Alina Carter had dreamed of this day since she was sixteen.The flowers were perfect, the gown was flawless and the man she loved stood at the altar.
But instead of holding her hand, Daniel Brooks turned to the crowd and said,
"I can't marry her. I'm in love… with her sister."The church went silent.
Her sister, dressed in white like a mockery, stepped forward and slipped her arm through his.Her lips curled into a smirk Alina had never seen before.
"Sorry, sis," she whispered. "He chose me."
Gasps filled the room.The wedding march died mid-note.Alina's knees buckled, but she refused to fall.
Ten years of loyalty, gone in a heartbeat.
She wanted to scream, to demand an explanation but her father's cold voice cut through the chaos.
"You've embarrassed us enough. Leave."
Her heart pounded so hard she thought it would burst.She walked out of the church alone, each step heavier than the last.That night, rain poured like the sky was mourning with her.Her car swerved on the slick road. Headlights blinded her.The crash came before she could even scream.
When she opened her eyes, she was in her old bedroom.The posters on the wall, the phone on the nightstand, the faint scent of teenage perfume all exactly as they were five years ago.
Her phone buzzed. A message from Daniel.
"Can't wait to see you tonight, babe ."Alina's lips curled into a smile but it wasn't the smile of the girl who once loved him.
It was the smile of a woman who had just been given a second chance.