The Arrangement: It Led Me To Love

Chapter 25 - Ellison's POV

I have never felt so awful in my life. I have had my fair share of bumps and bruises, but this car accident has left me immobile and useless. It has been six days since the accident, and three days since I was allowed to go home from the hospital. I feel like my grandpa, grumbling and whining about the pain, and not being able to do anything. Bless his soul. He died when I was fifteen, and although he annoyed the hell out of me with his narcissistic comments and rude persona, I loved him. I guess I can see why he was so bitter in his old age.

The only person he was truly happy to be around was his wife; my grandma. They were so in love with each other, and my grandma has never truly been the same since he died. It is like a part of her withered and died when he did. I guess that is just true love though. Whilst I have been lying in my bed suffocated by wealth and comfort, I have been thinking a lot, about what my life would be like if I settled down with someone. I do not know if I could ever find someone to love me so irrevocably like my mum's parents did each other.

My grandma and grandpa met on a holiday in France where they hit it off. My grandpa was an aspiring artist and my grandma a hairdresser, and they found out that they actually lived round the corner from each other back in Spain. My grandpa was originally American, but he moved to Spain for a job opportunity. They soon fell in love and got married, even though both were very poor and struggled to make ends meet. They ended up having three children – my Auntie Isabella, Uncle Theo and my mum, Louisiana.

My mum was a waitress when she met my dad in a restaurant, and he was instantaneously smitten with her so he kept coming back to see her. They started a romance, and got married eight months later, meaning my mother moved to America with him. My mother got pregnant with me two months after the wedding, and then left a couple of years later. My dad says he has tried to find her with private investigators, but he has never been able to. She is like a ghost.

When my mother left, her parents came to live in America to help my dad look after me, whilst Uncle Theo lived in New Zealand with his family and Auntie Isabella was in Spain with hers. I want something true and strong like my grandparents had, but seeing the mess dad is because his true love left him just makes me scared to fall down that hole. It does not help that I am so rich and famous, as it is hard to find someone who wants me for me, and not the lifestyle or money that comes along with me.

My dad's parents (my nanny and granddad) were not in love when they got married, and still are not now. They only got married because my grandad needed an heir (sound familiar?), and are only together now to portray a perfect family image, and because of my granddads large bank account. Luckily, they get along to a point, and are friends. But if my grandad ever lost his money, I can guarantee that nanny would leave him with out a second thought. However, even though they do not love each other, they did do their best in raising my dad and Auntie Celina, and anyone can tell that they love their children and grandchildren very much.

That is what I am afraid of with Laurene.

As I wrack my brain for suggestions, I can see our future going in three different ways. We will end up either like my parents, my dad's parents or my mum's parents. The imprudent part of me foolishly dreams of us falling in love and finding happiness together, but we are not living in a fairy tale. Although my mum's parent's story is amazing and almost magical, the chance of something like that happening between us is not likely. I think we have established that we care about each other, so maybe we can get along and raise a few kids like my nanny and granddad, but as for falling in love... I do not think I will ever be ready to commit myself to someone that whole-heartedly. Fear of that person not feeling the same way, or her moving onto someone better makes me shy away from romantic involvement. If I ever let myself truly attach to someone... she will have to be pretty darn special.