The Ring and the Rejection

I was finally about to marry the woman I loved, Sarah Miller.

But then, right as we were exchanging rings, my brother, Jake, texted me. The message read: “Hey bro, wanna bet who your precious bride will choose to be with in the end?”

Not even a minute later, Sarah got a call from him. I don’t know what he said, but her usually calm face twisted up in an instant. She just left me standing there, at the altar, in her wedding dress, in front of all our guests.

“What’s going on?” I grabbed her arm.

She turned to me, her eyes darting away. “Jake… Jake’s had an accident. I need to get to the hospital, right now.”

“Sarah, does this have to be today?” I asked, fighting back the sharp pain that was stabbing me.

Her eyes flickered with guilt for a second, but then she looked me dead in the eye. “Liam, Jake’s your brother. He’s like this because of you! You’re being selfish. Just calm down, okay? We can have the wedding later, once Jake's okay.”

Sarah pulled free and hurried off, leaving the reception hall a stunned mess.

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to get a grip on myself.

My hand was shaking as I grabbed the mic. I forced a smile. “Sorry, everyone. The wedding’s off. We’ll be sending out refunds for the gifts soon, just look for the email.”

And with that, I ran to the nearest bathroom. I changed out of my suit, my best friend, Ben, watching me, his eyes red with unshed tears.

He was there for every high point of my relationship with Sarah, and now he had to be here for this dumpster fire.

“Liam…” He just said my name, not knowing what else to say. I could see the tears in his eyes.

I forced another smile. My chest hurt, but my stomach felt way worse.

I was dying, end-stage stomach cancer.

I'd been feeling it for months, but I always chalked it up to bad takeout.

The doctor's worried, held-back expression should have been a wake-up call.

But part of me felt a weird sense of relief.

Sarah didn’t know about the cancer.

I clung to that last bit of hope that maybe she would stay. That she might finally choose me this time. If she did, I was ready to let everything else slide.

But she left, she chose Jake.

“Liam, we have to talk to Sarah, it’s our wedding day, man! And your brother, he's messing everything up just to be a pain in the ass!”

“It’s okay, Ben.” My voice was shaky, even to my own ears.

“Just… hang with me for a bit, okay?”

After the wedding meltdown, I didn't go home. I crashed at Ben’s place.

I couldn't tell Ben I was sick, not yet, but the stomach pain was getting worse. I didn't know how much longer I could keep it a secret.

On the third day, my mom showed up. Ben couldn't stop her. She burst into the room, yanking me out of bed.

“Mom?” My stomach was already throbbing, and she made it worse by jerking me around.

“Your brother’s in the hospital, suffering, and you’re out here getting married, not coming home? What happened to the values and respect we taught you?”

My head was spinning, and I just stared at this pe...