My Knight in Shining Suit

Astrid.

‘Hi, this is Bryan. I can’t answer the phone right now. Leave a message after the beep.’

I lost count of how many times I had heard Bryan’s phone. I tried calling his office, and his secretary said he left hours ago. I called his parents’ house, and he wasn’t there either.

I left my folder of wedding receipts in his house. I wanted to ask him to bring it to me. Now, I had no choice but to pick them up myself.

Our wedding was eight weeks away, and the planner needed the paperwork by tomorrow. I had spent months coordinating vendors, choosing flowers, sampling cakes. This would be my only wedding. I wanted it to be nothing short of perfect.

I pressed my ear to his apartment door.

Silence.

It didn’t seem like he was home either.

I pulled out the key he gave me months ago—"for emergencies and surprises," he had joked. This counted as both.

The lock clicked. The door opened into darkness, save for a sliver of light beneath the bedroom door.

"Bryan?" I called. No answer.

I flicked on the entryway light. The apartment looked the same—our couch, our mugs, our memories—but something was off.

Then I saw the shoes.

His oxfords. And beside them, crimson stilettos.

My breath caught. Those shoes looked familiar. Geena, my cousin and best friend, wore them to my birthday dinner. She’d twirled in them proudly.

“Aren’t they divine?” she’d said. She’d looked at Bryan when she said it. I hadn’t thought anything of it then.

I dialed Bryan’s mobile again. The buzz came from the bedroom.

Careful now, I removed my shoes. My heart thudded as I moved through the apartment. Voices drifted down the hall—low, angry. I could have grabbed the folder from the table and left. But I had to know.

"You can't just spring this on me," I heard Bryan say. "We both agreed that this meant nothing!”

"Well, life isn't always convenient, is it?" I would recognize that voice anywhere. Geena. "I didn't plan this."

I stood beside the half-opened door. I could see Bryan pulling on his pants, his movements sharp, agitated. The bed was messy. The framed photo of us—face-down.

“You have to get rid of it!” Bryan said angrily.

“I’m not going to get rid of it! I may have done shameful things in my life, but I will not kill my own baby!”

“Astrid will find out!” Bryan argued.

“And you still plan to marry her after getting me pregnant!?” Geena asked angrily.

“I already spent a fortune on that wedding she planned! It was too extravagant! What do you want me to do? Call it all off?”

“Oh, really? So you want me to call off my pregnancy instead?” Geena asked. “I can’t believe you’re even considering that! Perhaps you should have considered checking your ten-year old condom before you jumped on the sofa with me!”

“Are you sure it is even mine?”

“How dare you, Bryan?” Geena fired at him. “We’ve been sleeping together for six months! I’ve never let any other man touch me except for you!”

“So what do you want me to do? Choose between my wedding and your pregnancy? It’s a difficult choice to make, you know!”

Geena stepped into view, fastening her bra. Her makeup was smudged, her blouse clutched in one hand.

“The wedding is in two months,” Bryan snapped.

“To my cousin,” she shot back. “You should’ve thought about that before you started sleeping with me.”

The floor dropped out from under me. Six months of planning the perfect wedding, and he’s cheating on me with my cousin.

“You can’t want to keep it,” he said. “What would that do to Astrid? To your family? To me?”

My name in his mouth made me want to scream.

“Maybe I don’t care anymore,” Geena said. “Maybe I’m tired of being your dirty little secret.”

“You knew what this was from the beginning.”

“You promised you’d leave her.”

“I said I’d think about it.”

“That’s not what you said when you were inside me!”

That broke me.

I slammed the door open. They turned, frozen in horror.

“Astrid—”

"How long?" I asked, voice cold.

No answer.

"How? Long?"

“It’s not what you think—”

I laughed sarcastically. “It’s exactly what I think. My fiancé and my cousin. Behind my back. While I planned our wedding. While you helped me pick my dress, Geena.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “I’m so sorry, Ash—”

“Don’t.” I raised a hand. “You don’t get to do that, Geena! This isn’t one of our petty fights, where you only need to say sorry, and we’ll be fine!”

Bryan stepped toward me. “Baby, please—”

“Don’t touch me.”

“Astrid, listen—”

“To what? To your lies? That you knocked up my cousin? Told her to get rid of it? Is that your grand defense?”

“You weren’t supposed to be here,” he said.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” I muttered. “That must have been so inconvenient for you that I suddenly needed to drop by unannounced!”

“Astrid, come on!” Bryan argued. “We’ve been together for years, and what did I get from you apart from simple kisses? I’m a man! I have needs. What do you expect?”

I cannot believe he’s throwing this on me.

“So… you fucked the next available thing because I asked you to wait until after our wedding?”

Seriously, what’s wrong with my no-sex-before-marriage police?

“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I was weak. I got tempted. It’s… complicated.”

“Oh, really? Then let’s uncomplicate our situation, shall we?” I glared at him. “The wedding is off!”

“But… I’ve already spent a fortune!” he said, stunned. “Invitations, deposits—”

“Oh, so that’s what you’re really worried about? The money you paid for the deposits?” I grabbed the folder of receipts from the table and threw it at him. “Here. You deal with it. Refund all your money!”

Bryan’s expression turned calculating. “Don’t do this, Astrid.”

“I already am!” I glared at him.

Geena whispered, “He told me you were drifting apart. That you only stayed together for appearances.”

I stared at her. “And that made it okay to betray me?”

She looked away.

“I don’t know who I hate more,” I said. “You, Geena or myself.” I wiped the tears that rolled down my cheeks.

I backed toward the door. Bryan followed, face shifting to that remorseful look he used when he forgot anniversaries.

"Let me drive you home."

"I'd rather walk through fire!"

"Astrid, I love you!"

I stopped. “No. You love the version of me who kept your life tidy while you did whatever—and whoever—you wanted.”

“That’s not fair—”

“You know what’s not fair? That I wasted three years on you.”

I opened the door.

“You want to talk? Refund the deposits. Call the guests. Tell your parents. Explain why this wedding is no longer happening!”

I stepped into the hallway. He called after me, but I didn’t bother to look back.

Outside, the skies mirrored the turmoil I felt inside. And as if fate was not done with me yet, lightning ripped across the clouds, followed by a bellowing thunder. Then the heavens opened up, drenching me in freezing rain.

My tears vanished into the storm. Alone and broken, I whisper, “Now… where will I go?”