Mirabel sat silently by the window, her tear-streaked face turned toward the grey sky outside. Her diary lay open on her lap, its pages stained with the drops of her sorrow. Each line she had written bled emotion, pain, and confusion.
A soft knock broke the silence.
The door creaked open, and Nanny stepped in with Annabelle close behind her. Worry etched deep lines on both their faces. Without a word, they walked over and knelt beside her, wrapping their arms around her in a tight, comforting embrace—equal parts soothing and desperate.
"Dear… you've been like this all day," Nanny said gently, brushing a strand of hair from Mirabel's face. "Please… at least tell us what happened."
Annabelle added softly, "Mirabel… why did you leave the wedding?"
"Wedding?" Mirabel repeated, her voice sharp.
She suddenly stood, her diary slipping from her lap and falling to the floor.
"What wedding?!" she shouted. "There was no wedding! I didn't have a wedding! There. Was. No. Wedding!!"
Her voice cracked as she screamed, her pain exploding like a wave. She moved away from them, her hands shaking, her breath ragged. In a flurry of anguish, she began throwing things—pillows, books, anything within reach.
"Why me? Why always me?!" she cried, each word louder, more broken than the last.
Nanny and Annabelle rushed to her side, gently restraining her, pulling her into a tight embrace once more. They eased her down onto the bed, holding her firmly but lovingly.
Mirabel collapsed into Nanny's shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably, her body trembling with grief.
Annabelle looked at her, tears in her own eyes. "Mirabel… please. I hate seeing you like this," she whispered. "Tell us what happened… why did you leave?"
"Annabelle… please," Nanny said gently, placing a hand on her arm. "I don't think we should be asking her questions right now. She's not in the right state of mind."
"No, Nanny," Mirabel interrupted, lifting her head from Nanny's shoulder and wiping her tears. Her voice was shaky but determined. "I'm fine. I am fine."
"No, you're not," Nanny replied firmly. "Look at yourself."
"Mirabel, please," Annabelle said softly. "Just rest for now. We can talk about everything later."
"No!" Mirabel snapped, suddenly rising to her feet. "We talk about it now. I need to let it out—I need it out of my mind. It's choking me. I don't want it anymore. Life is messing with me, playing games, driving me insane!"
"Mirabel, don't say that," Nanny said, her tone more serious. "What has gotten into you? Calm down."
"Why should I?" Mirabel barked, pacing the room. "Today was supposed to be my happiest day… I was supposed to get married. I was supposed to walk down that aisle and start a new life—with the man I thought was made for me." Her voice broke, her eyes welling up again.
"Vicky… the man I believed would wipe away all my pain, the one I saw a future with… and yet, there was no wedding. Because I wasn't enough for him."
She dropped to the floor, her knees buckling under the weight of her pain. Annabelle rushed to her side, holding her close, while Nanny remained still, her eyes glistening with tears. The room was heavy with emotion.
"Mirabel…" Annabelle whispered. "Please… what did Vicky do? Just tell us."
Mirabel looked up, her face pale, her lips trembling.
"I loved Vicky," she said quietly. "With every part of me. Through every fight, every misunderstanding—I still held on to him. I thought love would be enough… Was it a mistake to love him so much? Am I not beautiful enough? Not capable? Don't I have what it takes to make him happy for the rest of his life?" she paused, a hard swallow pushing down the lump in her throat.
"I know I shouldn't have rejected him that night… I should've thought about his feelings," Mirabel said, her voice breaking. "But still… he should have understood. He should have known that I just needed time…" Her words faltered, her tears spilling again as silence swallowed her voice.
Annabelle leaned in gently. "Mirabel… what happened?"
Mirabel's lips quivered. She looked at Annabelle, pain swimming in her eyes. "He got intimate with Rose," she said barely above a whisper. "He slept with her… that same night, Belle."
The room fell into a stunned silence. Nanny stood abruptly from the bed, her eyes wide in disbelief. "What?!" she gasped.
Annabelle shook her head. "Mirabel… are you sure? How could Vicky do something like that?"
"I don't know, Belle," she whispered. "He told me he was drunk. He said he wasn't thinking straight. But just remembering it—it makes me want to rip my heart out." Her voice cracked as she clutched her head, curling forward, her fists pounding weakly on the floor.
"Mirabel, no!" Nanny rushed to her, holding her arms, keeping her from hurting herself. "Stop this, now! Enough of this!"
"You don't understand, Nanny," Mirabel sobbed. "You don't know what this feels like. Please… I need to be alone. I just need to breathe."
"Mirabel…"
"Please… leave," she said softly but firmly, retreating into herself.
Nanny paused, exchanged a glance with Annabelle, then nodded. "Please don't hurt yourself," she whispered as she stood. She gestured for Annabelle to follow her, and the two of them quietly left the room.
Mirabel slowly dragged herself onto the bed, curling into a ball beneath her blanket. The sobs came harder now, muffled beneath the weight of the covers—and the weight of her broken heart.
At Vicky's home, silence hung heavy in the living room. He sat motionless, staring at the floor while his mother stood before him, her arms crossed, fury and disappointment etched into every line of her face.
"Vicky," Caroline said sharply, breaking the stillness. "Answer me. What did you do?"
He said nothing.
"Vicky, I'm talking to you!" Her voice rose, laced with disbelief. "Say something!"
His lips finally parted, barely above a whisper. "Mum… I messed up. I messed up badly. Please… forgive me."
"What did you say to her?" Caroline pressed, eyes narrowing. "What did you do to Mirabel that made her run out of the venue on your wedding day?"
"I broke her heart," Vicky murmured, shame washing over him. "I don't think she'll ever forgive me."
"Stop speaking in riddles and tell me the truth!" she snapped. "What exactly did you do?"
Vicky hesitated, his voice trembling as he spoke. "The night I proposed… she didn't say yes. I was hurt, confused. I went out to drink—and Rose was there. I got drunk. I don't remember everything but… I woke up in her hotel room. We were intimate. I didn't mean for it to happen—I swear, I didn't."
The room turned cold.
Caroline stared at him for a long moment. Then, without warning, she raised her hand and struck him hard across the face.
"You're sick, Vicky," she hissed, her voice breaking. "Absolutely sick. I must be cursed to have raised you as a son."
He looked up at her, his face stinging, his eyes wide with guilt.
"Again? You let that woman ruin your life again? After everything Mirabel gave to you—her love, her trust—this is how you repay her?"
Tears welled in Caroline's eyes, but her voice was ice.
"If Mirabel walks away from you forever, Vicky… mark my words, you'll see my dead body. And I mean every word."
With that, she turned sharply and stormed off, slamming her bedroom door behind her. The silence that followed was heavier than before.Vicky remained seated, his head in his hands. The night dragged on endlessly, and in its darkness, his future lay in pieces.