The Lesser Of Two Evils

Penelope couldn't believe she laughed like an idiot in front of everyone after getting hit in the face. It was a knee-jerk reaction; she hadn't had any control over it. At least she had the excuse of escaping for a while before she bled all over her dress. 

It took her about ten minutes to get the bleeding to stop completely and fix her makeup a bit. She hoped that the attention was back on the bride and groom as it should be by the time she went back out. 

They were in the middle of the father/daughter mother/son dance right now so she was able to sneak back in relatively unnoticed. Not wanting any attention from her friends that saw it happen, she sat down away from anyone she knew as far from the center of the action as possible. 

"Are you alright?" the middle-aged man she had sat down next to asked. 

"I'm fine, thanks," she replied with an insincere smile.