My Spoiled Twin Stole My Wedding, So I Walked Away

On my wedding day, the makeup artist mistook my twin sister for me. Chloe didn't bother to correct her. She sat there getting the full bridal glam and slipped right into my custom designer gown. Just as I was about to tell her to change back, my fiancé, Brandon, shoved a bridesmaid dress into my hands with an easy grin. "Sierra, you two look identical anyway. Let Chloe have her fun for a bit. You can be the bride when it's time for the evening gown." My parents chimed in immediately, pulling my arms. "You're the older sister. The older one is supposed to give in to the younger one." I swallowed the bitter lump in my throat, speechless. All these years, whenever Chloe wanted something, I had to give it up. When we were kids, my parents forced me to cut off the sweet tips of the strawberries for her, leaving me with the sour, pale bottoms. When I met Brandon, he took their side, always telling me to accommodate Chloe. I even had to settle for whichever birthday gifts she didn't want. Yet, I was only older than her by a single minute. It wasn't until the evening ceremony that I finally put on my white wedding dress and stood at the altar. Brandon read his vows: "In sickness and in health, I promise to take care of you..." Down below, Chloe suddenly shouted, "And me! Brandon, you have to take care of me and my sister!" The whole room erupted into laughter. Instead of stopping her, Brandon laughed along and changed his vow on the spot. "All right. I'll take care of you too. I'll pamper you for the rest of my life!" Out of everyone in that room, I was the only one who couldn't smile. When Brandon finished, the officiant held the mic toward my lips. "And do you, Sierra, take Brandon to be your lawfully wedded husband?" I stood in silence for a long time. Then, I slowly raised my hand and ripped off my veil. "I don't." I was done giving in. The officiant froze, completely stunned. He quickly forced a nervous laugh to smooth things over. "Haha, looks like our bride is just so overwhelmed with happiness that she's lost for words! No worries, let's try that one more time." "Sierra, do you take Brandon to be your..." Before he could finish, I hurled the torn veil onto the floor. "I said, I don't!" I grabbed the train of my gown, turned around, and marched straight toward the dressing room. Brandon chased after me and grabbed my wrist. "Sierra, what the hell are you doing? If you have something to say, say it! Did you really have to humiliate me in front of everyone at our own wedding?" I turned to look at him. "So you know this is a wedding?" "Can you just rewrite marriage vows on a whim? Can you say wedding vows to another woman?" Brandon frowned, looking at me as if I were being ridiculous. "She's your twin sister, not some stranger. What's the big deal?" "You're the older sister. Just let it slide." Let it slide. Give in. Always that same line. Ever since we were little, whenever Chloe threw a tantrum, I was the one who had to back down. Why? Just because I was born sixty seconds earlier, did I have to spend the rest of my life swallowing my pride for her? My eyes burned with tears. I shoved Brandon's hand away with all my strength and kept walking toward the dressing room. Brandon let out a heavy sigh behind me. He didn't follow. I knew where he was going. He was going to find my parents and Chloe to figure out what to do. Just like my birthday party last week. It was supposed to be my birthday, yet I ended up with an outdated, cheap necklace that Chloe didn't pick. And when she decided she liked mine better, she snatched that one away too. I was left with nothing. If I dared utter a single "no," Brandon and my parents would immediately corner me with, "You're the older sister. What's wrong with letting your sister have it?" Twenty-seven years. I was sick to death of hearing it. I wasn't going to hear it ever again. Inside the dressing room, I stripped off the wedding dress and stared blankly at my reflection in the mirror. Suddenly, the door swung open with a bang. Chloe leaned against the doorframe, whining, "Sierra, are you throwing another tantrum at Brandon?"I didn't turn around, only glancing at her through the mirror. "Knock before you come in. Get out." Chloe gave a dry chuckle and waved her hand dismissively. "It's just a knock. Why are you so petty?" "Mom and Dad never knock before walking into your room at home. They just push the door open." "Why are you acting so high and mighty all of a sudden? It's not like you're in my room." Even she knew. Nobody ever respected my privacy. They walked into my space whenever they felt like it, without even a word of warning. Yet when it came to Chloe, they would knock gently and wait for her permission before taking a step inside. "Get out!" "This is my dressing room. I want to be left alone." Chloe pouted impatiently, completely ignoring my words. Instead, she pushed the door wider and leaned outside, complaining to the hallway: "I tried talking to her, but she won't listen. What else am I supposed to do?" "Brandon, Mom, Dad, you guys talk to her." The three of them rushed in at once. My parents started with the exact same routine. "Your sister is young and playful. She only piped up during the vows for fun. You're the older sister, cut her some slack." "Exactly. We're all family. We've always done things this way. Why are you acting so dramatic on your wedding day?" Even Brandon joined in, accusing me: "Sierra, Chloe is your sister. I love you, so she's family to me too." "You're older than her, why are you making a scene? Besides, she came in here to make peace. Be sensible and let it go. Stop being so selfish, okay?" I looked at Brandon, feeling a wave of utter disappointment wash over me. He claimed he loved me, yet he never saw my pain or my humiliation. He was just forcing me to endure more of it. I suddenly let out a laugh. It finally clicked. There was no future for Brandon and me. Seeing me laugh, Brandon actually thought I was calming down. He hurriedly waved to Chloe, who was standing in the corner, trying to play peacemaker. "Chloe, come apologize to your sister. See? Sierra is reasonable." Chloe rolled her eyes, tossed whatever was in her hand onto the couch, and dragged her feet over. "Fine, my bad. I'm sorry. Thanks for forgiving me, happy now?" My eyes caught what she had just thrown onto the couch. "What did you just toss?" Chloe went silent, instinctively hiding her right hand behind her back. I walked over to the couch. It was the velvet jewelry box that held our wedding bands. The lid was halfway open, and my diamond ring was gone. Seeing her hide her hand, I instantly knew what she had done. I grabbed her right wrist and pulled her hand into the light. My custom diamond ring was sitting right on her ring finger. "Chloe, you stole my ring?" Caught red-handed, Chloe yanked her hand back, her face flushing with anger. "Stole? How can you say something so nasty!" "I was just trying it on! I'll take it off and give it back to you, alright?" With teary eyes, she tugged at the ring, muttering under her breath: "You're my sister. What's the harm in letting me try it on? Now you won't share anything with me, and you're yelling at me too." "Ouch, it hurts! It's stuck. I can't get it off." Chloe didn't keep her voice down. I knew she wasn't talking to me. She was performing for the other three people in the room. Sure enough, the moment Chloe pretended to tug at the ring for the third time, Brandon caught her hand. "Stop pulling, your finger is getting red. If you like it, keep it." "It's just a ring anyway. I'll buy your sister a brand-new one later." Then, he turned to me. "Sierra, what do you say?""I say no." "We picked the main diamond together, and I spent an entire month working with the designer on the band. You're just giving it away? Did you even think about how I feel? Am I supposed to exchange thin air during the ceremony?" Brandon fell silent under my sharp glare. Chloe grinned again, rummaging through her purse and pulling out a cheap little ring. "Here, Sierra! You have something to wear." "I bought this at the dollar store earlier. See? It comes in handy right now! Nobody's going to inspect it closely anyway. It looks the same from afar." I looked down at the ring. Cheap plastic with rough edges. Flimsy and worthless. Just like me, a complete joke in this family. Brandon grabbed the plastic ring and slipped it onto my finger. "See? I told you your sister has a much sweeter temper than you. She even bought a spare ring for emergencies." "Looks fine on you. Let's just go with this. No one will notice. Since Chloe loves the diamond, just let her have it." My parents immediately agreed. "Yes, it's your big day. Don't ruin the mood over something so petty. You're the older sister, why can't you share with your sister? She's family." "She's young and doesn't know any better. You've shared so much with her already, what's one more ring?" "Alright, put the gown back on and get out there. The ceremony isn't over yet. Honestly, you're getting so difficult lately." ... They kept talking over each other, but I tuned it all out. I took a deep breath, looked at Brandon, and gave him one last chance. "Brandon, I'm asking you for the last time." "Am I really supposed to give up my wedding ring?" Brandon could tell I was on edge. He hesitated for a second. But behind him, Chloe tugged gently on his sleeve, looking down with a pitiful pout. Brandon caved immediately. "Sierra, you're usually so reasonable." "Chloe's finger is already swollen from trying to take it off. Just let her have it. I promise, tomorrow! Tomorrow I'll take you to get an even bigger, more expensive one!" I let out a bitter, self-mocking laugh. Tomorrow? Brandon, you and I don't have a tomorrow. Before I could say another word, someone knocked urgently on the door. It was the wedding coordinator. "Sierra? Are you in there?" "We were doing a final check on the wedding favors, and something is wrong. The names printed on the boxes... it has your sister's name on it!" I pulled the door open. The coordinator pushed a cart full of gift boxes into the room. Printed in elegant gold lettering across the front was: [Brandon & Chloe] Chloe hadn't expected to get caught. She glared at the coordinator and hissed under her breath, "Didn't I tell you to just hand them out quietly? So what if it's a misprint? Did you have to make a whole scene about it?" Then, she spun around, putting on an innocent smile, and grabbed my arm. "Sierra, I'm so sorry!" "I'm so sorry! I accidentally gave them the wrong name, and the printer finished them so fast. I was scared you'd yell at me, so I thought we could just hand them out quietly..." I scoffed and ripped my arm away from her grip. "The print shop confirms the proof at least three times before going to print. You're telling me you gave them your name all three times by mistake?" "Chloe, do you take me for an idiot?" Seeing that her lie was blown, Chloe immediately threw a tantrum. "Fine! If you don't believe me, what do you want me to do?" "You just want to think I did it on purpose! What are we supposed to do now? We can't reprint them in time anyway! If you're going to keep picking on me, I'll just die! I'll die right here to make it up to you, happy now?" With that, Chloe lunged toward the open window of the dressing room, pretending to climb out. "Nobody stop me!" "My own sister won't forgive me, so I might as well just jump!"Chloe wept loudly, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. She gripped the curtains, making them rustle violently. Half her body hung outside the window, but her hands held on tight. She kept looking back over her shoulder, trying to force me to surrender. Naturally, my parents and Brandon rushed over in terror. Two held her hands, one wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her securely inside. Brandon whipped his head around and screamed at me: "Sierra, are you just going to stand there? Apologize to Chloe right now!" "She's your sister! Why can't you just let things go? Do you really have to drive her to suicide before you're satisfied?" Brandon glared at me with pure fury. My parents glared at me too. As if I—the bride whose gown was taken, whose ring was stolen, and whose name was replaced—was the villain from start to finish. A few feet away, Chloe peeked through her tears, shooting me a triumphant, smug smirk. A sudden wave of exhaustion washed over me. I was completely drained. I didn't want to fight about who was right or wrong anymore. I gave Chloe a slight bow and spoke in a calm, flat voice: "I'm sorry, Chloe." "It's my fault for not being a good older sister and not letting you have your way. Please come down. I was wrong." Satisfied at last, Chloe reluctantly stepped down from the windowsill. My parents and Brandon crowded around her instantly, wiping her tears, patting her back, and whispering comforting words. Once she stopped crying, she shot me a resentful glare. "Fine, I forgive Sierra." "She's my sister, I can't stay mad at her forever. We still have a reception to finish. Tell the makeup artist to fix her makeup so she doesn't embarrass our family and Brandon." Her words earned immediate praise from my parents and Brandon. They praised her for being so mature and sweet, telling me I should learn from her. The room slowly quieted down. The farce of a wedding was expected to go on. My mom escorted Chloe out first, not forgetting to glare at me before leaving. "I don't know how you turned out like this. Your little sister is ten times more sensible than you!" My dad told the coordinator to ignore the mistake and just hand out the favors printed with Chloe's name to the guests. Soon, Brandon and I were the only ones left in the room. He looked at me and let out an annoyed sigh. "Sierra, I honestly don't know what got into you today. The makeup artist will be here in a minute. Put your gown back on so we can redo the ceremony." He turned to walk away. I couldn't help but call out to him. "Brandon." He stopped in his tracks and looked back. "Don't you have anything else to say to me?" Brandon paused for a moment, then chose to lecture me again: "Stop being angry, Sierra. As an older sister, you need to learn to compromise." He pushed the door open and left. I stared at his retreating back, at a loss for words. When the makeup artist knocked on the door, I finally snapped out of it and let her in. "Sierra, close your eyes. Let me put some foundation on to cover those tear tracks." I raised a hand to stop her and looked her in the eyes. "No need. You didn't mistake Chloe for me this morning, did you?" "Who authorized you to do her bridal makeup and put her in my designer dress?" The makeup artist hesitated, but seeing my expression, she finally told the truth. "Your sister wanted to steal the spotlight." "Brandon... he agreed to it. He told me to play along and pretend it was an honest mistake." I wasn't surprised. It was exactly what I expected. It just hurt. My chest ached so fiercely that I could barely breathe. The makeup artist raised her beauty blender, trying to coax me. "Sierra, let me touch you up. You won't look your best on stage otherwise..." I tilted my head, dodging her hand. "No need." She blinked in confusion. "Are you going on stage bare-faced in your gown? That might not look good in photos." I shook my head, grabbed my purse, and slung it over my shoulder. "No. I'm not wearing the gown either." "I'm leaving." I gave the stunned makeup artist a genuine, relieved smile. It was the most liberating decision I had made in all my twenty-seven years. Without looking back, I walked out the door, hailed a cab home, grabbed my passport and essential documents, and left. I didn't even pack a single change of clothes. Why would I want clothes that Chloe had already picked over? I took a cab straight to the airport. I didn't care where I went. I walked up to the counter and asked for a ticket on the earliest flight out. Right before boarding, my phone buzzed with frantic texts from Brandon: [Sierra, the makeup artist said you ran away. Stop fooling around!] [Where are you? Answer me!] [Do you want to get married or not?! Get your ass back here right now!] I looked at the screen, then pressed down hard on the power button. Brandon, I'm not marrying you. And I'm never coming back.