It was always you

Trust you

**Selena**

I woke up in unfamiliar surroundings, and panic immediately set in. "Where am I?" I whispered, my voice trembling. "Who the hell was that stranger with sea-green eyes?" My head felt heavy, and a dull ache throbbed behind my eyes. The room slowly came into focus. It looked like one of the rooms in my dad's hotel, the same hotel where my wedding was supposed to take place. My mind raced as I tried to piece together what had happened.

I remembered the room from countless memories shared here with the only love of my life. Coincidentally, he also had sea-green eyes, but his were lighter than the darker ones of the stranger who kidnapped me. But it couldn’t be him; he was in England. Why would a billionaire become a kidnapper? Maybe I was overthinking this. I placed a hand over my throbbing head.

"Maybe the guy with sea-green eyes who made me unconscious was just a dream," I muttered, trying to convince myself. "But why am I still in my wedding dress?" I threw off the duvet and rushed to the door. It was unlocked. Relief washed over me, but confusion followed closely. Where should I go first? My parents' room? Ethan’s? Diana’s? My heart pounded in my chest as I ran towards my parents' room, but it was locked. Panic began to rise again, and I sprinted toward the wedding venue, lifting the hem of my dress to keep from tripping.

When I reached the venue, I froze. My sister, Camelia, was standing there in a wedding dress—my wedding dress—kissing Ethan, who should have been my groom today. Our families were clapping, oblivious to the betrayal unfolding before my eyes. We had planned for a small, intimate wedding with family and close friends only. No acquaintances. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

Hot tears rolled down my cheeks as I choked out, "What's happening?" My voice cut through the celebratory air, and both the bride and groom turned pale at the sight of me.

"Selena, where have you been?" my dad asked, his voice oddly calm. It was the first time I felt genuine fury toward him. He was acting like nothing was wrong, while my mom glared at me, her eyes full of judgment.

"What the heck is this? It was supposed to be my wedding! Instead of looking for the missing bride, you decided to marry off my sister to my groom?" My voice shook with a mix of anger and disbelief. Their reactions were stone-cold, like nothing had happened.

“We thought you changed your mind and ran away,” Ethan said. I shot him the dirtiest look I could muster.

“Yeah, I never wanted this marriage, but that doesn’t mean I would abandon my own wedding or go against my mom’s wishes!” I shouted. Through my peripheral vision, I saw my mother standing there, her face twisted with anger and hurt. It broke my heart. She always reacted like this when she felt betrayed, like when she found out my dad had an illegitimate child—Camelia—but she had forgiven him and raised Camelia as her own.

“Don’t give excuses, Selena Walters!” My mom’s voice boomed, making me flinch. “Today, you’ve proven my upbringing wrong by walking in your father’s footsteps.”

“People are right; the ones who love you the most will hurt you the most. First, it was your father, and now, it’s you.” She started crying, and those words cut deeper than anything else. Every relative looked at me with either disgust or pity. I thought, why didn’t that kidnapper just kill me? Maybe then I’d at least scare them as a ghost. But no—here I was, alive and unwanted. It was clear they didn’t care about my whereabouts; they’d moved on so quickly. Did they really believe I’d run away, or was it easier for them to think that?

“Mom, you have a habit of not trusting your own upbringing,” I shot back. “You never taught me to run away from a situation. Someone kidnapped me, Mom!”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re not a toddler to be kidnapped, Miss Walters,” she replied, giving me a disapproving look, her arms crossed over her chest.

“At least listen to her, Kate,” my dad said, trying to defend me. But my mom’s glare could have cut through steel. “You two always take people for granted,” she spat. “You just don’t know what it feels like to be truly hurt.”

“Today, for the first time, I regret forgiving you, Brad, after seeing our daughter follow in your footsteps.” Her words were like venom, directed at my dad. I felt a pang of guilt; I didn’t want my parents to fight because of me.

“To give you a taste of your own medicine, I’ve had to destroy two lives.” She looked at Camelia and Ethan with pity. “I’m sorry, love.” She walked toward Camelia, kissing her forehead, and patted Ethan’s back. I stood there, watching them. No one but me could understand the depth of the hurt I was feeling.

“Wait! Camelia was supposed to be out of the country!” I exclaimed, trying to make sense of things.

My mom’s glare could melt ice. “My little girl was here to surprise you, and look at how you’ve stooped so low, Selena.”

Frustration boiled inside me. I had no idea what to say or do. My world was spinning, and all I could think about was how much I wanted that kidnapper’s head on a plate. “Don’t spoil my daughter’s wedding. Go wherever you want; you’re not my daughter anymore.” Her voice cut like a knife.

“You… you can’t do this to me, Mom,” I stuttered, barely holding back the sobs threatening to escape. She ignored me, walking away with the guests, each of them giving me looks that varied from pity to contempt. It was just me, my dad, and Diana left in the now-empty reception area.

Diana gave me a sympathetic look. “I’ll wait for you in your room,” she said softly before leaving me alone with my dad.

He looked at me, and my tears began to fall again. I collapsed into his arms, sobbing. “Do you also think I’m wrong, Dad?” I asked between sobs.

“No, my child,” he whispered, holding me tightly. “I believe you.”

“I’m sorry, Dad,” I mumbled, my voice muffled against his chest.

“No, Sally, it’s me who should be sorry. What your mother feels right now is empathy for Ethan because I left her at the aisle on our wedding day.” My dad confessed for the first time. I knew it was a misunderstanding, and years later, he had asked for forgiveness, which my mom granted. He wiped my tears away. “My other daughter needs me right now, Sally, and I think you aren’t in a position to witness this reception. Just take some rest for a while.”

Numb, I nodded, feeling the weight of everything pressing down on me. I turned back toward my room, each step heavier than the last.