Chapter 4

The wedding dress in the mirror suited me well.

My mom from behind me adjusted my veil, the wrinkles around her eyes deepening with her smile.

"When will Nathan be here? I haven't seen him in over half a year."

I looked at my phone screen.

Ten minutes ago, Nathan had replied to my message.

"Chloe lost her graduation thesis data and is crying in her advisor's office. I need to go help her sort it out."

"You go ahead and try on the dress. Explain it nicely to your mom. She's always been fond of me, she'll definitely understand. Tonight, I've booked your mom's favorite upscale restaurant to make it up to her."

My mom had just had minor heart surgery last month, so I hadn't told her about Nathan and me.

I turned off the screen and turned around.

"Mom, he has an urgent company meeting and can't make it."

My mom paused, then smiled and patted my hand.

"Work is important. It's good for a man to be ambitious. You just need to look good in the dress. Come, let Mom take more pictures of you."

Click.

In the photo, I was wearing a white wedding dress, smiling, but there was no light in my eyes. After putting her on the train back home, I went to Tara's place. Sitting on the couch, I called the wedding planner.

"Hello, I'd like to cancel my reservation for the Clear Lake Chapel."

The person on the other end paused.

"Ms. Smith, that venue is booked eight months in advance, and the $12,000 deposit is non-refundable. Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"You came here over a dozen times before, always so meticulous. Our designer said you put so much thought into it..."

"Please cancel it. Thank you."

I hung up.

Tara sat at the other end of the couch. "Are you really sure?"

"Yes."

That chapel was forty miles outside the city. There was no direct subway; you had to transfer two buses and then walk for twenty minutes.

I chose it because there was a lake nearby.

Five years ago, the first time Nathan took me out, it was to that lake. He spent an entire afternoon taking photos of me by the lake.

He said, "This is our secret spot."

The decoration plan was something I had worked through, draft by draft, with the designer.

For the table flowers, I chose white magnolias... his mom liked simple elegance.

The song played during the ceremony was the one we heard at a coffee shop on our first date.

I drew the seating chart myself, coloring it with markers: blue for his guests, pink for mine.

His college roommate had a fear of heights, so I specifically arranged a window seat for him on the first floor.

Nathan had never asked about any of these details.

"Summer, if you want to cry, just cry," Tara said. I shook my head.

I really felt like I couldn't cry anymore.

Tara received a call from Nathan while she was revising a proposal at work.

"Summer's phone is off. Could you tell her something for me?"

Tara put down her pen.

"What is it?"

"Chloe needs to take her graduation photos next month and wants to find a unique location." His tone was casual, as if discussing a minor chore.

"I remembered the chapel Summer booked. The lakeside view is nice. Could she put in a good word for me to borrow it for a day?"

Tara gripped her phone, her knuckles slowly tightening. "Nathan. That venue has already been canceled..."