The liaison from the wedding planning company pushed the binder across the table, her smile stiff at the edges.
「Ms. Cox, there are a few small details we'd like to reconfirm with you.」
I flipped to the floral arrangement page. My fingers stopped.
The white camellias we'd agreed on had been crossed out in red pen, a new flower written beside them.
Blue hydrangeas.
「Who changed this?」
Lisa Brennan clutched her pen, her voice barely above a murmur.
「Mr. Harding's assistant called last night. He said all white flowers were to be removed from the venue, especially the white camellias.」
I looked up at her.
「Why?」
She glanced toward the door, clearly hoping someone else would walk in and explain.
「The assistant said Ms. Gill has been having emotional breakdowns when she sees white flowers lately. Mr. Harding was worried it would affect the atmosphere at the wedding, so he asked us to swap them out at the last minute.」
I stared at the design sheet. Something about it struck me as almost funny.
The wedding was mine. The flowers were ones Katherine didn't like. So they had to go.
Even my mother had to step aside for her heartbreak.
The conference room door opened.
Chester walked in carrying a hot latte.
He set the coffee in front of me, casual as anything.
「No sugar. Your stomach's been off, so don't drink anything cold.」
He finished the sentence before noticing the design sheet spread open on the table.
His gaze landed on the blue hydrangea column. He didn't look away. He just sat down beside me and explained in a low voice.
「Katherine cried for a long time last night. She said white flowers remind her of the day she got dumped.」
「Sonia, it's just the bouquet. Everything else about the wedding, I kept exactly the way you wanted.」
I looked at the coffee.
Chester didn't forget my preferences.
But every one of those little things he remembered weighed nothing the moment Katherine said she was upset.
「Do you know why I chose white camellias?」
I asked it quietly.
Chester faltered, visibly caught off guard.
He opened his mouth, hesitated, then tried.
「Because they're simple? You've never liked anything too flashy.」
I lost the desire to hear any more.
White camellias were my mother's favorite flower.
Before she passed, I sat beside her hospital bed peeling an apple. She stroked my hair and told me that when I got married someday, I shouldn't pick roses for my bouquet. Too many thorns. White camellias would be perfect.
I had told Chester that story exactly once.
That night, squeezed together on the narrow bed in our tiny rental, he held me and swore he'd remember it for the rest of his life.
Turns out "the rest of his life" had a shelf life of six years.
「Chester, did I come at a bad time?」
Katherine stood in the doorway in a pale white dress, her eyes reddened to just the right degree.
She held a paper bag in one hand, the hem of a bridesmaid's dress peeking out of the top.
She stepped inside, and the moment her gaze landed on the design sheet, she bit her lip.
「Sonia, I'm so sorry. I had no idea Chester would actually have them changed. I was just so upset last night, and it slipped out that I couldn't stand the sight of white flowers.」
Chester got up and went to her, his voice going soft.
「You don't need to apologize. Nobody blames you.」
Katherine tugged lightly at his sleeve.
「Maybe we should just change them back. I can handle it. It's Sonia's wedding, after all. I don't want her to be unhappy because of me.」
I watched her fingers curled around Chester's cuff.
Her nails were painted a pale blue, the exact same shade as the replacement bouquet.
Chester turned back to me, his eyes carrying a mixture of helplessness and a silent plea.
「Sonia, Katherine already feels terrible. Don't make this harder for her.」
Before I could speak, Naomi Gill pushed through the door.
She had been waiting outside all along. The second she saw an opening, she walked straight to my side and patted my hand with practiced warmth.
「Sonia, a wedding is a happy occasion. Don't let a little thing like flowers ruin the harmony. Katherine has always been sensitive, and Chester's caught in the middle. You're a sensible girl. Just be a little more understanding.」
Sensible. There it was again.
I lowered my gaze and closed the binder.
「Fine. Change them.」
Chester let out a breath of relief and came over, reaching for my hand.
「I knew you wouldn't put me in a difficult position.」
I sidestepped him, picked up my bag, and stood.
「You can finalize the rest of the arrangements without me.」
He frowned.
「Sonia, where are you going?」
「Home.」
I glanced at the crossed-out white camellias one last time.
「I'm tired.」
Katherine's voice came from behind me, small and fragile.
「Is Sonia still upset with me?」
Chester looked at me instinctively, something conciliatory in his eyes.
If this had been before, I would have explained. I would have said I wasn't upset with her, just a little sad.
But now I only smiled.
「No.」
I pushed the door open and walked out.
Behind me, Katherine's muffled crying filtered through, threaded with Chester's hushed voice coaxing her.
He was saying:
「She didn't mean it like that. She's just been under a lot of pressure lately. Pre-wedding jitters, that's all.」
I kept walking without slowing down, a hollow ache where part of my heart used to be.
So even my sadness had to be repackaged, translated into the stress of a girl who wasn't sensible enough.
