Chapter 5
I turned my head and gently pushed him away.
“Felix… I don’t feel good. I don’t want to.”
The tension in his body was immediate. He froze, like I’d just pulled the bowstring back and snapped it before it could fire.
For a moment, he just stared at me–searching for something in my face.
Then, after a long pause, he let out a sigh and pulled me into his arms, his hand settling softly over my stomach
“Still hurting?” he asked, rubbing slow circles like he actually cared.
I didn’t nod.
I didn’t shake my head either.
He kissed the top of my hair
“Alright, sirtight. I’m gonna take a quick shower, then I’ll make you something for dinner.”
His phone kept lighting up beside the bed, one notification after another.
When he disappeared into the bathroom, I reached for it,
The passcode hadn’t changed.
Her messages were the first to appear.
[Felix, did you sent the invite? I’m waiting
[My interview went great! I start at your company tomorrow–hope I get to see you lots. I’ll bring lunch too, handmade with love ]
I set the phone down gently, not even blinking, and opened my wedding prep journal.
[Mating Ceremony Countdown: 19 Days
I tried on gowns with Felix today, but nothing fit–probably because I’ve been shedding weight from all the stress or maybe this crazy love. Still, just picturing myself as his bride lights me up, and I’m pretty sure he feels the same… right?]
I flipped back a few pages, filling in the blanks I’d left behind.
[Countdown: 30 Days
Felix disappeared. I couldn’t find him anywhere. I stayed up all night staring at our ceremony checklist and cried until my eyes swelled shut.)
(Countdown: 20 Days
He finally came back, and maybe I pushed him too hard–maybe it’s my fault, or maybe he’s just scared–but I only acted that way because I love him so damn much.]
Someday, this journal would make the perfect parting gift.
The kind that carves gullt straight into the bone.
In the end, it was Felix who picked the gown.
He said we’d “settle for now“-that he’d already reached out to a master designer to commission a new custom plece for the real ceremony on the island–the same one he bought after proposing and named after me.
How poetic.
Chapter 5
ReelShort
- 4765.
Back then, he said marrying me was everything he ever wanted. Now he was planning to leave me standing at the altar just to get even.
Tell me, Felix-
Since when did loving someone mean begging for scraps?
That girl posted another update, attached with a blurry photo of Felix in a conference room.
The caption read: Work stuff all handled! Felix said I could stay–yay, one step closer to the man I love!
I screenshotted it, scribbling beneath: Mating Ceremony Countdown: 17 Days–determined to build him a perfect dream with every detail flawless and every smile genuine, until it all came crashing down
So I kept him busy.
That week, I made him handle everything–every detail of the ceremony.
I told him I trusted him with it all.
The décor. The flowers. The schedule.
Down to the minute.
He needed to know the blueprint. Every angle. Every beat of the day.
Because when it fell apart, I wanted him to feel it all.
He wrapped his arms around me one evening, resting his chin on my shoulder. “Marrying you’s turning into a full–time job, babe.”
I laughed. “Well, it’s a big project. Would suck if you bailed after all this effort, huh?”
He hesitated, falling silent for a moment before pulling me closer, his voice soft but sure. “Come on. I’d never run. I’m crazy about you.”
Was he, though?
Because the same night, in his group chat with the guys, he sent: [This wedding stuff’s exhausting. But hey, that just makes skipping out more satisfying, doesn’t it?]
So that’s the plan? Leaveme with the mess. Let everyone I love be humiliated.
Without a word, I handed him a pen. “Let’s write out a few more invites for our closest friends.”
The real ones had already been sent. This was just for the show.
I made him write: [You’re invited to witness the sweetest moment of Lydia & Felix’s story.]
And then I said with a big smile, “I can’t wait for the big day.”
He didn’t respond, he was texting.
A message to her: [I’ll bring you the invite tomorrow.]
She sent back a happy face.
And I wrote on my diary: Mating Ceremony Countdown: 8 Days. Think this story ends happily? It won’t.)
