My best friend Dave was marrying a lovely woman, and I was glad he had found his match. His bride, the sweetest person I’ve ever met, loved him completely. Everyone acknowledged that he was blessed to have her.
When the wedding day arrived and we all gathered at the local church, something about the bride’s walk felt off. Shanize was tall and beautiful, and her stride was graceful, but today she didn’t look like herself.
I asked Dave’s sister if she sensed anything was wrong, but she leaned in and said, “Janice, please don’t make any scenes.”
How could she not notice Shanize’s unusual gait? But Heather assured me that the bride was simply worried because it was her big day.
However, I was not the only one who noticed Shanize’s awkward steps. As she approached, one of the guests whispered a joke about how the bride appeared to be “floating” down the aisle. People around him laughed, but I didn’t. I knew something was wrong.
And just as Heather, Dave’s sister, cautioned me not to act foolishly, I found myself following the bride.
I bent over and lifted the hem of the bride’s gown a few inches. What I witnessed startled me.
Men’s shoes. I gazed at the massive, polished man’s shoes.
As I knelt down further, I noticed that the person whose head was covered in a veil was wearing pants under the fancy gown. What was going on? I wondered as I looked at Dave, who couldn’t take his wide smile off his face.
The man wearing Shanize’s outfit removed his wig and began laughing at Dave. It was his best man, and everyone assumed he was playing a prank on him, but he wasn’t.
“What the hell is this?” Dave inquired in confusion. “Where’s Shanize?”
Shanize had left, according to the best man. She did not want to go through with the wedding, but she also did not want to cancel it. What she wanted was for everyone to know Dave was having an affair with one of the bridesmaids named Vanessa. She wanted him exposed, and the best man helped her carry out her plan.
The church remained silent. The guests’ disbelief made it difficult for them to express themselves.
Dave yelled, “What the best man said is not true.” He denied having anything with Vanessa, who was standing only a few rows away. But it was clear he was not telling the truth.
It turned out I didn’t know my best friends very well.
He squandered his chance at happiness on a cheap fling, and that was his punishment.
I felt sorry for Dave, but I was glad Shanize discovered his infidelity before beginning a new life with him.
Dave, alone and broken, remained kneeling at the church as he watched all of the visitors leave in disappointment.
