The Don's Stand-In Isn't Playing Pretend Anymore

Two years ago, I drank until I threw up just to secure a business deal for Daniel. When we were driving home, my stomach hurt so much that a layer of cold sweat formed all over my body. Even when I was so unwell, Daniel prohibited me from throwing up in his car very sternly.

However, it seems that his supposed severe obsession with cleanliness could be easily disregarded for the woman he truly loved.

I slammed the car door shut and slid into the back seat.

Daniel glanced over his shoulder and asked, "Why aren't you sitting in the front?"

"I'd get car sick." I closed my eyes and refused to talk to him.

The rest of the ride passed in heavy silence.

When we arrived at Marino Manor, Leah was already there. She was wearing an exquisite white chiffon dress with a garment bag in her arms. A dazzling pink diamond necklace glittered on her neck.

"Hey, Rosie! I picked up your wedding dress," she said, thrusting the bag toward me. "Go on and try it on."

I didn't move.

Daniel's eyes flicked between the necklace on Leah's neck and my bare neck.

He looked a little embarrassed as he spoke up awkwardly. "Leah, didn't I ask you to just pick it up?"

Leah instantly put a hand over the necklace, feigning innocence. "I know, but the designer insisted it looked good on me and asked me to try it on."

Then she turned to me and asked, "You don't mind, do you, Rosie?"

I met her gaze steadily and replied, "No. You can keep it."

Daniel's patience snapped.

He grabbed the garment bag irritably and shoved it into my arms while barking, "Go try it on."

Leah clung to my arm playfully. "I'll help her with it."

She dragged me along forcefully with a strong grip on my arm. The moment we stepped into the changing room, her saccharine smile vanished.

Lowering her voice, she asked in a voice full of unmasked hostility, "Rosalie, do you remember the time when you got locked in the equipment room all night back in high school? You cried until you lost your voice, but no one came. Do you want to experience that again?"

Of course I remembered. That night left me with crippling claustrophobia.

"What are you getting at?" I said in disgust.

She shrugged and replied, "If I were you, I'd get lost before the wedding. We look so much alike. No one would even notice if we swapped with each other. Daniel loves me, not you. I'm the one who should be his bride."

I tightened my hold on the garment bag and asked quietly, "If you love Daniel so much, why didn't you come back sooner in the last five years? Why now?"

Leah burst out laughing. "Who said I love him? Those five years abroad were the best years of my life. I just got bored of it now. So, my foolish sister, be smart and step aside this time. I took everything from you once. I can do it again easily."

"Fine. He's all yours. I don't want him," I replied uncaringly.

Her triumphant smile faltered, and she shot me a doubtful look. "What are you playing at, huh? You've always loved Daniel. Oh, I see. You're pretending to give up, but you're actually aiming to go through with the wedding."

She scoffed. "Come on, Rosalie. That's all you've ever been good at. You've always hid your jealousy behind that haughty facade you put on."

I retorted, "Leah, we're not kids anymore. Your little mind games have long stopped working on me."

My attitude infuriated her. Gritting her teeth, she spat, "Why, you! That won't work, huh? Then, what about this?"

Suddenly, her eyes reddened. She yanked the necklace from her neck with a violent tug. It snapped, leaving behind a red welt across her skin.

"Ah!" she screamed. In the same motion, she tore the garment bag in my hands before bursting out of the changing room in tears while holding her cheek.

She ran straight into Daniel's arms, sobbing pitifully until her whole body shook. "Rosie… Rosie wouldn't try on the gown! She said it wasn't her size and that it was made for me… Then, she yanked the necklace off me and tried to hit me!"

I stepped out slowly, holding the torn garment bag.

In the living room, Daniel's parents, as well as my dad and Camilla, all snapped their heads at the commotion. Their faces were grim, and their judgmental gazes that gave away their immense displeasure landed on me.

My dad slammed his hand on the table and scolded, "You're just like your mother. You're selfish, difficult, and have no respect for family!"

Camilla shrieked in agreement, "Exactly! How can you throw a tantrum on the day before your wedding?"

Daniel's parents, Pedro Marino and Beatrice Lupo, said nothing but made their disapproval known through the grimace on their faces.

Just like that, I was once again the villain. I was the unreasonable, ungrateful, and impossible one. I didn't bother defending myself. I just stood where I was with a stoic expression.

"Enough!" Daniel snapped, cutting them off. He came over and gripped my shoulder. But to my surprise, he didn't lose his temper.

"Alright, that's enough," he said gently.

Then, he put a hand over my shoulder and gave me a comforting side hug. "Since Leah has worn that pink diamond necklace, it's not a good choice to let you wear it as the bride. As for the dress, just let it be if it's torn.

"I'll order you a new set of jewelry made of top-grade diamonds. We'll have your gown remade. You'll be the most beautiful bride tomorrow, I promise."

Once upon a time, I would have teared up and felt immensely touched that he defended me in public. I would have thought all that I had suffered had been worth it.

But now? I found it incredibly boring.

I murmured half-heartedly, "Sure. I'm tired. I'll go home first."

Before anyone could respond, I turned and walked out.

Daniel instinctively reached out to stop me, but Leah grabbed his arm and whined, "My neck hurts…"

And just like that, his attention shifted back to her. He never came home that night.

With my suitcase on standby, I waited for time to pass. When the sky started lighting up, I left without a second glance backward.

…

At the venue where Daniel and my wedding was held, he stood at the altar. However, his bride was still nowhere to be seen.

He grew restless and called my number over and over again.

By the 19th time, the call connected.

"Where are you, Rosalie? Our wedding has started!" he shouted into the phone.

In the next moment, he heard a clear and mechanical voice over the line. "Attention passengers, please proceed to Gate B17 for boarding…"

The color drained from Daniel's face. Every trace of anger on his face vanished, replaced by raw panic.

He asked frantically, "Where are you going?"