Chapter 3

Five days before the wedding, Zach’s mother asked me to meet her to review the final tattoo design.

When I arrived, Julie was already there.

She was sitting in the tattoo chair, holding up her left hand under the light.

The rose on her ring finger had begun to heal, a thin layer of scabbing covering the ink. Hidden among the petals, the letter A stood out with startling clarity.

Zach’s mother smiled warmly. “The rose looks beautiful on Julie.”

There was no way I could put on a smile.

I had gone through seven revisions with the tattoo artist before settling on that design.

We had decided upon the number of petals, the flow of the hidden lines, and the exact petal beneath which the letter would be concealed.

I had drawn every detail.

Back then, Zach told me the rose represented me, passionate yet covered in thorns.

Julie noticed me and quickly lowered her hand.

“Miss Annie, please don’t misunderstand. Madam Cross wanted to see how the tattoo turned out, so she asked me to come by.”

Madam Cross frowned. “Annie, I invited Julie. Since she’s already had it done, we might as well use it as a reference.”

I turned toward Zach.

He was lounging on the sofa, scrolling through his phone. He looked up at me for a second before lowering his eyes again. “It’s just a tattoo.”

I walked over to him. “That’s my Godmother’s tattoo.”

He finally looked at me. “There are plenty of designs at the tattoo shop. Pick another one. I’ll pay for it.”

My heart sank. Then I asked, “Zach, is that how you see it? That anyone can have what’s mine?”

His answer did not change. “Don’t make a big deal out of this.”

Julie stood beside with her head lowered. “It's my fault. Please don’t argue because of me.”

Madam Cross immediately turned to me. “You're about to become the Godmother of the Cross family. If you can’t even be this gracious, how can I trust you to marry into our family?”

The title of ‘Godmother’ sounded prestigious. However, it felt exactly like the rose on Julie’s ring finger. I was the one who designed it, and I was the one who honored its traditions, yet someone else took all the credit and the glory.

Zach walked over and took my hand.

“Annie, it’s just a tattoo. If you want one that badly, I’ll hire the best artist money can buy and get you something even more expensive.”

I looked at Julie’s left hand, and my eyes stung. “It’s not about how much it costs.”

Zach asked, “Then what is it? You're about to marry me. I’m giving you status, respect, a grand wedding, everything! Everyone already knows you’ll soon become the Godmother of the Cross family. What else could you possibly be unhappy about?”

I said nothing. He did not understand. Those were never the things I wanted.

That night, after I got home, the butler came to confirm the wedding schedule. As I flipped through the binder, I reached the page with our wedding vows. The words Zach was supposed to say to me read: [Annie, after everything we’ve been through, you’re the one who’s always stayed by my side.]

My entire body went rigid. Beneath my name was a heavily crossed-out line. The ink had been scribbled over again and again, but when I held the page up to the light, I could still make out the name underneath—Julie.

The wedding vows had been rewritten.

The tattoo had belonged to someone else first.

Holding the vows in my hand, I found Zach and asked, “Did you originally write these for Julie?”

He remained quiet.

Just then, his phone lit up. A message from Julie popped onto the screen: [Zach, I found the wedding vows you wrote for me back then. I’ll treasure the thought behind them forever.]

I stared at the message and suddenly felt ridiculous. I asked, “So, Julie knows?”

Zach met my gaze. His voice was ice cold. “Annie, you’re about to become my wife and the Godmother of the Cross family. Stop being so petty.”

I let out a bitter laugh.

Was I supposed to graciously let them turn my wedding into the happy ending they never had?

“Zach, let’s call off the wedding.”

He looked at me and chuckled. “Annie, you don’t have to use something like this to make me give in.”

He picked up his coat and added, “I'm busy. I don't have time to indulge your tantrums. Since you’re about to become the Godmother of the Cross family, I expect you to be more mature. The rehearsal is tomorrow. Go make the arrangements. I won’t have much time to cooperate.”

Then, he left without another word.

What Zach did not know was that I stayed awake the entire night, making copies of every single wedding document.

Soon, it would all be unveiled as a surprise before the guests.