A Boy in the Video Called My Late Fiance Dad, Standing Before My Bestie’s Wedding Photo Chapter 04
Vivian’s lazy voice drifted through the speaker.
“Hazel? Wow. What made you think of calling me?”
I forced sadness into my voice.
“Vivian… Julian’s gone. Being alone is starting to scare me.”
She let out a light laugh.
“Oh, Hazel. I probably won’t be back anytime soon. I forgot to tell you something.”
She paused dramatically.
“I just got married.”
My grip tightened around the phone.
“We literally got our marriage license today. Total whirlwind romance.”
Then came the bragging.
“He treats me like a queen. Honestly, he’s perfect. Whatever I want, he gives me.”
After showing off enough, she switched to fake sympathy.
“Try not to be too sad, Hazel. To be honest, Julian wasn’t that great anyway. He was cold, selfish, and emotionally unavailable. Maybe it’s better he died young. At least he won’t ruin the rest of your life.”
Listening to her trash the very man she was secretly sleeping with made me want to laugh.
“Really?” I asked coldly.
“Who’s this mystery husband of yours? Where are you two right now?”
The hesitation was immediate.
“Oh… uh… just someone you don’t know.”
Then I heard something strange on the other end.
A sound.
Movement.
My pulse quickened.
“What are you doing?”
“Nothing.”
Suddenly her voice softened.
Too much.
Too quickly.
Then a man’s voice came through the phone.
A voice I knew better than my own.
“Vivian.”
A pause.
“Not paying attention deserves punishment.”
Julian.
Every drop of blood drained from my body.
My stomach twisted violently.
Vivian spoke in a rush.
“Hazel, I’ll come visit you in a few days. I have to go!”
Before the call disconnected, I heard it.
Waves crashing.
Seagulls crying overhead.
And instantly, I knew where they were.
Silverport’s famous cliffside coastline.
There was only one oceanfront villa there.
Years ago, Julian had shown me architectural sketches.
Pointing to that exact property, he’d promised it would be our future home.
Our wedding home.
Instead, shortly after we received our marriage license, he had supposedly died on his way to our wedding venue.
My fingers tightened around the phone until my knuckles turned white.
Now I understood.
I immediately got out of bed, grabbed my keys, and left.
By the time I arrived at the villa, night had fallen.
The estate was glowing with lights.
Flowers lined the pathway.
An extravagant private wedding was underway.
Standing in the shadows, I looked toward the stage.
Julian was dressed in a perfectly tailored white suit.
His eyes never left Vivian.
“Vivian,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I finally get to marry you.”
“For this day, I’ve waited far too long.”
Behind them, a giant screen played a slideshow of their memories together.
Every photo was familiar.
I’d seen all of them before.
Because I had been there.
But every image had been carefully cropped.
My presence removed.
My existence erased.
To them, I had always been nothing more than background scenery.
In a story meant for two people, I was the unwanted extra.
The crowd erupted into applause.
The officiant reached the moment for the ring exchange.
The climax of the ceremony.
And that was when I stepped out of the darkness.
“Julian!”
The entire wedding froze.
Every head turned toward me.
Julian’s face went white.
“How are you here?!”
Shock and panic flashed across his features.
I walked straight toward the altar.
Then I pulled a document from my purse and threw it onto the table.
A cold smile touched my lips.
“I came to attend my legal husband’s wedding.”
The marriage certificate gleamed beneath the lights.
Both our names were printed clearly on the page.
[Hazel Walker. Julian Thorne.]
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Whispers exploded from every direction.
Vivian’s face turned bright red.
Tears instantly filled her eyes.
She rushed forward.
“No! Hazel, listen to me!”
“I was always the one Julian loved! I’m not the other woman! You’re the one who came between us!”
Before she could finish, I slapped her.
Hard.
The crack echoed across the lawn.
Vivian screamed and stumbled to the ground.
I looked down at her.
“This slap is for every disgusting lie you’ve told over the years.”
Julian finally snapped out of his shock.
He immediately pulled Vivian into his arms.
Then he turned and struck me across the face.
The blow exploded against my cheek.
“Hazel, have you lost your mind?!”
His expression darkened.
“Security!”
He pointed at me.
“Get this crazy woman out of here!”
Several guards rushed toward me.
But before they could touch me, another group entered the venue.
Police officers.
One stepped forward.
“Which one of you is Julian Thorne?”
The crowd fell silent.
“We received a formal complaint. Julian Thorne is under investigation for falsifying a death certificate, insurance fraud involving a substantial payout, and possible bigamy.”
The officer’s gaze locked onto him.
“Sir, you’ll need to come with us.”
At the same moment, my phone started vibrating violently in my pocket.
The familiar WhatsApp video call ringtone shattered the silence.
I pulled out the phone.
My breath caught.
The screen lit up.
The caller was the little boy.
The same little boy from seven years in the future.
