It's funny how people look at weddings. Everyone talk about how the bride is supposed to feel.

"You're going to live happily ever after," they say.

"This is your day," they cry.

"Oh, this is a laugh time of love," they sing.

Then there's what the groom is supposed to feel.

"Game's over, bud," they say.

"Looks like you're signing your life away," they tease.

"Welcome to the club, bud. Alcohol helps," they smile.

But what happens when it''s the bride who is signing her life away, while it's the groom's day? What happens if this isn't my happy ending, but the beginning of a very bland and fake life.

I stared at the emotionless face looking at me in the mirror. The women around me painted my face.

"Smile, love. Smile even though you're sad."

Did I hear that right? I looked up at the woman with the lipstick in her hand. She smiled like it was painted on her.

"Smile," she whispered. "We all have to smile."

The lipstick gently touched my lips. I felt the paint guide over them, lifting the corners of my lips as if... the lipstick was making me smile.

Another woman came with a brush and blush. "The bride must glow. Brides glow because they're happy. Right?" Again, the same fake smile.

"Yes," I whispered. "Brides glow."

She took the tip of the brush and lightly applied the rosy color over my cheeks. There was that weird feeling again. I looked at my reflection and saw my cheeks lifted along with my painted smile. They glowed a soft pink and the rest of y face seemed to glow.

Over and over, different women applied something on me to look "bride worthy." But when I saw myself in the mirror, I had the same face as theirs. Fake. Fake like a doll.

I turned to see the women stare at me. That's when I saw it. Deep in their eyes, I saw the fear, the sadness. They were dead inside.

"Be happy, sweetie. Soon you'll be just like us. Happy. Forever happy."

I took a step back. "I don't want to be this. I don't want to be-

"Happy? But marriage is every girl's dream. This is the only way we can truly be happy."

I shook my head. "No. This isn't right. This isn't what I want!" I turned to the door, but two of them stood in front of it.

"Sure it is," one said. "It's what every girl wants. You just don't know it yet. Here. This will make it okay."

She pulled out a bottle of perfume and sprayed it in my direction. I turned away, but I knew I breathed it in. It smelled comforting, like roses. It made me feel... calm.

"There, there. Come on." One lady held her hand out. "Your groom is waiting."

I couldn't seem to control my legs. It was as if they moved on their own. I couldn't stop myself from following them.

Down the hall, I was led to a door that opened to the garden outside. He stood at the end of the aisle. But I saw the look in his eyes. He had the same fear.

I walked down the isle with a man who looked like my father, but it didn't seem like him.

"Look luck, sweetheart," he whispered.

There I stood face to face with a man who I was supposed to live happily ever after with. I couldn't stop looking at his eyes. They pleaded me, begging for me to help. But I had the same look.

"I do," he said. I saw his eyes grow wide as if it wasn't his mouth who said those words.

"I do." I understood. That wasn't me who said it. I was being controlled. How?!

His hands trembled as he lifted mine and slid the ring on. There was a shock sent throughout my body. I felt myself go numb. I was laughing, smiling, but it wasn't me. It was as if I was in a body I couldn't control.

This odd feeling stirred inside me from the pit of my stomach. My vision began to blur and slowly fade. What was happening to me?!

  This is my happy ending I thought. But it wasn't what I was thinking. I wasn't me anymore.

A lifetime of laughter. A new life, a new me.

The more the voice spoke, the smaller I felt. I was being pushed out. I was... dying?!

"Are you happy?" he asked.

"Yes. Of course. This is every girl's dream." I laughed. "You know, weddings are really funerals."

"How so?" he asked.

"The old you dies. Your old life is over. But you're reborn and start a new life." Another laugh. "I guess it's just the ring talking."