Platonic [Ongoing]

Chapter 11

I opened my phone while I was in the van going home. My segments were trending, so I laughed at some memes.

The comments are mostly good, so I don't care about the negative ones because if they're not one, two, maybe three, they're just bitter. There are still more positive comments..."

When I got home, I saw that Carl was talking to someone on the phone. When he saw me, I heard him say goodbye to the person he was talking to.

"It's my mom," he said with a smile.

"Oh nice, what did she say?" I replied as I sat down, feeling tired.

"She said it's about dinner at the house." Carl answer.

They have so many dinners in one month; I think they have about ten parties or dinners.

"Why?" I asked.

"she wants to apologize." Carl said.

"Are you going? If you're not going, then I won't go either," he added.

My family might be there again. I don't want to see them yet, even though my mom apologized. I still don't want to see them for now.

"Are mom and dad there?" I asked.

"They're not there. I asked about it, and mom said they're not. It's with my relatives, she said." Carl answer.

"That's a pity if you can't go. What time is it?" I asked.

"It's in the afternoon, so are we going?" he asked.

"Yes, just wait a moment while I get ready," I replied and went upstairs to my room.

It's 3 in the afternoon, so I put on some simple makeup and curled my hair. I wore a comfortable long white dress with long sleeves.

When I came downstairs, I saw Carl wearing just a white polo. Wow, we matched outfit color!

He looked at me and smiled, saying, "You really prepared for this, huh?" so I laughed.

I went to the car and we left at around 4:01. We were delayed by traffic on the highway, so we arrived in the dark at 6:21. The drive to their house took about an hour, plus the traffic.

When we arrived, there were a lot of people, so I ended up holding onto my dress.

"You have so many relatives," I said as I placed my hand on his arm before we went inside.

He just laughed, and we went inside. We found a large set of tables, and one table, where Mrs. Lopez was seated, really caught my attention.

There was so much champagne and food there, surrounded by women who were probably in their mid-40s.

Mrs. Lopez was laughing, but when she saw us, her smile faded when she saw me. However, she smiled again when she turned to Carl.

"Son!," Mrs. Lopez said as she stood up and kissed Carl. She turned to me and also kissed me, but didn't smile. "Please have a seat."

Carl pulled out a chair at one end of the table, so I sat there, and then he sat down as well. It was really awkward because everyone was staring at us.

"Are you here already, hiji" said an older woman, probably his aunt.

Carl just smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, with my wife." So, I smiled at them.

Mrs. Lopez pursed her lips and said nothing, but I could feel that she didn't want me there.

They talked about different things while Carl and I just ate. I was surprised when they started talking about me.

"Hija, are you sure about modeling? It might be better if you just stay at home," said an older woman with a smile.

Here we go again. I'm so tired of hearing that it's better for me to stay at home. It's exhausting.

"You're right, mare. Your husband will inherit the company someday, so it's better for you to have a child and stay at home," said another woman.

"Aunt!" Carl's voice was serious, but I spoke up, so everyone turned their attention to me.

"This is my dream, so I have the freedom to pursue it. I wasn't born just to please Carl, serve him, or bear his child. I was born to be a model," I said with a smile, looking at them.

Everyone fell silent, so I spoke again, "And I don't plan to have a child," I said.

"Oh my God, hija, don't say things like that. You're not going to have children? What about the future of our company? No one will inherit it after Carl! Hija, say you're kidding," Mrs. Lopez said, shocked and seriously angry.

"Mom, it's my wife's decision not to have kids with me, so stop pressuring her," Carl said.

"Carl, dear, you might get tired of that, constantly adjusting to a wife who only thinks of herself," Mrs. Lopez said with a worried tone.

Only thinking of myself? So if I don't have children, I'm selfish? What a woman, Mrs. Lopez, and you're a woman yourself.

"That's not how it is, Mom. She's not selfish, and besides, it's her body, not mine, so it's her decision," Carl said, holding my hand under the table, which made me look down.

Mrs. Lopez just frowned and continued chatting with others. Carl whispered to me.

"Do you want to go home?" he asked in a gentle voice.

"It's up to you," I replied. We said our goodbyes to the people at the table, they agreed, so we left and took a walk.

"Sorry for what my mom and aunts said. I'm sorry for all of that," Carl said, making me smile at him.

"It's not your fault," I said, laughing.

"When I was a kid, I was always discriminated against by my parents. I was removed from the succession because I'm a woman, and I thought it was over since I became a model and achieved success. But the next step of that discrimination is trying to force me to be a housewife and have children," I suddenly said as we walked.

"It's hard to be a woman. Others don't understand that I can do what men do too, but there's nothing I can do to please them," I continued as he listened.

"My mom told me when I was in high school that she wondered how she could be a mother to a daughter when, as a child, she was told that only son mattered. I don't understand why she's making me go through this again if she's already experienced the hardship herself," I said, smiling.

"They arranged the marriage between my mom and dad to settle the debts of my mom's family with my dad's family, so there's no love in my house," I laughed and looked at him. "What about you?"

"Well, I was raised well. They took good care of me, but there was a big difference in how they raised me compared to Kyle. He was so spoiled that he even took my toys. He was removed from the succession because of that issue, and I took his place. That's all there is to it," he said. I just smiled and we continued walking.

As we were walking, a woman suddenly blocked our path. She was dressed beautifully, so I looked at Carl, and he looked very shocked.

"Ayesha" Carl whispered.