The airport buzzed with excitement around me, but all I could feel was the flutter of butterflies in my stomach as I wheeled my suitcase toward the check-in counter. Twenty-four hours married to Marcus Chen, and we were about to board a flight to Bali for two weeks of paradise. I caught my reflection in a glass window—still glowing from yesterday's ceremony, my hair swept up in a messy bun, wearing the comfortable travel outfit I'd picked specifically for our fourteen-hour flight. "Mrs. Chen," I whispered to myself, testing out my new name. A grin spread across my face. Marcus walked beside me, his hand resting on the small of my back in that protective way that had made me fall in love with him three years ago. At six-foot-two with dark hair that always looked perfectly tousled, he was the kind of handsome that turned heads. But what I loved most was how he made me feel safe, chosen, like I was the only woman in any room. "Ready for two weeks of beaches, massages, and absolutely no alarm clocks?" he asked, squeezing my hip gently. "I've been ready since you proposed," I laughed. "I already told work I'm unreachable. No emails, no calls, nothing but you and me and—" "Marcus! Oh my God, Marcus, wait!" We both turned to see Lily Zhang rushing toward us, her long black hair flowing behind her like something out of a shampoo commercial. She wore designer yoga pants and an oversized sweater that somehow looked both expensive and effortless. Her eyes were red-rimmed, and even from a distance, I could see tears streaming down her face. My stomach dropped. Lily had been Marcus's best friend since they were seven years old. They'd grown up next door to each other, gone to the same schools, even attended the same college. She'd been at our wedding, of course—front row on his side, wearing a dress that probably cost more than my wedding gown. I'd tried so hard to like her, to see her the way Marcus did: as a sister, a platonic soulmate, nothing more. But there was something about the way she looked at him that made my skin prickle. "Lily?" Marcus's hand dropped from my back as he stepped forward. "What's wrong? What are you doing here?" She practically collapsed against him, sobbing into his chest. His arms went around her automatically, and I stood there holding both our passports, suddenly feeling like an intruder on my own honeymoon. "I'm so sorry," she gasped between sobs. "I'm so, so sorry. I tried to fix it, I called everyone, but they said it's too late and I just—I can't believe I messed up so badly." "Slow down," Marcus said softly, stroking her hair. "What happened? What did you mess up?" My heart started pounding. A cold feeling crept up my spine. Lily pulled back just enough to look up at him with those tear-filled eyes. "The tickets. The honeymoon tickets. I—when you asked me to help coordinate the travel arrangements because you were so busy with the merger, I thought I was helping, but I—" She dissolved into fresh sobs. "What about the tickets?" I heard myself ask, my voice coming out sharper than intended. She flinched like I'd slapped her, burrowing deeper into Marcus's embrace. He shot me a look—not quite angry, but definitely a warning to be gentle. "Lily," he said, his voice honey-soft in a way that made something twist in my chest. "It's okay. Just tell me what happened." "I accidentally booked Sophia's ticket to the wrong destination," she whispered. "Instead of Bali, it's... it's to Reykjavik. Iceland. And the airline says it's a non-refundable, non-transferable ticket, and I tried to fix it, I swear I tried, but—" The airport sounds faded to white noise. "What?" "It was an accident!" Lily cried, finally looking at me. "I had multiple tabs open, and I must have clicked the wrong confirmation, and I didn't realize until this morning when I was reviewing everything, and by then it was too late to—" "How?" I interrupted, my hands starting to shake. "How do you accidentally book someone to Iceland instead of Bali? They're not even—those aren't even similar destinations!" "I know!" Her voice rose to match mine. "I know, and I feel terrible, I've been sick about it all morning, I even drove straight here to try to explain in person because I knew you'd hate me, and I don't blame you, I hate myself—" "Hey, hey," Marcus cut in, pulling her closer. "Nobody hates anybody. It was a mistake. Sophia, she made a mistake." I stared at my husband, at the way he held his best friend like she was made of glass, at the way he said my name like I was the one being unreasonable. "Where's your ticket?" I asked him, my voice eerily calm. "Let me see your ticket, Marcus." Something flickered across his face. Guilt? No, that couldn't be right. Lily sniffled, wiping her eyes. "His ticket is fine. It's still to Bali. Business class, like you both were supposed to be. I only messed up Sophia's." "Only mine," I repeated slowly. "It was an accident," Marcus said firmly. "Lily, thank you for coming to tell us in person. That took courage." He kissed the top of her head, and I felt like I'd been punched in the stomach. "We'll figure this out." "We'll figure this out?" I echoed. "Marcus, our honeymoon starts today. We have a villa booked. We have—" "I know." He finally looked at me, and for the first time since I'd known him, I couldn't read his expression. "But getting angry won't solve anything. Let's just check in and see what our options are." We walked to the counter in silence—Marcus, Lily, and me. The perfect triangle. The ticket agent, a middle-aged woman with kind eyes, took our passports and confirmation numbers. "Ah, yes," she said, typing rapidly. "Mr. Chen, you're confirmed for Flight 847 to Bali, departing in two hours. Business class, seat 3A." She looked at me. "And Mrs. Chen, you're booked on Flight 623 to Reykjavik, departing in ninety minutes. Economy class, seat 27F." The downgrade felt like another slap. "There has to be something you can do. It's our honeymoon." "I'm so sorry, but this is a non-refundable, non-transferable ticket. The fare difference alone to rebook to Bali would be—" She typed some more. "—approximately eight thousand dollars." Eight thousand dollars we didn't have. We'd spent everything on the wedding, and the villa in Bali had already maxed out our budget. "Wait," Lily said suddenly. She pulled out her phone, her fingers flying across the screen. "I have miles. Tons of miles from my dad's business account. Let me see if I can—" She looked up, and fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. "There's nothing available. Every flight to Bali for the next week is completely booked." "High season," the ticket agent confirmed sympathetically. My mind raced through options. We could both go to Iceland instead. We could wait a week and go to Bali together. We could— "Actually," the agent said, "Mr. Chen, there's been a last-minute change to your seat assignment. You're now in 3B instead of 3A." "Why does that matter?" I asked. Lily's face flushed red. "Because... because I'm in 3A." The airport tilted. "You're what?" "I'm flying to Bali today too," she whispered. "It's been planned for months. My parents have a vacation home there, and I'm meeting them for—it's just a coincidence, I swear. The timing just—" "You're going to Bali." I looked at Marcus. "Your best friend is going to Bali, on our honeymoon, and somehow she managed to book herself in business class right next to you while sending me to Iceland in economy." "Sophia, you're making this sound like—" Marcus started. "Like what? Like what am I making this sound like, Marcus?" People were staring now. I didn't care. Lily grabbed my hand, and I jerked away. "Please believe me," she begged. "I would never intentionally hurt you. You're married to my best friend. I want you to be happy. This was a horrible, stupid mistake, and I will spend however long it takes to make it up to you." The announcement came over the loudspeaker: "Flight 623 to Reykjavik is now boarding all passengers." "That's me," I said numbly. "That's my flight." Marcus finally stepped away from Lily and reached for me. "Let me go to Iceland with you. We'll make it an adventure. Lily can—" "I already checked," Lily interrupted quietly. "The flight to Iceland is completely full. There's not a single seat available. I tried to book one myself so I could fix this, but—" Of course she did. Of course she tried. "So my options are to go to Iceland alone or to not go on a honeymoon at all while my husband flies to a tropical paradise with his best friend." I laughed, but it came out broken. "Those are my options twenty-four hours after getting married." "You're being dramatic," Marcus said, and those three words felt like a door slamming shut.