My Best Friend Gave Me the Wrong Dress Code for Her Wedding – I Decided to Outplay Her Smartly

My Best Friend Gave Me the Wrong Dress Code for Her Wedding – I Decided to Outplay Her Smartly

When Emily’s friend, Elle, gets engaged to her boyfriend, Brian, she is completely over the moon. Emily does everything she can to help Elle plan her dream wedding. But then Elle starts acting secretive and gives Emily a wedding invite with the incorrect dress code. Thankfully, a mutual colleague gives Emily the correct details, allowing her to show up to the wedding to teach Elle a lesson.

“I’m engaged, Em!” Elle said, rushing through my door while I was sitting on the couch and reading a book.

A woman reading on a couch | Source: Unsplash

A woman reading on a couch | Source: Unsplash

“What?” I exclaimed, standing up to hug her tightly. “I’m so happy for you, my girl!”

Elle sat down on the couch and showed me her hand.

“Look at this rock!” she said.

A close-up of an engagement ring | Source: Unsplash

A close-up of an engagement ring | Source: Unsplash

Of course, I was over the moon for her. We’d been through so much together, and now it was her turn to walk down the aisle.

For my wedding, a few years ago, Elle had been right by my side. She helped me plan every little detail, from the font on my wedding invitations to the menu selections.

“It’s more like you and Elle are getting married,” my husband, Grant, laughed one evening when I told him everything that Elle and I had planned.

A laughing man | Source: Unsplash

A laughing man | Source: Unsplash

“Well, she’s been around longer than you,” I replied, showing him the mockup for our wedding invitations.

And it was true, Elle and I had been friends since our childhood, having lived on the same street and gone to the same kindergarten together.

We shared every major milestone, from awkward teenage years to college graduation, together.

Two women lying on a bed | Source: Pexels

Two women lying on a bed | Source: Pexels

We even ended up working at the same company, making sure to have lunch and tea breaks together every day.

So, naturally, I expected her to be just as involved in her wedding planning as she was in mine.

“Brian and I don’t want to be engaged for too long,” she said one day at the office while we were having tea and pastries.

An office kitchen | Source: Unsplash

An office kitchen | Source: Unsplash

“So, we’re planning for the wedding to be in a few months.”

“That’s a lot to do in a few months, Elle,” I said, sipping my tea.

“I know,” she agreed. “But you’ll help me!”

A woman drinking from a mug | Source: Pexels

A woman drinking from a mug | Source: Pexels

As the weeks went by, Elle asked me for advice on the venue, the dance, and the flowers.

“I need it to be perfect, Em,” she said. “Brian and I are the only children of our parents, so this is the only chance they’re going to get to be parents of the bride and groom.”

A smiling older couple | Source: Midjourney

A smiling older couple | Source: Midjourney

I helped her wherever I could. I booked visits of stunning venues that she could see. I booked her appointment with the florist who had done all the flowers at my wedding. And I arranged for her to meet my choreographer for her first dance with Brian.

“I don’t know how I could have done any of this without you,” Elle said, holding my hand.

Two women holding hands | Source: Midjourney

Two women holding hands | Source: Midjourney

But that’s not the best part of this story.

Despite our shared history and all the assistance I had given Elle throughout her wedding planning process, she didn’t tell me anything about the actual wedding.

“I want to keep the location a secret,” she said sheepishly, a small smile on her face. “I want it to be a surprise. So, you’ll know when the invites come out.”

A close-up of a smiling woman | Source: Midjourney

A close-up of a smiling woman | Source: Midjourney

And yet, when the invitations came out, I never received mine.

“Darling,” I asked Grant when I got home one day. “Did Elle’s wedding invitation come in the post?”

“No,” he said, looking up from his tablet. “Shouldn’t she have just given it to you?”

A man using a tablet | Source: Midjourney

A man using a tablet | Source: Midjourney

“I thought so, but I’m not sure where our invitation is.”

“Ask her, love,” my husband said.

I was puzzled, but I didn’t want to jump to conclusions.

A close-up of a surprised woman | Source: Midjourney

A close-up of a surprised woman | Source: Midjourney

So, I asked her directly.

“Oh, right,” she said, looking a bit uncomfortable. “I must have forgotten. I don’t have any on me at the moment, but I’ll bring one for you tomorrow!”

The next day, Elle handed me an invite. To my surprise, the dress code was “Mermaid.”

A wedding invitation on a table | Source: Midjourney

A wedding invitation on a table | Source: Midjourney

“Like the cartoon character?” I said aloud.

It seemed bizarre, but Elle had always loved that cartoon, so I tried to rationalize it.

“Maybe she’s going for a whimsical theme?” I muttered, thinking about a mermaid-themed wedding.

An imagined mermaid-themed wedding | Source: Midjourney

An imagined mermaid-themed wedding | Source: Midjourney

But still, I planned my outfit for Elle’s wedding.

It was about a week before the wedding when our colleague, Jane, and I were standing outside during one of our tea breaks and chatting.

“I’m actually looking forward to getting all dressed up,” Jane said. “It’s been a while since I put on a good pair of heels and did my makeup for fun and not work.”

A woman putting on makeup | Source: Unsplash

A woman putting on makeup | Source: Unsplash

“What do you mean? Is your costume all sorted?” I asked.

“What costume?” Jane asked, her reaction priceless; she looked at me like I had lost my mind.

“Elle’s invitation said that the dress code was mermaid-themed,” I said.

A surprised young woman | Source: Midjourney

A surprised young woman | Source: Midjourney

“I think she’s joking with you,” Jane laughed. “My invitation said ‘Cocktail’ as the dress code.”

My heart sank.

Elle was setting me up, but why?

For the next few days, I kept my head down, barely interacting with Elle.

A close-up of a sad woman | Source: Midjourney

A close-up of a sad woman | Source: Midjourney

I was feeling sidelined and hurt. We’d always been honest with each other, so why was she doing this now?

I remembered how supportive she was during my wedding and couldn’t understand why she didn’t want me involved in hers.

On the day of the wedding, I arrived in a long, elegant gray dress.

A woman wearing a long gray dress | Source: Midjourney

A woman wearing a long gray dress | Source: Midjourney

Grant and I sat at the back, away from the crowd, and we watched the beautiful ceremony unfold. I wondered why I wasn’t a bridesmaid.

But it was only during the reception, when Elle saw me, that the truth came out.

A bridal couple kissing | Source: Unsplash

A bridal couple kissing | Source: Unsplash

“What the hell are you wearing?” she demanded when she saw me.

The guests around us glanced at us and each other, sensing the tension.

“You know, I really thought that ‘mermaids’ as the wedding theme was a bit extreme. But then Jane showed me her invitation.”

An angry bride | Source: Midjourney

An angry bride | Source: Midjourney

Elle’s face went through a range of emotions, finally settling on a strained calm.

“Em… I guess it was a mistake,” she said.

“Stop pretending,” I said, my voice firm but gentle. “I’m your friend. It’s your wedding. What’s going on?”

She hesitated, her eyes darting around before finally meeting mine.

A close-up of a bride | Source: Midjourney

A close-up of a bride | Source: Midjourney

“Em,” she said slowly. “I was afraid that you’d outshine me. Everyone keeps talking about how perfect your wedding was and how beautiful you looked. I didn’t want to feel like I was in your shadow on my own day.”

I looked at her carefully, trying to process her words.

“My own mother kept talking about how wonderful your wedding was and that I should listen to you about everything,” she continued.

A close-up of a bride and her mother | Source: Midjourney

A close-up of a bride and her mother | Source: Midjourney

“Elle, you never had to compete with me. Your wedding is beautiful, and so are you. We’re friends, remember? I would never try to overshadow you.”

Tears welled up in her eyes.

“I’m so sorry, Em,” she choked. “I let my insecurities get the best of me.”

I pulled her into a hug.

Two women hugging | Source: Midjourney

Two women hugging | Source: Midjourney

“Everything is perfect,” I said. “You’ve planned your dream wedding, and it has all fallen into place. Now, come on. Let’s enjoy this day together, like we’ve always done.”

The tension melted away, and the awkwardness dissolved as we shared a genuine moment of reconciliation.

Grant and I sat at a table away from the crowd.

A table at a wedding reception | Source: Midjourney

A table at a wedding reception | Source: Midjourney

“Are things okay with you and Elle?” Grant asked me.

“I think so,” I smiled. “But I think that there’s bigger things we need to discuss, too. I just want to make sure that we’re on the right page. That can wait until after her honeymoon.”

My husband took my hand and squeezed it gently.

A couple holding hands on a table | Source: Midjourney

A couple holding hands on a table | Source: Midjourney

What would you have done?

My Father-in-Law Gave Me a Pillow as an Anniversary Gift – I Was Shocked When I Learned His True Intentions

When a mysterious package arrives at Kate and Josh’s home, they are confused to see that the sender is Josh’s estranged father. But things get even stranger when Josh finds a ticking box inside the gift — a beautiful pillow. A confrontation occurs, and Josh is left battling with the truth. Should he forgive his father, or act like their relationship is nonexistent?

Josh had just taken their daughter, Emily for a stroll around the garden when the doorbell rang, signaling that the day needed to begin.

A person holding a baby's hands | Source: Unsplash

A person holding a baby’s hands | Source: Unsplash

“I have a package for you,” the delivery man said as I opened the door.

I signed and carried the box into the kitchen. Our third wedding anniversary was this week, and Josh was always ordering things for me.

A person with a brown cardboard box | Source: Pexels

A person with a brown cardboard box | Source: Pexels

“I just want to surprise you, Kate,” he said one day while we were lounging on the couch. “It’s just the little things, you know?”

So, naturally, as I took the package to the kitchen, I just assumed that it was from him.

A couple on a couch | Source: Pexels

A couple on a couch | Source: Pexels

Until I took a pair of scissors and cut through the thick tape. Opening the package, I found a beautifully embroidered pillow, a note sticking out beneath it. It would have matched our living room décor perfectly.

Happy Anniversary, Josh and Kate! – Taylor.

A package with a pillow inside | Source: Midjourney

A package with a pillow inside | Source: Midjourney

For a moment, I reveled in the kindness of the gesture. But then I remembered that there was no way possible that Josh would accept this gift.

“Hey, what’s this?” Josh said, coming back into the kitchen with Emily on his shoulders. “Did we order something?”

A man carrying his daughter | Source: Pexels

A man carrying his daughter | Source: Pexels

“Well, it’s a gift,” I said cautiously. “From your father.”

Josh pulled the note from me, his eyes flying across the paper.

I wondered what he was going to do. Josh and his father had a very complicated relationship. When Josh was a child, Taylor had abandoned him and his mother.

He had been seeing another woman, and when it finally came down to a choice, Taylor had chosen the other woman.

A mother and son | Source: Pexels

A mother and son | Source: Pexels

Josh had been seven, and he had never recovered from it. He told me all about it one evening when we went out for dinner.

“A father is supposed to choose you, Kate. But he went ahead and left us behind so that he could start a new life with his mistress. That’s not how this works.”

A couple having dinner | Source: Pexels

A couple having dinner | Source: Pexels

I understood his point of view. Of course, he had just wanted his father to be there for him and his mother.

Instead, Taylor had other ideas.

“He said that he needed to be happy, and that my mother was too strict with him. He had a job, but he was always doing illegal things on the side. So he packed up his things and left.”

A man with packed bags | Source: Pexels

A man with packed bags | Source: Pexels

“What do you mean?” I asked, shocked that Josh had been exposed to something like that at such a young age.

“Money, swindling it. Gambling, all that,” my husband said as he picked up his glass of whiskey.

And that was it. Josh didn’t speak to him again until a year before we got married.

Taylor had heard about our upcoming wedding through other relatives, and he thought it was the perfect opportunity to try and make things right between them.

A person holding a phone | Source: Unsplash

A person holding a phone | Source: Unsplash

But Josh refused.

“I don’t want him around us on our special day, Kate. It’s not going to benefit anyone. And if anything, seeing him will spoil everything for me.”

“And you don’t think you’d regret it?” I asked as I folded wedding invitations into envelopes.

“Not at all,” Josh replied, picking up an envelope. “For all we know, someone will come and crash the ceremony because he owes them money.”

A wedding invitation | Source: Pexels

A wedding invitation | Source: Pexels

And that was that. Topic closed.

I didn’t want to push it. I knew it was up to him to deal with it later if he regretted it. I would support him, but I wouldn’t want to overstep anything, especially because Taylor sounded like a lot to deal with.

A couple embracing | Source: Pexels

A couple embracing | Source: Pexels

When Emily was born, Taylor tried to get into our good books one more time. He wanted to reach out and try to make things right with Josh so that he could have his role of being a grandfather.

“I don’t want him around us. I don’t want him around our child. Please, Kate, don’t fight me on this one. This man is bad news,” my husband said, carrying our baby.

A newborn baby's feet | Source: Pexels

A newborn baby’s feet | Source: Pexels

So that was it.

Which brings us back to the present.

Josh picked up the pillow and felt it up and down; he even put it to his ear, his eyes widening.

“Sweetheart, we can’t keep this pillow!” he said.

A shocked man | Source: Pexels

A shocked man | Source: Pexels

Without another word, he rushed over and threw it out the back door.

“Josh, what’s going on?” I exclaimed, leaving Emily in her high seat with fruit slices.

“It’s ticking, Kate! There’s something inside. He’s up to something.”

A person cutting fruit | Source: Pexels

A person cutting fruit | Source: Pexels

“Ticking?” I said. “What do you mean?”

We both went outside.

We stood over the pillow lying innocently among our garden flowers. I hesitated, then reached down to listen.

Sure enough, there was a soft ticking sound.

Yellow garden flowers | Source: Pexels

Yellow garden flowers | Source: Pexels

“Oh,” I said, shocked. I had been convinced that Josh had been hearing things that weren’t there.

Why would Taylor want to hurt us in any way?

“Take out your phone and video this entire thing,” Josh said as he bent to pick up the pillow. “Just in case something happens or there’s something illegal in there.”

A woman holding a phone | Source: Pexels

A woman holding a phone | Source: Pexels

With a deep breath, Josh tore the pillow open to reveal a small, mysterious box equipped with a timer.

“What the hell is that?” I murmured, dread creeping up my spine.

“Let’s find out,” Josh’s jaw was set. “Call him.”

I dialed Taylor’s number, my hands trembling.

A man holding a box | Source: Unsplash

A man holding a box | Source: Unsplash

“Hi, Kate,” he said, his voice cheery. “Did you get my package? I didn’t know what to get you, but I knew that I had to get something.”

“There’s something inside the pillow,” Josh said. “A box. It’s making a sound. What is it?”

“Please be honest,” I said.

“It’s a gift, Kate. For your anniversary,” Taylor’s voice was calm, almost soothing to me.

A woman on the phone | Source: Pexels

A woman on the phone | Source: Pexels

“The sound is probably the timer; it’s supposed to make a sound and open on the day,” he said. “There’s something in there.”

My husband snatched the phone from my hand.

“Do you really think we want anything from you? What’s really in the box, Dad? Is there something that shouldn’t be there? Something illegal?” Josh demanded.

An angry man on the phone | Source: Pexels

An angry man on the phone | Source: Pexels

“Please, Josh,” he said. “It’s just a gesture. I mean absolutely no harm.”

“If you truly mean that, then stay out of our lives.”

“Wait, Kate,” Taylor said. “Just open the box, okay?”

Taylor sighed deeply, and Josh reached out and cut the call.

I looked at my husband; he seemed confused by it all. I knew that he was curious about what was inside the little box, but he was traumatized by everything his father had done.

An expressionless man | Source: Pexels

An expressionless man | Source: Pexels

“What do you want to do?” I asked him.

“I don’t know,” he said, holding his head.

“Let’s open it,” I said. “If he wanted me to open it, then there’s no way that he’s trying to hurt us, darling. Okay?”

Josh nodded slowly, finally accepting it for what it was. His father had simply wanted to reach out to us and give us a gift. That maybe everything was as easy as it seemed.

A man holding a phone | Source: Unsplash

A man holding a phone | Source: Unsplash

“But record it, okay?” Josh said.

I picked up my phone again and began recording.

My husband pried the box open, revealing its contents: a check for $100,000.

Josh stared at the check, his emotions flying across his face as he tried to make sense.

“What is he playing at, Kate?” Josh asked, stunned. “There’s no way that this is clean money. He must be trying to cover up for something.”

But before we could process this further, Taylor called back.

An uncertain man | Source: Pexels

An uncertain man | Source: Pexels

I answered, hesitant.

“We found the check,” I said. “Why did you do that?”

“Because I’m dying, Kate,” he confessed quietly. “I’ve made my fair share of mistakes, and I know that Josh hates me. But that money is for you guys. And if Josh doesn’t want it, then keep it for Emily’s future. For school. Nobody needs to know that it came from me.”

A bank cheque | Source: Flickr

A bank cheque | Source: Flickr

I walked inside the house, realizing that we had left Emily alone for too long. Not that it mattered, because our daughter was sitting quietly by herself and eating her fruit.

Josh was right behind me.

“Dad,” he said, taking the phone from me. “If you’re really serious about your health, then please, we need to talk. No more games.”

A man talking on the phone | Source: Pexels

A man talking on the phone | Source: Pexels

“Thank you, Josh,” Taylor’s voice came through the phone. “You tell me when.”

We arranged to meet Taylor at a park later that week; it wasn’t far from us, and we often took Emily there.

As the day arrived, Josh was visibly nervous, fidgeting as we waited on a secluded bench.

When Taylor arrived, he looked frail and worn.

A secluded park bench | Source: Pexels

A secluded park bench | Source: Pexels

“I’m so sorry for everything. I was a terrible father. I don’t have much time left, but I want to spend it making amends.”

Josh took a long breath.

“It’s not easy, Dad. But I’m willing to try. For Emily’s sake, so that one day, she’ll know that her grandfather carried her through school.”

A smiling little girl | Source: Pexels

A smiling little girl | Source: Pexels

While Josh and my father-in-law spoke, I set up the picnic that I had brought along with me. I figured that if anything awkward happened, we all still needed to eat.

As we left the park, Josh squeezed my hand, a weight lifted from his shoulders.

“Maybe it’s good that pillow showed up, after all,” he mused, a small smile breaking through.

Things could only get better from here, right?

A picnic setup | Source: Pexels

A picnic setup | Source: Pexels

What would you have done?

If you enjoyed this story, here’s another one 

Leighton, after witnessing how her parents celebrated their anniversary, is sure about one thing — when she gets married, she will do just that. But when her anniversary rolls around, her husband skips their romantic dinner and lies about a meeting.

A newlywed couple at the beach | Source: Pexels

A newlywed couple at the beach | Source: Pexels

Curiosity prevails, and Leighton follows Josh, only to find him at a motel with the first person he ever loved. Is there a hidden truth, or is the story exactly what it looks like?

This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.

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