ACT 28

Whenever people spoke about weddings, they usually describe it as a day filled with jovial laughter and love between the gathered families, especially the newlyweds. Relatives conversing about their lives and discussing various matters about relevant topics and such.

It's Ashe's wedding day.

She stared at herself in front of a full-body mirror, her hands moving, almost robotically, as she arranged her black bow tie.

'It's my wedding.'

Ashe dusted her arms and shoulders.

'It's my wedding.'

She checked if there were any stains or dirt on her shiny new shoes.

'It's my wedding.'

Raising her head, she looked at herself once again at the mirror.

'Yet...'

Her eyes audited the curve on her lips that reflected back to her.

'Why do I frown?'

She looked towards her right and found a mannequin wearing the tailored suit her father is suppose to wear today. Approaching it, she took her time as she fixed its bow tie. She couldn't cry anymore. It's as if her tears had suddenly ran out. Either that, or her eyes were tired of exhausting any effort in producing any of it.

The whole night yesterday, she cried. She cried, and cried, and cried.

She had broken down in her car as soon as she was informed of her father's unexpected heart attack, which is the sole cause of his death. Ahri had to take over the role of being the driver just to get them home that time.

Ashe did nothing but cry.

It's as if life was being completely and utterly unfair to her.

At first, she was and is still being forced to be someone she isn't.

Second, she finally met the person she truly loves, only to be separated from said person.

And last and definitely her 'favorite', her father died at the day before her wedding.

Oh, how Ashe just wanted to close her eyes and never wake up. That, and she wanted to just scream her voice out until she could do said deed no more.

Was she not meant to experience a life with happiness?

Is she forbidden to be loved and to love in return?

Her forever cruel stepmother practically brushed off Alkove's death. She even had the nerve to just have Alkove buried today. As in, as she stood there in her bedroom, at Valoran Cemetery, her father's body is being buried six feet under the ground. Ashe wanted to be there as the workers lowered her father's coffin, but once again, she was denied.

Ashe wanted to be angry, to be furious at Sierra, but she found herself absolutely drained. Everything inside of her, everything she felt, has been already taken and destroyed by her 'wonderful' and 'loving' stepmother. Her whole world spun around her and she couldn't process everything anymore. She didn't bother collecting and rearranging her thoughts.

'What else am I fighting for? Why else should I even rebel?'

Ashe stepped away from the mannequin and smoothened its front. Her gaze audited the mannequin's state before it trailed towards the nearby table at her right, where a wedding invitation is placed. She grabbed the wedding invitation, reading the name of her bride more than three times.

'No matter how much you read it,' She heard her own voice speak in her thoughts. 'It will never change. It will never be her name.'

It's times like this is when she wished Katarina was there with her, to reassure her that she is safe, loved and has someone to lean on to. Ashe chuckled bitterly.

'You'll never see her again, Ashe. As soon as you get married, the chances of seeing her again will be nonexistent.'

After placing the invitation back down the table, she looked down to her hand, where gaze wandered to the silver ring around her finger. She raised her hand and gently planted a kiss on the cold accessory.

"Thank you, Katarina."

...

...

...

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Turning around to face the door, she opened her mouth and called out softly. "Come in."

The door swung open after a second and Braum stepped into the room, a concerned expression on his usually smiling face.

"Are you alright, Miss Ashe?" Braum asked, worry hinting in his voice.

"I'm... fine, I guess."

"I would like to offer my condolences. Master Alkove did not deserve to die so early."

She nodded silently.

"Do you not wish to postpone this wedding? If you feel too... troubled, then I'm quite sure the guests will understand."

"No, Braum. It's fine. I'm fine. This," She glanced down to her suit-clad form. "Is fine."

"Miss Ashe..."

She turned away and sat down on the nearest sofa, mumbling her answer. "Everything is fine."

'Everything is not fine.'

Ashe knew that her father would probably be hurting if he was still alive presently, knowing he didn't favor this wedding of hers. But she knew well that her father would have done nothing about it.

Not until she says so, that is.

"If it would be alright, I'd like to be alone for now."

Braum sighed and nodded before he excused himself, leaving the room and Ashe in her own solitude.

...

...

...

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Ashe snapped her head to the door. Apparently, a certain someone doesn't want her to be alone.

"Ashe!" Sierra's voice reached her from outside.

Her gaze remained stuck to the closed door, looking at it blankly.

"The wedding's about to start!"

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As soon as she exited their estate and stepped foot on the green grass outside and at the wide garden, she could feel her nerves set in. She's actually there. She's actually going to marry someone she has only known for a few pain-filled and eventful days.

Sierra's eyes brightened visibly when she saw her.

"Ashe!"

Her stepmother rushed to her.

"Mother, I...-!"

"I'm sure whatever you have to say can wait. Right now, the wedding is about to start!" Sierra said excitedly, grabbing one of her wrists and tugging her towards the archway at the end of the aisle.

"Mother, wait...-!"

"Hush now, Ashe. Come with me now, it's about time!"

Ashe audited the area, and she instantly noticed that all the wedding guests were already seated on their own designated seats.

"Umm, mother, I...-!"

"Oh, I can't wait to have Ahri as my daughter-in-law!"

"Mother, wa...-!"

"It'll be wonderful! You're going to get married!"

"Mother...-!"

"Oh, and! You'll...-!"

"Sierra!"

Sierra stopped, the guests' chatter halted and Ashe pulled herself away, stepping back from her stepmother. All the attention is all focused on the mother and the 'son'.

Her heartbeat started quickening. She can feel it thundering in her chest, threatening to burst. Sierra was giving her a warning look now.

"Ashe, remember," Sierra murmured in an extremely low volume. "The family fortune."

Ashe stared emotionlessly at her as the gears in her mind worked. She has nothing to hold her back now. Her father is already dead. She doesn't need the money anymore. She can make her own decision now.

Stay and be Sierra's perfect 'son'?

Or leave and...

'Look for Katarina.' She finished in her thoughts.

But, fear seemed to make its appearance inside of her. The fear of the abuse that may come, the pain it may cause her...

Ashe then noticed Ahri from the side, her fiancée standing at the porch of the backdoor of the estate. Ahri gave her an encouraging nod and smile, wordlessly telling her to make her decision.

That she can finally choose in her own set of choices, not Sierra's.

In addition, Katarina's reassuring smile flashed in her head, and that's what finally gave her the final push to do what she truly wants. Finally, she now has her opportunity to become selfish.

"I'm not going to do this."

Sierra gave her a pointed look as the guests started murmuring to each other.

"Ashe, your voice." Sierra gritted lowly.

"No," She spoke in her normal and feminine voice, adding no such alterations in her vocals. "I won't listen to you anymore."

"Ashe, don't." Sierra warned, now glaring at her.

"I'm done being your puppet. If you thought you can control my whole life with a single tug of a string, you're completely wrong."

"What is the meaning of this?" Ahri's mother spoke from her seat, standing as she did.

"It's nothing!" Sierra reassured the woman and the guests with a nervous laugh. "All will be settled and...-!"

"Everyone," Ashe turned to the guests, pulling off her bow tie and tossing it aside. "I'm not the person you think I am."

Sierra whipped her gaze back to her. "Ashe, be quiet!"

"Let Ashe speak, Miss Sierra." Ahri, who now stood at the bottom of the steps of the porch and looking quite beautiful in her grand wedding dress, abruptly joined in into their 'conversation'. She looked towards Ashe and gave another nod.

Using one hand, Ashe opened her blazer and vest before she started undoing the buttons of her white polo. The murmurs and mutters increased, and as soon as Ashe revealed her bandaged chest to the people, gasps and looks of shock were heard and can be seen on the guests' faces.

"I'm no son of hers!"

Sierra looked at her with horror on her face. Ashe turned to her stepmother.

"And I'm most certainly not your daughter."

"How...! How dare you...!"

"I'm the one and only daughter of Alkove and Shiva Avarosa, and I am proud to be myself."

"Don't you dare say another word...-!"

"You can keep the fortune, Sierra. I was never in it for the riches. I merely stayed here and obeyed you for father's sake, and now... He's dead." Ashe closed her eyes for a second or two before opening them again. "I guess I should be glad that he is, because he doesn't have to put up with someone like you anymore."

As soon as she went around the older woman, guests stood and started shouting, mostly at Sierra, who looked quite scared and nervous with the angry looks and yells directed to her. After all, she did guarantee that Ahri would be marrying a man.

Ashe left Sierra from where she stood and approached Ahri, buttoning half of the buttons of her polo in the process. As she stood in front of Ahri, her supposedly bride-to-be, looked at her with a surprised gleam in her eyes.

"I deeply and sincerely apologize for lying to you, Ahri. I should have told you about my true gender from the very beginning." She apologized before continuing. "I also want to thank you."

"For what?" Ahri asked, a bit confused with her thanks.

"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have gathered enough courage to fight back to Sierra."

She shook her head as she chuckled, flashing a small yet understanding smile. "Well, I should have seen it coming. After all, a gentleman as perfect as you would never have had existed. And, you're welcome."

They both conversed as if no verbal quarrel or any civil chaos was happening around them. Of course the surprises kept on coming. Without warning, Ahri grabbed the sides of her face and pulled her in for a sudden kiss. The lips of the sly female was gone as soon as it came.

"What?" Ahri shrugged as soon as she saw her shocked face. "It's just a little kiss. You didn't expect me to not steal at least one, right?"

"Umm, I, uhh..."

Ahri giggled and lightly pushed her to the direction of the backdoor.

"Go."

Ashe was taken away from all the ruckus when Braum began to pull her away and lead her back inside the estate. Last thing she heard was Sierra's panicked voice mixed with the angry guests' own, before the double-doors closed. When she looked at Braum, she found him smiling at her proudly.

"Care to tell Braum what made Miss Ashe stronger?" Braum asked her with a wide smile.

"Ahri did, and well," Ashe blushed. "A certain someone too."

Braum quirked an eyebrow. "And Braum assumes that this certain someone has a name that starts with 'K' and ends with 'A', no?"

She smiled. "Yeah, her."

"Oh, Braum has wedding gift for Miss Ashe!"

Braum reached into his pocket and presented an awfully familiar gadget. Her cellphone. She accepted the 'gift' from Braum, who grinned at her.

"Braum suggests that you make call now."

"Will do, Braum."

Ashe found herself spacing out as she imagined everything that she plans on doing to Katarina as soon as she sees the redhead again. Braum noticed this and started nudging her to the direction of the hall leading to the front door. She gave him a curious and mildly confused look.

"Car is outside, waiting."

"What about the wedding? The guests?"

Braum chuckled and waved her away. "Braum shall do damage control."

"Are you sure?"

"Braum thinks this is time for Miss Ashe to enjoy newfound freedom."

"But, what about... father?"

The bigger man placed a hand on top of her head. "Master Alkove want nothing else but see Miss Ashe happy. Braum is sure of this."

She became a bit teary-eyed as she offered a bright smile and gave Braum a quick hug before she rushed down the hall and headed towards her exit, excitement filling her whole body.

Ashe couldn't wait to see Katarina again.

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx

Katarina resisted the urge to rub her eyes with her two fingers in frustration as she watched their driver check the open hood of their currently smoking car. She, her father and her siblings stood at the sidewalk, while the driver of their vehicle seemed to be looking a little nervous and troubled as he scanned the looked at the engine.

"Of all the times for our car to overheat, why now?" Cassiopeia practically whined, sighing loudly.

"My sincerest apologies, but," The driver stepped back and faced them. "The car needs to be towed and sent to the auto shop for repairs."

"Oh, for the love of...!" Cassiopeia turned away and started whispering profanities under her breath, muttering a few comments about her make-up possibly getting ruined by the sun's heat. Talon kept his calm demeanor, just like their father.

"We'll hail a cab, then." Marcus said.

"Hail a cab? How are we suppose to hail a cab," She then gestured at the unmoving traffic jam in front of them. "When the cars won't even move a single fucking inch!"

Marcus didn't bother scolding her and her sister for their colorful words. He understood their reasons all too well. Instead, he pulled out his phone and made a call, turning away from them as he did. She sighed and made her way towards the nearest bench she found, which is conveniently placed near a large tree that offered a nice and comfortable shade, her two siblings trailing after her.

Their car had broken down just beside Valoran Park, so there were quite a lot of benches scattered around and about. It's a rather unusual sight the three of them are right now.

Talon wore a perfectly striking suit with a dark blue tie, Cassiopeia wore an emerald green flowing dress, and lastly, she herself donned a simple burgundy red mermaid dress that wrapped around her form to the tightest extent, which also showed off her sexy frame to any onlookers that dares to ogle at her.

She sat down on the bench, and her two siblings occupied the remaining space on either side of hers. It took all her self-restraint not to yell and release her anger vocally to the world.

Katarina wanted to see Ashe before the white haired female gets married to some complete stranger. She wants to hear the three words she's been longing to hear ever since she had fallen in love with Ashe.

And unfortunately, their car just had to be some bitch and screw up that opportunity for her.

During the car ride earlier, she could feel her heartbeat getting faster and faster due to the nervousness and the anticipation she had felt. But, as soon as the car overheated and put a halt in their travel, it made her heart somewhat deflate. It returned her heart rate to normal, but now, it threatened to beat wildly again as a different kind of nervousness appeared and disabled her from calming herself down.

'What if... What if I'm too late when we get there?' She thought. 'What if she's already married? What if...-!'

Her 'what if' questions were interrupted when she felt something vibrate against her right thigh.

Buzz! Buzz!

She inconspicuously looked around with her eyes for a moment before she slightly lifted the high slit of her dress, revealing the black cellphone case she strapped around her right thigh. The slit of the clothing is, in her opinion, can be considered a possible reason that can make a few old men to enter cardiac arrest. She swiftly took out her vibrating phone and answered it without looking at the caller ID.

"What?" She 'greeted' in her usual 'fuck off' tone.

"Hello to you too, Katarina."

Her eyes widened and she instantly got off of the bench, looking around, while Cassiopeia and Talon's gazes attached onto her in a blink of an eye.

"Ashe!?"

"I miss you." Ashe murmured from the other line.

"W-Where are you?" She asked, stuttering once due to the excitement that suddenly began filling her whole body.

Her heartbeat thundered in her chest, and she could feel the adrenaline being pumped in her veins just by hearing Ashe's voice through the small speaker of her phone.

"I just exited the house." Ashe informed her, excitement coating the other female's words. "What about you? Where are you?"

"Valoran Park. I'm at Valoran Park." She can't help but become a bit frazzled.

Ashe chuckled from the other line, which caused her heartbeat to quicken more than it already had. She actually felt the difference of its beating speed. It's obvious that she had missed hearing Ashe.

"Wait for me there." She heard Ashe say to her. "I promise, I'll be there. Just wait for me."

Katarina pursed her lips as she made a huge effort in not tearing up at the moment.

"Always."

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Author's Note: He-yo! ^^ How do you readers like the story? We're two chapters away from finally finishing this story! :D