“So what happened between you and Josh last night? He didn’t return for quite awhile,” Ashley asked while I walked out my room.
“Nothing, at least that’s what it has to be,” I replied.
I feel really guilty now. I can’t believe I let my emotions control me like that. I knew better. I can’t pursue anything with Josh when I am arranged to marry someone else. At the very least, it’s not fair to Josh to lead him on. He really is a great guy and he deserves someone better than me.
“What do you mean?” Savannah asked.
I hesitated for a second. If I am going to tell them what’s going on, now is the time.
“Alright, I guess it’s about time you guys know what is going on in my life,” I replied as Mia conveniently walked into the apartment.
“You know how last year I was all concerned about how I was going to afford going to a university and then let alone my dream university with you guys and then all of sudden my dad got that amazing promotion,” I started off.
“Yeah, that was a blessing in disguise,” Ashley stated.
“It was” I replied while shaking my head. “Well, apparently it came with multiple conditions my dad had to agree to, which is expected. What wasn’t expected was that one of those conditions would be for me to be arranged to marry the Owner/President/CEO’s son,” I finished while saying the last part slowly.
The girls just looked at me like I was joking, waiting for me to say “gotcha”. I wish.
“Say something, please,” I begged.
“Wait, are you serious?” Savannah asked.
“Unfortunately, so. I am completely serious. My dad said that when he signed the agreement they said he would have some time before he had to force this on me, but the son apparently got impatient,” I replied.
“It’s the 21st centuries. Arranged marriages died back in the 1800s,” Mia said.
“I wish they did, but they obviously haven’t. This is a true arranged marriage. I have no choice but to marry him,” I replied.
“You have to have a choice, Olivia. You are the only one that has the right to control your future,” Ashley said.
“Well I do have a choice, but I would never choose the other option,” I stated.
“What’s the other option? It can’t be that terrible that you would go through with an arranged marriage,” Mia stated.
“I have the choice to say no, but if I decide not to go through with this arrangement then my dad loses his position of COO and his promotion which is putting me through college and helping me pursue my dreams,” I replied.
“Olivia, you can take out loans to pay for college and we can pitch in more for rent. We can help you in whatever aspect you need, as long as you don’t have to be arranged to marry someone you don’t even know,” Mia retorted.
“Wait, do you know the guy?” Savannah asked.
“No, I still don’t even know who he is,” I replied with a chuckle. Of course I forgot to ask who it was that I was to marry.
“What do you mean you don’t know who he is? You didn’t ask your parents?” Ashley asked.
“No, it honestly didn’t occur to me to ask. I was just blind sided by the news of an arranged marriage,” I said dumbfounded. How could I forget something so crucial?
“Ladies must not like him to make him desperate enough to force some girl to marry him,” Mia said while chuckling.
“It’s not funny,“ I replied.
YOU ARE READING
The Opposed Arrangement
Teen FictionAs Olivia embarks into her new adventure at college and apartment life with her three best friends, she runs into a guy named Callum and her world turns upside down. Olivia is now faced with difficult decisions that could change her life forever. Wi...
