This is the guy you were into?

Vespera realized just how foolish and wrong her decision was as she stood at the wedding venue.

She’d impulsively agreed to attend, stuttering her acceptance without thinking it through. She hadn’t expected Quinn to actually send her an invitation. She wasn’t sure what Quinn’s intentions were. Did he really not know she liked him, or was he just oblivious enough to invite her to his wedding?

Now, surrounded by unfamiliar faces, Vespera felt completely out of place. She didn’t know a single soul, and every time someone asked how she knew the bride and groom, she struggled to answer. Friends? That felt too close. Childhood friends? Too personal. Neighbors? Too distant. Everything about this felt wrong, and Vespera wished she could just vanish.

When Quinn came over to greet her, Vespera’s awkwardness reached its peak. They hadn’t seen each other in years—not even a phone call or email between them. The last time they spoke was when she had nervously called him, asking if he was really ge