On Mabel and Adam’s wedding day, they’re stuck in a limousine crawling along the highway due to traffic. Instead of keeping Mabel’s guests entertained, her daughter Amanda takes over the wedding, stealing the spotlight. Will Mabel retaliate at the wedding, or will she let Amanda learn her lesson in another way?

Weddings are supposed to be magical, right? A whole day dedicated to the culmination of love, months of planning, and a chance to be with your person, promising to be together forever…

That was the dream, at least, until my daughter Amanda turned it into an absolute nightmare.

Sigh.

It started, of course, with the traffic. My fiancé Adam and I were stuck on the highway in our limousine, caught in a sea of brake lights due to a flipped truck miles ahead. We weren’t too worried about the traditions. We’d both been married before, so seeing each other before the ceremony was the least of our concerns.

“Any update, Ben?” I shouted through the intercom to our driver.

“It’s hard to say, Mabel,” he said. “But I’m trying to move whenever I can! I’ll get you and Adam to the altar!”

We’d definitely be late.

“Love, call Amanda,” Adam said, his jaw tense as he hit the seat. “Tell her to organize the guests, just have the band play, and keep everyone entertained.”

I called my daughter, already feeling the pressure. She picked up on the second ring.

“Hey, sweetie,” I said as soon as she answered. “We’re stuck in traffic. There’s an accident, so everything’s stopped. Can you check if everything’s going well at the venue? We’ll be about 30 minutes late. Adam said to have the band start playing.”

“Of course, mom!” Amanda said, her voice sweet and syrupy. “Don’t worry about anything other than getting here. I’ve got everything else covered. Stay safe!”

I exhaled, letting her reassurance calm my nerves. But less than ten minutes later, my phone vibrated. It was my sister, Jess.

Her voice was frantic.

“Sis, you need to come here now! It’s Amanda, she…” Her voice disappeared before the call was dropped.

“She’s what?” I murmured, redialing immediately, but it went straight to voicemail. A heavy pit settled in my stomach, but there was nothing we could do except crawl forward in the traffic.

“What do you think Jess meant? What do you think is going on?” I asked Adam after informing him.

“Oh, honey,” he said. “Honestly, I’m sure Amanda grabbed a mic and is trying to sing with the band.”

When we finally reached the venue half an hour later, nothing could have prepared me for what I saw. Amanda was on the steps, her face glowing as she held a bouquet of ivory roses. She was wearing a wedding dress. It was white and simple, but it was definitely a wedding dress.

Our photographers crowded around her, cameras clicking as she posed with a dazzling smile. And standing next to her was Kyle, her boyfriend of just one year, looking stunned and uncomfortable in a suit.

I felt my heart stop.

“What the hell is going on?” I shouted, climbing the stairs.

Amanda turned to me, her expression a mix of surprise and amusement.

“Oh, mom!” she said warmly. “I’m so sorry you missed the ceremony! It was lovely!”

I was speechless.

“My ceremony? You did my ceremony? You stole my ceremony? Amanda, are you out of your mind?”

“Well,” she said, brushing off imaginary dust from the dress, “I thought since you were late, we shouldn’t waste time. Everything was already set, and the officiant had to go. You know how much I hate delays. So… I married Kyle!”

The audacity of it left me speechless. My beautiful ceremony, the one Adam and I had dreamed and planned for months… all gone. It was hijacked by my own daughter.

“You’ll get married another day!” she said, as if she hadn’t just broken my heart. “Now, Kyle and I will make the final walk to the reception hall. The guests will throw rice and confetti. Do you want to join?”

I shook my head.

Adam came behind me, his face a mixture of fury and disgust. He’d spent so much time trying to bond and build a relationship with Amanda, and I knew her behavior had broken his heart too.

“Say the word, love,” he said. “Say the word, Mabel, and I’ll stop this right now.”

I looked at Amanda, the girl I raised, now staring at me with an irritating sense of entitlement. My fists clenched. Every nerve in my body screamed to fight her, to take back what she had stolen.

But I exhaled slowly.

“She’s still my daughter,” I murmured to Adam. “Don’t do this. I’ll teach her a lesson another way.”

The reception was a surreal experience. Amanda flitted around the room, acting like the star of a fairy tale, completely unaware of the devastation she had caused.

My family and friends appeared among the dishes and asked what had really happened.

“Mabel, we thought it was your wedding, sweetheart,” said my aunt. “You should have your happy ending. What’s this about Amanda getting married? We didn’t even know she was seeing anyone!”

“I don’t know, Aunt Joy,” I said. “I’m as surprised as you are.”

When it came time for dessert, Amanda still had the audacity to cut the cake we had ordered, complete with beautiful sugar flowers.

Jess pulled me aside at one point, her eyes wide.

“That daughter of yours took my phone while I was talking to you. And then she locked me in the bathroom during the ceremony! I couldn’t do anything about it! Why didn’t you stop her when you got here?”

“Because,” I said, a smile curving my lips. “Revenge is best served cold.”

The real punch came later that night. Amanda knocked on the door of our hotel room, smiling as if nothing had happened.

Adam and I were sitting on the bed, eating from the room service dessert menu.

“So,” she said, leaning against the closet door. “Kyle and I need your tickets for Chile for our honeymoon. I mean, it doesn’t make sense for you guys to use them, after all.”

Adam froze. I swear, I saw his hand twitch toward the nightlight as if ready to throw it.

But I smiled, keeping my voice calm.

“Of course, dear. You can keep the tickets. You and Kyle deserve to have fun.”

Amanda screamed, hugged me, swiped a strawberry from one of the plates, and left.

“What the hell, Mabel?” Adam asked. “Seriously? She’s going to take our honeymoon too? We worked so hard for all of this. Our wedding, our honeymoon, all of it. And for what? For Amanda to act like a brat?”

“I know you’re upset,” I said. “But honey, trust me. She’ll learn a lesson. In two days, you’ll see.”

And, just as expected, Amanda called two mornings later, her voice far from cheerful.

“How could you do this to me, mom?!” she screamed.

I smiled, holding the phone to my ear.

“Amanda, dear, did something happen?”

“Wrong?” she yelled. “You gave me tickets to the Arctic! We’re stuck in the middle of nowhere, freezing, and there’s nothing to do!”

I held back a laugh. The tickets were for Chile, technically. But they were just a stopover on the way to our real destination: an Arctic expedition. Glacier hikes, icy waters, and polar bear sightings.

It was our dream trip. But Amanda? She hated the cold. Luxury resorts and tropical beaches were more her style.

Classic Amanda. She never bothered to check the full itinerary.

“You asked for the tickets, Amanda,” I said.

“But what should I do?” she whined.

“You’re a married woman now. Figure it out.”

She hung up on me, already muttering a string of curses. And I couldn’t stop smiling.

Meanwhile, Adam and I made new plans. My sister and our closest friends came together to throw the most beautiful wedding party at Jess’s house a week later.

They took care of everything, from the catering to the décor, and it turned out even more perfect than I could have imagined.

This time, Amanda wasn’t invited. And you know what made everything so special? The gifts.

Since Amanda had hijacked my original wedding, all the presents were ours. A brand-new espresso machine, luxury sheets, and a weekend spa retreat with all expenses paid from Adam’s older brother.

It was as if karma had wrapped it all up for us.

When Amanda found out, she had another meltdown.

“Mom, you stole my wedding gifts?” she yelled over the phone. “Everything was supposed to stay at the wedding venue until we got back from the honeymoon.”

“I think you should stop talking,” I said.

“Amanda,” I began, laughing. “Your gifts? You stole my wedding. Consider it a fair trade.”

Adam, at the espresso machine, doubled over and laughed.

As for Amanda’s new marriage to Kyle?

From what I’ve heard, it’s already on the rocks. Jess told me later that Kyle looked completely miserable during the wedding ceremony. And I saw it for myself during the reception. He avoided Adam and me completely.

“That boy is going to have a tough life with her,” Jess said when she came over for tea and cake a few days later.

Amanda

may have stolen my fairytale wedding, but her happily ever after was already on shaky ground.

As for Adam and me? We’re better than ever. We went on our honeymoon to the Arctic, and it was breathtaking.

Some lessons, I guess, are best learned the hard way. Amanda may never admit it, but I like to think she’s realized that rights have a cost.

And if not? Well, let’s just say I’ll always have the satisfaction of knowing she got what she deserved.

After all, karma has a way of balancing things out.

What would you have done?

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