to the hospital."

Oscar scooped her up in his arms, grabbed the car keys, and went out the door.

I pulled down my collar.

Looking at my reddened shoulder, I suddenly felt at peace.

"Oscar, let's break up."

His steps faltered. He didn't turn around, and his back disappeared through the doorway.

I knew Oscar heard it.

Whether he took it seriously, or thought I was just throwing a tantrum, none of that mattered anymore.

Falling in love takes two people agreeing.

But breaking up, one is enough.

After I packed up everything in the house I couldn't take and dumped it in the trash, I rolled my suitcase to the door and took one last look at the home where I'd lived for five years.

The first day we bought this place, Oscar lifted me into the air and spun me in circles, giddy with joy.

"Lucille, I finally have a home. A home that belongs to us."

"Thank you for always staying by my side. I swear I'll make you the happiest woman in the world."

Five short years, and everything had changed except the walls.

I wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes and pulled the door shut.

Goodbye, Oscar.

I'd just reached the bottom of the stairs when I ran straight into Oscar and Gwyneth coming home.

Oscar's eyes dropped to the suitcase in my hand, cold as a blade of ice.

"Lucille, so it really was you!"

"You posted that video of us fighting during the wedding shoot online to smear Gwyneth as the other woman, and now you're actually trying to run?"

Gwyneth dropped to her knees in front of me with a thud.

"Lucille, please, I'm begging you, let me go. People online are tearing me apart. They dug up my studio's information and they're harassing my clients."

"Every client I have is canceling their orders. That's over a million dollars I can't afford to pay back"

"I'm not the one who did the online stuff."

I looked at the fake tears welling in Gwyneth's eyes, my face blank.

"But isn't every word of it true?"

With that, I rolled my suitcase past them and walked away.

Oscar helped Gwyneth up and hurled a vicious line at my back.

"Lucille, you can't run from this! I'll make you regret it!"

I flagged down a car at the curb and headed straight for the airport.

In two hours, I'd say goodbye to everything in this country for good.

I was about to pass through security when two officers stopped me.

"Lucille Simmons, you assaulted Ms. Gwyneth Pruitt. The examination confirms your actions caused her injury. You'll need to come with us."

I opened my mouth to explain.

Oscar came toward me through the crowd, a sneer hooked at the corner of his mouth.

"Lucille, I told you. You can't run."

Gwyneth hid behind him, her face twisted into something pained and apologetic.

"Lucille, I'm sorry. I couldn't stop Oscar. He insisted on getting justice for me"

I drew in a deep breath.

I texted HR at the company that I'd need to rebook my flight.

In the interrogation room.

Oscar spoke first.

"All you have to do is go online and publicly clarify that yesterday was a misunderstanding. That you personally asked Gwyneth to take the photos for you, that you were jealous of her, and that's why you caused a scene."

I shook my head.

"No."

Oscar's brow furrowed, and he let out a cold scoff.

"If you refuse, you'll sit in custody for ten full days. Don't forget, our wedding is in seven days. Or do you want Gwyneth to walk down the aisle in your place?"

I laughed out loud.

"Isn't that exactly what the two of you want?"

Gwyneth turned her face away, her shoulders trembling faintly.

"Lucille, we grew up together. Is this really the kind of person you think I am?"

I nodded.

"Yes."

Gwyneth covered her face and ran out crying.

Oscar's eyes went frantic. He shot to his feet and chased after her.

At the door he still couldn't resist turning back to leave me with one last threat.

"Lucille, keep running your mouth if you've got the nerve. I don't mind swapping in a new bride at the wedding!"

But I never expected that two hours later, Gwyneth would come to see me alone.

There was a triumphant glint in her eyes.

"Lucille, do you know when Oscar and I started? The very day you introduced us."

That was the first month after Oscar and I made things official.

"At first, when he forgot about you now and then, it really was a coincidence."

"Every time you complained to me about him, I'd arrange a 'chance encounter' and slip into your place. He started out resisting it, and little by little, he came to enjoy it."

"And after that, he'd ditch you on purpose every time, just so the two of us could be alone together."

"Even this wedding shoot? We planned the whole thing ages ago."

"Oscar said the only thing he couldn't give me was a wedding. Everything else, though, was mine for the taking."

My face stayed blank, but inside, everything churned like a storm tearing loose.

"Why are you telling me all this?"

She gave me a radiant smile.

"Lucille, I just want you to face the truth. The one Oscar loves is me. Not you."

"Everything he gave you, the wedding he promised you, it was all guilt. Nothing more."

"I know your company is transferring you to France."

"As long as you promise never to come between Oscar and me again, I'll sign the release and let you walk."

I was quiet for a moment, then nodded.

"Fine."

Gwyneth drove me to the airport herself and watched me board the plane.

Not until the moment the wheels left the ground did the unease in her chest finally settle.

Over the next six days, Oscar threw every resource and connection he had into cleaning up the story circling online about Gwyneth.

The two of them ate and slept inside her studio, losing all sense of day and night.

Then, in the small hours of the seventh day.

Oscar jolted awake to the sudden ring of his phone.

"Mr. Weiss, the makeup artist has been waiting at your front door for half an hour. No one's answering, and we can't reach Ms. Simmons either."

"Is the wedding still happening today? Or have you made other arrangements?"

His foggy mind snapped clear.

Only then did he remember that Lucille was still locked up in custody.

"The wedding goes ahead. Push everything back two hours."

He hung up and drove straight to the police station to get her.

Irritation prickled at him as he went. He hadn't expected her to dig in this stubbornly.

But when he reached the station, he froze.

"Lucille Simmons? She was released seven days ago."