Not Your Everyday Fairytale (BTS x Reader)

Chapter 3

Three days before the wedding, I woke to my phone incessantly ringing. I had tried to ignore it but when it rang the fourth time, I pulled myself from my bed and picked up the annoying thing. Not even looking at the caller ID, I hit accept. "For you to be calling me at 3 AM, you better be dying or dead."

"Little one? It's me. And seriously, I would rather be dead than be the one to call you right now." Francesca's voice was anxious and I sat up quickly, all traces of sleep instantly disappearing.

"Frannie? What's going on?" I couldn't stop the panic seeping into my voice, knowing that this couldn't be good.

I could hear the hitch in her breathing and knew she was nervous. "It's... it's the award little one. I just received an email from the board and they're retracting your nomination. I'm so sorry."

My heart shattered into a million pieces at her words. "W-what? Why would... why would they do that?"

Francesca sighed. "They received an anonymous email stating the photographs didn't belong to you. That they were stolen from someone else. The email they sent me said that even if the claims turn out to be false, they have to retract your nomination until the investigation is complete."

The tears that had burning my eyes slipped down my cheeks. "Frannie? I swear those photos are mine. I promise you. I wouldn't do something like this!"

"Oh I know little one." The sadness is Francesca's voice was clear and I was grateful that she was on my side, that she believed me, that she trusted me. "I wish there was something I could do, but my hands are tied on this one."

We spoke for a few more minutes and Francesca urged me to take the day off, spend a day away from the camera, away from the writing and just let myself heal from the pain that she knew I was experiencing. After disconnecting the call, I slumped back into my bed, the tears still streaming down my cheeks. This award was the recognition I had worked so hard for and suddenly it was being ripped away from and the disappointment was like nothing I ever experienced. This was worse than the broken heart I felt with Alex or the frustration of having to deal with an arranged marriage to a man I hated. This was the worst thing that ever happened to me and I just didn't know what to do about it.

Knowing there was no way I would be able to go back to sleep, I forced myself out of the bed, grabbed a hoodie and went to the glass doors that led to the balcony. Sliding the doors open, I stepped out onto the balcony, the chill from the early morning still filling the air. I pulled my hoodie closer around me and moved to stand by the railing. As I looked out over the lake behind my condo, I tried to think about who would do this to me. Who would lie about something like this, especially knowing how important it was to me? Although I wanted to believe she would never do this to me, I knew exactly who it was.

Ever since I told my mother four days ago about the award nomination, she had been quiet. Normally she would call me four to five times a day about crap for the wedding. I needed to pick up my veil (which she decided didn't have enough flowers). I needed to confirm with the caterer how many people were attending (even though my mother's the one with the guest list and the RSVPs). I needed to make a reservation for my cousin, Ariel, who was coming in for the wedding (even though I wish I could have pushed her out of the suite she insisted on having). I was done with this wedding and wanted nothing more than to shut off my phone and leave, leave everything behind.

As I sat there on the balcony waiting for the sun to rise, I thought about everything going on. If my mother really did this to me then there is no way I would ever be able to forgive her. There are a lot of things I could let go, but a betrayal like this? That I just couldn't let go of.