My sister stole my fiancé before our wedding, so I gave her a gift she wont forget.

A Toast to the Truth

During the cocktail hour, I played the perfect gracious sister. I moved through the crowd, explaining that love had simply found a different path, that I was thrilled to see my sister and Jake together, that sometimes the universe had different plans than we did.

“You’re handling this so well,”

said Mrs. Chen, Jake’s elderly neighbor who’d known him since he moved into the apartment above her flower shop.

“Most women would be devastated.”

“Mia and Jake belong together,”

I said with a serene smile.

“I can see that now. Sometimes it takes a dramatic moment to reveal the truth.”

Jake’s college friends looked bewildered but went along with it. Mia’s sorority sisters seemed impressed by what they saw as a romantic twist worthy of a reality TV show.

The older relatives whispered among themselves, clearly shocked but not wanting to cause a scene. Mia and Jake sat at the head table during dinner, looking increasingly uncomfortable as reality set in.

They were married to each other, with no prenup, in front of everyone they knew. Jake kept checking his phone, probably looking for an escape route that didn’t exist.

Maya maintained her brilliant smile, but I could see the panic growing in her eyes. The dinner was exactly what I’d planned for my wedding with Jake: salmon with lemon caper sauce, roasted vegetables, wild rice pilaf.

The cake was still the three-tier vanilla and raspberry creation I’d spent hours designing with the baker. Even the flowers were the same white roses and baby’s breath that I’d chosen because they reminded me of my grandmother’s garden.

Everything was perfect for Maya’s special day. That’s when I stood up to reveal my wedding gift.

“Before we cut the cake,”

I announced, tapping my champagne glass with a silver knife.

“I have a special surprise for the happy couple.”

The room quieted as the guests turned their attention to me. Maya and Jake looked confused but expectant, probably thinking I was about to give some tearful speech about stepping aside for true love.

“As most of you know,”

I continued.

“Maya and Jake’s love story has been developing for quite some time. I thought it would be wonderful to share that journey with all of you.”

The lights dimmed and a large screen descended from the ceiling, the same screen we’d rented for a slideshow of childhood photos and romantic moments. Derek had positioned himself at a corner table, laptop open, ready to run the presentation.

“Chelsea has done an amazing job documenting their relationship,”

I said, gesturing to the photographer who was still snapping away.

“But today I want to share some earlier footage that really captures the depth of their connection.”

The Cinematic Exposure

The video began with Maya and Jake in bed together in his apartment. Not from the night I caught them, but from three months earlier.

Derek’s hidden cameras had captured everything in crystal clear HD. The footage showed them laughing about how clueless I was, planning their strategy for breaking up with me after the wedding.

“Claire’s always been so trusting,”

Maya said in the video, stretched out naked on my fiancé’s bed.

“She has no idea we’ve been planning this since March.”

The room went dead silent. You could hear the collective intake of breath from 200 shocked guests.

“Tell me again about the money,”

Jake said on screen, running his hands down Maya’s body.

“Twenty-three thousand. She’s been saving for years. Once we’re married and moved to Portland, she’ll never be able to touch it. We’ll have enough to open the restaurant and disappear before she can do anything about it.”

The video continued: months of planning. Jake practicing his breakup speech while Mia tried on my wedding dress in his apartment.

Mia calculating how much money they’d save by keeping all the wedding vendors I’d already paid. Jake talking about how easy it would be to manipulate me into signing over power of attorney for the restaurant business.

The most damning clip was from a week ago, Maya on the phone with someone.

“Claire’s always been pathetic. She’ll probably beg Jake to take her back after the wedding, but we’ll be long gone by then. She’s too spineless to fight for anything.”

Two hundred guests watched in stunned silence as the truth played out on the screen in excruciating detail. Jake’s mother stood up and walked out halfway through, her face twisted with disgust.

My parents sat frozen in horror. Maya’s sorority sisters were filming everything with their phones, probably already posting to social media.

When the video ended, I stood up with the microphone, my expression calm and pleasant.

“Surprise!”

I said brightly.

“I thought everyone should know what kind of love story they were celebrating today.”

The Fallout and the Law

The room erupted. Guests began standing and leaving, some throwing their napkins on their tables in disgust.

Jake’s groomsmen looked ready to fight him. Mia’s face was buried in her hands as her new mother-in-law’s friends filed past, muttering about moral decay and the downfall of family values.

“But I wasn’t finished. One more gift,”

I announced as the chaos swirled around us.

Derek stood up from his corner table and nodded. Every phone in the room received the same text message simultaneously: a link to a private website where the full video was posted, along with screenshots of Jake and Maya’s text messages planning my humiliation and their financial betrayal.

“Just so everyone can remember this special day,”

I said sweetly.

“The website includes all the footage Derek collected over the past week, including some lovely conversations about how they plan to disappear to Portland with my life savings. And Maya, sweetheart, you might want to check your social media. I’ve already tagged everyone we know.”

Maya looked at her phone and screamed. The video was spreading across Facebook, Instagram, and Tik Tok faster than she could delete notifications.

Derek had made sure it would be impossible to remove. He’d uploaded it to multiple platforms simultaneously and sent it to every gossip blog and local news station in the city.

“The hashtag is #OurSisterlyLove,”

I added helpfully.

“Feel free to share your thoughts.”

Jake finally found his voice, his face red with humiliation and rage.

“Clare, you’re insane! We can get this marriage annulled!”

“Actually,”

I said, pulling out a folder thick with legal documents.

“You can’t. You’re both over 18, mentally competent, and said ‘I do’ in front of 200 witnesses. In this state, consummation isn’t required for a legal marriage, and there’s no evidence of coercion. Derek helped me research the laws thoroughly. Congratulations, you’re stuck with each other.”

“This is revenge porn!”

Maya shrieked, pointing at the screen where her naked image was still displayed.

“I’ll sue you!”

“Actually,”

Derek called out, standing up and addressing the room like he was giving a legal presentation.

“Everything was filmed in spaces where you had no expectation of privacy. Jake’s apartment building lease specifically mentions security cameras in common areas. Due to recent break-ins, the building management company installed them legally after getting tenant consent. Jake signed the paperwork 3 months ago. Plus, the church ceremony was a public event that you both consented to have filmed.”

He held up official-looking documents.

“Everything is perfectly legal. I have the permits, the consent forms, and the legal opinions to prove it.”