Two Brides, One Groom

Tomorrow is my wedding day. I spent three months decorating the new bridal room, personally handling every detail. I bent down to straighten the last bottle of champagne roses, imagining the warmth of him holding my hand as we walk down the red carpet tomorrow. The moment I pushed open the master bedroom door, all my hopes came crashing down. My fiancé, Henry Drew, was leaning against the headboard. My sister, Lorna Sudworth, was straddling his lap, her arms wrapped tightly around him. The wedding bed, which should have been neatly made, was in complete disarray. Lorna heard the noise and slowly lifted her head, a taunting smirk playing at the corner of her lips. "Jennifer, why are you here at this time?" Her voice was sultry, but her nails scraped along Henry's collarbone. Her hand remained hooked around his neck, not loosening an inch. Blood shot straight to my head, reason drowned by a tide of anger. I lost control and lunged forward, my palm slicing through the air to slap her face. "You bi*ch!" I screamed hoarsely, my eyes burning as if on fire. With a sharp smack, Lorna's cheek instantly blossomed with five red finger marks. She screamed, shrinking into Henry's arms as tears spilled uncontrollably. Henry suddenly raised his hand, his elbow driving hard into my chest. The force was staggering, and I stumbled backward, my back slamming painfully against the wardrobe door. "Jennifer, don't be rash!" he said, shielding Lorna. "She's young, hormones are raging—it wasn't intentional!" Coughing and clutching my chest, I looked at him in complete disbelief. "She's young—are you young, too?" My voice cracked, thick with anger and tears. Hurried footsteps echoed down the hall as my parents rushed in. Mom pushed the door open, her face instantly draining of color at the scene before her. She covered her mouth, tears streaming down: "How could this happen...?" Lorna yanked herself free from Henry's arms and crashed into Dad's embrace. Her shoulders shook as she cried, tears blurring her face. "Dad, Henry and I really love each other," she choked out, but her fingers sneaked a pointed jab in my direction. "You've always favored Jennifer, giving her the best of everything; we had no choice but to..." Twisting the truth and saying it with such confidence. Dad frowned, his eyes darting between me and Lorna. He noticed Lorna's flushed cheeks, then looked at my clenched fists. He finally let out a heavy sigh: "Jennifer, things have come to this. You need to calm down first." Calm down? The most important and happiest day of my life has been torn to pieces by her—how am I supposed to calm down? Henry helped Lorna to her feet and buttoned up his shirt. There wasn't a hint of guilt in his eyes: "Jennifer, I'm sorry. I'll give you a reasonable explanation for this." Lorna walked up to him, and the two of them left the carefully decorated new bridal room hand in hand, without looking back. The moment the door slammed shut, I couldn't hold it together any longer and collapsed onto the floor, surrounded by scattered rose petals. Then I slowly stood up and moved toward the wall. That huge wedding photo hung there, Henry's gentle smile frozen in place. I turned around, grabbed the fruit knife from the table, and slashed viciously at his smiling face in the photo. Again and again. The wedding photo shattered, its spiderweb cracks mirroring my broken heart.