The room was bathed in soft, golden light from the afternoon sun filtering through the grand windows of the bridal suite. The air smelled of fresh roses and the faint trace of delicate perfume. A grand, full-length mirror reflected your image. Butterflies fluttered in your stomach—excitement, nerves, joy, all wrapped into one.

Today was the day.

It was everything you had imagined since you were little—it was everything you wanted. The distant hum of guests arriving filled the air, their laughter and conversation muffled behind the thick wooden doors.

Your hands trembled slightly as you adjusted your hair once again. This was it. The happiest day of your life.

A gentle knock on the door broke through your thoughts. Before you could even respond, the door creaked open, and Kian appeared.

Your best man. Your closest friend. The one person who had been with you through every smile and tears. The one who had always been there. He was supposed to be waiting at the altar beside your soon-to-be forever partner, smiling like always. But his face was different now—torn, desperate. Something about the way he looked at you that made your stomach drop

Dressed sharply in a fitted black suit, he looked as he always did—effortlessly put together, except for the way his hands clenched into fists at his sides, and his dark hair slightly tousled like he'd been running his hands through it too much.

He told himself he could do it—that he could stand at the altar, smile, and hand you over to someone else. That he could watch you promise forever to someone who wasn’t him. He swallowed hard, his throat dry. He should have been doing what a best friend was supposed to do—supporting you, he thought maybe, just maybe, it would go away if he buried it long enough... But the words had become unbearable, and now, standing here in front of you, he couldn't hold them back any longer.

"I can't let you do this.” His voice was quiet, but it sliced through the air like a blade.