I always thought the week before my wedding would feel magical, likea movie where the bride floats through her days glowing.
In reality, it felt like I was drowning under a hundred lists, unanswered emails, and calls from people who thought my schedule was theirs.
I loved Daniel deeply, but with the wedding in just seven days, I was running on coffee and panic. My phone never stopped buzzing, and neither did my thoughts.
“Have you invited everyone?” Mom asked for the third time that morning.
“Yes, Mom,” I sighed, opening the guest list again.
“What about Mary Wilson?” she pressed.
I scrolled and froze. Somehow, I’d missed her. My stomach tightened as I added the name, already imagining the drama if Mom found out at the reception.
Barely five minutes later, Daniel’s mother called, her voice sharp as she went through the budget line by line.
“Do you really need this photographer? And that cake? Couldn’t you find something cheaper?” she asked.
“Daniel’s paying for it all, not you,” I reminded her gently, though my jaw was tight.
“That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be careful,” she replied before hanging up.
By the time Daniel came home, my eyes burned from staring at spreadsheets.
“I’m exhausted,” I told him, rubbing my temples. “I feel like I’m failing before it even starts.”
“Oh, come on, how hard can it be?” Daniel replied.
“Well, you’re not organizing a single thing,” I shot back.
He kissed my forehead and smiled. “We agreed, remember? I pay for everything, you handle the planning.”
“But you don’t seem worried at all,” I said.
“I love you, and I’m sure about my choice,” Daniel answered softly. “So why would I worry?”
I wanted to argue, but instead, I leaned into him, resting my head on his shoulder, letting his calm wash over me for a moment. Then the doorbell rang, making both of us jump.
“Who could that be at this hour?” Daniel asked, glancing at the clock, it was almost 10 p.m.
“I’ll get it,” I said, heading to the door. The porch light revealed Lily standing there, holding two suitcases and a tote bag, her oversized sweatshirt stretched over a rounded belly.
“Lily… you’re pregnant?” I blurted out. I hadn’t even known she was seeing anyone.
She brushed past me into the hallway. “I need a place to stay. Got kicked out. And you’re my sister, so you can’t say no.”
I glanced at her bags. “You’re just… moving in? Tonight?”
“Yes. Where’s my room?” she asked.
I led her to the guest room, handed her clean sheets and towels. “We’ll talk tomorrow about… everything,” I said quietly. She nodded without meeting my eyes, dropping her bag with a thud.
When I went back to our bedroom, Daniel was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed.“She can’t stay here,” he said flatly.
“She’s my sister, Daniel. I’m not throwing her out in the middle of the night,” I replied.
He shook his head. “You don’t know how long she’ll be here. And she’s pregnant. This isn’t the time to bring more chaos into the house.”
“She has nowhere else to go,” I argued, my chest tightening. “What do you expect me to do, tell her to sleep in her car?”
“I expect you to think about us,” he shot back. “Our week. Our wedding.”
His jaw clenched. “This is a bad idea, and you’ll see I’m right.”
We climbed into bed without another word, the silence between us heavier than the blankets.
As I stared at the ceiling, I couldn’t help thinking how Daniel and Lily had never liked each other, and now, with her under our roof, that tension was bound to get worse.
Daniel had left for work before I even woke up. The coffee machine was clean, the front door chain unlatched, and his side of the bed was cold.
I stood in the hallway for a moment, listening. The house was silent except for the faint hum of the fridge.
Lily was still in bed, so I knocked on her door and told her to come down to the kitchen.
She shuffled in a few minutes later, hair a mess, clutching her phone like it was glued to her hand. “What’s so urgent?” she mumbled, dropping into a chair.
“We need to talk,” I said, setting a glass of water in front of her. “Why don’t you have a place to live?”
Lily sighed, staring at the table. “I got fired when they found out I was pregnant. I couldn’t pay rent. My landlord threw me out.”
I glanced at her belly, then back at her face. “Do you even know who the father is?”
She hesitated, then shrugged. “No. And before you start, I don’t need a lecture.”
I rubbed my forehead. “Lily, I’m already stressed about the wedding. I can’t handle another crisis.”
“I’ll try not to cause problems,” she said quickly. “I’ll help out where I can.”
I nodded, though I wasn’t convinced. Grabbing my bag, I headed for the door. “I have to go to work. Text me if you need anything.”
“Yeah, sure,” she muttered, already scrolling through her phone again.
When I came home that evening, I heard voices from the living room, sharp, low, and tense. I froze just outside the doorway.
“Why should I give you money?” Daniel demanded.
“You know why,” Lily shot back, her tone icy.
“I can’t be sure about that,” he replied.
There was a pause, then the sound of movement. Lily must have seen me in the doorway, because she bumped Daniel’s arm. His eyes flicked to mine, and his expression flattened.
“What’s going on?” I asked, stepping inside.
“Nothing,” Daniel said too quickly.
“Just a misunderstanding,” Lily added, her smile forced.
I stared at them, suspicion creeping in, but neither of them offered more.
They had never liked each other, so I told myself this was just another clash between them. Still, something about the way they both avoided my eyes made my stomach knot.
The closer it got to the wedding, the more restless I became. My stomach twisted over seating charts, late deliveries, and the uneasy tension between Daniel and Lily.
She had promised not to cause problems, but instead, she left her clothes draped over furniture, ate the meals I’d prepped for work, and spent hours in front of the TV.
I bit my tongue, reminding myself that stress wasn’t good for a pregnant woman, but it was wearing me thin.
Two days before the ceremony, I logged into our honeymoon account to transfer the funds onto a travel card.
My breath caught. The balance was zero. I scrolled through the statement and saw a single withdrawal for the exact amount we’d saved.
My mind flashed back to that tense conversation I’d overheard between Daniel and Lily.
She had gone out to meet a friend, so I went into the guest room, my hands clammy.
I told myself I was just looking for an explanation, but under her pillow, I found a folded check stub with Daniel’s name and the exact amount from our account.
Next to it was a white envelope from a medical lab. The sight of it made my pulse race. In that moment, I knew exactly what was going on, even if I didn’t have the full picture yet.
That evening, I called both of them into the kitchen. Daniel leaned against the counter with his arms folded, while Lily slouched in a chair, her expression bored, like I’d interrupted something she didn’t care about.
“I know what’s going on,” I said, my voice steady but cold. “And I’m done being treated like a fool.”
Daniel frowned. “What are you talking about?”
Lily crossed her arms, her eyes darting between me and Daniel. “Why don’t you just spit it out?” she said, her voice dripping with challenge.
I turned my gaze back to Daniel. “Our honeymoon fund is gone, and I know you gave the money to her,” I said, each word measured.
Daniel’s jaw tightened, but before he could answer, Lily leaned forward. “You really want to know why he did it?” she asked.
I kept my eyes on her. “Go ahead. Enlighten me.”
She hesitated for a second, then lifted her chin. “Because he’s not just your fiancé — he’s the father of my baby.”
“Lily, shut up!” Daniel snapped, his face turning red.
“It’s true!” she shot back. “We had a short fling seven months ago, and he owes it to me and this child to be here for us.”
“You think this is the way to do it?” I hissed, my hands gripping the edge of the table. “Moving into my house, draining our savings, and then dropping this on me like a bomb?”
Lily’s voice rose. “I didn’t plan for it to happen this way! But I deserve help!”
I stepped between them, my pulse pounding. “Enough. Both of you.”
Daniel turned to me, his voice rising. “You don’t understand, I only gave her the money because—”
“Oh, I understand,” I cut him off, my eyes locked on his. “I understand exactly why you did it. And I can prove you’ve both been lying to me.”
I pulled the envelope from my pocket and placed it on the table. “You want to keep going with your story? Fine. But this says otherwise.”
Lily’s face drained of color. “What is that?”
“It’s a DNA test. I found it in your room,” I said evenly. “And it proves Daniel isn’t the father.”
Daniel exhaled sharply, shaking his head. “So you’ve been playing me this whole time?”
Lily’s voice cracked as she shouted, “I just wanted some security! I thought—”
“Enough!” I shouted, the words echoing in the kitchen. “Get out. Both of you. This is my house, and I’m done.”
They both started to protest, but I didn’t listen. I walked to the door, opened it, and waited.
Daniel followed, hands raised. “Can we please calm down and talk about this? This doesn’t have to blow up like—”
“It already has!” I interrupted, my hands trembling. “You let her move in here, knowing what you’d done, and you still planned to marry me. Was I just supposed to walk down the aisle, clueless?”
“That’s not fair,” Daniel said through clenched teeth. “I was trying to protect you.”
“Protect me?” I laughed bitterly. “From the truth? From finding out my fiancé and my sister slept together? Now get out. I don’t want to see either of you in this house again.”
On the porch, Daniel tried one last time. “Do you have any idea how much I’ve spent on this wedding?”
“I don’t care,” I said, sliding the ring off my finger and tossing it into his hand. “Take it and get out of my life.”
I closed the door before he could answer, leaning against it until I heard their footsteps fade.
My chest was tight, but I knew I’d made the only right choice. I was choosing myself.