The Night Before My Wedding, I Found My Fiancé With My Stepbrother

[Blessing]

I (21F) am supposed to marry my fiancé (let’s call him Ethan, 21M) tomorrow. Tonight, I walked into our living room and found him on top of my stepbrother (Ryan, 21M) — on the couch I helped pay for. And now I don’t know what to do.

Ethan and I first met in 10th grade, after I moved to Ohio when my dad took a new job there. My dad eventually married a woman with two sons, one of them my age — Ryan. At the time, Ryan was best friends with Ethan.

Funny enough, Ryan once admitted he had a crush on Ethan, though he laughed it off like a joke. I wasn’t sure if he meant it, but a few weeks later I found myself falling for Ethan too. He was tall, dark-haired, nerdy in the cutest way. I assumed Ryan had moved past his crush, so Ethan and I got together.

Over the years, Ryan and Ethan drifted apart. When I moved to California, I only stayed in touch with Ryan through the family group chat. Fast forward five years, Ethan and I are finally tying the knot after three years of engagement. (I practically had to beg him to set a date at a family dinner — we even laugh about that story sometimes.)

Since Ryan is both my stepbrother and Ethan’s old best friend, of course he was invited to the wedding. Instead of paying for a hotel, we let him crash on our couch. He’s an artist, not exactly loaded, and it just felt like the right thing to do.

What I didn’t know is that Ryan and Ethan had quietly reconnected months ago. Neither of them told me. The only hint came from a friend’s joke on Twitter about Ethan taking 45 minutes to pick “the perfect ice cream flavor for Ryan,” when his own suit fitting had only taken 15. I brushed it off at the time.

Last night, after our friends left, Ethan and Ryan were finishing off a bottle of vodka in the living room while I went to bed early. A little while later, I heard muffled arguing downstairs. Curious, I crept down and peeked into the living room.

What I saw still has me in shock: Ryan muttered something angry to Ethan, who suddenly leaned in and kissed him. I froze, expecting Ryan to push him away, but instead Ryan grabbed Ethan and pulled him down onto the couch.

I made my presence known, pretending to be groggier than I was. Ethan jumped up, stammering that it was a “TikTok trend.” (Seriously?) I played along, saying I’d join, and ended up sitting between them watching videos on my phone for two hours.

Right now, they’re still in the living room. I ducked into the bathroom just to breathe. I keep asking myself: was it just the alcohol? Or is this something more?

Here’s the kicker: we’ve always joked about Ethan being “not quite straight, but not quite bisexual” because he tends to give guys — including Ryan — these long, lingering looks. He always brushed it off defensively.

And yet, here we are: hours before our vows, and I just caught my fiancé with my stepbrother.

Do I go through with the wedding? Or walk away before it even begins?

[Author]

Posts