Neil's friends crowded around me too, telling me not to worry about his past.
"Neil's the loyal type. Once he falls for someone, he's all in. You never have to worry about him having a change of heart."
I stood rooted to the spot, dazed, the corners of my mouth twitching into something that wasn't quite a smile.
All in.
Never a change of heart.
Then why did he stop loving me?
My fingertips had gone numb with cold.
I knew I had to make a decision.
I held out my hand to Neil and forced the words out with everything I had.
"Yes. I will."
His eyes lit up. He grabbed my hand and slid the ring onto my finger.
It sat heavy on my ring finger.
But somewhere inside me, something had gone hollow. Completely, irreversibly empty.
The crowd around us clapped with tears in their eyes, offering their congratulations.
Kent ran circles around us, beside himself with joy.
"Yay! Mommy and Daddy are together! I have a mommy again!"
Neil pulled me into his arms, laughing and crying at the same time.
"Once you've fully recovered, we'll have the wedding."
"I promise, I'll give you a wedding you'll never forget..."
I stood there like a puppet on strings, the corners of my mouth pulling into a stiff, mechanical curve.
"Okay..."
The word barely left my lips.
Two people burst through the door and shouted at Neil.
"What wedding? We don't consent to this!"
I flinched, snapping back to reality as I stared at them.
Dad... Mom?
Kent ran over and threw his arms around them, beaming.
"Grandma! Grandpa! I'm going to have a mommy again!"
The color drained from my parents' faces, their expressions darkening like a storm rolling in.
"What do you mean, your mommy?"
"The only mother you have in this world is Rachel!"
My mother strode forward and slapped Neil across the face.
"You insisted on dragging Rachel along on that hiking trip. And when the car accident happened, she was the one who shielded you with her own body!"
"She was our only daughter! She wasn't even thirty! And she died for you!"
"What did you promise us at the funeral?"
"You said you'd stay faithful to Rachel for the rest of your life! You said you'd raise Kent right!"
"My daughter hasn't even been gone that long, and you're already looking for a new wife?"
"Then what was my daughter? What did she mean to you?"
"How do you think she'd feel, watching this from wherever she is?"