“The Wedding Thief”
Weddings are supposed to be magical, right? A whole day filled with love, laughter, and promises. The big dress, the flowers, the first kiss as husband and wife.
That’s what I dreamed of—until my own daughter, Amanda, decided to turn my wedding into her personal fairytale.
It all started with traffic.
Adam, my fiancé, and I were stuck in a limousine on the freeway. Ahead of us, hundreds of cars were barely moving because of an overturned truck. Horns blared all around. The limo barely crawled forward.
I tried to stay calm, smoothing my dress nervously. “Ben,” I called through the intercom to our driver. “How much longer?”
“It’s difficult to say, Mabel,” he replied. “But I’m trying my best. Don’t worry—I’ll get you and Mr. Adam down that aisle!”
Adam let out a deep sigh, rubbing his temple. “We’re going to be late, love. Call Amanda. Tell her to keep everyone entertained. Get the band playing or something.”
So, I pulled out my phone and dialed my daughter’s number. She picked up on the second ring, her voice sweet and cheerful.
“Hey, Mommy!”
“Sweetheart,” I said, trying to sound calm, “we’re stuck in traffic. There’s been an accident. Can you make sure everything’s running smoothly at the venue? We’ll be about thirty minutes late. And maybe get the band to start playing so the guests don’t get bored.”
“Of course, Mommy!” she chirped. “Don’t worry about a thing. I’ve got everything under control. Just get here safe!”
Her voice was sugar-sweet, and for a moment, I actually believed her.
But ten minutes later, my phone buzzed again. It was my sister, Jess, and she sounded panicked.
“Mabel!” she yelled. “You need to get here now! It’s Amanda, she—”
Then the call cut off.
“She what?” I muttered, redialing. But her phone went straight to voicemail. A heavy, uneasy feeling sank into my stomach.
Adam noticed my worried look. “What’s wrong?”
I explained, and he chuckled dryly. “Oh, honey, she’s probably just showing off. Maybe she grabbed a microphone and started singing with the band. You know how she loves attention.”
I wanted to believe that. I really did.
But when we finally arrived at the venue—thirty-five minutes late—what I saw made my blood run cold.
Amanda was standing right there on the grand steps of the garden venue, glowing in front of flashing cameras. She was holding a bouquet of ivory roses. And she was wearing a wedding dress.
Not a white party dress. Not a gown from a boutique. A wedding dress.
Next to her stood Kyle—her boyfriend of barely a year—looking nervous and confused in a suit.
Our photographers were surrounding them, snapping away like it was the event of the century.
I froze. My breath caught in my throat.
“What the hell is going on?” I shouted, storming up the steps.
Amanda turned around, eyes sparkling like she’d just won an award.
“Oh, Mommy!” she said sweetly. “I’m so sad you missed the ceremony. It was lovely!”
I blinked. “Your ceremony?”
She nodded proudly. “Yes! Since you were late, I thought it would be a shame to waste the setup. Everything was ready—the flowers, the band, the officiant—so I married Kyle!”
I felt my heart drop. “You what? Amanda, are you out of your mind?”
She smiled like it was no big deal. “Relax, Mom! You can get married another day. The guests were already here, and you know how I hate delays. So, I just… improvised!”
“Improvised?” I repeated, my voice trembling with anger. “You stole my wedding, Amanda!”
She just laughed and twirled her bouquet. “Well, technically, it’s a wedding. Just not yours.”
Adam stepped beside me, his face dark with rage. “Say the word, Mabel,” he muttered. “I’ll shut this whole thing down right now.”
I looked at Amanda—the daughter I raised, standing there with smug pride—and every part of me burned with fury. But instead of shouting, I took a deep breath.
“She’s still my daughter,” I whispered to Adam. “Don’t. I’ll teach her a lesson another way.”
The rest of the day felt like a fever dream. Amanda floated through the reception like a princess, basking in the attention of guests who were too confused or too polite to leave.
My Aunt Joy came up to me between courses, frowning. “Mabel, dear, what is going on? We thought this was your wedding. Now Amanda’s married? We didn’t even know she was engaged!”
I forced a smile. “I didn’t either, Aunt Joy.”
Meanwhile, Jess found me near the dessert table, her face red with anger. “That little brat locked me in the bathroom!” she fumed. “I tried to call you, but she grabbed my phone and ran off!”
I just smiled, sipping my champagne. “It’s fine,” I said calmly. “Revenge is best served cold.”
Amanda didn’t stop there. She even cut my cake—the one Adam and I had designed together—with the sugar flowers I’d picked out months ago.
By the end of the night, I was exhausted.
Later, in our hotel room, Adam and I were eating dessert from room service when there was a knock at the door.
Amanda breezed in, still wearing her wedding gown, acting like nothing was wrong.
“So,” she began, smiling, “Kyle and I will need those honeymoon tickets to Chile. No point in you guys using them now, right?”
Adam’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
But I stayed calm. “Of course, sweetie,” I said smoothly. “You can have them. You and Kyle deserve some fun.”
Amanda squealed, kissed my cheek, and grabbed a strawberry off my plate before leaving.
As soon as the door closed, Adam turned to me. “Mabel, what are you doing? You’re just letting her take everything! Our wedding, our honeymoon, all of it!”
I smiled, eyes twinkling. “Patience, my love. Give it two days. She’ll learn.”
Two mornings later, my phone rang. I could already hear screaming before I even said hello.
“MOM! How could you do this to me?!”
I put the phone on speaker. “Good morning to you too, Amanda. Something wrong?”
“Wrong?!” she shrieked. “You gave me tickets to the Arctic! We’re freezing! There’s nothing here but ice and seals! Kyle’s furious!”
I nearly burst out laughing. The tickets had been for Chile—but only as a layover. The full trip was a luxury Arctic expedition: glacier hikes, icy boat rides, and sleeping in thermal domes under the aurora.
It was our dream trip—but Amanda? She hated the cold.
“You asked for the tickets,” I said sweetly.
“Mom!” she whined. “What am I supposed to do?”
“You’re a married woman now,” I said. “Figure it out.”
She hung up on me with a loud groan.
Adam and I looked at each other and burst out laughing. “You’re evil,” he said between laughs.
“I prefer strategic,” I replied.
A week later, my sister Jess hosted a new wedding celebration for us in her garden. It was intimate, beautiful, and filled with the people who truly loved us.
Amanda wasn’t invited.
We laughed, danced, and even had a brand-new cake—bigger, brighter, and a thousand times sweeter.
And the best part? The gifts.
Since the original wedding was in my name, all the presents were addressed to us. We got everything from luxury linens to a high-end espresso machine.
It was poetic justice.
When Amanda found out, she called me again, furious.
“Mom! You stole my wedding gifts! They were supposed to be kept at the venue until we got back!”
“Your gifts?” I said, laughing. “Amanda, you stole my wedding. Consider this a fair trade.”
She screamed something unintelligible and hung up again.
Weeks later, Jess came by for tea and cake. “You know,” she said, shaking her head, “Kyle looked miserable the whole time. I give them three months, tops.”
She was right. From what I’ve heard, their marriage is already cracking.
Amanda might have stolen my fairy-tale wedding, but her happy ending? It melted faster than ice in the Arctic.
As for Adam and me—we took that same Arctic honeymoon. It was everything we dreamed of. The glaciers, the silence, the northern lights… magical in every way.
Some lessons in life come wrapped in frostbite.
And Amanda? Well, I think she finally learned that karma doesn’t always knock—it sometimes books your flight to the wrong continent.
Because in the end, karma has perfect timing… even when traffic doesn’t.