Chapter 3

Mia’s pov

I made sure to wake up early the next morning, because it was finally Maeve’s wedding. Even though I wasn't the one getting married, I was filled with nerves, and a deep feeling of sadness, because I know I might not get to see her in a really long time after she gets married.

I also decided to wake up early because I wanted to be there with her, and spend some private time with her before the designers and make up artists shows up, in case we share a private moment or incase she needed to draw emotional strength from me.

I washed my face after brushing my teeth, and then I headed straight for her bedroom, still dressed in my nightgown and a robe wrapped tightly around my body.

I knocked lightly against her door and ended up pulling the door open after getting no response for over two minutes. The room was empty when I made my way into it, she was probably in the bathroom, I thought to myself as I closed the door behind me.

I glanced around the room and sighed sadly, the reality that my twin was indeed getting married off today was starting to sink in deep right now, which made my eyes start to sting a little. There were three big boxes all lined up alongside each other, filled with new clothes and everything else that Maeve was going to need in her new life in her husband’s home, mother and her sisters had been the one to take care of all of that.

I made my way deeper into the room and sat on the bed, and then I called out to Maeve. The bathroom we both shared was connected into each other’s rooms, and when she still didn’t respond after a couple of calls, I pushed off the bed and walked towards the bathroom.

I pulled open the bathroom and frowned on finding it empty, right before I closed the door softly.

“Maeve?” I called out once again, swallowing emptily a little as I slightly began to wonder where she was right now.

The probability of her being downstairs in the kitchen was slim to none because I knew she’d rather starve than to be mistakenly run into father, but regardless of that, I still pushed her door open and head downstairs, calling out to her as i accended the stairs.

Mother’s head pop out of the kitchen. “Are you calling for Maeve?”

I nodded while gripping the banister of the stairs firmly.

“She’s not here, she hasn’t come down this morning.” Was mother’s response, which made my frown deepen in concern.

“She’s not in her bedroom.” I breathed out while shifting my weight from foot to foot. Mother’s brows furrowed a little.

“Have you checked the entire rooms upstairs? And the balcony? You know she goes there sometimes to clear her head.” Mother suggested and the breath I hadn’t realized I had been holding slowly eased out of my chest.

“Oh, that’s true. I haven’t checked those places. I’ll be going back upstairs right now.” I said as I turned around and made my way back up the stairs.

Rooms after rooms, I checked, and the balcony, but still not Maeve, which was when the real feeling of panic began to germinate inside of me.

I made my way back into her bedroom, wondering if there was something I had missed, but everything was just as I had seen them before. Her bed was like mine was this morning, slightly roughened at the spot she had slept in.

I squinted a little, and that was when I noticed it.

One of Maeve’s pillows was turned sideways, which is quite unusual for someone as coordinated as Maeve when it comes to the littlest stuff. My frown deepened as I reached for the pillow and righted it, and my lips parted in surprise when that little movement made someone slide off the bed, which had been obviously placed beneath the pillow, before I had moved it.

I tilted my head as I reached down to retrieve the folded paper. I was about to shove it back beneath the pillow, because one thing Maeve hated was when her privacy gets pried or invaded, she’d prefer to tell you something whenever she was ready to, than for her privacy to be invaded without her consent.

But I was curious, and so I turned the paper around before saying a silent apology to Maeve as I parted the folded paper to check the content.

-Mia,

I know it’s you reading this, so you did pry into my privacy this time, haha.

I frowned while my eyes ghosted over the first sentence, as my teeth unconsciously moved over my bottom lips. It was very obvious that Maeve had been the one to write this, If her neat hand writing hadn’t already given that away at first glance.

‘Don’t panic, please, and don’t bother searching for me any longer, because you won’t find me. I’m very far away from home by the time you’d find this letter.’

My heart was thudding loudly in my ears, just as my hands began to tremble.

‘I’m sorry I did this, but I just had to. I had no choice, I can’t marry Mr. Romero, I just can’t.

And, I’m sorry because I already know what’s going to happen next.

Father’s going to make you marry him in my place, and I’m sorry for putting you in this spot but I had no choice.’

My legs were shaking at this point that I wasn’t even sure when I landed on the bed, my eyes got blurry but I blinked the stupid tears away as I continued to read.

‘I’m so sorry, and once again, I don’t deserve your love.

I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me.

-With love, Maeve.’

It was as if the whole world had craved in on me at that moment, with thousands of pitchforks pointed at me at once. I didn’t even realize when I began to scream in horror, while tears streamed down my cheeks uncontrollably.

Mother’s warm hands framing my face brought me back to reality, and when I blinked my wet eyes up at her, a slight movement caught my eyes– and that was when I noticed father’s presence in here as well, with Maeve’s letter in his hands.

His face hardened as he read on and after a few moments, he pinned me with a hard look and nodded his head at Maeve’s closet.

“Start getting ready, Mia. You’re taking your twin’s place like she already predicted, she’s just too smart for her own good like that.” He finished his sentence with a face palm and a hardened gaze.

I flew off the bed instantly with tears filling up my eyes once again. “I can’t get married to Mr. Romero. Please father, I can’t.”

Father’s frown deepened. “Why not? Are you also questioning my order?”

I shook my head desperately. “No, I’m not. You said it yourself that I do not fit into that role, please don’t make me get married –”

“Yes, you don’t fit into that role, but you’d have to do since your stupid sister has decided to be foolish today.” He responded with an irritated sigh just as I shook my head.

“No, no father, please. Don’t make me marry him, please.” I kept on shaking my head and kept on chanting the word ‘no’ until a firm slap which made me stumble into a lose my footing, landed on my wet cheeks.

“You are getting married today and that’s final, if you try something stupid like your twin, you won’t like what would be done to you.” He thundered as he stepped out of the bedroom and slammed the door shut.

How Maeve had even managed to run away with the heavy security around the house was something I was yet to wrap my head around. I was yet to wrap my head around all what was happening this morning.

My fate had already been decided by my twin whom I had been genuinely worried about. How could she do this to me? I silently asked myself countless times as I got dressed in the stunning wedding dress which Maeve was supposed to be dressed in today.

It was a perfect fit, since Maeve and I were identical all the way to the weight, height and size.

With tears streaming down my face, I felt numb as I stared at my reflection in the mirror, my clammy gloved fingers clutching Maeve’s flowers tightly.

Never did I expect that I’d be taking my twin’s place today when I had hugged her goodnight last night, I thought as a single tear slid down my cheek once again.