Running On Empty

Chapter 12~Frica~

My life has always been very simple and elegant. My mom was one of those movie stars that people would see on television. She traveled all around the nation, constantly in the view of lens and screaming fans. My father owned one of the biggest corporations worldwide. My whole family had always been from the line of royalty and I was the only child that these two people ever had.

I went to a high- class school where I was even the top student at my school. I have the best clothes and I was good at cooking. Being good at everything was a good thing, if you want to be known that is. Sometimes, even a person like me wants to be invisible. It's nearly impossible to not be followed by paparazzi to and from school. I was also very pretty which means that I could date the hottest guys in school and make them do anything to my command. Maybe that's what you call "abuse of power," but I don't even think about it at the most crucial moments.

I've had everything and anything that I have ever wanted, dresses, shoes, jewelry, music, clothing and even more than one room for myself. That's probably why I feel like I hit rock bottom within a split second a few moments ago.

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My father's voice bowels as he calls out to me to come downstairs. I had been taking my afternoon nap after I had finished with my French tutoring when I jumped up and quickly put on an fancy-looking dress and ran down the stairs. My father grabbed my hand and drags me to the couch. He tosses me like a sack of potatoes.

"Dear, I have such grand news for you!" He folds his fingers together and leans forward. His smile reaches the tips of his lips as I see the perfectly straight, white teeth.

"What's the good news?" I crossed my arms and crossed my legs over too.

"You're getting married!" He claps his hands together with such glee that it made me jump in my seat.

"Excuse me?! What do you mean when you said I would be getting married! I'm only seventeen now! At least wait until I'm eighteen . Who is the person I will get married off to?"

He sits back in his chair and crosses his fingers across his lap. "This boy, he's a little reclusive from the rest of the world...he has been, according to my friend, that is."

"Reclusive?"

"He's never been outside for twelve years due to a tragic accident when he was little. He was hit by a car and that caused him to be paralyzed for the rest of his life.

"He's paralyzed? I'm going to marry a person that can't do much? How did someone like me end up in such a stupid situation?'

My father smiled a little as he chuckled, "He's getting a lot of help from a person that became his first friend a few weeks ago. They took a camping trip so that he could get some experience with it.

"Who's this person?"

He tosses two pictures on the table, "That girl is named Silya Emerson, and this boy is named Jaylin Hennery," they are the ones you will be meeting in a couple of days."

"How old is are they?"

"The boy is seventeen and that girl is sixteen. It looks like you're the same age as Jaylin which is why you would be perfect to marry him right now while you still can."

The guy had blond hair and gray eyes. There was not a smile on his face at all. It occurred to me that this guy probably didn't know how to smile. When it all comes down to the truth, the kind of life he had lived all these years might have been one full of loneliness. The girl had long straight black hair and brown eyes. She was smiling slightly as if she were being forced to take a school picture. She was the one that was his first friend, huh? From the looks of it, they both seemed to be the exact opposite of each other, so how did they end up meeting in the first place?

"I'm not going to marry someone like him, Father. Don't make me laugh. This guy just doesn't look like the kind of guy who would want to be bothered with something as trivial as love or marriage. I don't really care for this anyway." I started to get up and walk off.

"Wait, I set up a meeting for you to meet with that boy's father in two days, so don't think you can take this matter lightly." He grabs my shoulder tightly.

"What time will I be meeting this man?"

"Four o'clock."

I started walking out of the room again, "Fine. But don't expect me to go along with this whole plan of yours so easily."

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"My dear, Frica! How nice it is to meet such a charming looking young lady!" The man in front of me was tall and had his hair brushed back. He looked to be in his mid forties. He led me into a big room that appeared to be his office. it had a chair in the middle of a big brown desk and another chair facing it. The man offers me a seat and I patiently sit down.

"So, you must be Mr. Hennery, otherwise known as the Headmaster of this fine establishment." I smile gently at him and try my best to sound as pleasant as possible.

"You are such a smart girl! I can't wait until he meets you in just a few days. I mean, you're practically perfect for him!" He claps his hands together joyfully.

"I was told that your son's name was Jaylin. It will be interesting to see what he is like in person."

"Ah yes...I'm sure you are quite right, young miss." He lets out a nervous laugh as he rubs his head with his hand, "I apologize for my late introduction, but I am the Headmaster, you may call me Headmaster, if you wish.

I am Frica Brown, it is a pleasure to meet you, Headmaster. "

The next hour or so, we talk over the matter of his son. I listened quietly as I slowly came to learn more about this guy that I was to meet in a few days. Jaylin has a sister that he had not met yet. His mother ran away from home and he has been on his own for twelve years. This was all that I really listened to . The Headmaster went on to talk about the girl named Silya. Apparently, she was a person that had trespassed onto their property one night. She had continued to visit him for the last few weeks and later, had made an agreement with the Headmaster to teach Jaylin about the real world before he would marry me. It seemed like a basic story of an arranged marriage and there was nothing I could do about it.

"The reason why your father and I agreed that you and Jaylin should marry is because I want him to pass on to become the family heir. He needs a suitable wife and your father generously offered me an opportunity to meet you and talk to you. So what do you think? Frica, would you like to marry him?"

I nod my head in agreement, "I would love to do so."

Why couldn't I get married to a wealthy heir? My father and mother were nothing more than selfish people that swam in their fame. It was reasonable for me to do the same. I was a good person with a high standing in society.

There was no reason for me to turn down an offer that had seemed good for me to say yes to.

"Great, he will be home in a day with Silya. I'm sure she is excited to meet you as well."

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The night was hard for me to sleep through. I kept getting up out of my bed, pacing around nervously as I bit my finger nails. What if this Jaylin person ended up not liking me? If that was the case, then my future would be gone.

What about that girl, Silya? What if she doesn't like me and gets in the way of me and Jaylin? Silya had most likely already heard about me. I kept trying to tell myself that I had nothing to worry about. It seemed like nothing could convince me though. Tomorrow was going to happen for all of us and it didn't matter what eac one of us thought of each other now. What ever happened would happen for the best and that was all that was to this whole thing.