Betsy

The cold water cascaded down my body, relieving the pain in my muscles, but doing nothing for the pain in my heart.

I had just found out that my second brother's best friend, the boy I've been in love with for as long as I can remember, was finally getting married.

And the worst part? It's not just anyone. It's her. My bully from high school. Tears streamed down my face, mingling with the shower water.

Why does she always have to take everything I want? She took my friends away, she stole my life in high school with her constant teasing and insults, and now she's taking away the only man I've ever wanted.

I crouched down and wept silently. I felt like my heart couldn't take it anymore. I was so broken I wanted to disappear.

I stayed underwater running until I had no more tears left.

Finally I got up, turned off the tap, and wrapped a towel around my chest.

I walked slowly to my room and glanced around. There, carefully placed on the nightstand, was the invitation card with their names on it:

Oliver Saint

and

Aqua Reed

The image broke me again. Fresh tears streamed down my cheeks.

They say life doesn't always go as planned, and I learned that the hard way.

I shouldn't feel so devastated, as if I've lost something that was once mine. He never looked at me that way.

The only person he really saw was Aqua. Not me. Even when I was right in front of him, I was invisible.

To him, she was everything. And that truth made jealousy burn fiercely in my chest. Aqua never had to try; she got it effortlessly.

For me it was never that easy.

No matter how much care I took with my makeup or choosing my clothes, hoping he would notice me, nothing changed. To him, I was just one thing: his best friend Betsy's sister.

Not the Betsy who loved him silently for years.

Not the Betsy who filled pages of her diary with his name.

I don't want to go to her wedding. I don't want to see her in that white dress, sparkling with jewels, walking down the aisle to take his hand.

I don't want to hear him say his vows while he looks at her like she's his whole world. But who am I kidding? I have no choice.

I have to be there and see it all, even if it tears me apart, like the last two years of their relationship have slowly done.

This time I know it will finally break me.

If I don't go, people will ask questions. My older brother will tease me about it. He's always known I liked Oliver. When they started dating, he looked at me with concern, though when we were alone he joked about it like brothers do.

But it was never funny to me. It hurt like salt in an open wound.

What's more, Oliver handed me the invitation in person. He looked me straight in the eye with that bright smile and said, "Here, this is good news." I took the envelope, and the second I read the names, my heart pounded so hard I was sure he could hear it.

My eyes burned with tears that I refused to let fall, but I forced a huge smile, one of those that squeezes your eyes almost shut. “Wow! Congratulations. You’re getting married,” I managed to say, even though inside I wanted to scream.

He nodded, proudly. “I wanted you to be one of the bridesmaids, but Aqua said the spots were already taken,” he added, sounding a little embarrassed.

Honestly, I was relieved. Standing next to her as a bridesmaid would have been unbearable.

I swallowed hard. I couldn't stay in that moment for even a second longer. "No problem," I said, the words coming out slurred.

He smiled again. “Thank you, Bet. I’ll be waiting for you.”

When he walked away, my lips trembled. I had to bite them to keep from calling him, to keep from begging him not to marry her, to keep from confessing that I loved him.

But I didn't.

As soon as she left, the tears I had been holding back overflowed and I collapsed silently.

I had dreaded this day for so long, and now it was real.

And here I was, wrapped only in a towel, broken by a man who was never mine.

The day finally arrived.

I kept my makeup light, just enough to look put together and conceal the redness around my eyes. My hair was already styled; all that was left was to put on the green dress.

A soft knock sounded on my door. I turned around. “Yes, come in.”

The door opened and Barnes, my older brother, walked in.

He looked elegant in his black tuxedo, his hair neatly combed back. His green eyes gently observed me before he moved further into the room.

A small smile appeared on her lips. “You know, if you don’t want to go, you can stay home,” she said quietly. “I’ll tell them you’re not feeling well.”

I shook my head immediately.

What would be the point of not going? They'd get married anyway. Hiding behind an excuse would only make me feel like a coward, and I hated that idea more than facing the pain.

“I’m fine, really,” I said, trying to smile.

He nodded, his gaze still fixed on me. “Hey,” he murmured, coming closer to wrap me in a warm, tight hug.

My lips trembled against his shoulder. His kindness almost broke my composure again.

“There are plenty of men out there,” she said softly, nuzzling my hair. “One day you’ll fall in love with someone else.”

But he didn't understand.

I didn't want "someone else."

She wanted Oliver. Only him.

And deep down, she wasn't sure she would ever feel that way about someone else again.

When he pulled away from the hug, I gave him a small smile. Barnes gently held my face in his hands.

“I’ll be waiting for you outside,” he said. “We’re almost late.”

I nodded as I left the room.

I turned my gaze back to the mirror, to my own reflection. I didn't look like someone going to a wedding, but someone heading to a funeral.

But perhaps that was for the right thing to do. Today she would finally bury the feelings she had for him, the day she would be with someone else.

I truly hope I can do it, bury my love for the only man I've ever truly loved.