The Promise I Never Got Chapter 1

Aria and I had a promise. The day we graduated, we would get married. We’d invite all our friends to witness it.

But on that day, she married her first love instead.

Clutching my chest, I asked her why. Annoyance flashed in her eyes. "Marrying Danny was just to fulfill a childhood promise. I'll divorce him in a month. You've waited this long for me, can't you wait one more month?"

It was a joke. A cruel, twisted joke.

I had loved her for eight years. In that single moment, the idea of her rotted away in my heart.

* * *

I watched Aria and Danny emerge from the courthouse, holding their freshly signed marriage certificate. Their faces were radiant with joy as Aria's friends snapped photos, celebrating.

Danny had the decency to look sheepish. "Asher, you're not mad, are you? It's just for a month. I'll give her back to you, I promise."

Aria tugged on his sleeve, her face a mask of indifference, showing no remorse. "Danny, don't feel guilty. I can marry whomever I want. It's my choice."

The person standing next to her should have been me.

I had loved her for eight years, and we'd been together for four. From the very beginning, she’d made a vow: "Asher, the day we graduate, let's get married. It'll be the perfect end to our perfect college life!"

She had been so sure, so sincere.

I had held onto that promise for four years, counting down the days. My friends all knew how much this day meant to me. I'd been eating clean for a month, just to have the perfect skin for our marriage certificate photo.

I arrived at eight o'clock sharp and saw her immediately. She was wearing a flowing white dress, a delicate veil in her hair, her makeup flawless. It was the scene I had replayed in my mind for four years.

But she was with Danny. She had forgotten our promise. On the very day I had yearned for, she gave me a "surprise."

A sharp pain lanced through my chest. I clutched it, my eyes stinging as I looked at her. "Aria, you're my girlfriend. You promised you'd marry me today. I've waited four years for this!"

My voice, usually so steady, broke.

Aria’s face hardened with impatience. "Marrying Danny was just to fulfill a childhood promise. I'll divorce him in a month. You've waited this long for me, can't you wait one more month?"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Was marriage a game to her?

I knew she had a first love, a whirlwind romance from her past. They had promised that the first thing they'd do after getting married was travel the world together. But I thought four years with me had erased him from her heart.

Clearly, I was wrong.