Three months before our wedding, my fiancé Ryan posted on Instagram - photos of his marriage certificate with my adopted sister Chloe, along with pictures of her pregnant belly. The caption read: "Legally welcoming our little bundle of joy." Chloe commented with a shy emoji. My mom liked the post, commenting: "Once the baby is born, I'll take care of it so you two can enjoy your time together." I couldn't help but reply with a question mark. The next moment, Ryan's harsh rebuke came at me like a slap in the face. "She's only borrowing my name for a year of marriage. Once the baby is born, I'll be back with you." "Don't be so petty. My mom also said we should only get our marriage license after you give birth to a son. It works out perfectly - we can have the wedding first and get the license later." I gave a faint "Mm" in response, then deleted all Instagram posts related to Ryan before posting a new one: "Need a new groom. Who wants to marry me?" Ryan was the first to reply. [Aria Young, are you out of your mind? I'm just marrying her on paper, why are you making such a big deal out of it?] [You don't seriously think posting on Instagram will make me jealous, do you? That's laughable. I'm warning you, stop causing trouble over nothing, and don't you dare give Chloe a hard time.] Chloe quickly followed up on Ryan's comment. [Sis, Ryan is just trying to help our baby be born legally. I won't steal him away from you. After you and Ryan get married, my child can call you mom too.] My mom scolded me for being ungrateful. [You get to have a child without going through the pain of childbirth. Chloe is doing you such a huge favor, shouldn't you be thanking her?] Several comments followed from Ryan's buddies, all chiming in. [You and Chloe are sisters, so it doesn't matter which of you Ryan marries, you're all family anyway. How about Chloe gets him Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and you get Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday!] Everyone was joking and laughing at my expense. I stared at the screen in shock, tears welling up and spilling over onto my phone. They were clearly in the wrong. Yet they had the audacity to turn around and blame me. How ridiculous. These people weren't worth my tears. I wiped my eyes forcefully and scrolled through the mess of comments. One stood out from the rest. It was from Sean White: "Can I be your new groom?" Sean and I grew up together. After college graduation, I stayed in the city while he chose to study abroad. We'd avoided each other since I started dating Ryan in college. It had been years since we last spoke. As I pondered this, Sean called me directly. "Aria, I've liked you for a long time." "You know I've always hated your adopted sister, so I would never have anything to do with her. I don't have a bunch of shady friends either. These past few years, I've been focused on my career and haven't dated anyone." As he spoke, I suddenly received a contract. When I opened it, I saw it was the transfer of rights to all his assets and shares. While I was still in shock, Sean nervously said: "Aria, this is all the sincerity I have to offer. Will you give me a chance?" My nose stung with emotion. Suddenly, I remembered when we were kids. Our teacher rewarded us with two candies that Sean loved. He was clearly craving them, but he didn't eat a single one. He saved both for me. He had always given me his utmost sincerity. I choked up a bit as I said: "I will." Love had always seemed so elusive. I tried to grasp it, only to end up hurt and scarred. I had thought... I had thought being alone would be fine. But my grandmother's dying wish was to see me married, to know someone would take care of me after she was gone. Ryan wasn't worthy. But if the groom was Sean, I think Grandma would be truly at ease. Sean's voice was full of joy. "Then I'll wrap things up at work and come back to marry you within two weeks." "Aria, you'll wait for me and won't change your mind, right?" His tone held a hint of pitiful pleading. It reminded me of when we were kids and I promised to be his bride when we grew up. I made a sound of agreement. Suddenly I felt the urge to cry. "Sean, let's pinky swear on it." After hanging up, my mom pushed open my bedroom door. "Where's that sapphire necklace your father left you before he died?" I remained silent, not answering. Mom frowned in displeasure. "What's with that attitude? Your sister just thought it was pretty and wanted to borrow it for a few days. Hurry up and get it out, don't be so stingy!" Chloe hung on Mom's arm, saying dejectedly: "It's okay, Mom. Sis has never seen me as real family. If she doesn't want to lend it, I won't force her." "She wouldn't dare refuse! That necklace belonged to my husband, your father. I'm making the decision to give it to you today." Mom hugged Chloe and glared sternly at me. "If you don't hand it over, don't blame me for having people search your room."