A Friend

Aubrey Chandler was packing up the last of her items and closing the door not only to her old apartment but also to the past. Aubrey had just turned 40 years old and she was single and childless. She'd fallen in love with Tanner Keen, she thought of him as the man of her dreams.

They were deeply in love and planning to get married. They'd decided to share her two bedroom apartment after being together for a year. They just clicked, there was something darkly passionate and magnetic about the two of them together. It was all consuming, they only had eyes for each other. She never saw it coming, the ending between them that happened so abruptly.

It was the morning of the wedding, Aubrey was staying at the hotel where she'd celebrated her final night of being single with her two best friends. Tanner had done the same having his bachelor's party with his own guy pals and staying in the very same hotel but in a different room.

The hotel was the closest to their wedding venue and so they both thought it wise to end their night there. Aubrey was determined not to let him see her in the wedding dress before the ceremony so they were on different floors and had strategically planned routes.

Everything was perfect as she sat and watched the final touches being applied to her hair and makeup. After the wedding, there was a surprise honeymoon that Tanner was being very tight-lipped about, Aubrey was more than a little excited to get through this day and on to what he called "good part."

The wedding planning was a monumental task, it was no small gathering and Tanner spared no expense for his bride-to-be. The whole thing was stressful for them both and the months of planning revealed a few of the weak points in their relationship but they endured.

Aubrey was worried the last couple of months that they would not make it to this day. Tanner was more withdrawn and spending more and more time at work. His temper was uneven with her most days and when she called him on it, it just seemed to anger him more and created more emotional distance. Tanner just wasn't the Tanner that she knew ...

She chalked it up to last minute wedding jitters and Tanner eventually apologized. His position was that he needed to work more to afford the extravagant wedding and honeymoon. Of course, she told him that she would marry him in a KFC over a bucket of chicken if it would keep the peace between them and allow him to by her side.

Tanner laughed and assured her that he would figure it out without the need to switch to a fast food venue for the wedding. Now they were about to get married and have the wedding of her dreams! It was surreal. Aubrey got into the waiting limousine with her bridal party and headed over to the magical historic church venue that they'd both chosen.

Tanner was in the limo a few cars up ahead and would enter from the front of the church while the bridal party entered through the back unseen. Aubrey was so nervous that she was wanting to bite her nails. It was something that she often did, but looking at the perfectly manicured set gave her pause and strength to refrain from the worrisome habit.

She was smiling and chatting with her bridesmaids,trying to distract herself and soothe her nerves when she spotted a note tucked into a pocket in the seat. It was beautiful rose embroidered stationery, the same that she'd done the wedding invites on. The letter read:

"Dearest Aubrey, You must never doubt my love for you or why things have come about as they have. Know that I love you and I only ever wanted the best for you. I tried so hard to avoid this, I tried so hard to make things change in my favor. In the end I could only save you. Believe me when I say that I wanted there to be an us, I wanted to save us.

True Love never dies,
Tanner

Aubrey had tears flowing from her eyes before she could even get to the end of the letter. She was screaming at the top of her lungs and begging the driver to drive faster and catch up with the other limo. She could just barely see the tail end of it, up ahead. Her two best friends, Amy and Flora were confused and concerned.