Forced and Loveless

1: Blackmail

There she was in all her glory, seated at the corner table by the restaurant's tinted glass, peering down like a queen at the pedestrians on the streets below.

It had been a whole year since I last saw her. The huge argument I had with my parents back then required a year long breathing period, which she suddenly called to an end when she phoned to invite me to dinner yesterday. I was sure that her coldness towards me could have lasted for at least another year, or until after I graduated. That's what made this sudden dinner invitation suspicious... but I forced that to the back of my mind.

My mother, although approaching her late forties was still every bit the top model she used to be. Her striking and mature beauty garnered glances and whispers wherever she went, and today was no different, as people from other tables snuck glances at her.

"Sophie," She called my name with a small smile as I took my seat opposite her.

"Sorry I'm late, the bus got delayed for a while." My eyes flitted between her deep ocean eyes and her red manicure. She was always so well put together. "One of the roads was closed so the bus striver had to take a detour..."

I don't know why I was divulging these details she wouldn't care about.

She closed her eyes and shook her head slightly. I just sat down and apparently I had already done something wrong.

"The bus..." She sighed, her lips curved up into a sarcastic smile.

"Your father offered to buy you a car, Sophie. Why don't you just take him up on his offer?"

She still didn't understand, I doubted that she ever would. Her life was about luxury and prestige, and she wanted her daughter to keep up such appearances, but that wasn't me. I had tried for years to make myself  fit into her mould but you can only force yourself so much before the mold begins to crack.

"I like the bus." I reassured her of my stance on the issue. Of course I wanted a car, but a car from them wasn't simply going to be a car. It would become a bargaining chip they could use to manipulate me the next time they wanted something.

She nodded slowly, a glimmer of understanding in her glacial blue eyes, seeing that I was the same if not more determined since the last time I saw her.

"Have you already ordered?" I asked seeing as there were no menus on the table; just a solitary glass of red wine in front of her silverware.

She shook her head lightly, eyeing me cautiously. "No. After this conversation I doubt that you will have an appetite, so I didn't bother ordering anything. Except this." She elegantly picked up her glass of red and took a long sip.

I was already nervous on the way to the restaurant, her words only increased my anxiety.

"Well what kind of conversation are we going to have?" I inquired, steeling myself for whatever she was about to throw at me.

She was silent for a moment as she pursed her lips and traced the bottom of the wine glass with her long finger.

She nodded once, confirming something in her own mind. She looked up and stared at me straight in my eyes. Any trace of hesitation was gone from her stair and her signature coldness was back.

"It's going to be a straight forward conversation." She stated matter-of-factly.

"You are going to get married, Sophie."

I stared at her and she stared back at me. I was waiting to see a glimmer of mischief in her eyes that would let me know that she was joking, but no such relief came. She was serious.