Arranged

Chapter-7

This was their second date in four days. It had been decided that Kelly choose the meeting place and inform him a night before. She did not even have to think about it, because she knew where she wanted to take him this time. Her second favourite place. Being a Thursday in the middle of the day, it was empty to a great extent.

"Why the second favourite place?" Darian asked, looking around the lazy ongoing of the shops and restaurants surrounding them as they walked through the ground floor of the Dreammer Mall, Dreammer being the family name of the man who owned the place. Darian winced internally, thinking about the bullying the owner must have undergone at a younger age because of the name; if he had been a head-in-the-clouds fellow as well, then imagine the chaos he must have dealt with!

"Are you asking about the significance of this building in my life or are you asking why I have not taken you to the first favourite?" Kelly instead asked, a playful smile lingering on her lips.

"Now that you mention it, both. Otherwise, the first question."

"Well," Kelly began, leaning towards him conspiratorially and lowering her voice for the effect as well. His interest picked up as well. She pressed her lips together and straightened her expression which was very close to exposing the laugh gathering at her throat. "Well," she repeated, "that's a secret."

Disappointment flooded his face and she laughed, heartily. He gently pushed her shoulder and commented, "My inner voice told me you were bluffing and but I shushed it."

"Never shush your inner voice!"

"Apparently."

"Anyway, it's nothing special or big. I sit at that central bench thing whenever I am here and watch other people with their families and their friends, shopping and enjoying and sharing jokes. And I feel this...this wholeness when I am sad or frustrated or just melancholic. My own army of a family makes me feel that too, trust me, but you know, some things you don't want to tell them because they'd be unhappy to see you unhappy." She paused and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, very lame explanation, I know. I don't know how to describe it actually."

He looked at her for a minute, making her suddenly feel conscious, and she turned her gaze away. "Strangely enough," he said at length, "it makes sense." She did then look at him and was greeted with a warm smile. Her cheeks blushed and she coughed as she spoke, "Moving on."

Darian laughed and followed her as she quickened her steps to stay ahead for sometime while she cooled down her reddening face. "Bloody hormones," she muttered under her breath.

*****

Ted Sloane had learned even before his second daughter, Katie, was born that he could never have any favourites in his family, like how his friends and colleagues seemed to prefer one daughter or one son over the other, and in certain cases, others. He could never bring himself to say that any of the five deserved more of his love and attention than the others because she performed the best in her exams, or she stayed away from drinks and smoking, or that she did not choose to pursue love marriage and respected his choice instead, or because she earned more and supported the family, or she took more care of her aging parents. No, the truth was, not one of his daughters were worse than the other – at least in his eyes. Sure, they all had qualities they nurtured that were both bad and good, and with age, Julia, Katie and Kelly had had at least one disagreement with either him or their mother, Amelia. Lisa preferred to keep her feelings bottled up and had yet to show signs of teenage disgruntlements, while Lucy was too young in her mind in comparison to her physical age. He could not comprehend how his mates could speak proudly only one of their offspring; he would be a grinning idiot whenever he spoke of either Julia or Katie or Kelly or Lisa or Lucy.