Arranged Marriage With Adnan

Chapter 56

My mom was screaming my name from downstairs. I covered my ears with my pillow and pulled my blanket over my head in an attempt to tune her out.

"Scarlett!"

I was super tired, since I had gotten back late from a secret date with Adnan. He just took me out for a really late dinner. It was nice though. Also, because I had all my clothes at our house, I didn't have anything for the date. My outfit wasn't really fancy and I felt like I stood out too much in the restaurant. Like in a bad way... Being Adnan, he made sure I felt comfortable. When I got home that night, I literally crashed into my bed and fell asleep.

I ran my fingers through my messy hair and rolled out of my bed. My reflection in the mirror was hideous. I even startled myself. My hair was tangled and knotted, dark bags around my eyes. I wore my black and white, zebra striped pyjama pants and a pink tank top. Both pieces of clothing were loose and wrinkled. I was standing and observing how I looked. My posture was terrible. Lazily, I slowly dragged my feet across the carpet and into the bathroom. I ran the tap. While splashing water on my face, she called me again. The cold water made me more lively and awake. I threw on a black sweater, stomped down the stairs and through the hallway to meet my mom and dad. I poured myself a glass of orange juice, then went to see what was up with my parents.

"Look at this!" My mom slammed a newspaper on the counter.
"Do you know anything about this?!"

I expected a nice home cooked breakfast waiting for me, but it appeared to be something else. My mom wasn't yelling at me to come eat. My parents looked angry.

I rolled my eyes, tried to shrug things off, and grabbed the paper. How bad could it be? I took one quick look and almost spit out my orange juice. I choked and coughed until I caught my breath, again. I was in shock. On the page was a picture of Adnan and I kissing. Oh no... I studied the things in the background and confirmed that this picture was taken on our double date.

I should've been more careful. I knew there were windows, but I didn't know if anyone was watching. Even his hood fell off too, that's how the photographer caught his face. Ugh, this was trouble. I looked at the writing on that page.

The header read: "Adnan has a girlfriend?" This was not good. I decided to quickly read the article about us.

"Twenty year old Manchester United player, Adnan Januzaj, was seen kissing a girl last Monday morning. The couple had been spotted previous times before this occasion. Rumours have been spreading about an arranged marriage between the two. The mystery girl has remained unidentified, at the moment."

After finishing the article, I glanced up. I let the newspaper fall back onto the counter and nervously played with my fingers.

"What did you think you were doing?!"
"You said you wouldn't see him!" My father boomed.
"I know and I'm sorry!"
"What was this, a date?!"
"No... no! Well, I don't know!"
"Are you in a relationship?" My parents both talked in a serious tone.
"Um..."
"You kissed him, you must be."
"Let me explain."
"Scarlett!" My mom screamed.
My dad cut her off and spoke his mind, "You do realize you're marrying Juan, right? Plus, Adnan is no good!"
I exploded and three words burst out of my mouth, "I love him!"

There, I finally confessed my love for him to my parents. Tears streamed down my face. I could feel my cheeks get hot and turn red. My breathing picked up and was unsteady. I dug my fingernails into the palms of my hands, due to my anger.

"How can you love a boy like that?!"
"He's not what he seems! I love him and nothing, I mean nothing, is going to change the way I feel. My heart has already chosen him... Deal with my decision! So what, I kissed him, because I love him!"
"You can not-"
"Shut up, dad!"
"Excuse me?"
"I know what you're going to say. You're going to bad mouth Adnan and lecture me about how I shouldn't have feelings for him."
"Exactly, so listen to us."
"No."

That left my parents in shock. I hardly ever disagreed with them. Definitely, I've never disobeyed them. I was usually that child who always listened to her parents. Whenever they said not to take drugs or drink alcohol, I took their advice. I was always kind to others and kept my bad opinions to myself. They taught me not to be mean and hurt others. I was told to be helpful and honest. I listened. I don't know what happened, but I knew this wasn't wrong because I was standing up for what I thought was right.

"Do not see Adnan," my mom instructed.
I took the last sip of my juice, then set the glass on the counter, "You can't stop me."
"Actually," my dad said, "we can. We both will be monitoring you. You're restricted from leaving this house."
"You can't do that, it's- it's so unfair!"
"Just think about what you've done. Staying here will give you time to review some of your careless actions and decisions."
"There's nothing wrong with what I did. I wanted to see him because he's nice and makes me happy."
"No, he's a complete monster. He hit you."

It was only an accident. My parents stood up and left the room. I heard their footsteps going up the stairs. Their voices trailed away until all I heard was silence. I couldn't argue with them anymore. They always came back to that. Seriously, he didn't mean it, but my parents couldn't get past that. I forgave him, why couldn't they? Looks like I was stuck here for a while.

"You're the real monsters," I whispered.