{"id":15604,"date":"2026-04-29T19:20:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T19:20:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/?p=15604"},"modified":"2026-04-29T19:20:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T19:20:51","slug":"my-best-friends-fiance-turned-out-to-be-my-ex-who-vanished-years-ago-so-at-the-wedding-i-grabbed-the-mic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/?p=15604","title":{"rendered":"My best friend\u2019s fianc\u00e9 turned out to be my ex who vanished years ago\u2026 so at the wedding, I grabbed the mic."},"content":{"rendered":"
My best friend promised a surprise would be revealed at her wedding, and I laughed it off at first. But as the days passed without answers, I started to realize I might not be ready for whatever she was planning.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Wren and I, both 29, have been best friends for over 10 years. We told each other everything, or at least I thought we did. Until she said she was engaged, but wouldn’t tell me his name.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“It’s a surprise,” Wren said with a grin. “I want to see your face at the wedding.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I initially laughed it off and played along.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

But weeks passed, then months, with no photo or introductions. Just that same teasing smile every time I asked.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

We told each other everything, or at least I thought we did.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

A week before the wedding, everything changed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

We were at Leah’s place, just a small group, nothing serious. Wren stepped out to take a call, and Leah, a mutual friend, leaned toward me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

“You seriously don’t know it’s Callum?” she asked.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Everything inside me went cold.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Callum.\u00a0My<\/i>\u00a0ex-fianc\u00e9.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Yep, you read that right. He was the man who proposed to me, then disappeared three weeks before our wedding.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

A week before the wedding, everything changed.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Callum and I were expecting a child when he left. But he was already long gone when I woke up alone in a hospital bed, grieving a baby that never took a breath.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

My ex-fianc\u00e9 left without an explanation or a goodbye.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I hadn’t expected him to abandon me like that, so I had no one and no answers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Back at Leah’s, I didn’t react. I just nodded as if it didn’t matter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I didn’t call Wren to confirm what I’d heard. I also didn’t try to confront Callum. I wanted to see how far they’d take it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

So I went to their wedding.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

My ex-fianc\u00e9 left.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

For Wren’s special day, I showed up dressed to the nines. But I was calm, smiling, and playing my part as if nothing were wrong.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

When the music started, I stood with everyone else.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Wren walked down the aisle, looking radiant, steady, and confident. She caught my eye and gave a small nod.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Then I looked at Callum, standing at the front. At that moment, he saw me, and his expression changed when our eyes met. It was as if he’d seen a ghost!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Good.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I held his gaze for a second, then looked away.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

She caught my eye.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The ceremony proceeded without any hitches.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Later, at the reception, people laughed, raised their glasses, and drank.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I stayed back, watching. A box sat in my lap. It wasn’t something from their registry; that much I can tell you.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Now and then, Callum glanced at me, trying to read me, but I gave nothing away.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

When the time for speeches came, and it was my turn, I stood up. I couldn’t back out of giving a speech, since Wren had made me promise to give one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Walked to the front.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Took the mic and smiled.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

I stayed back, watching.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Dear couple,” I said calmly, “I have a surprise for you.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The room went quiet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Callum froze. Wren looked between us.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I stepped forward and handed the box to my best friend.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

“Go ahead,” I said softly. “Open it.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Wren lifted the lid, and everything changed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Inside were photos.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Not of me, but of Callum with another woman.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Dates were stamped in the corner.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The same month, my fianc\u00e9 was supposed to marry me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

Callum froze.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Wren picked one up, her fingers tightening. “What is this?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I kept my voice steady, still speaking into the mic.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

“Proof that Callum didn’t disappear when he was supposed to marry me and become a father to our child. He just\u2026 relocated.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Gasps moved through the room.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Callum stepped forward. “That’s not what it looks like\u2014”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“It’s\u00a0exactly<\/i>\u00a0what it looks like,” I said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“What is this?”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“I know because my dad hired a private investigator while we were together, after you proposed. You know he never liked or trusted you. He wanted to ensure I wasn’t making a mistake, but when he discovered the truth, he kept it from me, hoping you’d still do right by me. But after you disappeared, and I lost our baby, my dad gave me these.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Murmurs moved across the room, people pulling out their phones to record.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I stepped closer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“In our last text exchange, after I lost our child and before you changed your number, you told me you were overwhelmed. That you needed space. But you just continued your life with someone else.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

My dad hired a private investigator.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I pointed at the photo in Wren’s hand.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“That was taken three days after Callum left me.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

My best friend looked at me. “You never told me, Cyn. I didn’t know that Callum was cheating on you,” then she turned to him. “How many times have you done this?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

He hesitated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I didn’t wait.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“I tracked the other woman down. She thought she was the only one, too.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The room filled with whispers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“You never told me, Cyn.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Wren slowly set the photos back in the box.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Then she looked at me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“Thank you for telling me.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Then she turned to Callum.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“You don’t get to build something new without finishing what you broke. Cynthia, you’ll always be my best friend, and when I told you who I was marrying was a surprise, it’s because I wanted him to be as humiliated as you were when he suddenly left you.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

I stared at her.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“What?!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Around us, confusion spread.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“You don’t get to build something new.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“I had no intention of being your wife,” Wren said to Callum as she stood up. “I just wanted you to spend on a wedding and commit yourself to paying for what you did to Cynthia. But I should’ve anticipated that my best friend would have something up her sleeve.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I tried to process it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

My friend turned to me briefly, then back to him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“I never loved you, Callum. I just wanted you to feel what it’s like to think someone is yours when they have no intention of doing right by you. I’m glad you’ve also been exposed as a cheater; now other women will hopefully be wary of you.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
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“I had no intention of being your wife.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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No one spoke. Callum just stood there, eyes bulging, mouth hanging open.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Guests,” Wren added, “thank you for coming, although it was under false pretenses. Please stay and enjoy the food and drinks; let’s not let all that money go to waste.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Silence held for a moment. Then voices broke out! People started talking all at once!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Wren reached for my hand. I let her take it, tears falling from my face.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We walked out together, leaving Callum standing there.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Then voices broke out!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Outside the venue, I finally understood something I hadn’t before.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Callum’s leaving was never about me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And for the first time, that felt like enough.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We didn’t stop walking until we reached the far end of the parking lot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The noise from the reception faded behind us: voices, music, the sound of something unraveling. Out here, it was just the wind and the gravel under our shoes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Callum’s leaving was never about me.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Wren let go of my hand.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I turned to her. “You did all this for me?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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She nodded once, as if she’d already gone over it a hundred times in her head.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I needed him to show who he was. Not just to me, but to everyone.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I studied her face. She wasn’t shaken. If anything, she looked relieved.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“How long have you been planning this?” I asked.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“For the whole duration of our ‘relationship.’ A year. I initiated the relationship when I came across him at an event. I found out he’d been engaged after you, but he didn’t want to give details. I assume it was to the woman in the photos. Callum told me you two ‘drifted apart.’ Said it was mutual.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
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“You did all this for me?”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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I let out a dry laugh. “That’s one way to put it.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“I didn’t believe him, of course, because you’d already told me part of the truth,” she said. “So I kept pushing. Asking questions. He’d dodge them every time.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“So you planned a wedding?”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“I planned a situation,” Wren corrected. “Big enough that Callum couldn’t hide in it.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I shook my head, still trying to catch up. “You could’ve just told me.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I thought about it. More than once.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Then why didn’t you?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I didn’t believe him.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Wren looked at me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Because I needed to see if you’d still stand up for yourself. I wasn’t sure if you would. After everything he put you through, I didn’t know if you’d want to face him again.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I looked past her for a second, back toward the building.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I didn’t,” I said. “Not at first.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A quiet settled between us.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We stood there for a minute before booking a cab and heading home.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
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“I wasn’t sure if you would.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Back at my place, Wren, who’d changed out of her wedding dress, leaned against the railing. “This is going to be everywhere by morning.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

“Probably sooner,” I said, making coffee.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Good,” my best friend said. “Maybe it’ll save someone else the trouble.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I looked at her. “You really are my best friend, aren’t you?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

She shook her head. “Not just that.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

She paused, choosing her words.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“I’m your sister, Cyn. I’ll always have your back, no matter what.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I reached out to her, and we hugged.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

For once, I didn’t doubt our friendship anymore.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“Not just that.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

After a while, my phone, set to vibrate, buzzed. Then again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I pulled it out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Messages. Missed calls. Notifications were stacking up.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Someone had already posted a clip!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I didn’t open it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Let me guess,” Wren said. “People you haven’t heard from in years suddenly care.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“Something like that.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

She smiled faintly. “You don’t have to answer any of it.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“I won’t,” I said, sliding the phone back into my bag.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

Someone had already posted a clip!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

After Wren left later, the recent days replayed in pieces.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Leah’s comment.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The look on Callum’s face.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The moment the box opened.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

And then Wren, standing there, planning something that I never imagined she was capable of.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

It could’ve gone differently.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

She could’ve stayed quiet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I could’ve done the same.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

But neither of us did, and that moment deepened our friendship in ways I still don’t know how to explain.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

It could’ve gone differently.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

As I prepared for bed that night, I realized there was no weight in my chest anymore.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

No question looping in the back of my mind.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Just\u2026 stillness.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I walked over to the window and looked out at the street.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

For a long time, I thought closure had to come from him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

An explanation. An apology. Something.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

But it didn’t.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

It came from the truth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

From seeing things clearly and finally accepting that his leaving wasn’t something I caused.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

It was something he chose.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

There was no weight in my chest anymore.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The following morning, I finally opened one of the videos from Wren’s fake wedding.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

They were already on all the social media platforms!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Different angles. Different voices. But the same moment every time: me handing over the box, Wren speaking her truth, Callum trying to talk his way out of it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

By noon, my ex-fianc\u00e9’s name was trending.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I didn’t scroll long. I didn’t need to. The comments all said the same thing in different ways.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

People had seen enough.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

I finally opened one of the videos.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Later that afternoon, Wren called me.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“Have you looked?”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Yeah,” I said. “Our story is everywhere!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

She let out a quiet breath. “I’m glad.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

There was a pause.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Then she added, “Leah texted me this morning. Said Callum didn’t go back to the hotel last night.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I frowned. “Where’d he go?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“No one knows,” she said. “But,” she hesitated for a second, “apparently a friend they share said he booked a flight early this morning.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I leaned back against the couch. “Figures.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“Our story is everywhere!”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Wren didn’t sound surprised either.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Last I heard, he’s not planning on coming back anytime soon. Rumors say he’s left the country.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

We didn’t talk about him much after that. There wasn’t anything left to say.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

***<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

A few days later, things settled down.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The videos slowed down. The messages stopped coming in waves. Life started to feel normal again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Wren came over one evening with takeout, as if nothing had changed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

But something had.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

We didn’t have anything unsaid between us anymore.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

No gaps. No guessing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Just the truth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

“Rumors say he’s left the country.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

At one point, my best friend looked at me and said, “You okay now?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

I thought about it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

About everything that had happened, everything that had led to that moment in the reception hall.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

“Yeah,” I said finally. “I am.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

And this time, I felt it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My best friend promised a surprise would be revealed at her wedding, and I laughed it off at first. But as the days passed without answers, I started to realize … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15605,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,22,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-family","category-inspiration","category-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15604"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15606,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15604\/revisions\/15606"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/15605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}