I sat in front of the mirror, my fingers brushing against the lace of my bridal gown, tracing the exquisite floral designs sewn into the fabric.
Today was the day.
I was marrying Sam.
The love of my life.
A tear tickled the corner of my eye, and I chuckled at myself, wiping it away before it fell.
“Careful,” my maid of honor, Lauren, teased from the doorway, holding out a flute of champagne. “We spent way too long on your makeup for you to ruin it now.”
“I just…” My voice wavered. “I can’t believe this is real.”
And in just thirty minutes, I’d be heading down the aisle toward the man I’d loved for what seemed like an eternity.
I stood at the altar, my pulse hammering, my fingers curled around my bouquet, and locked eyes with Sam, my five-year fiancé.
Then the door creaked open.
A woman walked in.
She looked amazing. She had long, dark hair cascading over one shoulder and lips painted a vivid, vibrant red.
But it wasn’t her attractiveness that gave me a cold.
It was how she looked at Sam.
“Aren’t you going to tell them?” she asked, her voice smooth and confident.
“Tell us what?” I swallowed.
“That you’re already married, Sam,” she said.
I glanced at Sam, expecting him to chuckle, shake his head, or just do anything… anything!
But he did not.
Instead, he moved forward.
And then, right in the middle of our wedding, he walked to her.
God help me, he wrapped his arms around her.
Sam moved his lips, whispering something into her ear. Something only she could hear.
She gave a gentle laugh.
“I…” He exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand down his face. “Hazel, I need to explain this.”
I turned to her, my voice trembling.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Anna,” she said simply.
She was his childhood best buddy. Someone he had been close to for many years. But he never discussed marriage.
“Sam,” I said, forcing the words to come out. “Tell me the truth. Right now. In front of all our family and friends.”
“When we were kids, we had a pretend wedding,” he admitted. “Candy ring pops, a few scribbled vows, and Anna trying to play a song on her ukulele. We thought it was the real deal at the time. We were twelve.”
“But Anna is my best friend, that’s all.”
“Then why did you hold her like that? Why did she just walk in here and say that?”
“A few years ago,” he said, “Anna was in a terrible car accident.”
“The doctors said that she might never walk again.”
“Anna spent years in rehab, fighting to get her life back,” Sam continued. “I invited her to the wedding because how could I not have her here? But she told me that she wouldn’t be able to come.”
“I wanted to walk through those doors by myself,” Anna said just as softly.
“I’ve been practicing with heels for a long time now. I’ve literally been teaching myself how to walk in them for your day.”
“I’m so sorry for the drama, Hazel,” she said, her voice laced with something between guilt and amusement. “Sam and I have always pranked each other, and I thought… why not one last time?”
Tears flowed from the back of my eyes. I couldn’t believe it. This woman clawed her way back up, determined to regain her foothold.
I smiled at Sam.
“And I am so happy for you both. Truly,” Anna said.
The room was still. Then there was laughter.
The tension in the room subsided, and the vibe shifted as the visitors murmured and chuckled gently.
My wedding had been a dream.
The love. The joy. The warmth of it all.
Dog spotted in water during dinner cruise: yacht crew jumps into action to save her life
When a couple noticed a puppy suffering in the water, their dinner cruise on a yacht took an extremely unexpected turn, motivating the crew to perform an amazing rescue.
Terry Johns was leading a dinner cruise between Fort Myers Beach and Lighthouse Beach in Florida on board the Sanibel Harbor Princess.
But when a couple noticed a puppy in the water, trying to keep afloat, the cruise took an unexpected turn, according to WINK News.
Captain Johns said to WINK, “I looked out, and I saw something in the water.” “Then I heard dogs, dogs, dogs,” all of a sudden.”
To save the dog, the captain and his crew sprang into action. It was unclear whether the animal had been dragged in by the powerful currents or had fallen from a boat.
Kurt Echols, the co-captain, reportedly guided the yacht towards the dog, enabling the crew to save it at the swim platform, according to People.
The dog was subsequently given food and drink by the crew and passengers, and she was thanked for being spared and was characterized as “very friendly.”
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The dog was brought to the coast in the hopes of reuniting her with her family. Her microchip was unreadable, though. However, her owners were thankfully informed when the incident made the press.
Ellie, the dog owned by Ben and Kathleen Baker, was lost while on a boat trip. They looked all over the waterways for her, but they couldn’t find her.
They were inconsolable and said, “I just assumed that was it. Ben said to WINK News, “I’m 72 years old, and I have probably cried more in the last 18 hours.”
However, Ellie was located, saved, and reunited with her family because of this boat crew.
What a miracle! We are very grateful to everyone on this yacht for assisting this puppy who went overboard to safely return home!
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