99 Pictures of My Sister and My Fiancé Chapter 02

The next day, I finally rolled over and checked my phone.

The wedding group chat was blowing up.

I saw the voice message Sierra had tagged me in. I hesitated, then hit play. “Hey Nora, so I went ahead and changed the processional song for you. The one you picked was way too depressing. It’s a wedding—it’s supposed to be fun.”

Right after that, a text from Logan. “Yeah, the original one wasn’t right.”

The original one?

The one I spent a month picking.

Every time I listened to it, my eyes would sting.

It was the song my parents danced to at their wedding.

They left too early. I thought this way, they could still be there—in some small way.

Logan knew. Sierra knew.

And they still thought it was “too depressing.”

In the group, Sierra kept going. “Nora doesn’t really have strong opinions about this stuff anyway. We can just decide for her.”

Logan replied with one word. “Yeah.”

I stared at that “yeah.” Didn’t move.

Message after message scrolled by like running water.

No one noticed that Nora was in the group. That Nora wasn’t saying anything.

My participation in this wedding was zero.

I opened my chat with Logan.

The last conversation was from yesterday, after the dress fitting.

I said, “I’m kind of nervous.” He sent back a pat-on-the-head emoji.

Nothing after that.

About me leaving early—he didn’t even text me privately to ask what was wrong.

He just tagged me in the group last night. “What’s up? Left early because you’re nervous?”

No one answered. No one cared.

Sierra posted a photo with the caption, “Successful dress fitting today! The dress is locked in!” And that was that.

Then they moved on to flowers, invitations, backdrops.

I suddenly realized I wasn’t just extra.

Being extra at least means you existed once. I felt like I’d never been there at all.

While I was packing, Sierra video-called me.

I picked up. On her screen, someone was doing her makeup.

“Nora, you’re taking forever. You still haven’t booked a makeup artist, so I went ahead and hired a team for you. I’m doing a trial run for you right now.”

I watched Sierra sit in front of the mirror. I wanted to say something, but I didn’t even know where to start.

I wanted to tell her, “I said my friend is doing my bridal makeup two weeks ago.”

Or ask her, “Has anyone ever asked me what I actually want?”

But it didn’t even matter anymore.

Had I not spoken up before?

Had I not been unhappy before?

Had I not stood up for myself before?

I had.

All they ever said was, “You’re the older sister. Be nice to her.”

Jordan was my friend. My childhood best friend. And he always took her side.

When Logan first pursued me, he said I was cute because I was quiet and a little spacey.

I thought he liked me for being that way.

But after he met Sierra, his “type” seemed to change.

He started saying girls should be outgoing. Opinionated.

One day I finally said, “Can you not be so close with Sierra all the time?”

I’ve always spoiled my sister. He should’ve known how much it cost me to even ask.

But he brushed it off.

He just laughed and ruffled my hair. “She’s your sister. You want me to treat her like a stranger?”

I shut up.

Of course I didn’t want them to be enemies.

I’d been the one holding everything together for years. For the first time, I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

They forgot I was only two years older than her…

I wanted candy too. I wanted someone to ask me, “Do you like this?”

A slice of sunlight fell on the floor.

I suddenly remembered how after every game of house when we were kids, I’d pick up all the flower petals by myself and put them back in the basket.

They’d already left.

No one ever helped me.

No one ever asked me if I was tired.