My blood boiled. My in-laws, Margaret and Arthur, stood there with cold, unwavering stares. To them, my nine-year-old nephew Leo wasn’t a brave kid who had survived a tragedy; he was an “imperfection” in their daughter’s Pinterest-perfect wedding photos.
“Either he leaves… or we do,” Arthur repeated, adjusting his cufflinks as if he hadn’t just suggested orphaning a child from a family celebration.
Just as I opened my mouth to tell them exactly where they could go, I heard my new wife’s voice behind me.
“Then I guess you’d better start calling an Uber.”
I turned to see Sarah. She looked stunning in her white gown, but her expression was pure steel. She had heard everything.
“Sarah, darling,” Margaret hissed, “we are doing this for you. Think of the photos! Think of the other guests—”
“I am thinking of my family,” Sarah interrupted, stepping beside me and taking my hand. “Leo is my nephew now, too. If his face ‘distracts’ you, then you’re looking at the wrong things. This is our wedding, not a movie set. If you can’t handle being around a hero like Leo, then there’s the door.”
The silence that followed was deafening. My in-laws looked around, realizing that several bridesmaids and the photographer had overheard the exchange. The “distraction” wasn’t Leo; it was their own cruelty.
True to their word—and their pride—Margaret and Arthur walked out. They expected Sarah to run after them in tears. She didn’t. She took a deep breath, looked at me, and whispered, “Let’s go find Leo. I think he deserves the first piece of cake.”
We spent the rest of the night dancing. Leo was the life of the party, teaching the bridesmaids how to do the “renegade” dance and eating his weight in sliders.
