Tied To You

Ll

Marriage Contract

Ava looked out the glass window. Seeing the beautiful city gave Ava an in-depth look at what her life is going to be like once she is married.

"Ava, in these last few months, you never questioned my motives." Her father asked as he watched his daughter overlook the city. He took a seat at his desk waiting for Ava's response.

"Why do I need too. I know your intentions for me are well and I trust you."  Ava turned away from the glass window and looked at her father who was intently focused, scrolling through his iPad.

"Ava trust is a big word and remember, to trust no one, but yourself. I can't emphasize enough how important that is."  Her father said as he placed his iPad on his desk and swiveled his chair to the far right corner to where the printer was at.

"So you mean to say not to trust you." Ava said with her arms crossed and annoyance all over her face because of the lack of attention her father was giving her.

"Don't trust people in general. Trust only in yourself. I'm not saying to not trust me. You choose whether or not to have trust in me, that's what I mean by having trust in yourself." Now Ava finally understood why people in her family would tell her to trust no one, they wanted her to trust the choices she makes. That was her family's way of building confidence.

"Sit down now Ava, Michael is on his way up." Her father said readjusting himself back to his desk.

"How do you possibly know that without an assistant telling you this?" She stubbornly asked her father who was clipping the papers he printed into a clean legal folder. He didn't say a word, but pointed to the PBX system that was resting among the other items on his desk. The PBX system was blinking by that Ava sat down. Somehow she was curious as to who was assisting her father and why he wouldn't say.

"If you're wondering how I know he's here, it's not just the PBX System. I have a lot of CCTV cameras here in this company and I have access to ALL the footage. I can see who enters and exits this building, the elevators, and all the floors. I also have cameras in the house that I monitor as well. Make technology your friend while also being observant." Ava looked around for a camera in sight. Her parents weren't joking when they say not to trust anyone. The fact that her father monitors everything gave Ava anxiety because she knows she's going to have to uphold this position after she gets married.

"So let's begin."

"Shouldn't we wait for Michael?"

"He's late."

"Dad he still has 10 minutes, be patient." Alvin clenched his fist under his desk, to prevent showing anger. If Ava thought her grandfather was a scary person mad no one dares to cross Alvin Montenegro, he may be more forgiving and fair than his father but his rage stems deeper and only a few have witnessed the anger boiling inside Alvin.

Michael comes in exactly at 12:00 and Alvin's look as Michael came in the door was an angered one. "I was expecting a businessman like you Michael, to be early. You being on time isn't going to work for me. If there's one thing we business men have learned during our time in business school is if you're early you're considered on time, if you're on time then it is considerate late. This is your first offense young man and I won't tolerate any more of it after today. Now have a seat and we will proceed with business." Michael in his navy blue suit kissed Ava on the forehead and sat down as he nodded at Alvin's stern statement. Ava now understood why her dad was always early to absolutely everything. It was something she has to get use to.

The two sat attentively has Alvin went over the contract once again, " So we've reviewed the terms and conditions of this contract and went over what happens during a breech of contract, what's next is to sign the consent form. By signing this consent form, you give me permission to release media relating to or about you."

Michael looked hesitantly at his future father-in-law, he knew he couldn't trust any Montenegro young or old. He turned to Ava, no expression was on her face. However the pen in her hand was evident that she was going to sign the consent form, but before the pen hit the paper he stopped her. He shook his head at her and Ava dropped the pen on the table. Ava didn't know what she would be getting into if she gave her father media consent.

"Michael, please let my daughter sign the consent form." Alvin said calmly

"Daddy let me hear what he has to say." Ava said to her father. She knew there was reason why Michael stopped her from signing the consent form.

"Ava if you sign that consent form you won't be able to make a name for yourself the way you want to. You're giving your dad permission to do absolutely anything he wants with your name.

You're not thinking about the repercussions of that. The media can slander your name, or make you an enemy to people you've never met before to benefit a certain person or party. If you want to make a name for yourself, do it on your own terms. It's up to you whether or not you want to sign the consent form. I am just here to inform you." Michael said giving her a relaxed look.

"Trust no one, but yourself." Ava's conscience spoke to her, she looked at both her father and Michael before she came to a decision.

"Trust your gut Ava." Her subconscious said to her. She put the pen down and passed the consent form back to her father. "I'll pass on that dad."

Her father nodded as he closed the folder containing the consent form. He opened the bottom drawer and took out another folder containing Michael and Ava's marriage license. "What I have here is your marriage license. As soon as you sign this, you're officially married on paper." He handed the pen to Ava whom she passed the pen to Michael upon signing.
"Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. Solis, so for the next six weeks just live your life as usual and we will reconvene a week or two before the wedding. This meeting is adjourned."