The man_child's bride

"Do you Azalea Devon take this man,Kit Rivers as your husband to live together in holy marriage? Will you love him,comfort him,honour,and keep him in sickness and in health,and forsaking all others,be faithful to him as long as you both may live?" The priest asked.

"I.....I.....do" the bride answer in a shaky voice while trying to hold back her tears.

Her sister was suppose to be standing at this altar,getting married but no,she was forced to take her place simply because her sister refused the groom at the last moment. Right from the time she reunite with her parents,she was use to taking the things her sister refuse to accept willing or by force. Ranging from clothes to foods and now her sister's groom. Who was she to complain,as the unfortunate daughter of the family,she had to accept anything and everything thrown at her face. If she had known that the reason why her parents came to find her was to wed her off in place of her sister,she wouldn't have gone back with them. Back then when the marriage contract was made between the Rivers and the Anderson family,her parents were proud as peacocks but everything changed after the groom got involved in an accident and was certified as a madman. All the love her sister had professed for him went down the drain.

"You may say your vow"

Angry tears fell from her eyes as she read the vows written on the pamphlet in her hand,vows that were suppose to be said by her sister "in the name of the Lord,I Azalea Devon take you Kit Rivers as my husband,to have and to hold from this day forward for better,for worse,for richer,for poorer,in sickness and in health,to cherish and to love,until parted by death. I pledge to honour you,love you and cherish you as my husband today and everyday. Today I say 'I do' but to me that means I will. I will take your hand and stand by your side in good and in bad. I dedicate myself to your happiness,success and smile. I will love you forever. I will love you with my whole heart with a passion that cannot be expressed with words but only with kisses,glances and years of adventures with you by my side. I promise to be your guiding light in darkness,a warming comfort in the cold and a shoulder to lean on when life is too much to bear on your own" she choked on her sob as she ended.

"You may exchange the rings"

Ha! What an irony. The groom is no where to be found,who then would she exchange the ring with. She picked the ring and wore it on her finger.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife" the priest announced and concluded the ceremony. An awkward silence filled the hall. This was the most,how would I describe it,miserable and laughable marriage in history. The bride was wearing a black dress with puffy red eyes and scattered hair,the bride wasn't the actual bride but a substitute who wasn't even willing to be the groom's bride.

The wedding hall was decorated grandly with gold and white colours,it was suppose to be a happy occasion but the atmosphere gave out a gloomy vibe.

She had always wished to say this vows to her beloved but now she was saying it to someone she didn't even know. Worst of all,the groom wasn't present in his own wedding ceremony. Yes,the groom was absent. She walked down the aisle by herself because her father refuse to have anything to do with her(the unfortunate daughter),took the wedding vows and signed the marriage certificate alone.

She fell on her knees immediately she signed the marriage certificate and let out loud,heart wrenching wails.

A staff tapped her on the shoulder and said to her "young madam,it's time to go home"

Azalea wiped her tears,stood up and followed the staff to the bridal car that would convey her to her new home. Her eyes scanned around the wedding venue in search of her parents. Her eyes landed on them,they were at the far end of the hall,trying to make connection with an influential businessman. Forget it,they won't send her off to her in~laws.

She looked at her parents one last time before entering the car that zoomed off to her new home.

Even though her parents treated her like shit after she was found,she still refuse to believe that they hate her. Back then when her mother was pregnant with her,she had gone to the country side and went into labour before her due date,she had given birth to a daughter but her daughter was exchanged by a local who shared the same ward with her. She was finally found by her biological parents few months ago after her sister's impersonation was found out. She had thought that her parents would love and cherish her but how foolish she was to have thought that she could be compared to a child they had raised for the past eighteen years. She was disappointed when they decided to marry her off in place of her sister at the very first chance they got. They could have called off the wedding if they had wanted to but their greed got the best part of them,after all,the Rivers family was the richest family in the whole of America.

Looking at the wedding hall that became smaller as the car speed away,she vowed to leave everything behind and have a new beginning,her rebirth. From this day onwards,she would only have one set of parents and that is her adoptive parents. Her biological parents mean nothing to her anymore. Getting married to a madman in place of her sister is the last thing she would do for them as filial piety for birthing her. This was her goodbye gift.

She had mentally prepared herself to accept her husband and nurse him back to good health,maybe then,she would be able to lead a peaceful and good life worth being remembered. She closed her eyes and rest her her head,with the thought of how her new life would be in her head,she dosed off to sleep