He never cared much for weddings, the extravagant decorations, the way-too-expensive dresses of the bride and bridesmaids that looked like they were ready to break apart from just one touch, the pile of gifts set upon a table and a huge cake, ready to topple over sitting on its own pedestal; this particular wedding even had the clichéd swan sculpture made from ice, though despite the reluctance he originally had, he was attending as a favour for a friend.
As the procession of guests entered the chapel through the main door, filling up the rows of chairs and chatting loudly, he watched from the balcony, he had had special permission to sit alone up there from the chapel's vicar, he did not like to be within arms distance from people, invasion of his privacy, he thought.
He watched as the bride slowly walked with her father up the aisle, towards the nervous groom who wore a tense smile, but who could blame him? The vicar began the ceremony, reciting passages.
As the bride and groom finished their vows, two children walked with purple velvet cushions through the centre aisle from a little room at the back, two gold and silver rings, adorned with a set of diamonds glinted in the candlelight of the chandeliers overhead.
The groom slid a ring onto the bride's finger, and she did the same to him, as the vicar ended the ceremony, with the final words of man and wife, He pulled out a handgun, silenced, and shot the bride through the head.
The lights seemed to darken, the whole building fell silent as everyone registered what had just happened, the elated grin of the groom, and of all of the guests attending slowly contorted into a look of horror. The bride, after what seemed like an eternity fell to her side, her eyes glassy, unmoving; the little girl, no more than seven, screamed in terror, and that set the rest of the attendees screaming, there was a scramble to the exits, people tripping over each other, pushing and shoving in a frantic hurry to escape before something happens to them.
He smiled, his "favour" done, he sunk into the shadows, vanishing without a trace.
