I thought about it for a long time and finally decided to go. I wanted to see her again. But she had blocked all our communication. I didn't know how she was doing or if she was happy.
Everything about the wedding was what we had once planned together, but now I had to watch as the woman I loved married another man.
I watched her in a white wedding dress, looking beautiful, though thinner, with a pale face hidden under layers of makeup. I could tell she wasn't doing well with Jeff.
I was seated with Mona's parents, in the family section. The atmosphere was awkward. Just a few days ago, I was still calling them Mom and Dad.
I didn't blame Mona. She hadn't done anything wrong. She just stopped loving me. She was never wrong, was she?
I looked at the girl on stage, holding a bouquet, her face radiant with joy. The girl I had watched grow up. In this moment, she was all grown up.
As they were about to exchange vows, I rushed to the stage, pulling out a fruit knife from my sleeve, and pointed it at Jeff.
"Mona, you love me, right? Come with me! We're meant to be together, aren't we?"
"Alan, are you crazy? I'm already married. There's no chance for us anymore. Please leave now!" "No, I won't. You're mine. You're mine!"
As I spoke, I swung the knife at Jeff, but Mona shielded him, just like she had once shielded me. So, I wasn't special after all, was I?
I turned the knife on myself. If Mona didn't want me, what was the point of living?
No one expected my actions. They all thought I was going to hurt Jeff. My body grew numb, and I could feel something seeping out of me. But what was it?
Surprisingly, I didn't die. I found myself back home, with CoCo licking my face as if trying to wake me up.
CoCo was a stray dog Mona and I had found. It was a rainy day, and someone had left it in a cardboard box, still a pup, not yet weaned. It wasn't a fancy breed, and when we found it, it was barely clinging to life. Mona was the one who heard its faint cries for help.
Just like before, Mona brought CoCo home, saved it, and kept it, even giving it a name.
For a while, I was jealous of CoCo because Mona always paid more attention to it. I once asked her why she saved CoCo, and her answer surprised me.
"Because when I first met you, you were just like it. You were so pitiful and in need of someone to protect you. "
"I'm not like that dumb dog at all!"
"AwwCoCo, your daddy is mad now and embarrassed! Run!"
I recalled these happy memories, tears streaming down my face. The house was empty again, and I finally accepted the truth. She didn't love me anymore. Not even my death could earn her pity. I needed to carve her out of my heart, but that would leave nothing behind.