Chapter 3
The next day, Mason and I drove to the bridal shop to choose a wedding dress. The ride was silent the whole way.
At a red light, Mason tapped the steering wheel, glancing at me and then away.
I kept my face turned to the window.
Finally, he broke the silence. "The flowers are crazy this summer. I bet the forest looks even better."
When I didn't respond, he added, "They say Firefly Grove is swarming with fireflies this year. Couples who mark each other there will get the Moon Goddess's sweetest blessing."
"Oh," I said.
Awkwardness crept in. He tried again. "The marking only happens once. Don't you want a place that means more?"
I frowned.
The place where we first met, where I nearly lost my life, meant less to him than a spot Serena mentioned offhand.
"I can't think of a place that means more than Moonlight Bay," I said.
He gave a stiff nod. "You're right."
I turned to him and asked, "Anything else you want to tell me?"
It was the last door I was willing to open for him, one final chance to be honest.
His fingers tightened on the wheel. "No. You handle things well. I trust you."
The cold settled in my chest. He still wouldn't say it.
From this moment on, nothing he said would matter.
When we reached the bridal shop, I went straight to the racks.
Mason hovered and wouldn't stop talking. "Cora, look at this one. Imagine fireflies drifting around you. It would be stunning!"
Just then, a familiar voice floated over my shoulder. "Mason, are you helping Cora choose a wedding dress?"
Serena stepped into view, all bright eyes and surprise. "What a coincidence! Cora, you're here too."
A saleswoman hurried over with a smile. "Miss, are you shopping for a gown?"
Serena lifted her chin. "Mason already hired the top designer to make my gown. It's one of a kind, with the Blue Moonstone as the centerpiece."
Mason cleared his throat, signaling Serena to be quiet.
I pretended not to hear. I picked a simple dress from the rack and handed it to the saleswoman. "This one. Please box it."
"Would you like to try it on?" she asked.
"No. I have another appointment."
Serena immediately put on her innocent act. "Are you upset because I'm here? I can leave."
Mason caught her wrist. "No! Don't go!"
Then, he turned to me. "Can you stop being so petty? You're about to be Luna. Enough with the attitude!"
He held her by the shoulders as if claiming her for himself.
"I'm buried in pack work all day and come home to your moods. You're not the sun! People don't have to orbit you!"
Serena murmured, "Mason, take it easy. Cora's still healing."
He snapped without thinking. "She did that to herself!"
The words landed harder than the fire ever had.
Chapter 4
In Mason's eyes, I never measured up to Serena.
Even when my skin grafts were rejected and it felt like ants were eating me alive, he dismissed my pain as nothing more than an itch, then left me behind to go comfort Serena for her "headache".
Any time I said no to anything, he shot back that I wasn't fit to be a Luna.
He even turned our engagement ring into an accessory for Serena's gown.
On my birthday, he left while I was still making a wish so he could fix Serena's plumbing.
He forgot our anniversary and then bought plane tickets and took Serena to the coast.
All of it paraded through my mind, clear as day. I should have let go a long time ago.
As I walked out, I heard him disparaging me. "She's being ridiculous! Serena, don't bother with her."
That night, he texted me.
"Cora, don't be mad. You're about to be Luna. Try to be reasonable."
I stared at the screen for a long time.
Fine. I would be reasonable. If he didn't want me in his life, I'd grant his wish.
On the day of the ceremony, I put on the wedding dress—although not the random one I grabbed at the shop.
Just before I left, Mason called me. "Serena forgot her bracelet. I'm taking her home to get it. You head to the venue first," he said anxiously.
"Okay," I said calmly.
My calm made him hesitate. "Are you upset?"
"No."
Though a tangle of feelings stirred in him, his mind was on Serena, so he hung up without pushing it further.
Between sniffles, Serena said, "I'm sorry. It's my fault, but that bracelet really matters to me."
"It's okay," Mason soothed. "It's not your fault."
Thinking back to how oddly calm I'd sounded, he felt a flicker of unease. He drove distractedly and ran several red lights.
The ceremony was set for dusk, yet the sun slipped away, and I still hadn't appeared.
Mason and Serena rushed to Firefly Grove. When Mason didn't see me, his expression sharpened with panic.
The worst possibility hit him. Maybe I didn't know he'd changed the venue.
He dialed my number again and again, but every attempt went straight to voicemail.
His hands began to shake, and sweat tracked down his temples.
At last, the call connected.
"Cora, where are you?" he blurted. "We're about to start."
At Moonlight Bay, I watched the moon spread a silver road across the water. It was beautiful.
"My ceremony is about to start too," I said softly.
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