Some losses get easier with time, but this wasn’t one of them. The grief settled in, deep and unshakable, like a part of me I’d always carry. She was my best friend, my safe place, and the one person who always made life feel okay, no matter what.
Before she passed, she had just one request.
“I want you to wear my dress on your wedding day, Chloe,” she had told me softly. “Whether it’s for the ceremony or the reception… Just promise me, baby. It will be like having me there with you.”
I had promised. And I meant it. Ever since, that dress had remained safely tucked away in my closet, untouched but treasured, waiting for the day it would fulfill her wish.
My brother Jake had been dating her for about a year when he announced they were engaged. And if I had to describe her in one word, it would be… exhausting.
Madison wasn’t the kind of person who asked for things. She expected them. She had a way of making every request sound like a demand, like generosity wasn’t an act of kindness but an obligation people owed her.
But Jake loved her, so I bit my tongue. I wanted to be supportive, even if I didn’t understand what he saw in her.
But, of course, Madison had other plans.
We had just settled in, warm drinks in hand, when I slid an envelope across the table. It was a gift, something I had been saving up for. A small way to show my brother that, despite everything, I still had his back.
She peeked inside, her lips pursing as she pulled out the check.
Ten thousand dollars.
It wasn’t a mistake. It wasn’t a loan. Just a gift. Something to help take the pressure off their wedding budget, to make things easier for them.
Jake and I had drifted apart over the years. When Mom passed, he had tried to be there for me, but I shut him out. And later, when I finally reached for him, it was as if he had already moved on.
So this was my way of trying to bridge that gap, of showing him that I still cared.
Jake’s eyes widened, and for the first time in a long time, I saw something like gratitude in them.
“Wow! Chloe! This is… incredible. Thank you, Sis,” he said, his voice thick with emotion.
But Madison?
She set the check down as if I had just handed her a grocery receipt and flipped her hair over her shoulder with a sigh.
“Well, I guess that’s a good start,” she said, her tone completely flat. “It’ll help, but we still have so many expenses. Our day is going to be the most beautiful wedding anyone has ever seen.”
Good start?
I blinked, barely able to keep my jaw from dropping. Was she serious?
“Actually,” she began, her nails tapping lightly against her cup. “Jake and I talked about something important. And we’ve decided that I’ll be wearing your mom’s wedding dress for my ceremony. And something much fancier for the photoshoot and reception. I’ll send you an address for delivery. I need it to go to my dressmaker for alterations.”
The words hit me like a slap.
Jake and Madison had talked about it, and just like that, my mother’s dress—her final wish—was now something to be handed over?
My hands clenched under the table as I struggled to keep my voice steady.
“Excuse me?” I finally managed.
Madison rolled her eyes like I was the unreasonable one.
“Oh, come on, Chloe. It’s just sitting in your closet, collecting dust. And you don’t even know if you’ll ever need it. Don’t fight us; this is just as important to Jake as it is to me.”
And that’s when it hit me.
He had told her about Mom’s wish.
And instead of respecting it, instead of leaving it alone, Madison had decided it should be hers.
“Madison, my mom wanted me to wear that dress. It was her last wish. Our entire family was there when she said it. I’m not going to fight you because this isn’t up for discussion.”
Before I could gather my thoughts, the waitress arrived at our table, balancing a tray with our drinks and a few slices of cake.
“I’ll be right back with the slices of cake,” she said, smiling warmly.
Madison barely glanced up before speaking. “Chloe,” she said slowly, her tone condescending. “Your mom’s not here anymore, is she?”
Every ounce of restraint I had been clinging to threatened to snap.
I wanted to throw my coffee at her. I wanted to tell her exactly where she could shove her entitlement. But before I could act on any of those impulses, the waitress cheerfully placed our plates down in front of us.
“Here you go!” she said. “Enjoy! And Chloe, compliments from the chef.”
I forced a polite smile at the waitress, but the moment she walked away, my eyes flicked back to Madison.
Jake, sitting beside her, shifted in his chair, clearly uncomfortable. His fingers tightened around his coffee cup, his shoulders stiff.
But he said nothing.
Not a single word.
Where was his voice?
I wanted to tell Madison exactly what I thought of her, but I also knew it wouldn’t change anything. She was the kind of person who twisted reality to suit her needs, and in her mind, she was always right.
But before I could speak, another voice cut in.
I turned to see Mark, the coffee shop manager.
And my boyfriend.
Mark and I had been together for two years, and though Jake had met him once, it was clear from his confused expression that he barely remembered.
Mark gave me a small, reassuring smile and gently took my hand, leading me a few steps away from the table.
“I thought you were meeting the owner?” I asked, confused. “And that we were going to meet for dinner tonight? Are we still doing that?”
I blinked, taken aback.
“Mark? What are you talking about? If it was about my reaction… I’m sure you can understand. That dress is my mother’s!”
Mark reached into his pocket, then hesitated. “Baby, breathe,” he murmured. “Give me a second.”
And then, before I could fully process what was happening, he disappeared into the back of the café.
“I was saving this for dinner tonight, but now seems like just as good a time,” he said, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
And then, right there, in the middle of the coffee shop, he got down on one knee.
In his hands, he held a small velvet box.
Mark looked up at me, his expression steady, warm, and completely sure.
“I should have done this a long time ago,” he said. “I love you, and I want to spend my life with you. Marry me, Chloe.”
Then, all at once, there was applause—loud, genuine, and full of excitement. The staff clapped, customers cheered, and even Jake had a stunned smile on his face.
But Madison?
Her expression twisted into something close to rage.
None of it mattered, though.
None of it.
“Yes,” I whispered, my voice thick with emotion. “A thousand times yes, Mark.”
Mark slipped the ring onto my finger, and the café erupted in cheers once again.
“Are you freaking serious?!” she screeched, jumping to her feet so fast that her chair nearly toppled over. “You’re stealing my wedding?! What the hell, Chloe? You brat!”
Jake, still staring at the ring on my finger, blinked in disbelief.
“You’re… engaged,” he muttered, as if he was still trying to process everything.
I smiled, holding up my hand to admire the ring.
Madison practically stomped her foot. “Since when? Two seconds ago! It doesn’t count!” she shouted. “You little…”
Mark, standing beside me, barely concealed his amusement.
“Now there’ll be two weddings on that day! How your mom would have loved to see her kids get married on the same day,” he said, glancing at Jake.
Madison turned to my brother in sheer desperation. “No! No way! This is supposed to be my moment!” she whined. “I’m not… this is unacceptable. Chloe!”
Jake sighed, rubbing his face as if he had the biggest headache in the world.
“Madison, let it go. It’s her life. It’s their lives.”
Madison’s face twisted in frustration.
Without another word, she stormed out of the café, leaving Jake sitting at the table, still staring at me and Mark like he had just woken up from a dream.
For the first time in a long time, I saw something new on my brother’s face—realization.
Something inside him had finally clicked.
“Look, I’m happy for you, Chloe,” he said, staring down at the table. “But… I think I need to rethink some things.”
Then, without another word, he got up and left.
Mark turned to me, still holding my hand. “Are you okay?” he asked.
I let out a breathy laugh, my heart still racing. “More than okay,” I said, squeezing his fingers.
“Are you?” I teased.
“You know me so well,” I said, finally sitting back down.
Mark had dropped me off with a lingering kiss, but he didn’t push when I told him I needed some time alone. He understood.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to stay the night?” he had asked before I got out of the car.
“Yes,” I had reassured him. “I just want to have a moment with my thoughts this evening.”
It had been years since I had unzipped it.
Taking a deep breath, I slowly pulled it open, letting my fingers graze over the delicate ivory fabric inside. The faint scent of old lace and my mother’s perfume still lingered.
“Mom, you’d have lost your mind today.”
The words left my lips before I even realized I was speaking them. I let out a soft laugh, shaking my head.
I traced the embroidery along the bodice, my throat tightening with emotion.
“But it’s safe now. Madison will never touch your dress, Mom. You made sure of that, didn’t you?”
A lump formed in my throat.
“I wish you were here.”
But tonight, for the first time in a long time, I felt like I had honored my mother’s memory. Like I had done something she would have been proud of.
A gentle knock at my door pulled me from my thoughts.
When I turned, I saw Jake standing there, holding a small plate in his hands.
I stared at him for a long moment, unsure of what to say. He looked different—tired, maybe. Or just… lost.
Without a word, he walked over and sat beside me on the bed, placing the plate between us.
We sat in silence for a long time.
“She crossed a line, didn’t she?”
I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. “Jake, she bulldozed through the line,” I admitted.
His jaw tightened, and for a moment, he just stared down at the cake.
Then, after what felt like forever, he nodded.
“I don’t know why I froze,” he murmured. “I heard her. I knew she was out of line. But I just sat there.”
When he finally spoke again, his voice was quieter.
“I guess… I’ve spent so much time defending Madison that I don’t even know where I stand anymore.”
And there it was.
The truth Jake had been avoiding for so long.
He had spent so much time defending Madison that he had stopped asking himself whether he even believed what he was saying anymore.
He nodded slowly, his eyes dark with something that looked an awful lot like doubt.
Or maybe, just maybe, it was clarity.
Neither of us spoke after that.
We just sat there, sharing the cake in silence, just like we had when we were kids.
The same one I had given him earlier.
Without a word, he placed it on the bed between us.
“I can’t take this, Chloe. Not if I don’t know where Madison and I are going. And you’re going to need it, sis. You’re getting married, too.”
It was about something much bigger.
For the first time in a long time, Jake and I weren’t standing on opposite sides of a battle we didn’t even know we were fighting.
And for tonight, that was enough.
This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,”, and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.
