Chapter 109 The Wedding That Shouldn’t Be
Chapter One hundred and Nine
Stefan’s POV
The wedding hall was bright when I walked in. Everything looked expensive. The flowers were white and lined both sides of the long walkway. The decorations covered the walls, and all the chairs were full. People talked loudly, laughed, and took pictures. Everyone looked excited, but I did not feel the same.
I stood backstage and tried to breathe. The room felt small, even though it was big. I kept my hands in front of me, and I stared at my suit. It looked perfect. Everything about me looked perfect. But my chest felt tight, and my mind kept racing.
“This is it,” I told myself quietly. “This is the day.”
But I didn’t feel ready. I didn’t feel anything close to ready. I felt tired. I felt confused. I felt like something was wrong, but I could not explain it.
I looked in the mirror. My eyes looked empty. I tried to smile, but it didn’t look real.
My thoughts kept drifting.
I thought about my company. The pressure I carried every day. The decisions. The long nights.
I thought about the past year. How fast everything changed.
Then I thought about Val.
Every time her name came into my mind, something turned inside me. I tried to push the thought away. I tried to focus on today. But my brain refused to listen.
My hands shook a little when I adjusted my tie.
“Stop it,” I whispered to myself.
I heard footsteps behind me. I turned.
Natasha walked in wearing her wedding gown. She looked flawless. People would call her beautiful today. And she knew it. She moved with confidence as she came to stand beside me.
She placed a hand on my arm and smiled. “You look good,” she said.
“Thank you,” I replied, trying to keep my voice calm.
She studied my expression. Her smile dropped a little. “Are you finally ready,” she asked, “to stop chasing ghosts?”
I stiffened. “I’m not chasing anything.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You know what I mean. Today is the end of all that nonsense. Today, you choose stability. You choose me.”
I didn’t say anything. I forced myself to nod because I didn’t want a fight right before the ceremony.
She didn’t notice the way my heart was pulling in a different direction. Or maybe she did notice, and she was forcing herself not to care.
She squeezed my arm. “Let’s go. Everyone is waiting.”
I followed her. The soft music grew louder as we stepped out from behind the curtain.
People stood. Cameras flashed. The noise filled my ears. I tried to look calm. I tried to be the man everyone wanted me to be.
We reached the aisle. Natasha walked ahead with her father. I waited for my cue.
The music changed.
I took a deep breath and began to walk toward the altar.
Each step felt slow. I felt dozens of eyes watching me. Phones recorded me. People smiled. Some whispered excitedly.
I kept moving.
But when I reached the front, something made me look up.
And that was when I saw her.
Valenticia.
She sat on the left side, two rows from the front. She wore a simple dress, but it made her stand out more than anyone else in the room. Her face was calm, but her eyes were not. I saw pain in them. I saw confusion. And something in my chest twisted hard.
My breath caught.
My body froze for a second as I almost forgot where I was.
Her eyes met mine.
For that short moment, I felt everything I had been trying to bury for months push up inside me. All the memories. All the moments. All the things I didn’t say. All the things she didn’t say. Everything crashed into me at once.
She looked away quickly, and I forced myself to breathe again.
I turned back to the altar.
Natasha stood there, smiling for the cameras. She held her bouquet in front of her chest. The priest raised a hand and welcomed everyone. His voice echoed through the hall.
I tried to steady myself. I told myself to focus. I told myself to stay in the moment.
Natasha gave her vows first. Her voice was loud and clear.
“I promise to stand with you,” she said. “I promise to support you. I promise to be the woman who completes you. I promise to be the one who pushes away the old stories and helps build new ones.”
I knew one of those lines was meant for Val, and it bothered me.
When she finished, everyone clapped. She smiled widely.
Then it was my turn.
The priest nodded at me. “Your vows.”
I swallowed. I opened my mouth.
I began to speak.
“I promise to—”
Suddenly, a loud alarm blared through the hall. The noise hit everyone at once. People jumped. Some shouted. The priest stopped talking, and they stopped. The alarm shook the entire building.
Then a voice yelled through the speakers:
“Fire in the east wing of Blake Enterprises headquarters!”
My stomach dropped.
My company.
My employees.
My building.
I froze on the spot.
The room exploded into noise and panic as the guests looked around. Some stood. Some ran. Some filmed the chaos.
I looked at Natasha.
She looked angry. Not scared—angry.
“Stefan!” she shouted. “Don’t even think about it. This is your wedding!”
“My company is burning!” I shouted back. “People might be inside!”
“This is more important!” she screamed.
I stared at her.
I couldn’t believe she said that.
I couldn’t believe she cared more about this ceremony than the people who worked for me.
I took one step back.
She reached out to grab me. “Don’t you dare—”
I pulled my arm away.
“I have to go,” I said.
She screamed something else, but I didn’t listen.
I turned and ran.
I ran past the guests. I ran past the rows of chairs. I ran past the cameramen.
People yelled my name. Some tried to stop me. Some reached out their hands. I didn’t stop for anyone.
I pushed through the doors and burst into the hallway. The alarm continued to ring behind me. My breath hitched as I sprinted toward the exit.
I couldn’t stand at an altar while everything I built burned down.
I didn’t look at the guests.
I didn’t look at the shocked photographers.
I only ran.
I reached the door that led outside. I pushed it open hard and stepped into the bright daylight. The heat hit my face at once. I could see smoke rising in the direction of my company’s building.
And without thinking, without hesitation, without any fear about what people would say…
I headed straight for the fire.