Haunting Past

Fiona's POV It's my best friend's wedding and I am her bridesmaid besides Helen. Rose is not an orphan now. She got her family back and that too one of the richest families of the country. She is now going to marry another rich man. But she never changed. She is the same Rose I met 2 years back. She is the one who changed me. She literally gave me a new life. After getting her family back she made sure not to leave me alone. She never allowed me to be alone. Either she insisted on me staying with her or she came to our old apartment whenever Helen was not there. She always advised me to move forward in life. She even tried to convince me to find someone. Today is the biggest day of her life and she chose just me and Helen to be her bridesmaid. It's been 2 months since we have been running preparing for this big day. Both me and Helen wanted to wear something of a nude color but Rose insisted on choosing some bright color. That's why I am wearing a red gown , the same as Helen. It was Rose who selected the color and I worked on the design. Thanks to both Dumont enterprise and Dickins corporation, I am now one of the leading designers of the country. It was Megan who first identified the hidden talent in me. She was the one who insisted on joining the fashion department. Slowly I became interested in designing dresses. My first ever collection was launched by the Dumont enterprise and the Dickins corporation together. It was a big hit and after that I never had to turn back. Even after becoming a successful designer, I still chose to live in our apartment. That's the only place that makes me at peace even when I am frustrated. Rose is getting ready for her big day. World's best makeup artist Felix and hairdresser Howell are helping her get ready for the big day. The first thing Felix said after seeing Rose. "Why do you need me to get her ready? She doesn't need makeup. She is so beautiful without any makeup. Such a natural beauty is really rare to find these days." Rose had chosen an a-line wedding gown studded with diamonds and pearls. It has been designed by the world renowned designer brand 'wedlock'. Her parents and brothers want to make this a royal wedding and so does the Dumont family. The wedding is going to take place at Santa Cruz mountains. The wedding location was finalized after visiting more than a dozen wedding venues. We are now in the hotel arranged near the venue. I helped Helen to get ready after getting ready myself. We both chose to look identical for our dear friend. I looked at the time and it's 30 minutes past nine. The wedding ceremony will begin by 11.00. We waited for Rose to get ready and by ten she came out just like a princess from the fairy tales. "Oh my God Rose, no one is going to take their eyes off you. I am sure Ryan is going to kill a dozen of them." I said admiring her. "Really Rose, you look so beautiful. I can't just take my eyes off you. You did a wonderful job Mr Felix and Mr Howell." Helen said "It's nearly time, we will have to leave for the venue." I said "Fiona and Helen, you both have been my strength throughout these past years. You have seen the ups and downs of my life. You have been there whenever I needed you without caring about your job or life. I am very lucky to have friends like you. On this special day of my life I want to thank you both for being there for me. You make me feel special even when I was no one. After knowing that I am a Dickins, you still stood by my side. On this special day, I want you both to be on my side as you always have been." Rose became really emotional. "Don't dare to cry or else you will spoil the makeup. It will look really weird for a bride to meet the groom with a tear stained face." I said hugging her. "Hey girls, let's hurry up. The chauffeur is already here waiting for you with the Limo. We will follow in the other car." Helen said, pulling us apart. We hurried to the elevator and went down to the black Limo waiting for Rose in front of the hotel. We helped her to get inside the Limo and settle herself. Then got down and hurried to another car waiting for us. Within 15 minutes we got down in front of the wedding venue. Everywhere was decorated with flowers and lights. The decorations were unique unlike the usual weddings. Red roses were used along with white lilies for the decoration. Red roses are favorite of Dickins family. They had even named their daughter out of the love for roses. Both me and Helen waited for Rose to arrive. The whole Dickins family are waiting at the entrance of the venue. As soon as the Limo arrived, Ronald and Ethan came to receive their little sister. That's when I noticed that both the brothers were pulling something while they came. They had laid down a carpet of Red roses from the entrance to the Limo. They helped their sister to put her feet on the roses. Rose stood shocked for a moment seeing the arrangements her brothers had made for her. She hugged them and said, "Thank you for loving me so much. You have made up for the lost 15 years in just two years. You are the best brothers of this world. I love you both." A tear escaped her eyes. "Don't cry, we want our little sister to be the happiest and most beautiful bride in this world." Ronald said and they were about to take her forward when Helen said. "It's the responsibility of the bridesmaid to take the bride to her father. If you both stand aside we could take our positions." Both Ronald and Ethan stepped aside, giving us a way. We first helped Rose to put her veill down. Then we walked in front of Rose up to the entrance where her parents were waiting. Usually a father alone walks the bride to the groom but this is a unique wedding. Rose will be led by both her parents. We entered the massive open air auditorium which has been beautifully decorated with white and red flowers. We walked through the passage in between the numerous rows of chairs on either side. I could see Ryan waiting for his Rose. His back is facing us. Two flower girls walked in front of us dropping flower petals as they moved forward. On the way, I saw lots of familiar faces. In the front row Dumont family stood up to receive their daughter in law. Martin was the best man of the groom. Ryan too just wanted his friend to be on his side on his big day. We both stepped aside to the left and gave way to Rose and her parents. Ryan turned to receive his bride from her parents. The wedding ceremony started and all through the ceremony my heart throbbed. Will such a day ever come in my life? Will there be someone to love me as Ryan loves Rose? Would I ever be able to love someone? But how can someone love me after knowing my past? It's better to be single than to be broken by someone. I put a stop to the train of my thoughts when the priest asked Ryan. "Do you, Ryan Philip Dumont, take Rosemary Dickins as your lawfully wedded wife?" "I do." Ryan replied at once. "Do you, Rosemary Dickins, take Ryan Philip Dumont as your lawfully wedded husband?" Silence filled the entire auditorium to hear Rose. She didn't say anything making all of us tense and finally she nodded and whispered in a low voice. "I do." A loud round of applause followed and the priest gave Ryan permission to kiss the bride. Ryan slowly removed the veil and left a gasp and a wow. We were definitely expecting that from him but I never thought Martin would do the same. I looked at Helen who was staring intensely at Martin. "Are you feeling jealous that your boyfriend is admiring someone else?" I asked in a low voice. "Not at all because she is looking so damn gorgeous that I couldn't take my eyes off her." Helen said After the ceremony it was time for a photo session before the reception started. We took our photos with the newlywed couple. The reception is being conducted in the evening at a five star hotel in San Francisco. Rose and Ryan will come directly to the hotel after changing from the Dumont bungalow. I left with Helen and Martin to the apartment to get ready for the reception. It took an hour to reach back to the apartment. Martin dropped us and then went to his apartment. Helen is still waiting for Martin to propose to her. As far as I know, he has been planning for the day for the last few months. He wants to make it really special for Helen. He has been discussing it with all his friends except Helen. He had strictly forbidden us all from telling anything to Helen. Even after moving to her parents' place, Rose comes and stays here occasionally. It was because of Helen I seldom felt lonely. In the past 2 years we became really close that Helen dared to set me on blind dates. Helen and Rose always took care to not make me alone. They knew very well how much I regret my past. They know that I can't move forward, forgetting my past. It might be my fate alone for my whole life.