My Ex Next Door

Then she shifted to Leo who had a small square pillow for the ring.

"Hey cutey, you know the drill right? Now go in line and amble, you need to smile" the little boy nodded obediently.

Everyone lined up and prepare themselves to march.

In the altar, Ken was staring at the people standing by the door, but his mind was not in the church, it\'s somewhere else.

"Hey, are you all right?" it was his friend\'s voice, he turned to him.

"No, are you?" he asked back.

"yeah, why?" Evan replied.

Ken shrugged his shoulder, "Lexi told me that her mom kept bantering about not getting invited to her brother\'s wedding" He responded.

Evan snorted.

"Yeah. I spent hours explaining the situation to her but you know Daniella, she can be stubborn"

"True" Ken agree and turned his sight back to the people.

"So, what is her plan, is she going to crash my wedding?"

His friend laughed, a loud laugh that made everyone look at them.

"See the pianist over there, the one with a suit and a short hair?" Ken turned to the pianist at their right side sitting playing a soft melody.

His face flattened, knowing Daniella, he will not be surprised if Evan tells him she\'s him.

"So, that\'s Daniella?" he asked to confirm.

Evan shakes his head.

"No" Ken snapped his brows with confusion.

"Then why did you point at the pianist?"

"Nothing, I just felt like doing it" Glen who\'s standing beside Evan also laugh, "That\'s a good one Evan"

Their faces turned serious when the priest came.

The priest stands behind the table and waits for the practice to starts when Ken looked at the priest, his eyes widened.

"Shorty what are you doing here?" he asked after noticing the facial features and the height of the priest were similar to his sister.

The priest winked at him and asked him to shut up, then the priest turned to Evan.

"Pst… babe, you left Alexa\'s necklace in the car, get it before she notices it" with those words, Evan disappeared into thin air.

Ken sighed and turned to Glen.

"Please tell me that your marriage life is not like this?" he said pointing at Daniella, who\'s posting as the priest.

"Nope, it\'s more normal" Glen replied.

"Where\'s the best man?" the coordinator asked after Evan disappeared.

"He left to get Alexa\'s necklace" Ken replied, when he looked at his niece, he saw the little girl\'s body turning statue, then her little lips parted.

"Wah!!!" Alexa starts crying, "Where is my necklace," she said as she continues her weep.

Since Daniella is posting as the priest, she could not console her daughter so Ken walks to Alexandria\'s direction and carried her.

"Hush Lexi… your daddy will be back soon, he will have your necklace" the little girl sniffed and wipe her tears.

"ok" her expression suddenly changed, as if she never cried. Ken\'s face flattened, Alexandria was just like her mother, she knows how to act and exaggerate things.

He walks back to the altar but his niece stops him; he turned his back to face her and squat on the floor, the little girl was pouting while playing with her fingers.

"Uncle Ken, can I also stand in the altar?" she asked in a tiny voice when she blinked, his heart softened, instead of saying now he replied, \'yes\' and took her small hand.

He carried Alexandria in his arm and went back to his post, when Evan came back, his expression flattened to see his daughter.

"Alexa, you need to march together with the other bridesmaids," Evan stated and asked her to go back. The little girl protested but after the priest glared at her, she walks out with her skin crawling.

Then the practice started.

After the bridesmaids marched, the bride follows, while beside her was her father.

Ken stared at Anna, the woman is beautiful even with a simple dress, but he doesn\'t love her and right now all he could think was Novie.

When Anna reached the altar, Ken took her hands and stands opposite to the priest who had a big smile on his face.

Anna was confused, the priest was too small, and he doesn\'t look like the priest her mother had arranged, he\'s shorter compared to the priest she met last week and his face is too smooth for a man.

Her eyebrow crinkled, she leaned forward to take a closer look. Shock jolted her body realizing that it was her friend Daniella who\'s posting as their priest.

"Daniella?" she whispered, the priest nodded and giggled.

"Yes, I will miss your actual wedding so I am here to see the practise" Daniella winked at her, then she reached to her hand and stared at Anna while her eyes glistened with happiness

Moments later, she saw Daniella\'s body stiffened; the woman gulped repeatedly while colour faded from her face.

Anna was confounded, she turned to Ken who was also confused by Daniella\'s reaction. Suddenly Daniella took a step back and looked around.

"Daniella, are you all right?" Evan asked and tried to reach on his wife\'s hands but the woman rushed to Ken\'s mother direction.

In the other side, Bea was sitting and watching the practice, she was seated in her wheelchair while a smile of contentment and victory was on her lips.

(Finally!) she said in her mind, her smile turned flat when she saw the small priest going to her direction.

The priest put his hand on the armchair of her wheelchair and lean forward.

"Father what--" she stops after realizing that it was not the priest, It\'s Daniella.

Her face went pale while her body trembles, it\'s too late, she must read or saw all the secret she has been keeping for five years.

The woman in front strengthened and shut her eyes.

When Daniella\'s eyes opened, Bea stared at it and all she could see was her reflection through her black pupils. Once again Daniella moved closer to her ears and every word she uttered chilled her bones.

She gulped repeatedly as she watches Daniella walks away after saying, \'I need to find the real priest\'.

Fear flashed on Bea\'s face, then she turned to her son, confusion was on his face.

Bea hardened her body and showed a fake smile, "She\'s angry that I didn\'t invite her, continue" she waved her hand in the air, signalling the coordinator to continue.