Ryan and I met two years ago in the most cinematic way possible. I was at a community theater for my friend Mila’s directorial debut, standing outside clutching a bouquet. In the crush of the crowd, Ryan walked directly into me, obliterating the flowers.
“I am so sorry,” he said, scrambled to help.
“I hate crowds,” I muttered, frustrated. He chuckled, ushering me away from the door. “I’m not a fan either,” he said. “I’m Ryan.”
Just three months into our whirlwind romance, he proposed in a pub over Guinness and potato skins. Last week, we were supposed to seal that promise with our vows. Instead, our wedding went in a direction I never could have imagined.
Initially, my family welcomed Ryan with open arms. As an only daughter, my parents were thrilled I’d found someone who made me truly happy. Ryan felt that warmth, and we grew stronger as a couple. On his side, it was much the same—or so I thought. The Coles opened their hearts to me. Audrey, my future mother-in-law, even started a weekly routine of coffee dates and manicures with me. Everything felt perfect—until the moment it wasn’t.
On the big day, I was remarkably calm. It was an intimate church wedding we had planned down to the last detail. But minutes before the ceremony, Audrey pulled me aside. “Darling,” she said, “can we chat?”
Something about her demeanor sent a spike of anxiety through me. I watched her reflection in the mirror as my glam team finished my hair. Her eyes darted around the room, settling nervously on my wedding dress. When my mother finally finished buttoning me up, I turned to her. “I’m ready,” I said, smiling.
Audrey’s eyes glazed over. “Hanna,” she said, “there is no easy way to say this.” My heart thundered. I knew nothing good was coming. “Just say it,” I demanded.
She pulled a phone from her clutch. “There are videos on here that explain everything. I am so sorry, but Ryan needs to be caught out.”
My mind raced. When the phone unlocked, a woman’s voice echoed through the room. The footage revealed Ryan with another woman in a hotel room—clandestine affection and undeniable betrayal.
“Are you sure this is him?” I whispered, trembling.
“Look at the jacket on the bed,” Audrey said. “Isn’t that the one you bought him?”
I pressed play again. The jacket was unmistakable. The hotel room looked familiar. “But his face isn’t in the frame,” I argued, desperate for a loophole.
“Hanna,” she said slowly. “It’s right in front of you. Could you live with yourself knowing this? Could you live with him?”
I shook my head, overwhelmed by fury and grief. “Fine,” I said.
“You’re calling off the wedding?” Audrey asked, a strange hope lining her voice.
“No,” I replied coldly. “I’m going to walk down that aisle. I’m going to walk to the man who betrayed me. And when the time comes for our vows, I’ll break it off then.”
I sat on the chaise, waiting for my father, wishing I could just drive away and eat my feelings in a mountain of fries. When the music started, my heart pounded with pure rage. As I approached the altar, Ryan smiled tenderly at me. He took my hand and squeezed it. It would have been perfect, if not for the fact that he’d been with someone else.
The priest began quoting scripture. When it was time for the vows, a strange silence settled over me.
“I don’t,” I said softly.
“Speak louder, Hanna,” the priest urged.
“I DON’T!” I yelled, the words echoing like a shockwave through the church.
Ryan’s face morphed from confusion to absolute horror. “Hanna? What?”
“Ask your mother,” I said, pointing at Audrey. “Mrs. Cole, please tell everyone what you told me earlier.”
The church went silent. With shaking hands, Audrey took out her phone and held it toward us. “Look,” I told Ryan.
Ryan stepped back, nearly tripping over the wedding arch. “That is not me, Hanna! You know it’s not me!”
He turned on his mother. “Mom, what is this? Where did you get this video?” Audrey didn’t answer. She simply turned and walked down the aisle, leaving the church in stunned silence.
I couldn’t bear to hear any more “excuses.” I ran out the side door, my parents chasing after me. I blocked Ryan’s number that night, burying myself in blankets and misery.
Two days later, Ryan showed up at my parents’ house with takeout and flowers. “You expect this to fix everything?” I asked.
“I need to talk,” he said.
Against my better judgment, I listened. What he revealed sent me into a second spiral. He had confronted Audrey immediately after the wedding.
“She was sitting in her kitchen, eating toast and listening to records like she hadn’t just nuked our lives,” he said. “Hanna, my mother orchestrated that video. The people in it are her students. She did it because she didn’t want us to get married.”
My jaw hit the ground. Audrey was a teacher and a college tutor. When she realized we were actually going through with the wedding, she panicked. She hired two of her college students to play the parts for a bit of extra cash.
“I thought she liked me,” I whispered, stunned.
“She said the audio was edited,” Ryan added with a nervous chuckle. “But she used my jacket as a ‘good touch.’”
I didn’t know how to feel. For two days, I had convinced myself Ryan was the villain. In reality, the woman who claimed I was the “daughter she never had” was the one who systematically broke my heart to keep me away from her son. She simply believed I wasn’t worthy of him.
I forgave Ryan immediately. We are still together, but the future is a blur. I feel utterly betrayed by Audrey, and I know forgiveness for her is a long way off.
What would you do in my shoes?
