by Laura Ziepe
Adele had seemed like such a sweet girl at first and he wasn’t sure if it was just the alcohol or what, but it was like she’d had a personality transplant after that evening. The night they’d met up again at The King William, she’d shown her true colours. He realised then what she was all about. Despite her friend, Donna, being loved up with Aaron, Adele had been flirting with him all night like mad and it was clear that the fact Aaron played football appealed to her. Adele had practically ignored Neil all night long and it had made him furious. What a shallow, gold-digging cow, he had decided as he left that evening. Adele was sure as hell ruthless; it seemed she would happily ruin her friendship to get what she wanted. When Aaron had confessed that Adele had made a pass at him that evening, Neil had hated Adele even more. What a bitch! Aaron had needed to tell someone to get it off his chest. He didn’t want it getting back to poor Donna as she would have been devastated. How could Adele consider doing that to one of her friends? Neil had been told by Aaron that Adele was even maid of honour today! There was nothing honourable about Adele; she was one nasty piece of work and not only had she tried to destroy her friend’s relationship, but she had made Neil look a complete fool. To think he’d really liked her and had rambled on talking about her to his friends, even sending her several texts asking to take her out! It was cringe worthy.
Aaron turned to Neil, bringing him out of his daydream. ‘We’d better get going, mate. The taxi is outside ready to take us,’ he told him, putting his pint down.
Neil downed the rest of his beer. ‘Come on then. Here it goes. You nervous?’ he asked Aaron, watching his expression carefully.
Aaron shrugged and shook his head. ‘I’m honestly not, no. I love her and can’t wait to see her.’
Neil clapped him on the back. ‘Alright mate, save all the mushy stuff for your speech.’
Aaron laughed and made his way out of the pub, with Neil following behind.
Neil switched his camcorder to record. ‘And here he is,’ he said, pointing the camera in Aaron’s face, who was grinning. ‘He’s about to get married and is on his way to the service. Any last words as a single man, Aaron?’ he asked with a smile.
Aaron laughed. ‘No last words, Neil. Thanks for shoving that thing in my face though.’
Neil laughed and switched the camera off.
Ten minutes later they arrived at Orsett Hall, which was surrounded by beautiful countryside. Neil recorded Aaron again.
‘He’s arrived. Look at this beautiful place he’s taken us to,’ he said, filming round the grounds of Orsett Hall. ‘Not long now Aaron, and Donna will be your wife.’ Neil laughed as he filmed him once more. ‘Ahhh bless, look at this man’s grin!’
Neil put the lens cap back on the camera as he watched a black BMW pull up. Aaron was making his way to the chapel with the ushers, but something made Neil stay where he was. He heard the car door open and stood there, his breathing getting harder and harder as he watched Adele get out of the car alongside a man he didn’t recognise. He noticed her eyes flick towards him and then she turned her head as though she hadn’t seen him. Just who the hell does she think she is, the snobby cow? She’s ignoring me as though I don’t exist! Neil couldn’t believe how rude she was being as she waltzed past him with her chin in the air, and it only fuelled his anger.
‘Adele!’ Neil called, unable to help himself.
She turned around, adopting a tone of surprise. ‘Oh hi, didn’t see you there,’ she said, about to turn straight back round.
Neil shook his head and narrowed his eyes. ‘Liar,’ he replied curtly.
Adele opened her mouth wide, indignantly. ‘What are you talking about, Neil? What’s your problem? I didn’t see you.’
Neil gave a short laugh. ‘Whatever.’ He gave her an icy glare. ‘I can’t believe you actually had the cheek to even show up to this wedding, let alone accept the role of maid of honour.’
Adele shot Neil an odd look. ‘Why are you saying that?’ She frowned in dismay.
‘I know what you did after The King William that night, that’s why,’ he snapped.
Neil watched as the light slowly dawned on Adele’s face. ‘And what’s that then?’ she challenged.
Neil sneered at her. ‘You tried it on with Aaron, your so-called friend’s boyfriend, that’s what. Don’t even try to deny it because Aaron told me he had to knock you back and how embarrassed he was.’
Adele’s eyes were slits as she gave Neil a baleful stare. ‘What’s wrong, Neil? Are you jealous that I didn’t try it on with you, is that it?’ she shrugged, nonchalantly. ‘Okay, I admit, I did try it on with Aaron, but he chose Donna, which is the wrong choice in my opinion, but it’s his loss. They both like the same crappy music, so they’re welcome to each other.’
Neil shook his head in disbelief. How could she be so callous about her friend? ‘Why did you choose to speak to me that night in Funky Mojoe?’ he asked, baffled.
Adele rolled her eyes, huffing noisily as if he was boring her. ‘Because Neil, I thought you were the footballer.’ She looked at him as though he was stupid for not realising that sooner. ‘But you weren’t, were you? You’re just a boring little accountant, a nobody, so I simply wasted my time and now my friend has ended up with a life of luxury, which should have been mine. Now if you don’t mind, I’m rather bored of this conversation and Donna has just arrived so I’d appreciate it if you shut the hell up and left me alone.’
Neil’s mouth was a perfect ‘O’ as she stormed off towards the Bentley and helped Donna out of the vehicle.
*
Kelly and Jade were sitting in the chapel together when they spotted Lisa with Ben in front of them. They waved hello and Jade sneakily had a peek at Ben.
‘He looks nice,’ Jade whispered to Kelly.
‘Yeah I know, bit of a sort,’ Kelly agreed, her big blue eyes open wide as she stared at him.
‘So I hear Donna’s husband-to-be is a footballer?’ Jade said, as she looked at Aaron who was anxiously waiting for Donna to arrive.
‘Yeah babe, he plays for Fulham,’ Kelly said know-ledgeably.
Suddenly everyone hushed in the room as the song ‘She’s The One’ by Robbie Williams begin to play. Jade looked round along with everyone else to see the bridesmaids enter. There was Adele with a smirk on her face, lapping up the attention of everyone looking at her.
‘Wow, someone has overdone the fake tan,’ Kelly hissed, stifling a giggle.
Jade bit the inside of her lip, trying not to laugh. Kelly was right; Adele really did look as though she’d been tangoed, not that that was anything unusual. Jade watched as Adele pouted and stuck out her chest, and wondered how on earth Donna liked her enough to ask her to be maid of honour.
The room was completely silent apart from the soft, gentle tones of Robbie Williams and then Donna entered, looking absolutely stunning.
‘Oh my God!’ Jade whispered to Kelly. ‘Her dress is absolutely beauts!’
‘I know, babe,’ Kelly nodded, staring at Donna as she nervously walked down the aisle. ‘It’s a Vera.’
Jade gasped. ‘A Vera Wang?’ She had to stop herself from touching it as Donna walked past. The dress was exquisite. It was a beautiful ivory colour, made from the most intricate layers of pretty lace and it fit Donna perfectly. Kelly had always vowed that when she got married her dress was going to be from Vera Wang and she even emailed Jade her favourites every year when the new collection came out ‘just in case’. Jade on the other hand had fallen in love with the pretty Alice Temperley gowns as well as the unique Marchesca dresses. She knew she wouldn’t get married anytime soon, but looking didn’t hurt anyone, did it?
‘She looks gorgeous, doesn’t she?’ Kelly said, her eyes welling up with tears.
‘Absolutely amazing,’ Jade whispered. ‘Her hair and make-up look totes perfect. Great job, Kel.’
Kelly flapped her hand in front of her eyes. ‘Weddings make me so emotional for some reason,’ she sniffed. ‘I was in bits watching Kate and Pri
nce Will get married.’
‘Didn’t Kate just look so beautiful,’ Jade swooned as she remembered.
‘She most certainly did,’ Kelly agreed quietly. ‘I think it’s great we get a bank holiday for their anniversary too.’
Jade was confused. Anniversary? ‘We don’t get a bank holiday for their anniversary. What are you talking about?’
‘You know, the Jubilee bank holiday. That’s to celebrate them being married for a year,’ Kelly whispered wisely.
Jade tried to hold in her laugh by putting her hand across her mouth and blushed as she received unimpressed glances from some of the guests in front. ‘It’s the Queen’s Jubilee, Kel,’ Jade laughed as quietly as possible, ‘she’s reigned for sixty years. It’s nothing to do with Kate and Wills.’
Kelly looked disappointed. ‘Oh that’s a shame. I thought we were going to have one every year to mark their wedding.’
A short while later Jade felt the familiar tingling of her nose as Donna and Aaron started to say their vows, meaning her tears weren’t far away. There was definitely something about weddings that got to her.
The ceremony was beautiful and after making their way to an outside garden and sipping champagne and eating delicious canapés the time seemed to fly by, and soon they were ushered into the main room for dinner and drinks. Jade was having a great time and they’d managed to avoid Adele all day luckily. She’d caught Adele’s eye once or twice and Adele had just given her a dirty look, which she’d ignored. Adele appeared to be very preoccupied by flirting with every man in sight, Jade noticed, not that it surprised her. As she watched Adele flick her hair as she spoke to a handsome man wearing a grey suit, she just prayed he wasn’t going to be another poor soul to fall into Adele’s clutches.
*
Adele rolled her eyes as the fairly attractive man in front of her told her a funny story about Aaron’s stag night. Like I care, Adele thought, are you a footballer or not? There was no way she was going to waste time like that night with Neil, so she decided to just come out with it and ask him.
‘So are you on Aaron’s team? Do you play football?’ she asked hopefully, batting her long false eyelashes.
The man laughed. ‘Me? Play football professionally? In my dreams!’ he replied ebulliently. ‘No, I work for my family’s dry-cleaning business. You?’
‘Run my own bikini business,’ Adele gave a wintry smile and sighed inwardly, wondering how she could make a sharp exit. She downed her champagne before he could start asking questions. ‘I’m going to get another drink, nice speaking to you,’ she lied.
‘You too,’ he called after her, the disappointment etched on his face.
A few moments later everyone was told to go to their tables and Adele made her way to the top table proudly. It felt good as she smugly walked past Jade, Kelly and Lisa and just completely blanked them. She was someone important in this wedding, unlike them. So far she was having a good day. The only problem was, she hadn’t managed to meet any single footballers yet; she guessed most of them would be going to the evening instead.
‘Ladies and gentlemen,’ a man’s voice interrupted her thoughts. ‘Will you please stand up for the entrance of the new Mr and Mrs Bond!’
The whole room applauded and Adele forced herself to smile. Donna looked happier than ever, beaming broadly from ear to ear and Aaron looked at her adoringly, his eyes gleaming with contentment. Donna was so lucky, Adele acknowledged, she was married to a footballer. She got all the luck! When was it her turn to get lucky? Donna walked over to her seat in the centre of the long top table. Adele was looking forward to getting the speeches out of the way so they could enjoy the evening and the other people would arrive. As she browsed the room, she realised there weren’t any eligible men and the thought depressed her. She smiled at the waitress as she handed her the starter she had picked for Donna’s wedding; at least she knew she liked the food. She’d made sure that Donna had selected all her favourites.
After a lovely meal it was time for Donna’s dad to give his speech. The room was silent as he thanked everyone and said what a wonderful day it had been.
He wiped his brow with a handkerchief as he continued. ‘When Donna told me she was getting married so soon, I must say, I was slightly concerned and worried that they may be rushing into things. However, after meeting Aaron several times it’s clear to see how in love they are. Aaron is a respectable young man and I welcome him to our family and to be my son-in-law. Though maybe I will leave judgement on just how pleased I am until after the best man has had his say and revealed some of the bits I don’t know about him!’
Everyone laughed and Adele’s eyebrows sank into a disbelieving gaze. Just hurry up and get it over with.
Next it was Aaron, who, quite frankly, made Adele want to vomit. His eyes filled with tears as he expressed his love for Donna.
‘I can’t believe how lucky I am to have met my soul mate and the girl of my dreams. Donna, you have made me happier than you’ll ever know and I will love you forever. You’re my best friend as well as my wife.’
Adele rolled her eyes once more and searched for her mobile in her bag to distract her from the boring speech. She noticed Donna’s mum give her a disapproving stare, which she ignored. If she wanted to look online at Net-a-Porter’s new Lanvin dresses then she damn well would!
Everyone applauded Aaron, and Neil stood up. The best man’s speech was usually the best, so Adele thought she’d give him a chance and pay attention. Slipping her phone back in her bag, she looked up to Neil as he chatted about growing up with Aaron and how much mischief they got into. Images flashed on a large white screen and Adele giggled. One was of Aaron at around ten years old dressed as a woman, and another was of him asleep outside a villa, obviously where he’d drunk too much. The next one flashed up of him being sick outside a bar on holiday; it looked like he was somewhere ghastly like Kavos or Magaluf. How chavvy, Adele thought, turning up her pert little nose. She looked in wonderment as everyone else seemed to think it was hilarious.
Neil continued his speech and then began fiddling about with his camcorder. A few moments later Aaron and a few of the ushers appeared on a large flat screen, which Adele hadn’t even noticed until that point. Neil paused the video.
He cleared his throat. ‘Ladies and gentlemen. I could stand here and talk all evening about the funny things Aaron and I have got up to in the past, but I thought a video would be far more fun and would really show you what Aaron’s like.’
Everyone cheered as Aaron put his glowing red face into his hands with embarrassment and Neil clicked play.
Adele felt herself laughing and smiling; some of it was actually quite funny and Neil had done a good job. There were lots of clips from his stag do, including a bit of Aaron in nothing but his boxers, tied to a lamppost. They look like they had much more fun than we did at Donna’s hen, Adele thought enviously; an Ann Summers night wasn’t exactly original or thrilling. Then came footage that had been filmed earlier that morning of Aaron getting ready, drinking a pint in the pub and then in the taxi. Everyone was making an ‘ahhh’ sound as he stated on the video how excited he was for Donna to be his wife, and Adele glanced over at Donna, who was drying her eyes with a napkin. The screen went black and Neil continued his speech.
‘I think that just about sums Aaron up,’ he smiled. ‘The good and the bad.’
Everyone laughed.
‘No, seriously mate. I can’t express how happy I am for you that you’ve found your perfect wife. I can’t think of anyone better …’
A loud voice interrupted him. ‘Adele!’
Adele frowned as much as her Botox would let her as people turned to stare at her. Where was that voice coming from and why did she recognise it? Then she heard her own voice and felt her head start pulsing with blood.
‘Oh hi, didn’t see you there,’ her voice echoed through the room.
‘Liar,’ came Neil’s brusque reply.
‘Stop the tape!’ Adele hissed to Neil, f
rantically running over to where he was standing. He’d obviously recorded their conversation by accident and it was still playing!
‘I’m trying!’ Neil said panicking as he pressed all the buttons on his camcorder, which was linked up to the screen.
As their conversation continued through the video, Adele glanced up, her face going puce with humiliation. ‘Do something, Neil!’ she asked desperately.
‘The button on the camera is stuck. I can’t switch it off,’ he said, helplessly.
‘Well, try!’ Adele replied wildly.
Neil’s voice on the video was loud and the room was silent. ‘You tried it on with Aaron, your so-called friend’s boyfriend, that’s what. Don’t even try to deny it because Aaron told me he had to knock you back and how embarrassed he was.’
Adele wanted the ground to swallow her up as she grabbed the camcorder and pressed every single button there was, urgently hoping she could stop the tape.
‘What on earth is going on?’ she heard Donna’s dad ask furiously.
Neil and Adele’s voices continued to echo round the room and Adele winced as she heard her voice again. ‘Okay, I admit, I did try it on with Aaron, but he chose Donna, which is the wrong choice in my opinion, but it’s his loss. They both like the same crappy music, so they’re welcome to each other.’
Everyone in the room was glaring at Adele with hatred, and she literally felt as though she was going to die of shame. As her eyes flicked to Donna, she wished they hadn’t. Donna was sitting there, her mouth wide open, giving Adele the most venomous glare she had ever seen.
The tape didn’t stop. ‘Why did you choose to speak to me that night in Funky Mojoe?’ Neil voice resounded.
Adele cringed, closing her eyes and trying to block out the words she knew were about to come. ‘Because Neil, I thought you were the footballer. But you weren’t, were you? You’re just a boring little accountant, a nobody, so I simply wasted my time and now my friend has ended up with a life of luxury, which should have been mine.’
