DAYS EXPLODES! BEN AND CIARA’S WEDDING DAY DRAMA
■ It’s Ciara and Ben’s wedding day, and the bride-to-be wakes up sick as a dog. “Obviously, it doesn’t put Ciara in the best mindset,” says her portrayer, Victoria Konefal. “But her main goal is to marry Ben, no matter what. She’s not in the mood to let a stomach virus stop her from marrying the love of her life.”
However, Ciara’s condition does “put doubts in her head,” continues the actress. “She doesn’t know who to trust. The seed is planted where she thinks, ‘Am I sick because I just happen to be sick? Or did someone make me sick and does this have anything to do with Claire?’ The ball is rolling, and she’s in a very untrustworthy mood.”
Ciara quickly comes to the conclusion that Claire must have spiked her drink the night before, and she heads off to confront her. “Ciara really loves Claire and put her heart on her sleeve when she welcomed her back into her life, not only as a friend and family member, but also as her maid of honor,” explains Konefal. “That’s a prestigious honor in Ciara’s eyes, because her wedding is the most important thing to her. So she feels really betrayed. She never fully trusted Claire to begin with. Ciara was always on the fence about it. This is just the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
As such, Ciara “fires” Claire from her maid of honor duties, despite Claire’s insistence that she had nothing to do with Ciara’s illness. “Ciara doesn’t want to take any chances,” contends Konefal. “She knows Claire is very unpredictable, and she doesn’t want to risk anything [else happening]. Even though she doesn’t know for sure that Claire is behind it, she’d rather be safe than sorry.”
While a crushed Claire cries on Marlena’s shoulder, Ciara starts feeling worse instead of better. Hope calls a doctor, and Ciara sadly informs Ben that she doesn’t think they can get married today. Meanwhile, Ben starts having doubts about his mental health and fitness to marry Ciara. However, Marlena offers him solace and talks him down.
Ultimately, things take a miraculous turnaround, and Ciara is able to proceed with her big day. “The love that Ciara and Ben have for each other can overcome anything, even a stomach virus,” adds Konefal with a giggle.
Ciara arrives to marry Ben with a newfound hope for a perfect wedding day. “As far as Ciara is concerned, she feels better, she feels beautiful, and her family is there,” says Konefal. “She spends time with her mom and Rafe before the ceremony. She’s going
“She is going to marry Ben, and nothing is going to stop them.”
though the classic case of nervous butterflies, and they’re talking her down. She can’t believe that this is reality. She is going to marry Ben, and nothing is going to stop them. Everything is smooth sailing.”
The ceremony begins and everyone is moved by Ciara and Ben’s love for one another. “The vows are pretty special, especially Ben’s vows,” recounts Konefal. “There’s a lot of sweetness going around. A lot of Ciara’s family members speak at the wedding. They say beautiful things and pull out some sentimental mementos, that will definitely get the audience teary-eyed.”
But will the couple’s actual “I do’s” go off without a hitch? Ciara certainly thinks so. “She and Ben are up there at the altar looking into each other’s eyes. The rest of the world doesn’t really exist,” says Konefal. “This is the moment they’ve been waiting for for a very long time, and it’s finally happening. It’s a surreal moment for both of them. It feels like they’re in a dream, and everything is as perfect as it can possibly be.”
Little do they know that there’s a bomb planted in the church, ready to explode ....