Between the Lines

Wedding Bells

**Brianna**

Elena Roswell & Christopher Bancroft 
Invite you to join their wedding celebration on June 04th 
In Venice - Italy 
(All expenses paid)

Brianna Lorelai Granger, will you be my maid of honor?

"Well, she finally did it." Olivia, my co-worker, says in a small voice as she peeks over my shoulder at my childhood best friend's wedding invitation, which I've been holding on to for far too long.

A fancy white box had been delivered to my workplace two hours ago, and I knew for certain it was from Elena. Extravagant and utterly misplaced, it had to be hers. I tried to ignore it by placing the box in the furthest corner of my desk while I focused on writing the latest article about last night's Burnley match for the Premier League, but my eyes kept drifting back to that goddamn thing.

She has been calling me at least four times a day for the last few weeks since Christopher proposed, dropping hints that she wanted me to be her maid of honor.

*You are like a sister to me,* she said in last night's phone call. *I won't be able to go through this without you.*

But I knew, above all, she was inviting me for a little less noble reason.

"You're not going, right?" Olivia asks with a raised brow, but I give her the cold shoulder as I place the card back inside the box along with some rose petals that had been thrown in there for good measure. "B, please tell me you're not getting into this hell hole."

I let out a sigh, forcing myself to pay attention again to my half-written article. "Liv, you know the answer already. Why do you still bother asking?" I mumble, not looking back at her.

"Because I still hope that you'll find that self-love you gave away years ago," she answers angrily, rotating my office chair so I have to look at her. "Haven't you done enough for her? Like, I don't know, letting Elena borrow her latest husband?"

I press my lips together, forcing them into a straight line, because as much as I want to talk back, I can't. Olivia is right.

Growing up with Elena, as helpful as it was during middle and high school given her popularity, was a pain in the ass. We've known each other since birth, literally raised like sisters. My mom and hers were best friends in high school but ended up living very different lives. My mom married her high school sweetheart, had me, and then divorced when I was one. Never met the guy. Her mom, Karen, married rich and spent most of her time flying across the country with her husband. So Elena wouldn't be alone, my mom usually took her in and let her stay with us while her parents were away.

It was all fun and games until we were seven and no longer innocent. After that, Elena started to notice her parents' absence and became sort of ruthless. She had to be the richest, the most popular, the prettiest girl around—*all* the time. She also had to be the best at everything. I couldn't outshine her, or else I was inconsiderate and selfish. But I had to bear it since she was... Elena. Also, I couldn't date anyone she didn't approve of or anyone she thought was too good for me. So guess what? During our "sisterhood" life, I didn't date at all.

Finally, during college, we grew apart. And as much as I didn't want to believe it, it was a breath of fresh air.

But even with that distance, I could never fully escape her shadow. Even when we weren't speaking, I'd hear about her through the grapevine, as if her life was a blockbuster movie everyone had to watch. Elena's name would pop up at charity galas, fashion shows, or on the arm of some eligible bachelor. No matter where I went, there she was—larger than life and always shining brighter.