To You, with Love

CHAPTER TWENTY

Amelia

Since I was a kid, I have always wanted to prove my parents wrong. I worked extremely hard all by myself to get where I am. It may sound easier said than done, but we're all humans who have breakdowns and fail miserably, but we pick ourselves back up and start over again until we finally succeed.

That's the only way to become successful, and you should never depend on anyone else to make you successful. You should do it yourself so that you will feel relieved by the end.  

If you trust that what you're doing is right, do it regardless of the consequences. That is exactly what I have done, and I am happy with my decisions.

But when it comes to this, I have no choice but to hear their decisions. It was another morning, so my mother was in the kitchen, while my father ate his breakfast. I approached them and broke the silence by saying, "Good morning, Mother and Father; I need to talk to you about something." My father was about to leave when I signaled for him to take a seat. He sat back down and exchanged eyes with my mother.

"I'm going to bring someone home tonight." I sighed then added, "There is no need to cook, mother. I just want you both to be there." They both had a confused look on their faces, so I had to say, "I'll explain everything tonight, so don't worry." I smiled at them before leaving the house.

It wasn't easy to look my parents in the eyes and tell them everything. I couldn't sleep all night worrying about what I should say to them.

I spent the entire day with Grace, trying to forget about what was about to happen tonight. By the time it became dark, I realized I hadn't gotten Asher's phone number, so I had to email him.

He showed up at the perfect time, just as we had planned. I didn't go inside because I knew they'd ask me, so I waited for him.

The first thing he said was, "You're shivering." He started to take off his coat and then said, "Here." I can't walk home with his coat on.

"It's okay, we're going inside anyway." I smiled, trying to hide my nervousness. "Don't worry, I'll be by your side," He pulled me closer and kissed my forehead.

I smiled once again, and we started making our way inside. "Are you ready?" I asked. "I'm ready to go through anything just to be with you." It was the first time we actually held hands, and my hands seemed colder than his.

When I tried to use my keys, the door was already unlocked. When I pushed the door open, the first thing I saw was my parents sitting in front of the TV in the living room.

They walked towards us as soon as they heard the door close. I can already see millions of questions on their faces. "Good evening," I began.

Asher approached my father and offered a handshake. He then walked to my mother. What a strange situation.

I cleared my throat and said, "Mother, Father, this is Asher." I paused before adding, "My boyfriend." Their eyes grew wider. I'm pretty sure I said it wrong. The whole room fell silent. I can hear my own breaths.

My mother started walking around the house. Father didn't say anything; he just stood there.

My mother was the first to speak up: "You were always so mysterious that I knew one day you'd do something unexpected." She paused before continuing, "You're an adult now. We can't make every decision for you, which means, you can't just bring the first man you've seen on the streets to our house and declare him to be your boyfriend." She breathed deeply and added, "That's why we forbid all of you from dating because one day you'll come to me crying because he left you with bigger problems. You didn't think of this, did you? You thought you were living in a fairytale in which he would love you unconditionally."

"Does your mister over there know that you were going to marry Cassian?" She asked, keeping her eyes on Asher and pointing to him.

We both fell silent. She began to laugh, then stopped. She began rubbing her forehead, then continued, "Look, if you're doing this to end your marriage with Cassian. Then you don't have to. Cassian has already said that he does not want an arranged marriage if you don't want one. So don't worry, we're not marrying you off to Cassian." She finally looked at me.

I was about to say something when she interrupted me and said, "I don't want to hear you say anything. I'd like to talk with that man over there." She finally let us in.

"So tell me, what did you say to her to make her fall head over heels for you?" She smirked as she asked. "Oh wait, I'll change my question," she interrupted him once again. She paused before asking, "Are you ready to marry her?" Something about Asher's eyes made me relax.

He gave my mother a determined look. "Mrs. Oliver, your daughter means everything to me, and there's no one I'd rather spend the rest of my life with than her. If she agrees to spend the rest of her life with me, I'll definitely marry her." He smiled at me, and I smiled back.

"You do understand that marriage isn't as perfect as you believe it is?" She sighed.

"The first rule of marriage is to never fall in love because you will be blinded by love and jealousy. Since you will eventually have kids as well. Do you truly believe that love is what will raise your children?" She chuckled then said, "That's why, in order to have a happy family, you need to respect each other and only focus on what's real, not those fantasies, because you'll end up regretting it in the end." She sighed and began walking to the kitchen. "Your name is Asher, right?" He nodded in response as she asked.

"You seem like a businessman, then you do understand that you won't have much time to spend with her, right?" He nodded again. "That's good." She paused, then said, "Both of you, follow me."

We followed her to the dining room, where I was surprised to see a table full of food. I smiled, then approached my mother and said, "Thank you so much for this dinner, and I'm sorry if I angered you. I just didn't want to keep this relationship a secret from you because we're both serious about it."

She gave me a gentle smile before resting her hand on my cheek and saying, "I think I realized why you've been mysterious all this time." She looked down then added, “I wasn't always there for you.”

After hearing her words, I feel like crying. "It's just that you grew up so quickly that we didn't realize you were getting older." She spoke. "I'm not going to say anything about your relationship, but remember that nothing lasts forever, so make the right decision before it's too late." I nodded, and we all sat at the table.

What a twist of events! My mother is now talking with Asher, while my father is staring at us without saying anything. I think I have realized something. My father was always the problem.

It is said that mothers prefer sons and that fathers prefer daughters. If this is true, then my theory is right. If my father had cared even a bit, I would have never become attached to every man who showed me a little attention.

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading this chapter. I hope you enjoyed reading it. Please make sure to comment your thoughts.

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