“They Didn’t Tell You?”
My mom, already suspicious, asked what she meant.
Gavin’s mom paused, looked around, then leaned in and said:
“They’re already married. Since last year. It was for legal reasons—immigration stuff. It’s… complicated.”
My mom froze. Her grip on my arm tightened.
“Are you saying they got married for a green card?” I asked.
Gavin’s mother hesitated, then nodded. “Yes. But they fell in love afterward. It’s real now. They just didn’t want you to judge them for how it began.”
The wedding—the flowers, the vows, the toasts—suddenly felt like a stage play. Beautiful, but false.
“We Need to Talk.”
I found Celine behind the bar sipping champagne from a teacup, looking oddly calm.
“We need to talk,” I said.
She looked at me and sighed. “She told you, didn’t she?”
She explained everything.
They met at a visa seminar. Gavin needed help. They went through with a civil ceremony to keep him from being deported. At first, it was just paperwork. But then, real feelings bloomed.
“I didn’t lie to you,” she said. “I just… didn’t want to ruin the day. I thought once it was official-official, it wouldn’t matter.”
I didn’t know what to say. I could see that she genuinely cared for him. But the secrecy? The deception? That wasn’t okay.
My mom was heartbroken. She had dreamed of watching her daughter walk down the aisle. But now she felt robbed—of trust, of truth, of a beginning that should have been shared.
Still, we told ourselves we understood. Love doesn’t always follow the rules.
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