After three years, Sarah’s dream wedding is almost in sight. But when her sister, Liz, asks Sarah to give her wedding to her so that she can be married before her baby arrives, Sarah makes a clean break from her family.

My three years of wedding planning were shattered by my sister, who wanted my wedding.

Here’s the backstory:

Jacob and I had been dating for a few years when he finally popped the question.

Of course, I was going to marry him. He was everything to me. And in that, the little girl in me awoke, ready to have that big, beautiful wedding she had always dreamed of.

Simple.

Not with my family.

My parents had made it a routine to have family dinner every Sunday night. So tonight, for family dinner, we were at my parents’ house. The whole family was there — my parents, Jacob and I, my sister, Liz and her boyfriend, Sid, and my brother, Michael.

Everything was going well. The food was good, the conversation flowed, and it was a pleasant time overall.

But then, things changed.

“Sid and I have an announcement!” Liz declared loudly, dropping her fork to her plate.

Sid stood up, pulling her next to him.

“We’re pregnant!” Liz shrieked.

The table erupted into loud congratulations and hugs and kisses across the room. Liz passed a sonogram around.

Then, with a cunning smile, Liz turned her attention to me.

“Sarah,” she said. “We’re due in six months, and Sid and I would love to be married before the baby comes. I thought it would be perfect if you gave us your wedding venue now, and you can wait a little longer. You’ve waited three years, so what’s a few more months to get married?”

The room fell silent, and I could feel every eye on me. My parents nodded, seemingly endorsing that my dream was a trivial sacrifice for Liz’s desires.

“What?” I asked. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

“I think it’s a lovely idea,” my mom said. “And so special for the baby to be born to married parents.”

I shook my head at my mother. Could she be more transparent and orthodox?

The weight of frustration pressed heavily on my chest. I reached for my champagne glass. The golden liquid seemed to shimmer with the tears I couldn’t hold back.

Jacob reached out and put his hand on my knee — reassurance and support.

I took a deep breath and faced my sister.

“Congratulations, Lizzie,” I said. “You’re having a baby, and that’s the best news! But I simply cannot give you my wedding. Every little detail has been chosen for a reason. Even the venue is special for me because it’s where Jacob and I met — at our friend’s wedding.”

Mom gasped loudly, seemingly outraged at my reticence to give in to my little sister’s request.

“I can help you find alternatives and plan a wedding before the baby is born. But I cannot give you everything Jacob and I worked so hard for.”

The air grew thick with tension, and the silence was almost suffocating.

Liz’s face contorted with anger and disappointment and erupted into tears.

Immediately, I was reminded of my childhood. It was the familiar scene of her crying and my parents rallying to her side. Usually, Liz would cry to the point where they would give her whatever she wanted, even if it wasn’t hers to have.

“You’re being selfish, like always,” Liz said through her heavy sobs. “This is my baby we’re talking about! The first grandchild in this family! And you really cannot even do this one thing for me?”

My parents, seasoned in the art of manipulation, joined the chorus.

“Sarah, don’t ruin this for your sister. You always put yourself first, can’t you just let your little sister have this moment?” my Dad said, cutting into his meat.

“And don’t be jealous that she’s having a baby first,” Mom said, clutching at straws.

Jacob banged his fist on the table and grabbed my hand. His eyes reflected the anger that burned within me.

“You will not let them take this away from us, Sarah. This is our day,” Jacob said through his clenched jaw.

“That’s not how you’ll speak under my roof,” my father boomed.

Unable to bear the weight of their expectations, we left the dinner and took a walk to clear our minds.

The days that followed were a blur of emotional onslaughts from my family. I got numerous text messages telling me how selfish I was and that they didn’t know when I had changed.

The icing on the cake was that they had even tried to cancel my booking at the venue, claiming that the wedding was off. Luckily, the venue called to confirm the story.

But amid the chaos of my family, Jacob and I found strength in each other. He constantly suggested taking long walks so that I could stop overthinking. He reminded me that our love was stronger than the toxic bonds of family we were breaking.

Closer to the wedding, I uninvited my family, telling them they were no longer my family and that I would have security ready to escort them out if they showed up. Our RSVPs were in and most of my family hadn’t bothered to return them.

The wedding day arrived, and the people who truly mattered surrounded us. We exchanged vows as the sun set, the light streaming through the windows.

I missed having my family there to be a part of my day, but I knew it wouldn’t have been as special if they were. They would have made me feel guilty about marrying Jacob instead of letting Liz steal my moment.

It’s been months now, and Liz should be well into her pregnancy — I’ve only seen her once since the family dinner from hell, but I’ve decided that taking a break from my family was the best thing I could have done.

Maybe one day, things will be better. But Jacob is my family now.

Would you have given your wedding to your sister?