It was like they couldn’t even go a few hours without feeding into their little fantasy.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to grab the microphone from Fiona and tell everyone the truth right then and there, but I didn’t. I couldn’t.
I knew it wasn’t the right time, and I wasn’t ready yet.
So instead, I shoved my phone back into my pocket, plastered on a fake smile, and joined the group for photos.
Fiona pulled me into a hug for one of the pictures, and all I could think about was how badly I wanted to push her away.
Later, during the post-run refreshments, I noticed Daniel and Fiona standing off to the side, talking quietly.
I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but they were smiling like they didn’t have a care in the world.
I watched as Fiona reached out and adjusted Daniel’s race bib, her hand lingering a little too long on his chest.
It was so blatant. I felt like I was going to explode.
“Did they think I was stupid? Did they think I wouldn’t notice?”
When Daniel came over to me a few minutes later, I forced myself to act normal.
“Good run,” he said, leaning down to kiss my forehead.
The gesture felt so fake, it made my skin crawl.
“Yeah, you and Fiona seemed to have a good time, too,” I replied, trying to keep my tone neutral.
He just smiled and said, “She was great, wasn’t she? She worked so hard on this event.”
I wanted to scream. Of course she did. Daniel, she worked so hard at everything, including ruining our marriage.
The rest of the day was a blur. I spent most of it keeping myself busy, helping Fiona clean up and chatting with other volunteers.
I didn’t trust myself to be around Daniel and Fiona for too long because I knew I’d say something I wasn’t ready to reveal yet.
At one point, Fiona came over and thanked me for coming.
“It means so much to me that you were here,” she said, looking at me with those big fake eyes.
I smiled back and said, “Of course, anything for you.”
The words tasted like poison.
By the end of the day, I was emotionally drained. Watching them together, seeing how they acted like everything was fine, was exhausting.
But it also fueled me. If they thought they could keep getting away with this, they were dead wrong.
Fiona’s wedding to Alex was coming up in a few weeks, and I realized it was the perfect opportunity to expose them.
To set the stage, Fiona’s wedding was a big deal. She’d been planning it for months, and since she’s a wedding planner by trade, she went all out.
It was at this beautiful outdoor venue, white tents, fairy lights, the whole picture-perfect vibe. Everyone was there. Family, friends, co-workers, even some of Alex’s extended family who’d flown in from out of state.
The pressure to make the day flawless was high, and I was right in the middle of it as her maid of honor.
In the days leading up to the wedding, I’d gone back and forth about how I wanted to handle things.
I knew I couldn’t just sit through the ceremony and pretend everything was fine. The idea of Fiona and Daniel standing there smiling and laughing like they hadn’t spent the last two years betraying me was more than I could take.
But I also didn’t want to cause a scene just for the sake of it. I wanted to make sure the truth came out in a way they couldn’t deny or talk their way out of.
On the morning of the wedding, I woke up with this strange sense of calm.
I’d spent the past month preparing everything I needed, going over it all in my head again and again. I had the screenshots, the messages, the photos, everything neatly saved and organized on my phone.
I didn’t know exactly how the day would unfold, but I was ready for whatever came my way.
The first part of the day went about as you’d expect. I helped Fiona get ready, making sure her dress looked perfect and that her makeup was on point.
It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, standing there and acting like the supportive sister while she gushed about how excited she was to marry Alex.
At one point, she even grabbed my hands and said, “I couldn’t have done any of this without you, Nat. You’re the best sister anyone could ever ask for.”
I wanted to laugh in her face, but instead, I just smiled and said, “Anything for you.”
Daniel showed up about an hour before the ceremony, looking sharp in his suit. When he saw me, he gave me this warm, affectionate smile, like we were still the happy couple everyone thought we were.
It made my stomach turn.
He spent most of the pre-ceremony time hovering around Fiona, checking on little details and making sure she had everything she needed.
To anyone else, it probably looked like he was just being a good brother-in-law, but I knew better.
The ceremony itself was beautiful. I’ll give them that. Fiona looked stunning in her dress, and Alex couldn’t stop smiling as she walked down the aisle.
For a brief moment, I felt this pang of guilt, like maybe I was about to ruin something that didn’t need to be ruined.
But then I remembered all the lies, the sneaking around, the nights I spent crying while they carried on like nothing was wrong.
That guilt disappeared real quick.