I used to dream about weddings.
Not in a fairytale-princess way, with sparkling gowns and grand ballrooms. My dreams were simpler. I just wanted to sit in the pews, watch my siblings exchange vows, and share in their happiness.
But that never happened.
Because every single one of them left me out.
Oak, my oldest brother, got married when I was ten.
“You’re too young, Lena,” they told me.
Then at twelve, another wedding—still not invited. At fifteen, I begged my sister, Ivy, to let me come, but she gave me that fake, sympathetic smile.
“If I let you come, Lena, I’d have to let other kids come too. It wouldn’t be fair. You understand, right?”
When would it be fair? I wondered. When would I stop being treated like an afterthought?
At seventeen, my brother Silas got married. By then, I had stopped asking. When his twin, Ezra, got married soon after, I didn’t even bother pretending to care.
But the part that hurt the most? My step-cousin, who had just turned eighteen, was there.
And I wasn’t.
I sent a half-hearted congratulations and spent the evening in my room with my boyfriend, Rowan—now my fiancé.
That was the last time I let myself feel hurt over them.
So, when I started planning my own wedding, the decision was easy:
None of them would be invited.
“Are you sure, Lena?” Rowan asked as he looked at our wedding invitations. “I know they’ve hurt you, but do you really want to do the same thing? Or do you want to be the bigger person? Show them you’re better than that?”
I shook my head. “This isn’t about revenge, Rowan. It’s about consequences. They made it clear that I didn’t matter to them, so why should they be there to celebrate my happiness?”
He studied me for a moment, then poured me a glass of wine. “If that’s what you want, my love, then that’s what we’ll do. I just don’t want you to regret it.”
“I won’t,” I promised.
The invitations went out. It didn’t take long before my family noticed.
They stormed my apartment like a SWAT team, demanding answers.
“Why didn’t we get an invite to your wedding, Lena?” Oak asked, his arms crossed.
I stood in the doorway, mirroring his posture, my heart thudding in my chest.
I had waited years for this moment.
“None of you wanted me at your weddings,” I said coolly. “So guess what? I don’t want you at mine.”
Silence. Their faces twisted with shock, confusion, and—was that guilt?
Ivy was the first to recover. “That’s different! There was alcohol, rowdy uncles! We were protecting you, Lena!”
I laughed, a hollow, bitter sound. “I wasn’t asking for the after-party. I wanted to see my family get married. I wanted to be included. But none of you cared.”
My mother, Marigold, stepped forward, her voice high-pitched with emotion. “This is cruel! I want all my kids together on your special day!”
I tilted my head. “That’s funny, Mom. Because you didn’t seem to care when I was left out of theirs.”
Guilt flickered across their faces. I could see it now—the shifting glances, the uneasy weight settling over them.
“It wasn’t personal, Lena,” Oak muttered.
I let his words hang in the air before replying. “It was personal to me.”
More silence. More awkward shuffling. Ivy tried to get my dog’s attention. He ignored her.
I sighed, suddenly exhausted. “Fine. I’ll invite you. But only on one condition.”
They perked up instantly. “What is it?” my mother asked eagerly.
“Tell me the truth. No lies, no excuses. Why was I never included?”
The room went still. Too still.
Then Oak exhaled sharply. “You really don’t know, do you?”
“Know what?”
More glances exchanged. A hesitation that made my stomach twist.
Finally, Ivy sat down, wringing her hands. “Lena… you’re not actually our sister.”
The words hit me like a slap.
“What?”
She swallowed hard. “You’re our cousin. Our dad’s brother raised you until he passed away. Mom and Dad took you in. But… we don’t know who your mother is.”
The room spun. “No. That’s not—That can’t be true.”
My father, Ellis, sat in his usual armchair, staring at the floor. “We were going to tell you one day.”
“When?! On my deathbed?!” My voice cracked. “I spent my whole life trying to belong to a family that was never mine?”
Ezra finally spoke, his voice quiet. “We were just kids, Lena. And… you needed a lot of attention. We didn’t mean to push you away, but you weren’t really our sibling. So we kind of… kept our distance.”
I stared at him, my body numb. “You mean you decided I wasn’t family.”
He didn’t deny it.
I don’t remember leaving. One moment, I was standing in my apartment, and the next, I was outside Rowan’s building, sitting on the curb, watching traffic lights change from red to green.
The door creaked open. Footsteps approached. Then warmth—Rowan’s hoodie draped over my shoulders.
He didn’t ask what happened. He just sat beside me, his knee brushing against mine, silent and steady.
“I don’t think I exist,” I whispered.
Rowan held me tighter. “Lena…”
“I mean, I do. But not really. I spent my whole life trying to prove I belonged. But I was never their sister. I was never even an afterthought.”
Rowan exhaled, thoughtful. “What do you need?”
I swallowed. “I thought I needed a wedding. I thought forcing them to watch me for once would make it even. But I don’t care anymore. I don’t want to stand at the altar thinking about them. I don’t want them there, pretending they love me.”
Rowan’s fingers brushed against mine. “Then don’t.”
“What?”
“Don’t give them your day,” he said gently. “Let them live with their guilt. But you? You don’t need an audience to be happy.”
Something inside me cracked open.
“Let’s not do the wedding,” I whispered.
Rowan searched my face, then smiled. “Are you sure?”
I nodded. “We were only doing it because we thought the other wanted it. But a big wedding was never us.”
His grin was slow, warm. “No, it wasn’t.”
I hesitated. “Then… what do you want?”
He took my hands. “I want to wake up next to you every day for the rest of my life. That’s the dream.”
Tears blurred my vision. “Then let’s elope.”
His face lit up. “Hell yes!”
And just like that, I made a choice—for me.
No forced smiles. No fake congratulations. Just Rowan and me, standing in a quiet courthouse, saying, “I do.”
As we stepped outside, the sun hit my face, warm and golden, like the universe itself was telling me:
You made the right choice.
And I had.
