He Married Her While I Waited at the Altar, I Called My Mother While She Called Me Back Chapter 01
To marry Julian, I cut ties with my family.
My dad immediately crossed my name out of the family Bible.
My mom slapped me and said she no longer had a daughter.
I didn’t regret it.
The engagement party was set at The Grand Plaza Ballroom.
Two hundred invitations were sent out.
Wearing a borrowed dress, I waited for three hours.
He never showed up.
His phone went straight to voicemail, and he didn’t reply to my iMessages.
I forced a smile and told the guests he had to go on an emergency business trip.
After everyone left, I cleaned up the mess alone.
A Twitter trending notification popped up on my phone.
[Trending: The eldest Sterling grandson ties the knot, and the bride is his childhood sweetheart!]
The attached photo showed him looking sharp in a suit, walking arm-in-arm with Hailey out of City
Hall, holding their marriage license.
The date on the license was three days ago.
I folded the borrowed dress neatly, put it in a bag, and dialed a number I hadn’t called in three
years:
“Mom, can I come home?”
“You still have the nerve to ask to come home?”
My mom’s voice came through the receiver, so hoarse I almost couldn’t recognize it.
I opened my mouth, but the words were caught in my throat.
“Your dad had heart bypass surgery last month and was in the ICU for twenty days.”
My mind went completely blank.
Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Tell you? You said it yourself: you were dead set on marrying that Sterling boy and cutting all ties.
with us.”
“Mom, I-”
“Don’t call me Mom. You haven’t called me that in three years, so don’t start now.”
She hung up.
I called back, but her phone was turned off.
Crouching outside The Grand Plaza Ballroom, I stared at that trending tweet. The comments had already surpassed ten thousand.
Someone had taken a screenshot of my Instagram Story from three hours ago, captioned: “Today, I
finally get to marry you.”
The top reply under it read: “Too bad you weren’t the one he was waiting to marry.”
The ballroom manager chased after me, holding the bill.
“Ms. Stella, the remaining balance is thirty-six thousand. If it’s not settled today, there will be a penalty fee.”
“Can I do a wire transfer?”
“Yes.”
I opened my banking app. The balance was $36,200.
My savings from the past three years.
After the transfer, the balance dropped to $2.40.
The manager glanced at me, probably wanting to offer some words of comfort, but ultimately just took his phone and left.
At the bridal boutique, the assistant took the dress with her head lowered.
“Stella, did it get dirty at all?”
“No.”
“I’ll refund your deposit.”
“Okay, thank you.”
I took an Uber back to the apartment, and the smart lock screen lit up.
I pressed my fingerprint, and two words popped up: Unrecognized.
I tried three times, with the same result.
I texted Julian: “I can’t get in.”
Read.
Eight minutes later, he replied with a six-digit passcode.
Not a single word attached.
I entered the code and pushed the door open, immediately noticing a new pair of pink fluffy slippers in the entryway.
They weren’t my size.
On the shoe cabinet sat a bouquet of baby’s breath, with a card that read: “Hailey, happy new
home.”
Signed: “Julian.”
I had lived here for three years, and he hadn’t even bought me a single flower on the day we moved
On the coffee table was a pink mug with “Mrs. Sterling” printed on it.
Draped over the couch was a lavender cardigan that didn’t belong to me.
The bedsheets in the master bedroom had been changed to purple satin.
The pure cotton set I bought was shoved to the very bottom of the closet.
My clothes in the closet were pushed into a corner, and the newly freed space was filled with several new dresses. The price tags were still on, the cheapest one bein
I hadn’t bought myself a piece of clothing over $300 in three years.
On the back of the bedroom door was a sticky note in Julian’s handwriting:
“Stella, sleep in the guest room for a few days. Hailey just moved in and needs to get used to things. Let’s transition slowly.”
I stared at those words and slowly peeled the sticky note off.
My phone rang.
I called Julian back, and this time he picked up.
The background was noisy, like a restaurant.
“Stella, now isn’t a good time.”
“Did you get a marriage license with Hailey?”
Silence for two seconds.
“I’ll explain later.”
“Then why was my fingerprint deleted?”
“Hailey asked me to reset it. I’ll add you back tomorrow.”
His tone was as flat as if he were commenting on the nice weather.
“Two hundred people watched me wait for three hours, and you couldn’t even make one phone
call?”
“Calm down, it’s not what you think-”
Suddenly, a soft, coquettish voice drifted in from the background.
“Julian, the soup is getting cold, hurry up.”
He lowered his voice.
“I have to go. We’ll talk later.”
Always “later.”
For three years, all his promises had been “later.”
i sat on the guest room bed, gripping my phone. Five minutes later, an unknown number called
“Stella? It’s Hailey.”
Her voice was sickeningly sweet.
“Julian asked me to tell you that he won’t be coming back tonight, so don’t wait up for him. Get
some rest.”
I said nothing.
She paused for a few seconds, then added another sentence.
“Julian says you’re the most understanding person ever, and you definitely wouldn’t get mad over such a little thing.”
“He said you never make a fuss.”