Arranged Marriage With Adnan

Chapter 73

^ Great picture from aj11bae on Instagram ^

It seemed like our parents had pretty much planned this whole trip to Belgium. They knew exactly what they were doing. It also helped that Adnan and his parents used to live here.

Out of no where, my parents turned their turn signal on. I was confused. They made a left turn and disappeared while we continued straight.

"Gani, where are we going? My mom and dad just turned."
"Well, they're going to the hotel where most of your friends will stay."
"And we are going?"
Adnan explained, "We kept our house because I wanted to revisit Belgium every so often. They were nice enough not to sell it and let me come back to see my friends and family."
"Aw, thats sweet."
"Adnan wanted to play football so bad, but got really emotional when leaving his friends behind."
"Dad!"
"What were you doing, crying?" They both nodded.
"Pff, me? Crying? No way!"
"Please, Adnan, I've seen you cry."

Adnan's face turned bright red. I could see him trying to shield his face in embarrassment. His parents sat in the front, laughing at him. I really liked his family. They were really nice people. It was starting to feel like they were my biological parents... My real ones didn't quite act the part and weren't so loving and caring. At times, they could be, but then there were other days... Gani and Abedin pretty much always tried to comfort you and do anything in their power to make you feel well.

We arrived at the house. It looked a little small, but it was ok. After all, it was just meant for the three of them.

"Are you sure it's ok if I stay here? I can always go to the hotel."
"No, no! You're welcome here!"
"Thanks, Gani."
"I want you to be with me, I don't want to be separated," Adnan told me.
"Alright," I kissed his lips.

Gani and Abedin exchanged smiles, while Adnan blushed.

"Forgot you guys were there..." I laughed now too.
"Hey! Shemsedin, Lavi, and Idriz are here! They just texted me."
"Really? Great!"

Abedin and Gani continued to talk about these people who I didn't know. I gave him a confused look, hoping for him to tell me who they were.

He whispered in my ear, "My uncle, aunt, and cousin."
"Oh, cool."
"Why don't you two go get changed and ready for dinner, they'll be over soon. Adnan, take your stuff up to your room."
"Ok, mom."

We walked up the staircase and Adnan opened the door. It creaked open, revealing his childhood room. There was a twin size bed in the corner with a small night table beside it. Books filled the gap underneath it with a lamp placed on top. On the right wall, there was a window that looked out onto the street. A small white painted dresser stood by another door, which I assumed was to the closet. A circular rug covered the floor.

"Nice room," I complimented.
"Thanks, it's really not much."
"It'll do."
"You take the bed, I'll sleep on the floor."
"Adnan, it is your bed."
"I want you rested, it's ok."
"Come on, you need sleep too."
"Don't worry about it."

*****

"Adnan, Scarlett, why don't you go into the other room with Idriz?"
"Sure."

Adnan's uncle and aunt were really nice. They said they were happy for us and appeared to have no issues with me marrying their nephew. We took Idriz into the other room and sat down in the couch with him in the middle. He seemed mature for his age. I'd say he was maybe thirteen, but acted more like fifteen or sixteen.

He was quiet at first, "Hi, Idriz. I'm Scarlett."
"Hey."
"Don't be so shy! I've seen you before!" Adnan chuckled.
"Well, you know I'm not good with meeting new people..."
"Neither am I, don't worry," I said.
"Ok."
"Do you play any sports?"
"Football, duh."
"Ok, you can lose the attitude, Idriz."
"Sorry," he apologized to me after hearing Adnan.
"No worries."
"It's just that I get nervous talking to people, especially girls, and it's weird to have my cousin getting married."
"Don't worry, nothing will change between us," Adnan reassured.
"It already has!" He burst out, "Ever since you left for England, things haven't been the same. We hardly saw you at any more special occasions and get together because you were so busy with your football career. I miss my Adnan!"
"It's ok-"
"It's not ok, Adnan! I miss having you play with me and make me laugh when I needed it the most. You were like the brother I never had and I know you felt the same."

I sat there quietly while tension filled the air. They both kept their voices low because we didn't want to attract the parents in the other room. I watched Adnan and Idriz argue for the longest time.

"What if I don't even want you to marry this girl!" My head shot up, "She's not good enough, please don't marry her!"

I felt like a hole had just been shot through my chest. How could he say that about me? I knew this was only his childish thirteen year old side, but still. I shouldn't have let it bother me, but it got to me, in the end. I could feel myself trying to hold back the tears. It came to a point where I couldn't any longer and resulted in getting off the couch and running upstairs.

"Scarlett, wait! He didn't mean it!"
"That's right, run away and never come back! Stay away from my cousin!" I heard the faint cries coming from his cousin, he was pretty upset, but not as much as I was.

I shut the door to Adnan's bedroom and slid down the wall. I clenched my fists tight and brought my knees up to my chest. On the floor, I broke down crying. It wasn't just because of this one thing, but other times too. All the bad things that ever occurred in my life started reappearing in my head. Now I was crying over a million different reasons.

I heard footsteps and sure enough, the door opened.

"Scarlett, there you are!"
I sobbed, "Go away, Adnan, I don't want to talk."
"Don't turn your back on me, " I ignored his request, "Scarlett, please."
"Is it true? Is that what everyone thinks about me?"
"What? No!"
"What if the rest of your family doesn't like me, how about your national team?"
He sat down beside me, "It'll all be alright. He's just like that, he's sensitive, but he's a sweet boy with a kind heart."
"Yeah, well I failed to see that."
"He'll be ok, now are you?"
"I don't know, I feel like crap right now," I admitted.
"How can I help make you feel better?"
"I don't know."

We both turned our heads towards the door, which slowly creaked open. We saw Idriz at the entrance, tears streaming down his face.

"Scarlett, I'm sorry, I didn't mean any of it!"

He surprised me when he crouched down and hugged me. I uncoordinatedly wrapped my arms around the boy. He cried into my shoulder and further explained why he was sorry.

"You and Adnan are actually perfect for each other. You're meant to be! You are really pretty and nice and I wouldn't want anyone else marrying him. I just feel like I'm going to lose him!"
I looked directly into his eyes, "I promise you that you will not lose Adnan."
"Thank you," he hugged me tighter.
"See, I told you this one could be sweet."
"You're right, Adnan. I think I'm starting to warm up to him," I cried into the boys shoulder as we held our hug.
"I'm liking you more and more each second," Idriz said to me.

I smiled back. Together, we wiped away our tears and put on a happy face. Idriz later went back downstairs, leaving us two alone. I didn't even have to communicate with words to Adnan anymore. Our bond was so strong and powerful. I looked into his eyes and knew what he was saying. He was telling me how I was so perfect and how nothing bad will happen because I'm such a good person. I gave him a message saying "I love you" back to him. He moved forward with grace and placed his lips onto mine, making everything better.

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