At my bridal shower, the girls blindfolded me for a silly “trust game.” I laughed as I guessed each object until my hands brushed something warm, familiar, and impossible. My breath caught, and when I ripped off the blindfold, everything unraveled. I stood in the center of a circle of guests wearing masquerade masks like they were attending some elegant ball instead of a suburban bridal shower.
“Okay, Hannah!” Sophie’s voice cut through the chatter. “It’s time for The Trust Game! Let’s see how well our bride-to-be knows her life by touch!”
Sophie slipped a silk scarf over my eyes and tied it snugly.
“First item,” Sophie announced. “Baby socks?” I guessed. Squeals erupted around me.
“She’s good!” someone called out. “Next one.”
The objects kept coming. There was a dog collar that I recognized immediately as belonging to Pepper, my childhood golden retriever, and my old volleyball jersey from high school.
Then Sophie’s voice got quieter, more serious. “Alright. Last one.”
I held my hands out, expecting another object.
Instead, I felt warmth, skin, a muscular forearm. I traced downward until my fingers found a worn leather bracelet. My heart stopped.
No… It couldn’t be. Then the scent of his cologne hit me. I tore the blindfold off.
The backyard spun into focus, too bright, too real. I stared at the man in front of me, his face still hidden behind a simple black mask. “Take off your mask.”
He hesitated.
I watched his hand rise slowly, almost reluctantly, and pull the mask away. Jake. The gasps around me sounded like waves crashing.
I heard my name being called, but it sounded distant, underwater. Then I heard heavier footsteps… Ben’s voice. “What the hell is this?”
I turned.
Ben stood at the back gate, a tray of spilled drinks at his feet, plastic cups rolling across the grass, liquid soaking into the earth. Sophie was talking fast, her words tumbling over each other. “You didn’t think?” Ben’s voice rose, sharp and dangerous.
“You brought my fiancée’s ex to her bridal shower and didn’t think?”
People were moving now, creating a barrier between Jake and Ben. My cousin grabbed Jake’s arm. Jake let himself be pulled toward the gate, but his eyes never left mine.
“Hannah!” His voice cut through the chaos. Then he was gone, dragged out by three of my bridesmaids. The gate slammed shut behind him.
The story doesn’t end here –
it continues on the next page.
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