From the day Dan introduced his mother, Karen, to me, I knew she wasn’t too fond of me.

In fact, I could always feel that she didn’t want her son to marry me. However, I had no idea she’d actually attempt to ruin my big day.

Before I share what happened that day, let me tell you how our first meeting went.

Dan and I met at work, and we dated for a few months before he wanted me to meet his mother.

“Mom’s really eager to see you, Ashley,” he told me one day. “She’s been asking me to bring you over to her place.”

“Oh, come on, babe,” Dan said. “She’s going to love you. I mean there’s nothing not to love about you.”

“I hope so,” I replied, taking a deep breath.

Two days later, Dan drove me to Karen’s place. She lived in a small, cozy house about two hours from Dan’s.

I was nervous and spent the night tossing and turning, imagining how things might go. But when I met her, I realized she wasn’t at all what I had expected. She was worse.

“Hi, darling!” she said, hugging Dan as soon as she opened the door. “How are you?”

“Oh, Ashley,” she said, looking me up and down, her tone souring. “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, Karen,” I said with a smile and followed her inside.

As we sat on the couch in her living room, Karen began talking about her love for Dan, and how she and her late husband had raised him.

“I’m sure you did, Karen,” I nodded. “He’s a wonderful man.”

Karen smiled tightly and added, “And he deserves someone right for him. Someone who appreciates everything we’ve done for him. Someone who can be a good partner and a good mother to my grandchildren.”

“Of course, Karen,” I smiled, pretending not to catch her drift.

“Mom, Ashley is just the kind of girl I’ve been waiting for,” Dan interrupted. “She’s just perfect.”

That’s when the snide remarks began.

Karen would never miss the opportunity to tell Dan how I wasn’t the right fit for him, how I was not a part of their family, and how I didn’t know how to dress “like a lady.”

She even criticized the chicken roast I made the other day, saying it wasn’t “good enough to be served at family dinners.”

The truth was, Karen didn’t like me, and there was nothing I could do to change her opinion. She’d always find a reason to complain, no matter how hard I tried to please her.

“That’s just how she is,” Dan would say every time she’d pass a mean remark. He’d brush off her comments like they were nothing, and I’d let him do that.

Looking back, I wish I had set boundaries with Karen. I should’ve told Dan to stand up for me and make it clear that her constant insults were not okay.

But I didn’t. I was too in love with him to rock the boat.

I woke up early, or I’d say I just didn’t sleep the entire night because of the excitement and nerves. One of my bridesmaids drove me to the venue where I got my hair and makeup done.

“You look beautiful, babe,” Dan told me the moment he saw me that day. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

We were standing at the altar, moments away from saying our vows, when Karen showed up. She was wearing a black dress, but it wasn’t the kind you could pass off as stylish for a wedding.

As she walked toward the altar, people started whispering among themselves, saying how mean it was of her to wear a black dress to her son’s wedding.

I could feel my heart pound against my chest, but part of me knew this was coming. I knew Karen would do something to ruin my big day.

But the worst part was yet to come.

Karen paused right in front of the altar, turned around, and told everyone why she chose to wear black that day.

The room fell silent, stunned by her words. Meanwhile, Dan stood there, confused, trying to process what had just happened.

I felt my face flush with anger. How dare she? I thought. How dare she turn my wedding into a funeral?

But I wasn’t going to let her ruin my day. Not this time.

Soon after her dramatic entry, the guests settled into their seats, and the wedding ceremony commenced. I would’ve been the happiest woman saying my vows that day, but Karen had ruined it for me.

Instead of enjoying the most beautiful moment of my life, I couldn’t stop thinking of a way to get back at her. To make her understand that she couldn’t mess with me again.

The slideshow began as expected. It had cute pictures of Dan and me from our childhoods, our early dating days, engagement photos, and all the usual stuff. Everyone was loving it, clapping and laughing.

But then, the screen went black, and a message popped up: In Memoriam: The Loss of a Son.

The entire room went silent, and the look on Karen’s face was just priceless. She just stared at the screen with wide eyes, unaware of how her world would soon turn upside down.

The next slide showed a fake funeral invitation with Karen’s name and address.

It read, We mourn the loss of Dan, who has been ‘taken’ from his mother on this day. May she find solace in knowing he’s not lost… just married.

The entire hall erupted in laughter, while Karen’s face flushed red with embarrassment. But I wasn’t done yet.

“This is hilarious!” one of my bridesmaids said, while everyone else in the hall couldn’t stop laughing. Even Karen’s beloved son, Dan, was enjoying the slideshow.

Meanwhile, Karen was just sitting there, fuming in anger.

She knew she couldn’t say anything because that would make her sound like a villain. She had done this to herself and there was nothing she could do to repair her damaged reputation.

“I thought I’d get these for you since you’ve been mourning all day, Karen,” I said as I handed her the bouquet in front of everyone. “I hope you like them.”

“Thank you,” she said while accepting the flowers. She knew she had no other option left.

That day was the last time Karen ever tried to mess with me. From that day on, her passive-aggressive comments disappeared, and she stopped complaining about how I wasn’t the right match for her beloved son.

I also noticed how uncomfortable she gets whenever she sees photos or videos of our wedding.

Watching herself in the black dress holding a bouquet of black flowers reminds her of how humiliated she felt that day. And that her daughter-in-law is better than her at playing the kind of games she loved.

And Dan? He had no idea about the part I had added to the slideshow, nor the flower bouquet I had ordered last minute until the moment he saw them.

I’m so lucky to have such a supportive partner like him.

If you enjoyed reading this story, here’s another one you might like: Standing at the altar, Nathan eagerly waited for his fiancée, Jane, to walk down the aisle in the stunning white gown they had picked out together. But he was horrified when she appeared in a long black dress and revealed why she didn’t wear her wedding gown.

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.