The Vows That Should Never Happen Do you, Elena, take Rafael The priests voice echoed through the grand church, the words hanging in the air like an unspoken threat.
Elenas heart pounded, each beat like a drum in her chest.
The eyes of the entire room were on her, but all she could focus on was the weight of the moment.
She glanced around, feeling the walls close in on her.
The guests, dressed in their finest, looked on expectantly, as if this was just another extravagant wedding.
A celebration.
But to Elena, it was anything but.
It was a cage.
A trap shed been shoved into without her consent.
Her eyes darted to the back of the church, and there he wasAlexander.
He was standing at the far end, hidden among the crowd, but his gaze was locked on her.
His eyes were full of desperation, full of pain.
But there was something else there, too.
A spark of hope.
A plea.
Elenas stomach twisted.
She had made promises to herself, promises to Alexander.
She knew what she had to do.
She had to run.
But now, as the priests voice rang out again, asking her to commit her life to Rafael, she hesitated.
Her fingers tightened around the bouquet, the stems cutting into her palm.
The detonator hidden inside it seemed to weigh a thousand pounds.
The plan had been simple.
Escape.
It was her only way out, the only way to be free from Rafaels suffocating hold.
But then, as the priest continued, Elenas mind raced.
Was running the right choice? What would happen if she left? What would it mean for Alexander? For herself? Do you, Elena, take Rafael, to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better or worse, till death do you part? Her mouth went dry.
It felt like the entire room was holding its breath, waiting for her answer.
Her chest tightened.
She wanted to scream, to run, to throw herself into Alexanders arms and never look back.
But there were too many eyes on her, too many consequences hanging in the balance.
A bead of sweat slipped down her neck, the dress heavy and tight around her chest.
Her breathing quickened.
She could feel Rafaels presence beside her, the cold hand on her arm like a brand.
He was watching her, his gaze steady, but there was an underlying tension in the way he held her.
He knew she was struggling.
He could feel it.
He could see the shift in her eyes.
I Elenas voice cracked.
She swallowed hard, her heart in her throat.
She turned slightly, her eyes still on Alexander.
He didnt move.
He didnt blink.
His face was full of emotionsanger, hope, fear.
He was waiting.
Waiting for her to make the decision.
Waiting for her to choose him, choose freedom, choose life.
Rafaels grip tightened around her arm.
She flinched, but only for a second.
It was enough.
Enough for Rafael to think he had her under control.
But Elena wasnt sure anymore.
She wasnt sure of anything.
The truth was, she loved Alexander.
She had never stopped loving him, not even after all that had happened, not after everything Rafael had done to her.
But there was a deeper truth as wellshe wasnt the same person she had been before.
She had changed.
She had learned how to survive, how to fight.

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How to pretend when all she wanted was to crumble.
Do you, Elena, take Rafael The priests voice was insistent, dragging her back into the present.
Her breath hitched.
The moment of truth was upon her.
Rafael was watching her closely, his dark eyes narrowing as if he could read her every thought.
Elena could feel the weight of his stare, like a thousand eyes drilling into her soul.
She could feel the suffocating pressure of his presence, the way he controlled every single aspect of this twisted ceremony.
Every detail had been arranged for this moment.
This final moment.
Elenas eyes flickered back to Alexander, his expression unwavering.
She could see the storm inside him, the fear he tried to hide behind that mask of determination.
He was ready.
He was willing to fight for her.
But the question waswas she ready to fight for herself? Say I do, Rafael whispered, his voice low, his breath brushing against her ear.
And everything will be fine.
His words were a poison, a slow drip of control, sinking deep into her mind.
Elenas heart pounded in her chest, her hands shaking.
She could feel her stomach twist, the fear almost too much to bear.
But she couldnt let it control her.
Not anymore.
She had to make a choice.
One choice that would change everything.
I Elena started, her voice trembling.
She could feel the tears prickling behind her eyes.
She could hear the desperation in her own breath.
Her mind screamed at her to stop, to turn, to run.
But was it too late? Elena.
Alexanders voice reached her, just a whisper in the wind, but it was enough.
He was there.
He was always there.
She saw him again, standing at the back, his eyes burning with intensity.
There was nothing left to say.
She couldnt stand here, trapped between two men, two fates.
She couldnt let herself be owned.
Not like this.
But she couldnt just run either.
Not yet.
The air around her felt thick, suffocating, as the world slowed down.
The priests voice faded into the background, the guests around her blurred into nothingness.
Elena took a deep breath.
Do you Her lips parted, but the words she wanted to say caught in her throat.
What should she say? What could she say? The future was hanging by a thread.
And then, without thinking, without knowing if it was the right thing to do, she whispered, I And thats when the world stopped.
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