Arrange Marriage at Sixteen

Part 1

"Angel, you are getting married," Mom said right after serving me breakfast. I froze in that instant. I didn't know what to say nor what to do.

"What are you talking about, Mom?" I ask her, dumbfounded. Is she mad?, I thought.

I thought I was hearing her say the wrong thing. It could not be that she was telling me this during breakfast and out of the blue!

"You are getting married. It was arranged when you were fiver years old and it was decided you would marry at the age of sixteen," she replies, calmly. 

So many feelings ran through me, but the only ones that stayed in me was anger, hurt and betrayal. I should have the choice in who I marry! This does not make sense at all. Why would my parents do such a thing?

"Why Mom? How come you never told me? And why is the marriage arranged?" I ask her angrily, voicing part of my turmoil. 

She sighs. "I didn't want to tell you about it because you would oppose it," she replies closing her eyes and leaning on the stove, as if the home appliance could give her the energy needed to finish the conversation. 

"Of course I would," I yell as I remember the breakfast that was right in front of me and start eating it furiously knowing I have to get out of there. The faster I ate, the faster I could leave before I said something I would regret.

"Well," she informs me, "all I know about your fiance is that his name is Leo McKinsey, he's twenty years old and he is the president of his father's company which makes him rich."

I almost choke on my breakfast when she threw that information at me. I look at her wide eyed, shock evident in my face.

"He's four years older than me!" I cry out loud as I finish the last of my breakfast. 

"I know, I was surprised too but it was you father who decided this, for your own good," she whispers. That one sentence makes me stop eating and look at  my plate, hoping that I could hide the sadness from her. An awkward silence follows as we reminisce in memories from the past. 

My father was Justin Roman and he worked as a carpenter for a very prestigious company. The company actually built the skyscrapers you see today. About six months ago, he died when the skyscraper that he was working on collapsed due to the building not being as stable as they had thought it was. There was nothing they could do to save him. I was shocked to have lost my father. He had been everything to me; he had been my father but also my best friend. After his death, Mom became distant from me and she only told me things that I should for the sake of my father's memory or she told me things that I needed to know. We never had a good relationship and now it feels like we're total strangers to each other that live under the same roof. 

I look at my watch and broke the silence as I notice the time. 

"Crap! I'm going to be late!" I say getting up from the table in a hurry. 

I ran down the hallway and grab my skates and my backpack as I make my way to the living room where I sit and put the skates on. As I put on the last skate on and strap it down, I hear the doorbell ring. I open the door to find a handsome guy in a suit and a bouquet of roses in his arms. I smile at him. He looks very friendly. From the brief I gave him I could tell he was good looking with a white complexion, blue eyes, and black curly hair. I remember what time it is and rush things before thinking them over. I am in a rush.

"Hello. Please, come in," I tell him as I open the door further to let him in. 

"Thank you," he says as he walks past me and into the house. I look at my watch one final time, and knew that I had to leave or I would be late.