ESCAPING THE ALTAR

The dress felt/smothered/weighed her down. The veil, a flimsy veil/a symbol of entrapment/an unwelcome shroud, scratched at her neck with every inhale. A crowd of eager faces/smug onlookers/well-wishers buzzed around, their whispers mingling/intertwining/overlapping like a hive of anxious bees. At the altar's edge, she stood frozen, a statue in sil